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27-592: Gilnockie Tower is a 17th-century tower house , located at the hamlet of Hollows, 2.2 km north of Canonbie , in Dumfriesshire , south-west Scotland . The tower is situated on the west bank of the River Esk . It was originally known as Hollows Tower . Gilnockie Castle is a separate, but nearby site. The name Gilnockie is from the Scottish Gaelic Geal Cnocan meaning 'Little White Hill'. Hollows

54-667: A castle town was often constructed. After their initial appearance in Ireland, Scotland, the Frisian lands , Northern Spain and England during the High Middle Ages , tower houses were also built in other parts of western Europe, especially in parts of France and Italy. In Italian medieval communes , urban palazzi with a very tall tower were increasingly built by the local highly competitive patrician families as power centres during times of internal strife. Most north Italian cities had

81-570: A country as the result of a revolution against them, such as the French Revolution . The term aristocracy derives from the Greek ἀριστοκρατία ( aristokratia from ἄριστος ( aristos ) 'excellent' and κράτος ( kratos ) 'power'). In most cases, aristocratic titles were and are hereditary. The term aristokratia was first used in Athens with reference to young citizens (the men of

108-497: A means of exercising control over the conquered areas. These tower houses were typically not intended to be used in any major military actions. For this purpose, the crusaders relied on a number of larger order castles . A number of such tower houses still exist, well-preserved examples include Purtse , Vao and Kiiu castles in Estonia . One theory suggests that private tower-like structures proliferate in areas where central authority

135-610: A number of these by the end of the Middle Ages, but few now remain, notably two towers in Bologna , twenty towers in Pavia and fourteen secular towers in the small city of San Gimignano in Tuscany now the best group to survive. Scotland has many fine examples of medieval tower houses, including Drum Castle , Craigievar Castle and Castle Fraser , and in the unstable Scottish Marches along

162-626: A single family, some by several families together or by entire village communities. Most notable in the New World might be considered a focal element of the Mesa Verde Anasazi ruin in Colorado , United States. There is a prominent structure at that site which is called the "tower house" and has the general appearance characteristics of its counterparts in Britain and Ireland. This four-story building

189-559: Is a compound word stemming from the singular of aristoi , aristos ( ἄριστος ), and the Greek word for power, kratos ( κράτος ). From the ancient Greeks, the term passed to the European Middle Ages for a similar hereditary class of military leaders, often referred to as the nobility . As in Greece, this was a class of privileged men and women whose familial connections to

216-575: Is historically associated with a "hereditary" or a "ruling" social class . In many states, the aristocracy included the upper class of people (aristocrats) with hereditary rank and titles. In some, such as ancient Greece , ancient Rome , or India , aristocratic status came from belonging to a military class. It has also been common, notably in African and Oriental societies, for aristocrats to belong to priestly dynasties. Aristocratic status can involve feudal or legal privileges. They are usually below only

243-811: Is weak, leading to a need for a status symbol incorporating private defences against small-scale attacks. For example, the North Caucasus was a country where fierce competition over limited natural resources led to chronic feuding between neighbours. There are numerous examples of tower houses in Svanetia , Chechnya and Ingushetia , where a clan-like social structure survived well into the 20th century. Numerous examples of Svan tower houses are found in Chazhashi and Ushguli . See Vainakh tower architecture for details. The Yemeni city of Shibam has hundreds of tower houses. Similarly, hundreds of Tibetan tower houses dot

270-523: The Basque Country , some of them dating to the 8th century. They were mainly used as noble residences and were able to provide shelter against enemies, starting with the Muslims and later Aragón and Castile . Due to complex legal charters, few had boroughs attached to them, thus they are usually found standing alone in some strategic spot like a crossroad, rather than on a height. During the petty wars among

297-504: The 2nd millennium BC, with the slab having been reused in the building. The site now known as Gilnockie Castle lies near Canonbie at the east end of Gilnockie Bridge, which crosses the Esk in Hollows, just 500 m to the south east ( NY386782 ). Today, only an earthwork remains, and there is some doubt as to whether a tower stood there, although it is possible that the earlier tower destroyed in 1528

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324-624: The Balkans since the Middle Ages . They became very widespread in the 17th century, built by both Christians and Muslims in a period of decline of Ottoman authority and insecurity. The tower house served the purpose of protecting the extended family. In the Baltic states , the Teutonic Order and other crusaders erected fortified tower houses in the Middle Ages, locally known as "vassal castles", as

351-775: The Basque nobles from 1379 to 1456, the upper floors (with defensive capacity) of most of them were demolished. Few have survived unscathed to the present day. Since then they have been used only as residences by their traditional noble owners ( Saint Ignatius of Loyola was born in one of them, which stands to this day) or converted into farmhouses. To the west of the Basque Country, in Cantabria and Asturias similar tower houses are found. Furthest west in Spain , in Galicia , medieval tower houses are in

