Hawick

History

The name Hawick is Old English in origin, first recorded in 1167 and translates as "enclosed farm" or "enclosed hamlet". The origin of the name of Hawick was first researched in the 1860s by James Murray, a local teacher and later the primary editor of the Oxford English Dictionary. The west end of the town contains "the Motte", the remains of a likely 12th century Scoto-Norman motte-and-bailey castle. On 20 June 1342, as Alexander Ramsay of Dalhousie according to the duty of his office as Sheriff of Teviotsdale was holding court in the church of Hawick, William Douglas, Lord of Liddesdale came with an armed retinue and entered the church. He was courteously welcomed. Douglas and his men attacked Ramsay and dragged him bleeding and in chains to Hermitage Castle; It is generally assumed because Douglas believed he should be Sheriff of Teviotdale. There Ramsay was imprisoned in a dungeon where he died of starvation. The origin of Hawick being formally declared a town are said to originate with the Battle of Hornshole which was fought in 1514 between an English raiding party and young locals from Hawick. In 2014, on the 500th anniversary of the battle, some 1,800 children dressed in period costumes re-enacted the battle. {{ Historical populations |title=Population |type=Hawick |1971|17,251 |1991|15,704 |2001|14,573 |2011|14,294 |2016|13,730 |2020|13,610 |2021|13,586 |2022|13,512 |source = The church was extensively damaged by fire in the late 19th century but was reconstructed in a similar style. The first knitting machines were brought to Hawick in 1771 by John Hardie, building on an existing carpet manufacturing trade and with a view to expanding into the production of stockings. The town subsequently focused on the manufacturer of different textiles, hosiery and…