Coldstream, United Kingdom
Coldstream is a town of 1,870 people in Scotland, United Kingdom.
Why visit Coldstream
Townapedia lists 11 museums and landmarks, 5 parks and trails, 9 places to eat, 1 place to stay and 3 attractions in and around town.
Highlights include Coldstream Bridge, Coldstream Museum and Cornhill-on-Tweed War Memorial.
Weather in Coldstream
Forecast from MET Norway (CC BY 4.0). Full forecast
About Coldstream
Coldstream (Scottish Gaelic: An Sruthan Fuar) is a historic town, former burgh and civil parish in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland. It lies on the north bank of the River Tweed in Berwickshire, while Northumberland in England lies to the south bank, with Cornhill-on-Tweed the nearest village. In 2022, the town had a population of 2,080.
From the Wikipedia article Coldstream (this version), under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Photos of Coldstream
Things to do3
Coldstream Bridge
Bridge · 0.5 mi
Bridge on the England-Scotland border
Museums and landmarks11
Parks, trails and playgrounds5
Restaurants and cafes9
History
Coldstream is the location where Edward I of England invaded Scotland in 1296. In February 1316 during the Wars of Scottish Independence, Sir James Douglas defeated a numerically superior force of Gascon soldiery led by Edmond de Caillou at the Skaithmuir to the north of the town. In 1650 General George Monck founded the Coldstream Guards regiment (one of the Foot Guards regiments of the British Army). It is one of two regiments of the Household Division that can trace its lineage to the New Model Army. Monck led the regiment to London, helping to enable the Restoration of King Charles II.
In the 18th and 19th centuries, Coldstream was a popular centre for runaway marriages, much like Gretna Green, as it lay on a major road (now the A697). A monument to Charles Marjoribanks (1794–1833), MP for Berwickshire, whose ancestral home was in nearby Lees, stands at the east end of the town, near the Coldstream Bridge. Alec Douglas-Home (1903–95), who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from October 1963 to October 1964, is buried in the churchyard of the ruined Lennel parish church, just outside the village.
Notable buildings in the town include the marriage house, where weddings were conducted, The Hirsel, which is the family seat of the Earls of Home, and Coldstream Town Hall, which is used as a library and registration office.
Read more of the history
Each year, during the first week of August, Coldstream hosts a traditional "Civic Week" where it includes historical aspects of the town's history such as the Torchlight procession and horse-rides to the Battle of Flodden battlefield.
The Priory of St Mary was founded before 1166 by Gospatric III, Earl of Lothian. Never wealthy or powerful, the monastery nevertheless occurs frequently in the history of the border lands, being targeted several times by English forces. The monastery is the only one from the period where any charters survive thanks to the good sense of the prioress, having them copied. The house was used by both the English and Scots to gather information on each other, thanks to its location, the prioress treading a tightrope to ensure the survival of the monastery. It became a favourite of Margaret Tudor, wife of James IV, Margaret using it several times during the troubled times of the Regency.
After the Battle of Flodden, the prioress had all the bodies of the Scottish casualties (apart from James IV's, which was taken to England) brought to the monastery for burial - an event commemorated annually even today, by a procession & service, involving cutting a sod of grass from the battle field and it being carried back to Coldstream; since the priory is completely lost today, the sod is symbolically 'buried' on the Tweed Green. The last prioress signed away her community and it ceased to exist as a legal entity in 1621, although no new novices had been permitted since the 1560 Reform Parliament. No reliable record of the number of nuns living in the house have survived. Isabella Hoppringle (1460–1538) was the prioress of Coldstream from 1505 until her death. She was succeeded by her relative, Janet Pringle, the last 'real' prioress of the house.
In February 2020, the Scottish Borders Council announced plans to build a museum at the family home of Vice-Admiral Bertram Home Ramsay, who masterminded Operation Dynamo, the evacuation of Dunkirk. "A former garden store will be converted at Bughtrig House in Coldstream to create the museum in his honour," BBC News reported.
From the History section of Coldstream on Wikipedia, under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Notable people from Coldstream
- Charles Douglas-Home, 12th Earl of HomeScottish peer (1834-1918)
- Tom JohnstonScottish association football player and manager (1918-1994)
- John McDougallQuebec politician (1805-1870)
- Robert ThompsonScottish cyclist
- Tom Ledgerwoodfootballer (1923-2006)
- John-Clay PurvesBritish geologist and museum curator
- Hugh MoffatAmerican mayor
Born in Coldstream, according to Wikidata (CC0). Each name links to its Wikipedia article.