378-630: The Clan Armstrong are on display and there is a special section devoted to Neil Armstrong , the First Man on the Moon. In 2019, Gilnockie Tower was awarded a 4 star rating from Visit Scotland as a visitor centre. It is internationally recognised as the ancestral home of the Armstrong Clan. Gilnockie Tower is a simple rubble-built tower house of four storeys plus an attic, measuring around 10 by 7.6 metres at

405-407: The base. The basement comprises a vaulted cellar, with gun loops to south, west and north. A spiral stair in the south-west corner leads up to the first floor, devoted to a hall. Above this are two further rooms, with the attic space above between the crow-stepped gables. At the top of the wall, corbels show the presence of a parapet walk. During the repair programme carried out between 2015 and 2018,

432-457: The border between England and Scotland the peel tower was the typical residence of the wealthy, with others being built by the government. In 17th century Scotland these castles became the pleasure retreats of the upper classes. While able to adopt a military nature, they were furnished for comfort and social interaction. Tower houses are commonly found in northern Spain, especially in Navarre and

459-695: The building met the safety standards required of a 21st century visitor centre. The repairs were completed in 2018 and on 1 April 2018, Gilnockie Tower and the Clan Armstrong Centre were opened to the public. The building now consists of an authentic clan leaders house complete with furnished Grand Hall and Master Bedroom. The tower also houses the Clan Armstrong Museum, previously located in the Episcopal Church in Langholm. Many artefacts relating to

486-497: The building. The tower is a Category A listed building , and all work was carried out in consultation with the Scottish Development Department (Ancient Monuments). In January 2015, the tower was closed to the public and major repairs were commenced. The principal behind these repairs was to take the building back to as near possible of how it would have looked in the 16th century. It was also necessary to ensure that

513-399: The monarch of a country or nation in its social hierarchy . In modern European societies, the aristocracy has often coincided with the nobility , a specific class that arose in the Middle Ages , but the term "aristocracy" is sometimes also applied to other elites , and is used as a more general term when describing earlier and non-European societies. Aristocracy may be abolished within

540-581: The origin of many Modern Age pazos , noble residences as well as strongholds. Large numbers of tower houses can be found across Portugal, particularly in the north of the country. By the 15th century they had lost their military or residential uses, and were often either expanded into larger manors or converted into hunting lodges for the aristocracy. A feature peculiar to Germany is the few preserved tower houses of Ratisbon , reminiscent of those in San Gimignano. Distinctive tower houses were built in

567-438: The ruling class) who led armies at the front line. Aristokratia roughly translates to "rule of the best born". Due to martial bravery being highly regarded as a virtue in ancient Greece , it was assumed that the armies were being led by "the best". This virtue was called arete ( ἀρετή ). Etymologically, as the word developed, it also produced a more political term: aristoi ( ἄριστοι ). The term aristocracy

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594-609: The so-called Tribal Corridor in Western Sichuan , some 50 metres high with as many as 13 star-like points, and the oldest are thought to be 1,200 years old. They appear to have been created as much for prestige among village families as for defence. Kaiping and some other towns in South China retain a plethora of watchtowers, or diaolous . Although they were built mainly as protection against forays by bandits, many of them also served as living quarters. Some of them were built by

621-405: The walkway was sympathetically brought up to date to meet safety standards. This included the installation of a safety fence. A notable feature is the beacon stance, corbelled out from the south gable at the highest point of the building. The oldest part of the tower is thought to be the large stone by the doorway into the basement. Carvings of spirals and a key-like symbol are believed to date from

648-472: Was built around 1520 by Johnnie Armstrong , famous Border outlaw and younger brother of Thomas Armstrong of Mangerton . In 1528, the tower was burned by Sir Christopher Dacre, English Warden of the Western Marches, and in 1530 Johnnie and 50 followers were hanged by James V , after being tricked into joining a hunting party, an event recorded in the ballad " Johnnie Armstrong ". The tower was rebuilt, but

675-522: Was constructed of adobe bricks circa 1350 AD, and its rather well-preserved ruins are nestled within a cliff overhang. Other accounts date this ruin somewhat earlier. The towers of the ancient Pueblo people are both of smaller ground plan than Old World tower houses, and are generally only parts of complexes housing communities, rather than isolated structures housing an individual family and their retainers, as in Europe. Aristocrat The aristocracy

702-440: Was damaged again by English raids in the 1540s, only to be rebuilt again with a new parapet walk, and a beacon stance on the gable. In 1978, the tower was a roofless ruin, when it was bought by Major T.C.R. Armstrong-Wilson, who undertook a full restoration. It was re-roofed, and floors were reconstructed at four levels. Authentic oak doors were fitted to all rooms. The interior was plastered out, and electricity and water taken into

729-458: Was located there. It is associated with Johnnie Armstrong, Laird of Gilnockie. Tower house A tower house is a particular type of stone structure, built for defensive purposes as well as habitation. Tower houses began to appear in the Middle Ages , especially in mountainous or limited access areas, to command and defend strategic points with reduced forces. At the same time, they were also used as an aristocrat 's residence, around which

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