THE LIBRARY
OF
THE UNIVERSITY
OF CALIFORNIA
LOS ANGELES
THE LAKE OF MENTEITH
The Lake of Menteith
ITS ISLANDS AND VICINITY
WITH HISTORICAL ACCOUNTS OF
priory of 3ncbmabome
AND
THE EARLDOM OF MENTEITH
BY
A. F. HUTCHISON, M.A.
Illustrated with Pen and Ink Drawings
by Walter Bain.
STIRLING:
ENEAS MACKAY, 43 MURRAY PLACE.
MDCCCXCIX.
DA
%-so
LIST OF SUBSCRIBERS.
ADAMS, Wm., West Kilbride.
AITKEN, Mrs. Isabella T., Philadelphia.
ALEXANDER, W., Stirling.
ALLAN, John, Stirling.
ANDERSON, David S. B., Dunfermline.
ANDERSON, J., M .A., Callander.
ANDERSON, William, New Kilpatrick.
ANDREW, Dr., Doune.
ANGUS, Miss, Helensburgh.
ANGUS, Robert, Old Cumnock, Ayrshire.
ARNOT, James, M.A., Edinburgh.
ASHER & Co., London.
BALD, W., Edinburgh.
BALLINGALL, D., Blair Drummond.
BARCLAY-ALLARDICE, Robert, F.S.A.(Scot), Cornwall.
BARTY, Dr., Dunblane.
BAIN, James, Toronto.
BAIRD, H., Auchenbowie.
BAXENDINE, A., Edinburgh.
BERRY, J., jun., Buchlyvie.
BERRY, James Garrow, Cambus.
BLACK & JOHNSTON, Brechin.
BLAIR, A. Aikman, Edinburgh.
BLAIR, Robert, Trossachs Hotel.
BOWDITCH, Chas., Massachusetts, U.S.A.
BRIDGES, James, Perth.
BRISBANE, Thos., Stirling.
BROWN, James, Stirling.
BROWN, J. A. Harvie, Dunipace.
BROWN, William, Edinburgh.
BRUCE, James, Edinburgh.
8G9096
vi List of Subscribers.
BRYCE, William, Edinburgh.
BRYCE & MURRAY, Glasgow.
BRYDEN, R. A., Glasgow.
BUCHANAN, A-, Polmont.
BUCHANAN, J. Hamilton, Edinburgh.
BURDEN, John, New York.
CAMERON, Miss, Stirling.
CAMERON, A. C, LL.D., Paisley.
CAMPBELL, J. W., Stirling.
CAMPBELL, Bailie Finlay, Helensburgh.
CAMPBELL, Jas. Alex,, Brechin.
CAMPBELL, Mrs., Alexandria.
CHERRY, Miss, Craigs.
CHRISTIE, Geo., Stirling.
CHRISTIE, James, Glasgow.
CHRISTIE, Robert H., Dunblane.
CHRYSTAL, David, Stirling.
CLARK, James, Doune.
COMBE, Miss Jessie, Glasgow.
COOK, W. B., Stirling.
CORNISH, J. E., Manchester.
COWAN, Donald, Stirling.
CRABBIE, Geo., Port of Menteith.
CURROR, John G., Stirling.
DALRYMPLE-DUNCAN, J., Stirling.
DiCKSON, Rev. J. G , Manse, Kippen.
DlCKSON, P. T., Aberfoyle.
DOUGHTY, Alex., Aberfoyle.
DOUGLAS, Miss, Callander.
DOUGLAS & FOULIS, Edinburgh.
DOWGRAY, John, Lochgelly, Fifeshire.
DRYSDALE, W., Stirling.
DRYSDALE, Ex-Provost, Bridge of Allan.
DUN, Alexander, Stirling.
DUNCAN, Archibald, Newhouse.
EASTON, Walter, Carronhall.
ELLIOT, Andrew, Edinburgh.
ERSKINE, H. D., of Cardross.
List of Subscribers. vii
FERGUSON, Daniel, Stirling.
FERGUSON, Councillor Hugh, Stirling.
FERGUSON, Miss, Stirling.
FERGUSON, Rev. John, Aberdalgie.
FERGUSON, John, Glasgow.
FERGUSSON, Rev. R. Menzies, Bridge of Allan.
FERRIES, Rev. George, D.D., Manse of Cluny, Aberdeenshire.
FLEMING, Sir Sandford, K.C.M.G., Ottawa, Canada.
FLEMING, D. Hay, LL.D., St. Andrews.
FOLKARD, H. T., F.S.A., Wigan.
FORRESTER, Robert, Glasgow.
FORSYTH, George, Stirling.
FOWLER, Major, Stirling.
Fox, Chas. Henry, M.D-, Edinburgh.
GALBRAITH, T. L., Stirling.
GIBSON, James A., Stirling.
GILLANDERS, John, Denny.
GORDON, Alex., Stirling.
GRAHAM, James L., Stirling.
GRAHAM, John, Inverness.
GRANT, Rev. A. T., Leven.
GRANT, David, M.A., M.D., Melbourne.
GRANT, John, Edinburgh.
GRAY, James, Aberfeldy.
GRAY, William, Doune.
GRAY, Geo., Glasgow.
GRAY-BUCHANAN, A. W., Polmont.
HAMILTON, R., Port of Menteith.
HARVEY, Wm., Stirling.
HENDERSON, George., Stirling.
HENDERSON, Hugh, Stirling.
HENDERSON, Rev. W. T., New Kilpatrick, Glasgow.
HOLMES, W. & R., Glasgow.
HOWART, J. W., Stirling.
HUNTER, James, Kippen.
HUTCHESON, A., F.S.A., Broughty Ferry.
INGE, Rev. John, Alford.
viii List of Subscribers.
JAMIESON, John, Stirling.
JAMIESON, John, Portobello.
JENKINS, Alexander, Stirling.
JENKINS, John, Stirling.
JOHNSTON, T. W. R., Stirling.
JOHNSTON, Rev. J. J., Port of Menteith.
JOHNSTONE, David, Edinburgh.
JOYNSON, E. Walter, Aberfoyle.
KIDSTON, R., F.G.S., Stirling.
KIDSTON, Adrian M. M. G-, Helensburgh.
KING, Councillor, Stirling.
LAING, Alexander, Edinburgh.
LANDER, T. E., Arngomery.
LAWRIE, R. H., Edinburgh.
LAWSON, Wm., Castleview, Stirling.
LEITCH, J. M., London.
LEE, Alex. H., Edinburgh.
LEVY, Andrew, Edinburgh.
LINDSAY, D., Stirling.
LINKLATER, Miss, Callander.
LIPPE, Robert, LL.D., Aberdeen.
LITTLE, Robt , Kirkcaldy.
LOVE, James, Falkirk.
Low, Walter, Ballendrick, Perthshire.
LOWSON, Geo., M.A., B.Sc., Stirling.
LUMSDEN, James, Alexandria.
MACALPINE, John, Ruskie.
MACFARLANE, Charles, East Blackburn.
MACGREGOR, Rev. A. O., Denny.
MACGREGOR, John, Port of Menteith.
MACKEITH, Alex., Glasgow.
MACLAY, James, Glasgow.
MACLEOD, M. C., Dundee.
MACLEOD, N., Edinburgh.
MACADAM, W. N., Edinburgh.
MACADAM, Jas. H., F.S.A. (Scot.), London.
MACDONALD, Dr. Angus, Edinburgh.
List of Subscribers. ix
MACFARLANE, Bailie, Stirling.
MACKAY, D., Inverness.
MACKAY W., Inverness.
MACKAY, John, Glasgow.
MACKAY, W. H., Port Salisbury, South Africa.
MACKAY, James, North Dakota, U.S.A.
MACKAY, John, Cardross.
MACKEITH, J. Thornton, Ruskie.
MACKENZIE, Mrs., Dunblane.
MACKENZIE, James, Glasgow.
MACKIE, James F., Stirling.
MACKINLAY, R. A., Rothesay.
MACKINTOSH, C. Fraser, LL.D., Inverness.
MACLACHLAN, Archibald, Stirling.
MACLEHOSE, James, & Sons, Glasgow.
MACMILLAN, John, Edinburgh.
MACNAUGHTON, Rev. Geo. D., B.D., Braco.
MACNIVEN & WALLACE, Edinburgh.
MACPHERSON, James, Stirling.
MAILER, James, Stirling.
MAILER, Wm., Stirling.
MAIR, James S., Aberfoyle.
MARTIN, F. J., Edinburgh.
MAXWELL, Mrs., Doune.
MAY, George, Fintry.
MELVEN, William, Glasgow.
MELVILLE, MULLEN, & SLADE, London.
MENZIES, John, & Co., Edinburgh and Glasgow.
MENZIES, Robert, Stirling.
MILLER, John, Stirling.
MILLER, John, Dunedin.
MILLER, Wm., Pollokshields.
MINNOCH, W. H., Stirling.
MITCHELL, Rev. J. Gordon, Norrieston Manse.
MONTEATH, J. Kippen.
MOORE, Mrs. Alex., Port of Menteith.
MOORHOUSE, J. Ernest, M.D., Stirling.
MORRIS, David B., Stirling.
MORRISON, Miss, Stirling.
MORRISON, John, Aberdeen.
List of Subscribers.
MOVES, Alex., Stirling.
MUNRO, John, Stirling.
MURPHY, A. MacLean, Stirling.
MURRAY, J. G., Stirling.
MURRIE, Stewart, Stirling.
M'DONALD, A. B., M. Inst. C.E., Glasgow.
M'GEACHY & Co., Glasgow.
M'LELLAN, Andrew, M.A., Liverpool.
NEWARK LIBRARY, per G. E. Stechert, London.
NIGHTINGALE, Miss, London.
OLIPHANT, T. L. Kington, Auchterarder.
ORMOND, Rev. D. D., F.S.A. (Scot), Stirling.
PATERSON, Alex., Stirling.
PATERSON, James R., Dalmuir.
PATERSON, Rev. G. W., Aberfoyle.
PATERSON, D., Thornhill, Dumfriesshire.
PLATT, L. J., Stirling.
PULLAR, L., Bridge of Allan.
RAMSEY, Robert, Glasgow.
RETTIE, R. G., Kirkcaldy.
RICHARDSON, J. B., Pitgorno.
RICHARDSON, James, Glasgow.
ROBERTSON, Dr., Stirling.
ROBERTSON, Dr., Bannockburn.
ROBERTSON, W. J., Manchester.
ROBERTSON, R., Glasgow.
ROBERTSON, James, Menstrie.
ROBERTSON, James, Bonnybridge.
RODGERS, W. M., Stirling.
RONALD, Ex-Bailie, Stirling.
RONALD, James E., Stirling.
RONALD, Thos., Bannockburn.
Ross, David, M.A., B.Sc, LL.D. Glasgow.
SALMOND, Professor S, D. F., Aberdeen.
SAMUEL, John Smith, Glasgow.
SANDEMAN, Ridley, Stirling.
List of Subscribers. xi
SCHILLING, Julius F., Stirling.
SCONCE, Colonel, Edinburgh.
SCOTT, Rev. W., Stirling.
SCOTT, Robert, Montrose.
SCOTT, Alexander, Stirling.
SEMPILL, Chief-Constable, Newhouse.
SHIRRA, Wm. L., Stirling.
SLEE, Miss, London.
SMALL, J. W., Stirling.
SMITH, James Kemp, Stirling.
SMITH, J. & Sons, Glasgow.
SMITH, Rev. Frederick, Dunblane.
SMITH, Robert, Dundee.
SORLEY, Councillor Robert, Glasgow.
SOTHERAN, Henry, & Co., London.
STARK, Robert. Kirkcaldy.
STEVEN, John, Glasgow.
STEVENS, B. F., Trafalgar Square, London.
STEVENSON, Rev. R., M.A., Gargunnock.
STEVENSON, Robert, Kilwinning.
STEWART, Walter, Edinburgh.
STIRLING PUBLIC LIBRARY, per Robt. Whyte, Secy.
STIRLING, C. C. Graham, Campsie Glen.
STIRLING, J., Port of Menteith.
STIRLING HIGH SCHOOL LIBRARY, per Geo. Young, Secy.
SUMNER, E. R., Aberfoyle. .
SWORD, James, Stirling.
SYMON, J. H., Q.C., Adelaide.
TENNENT, Robert, Dunipace.
THE MITCHELL LIBRARY, per F. T. Barrett, Glasgow.
THIN, James, Edinburgh.
THOMSON, Miss E., Denny.
THOMSON, Arthur H., Stenhousemuir.
THOMSON, Alex., Edinburgh. ***»».
TODD, Charles H., Aberdeen.
TOWNS, W., East Plean.
WALKER, D. W., S.S.C., Edinburgh.
WATT, John, M.A., Aberdeen.
xii List of Subscribers.
WEIR, Alexander M., Stirling.
WILLIAMS, Rev. G., Thornhill.
WILSON, Colonel, Bannockburn House.
WILSON, Edward L., Bannockburn.
WILSON, James, Birmingham.
WOOD, Alexander, Saltcoats.
WORDIE, Peter, Lenzie.
WORDIE, John, Glasgow.
WYLIE, Bailie, Stirling.
YELLOWLEES, Rev. John, Larbert.
YOUNG, D., Doune.
YOUNGER, A., Cambus.
PREFACE.
THE beautiful Lake of Menteith, with the picturesque country that
surrounds it, and the monastic and baronial ruins on its Islands, are
familiar enough to the tourist and the visitor. The interesting
histories connected with these places are not, however, so well known,
as there is no easily accessible work in which they can be read with
anything like fulness and accuracy. The materials lie scattered in
Public Records and private charter chests, or are contained in rare
or privately-printed books. To bring these materials together in
something like a connected narrative, and generally to supply
authentic information — so far as it is at present attainable — regarding
the Hills and the Lake of Menteith, the Priory of Inchmahome, and
the Castle of Inchtalla, is the aim of this volume.
Two investigators of the present century have done much to
elucidate the history of the Priory and of the Earldom of Menteith;
but it can hardly be said that the work of either is available to the
general reader. The Rev. W. M'Gregor Stirling's " Notes on Inch-
mahome " — published in 1812 — has long been out of print, and it is
now difficult to procure a copy ; while the late Sir William Fraser's
elaborate " Red Book of Menteith " was a privately-printed work,
and has thus never been readily accessible.
Stirling has the credit of being the first to go beyond the hazy
local traditions, and to collect materials for a history of the Priory
obtained from the MSS. collections at Gartmore and other places in
the neighbourhood. These materials, however, as they appear in his
" Notes on Inchmahome," though authentic, are not very abundant.
xiv Preface.
But he continued his investigations after the publication of his book,
and noted the results of these researches in manuscript additions,
written on the margins of his own copy of his work. That copy,
with the Manuscript Notes, is now in possession of H. D. Erskine,
Esq. of Cardross, to whose courtesy the writer has been indebted for
an opportunity of examining it. Whatever was new in these Notes
will therefore be found embodied in the present narrative. The
writer desires also to acknowledge his obligation to Mr. Erskine for
giving access to the index and abstracts of the Cardross Charters —
of the greatest value for a history of the Priory — as well as for his
kind and valued aid in the examination of those ruins in which he
takes so deep an interest.
Sir William Eraser's exhaustive examination of the documents
in the charter chests of Buchanan, Gartmore, &c., relating to the
Earldom of Menteith, has made his " Red Book," in which the
results of that examination are recorded, a storehouse of materials
for all future investigators of that subject. Ample use has, in these
pages, been made of Eraser's researches, as well as of the Minutes
of Evidence in the Airth Peerage Cases, where charters and other
documents will be found printed with admirable accuracy. The
unsettled question of the Menteith succession has been purposely
avoided.
Sir William also added largely to the previously known history
of the Priory. He printed in the " Red Book " a considerable
number of charters relating to its affairs. Such of these charters as
do not appear elsewhere, and to the originals of which access could
not be had, have been accepted as he gives them ; but all the other
authorities to which he refers have been re-examined, and new ones
have been added. In this way, it has been found possible to correct
a few inaccuracies, while some additional facts have been brought
to light.
