Borthwick Castle

Late medieval stronghold in Midlothian unitary authority, Scotland, 21 km/13 mi southeast of Edinburgh, founded in 1430. Constructed on a previously fortified promontory site, it is probably the most complete of the great 15th-century towers of Scotland. The restored castle is now a hotel.

In 1567 the insurgent lords rallied before the castle, where Mary Queen of Scots had been staying with her third husband James Hepburn Bothwell. Bothwell, recently acquitted for the assassination of Mary's second husband, had already escaped. The castle was also besieged by the British Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell in 1650 during his conflict with the Scots, who had acknowledged Charles II their monarch. The 18th-century historian William Robertson was born at the nearby manse (Presbyterian minister's house).