The Garleton Hills, in
East Lothian,
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...
, are a range of
igneous
Igneous rock (derived from the Latin word ''ignis'' meaning fire), or magmatic rock, is one of the three main rock types, the others being sedimentary and metamorphic. Igneous rock is formed through the cooling and solidification of magma or ...
hills, to the north of
Haddington.
Geography
Although
Skid Hill, the highest point of the range, is only , the hills are conspicuous throughout the county. The western spur is crowned by the
Hopetoun Monument to
John, 4th Earl of Hopetoun, who commanded the
British Army
The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...
in the
Peninsular War
The Peninsular War (1807–1814) was the military conflict fought in the Iberian Peninsula by Spain, Portugal, and the United Kingdom against the invading and occupying forces of the First French Empire during the Napoleonic Wars. In Spain ...
, after the death of
Sir John Moore at
Corunna.
Barnes Castle
Barnes Castle is an unfinished castle, with a number of defensive banks, located north-east of Haddington in East Lothian, Scotland. It is close to Athelstaneford on the slopes of the Garleton Hills. The remains, also known as Barney Vaults or ...
is built on south,
while
Garleton Castle
Garleton Castle is a courtyard castle, dating from the sixteenth century, about north of Haddington, just north of the Garleton Hills in East Lothian, Scotland.Coventry,Martin (2001) ''The Castles of Scotland''. Goblinshead. p.224
Structure ...
is on the north slopes.
Geology
The Garleton Hills create an obvious ridge, from the top of the ridge there are wide views over the lower lying areas of East Lothian. The hills are made up of layers of
igneous rock
Igneous rock (derived from the Latin word ''ignis'' meaning fire), or magmatic rock, is one of the three main rock types, the others being sedimentary and metamorphic. Igneous rock is formed through the cooling and solidification of magma o ...
s from the
Carboniferous[ which show differing resistance to erosion. In some places the volcanic rocks are both overlaid and underlaid with sandstones. In the volcanic sequence of the hills there is hard ]basalt
Basalt (; ) is an aphanitic (fine-grained) extrusive igneous rock formed from the rapid cooling of low-viscosity lava rich in magnesium and iron (mafic lava) exposed at or very near the surface of a rocky planet or moon. More than 90 ...
lying over trachytic
Trachyte () is an extrusive igneous rock composed mostly of alkali feldspar. It is usually light-colored and aphanitic (fine-grained), with minor amounts of mafic minerals, and is formed by the rapid cooling of lava enriched with silica and ...
lavas. Glacial erosion has varied according to the variations in the resistance of the rocks. The trachytes slope to the south south east and have been moulded into cuesta
A cuesta (from Spanish ''cuesta'' "slope") is a hill or ridge with a gentle slope on one side, and a steep slope on the other. In geology the term is more specifically applied to a ridge where a harder sedimentary rock overlies a softer laye ...
s, or volcanic trap steps, by the ice. There is a steep north facing scarp with a short dip slope lying to the south of the scarp. The flow of ice and meltwater along the strike of the ridge has eroded furrows and channels. Around the village of Athelstaneford
Athelstaneford () is a village in East Lothian, Scotland. It lies almost 6 kilometres (3.5 mi) north-east of the market town of Haddington and about 28 kilometres (17 mi) east of Edinburgh.
Battle of Athelstaneford
According to popul ...
there is a rock basin which has been partly gouged out of the softer basalts.Scottish Natural Heritage
NatureScot ( gd, NàdarAlba), which was formerly known as Scottish Natural Heritage, is an executive non-departmental public body of the Scottish Government responsible for the country's natural heritage, especially its natural, genetic and s ...
'' as a ''Geological Conservation Review'' site (nr. 1155)
References
External links
{{commons category-inline
Mountains and hills of East Lothian
Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Scotland
Mountain ranges of Scotland