A list of works that have been cited as authorities for statements
made in this book, and of the various sources, printed and manuscript,
Preface. xv
from which information has been drawn, is appended. The most
fruitful of the sources of new information have been the Chartularies
of the Religious Houses of Scotland (the Chartulary of Dryburgh
has, as was to be expected, been specially useful), the various Record
Publications — Acts of Parliament, Privy Council Records, Treasurers'
Accounts, Exchequer Rolls, &c., &c. — and, especially, the local
Records of the Burgh of Stirling. Most important of all have been
the Protocol Books of that burgh. An Abstract of these Protocols
had been made for the use of the burgh, and was recently printed
by the late Rev. A. W. Cornelius Hallen, M.A., of Alloa. Neither
the print nor the Abstract are always perfectly accurate ; but the
writer has fortunately been supplied with trustworthy transcripts of
all pertinent Protocols by Mr. W. B. Cook, of Stirling, who has
made careful abstracts of all these documents from the original MSS.
And that is not the only service for which he has to acknowledge his
obligation to that gentleman. In all matters of genealogy and family
history he has been specially indebted to Mr. Cook, and in fact,
through the whole course of the investigation, he has received from
him ungrudging and valuable aid.
Although several Priors have been added to those known to Sir
William Fraser, there still remains an unfortunate gap in the list.
Perhaps materials for filling that gap may some day come to light,
but as yet the author has not been able to find them. He hopes,
however, that as few errors as possible have been allowed to enter
into what he has written. He has been as careful as he could to
distinguish between what is merely probable and what may be
regarded as certain, and to set down nothing as fact without some
distinct and sufficient authority for it.
The topographical accounts of the district, it may be added,
have been written from a somewhat intimate acquaintance with it
for many years. And as to the descriptions of the ruined buildings
on the Islands — which were also written from personal observation —
the author is pleased to find them confirmed, in all essential points,
XVI
Preface.
by the high professional authority of Messrs. M'Gibbon & Ross,
authors of the Ecclesiastical and Baronial Architecture of Scotland,
whom he desires to thank for their courtesy in consenting to the
reproduction of their plans of Inchmahome and Talla.
A. F. H.
ALPHABETICAL LIST OF WORKS CITED AS AUTHORITIES,
OR OTHERWISE REFERRED TO, IN THIS VOLUME.
Anderson's (Robert, M.D.) Works of Smollett, 6th edition. 1820.
Anderson's (James) Diplomata Scotiae.
Antiquary, The Scottish, vol. xi., 1897 ; vol. xiii., 1899. Edin.
Arundel MS. : Catalogue of British Museum MSS. Printed London, 1834.
Armstrong's (R. A.) Gaelic Dictionary. London, 1825.
Audsley's Popular Dictionary of Architecture. London, 1882.
Aytoun's (W. E.) Ballads of Scotland. Edin., 1861.
Balfour's (Sir James) Historical Works, edit. 1824. London.
Baring-Gould's (Sabine) Lives of the Saints. 1872-7.
Bell's (H. Glassford) Life of Mary Queen of Scots, 2nd edit. 1831.
Bellenden's Translation of Boece's History and Chronicles of Scotland.
Edin., 1821.
Blaikie's (W. B.) Itinerary of Prince Charles Edward Stuart : Scottish History
Society. Edin., 1897.
Brown's (Dr. John) Horse Subsecivse, 2nd series. Edin., 1861.
Buchan's (Earl of) Anonymous and Fugitive Essays. Edin., 1812.
Buchanan (George), Opera Omnia, ed. Ruddiman. Edin., 1715.
Buchanan's (of Auchmar) History of the Family of Buchanan. 1723.
Burl's (Captain) Letters from a Gentleman in the North of Scotland, edited
by R. Jamieson. London, 1822.
Calderwood's History of the Kirk of Scotland : Wodrow Society. Edin.,
1842-5.
Calendar of Documents relating to Scotland, ed. by Sir Francis Palgrave.
London, 1836.
Chalmers' (George) Caledonia. London, 1807-10.
Chalmers' (George) Life of Mary Queen of Scots. London, 1818.
Chalmers' (George) Life of Thomas Ruddiman. London, 1794.
Chambers' (Robert) Domestic Annals of Scotland. Edin., 1858-61.
Chambers' (Robert) Picture of Scotland. Edin., 1827.
Charters and Other Documents relating to the Royal Burgh of Stirling —
A.D. 1124-1705. Glasgow, 1884.
xviii List of Authorities.
Chronica de Mailros : Bannatyne Club. Edin., 1835.
Chronicon de Lanercost, ed. by Stevenson. 1830.
Churchyard's (Thomas) Chips concerning Scotland. London, 1817.
Cuninghame-Graham's (R. B.) Notes on the District of Menteith. Edin.,
1895.
Dalrymple's (Father) Version of Leslie's History of Scotland : Scottish Text
Society. Edin., 1884-5.
Dargaud's (J. M.) Histoire de Marie Stuart. Paris, 1850.
Dictionarium Scoto-Celticum : the Gaelic Dictionary of the Highland Society.
Edin., 1828.
Diurnal of Occurrents : Maitland Club. Edin., 1833.
Dun's (P.) Summer at the Lake of Menteith. Glasgow, 1866.
Erskine of Carnock, Journal of Hon. John, from 1682 to 1687 : Scottish
History Society. Edin., 1873.
Forbes's (A. P., Bishop of Brechin) Kalendars of Scottish Saints. Edin.,
1872.
Fordun and Bower : Historians of Scotland Series. Edin., 1879.
Fordun's Chronicle of the Scottish Nation, ed. by Skene : Historians of
Scotland, IV. Edin., 1872.
Fosbrooke's (Thos. Dudley) British Monachism. London, 1817.
Fountainhall's (Lord) Decisions of the Lords of Council and Session, &c.
Edin., 1759-61.
Fragmenta Scoto-Monastica. Edin., 1842.
Fraser's (Sir William) The Chiefs of Colquhoun. Edin., 1869.
Eraser's (Sir William) The Red Book of Menteith. Edin., 1880.
Genealogical Magazine, July, 1897.
Gordon's (Sir Robert) Genealogical History of the Earldom of Sutherland.
Edin., 1813.
Gordon's (Dr. J. F. S.) Monasticon. Glasgow, 1868.
Graham's (Dr. Patrick) Sketches of Perthshire, 2nd edit. Edin., 1812.
Graham's (of Duchray) Account of the Earl of Glencairn's Expedition.
Edin., 1822.
Graham's (Alexander of Duchray) Description of Parish of Port : Macfarlan
Papers in Advocates' Library.
Gwynne's Military Memoirs of the Great Civil War. Edin., 1822.
Hay Fleming's (Dr. David) Mary Queen of Scots. London, 1897.
Her Majesty Queen Victoria's More Leaves from the Journal of a Life in the
Highlands. London, 1884.
List of Authorities.
Henry die Minfni— ScMr William Wallace : Scottish Tert Society's edition.
Tt*Kf» t 1884-5.
Hffl ItaUuBfc Gohn) Hntoryoff SoDtknd, new edit EdixL, 1897.
HbMbnFs (Mugnct i Poems. 1811.
Humtei*s Woods, Forests, and Estates of Perthshire. 1883.
Inuofc (Cosmo) Sketches of ExityScnttidi Hktaxy. Eoax, 1861.
Innes"s (Fattiaer Tlos.) Essay cm tfae Aaacksat Inhabitants off Scotland, ed, by
QipK Edict, 1879.
Instennnenflat l^MSr* Q*-*B""" RoJQs) : Bannatyne Club. EdiiL, 1 831.
David) Memoirs of George Buchanan. Edition 1837.
Jebhfe (SnBod) Dfe l^l» et Rebus Geriis Macriae, &c. London, 1725.
Javad"* (Andrew, FSJL) M*«^^«fc of Angus and M earns. Ediru, 1861.
Johnston's (Rrr. J. R.) Pttace-Names off Scotland. Ediru, 1892.
(Bidhop) Ouk^inr of lie Scottish Bishops. Edin^ 1705 ; and
Spottewood^i editaam of same, painted at Ediru, 1824.
KribacTs (WL S.) Hkbay of die Scotiisii HSgiQands. Edm., 1887.
KjDOCKS ClQBDf ^XBbMV Of IfflC JkCIODHEribQBL EuUBGID OI
(Dki Jobnj Eodesasttaczi Eistorj of IreiandL Dublin, 3829^-
fFicoc dc) UbvooiQCj ^fP- bv ^y*^otf LotDoon. i &66-S.
Loficfk CBfainp) EEoflarie cff Scotland : BaMBtpne Ook Ediru, 1830.
ftUMB 1*^ M •!•> i»i^ ^L Amrtnpp mra Scotna
1841.
xLOQCSlC QC ^P^Qff ^ Ju^jQiQDQ CJHDL £jODBL« I<&JL I*
QhiK EdirL, 1 847.
ed. by Sbene. 1 877-89.
^ CJHOL K^JBBT\_ 1
" - - . " — ' - - ~ J ^ A IL_, "•*- tf~TL_3. TT^d_ _ C1 ^ t>
__ , _ i-;7 - _„.. __ ~ _t .-. _ 'T r _ - . ____ .'. ~ •— . ___ " _-_. JL' __ . - J. !
fjanlijjAi. |Sr Onid) Worio% ed. lay f^mg. Kdini^ 1-871.
Landsay^ (Robett of PiteoUtie) Efotorj of Scotland, ed. by DalzaEL Fxfrn,
off tflae CP**1!^ T J"y^pr 1896.
Domestic JvcbfiBdiBBe of
if~
Ecdesgabcal AaAiaxiBBe of Scrifllwrjd.
liadkae s ((Qmiks)) rMflftp^ f^iaoes, and Pummt of Maty Queen of Scots.
: : -- -..
dames) Grade fivam Gtoago* to «ame of the aunt
-- - ~ •" * -HiiHiiir of Soooaad. GBHCDH^ ^797*
xx List of Authorities.
Macpherson's (David) Geographical Illustrations of Scottish History. Edin.,
1798.
Mai Hand's (William) History and Antiquities of Scotland. London, 1757.
Major's (John) Historia Majoris Brittaniae. Edin., 1740.
Malcolm's (David) Memoir of the House of Drummond. 1808.
Manuscript Records of the Burgh, Kirk Session, and Presbytery of Stirling.
Manuscript Protocol Books of the Burgh of Stirling.
Marshall's (Dr. William) Historic Scenes in Perthshire. Edin., 1880.
Maxwell's (Sir Herbert) Robert the Bruce. 1898.
Millar's (A. H.) Castles and Mansions of Scotland. Edin., 1890.
Minutes of Evidence in the Airth Peerage Cases. 1839 and 1841.
Munimenta Alme Universitatis Glasguenis : Maitland Club. Glasgow, 1854.
Napier's (Sheriff Mark) Memorials of Montrose : Maitland Club. Edin.,
1848-50.
New Statistical Account of Scotland. Edin., 1845.
Nicolas' (Sir Harris) History of the Earldoms of Strathern, Monteith, and
Airth. London, 1842.
Nimmo's (Rev. W.) History of Stirlingshire, 2nd edit., by Rev. W. M.
Stirling. Stirling, 1817.
Patten's (W., Londoner) Expedicion into Scotlande. London, 1548.
Pinkerton's (John) Enquiry into the History of Scotland. Edin., 1814.
Pitcairn's (Robert, W.S.) Criminal Trials in Scotland. Edin., 1829.
Ramsay's (John) Scotland and Scotsmen in the Eighteenth Century. Edin.,
1888.
Records of the Royal Burgh of Stirling (Extracts from), A.D. 1519-1665.
Glasgow, 1887.
Records of the Royal Burgh of Stirling (Extracts from), A.D. 1667-1752.
Glasgow, 1889.
Record Office Publications : —
Accounts of the Lord High Treasurer of Scotland.
Acts of the Lords Auditors of Causes and Complaints (Acta Auditorum).
Acts of the Lords of Council in Civil Causes (Acta Dominorum Concilii).
Acts of the Parliaments of Scotland.
Calendar of State Papers, James I., 1603-1625, edited by M. A. Everett-
Green.
Calendar of State Papers relating to Scotland, edited by T. Thorpe.
Documents and Records illustrating the History of Scotland, edited by
Sir Francis Palgrave.
Exchequer Rolls.
Historical MSS. Commission's Reports.
List of Authorities. xxi
Record Office Publications (continued) —
Register of the Privy Council of Scotland.
Register of the Great Seal.
Reeves' (Bishop W.) Ecclesiastical Antiquities of Down, Connor, and
Dromore. Dublin, 1847.
Registrum de Dunfermlyn : Bannatyne Club. Edin., 1842.
Registrum Episcopatus Aberdonensis, ed. C. Innes : Spalding Club. Edin.,
1845-
Registrum Episcopatus Brechinensis : Bannatyne Club. Edin., 1856.
Registrum Episcopatus Glasguensis: Maitland Club. Edin., 1843.
Registrum Monasterii Sancte Marie de Cambuskenneth, ed. W. Fraser :
Grampian Club. Edin., 1872.
Robertson's (Colonel Alex.) Gaelic Topography of Scotland. Edin., 1866.
Robertson's (E. W.) Scotland under her Early Kings. Edin., 1862.
Robertson's (William) Index to Missing Charters. Edin., 1798.
Rymer's (Thomas) Fcedera, &c. London, 1704-35.
Scala Chronica (Sir Thomas Gray of Heton) : Maitland Club. Edin., 1836.
Scotichronicon — Fordun and Bower : ed. Goodall. Edin., 1747-59.
Scott's (Alexander) Poems : Scottish Text Society's edition. Edin., 1896.
Scott's (Rev. Hew) Fasti Ecclesiae Scoticanse. Edin., 1868.
Scott's (Sir Walter) Lady of the Lake, Rob Roy, Legend of Montrose, Tales
of a Grandfather. Edit. 1892.
Sibbald's (Sir Robert) History of the Sheriffdoms of Fife and Kinross. Cupar-
Fife, 1803.
Skene's (Dr. W. F.) Celtic Scotland, 2nd ed. Edin., 1886-90.
Smith's (John Guthrie) Strathendrick and its Inhabitants. Glasgow, 1896.
Spalding's (Commissary John) History of the Troubles' in Scotland : Banna-
tyne Club. Edin., 1828-9.
Spalding Club Miscellany. Aberdeen, 1842.
Spottiswoode's (Archbishop) History of the Church of Scotland, 4th edition.
London, 1677.
Statistical Account of Scotland (Sinclair's). Edin., 1791-9.
Stewart's (Duncan, M.A) Short Historical and Genealogical Account of the
Royal Family of Scotland and of the Surname of Stewart. Edin., 1739.
Stewart's (J. H. J. and Lieut.-Col. D.) The Stewarts of Appin. Edin., 1880.
Stirling Natural History and Archaeological Society's Transactions, vol. xv.
Stirling's (Rev. W. MacGregor) Notes on the Priory of Inchmahome. Edin.,
1815.
Strickland's (Miss A.) Lives of the Queens of Scotland. London, 1852.
Theiner's (Augustus) Vetera Monumenta Hibernorum et Scotorum historiam
illustrantia, &c. Rome, 1864.
xxii List of Authorities.
Transactions of Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland, 4th series ;
vols. xi. and xii. 1879-1880.
Tytler's (P. Fraser) History of Scotland. Edin., 1864.
Walsingham's (Thomas) Chronica, &c. London, 1867.
Wishart's Memoirs of James, Marquis of Montrose. London, 1893.
Wodrow's History of the Sufferings of the Church of Scotland from the
Restauration to the Revolution. Edin., 1721.
Wood's edition of Douglas's Peerage. 1813.
Wyntoun's Origynale Cronykil of Scotland, ed. Laing : Historians of Scot-
land. Edin., 1872.
CONTENTS.
CHAPTER I.
TOPOGRAPHY OF MENTEITH, WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO
PLACES OF LEGENDARY OR HISTORICAL INTEREST.