Where to stay1
Churches and places of worship3
Shopping1
Gas and EV charging1
Schools, colleges and libraries3
Healthcare2
Map of Coldstream
39 places. The map loads OpenStreetMap tiles when you open it.
Getting there and nearby towns
Edinburgh Airport (EDI) is the nearest airport with scheduled flights listed in OpenStreetMap, 48 miles away.
- Kelso 8 mi southwest, about 13 min by car
- Duns 9 mi northwest, about 15 min by car
- Allanton 9 mi north, about 15 min by car
- Wooler 12 mi southeast, about 19 min by car
- Berwick-Upon-Tweed 13 mi northeast, about 20 min by car
- Eyemouth 16 mi northeast, about 27 min by car
- Saint Boswells 16 mi west, about 26 min by car
- Earlston 16 mi west, about 27 min by car
- Jedburgh 17 mi southwest, about 27 min by car
- Belford 17 mi east, about 27 min by car
Drive times are estimates from straight-line distance, not routes.
Towns near Coldstream
Keep exploring
Local news
Headlines from INDB.
Reviews, tips and questions
Loading what members have shared...
Sources and licences
- GeoNames (CC BY 4.0): population, coordinates, regions and time zone
- Mapillary (see each image): photos
- OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL 1.0): places, airports, map data
- Wikidata (CC0 1.0): elevation, founding date, time zone, website, landmarks and historic places
- Wikimedia Commons (see each image): photos
- Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0): overview and history text
Photo credits
- River Tweed at Coldstream, Unknown author, CC BY-SA 3.0
- Newcastle Arms 2024, 50 High Street, Coldstream, Victuallers, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 37 High Street, Coldstream, Victuallers, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 39 High Street, Coldstream, Victuallers, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 31 High Street, Coldstream, Victuallers, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 35 High Street, Coldstream, Victuallers, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 33 High Street, Coldstream, Victuallers, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 54 High Street, Coldstream, Mainlymazza, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 56 High Street, Coldstream, Mainlymazza, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 58 High Street, Coldstream, Mainlymazza, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Coldstream 2024, 62 High Street, Victuallers, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Keith House, 29 High Street, Coldstream, Victuallers, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 1 Duke Street, Coldstream, Mainlymazza, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 2 Duke Street, Coldstream, Mainlymazza, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 44 High Street, Coldstream, Victuallers, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 04889 Former St Cuthbert's Church of Scotland, Coldstream 007, WeeHolly, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 04889 Former St Cuthbert's Church of Scotland, Coldstream 006, WeeHolly, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 04889 Former St Cuthbert's Church of Scotland, Coldstream 008, WeeHolly, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 04889 Former St Cuthbert's Church of Scotland, Coldstream 002, WeeHolly, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 04889 Former St Cuthbert's Church of Scotland, Coldstream 003, WeeHolly, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 04889 Former St Cuthbert's Church of Scotland, Coldstream 004, WeeHolly, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 04889 Former St Cuthbert's Church of Scotland, Coldstream 001, WeeHolly, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 04889 Former St Cuthbert's Church of Scotland, Coldstream 005, WeeHolly, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 04889 Former St Cuthbert's Church of Scotland, Coldstream 009, WeeHolly, CC BY-SA 4.0
- 46 High Street, Coldstream, Victuallers, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Coldstream 2024, High Street, Coldstream Parish Church, Victuallers, CC BY-SA 4.0
- The Red Lion, Market Street, Coldstream, Mainlymazza, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Coldstream Bridge02 2000-01-03, Klaus with K, CC BY-SA 3.0
- The Collingwood Arms, Mainlymazza, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Coldstream Library, Victuallers, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Coldstream Museum, Mainlymazza, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Marjoribanks Monument, K&RHall, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Coldstream, High Street, Henderson Park, War Memorials, Mainlymazza, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, IpswichEdits, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, IpswichEdits, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, victuallers, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, victuallers, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, southglos, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, IpswichEdits, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, victuallers, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, IpswichEdits, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, IpswichEdits, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, IpswichEdits, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, ccbb7766, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, victuallers, CC BY-SA 4.0
- Street-level photo, victuallers, CC BY-SA 4.0
Page built November 10, 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us or suggest a place.


















