Earthwork record MAB43628 - CASTLE OF WARDHOUSE

Remains of a homestead moat/castle.

Remains of a homestead moat/castle. All that is now visible is a dry ditch and outer rampart, now spread by cultivation. No traces of structures survive within area. The earliest reference to the castle, as 'Weredors Castle', was in the 1220s when it was described as 'the moated homestead' of Sir Bartholomew the Fleming. Between 1453 - 1650, Wardhouse Castle, or 'Wardres Castle', was owned by the Leslies of Balquhain. In 1730, James Gordon of Beldorney is mentioned as the owner of 'Warderis'. A brief battle is recorded as having taking place at the castle on 25th March 1647 during the Covenanter Wars, when the 'Young Leith of Harthill' attempted to defend the castle against General Alexander Leslie. Leslie was victorious, and Harthill was captured, imprisoned and executed in Edinburgh. The castle is reported to have been in a ruinous state by the 18th Century. Advanced plough erosion prompted rescue excavation at the moated site of Castle of Wardhouse in 1988, overseen by P. Yeoman under the auspices of the Historic Buildings and Monuments Directorate (now Historic Environment Scotland). An integrated programme of work involving aerial photography, field survey, geophysical survey, palynological analysis and excavation was carried out enabling interpretation of the complex development of the site in its historic environment (beyond this, palynology indicates human intervention in the environs since at least 5000 BP). The geophysical survey was carried out first, in 1987, by Geophysical Surveys Ltd. Resistivity was employed to detect possible stone structures within the enclosed summit area, and magnetometry was used to investigate the nature of the ditch network. Both techniques worked well, even though the igneous bedrock was close to the surface in places. Areas of high resistance on the platform were identified as the possible remains of stone buildings and surfaces. The line of a curtain wall or rampart was also recorded, curving around the summit edge. The magnetometer survey located the triple set of main enclosing ditches already seen on aerial photos. Additional possible concentric outer ditch lines were also recorded, especially to the northwest. A complicated and confused pattern of ditches was indicated to the north and highlighted as a possible entrance, including a terminal of the inner ditch. A large feature was indicated running across the contours on the south-west summit edge. Subsurface Interface Radar (SIR) was also carried out, the first application of the technique in Scotland. Two transects were surveyed, producing a trace representing a vertical slice through the site, displaying all major interfaces. As well as displaying the profiles of the three ditches investigated in 1988 through excavation, the SIR also provided a section through a fourth ditch, which was 2.5 m wide by 1.2m deep. This transect produced the only evidence of a curtain wall located on the summit edge, just inside the inner ditch. Four areas across the site were investigated. In area 1, a trench, 25m north/south by 9m in width, was stripped from the top of the platform north to the base of the mound, an overall drop in height of around 2m. This identified a segment of the inner ditch and, on the summit, two large pits and an area of paving with a stone-built drain. In Area 2, the results of the geophysical survey had indicated the possibility of surfaces and stone buildings surviving in the central part of the summit area. A large trench was laid out here, aligned north/south and measuring 24m by 5m. The topsoil was fairly rich in finds of all periods, ranging from prehistoric flints to post-medieval pottery and bottle or window glass. This was removed to reveal a considerable number of cut features - including two shallow trenches and numerous postholes - all of which were severely truncated by ploughing. Recent plough furrows were observed throughout the area. There were two possible hearth sites, but no stone surfaces or stone structures survived. Almost all of the infilled features had been modified by burrowing animals. Area 3 was laid out across the contours on the south-west side of the mound, to provide a transect through the defences and into the interior. The trench was 38m long (northeast/southwest) by 3.3m in width, with the upper part - on the shoulder of the mound - enlarged to 6m in width. Four stratigraphic phases could be identified in this area, representing an old ground surface (OGS) consisting of tilled soil, followed by two separate episodes of earthwork construction and, finally, the infilling of the ditches. Area 4 was located at the base of the naturally steep east side of the castle mound, an area which has been persistently wet. Two trenches were excavated, during which thick organic mud was revealed below the topsoil at a depth of 0.7 m. However, proper sampling was prevented due to the trenches rapidly filling with water. A small quantity of the organic material was successfully collected, and was analysed soon after the excavation was completed. It was found to contain sufficient pollen to justify further investigation. A comprehensive programme o0f environmental analysis was carried out as part of the 1988 excavations, including soil analysis, plant remains analysis, faunal remains analysis and pollen analysis. A subsequent programme of pollen coring was carried out at the site in 1989, by P. Yeoman with P. Cundhill of St Andrews University. A variety of artefacts were recovered during the excavations, including pottery, metal work, lithics and fabric. The pottery assemblage consists of 187 medieval sherds and 49 sherds of 18th and 19th century pottery. Most of the medieval sherds appear to be of local manufacture, dating from the 14th or 15th centuries. Imports from the north of England and the Low Countries are also present. The assemblage was examined for 'joins' (ie joining sherds), a large number of which were found, particularly between sherds from different features, which must reflect the disturbed nature of the site. The sherds from Area 1 and 3 seem to be the least disturbed, as the sherds were larger and less abraded than in Area 2 where the site had suffered severe plough damage. The sherds mainly represent jugs, although this is probably a reflection of the small size of the assemblage and sherd survival. Only 13 base sherds, 10 handles and four rim sherds were recovered, the rest being body sherds. The jugs appear to be partly glazed, with clear glaze on the neck and shoulders, and with some occurrence of applied pellet and strip decoration. Nine pieces of worked flint and a large number of pieces of quartz were recovered. A number of copper-alloy objects were found, mostly dating to the 16th and 17th centuries, including a lace end with fabric attached. Various iron objects were found, including horse equipment, leather and textile working equipment and structural ironwork, as well as residual iron-working debris. Two coins were recovered, both from Area 2, one a Charles I or Charles II copper turner (1642-50 or 1663 issue) and one Charles VII-Francois I (France) copper double tournois (probably circa 1436-1540). Many sherds of wine bottle and window glass were found, as well as 26 fragments of clay tobacco pipes (17th century). An additional unusual discovery was made in the dyke surrounding a modern house, 300m northeast of the site. Incorporated into the dyke is a stone displaying a skull and single long bone, framed by the crudely cut letters spelling MIMNTO MORI. The 'N' is reversed, indicating that this is probably the work of an illiterate stone carver. The stone measures 0.82m by 0.55m. The image is commonly found on tombstones of 17th century date, although this is considered more likely to be from a window pediment of the tower house.