PAGE
SECTION I. — Extent of the district — The Earldom — The Stewartry
— The name — Various derivations of Teith and Menteith — A
new one suggested — Varied spellings of the word — References
by early writers — Hector Boece — The Caledonian forest and
its white bulls — The huntings in Menteith — Buchanan —
Bishop Lesley — The cheese of Menteith — The murder of
Duncan II. — Not, as stated by Buchanan and others, in Men-
teith— Restricted sense of the word, ... ... ... ... i
SECTION II. — The hill country beside the Lake — Ben-dhu and
Ben-dearg masses contrasted — Description of Ben-dearg —
View from the summit — Lochan-falloch — Craig o' Port —
Auchrig " Stone Avalanche "— Loch and Castle Ruskie —
Pass of Glenny and Portend Burn — Crockmelly — Traditional
battle in 1653 and its incidents — M 'Queen's Pass — The
Horseman's Leap — Historical accounts of this skirmish —
Duchray's narrative — the Mercurius Politicus — Colonel Kid
alias Colonel Rid — M'Gregor traditions — The Tyeper's Path
and Tyeper's Well — Tobanareal — These names explained —
Death of William, third Graham Earl there — The Cairn of
quartz, 13
CHAPTER II.
AROUND THE LAKE.
SECTION I. — The Port and the Northern Shore— The Port— Other
ferries — Port made a burgh of barony — The Cross — The
Law Tree— St. Michael's Fair— Church of Port— Extracts
xxiv Contents.
PAGE
from the Session records — Ministers of Port from the Refor-
mation— The Church and Church-yard — Lands of Port —
Prior's Meadow — Portend and the Earls' pleasaunce — Charles
II. at Portend, 30
SECTION II. — The Western Shore — Earls' stables — Piper's House —
Piper's Strand— Milling— The Fair— The Gallows' Hill— The
last execution — The Claggans and the last wolf — Macanrie
and Auchveity, with the legend of the King's son and the
herd-maiden — Suggested interpretation of the names —
Arnchly — Cup and ring marked stone — The legend of
Pharic M'Pharic — Battle of Tillymoss or Gartalunane, ... 45
SECTION III. — The Southern Shore — Arnmauch — The legend of
its formation — Cnoc-nan-Bocan, or the bogle knowe — Possibly
an ancient barrow — Gartur — Cardross — The " Black Colonel "
in hiding on Ardmach — Lochend — Tom-a-mhoid — The Loch
of Gudy — The Pictish town of Guidi, ... ... ... 52
SECTION IV. — The Eastern Shore — Its appearance — Chapel and
burying-ground at Inchie — Theft of "the roast fowls — Red-
nock — The old Castle — Menteiths and others of Rednock —
Grahams of Rednock — Blairhoyle, sometime Leitchtown —
Why so called — Claim of Grahams of Leitchtown to the
Earldom of Menteith — Rusky — Clan battle (Menteiths and
Drummonds) at Tar of Ruskie, 58
CHAPTER III.
THE LAKE AND ITS ISLANDS.
The only lake in Scotland — Lake a recent innovation — Earlier
names — Description — Dr. John Brown on the Lake — Different
points of view — Extent and depth — Feeders and outlet :
Inchmahome — Island of St. Colmoc — Various forms of the
name — " Isle of my Rest " a misinterpretation — Account of
the island — The Monastery gardens — Nuns' Walk and Nuns'
Hill — Legend of the nun — No nunnery — Suggestion to
account for the name — Queen Mary's Tree, Garden, and
Bower — Large old trees — Their description and measure-
ment : Inchtalla — Why so called — Older forms of the word —
General description of the island — Inch-cuan — the Earls'
kennels — James the Sixth (First of England) and the Earl
of Menteith's "earth dogges," 67
Contents. xxv
PAGE
CHAPTER IV.
THE RUINS OF THE PRIORY ON INCHMAHOME.
Ground plan — Position of the Church — The nave — The entrances
— The bell-tower — The north aisle — The sacristy and vestry —
The east choir window — Choir interior — Entrance from the
south — South side of Church — Windows — The Chapter
House — Used as burial-place of later Earls of Menteith—
The Prior's Chamber or Queen Mary's bedroom — The avenue
to the vault — Statues of the eighth Earl and his Countess,
not erected — The cloister — The cells of the Canons — The
dormitory — Refectory — Garden — Monuments in the choir —
That of Earl Walter Stewart and his Countess described
— Also monument of Sir John Drummond, erected by his
widow — St. Michael and St. Colmoc on the monument —
Other tombstones, 101
CHAPTER V.
THE PRIORY OF INCHMAHOME UNDER ITS EARLY PRIORS —
1238 TO 1528.
Early religious settlements on Inchmahome — Who was Colman ?
— Coming of the Augustinians — Possibly brought by the first
Earl Murdach — Founding of the Priory by Walter Comyn,
Earl of Menteith, in 1238 — Writ of Pope Gregory IX. —
Abstract of its provisions — The Canons-Regular of the Order
of St. Augustine — Their dress — The divisions and employ-
ments of the conventual day — Chapels and Churches belonging
to the Priory of Inchmahome — Early revenue according to
Bagimont's Roll — Prior Adam swears fealty to Edward I. —
Prior Maurice in 1305 — Three visits of King Robert Bruce
to Inchmahome in the time of Maurice — Perhaps this
Maurice, then Abbott of Inchaffray, who performed mass at
Bannockburn — Gift of Cardross by Sir Malcolm Drummond
— Prior Christinus — Deforcement of the representative of the
Sheriff of Perth — Visit of Robert the High Steward — Marriage
of David II. — His gift to the Priory — Blank in the annals of
the Priory — Prior John — Prior Thomas — His difficulties and
his supporters — Deposed — Prior Alexander and his leases —
Prior in Parliament — Prior David — His numerous litigations
and their results — Prior Andrew — His leases — Names of the
Canons in his time — Last of the ecclesiastical Priors, ... 130
xxvi Contents.
PAGE
CHAPTER VI.
THE PRIORY UNDER COMMENDATORS — 1529 TO 1628.
Commendator Robert Erskine — His induction in 1529 — Assumed
identity with the Master of Erskine — Previously rector of
Glenbervy — Afterwards Dean of Aberdeen — Probably one of
the Erskines of Dun — Canons of Inchmahome in Com-
mendator Robert's time — George Buchanan's early connection
with the Priory lands — The leases of 1513 and 1531 — John
Erskine, Commendator of Inchmahome, Dryburgh, and
Cambuskenneth — Marriage of the Earl of Argyle at Inch-
mahome— Visit to the Priory of Mary Queen of Scots —
Imaginative writing regarding it — Stories about her stay
and education here examined — Dargaud, Miss Strickland,
Dr. John Brown, Glassford Bell, Mackie, Conaeus, &c. —
The facts as ascertained — Dr. Hay Fleming's investigations
and authorities — Result of the discussion — Two leases
granted by John and the Chapter — Commendator be-
comes Lord Erskine, afterwards Earl of Mar and Regent
of Scotland — Resigns Commendatorship — David Erskine
becomes Commendator — His parentage — Bull of appoint-
ment— Commendator of Dryburgh — Joins the reformers —
Dilapidation of Monastery revenues begins — Tacks by the
Prior and Chapter — The " Prior's Manse " in Stirling —
David Erskine receives sasine of it from the Magistrates —
Its situation identified — Occupied by George Buchanan —
The surviving Canons — Chapter probably extinct before 1600
— Some properties and leases — The Commendator and his
" Thirds " — His confiscation and exile — Henry Stewart
appointed Commendator — Pension to Patrick Bathok —
Commendator David reponed — Resides at and enlarges
Cardross — His interest in education — Last lease in which
names of Canons appear — Demits his office — Death — Henry
Erskine made Commendator — His parentage — Reason that
has been assigned for his appointment to the office — Portrait
by Jameson — Fiar of Cardross — Death in 1628, 159
APPENDIX TO CHAPTER VI. — ON THE SUBSEQUENT
HISTORY OF THE PRIORY LANDS.
Transference of the lands to the family of Lord Erskine begins —
Various complicated transactions — Royal charter of the lord-
Contents. xxvii
PAGE
ship and barony of Cardross granted to the Earl of Mar —
Ratified by Act of Parliament — Names of the lands consti-
tuting the property of the Priory at this time — Purpose of
the grant — Traditional stories regarding the marriage of the
Earl of Mar and Lady Margaret Stewart — The Italian con-
jurer and the lady's portrait — Additional charters, with right
of assignation — Fee of the lordship assigned to Henry
Erskine — Visit of King James the First to Cardross — David,
son of Henry, becomes second Lord Cardross — His house
garrisoned by General Monck — New charters — Henry, third
Lord Cardross — His fines, imprisonment, and other persecu-
tions— House occupied by royal troops — Unsuccessful attempt
to found a colony in America — Insolvency — Cardross dis-
poned to the Earl of Mar — Dryburgh sold — Joins the Prince
of Orange in Holland — Returns home with him in 1688 —
Death in 1693 — David, fourth Lord Cardross — Becomes Earl
of Buchan — Dispones Cardross to his uncle, Colonel the
Hon. John Erskine — The Colonel tries to clear off the
burdens on the property — It falls, by judicial sale, to his
son, John Erskine of Carnock — His second son James was
the first Mr. Erskine of Cardross and direct ancestor of
the present proprietor, 193
CHAPTER VII.
THE RUINS ON INCHTALLA : THE OLD HOUSE AND
ITS FURNISHINGS.
Inchtalla, residence of Malise, first Graham Earl of Menteith —
Probable period of erection of present buildings — Moulded
and carved stones from the Priory built into the walls —
Building on the court-yard plan — The High House — Its
former heraldic devices — The vaulted under rooms — The
upper storey — Stair of access — Indications of a defensive
wooden hoarding on the south front — The Kitchen — The
arched fire-place — The oven — The Tower, with its stair — The
buildings on the west side of the court-yard — Their possible
uses and arrangement — The Hall House on the north —
Probably the most recent erection — The Hall and its
furniture in the time of the last Earl — Inventory of chairs,
candlesticks, &c. — The rooms on the upper floor — The East
Chamber, hung with blue, and its furnishings — The West
xxviii Contents.
PAGE
or Green Chamber and its furnishings — The Tower — The
Laigh Back Room — Contents of the great chest — My Lord's
Chamber and its furnishings — The Wardrobe — The Brew-house
on the east side of the court — Its utensils — The sleeping
apartments over the Brew-house and in the " to-falls," with
their furniture — Indications of the manner of living in the
Earl's house at the end of the seventeenth century — Liquors —
Bread and baking — Supplies of salt herrings — Cooking
utensils — Dishes mostly of pewter — Paucity of silver vessels
accounted for — Domestic crafts — My Lord's wardrobe —
Female properties absent — The last Countess and the frogs —
The dispersal of the property, and the neglect of the house
since the death of the last Earl in 1694, ... ... ... 203
CHAPTER VIII.
THE EARLIER EARLS OF MENTEITH.
The ancient Earldom — Gilchrist — Muretach — Maurice senior and
Maurice junior — Their agreement — Maurice at the corona-
tion of Alexander II. — His daughters — Walter Comyn —
His connection with the national affairs — Founds the Priory —
At the coronation of Alexander III. — Seizes the young King
and Queen at Kinross — Rumours regarding the cause of his
death — Marriage of his widow — Her attempts to secure the
Earldom unsuccessful — Walter Stewart obtains the Earldom —
Efforts of the Comyns to retain it — The estates parted in
two — Sir Edmund Hastings receives the Comyn portion from
Edward I. and assumes the style of Lord of Enchimchel-
mock — His brother, Sir John Hastings, receives the other
portion — Life and achievements of Walter Stewart — As a
crusader — At the battle of Largs — Voyage with the Princess
Margaret to Norway — One of Bruce's Commissioners, but
swears fealty to Edward in 1292 — Death, and burial at
Inchmahome — Earl Alexander — Taken prisoner at Dunbar —
Released and takes the oath to Edward — His sons hostages
for him — Remains faithful to the English King — Earl Alan —
Fights in Flanders — Taken prisoner at Methven — Stripped
of his estates — Dies in captivity — Earl Murdach — A favourite
of King Robert Bruce — Killed in the battle of Dupplin —
Countess Mary — Brought up at Rusky by her uncle, Sir
John Menteith — Marries Sir John Graham, who becomes
Contents. xxix
PAGE
Earl of Menteith — Gallantry of this Earl at Neville's Cross —
His capture, trial, and execution — Their daughter, Lady
Margaret — Her four husbands — Her last husband, Robert
Stewart — Robert becomes Earl of Menteith, Earl of Fife,
and afterwards Duke of Albany, and Governor of Scotland —
His life and achievements — The death of the Duke of
Rothesay, and Albany's connection therewith — Ancient and
modern estimates of Albany's character — Murdach, second
Duke of Albany — Appointed Governor — Narrative of events
in his life — His arrest and execution by James I. — Traditional
statements regarding the place of his arrest — Motives of the
King in the extermination of the Albanies — Forfeiture of
the Earldom, ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 216
CHAPTER IX.
SIR JOHN MENTEITH OF RUSKY AND THE CAPTURE
OF WALLACE.
Sir John Menteith's birth and parentage — An early supporter of
Bruce — Takes the side of Baliol, and is made prisoner at
Dunbar — Serves Edward in his French wars — An " Adversary
of the King" in 1301 — Submits to Edward in 1304 — In favour
with Edward — Keeper of Dumbarton Castle — The Capture of
Wallace — The circumstances of the betrayal and Menteith's
connection therewith discussed — His rewards from the English
King — Goes over to Bruce — Story of his attempted treachery
to Bruce in Dumbarton Castle not proved — His embassies and
other employments thereafter — Estimate of his character — The
hatred of his memory cherished in Scotland — "Turning the
bannock" as an insult to Menteiths, 253
CHAPTER X.
THE FIRST Six GRAHAM EARLS OF MENTEITH —
1427 TO 1598.
Erection of the new Earldom and Stewartry — Malise, first Earl —
His descent — A hostage in England — His son Alexander takes
his place — In favour with James III. — At the battle of Sauchie
— His wives — Gifts to Lady Jonet and his son, John — Countess
Mariota — His family — Alexander, second Earl — Infeftment —
xxx Contents.
PAGE
Suppression of crimes — " Band " with the Earl of Arran and
others — Redemption of lands — Family — William, third Earl —
Marriage and family — The fight with the Appin Stewarts in
which he lost his life — Various accounts of it — The traditional
stories — Sir Walter Scott's account — The Appin version — Date
of the incident — John, fourth Earl — Active in State affairs —
Queen Mary's visit in his time — Alleged journey to France —
Joins the Lords of the Congregation — Fights with them at
Leith — Subscribes the Book of Discipline — His widow and
family — William, fifth Earl — Earldom during his minority —
At the Coronation of James VI. — At the battle of Langside —
Marriage — Political activities — Feud between the Grahams and
the Leckies — John, sixth Earl — Ward of the Crown — His
marriage — Description for the Government in 1592 — Quarrels
and lawsuits — Death, and family, 268
CHAPTER XI.
THE LAST Two GRAHAM EARLS, 1598 TO 1694.
William, seventh Earl — Vicissitudes of his life — Minority, infeft-
ment, marriage — Arrangement of his charters, redemption of
lands, and other business of the Earldom — Patronage of the
Church of Aberfoyle — His rise to political distinction and
honours — Royal pensions — The King's promises and how they
were kept — His enemies among the Scottish nobles — Claims
the Earldom of Strathern — Claim admitted and letters patent
issued — Scot of Scotstarvet's accusations — Title of Strathern
recalled — That of Airth granted — Accused of treason — Found
guilty — His submission — Stripped of his offices and pensions,
banished from the Court, and confined to his own house —
Pecuniary ruin — To some extent regains the Royal favour —
Refuses to sign the National Covenant — Exerts himself in the
cause of Charles I. — Dispersal of his estates — Lives at Inch-
talla — Disagreements with his Countess — His curious accounts
of her delinquencies — His son, Lord Kilpont, murdered at
Collace — His family — William, eighth and last Earl — His
poverty and eccentricities — Petitions for payment of pensions
— His professed delight in Covenanter-hunting — Curiosities of
his correspondence — Complaints of impecuniosity — Correspon-
dence with Graham of Claverhouse regarding the adoption of
the latter, and with the Marquis of Montrose and Sir James
Graham about the marriage of his niece and the succession
Contents. xxxi
PAGE
to the Earldom — Divorces his first wife and marries again —
How he practised economy — Regulations for the management
of and expenditure on his household — Countess gets tired of
his fussiness and leaves him — A marriage contract drawn
up — Traditionary story of the " Roeskin Purse " — Death
and testament — Disposition of his estates and personal
property, 290
APPENDIX TO CHAPTER XI. — THE MURDER OF LORD KILPONT
AT COLLAGE.
