Crawford Castle Crawford Castle , substantially in ruins , is located on the north bank of the River Clyde , around half a mile north of Crawford , South Lanarkshire , Scotland . The ruins stand on an earlier motte and bailey earthwork . The castle was formerly known as Lindsay Tower , after its former owners , the Lindsay family . The strategic location of the castle , at , guards the approach from England into the upper Clyde Valley . History . Archaeological excavations to the north - west of the castle have shown that a Roman fort , with a garrison of perhaps 300 , existed at this site between 80 AD and 170 AD . This site was the administrative center for the Barony of Crawford , at that time the largest and most influential barony in southern Scotland . The Barony was established before 1100 when records of the period show Thorlongus of the Merse as Overlord of Crawford . From this line descended the surname of Crawford as the original occupants of the barony . Crawford Castle was in existence by 1175 , and was probably built as an earthwork and timber castle some time before this by the Crawford family . The Lindsay family inherited half of the Barony of Crawford , known as Crawford Parish , via a marriage in 1215 to the elder daughter of Sir John Crawford , who died in 1246 without male issue . The Crawford family retained the other half , known as Crawfordjohn Parish , as the Barony had been divided among the Crawford family four generations earlier . Crawford Castle is located in Crawford Parish . From an early date , the Clan Carmichael of Meadowflat acted as hereditary constables of the castle , retaining this post under successive owners . In 1398 , Robert II granted the title of Earl of Crawford to David Lindsay , who had won great praise on St George ’ s Day , 23 April 1390 for bravery in a duel with the Englishman Baron Welles on London Bridge after Welles , at a banquet in Edinburgh , and presumably after too much alcohol issued , as Champion of England , the challenge : " Let words have no place ; if ye know not the Chivalry and Valiant deeds of Englishmen ; appoint me a day and a place where ye list , and ye shall have experience . " At the accession of James IV in 1488 the barony of Crawford was transferred to Archibald Douglas , 5th Earl of Angus for supporting his father , James III , against the young prince ' s rebellion . The Earls of Angus held the castle until 1578 , when their estates were forfeited by the young James V . James used Crawford as a hunting lodge until his own death in 1542 . His mistress , Elizabeth Carmichael , was the daughter of the hereditary constable . After 1542 the barony was returned to the Earls of Angus , the keepership of the Carmichaels of Meadowflat coming to an end in 1595 . In 1633 the 11th earl was created Marquess of Douglas , and the castle was probably rebuilt after this date . The castle then passed to the Duke of Hamilton , before being sold to Sir George Colebrooke in the 18th century . After a period of use as a farmhouse , the building was abandoned at the end of the 18th century , and much of the stone reused to build the present Crawford Castle Farm . Four stone tablets bearing coats of arms , one with the date 1648 , are built into the west and south walls of the Castle Crawford House . The ruins . The early earthworks of Crawford Castle comprise a motte around 5m high , with a surrounding ditch and a bailey some 45m by 33m to the south - west . On the motte are the remains of a curtain wall , surrounding an enclosure around 20m square . There may have been round towers at the corners of this enclosure , which probably dates to the 16th or early 17th centuries . A range of buildings on the south - west side of the castle were built at around the same time . This tower - like range was of three storeys , plus an attic , with a vaulted basement and projecting chimney - breast . To the south - east , a second range was added later in the 17th century , providing more spacious accommodation with larger windows . Much of the present remains probably date from the 17th century rebuilding by the Marquess of Douglas . Crawford Castle is specified in a list of monuments published by the Minister of Public Building and Works under the Ancient Monuments Consolidation and Amendment Act 1913 . It is now a Scheduled Ancient Monument and is a Category B Listed Building . The Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland lists the site as a castle or motte .