Bolness (The Gatehouse Record of the Aglionby Platt)

Also known as, or recorded in historical documents as; Bolnes; Bulnesse; Bownes; Old Rectory

In the civil parish of Bowness.
In the historic county of Cumberland, England.
Modern Authority of Cumbria, England.
1974 county of Cumbria, England.
Medieval County of Cumberland.

OS Map Grid Reference: NY22416257
Latitude 54.95201° Longitude -3.21334°

This is certain as the location of Bolness shown on the Aglionby Platt.

There are no visible remains.

The likely form(s) of this building in 1590 are;

Chamber Tower (Pele Tower).

Reproduced by permission of the National Library of Scotland

Description

Bowness Tower is listed by Curwen as a 14th century Peel Tower, first mentioned in 1539, and stated to have belonged to the parsonage in 1580.
Graham presumes that this was the building which stood near the gate to the present rectory, and whose foundations were so solid that gunpowder had to be used to demolish them in 1860. (PastScape)

The rector of Bowness on Solway dwelt in a fortalice close to the churchyard wall, the vestiges of which were only recently demolished.
In 1464 William Raa, registrar of the diocese of Carlisle, made this entry in the bishop's accounts of that year: ' De fine rectoris de Bowness pro una litera questandi pro reparacione unius domus defensionis ibidem non respondet hie quia conceditur per dominum gratis' (Diocesan MS.). Leland says that 'Bolnes ys at the Poynt or Playne of the Ryver of Edon wher ys a lytle poore Steple as a Fortelet for a brunt, and yt ys on hyther syde of the Ryver of Edon, abowt a viii. myles from Cair Luel'. In a survey of Border fortresses made by Christopher Dacre in 1580, the condition of 'Bownes Towre' is thus described: 'This house or towre doth belonge to ye parsonage theire, standing about 4 miles west and by north from ye said house of Drumburghe adioyning to the sea criek wch devideth ye English and Scotesche borders and the furthest parte towardes ye west, yt ye Scotts may enter otherwise then by botinge, and about a mile and a half over the same criek to Scotland at a full sea, a place of small receipt and yet very necessairy for defence of ye parte of the Border, partly decayed, the charges of wch reparacon with a plattforme for ordinance wch were necessarie to be made upon ye same towre is esteamed to £40 and without the platforme to £10 ' (S. P. Dom. Eliz. Add. xxvii. 44 (3)). A wall of this tower was standing close to the rectory in 1856. (VCH)

Sources of information, references and further reading

PastScape (The online National Monument Record for England) Number 10102.
County Historic Environment Record (or Sites and Monuments Record) number(s) 163.

Books
- Perriam, Denis and Robinson, John, 1998, The Medieval Fortified Buildings of Cumbria (Kendal: CWAAS Extra Series 29) p. 60 (plan)
  Salter, Mike, 1998, The Castles and Tower Houses of Cumbria (Malvern: Folly Publications) p. 96 (slight)
  King, D.J.C., 1983, Castellarium Anglicanum (London: Kraus) Vol. 1 p. 92
  Curwen, J.F., 1913, Castles and Fortified Towers of Cumberland, Westmorland and Lancashire North of the Sands (Kendal: CWAAS Extra Series 13) p. 255
  Wilson, J. (ed), 1905, VCH Cumberland Vol. 2 p. 257 online copy
Periodical Articles
- Perriam, D.R., 1988, 'Bowness Rectory tower (documents relating to ?late 14th/early 15th century bastle)' Transactions of the Cumberland and Westmorland Antiquarian and Archaeological Society Vol. 88 p. 193-200 (plan) online copy
  Wilson, J., 1923, 'The Passage of the Border by Aeneas Sylvius in the winter of 1435-6' Transactions of the Cumberland and Westmorland Antiquarian and Archaeological Society Vol. 23 p. 25 online copy
  Graham, T.H.B., 1911, 'Extinct Cumberland Castles (Part III)' Transactions of the Cumberland and Westmorland Antiquarian and Archaeological Society Vol. 11 p. 240-1 online copy
  Ellis, H., 1829, 'Copy of a manuscript tract addressed to Lord Burghley, illustrative of the Border topography of Scotland, AD 1590, with a platt or map of the Borders taken in the same year' Archaeologia Vol. 22 p. 161-71 online copy
Primary (Medieval documents or transcriptions of such documents - This section is far from complete and the secondary sources should be consulted for full references.)
- Green, M.A.E. (ed), 1872, Calendar of State Papers Domestic: Elizabeth, Addenda 1580-1625 (HMSO) p. 17-18 no. 44 online copy
Maps (Early maps)
- 1590, A Platt of the opposete Borders of Scotland to ye west marches of England (The Aglionby Platt) British Library online Gallery and Old Cumbria Gazetteer
  1607, Platt of the Forrest of Nicholl and the Mannor of Liddale, Arthurett and Randelinton with the Debatable groundes online copy (Garestowne)
  Blaeu, J., 1654, 'Cumbria vulgo Cumberland' in Theatrum Orbis Terrerum, sive Atlas Novus, Vol.5; Scotice et Hibernia (Amsterdam) Map online copy (Boulnesse)
Antiquarian (Histories and accounts from late medieval and early modern writers)
- Chandler, John, 1993, John Leland's Itinerary: travels in Tudor England (Sutton Publishing) p. 93
  Toulmin-Smith, Lucy (ed), 1910, The itinerary of John Leland in or about the years 1535-1543 (London: Bell and Sons) Vol. 5 p. 50 online copy

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The bibliography owes much to various bibliographies produced by John Kenyon for the Council for British Archaeology, the Castle Studies Group and others.

Suggestions for finding online and/or hard copies of bibliographical sources can be seen at this link.
Minor archaeological investigations, such as watching brief reports, and some other 'grey' literature is most likely to be held by H.E.R.s but is often poorly referenced and is unlikely to be recorded here, or elsewhere, but some suggestions can be found here.

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Further information on mapping and location can be seen at this link.

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The Gatehouse website record of

Bolness (Bowness on Solway)

a location shown on a 1590 map of the West Marches of Scotland (The Aglionby Platt)