Lord Kilpont, son of the seventh and father of the eighth Earl
of Menteith — His birth and marriage — Acts as assistant
justiciar of Menteith — Captures a notorious robber — Receives
the King's thanks for his services in this matter and against
the Covenanters — Assembles the men of Menteith and the
Lennox to watch the Irish levies of Montrose — Goes over
with this force to Montrose — Murdered by Stewart of Ardvoir-
lich at Collace — Buried in the Chapter House at Inchmahome
— Varying accounts of the murder — The story as told by
Wishart, the Chaplain of Montrose — Montrose's tribute to
Kilpont — The communication to Sir Walter Scott from a
member of the Ardvoirlich family — The story as told in the
Acts of Parliament in a statement approved by Ardvoirlich
himself, ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 317
CHAPTER XII.
SOME MISCELLANEOUS MATTERS OF GREATER OR LESS
INTEREST.
Feud between the Menteiths and Drummonds in the fourteenth
century — Alleged and probable causes — The battle of the
clans at the Tar of Rusky — Slaughter of the Menteith chiefs —
Interference of the King — Terms of the arrangement of pacifi-
cation— The Beggar Earl of Menteith — Relationship to the
last Earl — Appears at Holyrood and claims the title — Claim
disallowed by the House of Lords until further proof — Never
again attends the election of Scottish representative peers —
Sinks into poverty — Becomes a " gangrel " — Found dead in a
field near Bonhill — Account for his funeral — Subsequent
xxxii Contents.
PAGE
claimants of the Earldom — Titles of Menteith and Airth still
dormant — The last Earl and the Grahams of Duchray — Fracas
at the Bridge of Aberfoyle — Two local Legends : (I.) The
Butler and the Witches — (II.) Rival Long-bows — Quaint mode
of fishing for pike — Royal visitors to the Lake and neighbour-
hood— Summary of royal visits previously referred to — Bruce's
sword at Cardross — The Jameses in Menteith — James V. and
the King of Kippen — Prince Charles Edward in Menteith —
His alleged visit to Cardross — Queen Victoria and Princess
Beatrice in Menteith — Their two visits to the Lake — Her
Majesty's opinions of the scenery and the people, ... ... 323
NOTES AND CORRECTIONS, 355
INDEX, 359
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
PAGE
1. Inchmahome from North Shore of Lake, 41
2. Cup-marked Stone near Milling (from photograph by R.
Kidston, F.G.S., &c.), ' ... 49
3. View of the Lake from the South East, 56
4. The Lake and Inchmahome from Portend, ... ... ... 63
5. The Admiral's Point, 71
6. The Nuns' Hill, 79
7. Queen Mary's Tree, ... ... ... ... ... ... 83
8. Queen Mary's Bower, 87
9. Inchtalla, 94
10. Inchcuan, ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 97
11. Plan or the Priory Buildings (from M 'Gibbon & Ross's
Ecclesiastical Architecture), ... ... ... ... 102
12. West Doorway of the Priory, ... ... ... ... ... 105
13. The Aisle Arches,... ... ... ... ... ... ... 109
14. The Chapter House — Interior, ... ... ... ... ... 112
15. The Chapter House from the East, ... ... ... ... 114
1 6. The Vaulted Kitchen, Inchmahome, ... ... ... ... 119
17. Ground Plan of Priory (from M'Gregor Stirling's Notes on
Inchmahome), 122
1 8. Recumbent Monument of Walter Stewart, Earl of Menteith,
and his Countess, ... ... ... ... ... ... 125
19. The Priors' Manse, otherwise called George Buchanan's
House, in Stirling (from drawing by T. Allom), ... 184
20. Plan of Buildings on Inchtalla (from M 'Gibbon & Ross's
Domestic, &c., Architecture), 204
SEALS.
21. Priory of Inchmahome, ... ... ... ... ... ... 131
22. Sir Edmund Hastings, ... ... ... ... ... ... 226
23. Walter Stewart, Earl of Menteith, ... ... ... ... 231
24. Robert, Duke of Albany, ... ... ... ... ... 245
xxxiv List of Illustrations.
SEALS (Continued.)
25. Malise, First Graham Earl of Menteith, ... ... ... 269
26. Alexander, Second Graham Earl, ... ... ... ... 275
27. William, Third Graham Earl, 278
28. William, Seventh Earl, ... ... ... ... ... ... 291
SIGNATURES.
29. Commendator John Erskine, ... ... ... ... ... 170
30. Commendator David Erskine, ... ... ... ... ... 179
31. Commendator Henry Erskine, 192
The Lake of Menteith.
CHAPTER I.
Topography of Menteith : with Special
References to Places of Historical and
Legendary Interest.
"The varied realms of fair Menteith.*
SECTION I. — EXTENT, NAME, AND EARLY ACCOUNTS
OP THE DISTRICT.
[ENTEITH — in the most comprehensive sense in
which the name was and is still employed —
may be defined approximately as the country
drained by the river Teith and its tributaries,
together with the western and northern portions of the
watershed of the Forth as far down as its junction with
the Teith.1
This extensive district, which measures about twenty-
eight miles in length from west to east, with a maximum
breadth of about fifteen miles, has for backbone the ridge —
mountainous in the west and decreasing in height towards
the east — which lies between the basins of Loch Katrine,
Loch Achray and Loch Yennachar and the course of the
1 Balquhidder, however, although in the drainage area of the Teith, was
reckoned a portion of the district of Stratherne.
A
2 The Lake of Menteith.
Teith on the north, and Loch Ard and the river Forth on
the south. From this central ridge Menteith extends
northwards over the valley of the Teith, and on the south
takes in a considerable portion of the vale of Forth. It
comprises the modern parishes of Callander, Kilmadock,
and Lecropt, with portions of Logie and Dunblane, all lying
north of the central ridge ; and Aberfoyle, Port of Menteith,
Kincardine, and part of Kippen, on its southern slopes.1
The territories over which the ancient Earls of Menteith
had jurisdiction were, however, of still wider extent than even
this ample region, including, as they did at various times,
large tracts of country in Argyllshire and the island of Arran.
The Stewartry of Menteith, on the other hand, was of
smaller extent. It included that portion of the territories
of the old earldom which, on the execution and confiscation
of the Albanies, was seized by King James the First and
formed into a royal lordship under this designation. It
comprised the more easterly portions of the old territory and
the valley of the Teith, with the Castle of Doune as the
chief messuage; while only the western region, for the
most part lying on the south side of the central ridge, was
assigned to the new earldom.
The name of the district evidently connects itself with
that of the river which is one of its principal natural
features. As a rule in local nomenclature, it is the rivers
and watercourses which give their names to the surrounding
countrysides, not the region-name which originates that of
1 This district of Menteith, along with that of Stratherne, formed the old Celtic
province of Fortrenn. The four provinces of ancient Alban were : (i) Stratherne
and Menteith ; (2) Athole ; (3) Angus and Mearns; (4) Fife and Fothreve.
— Skene's Celtic Scotland, vol. i. p. 290 ; vol. iii. p. 133.
The Lake of Mentelth. 3
the river. As to the significance of the river-name Teith,
however, etymologists have not yet reached agreement.
The derivation of the word most generally given —
although not always absolutely accepted — is that suggested
originally by the Eev. Dr. Kobertson, the writer of the
Old Statistical Account of the Parish of Callander (who,
by the way, spells the name Teath — an orthography pro-
bably more correct than the now invariable Teith). He
says the Avon Teath is " the warm river m — deriving the
word from the Gaelic te or teth, which means " hot." Of
this appellative two explanations have been given. One
applies the quality of warmth rather to the river-valley
than to the waters of the stream. Fringed with woods
and shut in, on north and south alike, by continuous hill-
ranges, it is sheltered from the cold blasts which sweep
the mountains, and thus affords a contrast to the cold
uplands on either side so marked as to deserve the epithet
of " warm." This explanation, besides being rather far-
fetched, is contrary to the usual rule of deriving the
name of the country from that of the river. The other
explanation is that given by the Eev. Dr. Graham of
Killearn in his " Perthshire Sketches." He writes the Gaelic
name as Avon-Thaicli, and while distinctly stating that
" the etymology is uncertain," he explains the derivation
from Te or Teth by " the boiling appearance which it
(the river) presents, on account of the rapidity of its current
from Callander to Ochtertyre."2 Within these limits the
Teith is certainly a clear and rather rapid stream — "swift "
1 Old Statistical Account of Scotland, vol. xi., p. 574.
2 Sketches of Perthshire, by the Rev. P. Graham, D.D., 1812 ; p. 64.
4 The Lake of Menteith.
is Sir Walter Scott's poetical epithet1 — but a " boiling
appearance " is not its characteristic. In respect of the
smoothness of its flow, its freedom from rushes and
cataracts, it is distinctly in contrast with its own two
head streams, and notably with the tumultuous water
which rushes down the Pass of Leny from Loch Lubnaig.
Other derivations are not wanting. One authority2 says
the name is probably from the Gaelic taic, which means
" strength or vigour." But strength is a quality predicable
of all large rivers, and is not peculiar to the Teith. Colonel
Eobertson3 finds in the word a reference to an old Celtic
river-god, " whose name means ivater." Leaving the
river-god — whose existence does not admit of proof — out
of the question, it may be said that a root-word with an
apparent resemblance to that of Teith is to be found in
other river-names in Scotland, Wales, and Cornwall. But
all this is extremely vague, and indicates no particular
feature of this stream from which it might be supposed
to derive a characteristic name.
Such a characteristic quality, however, is pointed at
in a derivation submitted — it is believed for the first time4
— by Dr. A. C. Cameron, a very competent Gaelic scholar.
He says : — " The Teith in Gaelic is Uisge-Theavich, that
is, ' the quiet and pleasant water ' ; the root being teamli
1 "Along thy banks, swift Teith ! they ride."— Lady of the Lake, canto v.
St. xviii.
2 Johnston's Place Names of Scotland, 1892, p. 232.
8 Robertson's Gaelic Topography of Scotland, p. 144.
4 In a letter to the present writer. It may be said that when Dr. Cameron
sent his explanation of Uisge-Theavich, he was not acquainted with the locality,
and unaware of the character of the stream and its feeders. He merely interpreted
the Gaelic name by which the river had been known to him from boyhood.
The Lake of Menteith. 5
(' quiet,' l pleasant,' as opposed to c rongh,' ' wild ')
+ icli (= English termination — ows)." Now, the character
of the two streams which unite to form the Teith is
sufficiently indicated by their names. That which comes
from Loch Yennachar has the Gaelic name of Eas-gobhain
— "the smith's cascade"; while the Loch Lubnaig branch
is known as the G-arbh-uisge, or "rough water." They
are both — the latter especially — rude and brawling torrents.
But the river formed by their union is of a totally different
character. From the junction, where it assumes the name
of Teith, it becomes still and placid ; it flows, or scarcely
flows, in quiet deep pools, through the meadows of Callander.
Dr. John Brown's characterisation of it — as seen from
Callander Bridge — is as true as it is poetical, " lying diffuse
and asleep, as if its heart were in the Highlands and it were
loath to go."1 To this smooth stream, the name of quiet
and pleasant might well be given in contrast to the ivild
and rough waters which unite to form it. The name thus
given has adhered to the river throughout its course, and
although below Callander its stream becomes more rapid,
it nowhere merits the epithet of " boiling." There is not a
cataract in its whole course.
Thaich, or Taich, according to Dr. Graham, was a name
applicable not only to the river, but to the whole of the
district which is known to us as Menteith. He says : —
" It may be proper to remark that the name Menteith, by
which the whole territory included between the Forth and
the Teith, from their junction, a little above Stirling, to
the western extremity of Loch Con, upon the confines of
1 Horae Subsecivae, by John Brown, M.D., second series, 1861, p. 170.
6 The Lake of Menteith.
Buchanan, is denominated, is entirely unknown in the
Gaelic; the district is uniformly called Taich."1 The
Kev. W. M'Gregor Stirling makes the same affirmation
— evidently on Dr. Graham's authority : — " The name of
Monteath " — so he spells it — " even in the present day
is not known to the Gael, who call it Taich."2 Others
have repeated the statement. It is, however, too absolute.
Gaelic -speaking people know and have long known the
district by the name of Menteith, as well as by that of
Taich or Taicht.8 Taichia is the usual Latin form of the
name. It occurs in a Patent under the Great Seal, dated
31st July, 1631, whereby King Charles the First created
William, seventh Earl of Menteith, Earl of Stratherne and
Menteith. Throughout this document, the Earl is styled
Comes Taichie lie Menieth.* But in all the earlier official
documents it is Menteith — in varied forms of spelling.
The very earliest form in which the word occurs is
Meneted, in which shape it appears, according to Innes,
in a manuscript that dates in the latter part of the twelfth
century.5 In a charter, dated 1234, it appears as Mynteth
and also Mynynteth, and as Meneteth in 1240. From the
1 Graham's Sketches of Perthshire, p. 64.
2 Notes on the Priory of Inchmahome, by the Rev. W. M'Gregor Stirling,
p. 88, note.
3 If Taich is not to be taken simply as the river name applied to the surrounding
country, it may be, as suggested by Dr. Cameron, a compound of Teamh andfatc/ie,
meaning the " pleasant country." Pleasant enough it is as compared with the wild
region beyond, and attractive for the foray-loving Highlanders, who were wont to
descend from their fastnesses to spoil its more fertile fields — " the varied realms of
fair Menteith." But it seems better to connect the name of the country with that
of the river.
4 Patent printed in the Red Book of Menteith, vol. i. p. 323.
6 The passage referred to occurs in a manuscript which Innes attributes to
Giraldus Cambrensis. This manuscript contains a description of Alban, said to
The Lake of Menteith. 7
twelfth to the end of the seventeenth century, the word
occurs in written documents in over thirty different forms
of spelling.
A list of these will show the variety in which the old
scribes indulged. The date of the first occurrence of each
form is given. Many of them, of course, are repeated with
greater or less frequency.
Meneted (12th century), Manenthe and Manethe (1213),
Mynynteth and Mynteth (1234), Meneteth (1240), Menteth
(1250), Meneth (1253), Menetyef (1255), Menthet (1262),
Menethe and Menetheht (1286), Mentheht (1290), Menethet,
Menetheth, and Menetht (1329), Menetethe (1342), Menetoth
(1354), Menetetht (1390), Montatht (1392), Mentethe (1403),
Mentetht (1410), Menteith (1421), Monteth (1450), Men-
teithe (1473), Menteitht (1501), Mentheth (1503), Mentehet
(1508), Mentech (1512), Monteith (1513), Mentethyt (1597),
Munteth (1597), Monteathe (1622), Montide (in a letter
from Louis XIII. of France to the Earl of Menteith,
1634), Montieth and Monteeth (English — letters from the
army of the Parliament — 1653). l The spelling Monteath
does not appear before 1724, when it was employed by
Alexander Graham of Duchray in his description of the
Parish of Port.
Disregarding the early substitution of y, and the later and
rare substitution of u and o for the e of the first syllable, and
have been supplied by Andrew, Bishop of Caithness, whose death date was A.D.
1 185. The phrase employed by the Bishop, speaking of the divisions of the country,
is " pars etiam tertia est Stradearn cum Meneted." Innes's Essay on the Ancient
Inhabitants of Scotland (Edin. 1879). Appendix No. I, p. 412.
1 Others could be added, but the list is long enough for its purpose. All the
names in it are taken from early charters, Acts of Parliament, Exchequer and other
official documents.
8 The Lake of Menteith.
excluding the anomalous Manethe and Manenthe — which
appear in documents of Henry III. of England, and may
therefore be set down as errors of ignorance on the part
of the English scribe — an analysis of these forms, taking
account both of the spelling and the frequency of recurrence,
seems to yield two, of which the others are but varieties of
spelling. These are Meneteth and Menteth. The former
is more frequent in the earlier writings, and therefore may
perhaps be nearer the original word.
