County Dossier
Roxburghshire
A Borders county of abbeys, battles and marches.
Roxburghshire is an inland county in the Scottish Borders, stretching across the northern Cheviot Hills. The fertile valley of Teviotdale defines much of the county’s landscape.
At a glance
Roxburghshire at a glance
A Borders county of abbeys, battles and marches.
- Borders land of Roxburgh
- Named after the Royal Burgh of Roxburgh
- Birthplace (1789) of Thomas Pringle, poet
- Area: 666 sq miles / 1,725 sq km
- Population: 50,800
- County Top: Cairn Hill (2,438ft / 743m)
County Geography
Roxburghshire meets Berwickshire to the east, Selkirkshire to the north-west, Dumfriesshire to the west and south-west, and Northumberland and Cumberland to the south across the border. The county is shaped by the Teviot and Tweed valleys, the Cheviot Hills to the south, Liddesdale in the south-west, and the Eildon country to the north.
Roxburghshire is easy to recognise through Teviotdale, Tweedside, and the Cheviot march.
Map Reference
View Roxburghshire on the map
Roxburghshire is the county. The map also shows lieutenancies and council areas that use the county name.
The county.
The lieutenancy.
Council areas.
Places and routes
Jedburgh, Hawick, Kelso, Melrose, and Newcastleton show the county from its abbey and market towns to the upper Teviot and Liddesdale side.
Connections
The county’s routes have long followed the Teviot and Tweed, linked the abbey and market towns, and run south through the march country. Movement follows the same dale, town, and border pattern.
Names
- Roxburghshire
- County of Roxburgh
- Siorrachd Rosbruig
Siorrachd Rosbruig is the Gaelic form of Roxburghshire. County of Roxburgh is the formal historical style, Roxburghs is the shortened documentary form, and charters preserve older spellings such as Rokesburg.
The shire was established by the twelfth century in a borderland long defined by abbeys, castles, and march warfare, with Jedburgh and old Roxburgh central to its story. The Teviot, Tweed, and Cheviot-side march still define Roxburghshire clearly.