Jedburgh Abbey

Top choice


Dominating the town skyline, this was the first of the great Border abbeys to be passed into state care, and it shows – audio and visual presentations telling the abbey's story are scattered throughout the carefully preserved ruins (good for the kids). The red-sandstone ruins are roofless but relatively intact, and the ingenuity of the master mason can be seen in some of the rich (if somewhat faded) stone carvings in the nave.

The abbey was founded in 1138 by David I as a priory for Augustinian canons.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby attractions

1. Mary, Queen of Scots' Visitor Centre

0.17 MILES

Mary stayed at this beautiful 16th-century tower house in 1566 after her famous ride to visit the injured Earl of Bothwell, her future husband, at…

2. Jedburgh Castle Jail

0.24 MILES

Jedburgh Castle was a victim of Scotland's wars for independence but this smart 1820s prison was built on the site as part of a jail reform program. You…

3. Dryburgh Abbey

7.88 MILES

This is the most beautiful and complete of the Border abbeys, partly because the neighbouring town of Dryburgh no longer exists (another victim of the…

4. Smailholm Tower

8.87 MILES

Perched on a rocky knoll above a small lake, this narrow stone tower provides one of the most evocative sights in the Borders and keeps its bloody history…

5. Floors Castle

9.62 MILES

Grandiose Floors Castle is Scotland's largest inhabited mansion, home to the Duke of Roxburghe, and overlooks the Tweed about a mile west of Kelso. Built…

6. Kelso Abbey

9.62 MILES

Once one of the richest abbeys in southern Scotland, Kelso Abbey was built by the Tironensians, an order founded in Picardy and brought to the Borders…

7. Borders Textile Towerhouse

9.93 MILES

The historic Drumlanrig’s Tower is a solid stone mansion that was once a major seat of Douglas clan power in the Borders. It now holds the Borders Textile…

8. Heart of Hawick

9.94 MILES

Three buildings form the 'heart' of Hawick. A former mill holds a cafe and cinema. Opposite, historic Drumlanrig's Tower, once a major seat of the Douglas…