Assuming that the last portion of the word represents
Theavich or Teith — whether the district or the river — the
origin of the first part may be found in one or other of the
Gaelic words monadh (hill), moine (moor or moss), or muin
(back). The hill-land, moorland, 'back-land of Taich would
fitly enough designate the region. The indefinite sound of
the vowel in the first syllable, indicated by the occasional
change in spelling from e to y, u, o, and even a, and still
surviving in the popular pronunciation, would also give
countenance to any of the derivations suggested. Per-
haps, however, we shall not be far wrong if we accept
Monadh-Theavich as the most likely original of the word
Menteith.1
The references to the district of Menteith by early
Scottish writers are extremely scanty, and afford but little
information regarding the appearance or character of the
country. Hector Boece merely mentions it as lying to the
1This derivation receives support from the statement, on the authority of
Macbain's Gaelic Dictionary, that the Cornish forms of monadh were menit and
meneth, and the Welsh form was mynydat. The forms of the old Pictish Goidelic
in use among the people by whom these early place-names were given may have
been similar.
The Lake of Menteith. 9
west of Stirling, and as having been partly covered in more
ancient times by that old Caledonian forest which gave so
much trouble to the Eoman soldiers, and which sheltered
the famous white bulls. Both bulls and forest had in his
time all but disappeared. His description of those fierce
inhabitants of the wood may be suspected of being mythical,
but it is exceedingly graphic, and — in the quaint Scots in
which Bellenden's translation dresses it — deserves quota-
tion. After stating that "the wod of Calidon ran fra
Striveling throw Menteith and Stratherne to Atholl and
Lochquhabir," he proceeds : —
" In this wod wes sum time quhit bullis, with crisp and
curland mane, like feirs lionis ; and, thoucht thay semit
meik and tame in the remanent figure of thair bodyis, thay
were mair wild than ony uther beistis, and had sic hatrent
agains the societe and company of men, that thay come
nevir in the woddis nor lesuris quhair thay fand ony feit or
haind thairof ; and, mony dais eftir, thay eit nocht of the
herbis that wer twichit or handillit be men. Thir bullis wer
sa wild, that thay wer nevir tane but slicht and crafty
laubour ; and sae impacient, that, eftir thair taking, thay
deit for importable dolour. Als sone as ony man invadit
thir bullis, thay ruschit with so terrible preis on him, that
thay dang him to the eird; takand na feir of houndis,
scharp lancis, nor uthir rnaist penitrive wappinis."1
Menteith appears always to have been a hunting dis-
trict. It continued to be so in the times of the Stuart
kings, who had a royal forest and hunting-hall in Glenfin-
1 Bellenden's Translation of Boece's History and Chronicles of Scotland, edit.
1821 : The Cosmographic, chap. x.
10 The Lake of Menteith.
lass, as well as huntings in the forest of Aberfoyle. The
Chamberlain's Accounts contain numerous entries of
expenses for building and repairing the hunting seats and
maintaining the forests with their rangers and keepers.
But there were no white bulls then to hunt. The staple
game were deer and foxes, though Lesley makes mention
of wolves as still existing in his time.
Buchanan's account of the district is equally meagre
with that of Boece, or rather more so. It amounts only
to the statement that Menteith lies between the mountains
of Strathearn and the Forth, and that it receives its name
from the Teith, which runs through the midst of it.1
Bishop Lesley adopts Boece's description of the Cale-
donian forest and its wild bulls, and adds that more ancient
writers had affirmed the existence of bears and wolves in
this great forest, stating that the bears were long before his
time utterly extinct, although wolves were still to be found.
Other points of interest he mentions : — " Neist this (i.e.
Stirling) westwarde lyes Monteith, nobilitat and mekle
commendat throuch the name of sik cheise as nane fyner,
quhairin, by uthir singular thingis that it hes, ane famous
suerlie and kinglie castell, lykewyse ane certane monaster
of midway rentis " (the original Latin is mediocrium red-
dituum, " of moderate revenues ") "it conteines."2
The famous and kingly castle of course refers to Doune,
and the monastery of moderate revenues is obviously Inch-
mahome. These are now in ruins, but not more so than
1 Buchanan's Opera Omnia a Ruddiman, 1715 ; vol. i. p. 10.
2 Lesley's Historic of Scotland, translated by Father Dalrymple, Scottish Text
Society's edition, 1885 ; vol. i. p. 28.
The Lake of Menteith. 11
the reputation of Menteith for its cheese. That appears
to have utterly departed. Neverthless the note is of
interest, as confirming what we know from other sources
that Menteith was a comparatively wealthy district, whose
herds of grazing cattle were a temptation too strong to be
resisted by the hungry Highland clans that inhabited the
mountains to the north and west. In the earlier times the
Earls of Menteith would be responsible for guarding this
valuable property ; and after a portion of their domain
became the property of the Crown, the officers of the
Stewartry had a kind of militia appointed to watch the
Highland marauders.1
This may be a suitable place to notice an error that
has found its way into all the local histories and into many
of the general histories of Scotland, and for which Buchanan
appears to be, in the first place, responsible. He makes
Menteith the scene of the murder of Duncan II. in 1094.2
This prince, who dethroned the usurper Donald Bane, was
treacherously slain by Maolpeder, Earl of Mearns, at the
instigation, it is said, of Donald. Hector Boece does not
venture to indicate the locality of the tragedy. He merely
says that Duncan was killed "slepand in his bed, eftir he
had roung ane yeir and ane half";3 but Buchanan — who,
like Boece, calls the murderer Macpender — distinctly puts
the scene of the occurrence in Menteith (Taichia). One is
inclined to wonder what the thane of the Mearns was doing
1 Exchequer Rolls, vol. ii. p. 487 : payment of £4 33 for watchmen " to watch
thieves coming from Lome to Menteith." Other entries to the same effect.
2 Buchanan's Opera, vol. i. book vii. p. 118.
3 Bellenden's Boece, book xiii. chap. 16.
12 The Lake of Menteith.
in the region of Menteith. It seems not unlikely that
Buchanan was led to his statement by a misapprehension
of his authority. That authority appears to have been
the Scotichronicon ^ which affirms that Duncan perished
by the treachery of his uncle Donald and by the instru-
mentality of one Malpedir, Earl of Mearns, at Monathethyn.1
Now, Monathethyn, and still more its MS. variants
Monthechyn and Monathechin, are so very like Monadh-
thaich, that there need be little wonder that a writer
who was acquainted with Gaelic — as Buchanan was — should,
without stopping to investigate, transcribe the word in
Latin as Taichia.
Maitland repeats the tale, and gives additional definite-
ness to the scene by placing it "in the Castle of Menteith"2
— wherever that may have been. Chalmers pointed out the
proper locality of this murder as Monacliedin, now called
Mondynes — a place on the banks of the Bervie in Kincar-
dineshire or Mearns; the exact spot being marked by a
monolith of over 6 ft. in height above ground, which is
said to have been set up to commemorate the event.3 Not-
1 Scotichronicon a Goodall, lib. v. cap. xxviii. : Qui cum per unum annum et
sex menses regnasset, avunculi sui Dovenaldi dolo quern saepius bello vicerat, per
adminiculum cujusdam comitis de Mernis^ nomine Malpetri^ Scotlice Malpeder^
apud Monathethyn caesus interiit,
2 Maitland's History and Antiquities of Scotland, 1757, vol. i. p. 345.
3 Chalmers' Caledonia, 1807, vol. i. p. 423. See also Robertson's Scotland
under her Early Kings, vol. i. p. 158 ; and Skene's Celtic Scotland, vol. i, p. 438.
Wyntoun (Origynale Cronykil of Scotland, edited by Laing, 1872, book vii.
chap. iii. line 387) mentions the fact of the murder, but gives neither the name of
the place nor of the murderer. Monachedin, however, appears as the name of the
place in what is perhaps the earliest authority of all — a list of the Kings of Scots
and Picts in the Register of the Priory of St. Andrews, written A.D. 1251 : —
" Donekan Mac-Malcolm regnavit 6 mens. hoc interfecto a Malpeder Macloen
comite de Mearns in Monachedin," See Innes' Essay on the Ancient Inhabitants
of Scotland : Historians of Scotland, 1879, v°l- viii. app. 5, p. 424.
The Lake of Menteith. 13
withstanding this correction, the error still persists and is
found in some quite recent works.1
The name Menteith is still in use as a convenient
geographical term, although the district has no longer a
judicial or civil existence. When it had, the name was
applicable to the whole of the country already described.
While it is still employed in that wide sense, the local
significance of the term is now frequently confined to the
country lying more immediately around the Lake of Men-
teith. As it is with this narrower region that the subject
of this book is specially connected, it will be proper to give
some account of it — its topography, history and traditions —
before dealing in detail with the Lake and the Islands.
SECTION II. — THE HILLS OF MENTEITH, AND SOME OF
THEIR TRADITIONS.
"Many a tale,
Traditionary, round the mountains hung,
And many a legend peopling the dark woods."
WHAT we have called the hilly backbone of the province
of Menteith, after leaving the gap which makes a sort of
break in its continuity at Aberfoyle, runs, at considerable
1 Dun's Summer at the Lake of Menteith, 1866, p. 15 ; Keltie's History of the
Scottish Highlands, 1887, vol. i. p. 36.
14 The Lake of Menteilh.
elevation, between Loch Vennachar and the Lake of Men-
teith. It is divided into two distinct masses by the ravine
of Glenny and the depression at the summit, over which
passes the rough track between the lakes. These may be
distinguished by the names of their principal summits, as
the Ben-dhu (black mountain) and the Ben-dearg (red
mountain) masses. The names indicate a natural and
striking contrast in colour — Ben Dhu bearing on its southern
front a ridge of bare and dark-coloured rock, while Ben
Dearg to the east shows ruddy-tinted rock and soil, and
brown heath to its top. The dark front of Ben Dhu,
cut into five or six portions by sharp notches on the
top, retires at its eastern extremity towards the north,
leaving room for the heathy slopes and moors of Mondhui.
Back in hollows of this mountain mass towards the
north and west, lie the fine Loch Drunkie — of old times
held by wild Macfarlanes and Macphersons — and the
solitary mountain tarn known as Loch Kheoidte ("the
frozen lake ").
The eastern or Ben-dearg section of the hills is what
is usually designated specifically the Hills of Menteith.
Though not entitled, from their height alone, to rank among
first-class Scottish mountains, yet their appearance is in no
small degree impressive. Seen from the south, they appear
to rise with almost startling suddenness and steepness from
the level of the lake. As the lake itself is but little above
sea-level, and as there are no gradually rising foot-hills to
diminish the apparent height, they have the full scenic
advantage of their measured elevation. A dense wood of
firs, which runs up a great portion of this steep southern
The Lake of Menteith. 15
face, but allows the bare, brown summits to show above,
adds to the effect of the view of the hill from this side.
When this outer wall has been scaled and the interior
region is explored, the true mountainous characteristics
are revealed. Boggy hollows, steep grassy or heath-clad
slopes, stony or rocky crests, make up its general character.
Although it affords grazing for sheep and cattle, cultivation
has never existed, except around the skirts of the mass and
up a few short and narrow openings. From of old it has
been the haunt of wild beast and wild fowl, and if the
wolves and boars, which legend affirms to have frequented
its recesses, are now extinct, it is still tenanted by some
of our wilder animals. The usual winged and four-footed
game preserved for sport is, of course, abundant. The
eagle is probably extinct, but falcons are said yet to breed
in the cliffs of Auchyle. Foxes are numerous, and badgers,
and possibly wild-cats, are still to be found.
The heights of this region — which comprises an area of
several square miles — arrange themselves in a rough way
in three main portions. The most northerly, which rises
from the shores of Loch Vennachar and the banks of Eas
Gobhain, rises to its greatest elevation in Ben Gullipen
(gailebhein — great rough hill ?), 1344 feet in height. The
central ridge, rising by a long ascent from the Pass of
Glenny to the east till it attains its greatest height of
1401 feet, is Ben Dearg, sometimes written Ben-dearig, and
pronounced generally by natives of the district as " Ben-
dhirack." The prospect from this summit is magnificent.
Northwards rise the numberless peaks of the Grampians in
confused array. Ben Ledi is close at hand, across Loch
16 The Lake of Menteith.
Vennachar, with Loch Lubnaig coiling round its eastern
foot. Behind are Ben More and Stobinean, with the " Braes
of Balquhidder." More to the right, Stuc-a-chroin, Ben
Voirlich, and Uamvar, backed by Ben Chonzie, and the
Comrie hills, are seen, with the peaks of the Atholl hills
in the distance. Towards the left, the mountains on the
borders of Perth and Argyll shires may be descried. West-
wards, the eye takes in Ben Venue and Ben Lomond,
through the opening notes Ben Arthur and the mountains
at the head of Loch Long, and lingers on the waters of
Loch Katrine and Loch Achray, and other lakes on which
the shadows of these mountains lie. Looking south-
wards, the prospect is of a totally different and beautifully
contrasting kind. Instead of the billowy sea of mountain
peaks which fills the view to the north, there is the fair
Vale of Menteith, fertile and finely cultivated, adorned with
woods and pleasure grounds, shut in on the south by the
green hills of Fintry and the Lennox range, but open in
all its length from the sources of the Forth to Stirling
Castle. Still further to the east, the eye may travel along
the slopes of the Ochils, and follow the carse of Stirling
till it rests on the broad waters of the Firth, and, if the
atmosphere be sufficiently clear, may mark the towers and
hills of Edinburgh rising in the distance. And — not the
least charming feature in the scene — close at hand, almost
under foot, as it were, lies the Lake of Menteith, mirroring
on its placid surface its wooded and ruin-covered islands.
The view everywhere from Ben Dearg is brightened and
beautified by the numerous lakes that fill the hollows of
the mountains. More than a dozen of these are visible
The Lake of Menteith. 17
from the summit.1 A very small one lies close at hand.
This — which is about half-a-mile in circumference — is called
by the very appropriate name of Lochan-falloch, or, the
hidden little lake. It lies in a deep cleft on the north
edge, about 300 feet beneath the summit, so concealed
from outside view that not even the position in which it
lies can be observed from anywhere below.
The southern portion of the mountain mass — about 1200
feet in greatest height — falls in a steep and straight, almost
wall-like face to the shores of the lake. The transition
from mountain to lowland is as sudden as the contrast is
complete. This southern front is known by the names
of Glenny and Auchyle Hills. In the New Statistical
Account of the parish2 it is called the Craig of Port. At
Auchrig, on the east side of the hill, there is what the
writer describes as a stone-avalanche. " The front of the
mountain has more or less slid away from the main body,
and in one place violently burst. Here conglomerated sand-
stones (vulgarly called plum-pudding) of large dimensions
and irregular shapes lie piled above each other in dizzy
poise. The spectator from above can see glimpses of the
wide extended vale beneath, through the apertures. Some
of the rocks are richly festooned with ancient ivy. They
are the favourite haunt of foxes, and often re-echo the
mellow note of the fox-hound. A very large spring of
water issues from their base, even in the driest season.
1 Among them are Vennachar, Lubnaig, Drunkie, Achray, Katrine, Con,
Ard, Menteith, with the smaller lochans, Falloch, Letter, Ruskie, Watston, Mac-
anree, £c.
- Published in 1845. Account drawn up from notes supplied by Rev. W.
M'Gregor Stirling.
B
18 The Lake of Menteith.
From this station, in a clear day, Arthur's Seat may be
descried, having its base sunk behind a flat country, which,
melted down by distance, somewhat resembles the ocean,
and gives to that rock the appearance of the Bass or
Ailsa."1
A locality of much historic interest lies also at the
eastern termination of the hill. About 300 feet lower
than the summit of Ben Dearg, and at almost the height
of the moorland over which the road from Port of Menteith
to Callander passes, lies the lonely little loch of Ruskie,
with its island castle, now almost entirely gone, one of the
seats of that Sir John Menteith whose connection with
the betrayal of Wallace has caused his name and memory
to be held in execration by his countrymen. This little
lake, about a mile in circumference, occupies a secluded
and, in ancient times, not easily accessible position.
