page_title: The Kirna
section_title: Kirnie Tower
hierarchical_section_title: The Kirna / Nearby Historic Structures / Kirnie Tower
caption_attribution_description: English: Nether Horsburgh Tower. Not to be confused with Horsburgh Castle a couple of miles upstream on the Tweed. This is one of the Peel Towers built in the 1430s for defence against Border Raiders.
context_page_description: The Kirna, known locally as Kirna House, is a Category A listed villa in Walkerburn, Peeblesshire, Scotland. It is one of four villas in Walkerburn designed by Frederick Thomas Pilkington between 1867-69 for the Ballantyne family. It is listed as a fine example of a Pilkington mansion retaining original external features, a fine interior, and for its importance as a Ballantyne property.
  The Ballantyne family played a leading role in Scotland's textile industry for nearly two hundred years. The Ballantynes were substantially responsible for founding the village of Walkerburn after Henry Ballantyne first bought land at that location to build a tweed mill in 1846. Renowned architect F T Pilkington was commissioned by the Ballantynes to design and build the new village with houses for the mill workers, The Kirna, and other villas for the Ballantyne family.
  The Kirna's proximity to a significant number of ancient man-made structures, including some dating back to pre-historic times, suggests that this general location along the Tweed valley has been of strategic importance to settlers throughout history.
context_section_description: Approximately 80 meters to the south of The Kirna, across the A72, is the site of Kirnie Tower. Its site was pointed out in 1856 by residents of Walkerburn who were present at its removal in circa 1840 when its stones were removed for building purposes elsewhere on the Horsburgh estate. Long after its dismantlement it was used as a shepherd's hut. Maps published as far back as 1654 refer to "Kirn" or "Kirna" in approximately the location of Kirnie Tower. Ordnance Survey Name Books in the mid-1800s record the structure as "one of the ancient feudal residences erected for the protection of the  Borders. It was square in appearance".
  A series of these peel towers was built in the 15th century along the Tweed valley from its source to Berwick, as early-warning beacons announcing invasion from the Marches.
caption: Similar tower at Nether Horsburgh
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