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 Pringle of Torsonce
The Hoppringles of that ilk, afterwards the Pringles of Torsonce, on Gala Water, were the Chiefs of the clan and the senior branch of the family. In 1541 John Hoppringill of that Ilk received a 5 years tack for the lands of Torsonce from the Archbishop of St Andrews. Their male line failed with the death of Torsonce in 1738. His only daughter, Margaret, having married Gilbert Pringle, one of the Pringles of Stitchell, carried the estates into that family. John Pringle of Lees then became heir male, but his family also is extinct. (Burke's Landed Gentry, Supp. P.262)
Torsance / Torsonce Castle / house, just south of Stow
A location with a Victorian mansion in the Scottish Borders, Torsonce lies a half-mile (1 km) southwest of Stow and on the right bank of the Gala Water. The mansion was built in 1862 but destroyed by fire in 1992 and completely rebuilt thereafter. Torsonce Hill rises to 360m (1181 feet) to the east. Simpson and Brown Architects
Map of Torsonce | Multimap.com
Torsonce - from the Gaelic ‘torr sonnaich’
Tor = Hill; Sonce = Fort or palisade, wall. www.torsonce.com
Archaeology Notes:
NT44SE 4 4555 4347
(NT 4555 4347) Torsonce (NAT) on site of Castle (NR), OS 6" map (1970)
Torsonce Castle has been roofed in, and is occupied by the proprietor as a cottage or summer residence. However, local informants in 1852 considered that the house of Torsonce was built on the site of the castle, incorporating only a very small part of it, at the SW corner.
New Statistical Account (NSA) 1845 (D Weddell).
The proprietor (J Bullick) stated that the present house was built about 1830 with later additions, and that he knew of no part of the house which could be part of the old castle. The terrace on the W side of the house is supported by an apparently much older stone wall, but there is nothing to suggest that it formed part of the old castle.
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