THE  BORDER REIVERS WEBSITE


Riding by moonlight.......

 

For 300 years Scottish and English borderers endured  violence and treachery, murder and arson, raiding and theft, living in constant
fear and misery.

This is their story.

It is, perhaps, the story of your ancestors.

   

The clans and families of the Borders were able to endure the struggle for survival due to their strength of character and their bonds of kinship.  

They were both the inflicted and the inflictors.  It was they who were responsible for the lawlessness but not the cause of it. 

As one successive generation of reiving families followed  another, the skills of rustling and raided were refined until they became an art of which the reivers were proud. 

It was a profession to be admired.  A way of life.

 




BORDER REIVERS

Who were the Reivers?

Were they the infamous villains of reputation or 
were they pursuing their only means of survival?          

There is probably no region other than the Anglo-Scottish Borderlands which can claim such a protracted period of constant violence and unrest. 


This produced a catalogue of events, and a host of memorable characters, that is unique.

Those with Border surnames scattered throughout the world can relate directly to the people of that region,  and to those times.

We hope that you enjoy your visit to the Borders, virtual or otherwise, and also to our web site.

Please come back - to both.

NEW?

This website is regularly updated; additions, changes and improvements  frequently being made throughout the site.

 

 

 

Copyright © 2000. 

All rights reserved.

 

 

WHAT'S NEW? The latest updates and announcements.

Updated 27 December 2014

border families
 
Are you a Borderer?  
Check the list. 

Were you ancestors one of the great reiving families?
BORDER 
castles &
towers

Locate the homes of your ancestors

 

CHURCHES  
VILLAGES
 
A selection of Border villages.
PEOPLE The good, the bad, and the worse.

 

FEATURES  
 
Monuments, churches, crosses, and more. 
BORDER WARFARE
 
Visit the battle sites
BORDER LIFE

Law and disorder.

Marriage, feuding, punishments.
BORDER stories

Stories from the Borders.

Some sad, 
some humorous.

LINKS Useful websites


MASTER INDEX