Tradition therefore avers that here Sir John, who had
another residence called the Castle of Menteith somewhere
in the vale below,2 built himself a stronghold for the
greater security which the troubled times and his own
share in their events seemed to require. It may be pre-
sumed, however, that the old Earls of Menteith had some
sort of tower on the island before it came into the possession
of Sir John. But, by whomsoever or for what purpose it
1 Notes on Inchmahome, p. 70, New Statistical Account of Scotland, vol. x.,
Parish of Port.
2 This Castle of Menteith is reputed to have been the ancient stronghold of
Rednock. It must be remembered that these statements regarding Sir John's
castles rest on the authority of tradition alone. In no extant document is any
mention made of his residence or residences. Both Rusky and Rednock belonged
to the more ancient Earls of Menteith, and Sir John was a younger son of Earl
Walter Stewart.
The Lake of Menleith. 19
was built, Eusky Castle can never have been anything but
a small peel-tower. The
" escutcheoned walls
Of frowning Husky's ancient halls"1
had their existence only in the imagination of the poetess.
There is no room on the island for any such spacious
buildings as the lines seem to imply. A portion of the
residential buildings, as well as the offices, may, however,
have been on the shore, while the stronghold occupied the
island. If that were so, all traces of them must have long
ago disappeared ; although the eye of the local antiquarian
can still discern on the shore the course on which the
ancient chiefs were wont to train their horses.2
The centre of interest of the Menteith hills — as it is
their geographical centre — is the deep and thickly-wooded
defile which separates the Craig-dhu hills on the west from
those of Craig-dearg on the east. This opening into the
hills is cut by a rushing mountain stream, which rises about
the summit of the col that connects the two mountain
masses. The stream, known as the Burn of G-lenny, and
in its lower part as Portend Burn, is the principal feeder
of the Lake of Menteith. It tumbles down the steep
hillsides over a succession of cataracts, and then pierces
its way, in many places entirely concealed from sight,
through clefts and chasms in the rock, which make passage
1 Wallace, or the Field of Falkirk, by Miss Holford, canto v. sL 15.
2 Dun's Summer at the Lake of Menteith, 1866, p. 24. For Sir John
Menteith, see infra. Part of the stone-work of the old Castle is said to have
been removed, about the beginning of the present century, for the purpose of
building some houses at Blairhoyle.
20 The Lake of Menteith.
from one side to the other impossible. These dark and
romantic chasms can best be seen by forcing a way up
the rugged channel of the burn — not an easy matter at
any time, and possible only when the water is not in
flood — and are perhaps most striking in their appearance
just before the stream has succeeded in escaping from its
rocky entanglements to the alluvial flat, across which it
quietly meanders to the lake.
Towards the foot of the glen, and on the eastern side
of it, a bold outpost of the hills detaches itself from the
principal mass. This fine rounded knoll, clothed with
bracken and grass to near the summit, which shows bare
in contrast, and big enough to be reckoned a hill were
it not for the greater elevation behind it, is named
Crockmelly — a name apparently made up of Cnoc (some-
times written Crock) and maol, and therefore meaning "the
bald or bare hill." Between Crockmelly and the stream
are two places whose names are referred by local tradition
to incidents in an affray which happened here in connection
with the rising of the Earl of Glencairn in 1653. At that
time Scotland was under the rule of the Commonwealth.
But General Monk, who had over-run the country and held
it with a firm hand, was called away to take command of
the English fleet in the war that broke out with the Dutch.
Taking advantage of his absence, the Earls of Glencairn
and Balcarres endeavoured to raise the Highlands in the
royal cause. Glencairn made his appearance in Menteith,
where he was joined by Graham of Duchray with his men
and some of the neighbouring clans. While these were
encamped about Duchray and Lochard, the Governor of
The Lake of Menteith. 21
Stirling Castle marched to meet them, with a squadron
of horse and about a regiment of foot — a force apparently
quite sufficient to deal with the rising, as the Grahams
and their friends did not number quite three hundred
men, all told. The English troops, however, were hemmed
in at the pass of Aberfoyle, and driven back with con-
siderable loss.
It is with this historical affair that tradition connects
the incidents at Glenny. While on the march to Aberfoyle,
along the northern shore of the Lake of Menteith, and
in the narrow passage between Crockmelly and the lake,
the English force was suddenly attacked by a small party
of the Grahams of Glenny, whom their laird had ambushed
in the pass on the front of the hill and among the rocks
and trees of the glen. The Grahams were too few in
number to be able to stop the march of the enemy, but
the fire from their ambush was so annoying that the
English commander ordered his horse to charge up the
hill, and clear the pass. It is said that one of the Graham
party, called M'Queen, had signalized himself by the
accuracy of his aim and the deadly effect of his fire. He
was therefore made the object of special pursuit by the
horsemen. He did not escape. He was overtaken, and
cut down at a spot which thenceforth has borne the name
of " M'Queen's Pass."
Another native was more fortunate. Chased by a
horseman right over the shoulder of the hill, he fled down
the other side towards the glen of Portend, making for
a place where, as described by the author of "Inchmahome,"
the rivulet has cut a deep and narrow chasm in the rock,
22 The Lake of Menteith.
the strata of which have a dip a little removed from the
perpendicular, with the consequence that one of the sides
projects in proportion as the other leans backwards.1
To this deep fissure the wily Graham led the pursuing
trooper. And just in time he reached the rock overhanging
the hidden chasm. The soldier was at his heels, and his
arm already raised to cut him down, when Graham swerved
to the side, and horse and rider, unable to check their
impulse, went headlong over the precipice. Thus local
tradition accounts for the name of the " Horseman's Book,"
by which the place is still known.
The laird of Glenny, though unable to arrest the advance
of the English, had yet time to warn Duchray of his
approach, so that the latter was enabled to take up an
advantageous position at the foot of Lochard.
Such is the traditional account of the engagement at
Glenny. Whether the details of the affair are accurately
preserved or not, circumstances — to be by and bye referred
to — seem to favour the belief that some such skirmish may
have actually taken place here, although no mention is
made of it in the detailed narrative of the events at
Aberfoyle that has come down to us. This narrative, it
may be stated, is attributed to John Graham of Duchray,
himself the leader of the local clansmen, and may therefore
be taken as authoritative in regard to the incidents of
1 Notes on Inchmahome, p. 69. The following sentences complete the author's
description of Portend Glen :— " They (i.e., the sides of the glen) are both richly
adorned with varied coppice, through which, from the noon-day twilight beneath,
the sky is seen in glimpses. Huge moss-grown stones are scattered in wild
and picturesque confusion ; and the din of the several rapids they form, by
interrupting the course of the water, contributes to the romantic effect of this
sequestered scene."
The Lake of Menteith. 23
the fight. It is titled " Account of the Earl of Glencairn's
Expedition as Governor of His Majesty's Forces in the
Highlands of Scotland in the years 1653 and 1654, by a
Person who was an Eye and Ear Witness to Every
Transaction."1
As Duchray and Aberfoyle are so nearly connected with
Menteith, it may not be out of place here to give a brief
abstract of the substance of this narrative. It states that
the first to join Glencairn in his rising was the laird of
Duchrie with forty footmen, followed immediately by the
tutor of M'Gregor with eighty men. These assembled
at Duchray, where they were joined by Lord Kenmure with
forty horsemen from the west, Colonel Blackadder with
thirty horse from Fife, and the laird of M'Naughton with
twelve horsemen. In addition there were between sixty
and eighty Lowland men, without horses, but well provided
with arms, under Captain Hamilton, brother to the laird of
Milnburn. The total force thus amounted to less than
200 foot and 42 mounted men. The narrative then
proceeds: — " Colonel Kidd, governor of Stirling, being
informed that the king's forces were come so near him,
marched with the greatest part of his regiment of foot and
a troop of horse, to a place called Aberfoile, within three
miles of Lord Glencairn. His lordship having intelligence,
did march with the small force he had to the pass of
Aberfoile, and drew up his foot on both sides very advan-
tageously : and the horse, which were commanded by Lord
1The "Account" is adjoined as an Appendix to the Military Memoirs
of the Great Civil War, by John Gwynne. These two curious works were
printed from the MSS., and published at Edinburgh in 1822.
24 The Lake of Menteith.
Kenmure, formed the wings. He gave orders for Captain
Hamilton's cravats1 and Deuchrie's men to receive the first
charge, which they did very gallantly : and at the very
first made the enemy retire. The general, perceiving this,
commanded the Highland forces to pursue as also Lord
Kenmure's horse : on this the enemy began to run in
earnest : — they lost about sixty men on the spot, and it
was said about eighty in the pursuit : no prisoners were
taken on either side."2
This account of Duchray's, it will be observed, makes no
allusion to the afiair of Glenny, but in a letter to the
Mercurius Politicus from the military correspondent in
Scotland (dated at Dalkeith 3rd Sept., 1653) there is refer-
ence to another slight skirmish, which seems to have
occurred at some place in Menteith nearer to Stirling than
Lochard is. "The Lords Lome and Kenmore are busy
about the west of Stirlingshire ; and were, with about 260
horse and foot, within seven miles of the garrison, fired at
some of ours, and killed a horse out of the ambuscade.
Colonel Kead is marched out against them, with three
companies of his own regiment and three troops of horse."
This may well enough refer to the ambuscade at Glenny.
We may make some allowance for the geographical knowledge
of the English correspondent, as well as for the course of
local tradition which represents as a private affair of the
Laird of Glenny what was really a reconnaissance of the
Highland force. The Colonel commanding the English
troops was apparently not with his men on the occasion. It
was to punish the insult that he marched immediately after-
1 Croats. * Military Memoirs of the Great Civil War, &c., p. 160.
The Lake of Menteith. 25
wards to Aberfoyle. Three days later the same correspondent
writes as follows : — " In my last I acquainted you with the
Lord Lome and Kenmore's coming near to Stirling and
Colonel Bead marching towards them : since which there
hath been a little skirmish, wherein they killed us two horse,
and wounded us about twenty men and some horses : but
they were well requited. When the craggs could shelter
them no longer, they left our men upon the plain ground.
There appeared fifty of their foot and some horse : divers of
their foot run along the hills, from hill to hill, flanking of
our men, and gauling us upon our retreat, which occasioned
our loss. Colonel Head yet lies in the field near Port, by
the isle of Menteith, near which the engagement was.'*
This is no doubt the English version of the engagement at
Aberfoyle. The circumstance of the Highlanders running
along the hillsides and harassing the retreat of the enemy is
characteristic. The statement of the Parliamentary loss in
killed and wounded, as might be expected, differs greatly
from the estimate of Duchray. It is to be observed also that
the Commander, whom Duchray calls Colonel Kidd, is here
named Colonel Kead. The English writer must be credited
with knowing the name of the Parliamentary officer.
Duchray probably made the not unnatural error of taking
Rid, which used to be the Scottish pronunciation of Bead,
for Kidd, or it may be that the transcriber or printer of his
manuscript mistook the letter B for K. It is certain that
Kead — Scottice Eid — was the governor of Stirling at that
time. In a minute of Town Council, of 18th July, 1653, he
is styled, "Colonell Rid, governour of this burgh."1
Extracts from the Records of the Royal Burgh of Stirling, A.D. 1529-1666, p. 209.
26 The Lake of Menteith.
For some time longer the Highland troops remained in
the district. The Mercurius Politicus notes, under date
6th Nov., 1653, that the leaders still " lie about the island
of Monteath with about 1000 foot and horse : about a third
part of them want arms, instead whereof they have clubs "
— surely a sorry rabble wherewith to overturn the government
of the Lord High Protector. On the 26th of November
occurs this final note — " To give you some account of our
present posture, Kenmore is going northward : but has left
his beagles under one John Graham of Docra, to steal horses
and plunder the country." Thus contemptuously is the
Laird of Duchray dismissed from the pages of the Mercurius
Politicus.1 As the letter is written from Stirling, it was
probably penned while the writer was still suffering from the
soreness of Read's defeat by Duchray at Aberfoyle.
Down the pass of Glenny has swept many a Highland
foray. By this track the predatory tribes of the wild
mountain region beyond Loch Vennachar came down to
harry the fertile region of Menteith and the Vale of Forth.
The immediate neighbourhood especially, the domain of
the Duke of Montrose, was the favourite scene of opera-
tions of those expert blackmailers and cattle-lifters, Bob
Roy and his kin. It is to be expected, therefore, that
memories of M'Gregors, and MacFarlans, and other
marauders, should linger in the glen. And so they did
till recently; but the inhabitants have now become very
few, and the population of the vale below has greatly
changed, so that orally preserved tradition has now
become scanty. The harvest of such tradition, however,
1 Military Memoirs, £c., Appendix pp. 199 to 214, passim.
The Lake of Mentelth. 27
has been already pretty well gathered, and the result has
found a place in national as well as local literature. It
is not intended to repeat any of these tales here : but
whoever desires to read the story of the " bold outlaw,"
and the not less curious histories of his sons, will find
an authentic account, together with a history of the clan
in general, in Sir Walter Scott's Introduction to " Bob
Eoy " : while the local legends of their exploits in Men-
teith have been told, with imaginative embellishments,
in Mr. P. Dun's " Summer at the Lake of Menteith."
The old path leading up from the glen and over the
ridge is still to be traced in the heath. It is known as
the Cheepers or Tyepers path. At the top of the ridge it
splits — one track taking down the hill in a north-easterly
direction to the east end of Loch Vennachar, while the
other curves round towards the north and west, and leads
between Lochs Drunkie and Vennachar to Loch Achray
and the Trossachs. On the height of the pass is a spring
known as the Tyepers Well. This name seems to be
merely a bad corruption of the old Gaelic word tiobar
(pronounced tibbar or tipper), meaning " a well," or more
specifically, " a well on a height." The word therefore
exactly describes this spring and its situation, and furnishes
also the explanation of the Tyepers Path — "the well road."
This tiobar was most probably the spot where William, the
third Earl of Menteith of the Graham line, was slain by
Donald the Hammerer and his followers in or about the
year 1544.1 Writers who have mentioned this event have
not been very definite in their localisation. Sir Walter
1 The story is told in detail in the Life of that Earl, infra.
28 The Lake of Menteith.
Scott says that the Earl and his men went in pursuit of
the Stewarts by the difficult and dangerous path which
leads from the banks of the Loch of Monteith through the
mountains to the side of Loch Katrine. " They came up
with Donald's party in the gorge of the pass, near a rock
called Craig-vad or the Wolf's Cliff."1 Others name the
place Tobanareal, which is said to be " a spring on the
summit of the ridge which separates Menteith from
Strathgartney, between Loch Katrine and the Lake of
Menteith."2 The ridge, up which the Stewarts were
making their way towards their native Appin, when over-
taken by the Grahams, is that which lies between the
Lake of Menteith and Loch Vennachar — although there
is a track, as has been already noted, leading round the
north side of the hill to Loch Katrine. Tobanareal is
evidently a corruption of the original name. The first
part no doubt is meant for Tobar. In the earliest men-
tion both of the story and the place, the name is written
Tipard'nerheil* And this leads us to the etymology of
the name, which seems to be a slightly corrupted form of
Tiobair-na-iorghuill, meaning "the fountain of the fray."4
If thia is correct, the name must have been given to
commemorate the incident, and was perhaps that by
which it was afterwards known to the Stewarts. If it
1 Tales of a Grandfather, 1892, vol. i. p. 424.
2 Eraser's Red Book of Menteith, vol. i. p. 311.
3 History of the House of Stewart, by Duncan Stewart, M.A. This book was
published in 1739, but must have been written previously to 1730, which was the
date of the author's death.
* In iorghuill the gh is silent, so that the word sounds as if written irrail.
(Communication from PT, A, C. Cameron.)
The Lake of Menteith.
29
ever prevailed in the neighbourhood, it has long been
lost, and the name has reverted to the more ancient and
simple tobair, now degenerated into tyeper.
In a hollow below this spring there is a cairn of white
quartz stone, gathered evidently with some care and trouble,
which one would like to be able to identify as the burial
place of some of those who fell in the fray at Tipardnerheil :
but the shepherds of Orlenny say that it marks the spot
where a man was robbed and murdered when returning
by the hill-track to Loch Vennachar-side from a fair at
Aberfoyle.
