Sauchie Tower.

 

Sauchie Tower.

It was Robert the Bruce who first granted the lands of Sauchie to his sheriff of Clackmannan Henri de Annand in 1321, but by 1412 these lands had passed to Sir James Schaw through marriage when he wed Mary de Annand and it was soon afterwards that Sir James began to build the Tower House at Sauchie.

The Schaw clan are one of the lowland clans and are not connected to the Highland clan Shaw who are part of the Chattan confederation of clans, they are little known in modern Scottish history but in medieval times the Schaw's were at the top of the country's nobility, in c1460 Sir James’s son James Schaw was made Governor of Stirling Castle and given the title Captain of the Castle by James III. And in 1529 an other member of the Schaw clan was honoured by James V with the title of "Master of the King's Wine Cellar" hence the three wine goblets on the family Coat of Arms.

By the early part of the 17th century living in a tower house had become unfashionable and the Schaw's were no exception to this new trend, a new mansion house was well under way at the southwest end of a courtyard that was now forming around the old tower, this was all the work of Alexander Schaw who in 1633 received a knighthood from King Charles I, this new work was called Sauchie House.

Near the first part of the 18th century the Schaw's finally left Sauchie to move into their new mansion of Schawpark House about 1.kl to the south, this house was demolished in 1961. Today the clan name Schaw seems not to be in use.

Sauchie Tower is a well-preserved medieval tower house that is in the care of the "Friends of Sauchie Tower", it is part of a group of towers in the local area collectively known as the 'Clackmannanshire Tower Trail' which also include Alloa Tower, Castle Campbell, Clackmannan Tower and Menstrie Castle. The grounds can be visited at any reasonable times and the tower is open each September for Doors Open Day.