Monday 15 May 2017

Jackdaw Village





Hailes Castle  -   East Lothian

The original  building,a tower house,was begun in the late twelve hundreds by Hugo de Gourley
 and over the following 300 hundred years subsequent owners added extensions to fit their needs.

Today it is home to families of Jackdaws and the ghostly "Lady in White" 





Jackdaw's nest in a niche high in the Great Hall
Noisy chicks exercise their vocal chords out of  danger's way.
This was one of many nests in out of reach spaces in the walls. These birds are known
for collecting shiny objects while nest building. When I was a child a friend and I spent hours searching in
old buildings and climbing trees looking for jewels which we were sure had been secreted away in Jackdaw nests
....but we never found the treasure!
  




Information board illustration

Above  -  The Medieval lord's table
Below  -  How the castle may have looked in the 16th century





The buildings are in a very ruined state and no decorative features remain.













Inner courtyard with the 13th century protective curtain wall on the left.
Behind the wall a water filled ditch added further protection on the landward side.





The tower block








Pigeon nesting compartments above the dungeon
 Pigeons would have been a convenient source of food for the household





Farmland viewed from the back of the building,overlooking the River Tyne









19th century cottage on the perimeter the castle grounds.





I found these ladies on Pinterest - at some point their dress would have suited the setting.
They certainly look aristocratic!




Thank you for visiting





Shared with :    All Seasons    Mosaic Monday   Our World Tuesday   Tuesday's Treasures

Image 1  -  Jackdaw - image source Wikipedia

24 comments:

Anonymous said...

Personally I love ruins - they represent so much history! All the nooks and crannies and the weathered stone! The plowed field is awesome! Many thanks for sharing the different angles of your narrative of this experience with All Seasons. Not to mention, I am thrilled you re back:):) Have a lovely week!

Rajesh said...

Interesting shots. The ruins are amazing.

Karen @ Beatrice Euphemie said...

How beautiful! So much history here. Lovely, expressive painting, too.

s.c said...

Ha architecture without architects. Still make an impression.

Prunella Pepperpot said...

What a wonderful place to visit. It looks so peaceful there. Love the jackdaw.
Have a wonderful Wednesday :)

biebkriebels said...

Beautiful post with the castle ruins and the area.

Lady Fi said...

Lovely shots of the ruins.

Maggie said...

What a fascinating place to visit, I love to spend time wandering around old castles like this one. Thanks for the tour.

Christine said...

Thanks so much for a fantastic tour and amazing views across the farmland!

stardust said...

Dear Ruby - What atmospheric ruins! The beautiful natural verdant surroundings make the ruins look more attractive. I like the plowed fields including the stretching lines on the slightly rolling ground. Thank you for this photo tour.

Yoko

Tom said...

...Rudy, what a wonderful countryside! when I see ruins that this my mind starts spinning, trying to imagine what things were like in their glory. Thanks so much for sharing, please stop back again.

DeniseinVA said...

Amazing place as are your photos :) The Jackdaw is an interesting bird, liking all those shiny things?

A Colorful World said...

Such a wonderful post! I love the ruins...beautiful there on the river. Such stories it must have held! Did you ever find any of the jackdaw's treasures? What a wonderful place for a child to sharpen their imaginations! I'm jealous! :-)

carol l mckenna said...

What a fascinating place and beginning photos are so creative ~ lovely nature photography ~ thanks,
Happy Week to you ~ ^_^

Sallie (FullTime-Life) said...

Thank you for guiding this tour! I love this place... who is the Lady In White? Did I miss something about her? I'll go read your post again and then off to Google for more info about this remarkable place and history.

Small City Scenes said...

How can anything being so ruined be so beautiful----and it is!
MB

Judith @ Lavender Cottage said...

Lovely old ruins, the kind of place I like to poke around.

Rose said...

Oh, my I love any old place like that, and that it is made with rocks is even better. I thought the jackdaw looked like our crows, too.

Minoru Saito said...

Hi! Nice captures. My wife and I visited your country from April to May.

dritanje said...

I do like jackdaws. And the image 'at the lord's table' is so good, I enjoy the details in the expressions! It looks like you had good weather.
M xx

betty-NZ said...

I enjoy places like this. They leave room for a vivid imagination! Thanks for the info about the castle, especially the pigeons.

Tomoko said...

Such a beautiful place to walk,Ruby. I like the ruins and the field is simply beautiful. My break is going to be over soon. I look forward to visiting you again.
Have a good day.

Tammie Lee said...

Wonderful photos, one and all!
I love that you looked for stolen and hidden jewels with your friend. Fun!

Minoru Saito said...

Hi! I like these kinds of ruins very much. I like old castles too. Wishing you have nice days.

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