In and Around Jedburgh...
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...The Royal Burgh of Jedburgh nestles peacefully in the valley of Jed Water, amongst glorious rolling countryside. Jedburgh, known locally as "Jethart", is a warm and welcoming place, with an almost timeless quality - where visitors are made to feel at home.
Discover a wealth of historical and architectural jewels - where Bonnie Prince Charlie resided in 1745, where the geologist James Hutton observed the Jedburgh Angular Unconformity and confirmed his theory of the formation of the Earth.
Take a riverside walk passing by the Piper's House in Duck Row and the 16th Century Canongate Bridge. Sample jethart Snails, the local delicacy, a brown mint flavoured boiled sweet in the shape of a snail, said to have been introduced to the town by Napoleonic prisoners of war.
There is a lively calendar of local and community events (EVENTS CALENDAR) with the highlight of the year being the Jethart Callant's Festival in July.
During the summer months, the Mercat Cross, next to the Jubilee Fountain, is the setting for The Royal British Legion Pipe Band and Jedforest Instrumental Band concerts.
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Jedburgh Abbey...
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...Ravaged by time and warfare, Jedburgh Abbey remains one of the country's most spectacular ancient monuments.
It was founded as a priory in 1138 by King David I who intended to prove to Scots and English alike that he could create buildings on a magnificent scale even on the fringes of his realm.
Now in the care of Historic Scotland, the abbey is one of the most impressive attractions for visitors to the Borders. Standing high on the left bank of the Jed Water, it has endured a turbulent 900 year history.
The full story of the Augustinian abbey, its treatment by passing English and Scottish armies and its final dissolution in the Reformation, is told on the video shown in the visitor centre. Among the items on display are the beautiful Jedburgh Comb, beautifully carved in ivory and dating to around 1100 and a series of early Christian carved stones.
Car parking is available, there is also a picnic area and facilities for disabled visitors.
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Jedburgh Castle Jail...
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...On the original site of the castle of Jedburgh, the 19th century jail is the only remaining example left in Scotland of a Howard Reform prison. The Jail was built in 1820 to a design by Archibald Elliot, one of the most fashionable architects of the day. The Museum now illustrates the history of Jedburgh and prison life in reconstructed rooms using audio visual period artifacts.
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Mary Queen of Scots House...
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...The young Mary Stuart arrived in Jedburgh in 1566 to hold a Circuit Court, and a 16th Century bastel house (fortified house) was put at her disposal. Hearing that Lord Bothwell lay wounded at Hermitage Castle, Mary set out on an arduous return journey of 40 miles to visit him. She arrived back from a dreich moorland ride, ill and close to death and is later said to have remarked "Would that I had died in Jedburgh", as her troubles crowded upon her.
A visitor centre now protrays the poignant story of the Queen's tragic life with thought provoking interpretation and includes her death mask, said to have been taken from her decapitated body at Fotheringay Castle.
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Hutton's Unconformity...
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...By walking South along the A68 Newcastle Road or through Lothian Park, you arrive at a place called Inchbonny where you will find "Hutton's Unconformity". This is one of the most important geological sites in the world.
James Hutton, a farmer and doctor from Duns in Berwickshire, conceived a theory about the formation of the Earth based upon what he saw in the geological formation of the ground on Arran, at Siccar Point on the Berwickshire coast and here at Inchbonny. Whilst visiting Allar's Mill on the Jed Water, Hutton was delighted to see horizontal bands of red sandstone lying 'unconformably' on top of near vertical and folded bands of rock. He published his "Theory of the Earth" in 1788 and has since become known as the 'founding father' of modern geology.
Scotland and England were once separate landmasses divided by a deep ocean. Over 450 million years ago, they collided causing vertical bands, then sediment was laid down during the next few million years forming bands of sandstone. Hutton was not able to date the geological events as we can today and he thought the sandstone had been deposited in the sea. It must be remembered that he lived in a time where the age of the world was estimated to be between 6,000 and 40,000 years old. Based on what he learned at Inchbonny, Hutton challenged the established philosophical and theological order when he "looked through the abyss of time and found no vestige of a beginning and no prospect of an end" and realised that the formations he found here required the Earth to be very old indeed.
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The Capon Tree...
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...The Capon Tree, a hollow oak, is one of the last survivors of the ancient Jed Forest, and could be 1,000 years old. It’s one of the 50 most significant trees in the UK (see * below). It gets its name from the Capuchin monks who sheltered under it as they travelled to Jedburgh Abbey. It’s very possible that the poet James Thomson was inspired by the Capon Tree as he wrote "The Seasons" based on his travels around the Jed Valley. The Capon Tree features in the ceremonial of the Jethart Callant’s Festival.
The Capon Tree is situated on the banks of the River Jed less than 2 miles (3km) south of the town centre. Reach it by a pleasant walk of 15 minutes, following the main road south (A68), on pavements all the way, starting from the 1st bridge (near the Abbey) and it’s on the right just after the 3rd bridge. (Inhabitants of Jedburgh use the 4 crossings of the River Jed just to the south as a measure of distance from the town - you’ll hear us talking about the 2nd bridge or the 4th bridge).
On the way, you pass the "Huttonian Singular Unconformity", one of the most important geological sites in the world.
* Fifty Great British Trees were selected by the national conservation body, the Tree Council, as a tribute to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II - as a special way to mark the Golden Jubilee. From the oldest and the rarest to some of the most historically or culturally famous they highlight the fundamental importance of trees to the national heritage and form a link between past and present. The 50 trees are all either impressively large, ancient, rare, striking or the stuff of history and legend. The Capon Tree is one of the six most significant in Scotland, and it ranks alongside trees such as the Fortingall Yew (the oldest living organism in Europe, possibly the world).
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