Scotland · Ruin
Polnoon Castle
Polnoon Castle was a 14th‑century fortified house sited on a rectangular motte above the Polnoon Water in Millhall, Eaglesham, East Renfrewshire, held by the Montgomery family. The castle fell from use after the family moved to Eglinton; by the 17th century it was recorded as a ruin and today survives as a tree‑covered mound with scattered masonry.
Its prime
1390
Today
Ruin
As it stood in 1390
The shape it held in its prime.
Polnoon sits on a rectangular motte 30 by 22 m at the base and 18 by 10 m on the top, at least 4 m high, set on a promontory above the Polnoon Water. In its prime the motte was encased by rubble masonry forming a central single‑storey block with flanking ranges and a massive corner tower; the north‑west corner and north range rise from bedrock. The remains consist of large chunks of local rubble stone, traces of a battered plinth on the south wall, a 1.6 m thick stretch of wall at the southeast base and a ditch across the east approach, all now partly moss‑covered and tree‑rooted.
Its story
The story of Polnoon Castle.
The Barony of Eaglesham formed part of the grant made by David I to Walter fitz Alan, founder of the house of Stewart, and the Montgomery family may well have held Eaglesham from Walter's own day — a Robert of Montgomery, one of his prominent tenants, appears as a witness in a charter to the Monastery of Paisley around 1160.
Sir John Montgomery, ninth laird of Eaglesham, was one of the heroes of the Battle of Otterburn in 1388, capturing Sir Henry Percy — nicknamed "Hotspur" — in single combat and holding him to ransom. It is related that Sir John had a spur carved and placed above the castle door in memory of the exploit. The line also touched the throne: the seventh baron's daughter married Archibald Mure of Rowallan, and their great-granddaughter Elizabeth married King Robert II.
The 14th-century castle sat on a rectangular motte above the Polnoon Water — 30 by 22 metres at the base and at least 4 metres high — which may have been built for an earlier Montgomery castle, for the later structure encased the mound itself. Polnoon fell from use after the family moved to Eglinton; by the 17th century it was recorded as a ruin, and today large chunks of masonry lie scattered across the tree-covered mound and in the Polnoon Water below.
Step inside
9 places to explore in 1390.
The record describes 9 distinct spots at Polnoon Castle — including 2 interiors: north‑west tower angle (tower exterior/interior), north range footings. Create your own photoreal reconstruction and walk through every one — more scenes means more photos, more angles and more rooms of the immersive experience.
Create History
Recreate Polnoon Castle with AI to explore it.
The artist rebuilds it as it stood in 1390 — a photoreal walk that belongs to you alone. Pay with coins, no subscription needed.
Recreate Castle to Explore →Whose castle
Clans who held Polnoon Castle.
The families that held Polnoon Castle for a decade or more across its history — follow a name to its clan.
Montgomery
Seat of the Montgomerys, lairds of Eaglesham from around 1160; Sir John Montgomery, ninth laird, captured "Hotspur" Percy at Otterburn in 1388.