30
CHAPTER II.
Around the Lake : Civil and Ecclesi-
astical Notices of Port : Traditions of
the Shores.
"Green meadows and lake with green islands."
" Not a feature of these hills
Is in the mirror slighted."
" Tradition's dubious light
That hovers 'twixt the day and night."
SECTION I. — THE PORT; AND THE NORTHERN SHORE.
IT the north-west corner of the lake, and under
the shadow of the hills, lies the village, or
rather hamlet, of Port — so called, no doubt
(Gaelic poirt, " a ferry," also " a landing-
place "), because it was the landing-place for the monks
of Inchmahome in their communication with the church
which they possessed there, or when visiting the lands of
their domain. There were two other landing-places on the
north side of the lake. One was on the lands of Portend,
where the pleasure-grounds of the Earls of Menteith were
situated. This afforded the shortest passage from the
shore to the islands, and may have been the private ferry
of the Earls of Inchtalla. A third, and perhaps more
public port, was at the extreme north-west corner of the
The Lake of Menteith. 31
•
lake. At Gateside, as the place is called, there was long
a ferry to the islands : there was the house of the boatman,
who used also, down to recent times, to be the lessee of
the fruit gardens on Inchmahome.
The Port, although it gives name to the parish, was never
anything but a very small village, and is now even smaller
than it once was. The church, the manse, the inn, the
schoolhouse, and a few cottages, make up the whole.
Nevertheless, this small and secluded hamlet was erected
into a burgh of barony by James the Third more than four
hundred years ago. In a charter under the Great Seal,1
dated at Edinburgh on the 8th of February, 1466, that
monarch, for the singular favour he bore to his beloved
kinsman, Malise, Earl of Menteith, and for provision to
be made .for himself and his lieges in the high land of
Menteith,2 during the season of the huntings and at other
times, made the town of Porte, in Menteith and in the
sheriffdom of Perth, a free burgh, to be had and held by
the foresaid Malise, his successors, and the inhabitants
thereof, in all time coming, as a pure and free burgh in
barony, with all the usual liberties, privileges, and just
pertinents. There was a well-known royal forest in Glen-
finglas in the Stewartry of Menteith, the keepership of
which was usually held by the captain of the castle of
Doune ; but the royal huntsmen can scarcely be supposed
1 This charter has been printed in full in the Red Book of Menteith, vol. ii.
p. 297.
2 Or, " at the head of Menteith " : the Latin words are, in summitate de
Menteith. In the charter of James I., 1427, erecting certain lands into the earldom
of Menteith, mention is made of the " foreste de baith le sidis de Lochcon." The
situation of this forest might be very aptly described as "in summitate de Menteith
— at the head of Menteith.
32 The Lake of Menteith.
to have gone by way of the Port for the chase in Glen-
finglas. There was, however, another forest for red deer,
known as the forest of Menteith, which lay in the district
of Aberfoyle. Whether this also was a royal forest is not
quite clear;1 but at any rate it lay within the bounds of
the Earls of Menteith, and would be approached from
Stirling by way of the lake. It is therefore most likely
that it was to make provision for the royal comfort when
hunting there that the King gave his beloved kinsman his
free, if small, burgh in barony.
The cross of the burgh is said to have been the trunk of
an old hawthorn tree, which stood by the lake side, opposite
the manse of Port, and was known as " the law tree."
Around this tree an annual fair was held in the month of
September, and called after St. Michael. A writer, how-
ever,2 who rests on the authority of oral tradition, asserts
that up to the time of the last Earl of Menteith, in the
end of the seventeenth century, St. Michael's fair was held
on the farm of Milling, on the western shore of the lake.
The fair is now discontinued.
There was a church at Port long prior to the Beforma-
tion.3 It was one of four dependent on the Priory. The
1 In the Exchequer Rolls (vol. vii. p. 614) there is noted a sum of £4 expended
on repairs for the Hunting-lodge at Duchray in 1469 — which seems to show that
this also was a royal forest in the time of James III. From the same authority we
learn that the keeper of the forest of Menteith in 1467 was one Donald Neyssoune
(vol. vii. p. 485). The fermes of the lands of Duchray were in the hands of the
king in 1461 (vol. vii. p. 69).
2 Dun's Summer at the Lake of Menteith, p. 29.
8 In the Protocol Book (John Graham's) of Stirling, there is registered the
solemnization of the marriage, on the 2ist April, 1541, of Archibald, Earl of Argyle,
and Margaret Graham, daughter of William, Earl of Menteith, at the church of
Inchmahome, after parties had been proclaimed three times " apud ecclcsiam de
Port et Dolarie."
The Lake of Menteith. 33
earlier records of the Kirk-Session, after the Keformation,
have unfortunately been greatly mutilated, but of what
remains, Mr. M'Gregor Stirling has printed several interest-
ing extracts,1 which throw some curious light on the manners
and habits of the parishioners.
In the Episcopalian period, one of the ministers was Mr.
James Donaldson, who had been presented to the charge
by Bishop Leighton of Dunblane. As was to be expected
from a friend of Leighton, he set himself to improve the
morals of the people, which appeared to stand greatly in
need of reformation. The prevailing sin was drunkenness,
aggravated by its commission on the Sabbath day. The
people assembled at the Port, and betook themselves to the
ale-houses instead of to the church. Some, after their visit
to the ale-house, came in late to worship, and had to sit
bareheaded before the minister. Others did not attend
the afternoon service. Elders were appointed to search
the ale-houses, and also to keep watch on the roads leading
from the village so as to prevent people going away with-
out attending afternoon service. When they did remain,
however, it was found that they were too apt to proceed,
after the service was over, to wash down their diet of
divinity in the public-house. So that the Session (23rd
Feb., 1668) " acted and ordained that no bear nor ell
seller within the paroch, shall sell ell after sermon, except
in case of necessitie, folk be thirstie ore fant, they drink
a chapon of ell, or those that are sick, or those that are
strangers." It may be suspected that some members of
the Session were not themselves without sin in this
1 Appendix viii. to Notes on Inchmahome.
C
34 The Lake of Menteith.
matter. At any rate, on 12th April, 1668, they thought
proper to pass the following self-denying ordinance: —
" The Session also considering the necessitie of reforming
their own lives and manners befor they endeavore any such
thing amongst others, have ordained that none of their
number shall, after both sermons endit, goe into any ell
house except in case of real necessitie, or for searching,
under the pain of twentie shilling Scots for the first tym,
and thereafter for everie tym this is to be doubled toties
quoties" But even this self-denial on the part of the
elders, added to the discipline of the church, was found
insufficient to repress " that old sin and scandall of this
paroch of drinking the wholl Lord's day." So recourse was
had to fining the ale-sellers if they sold to any but sick
persons and strangers, and to these only as much as would
quench their thirst — a quantity which seems to have been
limited to the regulation "chapon." Possibly, after that,
" sickness " increased on Sundays at the Port. Unfortu-
nately, we do not know to what extent Mr. Donaldson and
his Session succeeded at length in repressing " the old sin "
of the parish, because the records were carried off by Mr.
Patrick Bell, his successor, and only partially recovered.
For some time after the Eeformation the church of Port
was served by readers. The name of William Streuling
appears as reader in 1567, and Andrew Dougall was filling
the office in 1574. Dougall was succeeded by William
Stirling — whether the same as the first-mentioned is not
known. This Stirling was somewhat of a pluralist. He
had been presented to the parsonage of Aberfoyle in 1571,
and held at the same time the vicarage of Kilmadock, with
The Lake of Menteith. 35
a manse in Dunblane ; and to these offices was added the
charge of Port in 1574. He was one of three nominated
by the Privy Council in 1589 " for the maintenance of true
religion in tl^e Stewartries of Stratherne and Menteith " :
and shortly afterwards he was removed to Strageyth.
The first regular minister of the parish bore also the
name of William Stirling. He was a graduate of Glasgow,
where he was laureated in 1585. His first charge was
Kincardine, whence he was translated to Port in 1597.
He held the cure till 1616. His successor was James
Seytoun, A.M. — laureated at Edinburgh, 29th July, 1603;
became tutor in the family of Livingston of Dunipace, by
whose influence he was admitted minister of Denny in
November, 1607 ; translated to Logie in January, 1610,
and finally to Port of Menteith in December, 1616. He
died in 1638, when about fifty-five years of age. On the
2nd of July, 1638, King Charles I. presented to the charge
Thomas Henderson, A.M., who had been a student of
Glasgow University, where he was laureated in 1626.
Henderson died in April, 1664, at the age of fifty-eight,
survived by his wife, Jean Setoun of Wester Spittaltoun, a
son and three daughters. " The utencils of his house were
estimat at x lib. : frie geir jc lib." He appears to have been,
for the times, fairly well blessed with this world's goods.
The next minister was James Donaldsone, A.M., already
referred to. He had graduated at St. Andrews in 1660,
was licensed by George, Bishop of Edinburgh, in 1666,
and was presented by Kobert Leighton, Bishop of Dunblane,
to the parish of Port, where he was inducted on the 15th
of November, 1667. Donaldson was evidently an earnest
36 The Lake of Menteith.
and painstaking clergyman, and the parish enjoyed the
benefit of his ministrations for fourteen years. In 1681
he was translated to Dumbarton, where it is to be feared
he did not enjoy the comfort and peace that had been
his lot in the quiet vale of Menteith. The tide of popular
fury was rising against the Episcopalian clergymen — the
" curates," as the populace called them — and the revolu-
tion of 1688 allowed the Presbyterians the freedom they
had formerly been denied. In the "rabbling of the curates,"
no doubt some good men had to submit to ill-treatment
along with the worthless creatures that had been in many
cases intruded into the pulpits. Donaldson suffered with
the rest. He was rabbled and deposed in 1690.
On Donaldson's departure from Port, James Ramsay,
who had succeeded Leighton in the Bishopric of Dunblane,
presented his own son, Kobert Eamsay, A.M. The latter
had graduated at Edinburgh in 1668, and had been licensed
by Alexander, Bishop of Edinburgh, on 21st May, 1673.
He was admitted to the parish of Port on the 25th of
January, 1682, but remained only a few months in the
parish, as he was translated to Prestonpans in September
of the same year. He continued to exercise the office
of the ministry in Prestonpans till the 10th of May, 1689,
on which date he was deprived by the Committee of Estates
for not reading and obeying their proclamation of the llth
of April. He betook himself to the Canongate of Edinburgh,
where he died in 1699, about fifty-one years of age.
Next came Patrick Bell, who had studied at Glasgow,
1678-1683. He was presented to the parish by Alexander
Higgins of Craigforth, and admitted to the charge on the
The Lake of Menteith. 37
15th of May, 1683. He was the last of the Episcopalian
clergymen. It was he who carried away, when he left
the parish, the Session Eecords — which were only recovered
after many tedious delays and complicated legal proceedings,
and in a very imperfect and fragmentary condition, by the
Kirk-Session in 1706. Mr. Bell was deprived by the
Privy Council, 3rd October, 1689, for not reading the
Proclamation of the Estates, for refusing to pray for their
Majesties King William and Queen Mary, and not observing
the Thanksgiving. Shortly after, he was served heir, in
succession to his elder brother, of the estate of Antermony,
of which his father, Alexander Bell, had been proprietor.
He married Annabelle, daughter of Stirling of Craigbarnet,
and was the father of John Bell of Antermony, the author
of a one-time famous book of Travels in Asia.1 Arthur
Forbes, who had studied at Glasgow, and was licensed by
the United Presbytery of Stirling and Dunblane in 1696,
was ordained minister of the parish, 10th February, 1697.
It was by him and his Kirk- Session that the existing
fragments of the earlier Eecords were recovered from Mr.
Patrick Bell. He died in the summer of 1724. After
an interval of two years, Forbes was succeeded by John
Fergusson, a native of Cowal, and a student of Glasgow.
He was called in August, 1725, but was not ordained
till July of the following year. Mr. Fergusson was proprietor
of the estate of Craigholl. He died 2nd October, 1768.
The next minister of the parish was Eobert Stirling, who
seems to have been a native of the district. He was
licensed by the Presbytery of Dunblane on the 27th of
1 Travels from St. Petersburgh to .Various Parts in Asia.
38 The Lake of Menteith.
July, 1762, and his first appointment was that of assistant
to Mr James Oswald, minister of Methven. He was pre-
sented to the parish of Port by the patron, David Erskine,
W.S., and ordained 13th July, 1769. He completed thirty-
two years of service in the parish, and died on the 23rd of
July, 1801. Before his death, however, he had the assist-
ance of his son, William M'Gregor Stirling, who was
presented by James Erskine of Cardross, and ordained
assistant and successor to his father on the 15th of August,
1799. Mr. M'Gregor Stirling was a man of genial and
kindly disposition, and of literary and artistic tastes. He
was a zealous antiquarian, and set the first example of the
careful and systematic study of the local records. All
subsequent writers on the Priory and the Castle have been
greatly indebted to his researches. His first important
publication was entitled " Notes, Historical and Descrip-
tive, on the Priory of Inchmahome ; with Introductory
Verses, and an Appendix of Original Papers."1 It is
frequently referred to in this volume. In 1816 appeared
his " Chart of British History, with a Memoir," and in
1817 he edited a revised edition of "Nimmo's History of
Stirlingshire " (first published in 1777), so enriched with
additional matter as to make it practically a new and much
more valuable work. " Papers illustrative of the Political
Condition of the Highlands from 1689 to 1696" was printed
by the Maitland Club in 1845. Mr. Stirling married — a
second time — in 1823, and the circumstances of his
marriage unfortunately led to a Presbyterial enquiry which
resulted in a sentence of deposition. The sentence, how-
1 Edinburgh, 1815 : William Blackwood.
The Lake of Menteith. 39
•
ever, was reversed by the Assembly of 1824, and arrange-
ment was made for his retirement and the appointment
of an assistant and successor. He withdrew to Edinburgh,
where he busied himself in his favourite antiquarian and
literary pursuits. He died of fever at Stockbridge on
the 23rd of January, 1833, in the sixty-second year of his
age. The assistant and successor appointed was William
Wyllie, a licentiate of the Presbytery of Ayr. He was
presented by David Erskine of Cardross, ordained 22nd
September, 1825, and held the cure till his death on the
5th of March, 1843. Mr. Wyllie was succeeded by the
Eev. Allan Turner, D.D., who died in 1867. The
successor of Dr. Turner, and present incumbent of the
parish, is the Kev. James Johnston, M.A.1
The present Church of Port was erected on the site
of its predecessor in 1878. It is in thirteenth century
Gothic, simple in treatment, and with an elegant spire,
which comes well into the landscape as seen from the
lake or the islands. It succeeded a building erected in
1771, near the beginning of the ministry of Mr. Robert
Stirling. This, plain as it was, seems to have been con-
sidered a very good specimen of church building at the
time, as it was taken as the model of a new church at
Drymen built in the following year.2 The site is probably
that of the earliest Church of Port. In the churchyard are
several old and interesting tombstones, the old church bell
suspended from a tree — the new building has a chime of
1 The authority for these facts regarding the ministers of the parish is, mainly,
Scott's Fasti Ecclesiae Scoticanae, vol. ii. pt. ii.
2 Guthrie Smith's History of Strathendrick, p. 92.
40 The Lake of Menteith.
musical bells — and the mausoleum of the Grahams of
Gartmore, built on the west border of the enclosure, hard
by the lake.
The northern shore of the lake, westward from the Port,
consists of a narrow strip of comparatively level land lying
close under the steeply-rising hills. The lands of Port,
as this was formerly called, are interesting, for several
reasons. Here, about the middle, was the Prior's Meadow,
which was no doubt a valuable possession of the monastery
in olden times. In 1646, it was held in feu from the Priory
by the Earl of Menteith.1 On the Prior's Meadow is a
small mound, which is supposed to be artificial, but the
purpose of its construction is unknown. Tradition avers
that it was formed with consecrated earth brought over
from Ireland. In this tradition we may at least find, if
nothing else, a recognition of the fact that Colman, who
gave name to the island of Inchmahome, was an old Irish
saint and bishop.2
Here, too, around Portend, was the pleasaunce of the
Earls of Menteith. The surface of Inchtalla was barely
large enough to carry the buildings which lodged the family;
and, while they had the western portion of Inchmahome
as garden ground, their more spacious pleasure grounds
were on the northern shore of the lake. Kelics of this
ancient use are to be seen about Portend in the great old
trees — oak, chestnut, walnut, sycamore, and others — which
xThe monasterie and precincte with the yairdis and the Priouris medowe
fewit to the Erll of Monteythe— xx s. (Rental of the Feu-duties of Inchmahome
—October, 1646.)
