Tibbers Castle

Tibbers Castle
Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland UK grid reference NY088811
The motte at Tibbers Castle
Tibbers Castle
Coordinates	55°15′51″N 3°47′32″W / 55.264167°N 3.792222°W / 55.264167; -3.792222
Type	Castle
Site information
Open to the public	No
Condition	Ruined
Site history
Built	12th /13th century; rebuilt early 14th century
Materials	Stone

Tibbers Castle is a motte-and-bailey castle overlooking a ford across the River Nith in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. To the east is the village of Carronbridge and to the north west is a 16th-century country house, Drumlanrig Castle.^[1]

Possibly built in the 12th or 13th century, Tibbers was first documented in 1298 at which point the timber castle was replaced by a stone castle. It was the administrative centre of the barony of Tibbers until the second half of the 14th century when it shifted to nearby Morton. During the Anglo-Scottish Wars of the early 14th century the castle was captured by first the Scots under Robert the Bruce and then the English, before returning to Scottish control in 1313.

The castle descended through the Earls of Moray and subsequently the Earls of March before coming under the control of the Scottish Crown. A 'toun' was established near the castle. While it is unclear at what point Tibbers Castle fell out of use, by the 18th century the site was used for agriculture. Archaeological investigations took place in 1864, 1912, and 2013–2014.