Alternative Names Broughty Castle; Broughty Ferry, Castle Green; Broughty Ferry, The Harbour
Site Type CASTLE (MEDIEVAL)
Canmore ID 33391
Site Number NO43SE 10
NGR NO 46475 30427
Council DUNDEE, CITY OF
Parish DUNDEE (DUNDEE, CITY OF)
Former Region TAYSIDE
Former District CITY OF DUNDEE
Former County ANGUS
Datum OSGB36 - NGR

Canmore Mapping
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Notes and Activities

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Archaeological Notes

NO43SE 10.00 46475 30427

NO43SE 10.01 NO 4648 3040 Coast Battery

(NO 4650 3045). Broughty Castle on site of (NAT)
Broughty Castle (NR)
OS 1:10000 map (1974)

Broughty Castle, built c.1496 and allowed to fall into decay after 1603, has been completely restored and is in use as an Royal Army Service Corps (RASC) Depot.
The E block is all that remains of the original keep. The castellated building attached to the NW is completely modern as is the circular tower contained in the re-entrant angle of the two blocks. The foundations of the main block show the original masonry, but the rest of the walls are faced with cement. The battlements are modern as are the courtyard walls.
A print of 1831 and a photograph of 1853 in Dundee Reference Library show the shell of the keep and the courtyard wall with two towers. The keep was unbattlemented. (A J Warden 1882)
It is possible that there were pre-1496 defences on the rock.
Visited by OS (JLD) 30 April 1958

Installation of electric cables for floodlighting involved the excavation of 103m of cable trench on Castle Green and 31m in the courtyard. The trenches were 30cm wide at ground level and narrowed to 15cm to 25cm in the bottom; they varied in depth from 30cm to 50cm.
The Castle Green trenches showed extensive make-up/terracing deposits associated with the 1860s refortification of the site and 20th-century landscaping. The mound on which the 19th-century castle sits is built up of quarried sandstone and some revetting of the bedrock was seen. To the E of the ramp, the remains of a rubble-filled bunker were found on the site of the dynamo and engine rooms. A corner of the foundations/roof of another bunker was also seen at the N end of the ramp, and a gravel path crosses eastern Castle Green N to S.
Inside the courtyard, the foundations of a 19th-century guardhouse were revealed and a substantial 2m-thick wall running NE to SW; this may represent the remains of a mid-16th-century angled tower known to have stood in this area. The majority of courtyard deposits were make-up for the battery and showed frequent re-surfacing of the courtyard.
Sponsor: Tayside Enterprise.
F M C Baker 1993.

NO 465 304 A small trench was excavated in January 2003 immediately N of the castle, E of the approach road, to investigate an area of sudden subsidence. A large pit was found cut into loose gravel, and appeared to have been inadequately backfilled. This pit is thought most likely to be from the extraction of a single large post, possibly a flagpole.
Archive to be deposited in the NMRS.
G Ewart 2003.

12 December 2008

GEOPHYSICAL SURVEY

Notes Geophysical survey was to be undertaken at Broughty Castle as part of an archaeological evaluation instigated because of the occurrence of subsidence events in an area of lawns to the north-east of the castle known as Castle Green, by Broughty Ferry, Dundee… Electrical resistance was used with the objective of assessing the presence of building remains and identifying areas at future risk of subsidence. The survey objectives were deemed to have been met through the provision of the possible location of additional voids, correlating with the site of 19th century primer pits and other ancillary military buildings adjacent to the Broughty Castle ramp. Moreover the results indicated variation in the survival of building remains across the site, including areas of general clearance, possible robbed wall foundations and in situ foundations.

NO 4647 3042 A geophysical survey was undertaken on 12 December 2008 as part of an evaluation to investigate the potential causes of subsidence in an area of lawns known as the Castle Green; formerly the site of a 19th-century mariners’ military base. A resistivity area survey (0.16ha) and resistivity profiling were undertaken. The site of 19th-century primer pits and ancillary military buildings were identified, with areas of potential voiding.
Report: Perth and Kinross Heritage Trust, KHT, Local Authority Archaeological Advisor, OASIS: Scotland and RCAHMS (intended)
Funder: Kirkdale Archaeology Ltd and Historic Scotland
Oliver O’Grady – Perth and Kinross Heritage Trust

Further details

4 February 2009 to 10 February 2009

EXCAVATION

Notes NO 4647 3045 Following examination of cartographic sources and a geophysical survey minor excavations were carried out, 4–10 February 2009, to investigate areas of subsidence to the N of the castle. The excavation uncovered what appeared to be the ‘primer pits’ shown on early OS maps of the area.
Archive: RCAHMS (intended)
Funder: Historic Scotland
David Murray – Kirkdale Archaeology

Further details

 

Books and References

Baker, F M C (1993p) 'Broughty Castle (Dundee parish): late 15th-century castle', Discovery Excav Scot
Page(s): 97-8

Cumming (Publ.), G (1848) Forfarshire Illustrated, Dundee
Page(s): 66 v Held at RCAHMS D.13.1.FOR.R

Ewart, G (2003e) 'Broughty Castle (Dundee parish), watching brief', Discovery Excav Scot, vol.4
Page(s): 52

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