Fa'side Castle


(Falside Castle, Fawside Castle)

Fa'side Castle (1982)
©2022 Gazetteer for Scotland

Fa'side Castle (1982)

Located in East Lothian, a mile (1.5 km) southeast of Wallyford and 2 miles (3 km) southwest of the town of Tranent, Fa'side Castle was built in the 14th Century as a 4 storey keep. It was destroyed during the Battle of Pinkie in 1547, but rebuilt with an 'L' plan mansion added next to it in the late 16th century. Ruined by the end of the 19th Century and on the verge of demolition in the early 1970s, the castle was saved by a group chaired by historian Nigel Tranter (1909 - 2000) and underwent a comprehensive programme of restoration completed in 1982. The castle is now in private ownership.

The name was first recorded in 1189, when a charter granted the lands of Fa'side from the monks of Newbattle Abbey to the De Quincey family and it was this family who built the first castle on the site. The de Quinceys lost their land to Robert the Bruce after they gave their support to Edward I of England. Subsequently the lands passed through the hands of the Seton, Fawside, Hamilton and Dundas of Arniston families.


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