Newark Castle Port Glasgow Port Glasgow, Inverclyde, Scotland, UK
Scheduled Monument Statement of Significance
© Crown Copyright text courtesy of Historic Environment Scotland, reprinted under the Open Government License.
The monument is of national importance because it has an inherent potential to make a significant contribution to our understanding of the development of Scottish castles during the late-medieval and early-modern periods. The monument survives as a roofed structure, with rare and important original timber work. It is an excellent example of its type demonstrating the transition from a medieval castle to a mansion house. It documents through its architecture and layout the economic and social changes following the Union of the Crowns which allowed a greater degree of peace and prosperity for Scotland's land-owing class. Previous excavation has indicated high potential for the survival of important archaeological remains. The loss of the monument would greatly diminish our ability to understand the character, chronology and development of late-medieval and early-modern high-status dwellings in Scotland.
Scheduled Monument Description
© Crown Copyright text courtesy of Historic Environment Scotland, reprinted under the Open Government License.
The monument is the remains of Newark Castle. It is visible as a 15th century tower house and gatehouse linked by later 16th century ranges arranged around a central courtyard. The monument situated on the south bank of the River Clyde at about 5m above sea-level.
The scheduled area is irregular on plan to include the remains described above and an area around in which evidence for the monument's construction, use and abandonment is expected to survive, as shown in red on the accompanying map. The scheduling specifically excludes: the above-ground elements of all modern boundary walls and modern fences; the slipway; the above-ground elements of all signage and services; the top 300mm of all modern paths to allow for their maintenance.
Scheduled Monument References
© Crown Copyright text courtesy of Historic Environment Scotland, reprinted under the Open Government License.
Historic Environment Scotland http://www.canmore.org.uk reference number CANMORE ID 42421 and 42422 (accessed on 14/03/2016).
Browne, G W 1882 'Notes on Newark Castle, Renfrewshire', Proceedings of the Society of Antiquities of Scotland, 16, 494-504
Lewis, J 1998 'Excavations at Newark Castle, Port Glasgow, 1984 and 1997', Proceedings of the Society of Antiquities of Scotland, 128, 2, 905-921
MacGibbon and Ross, D and T 1887-92 'The castellated and domestic architecture of Scotland from the twelfth to the eighteenth centuries', 5v Edinburgh, 2, 425-31, 865
Radley and Murray, A and D 1998 'Newark Castle (Port Glasgow parish), watching brief', Discovery Excavation in Scotland, 64
Tranter, N (1962-70) 'The fortified house in Scotland', Edinburgh, 3, 163-5
Whalley, T 2007 'Newark Castle, Inverclyde (Port Glasgow parish), watching brief and survey', Discovery Excavation in Scotland, 8
https://www.historicenvironment.scot/visit-a-place/places/newark-castle