Description

1812, with 1861 alterations (including additional courtroom to south) by David Rhind. Restored 1991 by Scottish Courts Service including reconstruction of the arcaded porch. 2-storey, 12-bay court house (former County Buildings) in the Greek-Revival style, on a prominent corner site at Market Square and Castlegate. Cream ashlar. String and cill courses. Applied Doric pilasters across principal facades at first floor, paired at corner angles, resting on band course. Entablature with triglyph frieze, projecting moulded cornice and sectioned parapet.

To Castlegate: symmetrical 9-bay section (1812) with central 3 bays projecting slightly and single storey, arcaded porch with balustraded balcony. 4-bay courtroom addition (1861) to south, also projecting slightly, with tall round-arched and keystoned windows and balustraded parapet above.

To Market Square (north elevation): 3-bay symmetrical elevation with segmental headed windows to ground floor and round-headed windows to first floor. Centre bay slightly advanced with 2-leaf door and segmental headed fanlight. Brass plaque (Alexander Carrick, 1932) commemorating Sir Walter Scott centenary to right.

Coursed rubble wall adjoining Newgate (see separate listing) to northeast. 8-bay rubble east (rear) elevation.

Multi-pane glazing in timber sash and case windows. Grey slate piend roofs. Cast iron downpipes and rainwater heads.

The interior, seen 2014, has an entrance lobby with glazed screen to open-well stair with barley-sugar twist cast-iron bannisters and timber handrail. Principal courtroom is top-lit by three central cupolas; shallow-vaulted ceiling with ornate plasterwork and dentil cornice. Raked public seating with timber pews and timber gallery. Timber panelling to dado height.

Low ashlar saddleback wall with cast iron spearhead railings to basement area south of porch.

Statement of Interest

Jedburgh Sheriff Court is a good example of an early 19th century County Buildings in the neoclassical or 'Greek Revival' style. It was remodelled and enlarged by the renowned architect, David Rhind, in a similar style. The exterior has a number of good stonework details including the large round-arched keystoned windows divided by giant Doric pilasters the broad entablature with triglyph frieze and the balustraded portico to the Castlegate elevation. The building is prominently positioned at the corner of Market Place and Castlegate, in the heart of Jedburgh, and adjoins the 1755 Newgate (which operated as a jail in the 18th century). The 1861 alterations reflect legal changes brought about by the Sheriff Court Houses (Scotland) Act of 1860, requiring additional civil courtrooms, witness rooms and accommodation for the sheriff clerk and procurator fiscal. The 1861 courtroom addition to the south follows the style of the existing building and the courtroom is notable for its tripartite cupola light and plasterwork ceiling detail. The court house was restored in 1991, with the portico and parapet being entirely rebuilt.

Jedburgh Sheriff Court was built as the County Buildings in 1812 on the site of the old town-house at the expense of the heritors of the county. Doric pilasters and round-arched windows at first floor indicate the location of the original courtroom, prior to the reconfiguration of the interior in 1861. In common with many court buildings of the period, the building adjoins the former jail. In this case, the adjoining Newgate (see separate listing) with central pend and spire, built in 1755, is annexed to the sheriff court. The Newgate served as the town and county jail between 1756 and 1823, at which point it was superseded by Jedburgh Castle Jail.

David Rhind (1808-1883) began training as an architect around 1828 in the offices of A C Pugin and completed his training in Italy. Working in a variety of styles from Gothic to Baronial to neoclassical, Rhind was a prominent designer of commercial buildings, notably in his role as principal architect to the Commercial Bank of Scotland, Rhind was also architect to the Prison Board and designed courts including Wick (1862-66), Dumfries (1863-5) and Selkirk (1867) (see separate listings). His court house designs were stylistically varied, often with architectural reference to the Scottish tower house. Jedburgh Sheriff Court was one of his earliest court commissions. The elaborate plasterwork and cupola ceiling is similar to that at Wick (see separate listing).

The development of the court house as a building type in Scotland follows the history of the Scottish legal system and wider government reforms. The majority of purpose-built court houses were constructed in the 19th century as by this time there was an increase in the separation of civic, administrative and penal functions into separate civic and institutional buildings, and the resultant surge of public building was promoted by new institutional bodies. The introduction of the Sheriff Court Houses (Scotland) Act of 1860 gave a major impetus to the increase and improvement of court accommodation and the provision of central funding was followed by the most active period of sheriff court house construction in the history of the Scottish legal system, and many new court houses were built or reworked after this date. The design of court houses in the early 19th century tended towards neoclassical or Renaissance styles to convey their status as important public buildings.

Category changed from A to B, statutory address and listed building record revised as part of the Scottish Courts Listing Review, 2014-15. Previously listed as 'Castlegate, Sheriff Court (Old County Building) With Front Wall And Railings'.

External Links

• Historic Environment Scotland Listing
• Wikidata Q17567938

External links are from the relevant listing authority and, where applicable, Wikidata. Wikidata IDs may be related buildings as well as this specific building. If you want to add or update a link, you will need to do so by editing the Wikidata entry.

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