In 1460 James II was besieging Roxburgh Castle. On 3 August, as the queen's arrival was honoured with a salute from the siege guns, a large cannon known as the Lion burst and mortally wounded the king, who was standing close by. A holly tree in the grounds of Floors Castle, near Kelso, is said to mark the place where he fell.
A castle guide says the apparition of a horseman has been seen riding towards the site of the old stronghold, and another list describes the spectral king on horseback charging around the area where he died. Neither gives dates or witnesses, and the two lists do not say the same thing exactly, so this is best treated as a floating local tradition. Little now remains of Roxburgh Castle.
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