William Wallace House Gap Site

This narrow space between two tall buildings at the top of medieval Castlegate has been suggested as the site of the former town house of the Laird of Lamington, the father of Marion Braidfute, wife of William Wallace. Whatever the truth of this, the site has recently been transformed by local organisations Discover Lanark and Lanark Community Development Trust into an open-air art and heritage space telling the story of William Wallace’s time in Lanark. The focal points of the space are two spectacular gable end murals, the work of artist, Rogue-One. The right-hand wall depicts Wallace’s assault on Lanark Castle where he killed the English sheriff, Haselrigg, before burning the castle to the ground. The left-hand mural shows Wallace’s subsequent retreat to the Clyde where he and his men rested as new followers started to flock to his cause. The space also contains a specially commissioned poem by local bard, Les Hunter, a colourful and humorous cartoon strip by illustrator Kate Sheppard and a magnificent Wallace Sword, the work of Josef and Denisa Gara (kindly sponsored by The Rotary Club of Lanark). To find out more about Wallace in Lanark, and to help separate fact from fiction, take a look at the information panels on the left-hand wall. Wallace House forms part of an interesting local trail “In the Footsteps of William Wallace.” You can pick up a printed copy of the trail in the nearby Tolbooth at the bottom of High Street, or download the leaflet here.