Ardwell Mote

Ardwell Motte is a well-defined motte with a round plan and surrounded by a ditch. It is sited at the top of a bank overlooking an artificial lake to the west, and a steep slope to the low lying coastal lands of Luce Bay to the east. A triangular area of land to the south is isolated by the motte, and could have served as a bailey, although there is no real evidence to support this, although there is a straight bank and ditch cut across this area, which is covered with trees. There is no known history of the site, which lies within the grounds of Ardwell House, and fairly close to the later Killaser Castle, which was a seat of the McCulloch family, and it has never been excavated.

It is possible, however, to assign a 12th to 13th century date to the motte on the basis of it being a ditched motte, and perhaps to the troubled times of Fergus and his sons Gille Brighte and Uchtred between about 1130 and 1200. This also coincides with a concerted effort by the kings of Scots to assert dominance over Galloway, and the involvement of other external powers like King Henry II of England, Somerled of the Isles, and the King of Man, Óláfr Guðrøðarson. It is likely that occupation of the site did not extend beyond the mid 14th century and the failure of Edward Balliol to secure his throne (his strongest area of support was the south-west of Scotland), and perhaps not even for this long.

HES Canmore database entry