Our walk today from East Linton to Haddington along the banks of the Tyne gave us a good view of Hailes Castle.  It is thought to be one of the first castles in Scotland built of stone and still has a few remains of the original castle built in the 1240s.  After the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314 the de Gourlay family were stripped of their lands because they had supported the English so Robert the Bruce gave the castle and lands to the Hepburns who greatly expanded the castle during the 1300s and 1400s.
The infamous James Hepburn,  Earl of Bothwell, had his lands confiscated after he was largely responsible for the downfall and abdication of Mary Queen of Scots.  He had been involved in the murder of her second husband and is believed to have forced her into marrying him three weeks after kidnapping her and taking her to Dunbar Castle.  On the way back from Dunbar to Edinburgh they stayed at Hailes Castle in April 1567.  She must have been miserable after living for years in the luxurious French court, remembering her first marriage and becoming Queen of France until her young husband died.
This is part of my occasional series on places connected with the famous, but tragic, Mary Queen of Scots (see the tags)

(Mary Queen of Scots 12)