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Blakebillend is a tracked target range situated on the slopes of the Roxburghshire hills, approximately 750 metres west-north-west of Penchrise Peel. The monument lies on bedrock of the Hawick Group, a formation of wacke stone laid down during the Wenlock period of the Silurian era. The underlying geology here produces typical moorland terrain, exposed and windswept, characteristic of the borderlands between England and Scotland.
Tracked target ranges were training installations used by the military during the twentieth century, where vehicles were put through their paces on marked courses. These facilities tested the durability and manoeuvrability of tanks and other armoured vehicles over rough, uneven ground. The worn paths and scarred landscape at Blakebillend preserve evidence of these intensive training activities, which have left lasting marks on the turf and subsoil.
The site is now protected by Historic Environment Scotland under the reference SM13769, recognising its value as a record of Britain's mid-twentieth-century military heritage. Though modest in appearance, such training grounds document the scale and intensity of armed forces preparation during a pivotal era of national history. The monument stands as a physical archive of practical military engineering and vehicle development on Scottish soil.
Blakebillend, tracked target range, 750m WNW and 570m and 740m NW of Penchrise Peel is a scheduled monument protected by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM13769. View the official record →
Blakebillend is a tracked target range situated on the slopes of the Roxburghshire hills, approximately 750 metres west-north-west of Penchrise Peel. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM13769.
Blakebillend, tracked target range, 750m WNW and 570m and 740m NW of Penchrise Peel is a Scheduled Ancient Monument, legally protected by Historic Environment Scotland — the body responsible for designating and safeguarding heritage sites in Scotland. The official designation reference is SM13769.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including The Catrail,linear earthwork,SE slope of Singley Brae to Barry Sike (2.8 km), Cairn Sike,earthwork 1220m NE of Hawkhass House (2.9 km), The Catrail,linear earthwork,W of Leap Burn to 100m E of Langside Burn (3.1 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of Blakebillend, tracked target range, 750m WNW and 570m and 740m NW of Penchrise Peel's history, each drawn from the record and mapped to the exact spot:
Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.
Blakebillend, tracked target range, 750m WNW and 570m and 740m NW of Penchrise Peel stands on Hawick Group, bedrock that formed in the Wenlock. The rock here is wacke.