Jedburgh Castle Old Jail

Jedburgh Castle Old Jail

A model castellated jail designed by Archibald Elliott in 1823, built on the site of the former Jedburgh Castle which was demolished in 1409. The building was altered by Thomas Brown in 1847 and restored by Aitken and Turnbull in 1968.

The jail occupies a D-plan site at the top of Castlegate, enclosed by sham battlements with small towers at the angles. The entrance is set within a northeast tower, and a sham portcullis entrance gate stands in the battlemented wall splayed forward on the axis of Castlegate. The portcullis gate contains an outer timber two-leaf panelled and bolted door and an inner iron yett, with stone vaulting between them. The entrance is round-headed with a roll-moulded architrave.

At the centre of the site stands a square two-storey three-bay Gaoler's House with towers at each corner. It is flanked by two rectangular two-storey five-bay cell blocks—to the right for Male Debtors and Female Criminals, and to the left the Bridewell. Behind these stands a two-storey six-bay cell block for Male Criminals. The cell blocks are three bays deep and disposed radially around the Gaoler's House. Walls enclosing quadrants between the blocks serve as exercise yards.

The buildings and walls are constructed of cream sandstone rubble with ashlar dressings. The buildings and fortifications feature battlemented parapets and moulded ashlar coping, while the quadrant walls have plain semi-circular coping. Base courses and string courses run above the ground floor and below the parapet. The cell blocks have round-headed bipartite windows at first-floor level, all with deep splayed reveals.

The Gaoler's House is a symmetrical square two-storey three-bay battlemented building with round-headed openings. Quarter-engaged round towers stand at each corner with battlements raised higher than the main roof, containing slot windows to both storeys, many now blinded. The towers to the front contain stairs and secondary doors. A taller circular bell-tower rises at the centre of the building with louvred openings.

The north entrance elevation features a door and semicircular fanlight with cavetto surround set in an advanced ashlar panel at centre, with windows above and flanking to both floors. The east, south and west elevations have plain doors with rectangular fanlights at ground and first floor (the upper floors lacking fanlights), linked by cast-iron bridges. Windows serve both floors of the flanking bays.

The Bridewell, positioned east of the Gaoler's House, is a two-storey five-bay cell block. The west entrance elevation shows three bays with arcaded round-headed openings at ground level, the outer arch blinded, and a square-headed door at first-floor centre with flanking windows. The east elevation has three bays with regular fenestration and outer windows at ground level blinded. The north and south elevations display five bays with regular fenestration; the outer right bay at ground level has blocked doorways. High segmental-headed windows appear at ground floor, with bipartite windows to the first floor.

The Male Debtors and Female Criminals block, positioned west of the Gaoler's House, is a two-storey five-bay cell block with round-headed arcaded openings at ground level, completely or partially blocked to leave various openings. It was substantially altered in 1847. A single-storey roughcast lean-to was added to the west between this block and the battlemented wall. The east entrance elevation shows three bays with a square-headed door at first-floor centre and flanking arches at ground level blinded. The west elevation has high segmental-headed windows at ground level with outer ones grounded and windows to the first floor. The north and south elevations display five bays with partially blocked arches and windows to the first floor.

The Male Criminals block, positioned south of the Gaoler's House, is a two-storey six-bay cell block with similar detailing to the Male Debtors block. Substantial alterations in 1847 included the addition of a square castellated chimney tower at the centre of the building. A single-storey roughcast lean-to was added to the south between this block and the battlemented wall. The north entrance elevation features three bays with a square-headed door at first-floor centre and flanking arches at ground level blinded. The south elevation has three bays with high segmental-headed windows at ground level, outer ones blinded, and windows to the first floor. The east and west elevations display six bays; the south bay at ground level is blank with a projecting wall; the remainder partially blocked with windows to the first floor.

The interiors contain individual stone vaulted cells with iron doors to each bay and central corridors—that serving the Male Debtors and Female Criminals block is divided longitudinally. The Gaoler's House is furnished with eight-pane or small-pane timber sash and case windows, while the cell blocks have iron grilles instead of windows. Cast-iron downpipes with dated rainwater heads run throughout.

The entrance gates consist of polygonal ashlar gatepiers with base and polygonal flat-topped caps supporting decorative cast-iron lamps. Low quadrant walls with iron arrowhead railings terminate at flanking square coped ashlar piers.