Period Notes
Mentioned in a writ of 1253; destroyed 1647. A chapel existed in 1230.

AB/6091 (1976), AB/6091 (1976) (Air-oblique Photograph). SAB13607.

ORDNANCE SURVEY, 1871, Ordnance Name Book, No46(1866) 19 (Bibliographic reference). SAB1360.

DAVIDSON, J, 1878, INVERURIE & EARLDOM OF GARIOCH, 222-3 (Bibliographic reference). SAB349.

YOUNG, I, 1896, RELIQU & ILLUS ARCH No1,142-5 (Bibliographic reference). SAB2141.

SIMPSON, WD, 1935, PSAS 69(1934-5) 460-71, 460-70 (Bibliographic reference). SAB1664.

TALBOT, E, 1974, SAF 6, 48-57, 48-57 (Bibliographic reference). SAB1910.

YEOMAN, P, 1988, MOTTES IN NE SCOTLAND., 125-33 (Bibliographic reference). SAB2143.

YEOMAN, P, 1998, EXCAVATIONS AT CASTLE OF WARDHOUSE, ABERDEENSHIRE. PSAS 128 (1998) 581 - 617, PSAS 128, pp581-617 (Bibliographic reference). SAB2154.

BOGDAN, N, 2008, EARLY CASTLES OF ABERDEENSHIRE (Bibliographic reference). SAB3811.

DRANSART, P, 2008, PROSPECT AND EXCAVATION OF MOATED SITES, p.123-124 (Bibliographic reference). SAB4035.

HARRIS, C. R., 2010, DUNNIDEER AND WARDHOUSE - FROM NEOLITHIC TIMES TO NOW! (Bibliographic reference). SAB4367.

Dec 11 1981 , AAS/81/12/S12/37A, AAS/81/12/S12/37A (Air-oblique Photograph). SAB13606.

Jan 1 1986 , AAS/GR/86/CT116,118, AAS/GR/86/CT116,118 (Ground Photograph). SAB32677.

Author unknown, n.d., NSA, (1845) 750 (Bibliographic reference). SAB1269.

Author unknown, n.d., SCOTLAND ON SUNDAY, 24/02/2002 (Bibliographic reference). SAB1901.

Nov 25 1981 , AAS/81/12/CT 13,16,33, AAS/81/12/CT 13,16,33 (Air-oblique Photograph). SAB18707.

Record last edited

Nov 14 2025 10:56AM