2 See tnfra, chap. v.
.
2
o
t
o
Z
I
*
JC
u
The Lake of Menteith. 43
still remain dotted over the fields and bordering the old
avenue which led to Coldon and the landing-place from
Inchtalla. Coldon — or Cowdon — is a small conical hill,
set close to the margin of the lake, and covered with wood.
From this circumstance the name is said to have been
been derived — Gaelic coille, " wood," and duny " a hill-
fort." There are vestiges of early fortification on its top
and sides.
On the 1st of May, 1493, Michael Dun, mair of the
sheriff dom of Perth, gave sasine to Alexander, as heir of
his grandfather Malise, the first Earl of Menteith, of the
earldom and its pertinents, " ad ripam lacus de Inchma-
homok prope le Coldone supra solum terrarum de Forth,"
by the delivery of earth and stone in the usual manner,
" apud litus lacus de Inchmahomok, inter prescriptum
lacum et le Coldone."1
At this shore of Coldon, it may be noted in passing,
there is a fine echo — the walls of the Priory of Inchma-
home sending back the sound of words loudly spoken at
the water's edge.
Portend appears to have been the home farm as well
as the pleasure ground of the ancient earls. Here the
cows for the domestic supply of milk to the Castle were
kept, as we learn from the instructions of the last earl to
his wife — " fyve kyne for the use of the house to be keiped
in Portend." There was probably also a small mansion
house, or superior farm-house, which received a royal
visitor, in the person of Charles II., in the month of
February, 1651. That sovereign, on the 10th of February,
1 Instrument of Sasine printed in Red Book, vol. ii. p. 301.
44 The Lake of Menteith.
1651, ratified at Portend a warrant to William, Earl of
Airth, for payment of a debt due to him by his Majesty's
father of saintly memory, who had deprived the earl of his
dignities of Stratherne and Menteith, and assigned him the
new and obscure title of Airth. Charles was at that time
engaged in the, as yet vain, attempt to recover the
kingdom from the Commonwealth, and was anxious to
keep his own and his father's friends attached to his cause.
So he gave to the earl, who had suffered much for and at
the hands of Charles I., this warrant for the payment of
a sum of £1000 assigned to him by " our umquill father
of ever blessed memorie," and for an annual pension of
£100 till the principal sum was paid in full and at one
payment, adding, " we doe hereby promise on the word
of ane prince to sie it faithfullie payed when ever we
fynd occasione."1 It is scarcely necessary to say that he
never found occasion. Afterwards, when he had come to
the throne, two warrants were issued for the payment of
£500 sterling to the earl's grandson, William, second
Earl of Airth — which also were never more than waste
paper.8
Past Portend flows the burn which is the principal
feeder of the lake ; and, on the other side of that stream,
at the head of the fine north-western bay, is G-ateside,
where was the cottage of the boatman, and what used
to be the common or public ferry to the islands.
1 Warrant printed in the Red Book of Menteith, vol. ii. p. 68.
2 Warrants dated, I4th July, 1662, at Hampton Court ; and 2nd June, 1665, at
Whitehall. For further information about the royal debts to the earl, see infra,
chap. xi.
The Lake of Menleith. 45
SECTION II. — THE WESTEBN SHORE.
THE country on this side of the lake is bare of trees, and
not inviting in prospect, as it stretches away to the west-
ward in moorish humps, diversified with bogs. But it has
much to interest the historian and antiquarian. Close by
the shore were the Earls' stables, occupying the south
side of a promontory projecting into the lake, south from
the farm house of Milling, and at the nearest point of land
to the kennels of Inchcuan. Further round the shore
was the place where dwelt another important feudal official
— the Earls' piper. Vestiges of the Piper's House still
remain. And here is the curving gravel strand, more
than half-a-mile in length, along which he used to strut
in the early mornings, with his pipes in full blast, to
waken the sleepers on Inchtalla with his stirring strains.
Mellowed by their passage across half-a-mile of water, we
can suppose that these strains fell upon the ears of the
listeners not ungratefully.
The farm of Milling has other interesting localities.
As has been said, the Fair of St. Michael was formerly
held here on the shore of the lake; and a little to the
west is the bold knoll of the " Gallows Hill," full in view
of Inchtalla, so that the earls could see the execution of
the criminals whom their justice or injustice had con-
demned. Tradition assigns the last execution on the
Gallows Hill to the time of the last Earl of Menteith,
who is said to have unjustly caused an innocent youth
to be hanged on a charge of horse-stealing. That tradition,
46 The Lake of Menteith.
however, is unsupported by any tittle of ascertained fact,
and the story, as told by the legend, represents that
eccentric and hypochondriac nobleman in a character
quite inconsistent with anything that is known of his
real nature. A still more legendary interest attaches to
the Claggans, where, it is affirmed in the locality, the
last wolf in Scotland was killed. But that same state-
ment is made of other places, so we must take it with
the usual grain of salt. And so also must we take the
interesting legend of Loch Macanree and Auchveity.
This story bears all the marks of having been invented
by the rustic imagination to account for the apparent
meanings of the names. Macanree appears to be good
enough Gaelic (Mac-an-righ) for " King's Son," and
Auchveity seemed to be by interpretation " The field of
Betty." The problem, therefore, was to bring these two
persons together. And this is how it was solved.
Once upon a time this country to the west of the
lake was royal forest, wherein the King and his court
used to enjoy the delights of the chase. One one occasion
the King's son had gone out to the hunt and raised a
fleet stag, which, instead of keeping to the hillside, rushed
off to the low and boggy ground in the neighbourhood of
the lake. The royal prince followed on, reckless of possible
danger in the ardour of his chase, and rapidly outstripping
his attendants, till his horse sunk deep in the bog beside
the little lochan. The prince was in the utmost danger
of being engulfed, horse and all, when a strapping herd-
maiden, who was tending her cattle at the Shiels of
Gartrenich, not far off, hastened to the rescue. She
The Lake of Menteith. 47
grasped the prince with her strong hands, plucked him
from the tenacious mud, and set him on firm ground. In
reward for this gallant deed, she received from the King
the piece of land near which the feat was done, and which
thenceforth was called from her own name, Auchveity,
or Betty's field. The lochan also, to commemorate the
circumstance, received its name of Loch Macanree —
the lake of the King's son. The legend is delightfully
indefinite as to the time when this interesting incident
occurred, and as to the particular prince who was the hero
of it.
As it has its origin, no doubt, in the attempt to
account for a popular etymology, a little more philology
may be pardoned. Auchveity may quite well be interpreted
the field of the marsh — a name quite characteristic of the
place. As to Macanree — the fact that in pronunciation
the accent is invariably placed on the second syllable, with
a suspicion of an indefinite vowel sound between the n
and r, would lead us to look somewhere else than to
Mac-an-righ for the origin of the word. It may possibly
be found to be Magh-an-oraidh, i.e., " the field or plain
of worship." This explanation may be supposed to receive
confirmation from the fact that the site of the ancient
Chapel of Arnchlay — one of the chapels dependent on the
Priory of Inchmahome — is hard by. The larach or
foundation-site of this old chapel is still to be seen.
Near this is the curious and interesting stone called
the Peace Stone — for what reason so called is unknown.
The stone was buried in a trench about the beginning of
the present century, by the fanner on whose fields it lay,
48 The Lake of Menteith.
but is again exposed to the light of day. The local legend
is that long ago a Gaelic seer — whose name, Pharic
M'Pharic, at any rate looks Celtic enough — prophesied
the burial of this stone by two brothers, who, for their
impiety, would die childless, that the stone would by and
bye rise to the surface, and then would be fought a great
battle on Auchveity. The first part of the prophecy has
been fulfilled — the farmer brothers who buried the stone
both died without issue, and the stone is again above the
surface ; but the great battle has not yet come off. Apart
from the legend, however, the stone is of great interest
to archaeologists. It lies about half-a-mile south from the
farm-house of Milling, at the boundary of the arable land.
It is roughly circular on the surface, measuring about
four feet in diameter. The surface is entirely covered with
cup and ring marks — twenty-two cups in all — varying in
size from an inch to two inches in diameter. The cups
and rings are very symmetrically formed. Nearly in the
centre is a fine one surrounded by four circular grooves.
Others have incomplete triple and quadruple circles, with
radial duct dividing them. There are other curious curves
that sometimes interlace, and near the lower side of the
stone are five or six cups with straight channels running
out from them over the edge. The markings are much
weather-worn, and the stone, of course, points to the work
of a period long anterior to any of the ecclesiastical
buildings in the neighbourhood.1
An historical battle site is the Moss of Talla or Tilly-
1 Standing Stones, &c., by A. F. Hutchison, in Transactions of Stirling
Natural History and Archaeological Society, vol. xv.
The Lake of Menteith. 51
moss, lying further to the west and not far from the river
Forth. At this place, on the llth of October, 1489, the
Earl of Lennox, with the force he had collected to avenge
the death of James III., pitched his camp. He was on
the way to Dumbarton Castle, which was being held for
him by his son, Matthew Stewart, and Lord Lyle. On
his approach to Stirling from the north, he found the
passage of the Forth impossible, as the town was held in
strong force by the friends of the young King, James IV.
He therefore marched to the west on the north side of the
river, intending to cross it near its source, and encamped
at the Moss of Talla. The King and Lord Drummond
were at Dunblane when word was brought them that
Lennox was lying at Talla. The King immediately sent
to Stirling for " culverins," hastily collected a small force,
and with Lord Drummond rode out from Dunblane to
attack the insurgents. They fell upon them in the dark-
ness of the night and utterly routed them, driving them
across the Forth to Gartalunane.1 Lennox himself and
the other principal conspirators were pardoned and taken
into favour by the King. Only Thomas Galbraith, laird
of Culcreuch, was executed as a traitor, and his lands
bestowed on Adam Hepburn, brother of the Earl of
Bothwell. Next day, the King rode back to Stirling,
going by way of Kippen, at the church of which place
he gave thanks for his success, and bestowed an angel
(= 24 shillings) on the church as a thank-offering.2
1 Buchanan's History of Scotland, book xiii. chap. 5; Tytler's History, 1864,
vol. ii. chap. v. p. 250.
3 Accounts of the Lord High Treasurer of Scotland, p. 122.
D
52 The Lake of Mentelth.
SECTION III. — THE SOUTHERN SHORE.
THE ground to the south of the lake rises gradually from
the shore to the height of land between the Lake and the
Vale of Forth, and is, for the most part, heavily wooded.
The long, curving, sandy bay on the south-west terminates
about the middle of the lake in the promontory of Arnmaack,
which runs out from the shore to within a short distance of
Inchmahome, and divides the lake almost into two portions.
This long peninsula is said by local tradition to have been
the work of fairies. This is how the story is told by
Mr. M'Gregor Stirling. " The Earls of Menteith," he
says, "were possessed of what was called the 'red-book,' to
open which was to be followed by something preternatural.
One of them (whether from accident or design is a matter
of doubt) unclasped the fatal volume, when lo ! the fairies
appeared before him, demanding work. His lordship set
them to make a road from the mainland to the islands.
They began on the southern shore, and had made what is
now called Arnmaack, a pleasing peninsula, tufted with a
grove of Scotch firs of considerable height ; when the Earl,
fearing either that they would become mutinous should
they run out of work, or that they might, by completing
their task, spoil the insular situation of his fastness, or
both, bade them twist a rope of sand. They began the
latter task without finishing the former, which still remains
half done ; but finding their new employment too much for
them, and covered with shame, they resolved to depart."1
1 Notes on Inchmahome, p. 81.
The Lake of Menteith. 53
It is added that the Earl, in commiseration of their shame
arising from the impossible task he had set them, granted
them a new dwelling-place on the north side of Ben Venue,
and there they have dwelt since, in the well-known Coir-
nan-Uriskin.
As this veracious story refers the construction of Arn-
mack to one of the Earls of Menteith, it must have taken
place well within the historical period. But history — sooth
to say — makes no mention of the circumstance. In one
respect the fairies showed good sense, that is, in constructing
their passage-way to the islands from the south rather than
from the north shore. The Coldon shore is the nearest
point of the mainland to the islands ; but there the water
is extremely deep, whereas on the south side it is com-
paratively shallow.
Arnmack seems to signify " the portion or field of the
swine"; and, if this be its correct etymology, it may have
been used as a preserve, in the woods of which were fed
the herds of that useful domestic animal ; or, the name
may contain a reference to the story of some ancient
boar-hunt, now forgotten.
The fancied abode of the supernaturals — if, again, we
are to give credence to etymology — was further east on the
same side of the lake. More than half-way from Arnmack
to the south-east angle of the lake is another and smaller,
though very conspicuous promontory, clothed with ancient
trees, and known by the name of Cnoc-nan-bocan, which,
being interpreted, means "the knowe of the bogles." This
knoll has all the appearance of an ancient " barrow." It
has never been examined. Should it turn out, on explora-
54 The Lake of Menteith.
tion, to be a sepulchral mound, the name which has so
long clung to it would receive a sufficient explanation.1
Southwards from Arnmack lies Gartur, originally the
property of the monastery of Inchmahome, and now again
belonging to the estate of Cardross, but for some time
occupied by a branch of the Graham family, in whom was
said to be the succession by heirs-male to the earldom of
Menteith. The last male representative of this line died
in 1818. All the south side of the lake is occupied by the
lands and woods of Cardross, once the dominical lands of
the Priory of Inchmahome, and ever since the time of the
Commendators held by members of the family of Erskine.
Cardross itself is a stately old mansion, containing many
interesting relics, and the estate and its owners have
been closely associated with many important events in the
history of the country. But it would be going too far
afield to refer to these here, although something may be
said regarding them in a later portion of this book. It is
enough to point out one or two interesting localities in
the more immediate neighbourhood of the lake.
To return for a little to Arnmack, it may be pointed
out that in the " Journal of the Hon. John Erskine of
Carnock, from 1683 to 1687," 2 it is called Ardmach, which
seems to mean " the high field " — a designation of which
it is difficult to see the propriety. This Mr. Erskine —
1 A mound on the estate of Craigengelt, in the parish of St. Ninians, which
was popularly known as "The Ghaist Knowe," was dug into in 1838, and dis-
covered to be a barrow, with sepultures of the bronze age.
2 The Journal of the Black Colonel was printed by the Scottish History Society
in 1893, fr°m the original MSS. in the possession of H. D. Erskine, Esquire of
Cardross. It is of great interest, and valuable as a contribution to the history of
the times of persecution.
W
i
3
o
4>
•<-•
2
<M
0)
^
rt
The Lake of Menteith. 57
the "Black Colonel," as he was called — was zealous in
the cause of civil and religious liberty at that time, and
suffered persecution in consequence. In the summer of
1684, he was in hiding in the neighbourhood of Cardross,
and found shelter in the woods of Ardmach, where he slept
o' nights " among the fairn." While here he seems to
have been in friendly communication with the last Earl
of Menteith ; so that that nobleman can scarcely have been
the ferocious persecutor of the Covenanters that, in his
letters to Graham of Claverhouse, he makes himself out to
be. Perhaps he made an exception in the case of a friend, or
it may have been that he merely put on his airs of severity
to recommend himself to the powers that then were.1
At the south-eastern extremity of the lake lies the
pleasant mansion-house of Lochend — a place frequently
mentioned in the early writs of the Priory. Here the late
genial and gallant Admiral Erskine, so long the Member
of Parliament for the County of Stirling, used to dwell.
The house and grounds afford most charming views of the
lake. The wide expanse of water is backed by the bold
hills of Glenny on the north ; while to the westward the
middle distance is broken by the peninsula of Arnmack,
running out as if to meet the graceful wood and ruin-
covered islands ; and Ben Lomond rears his lofty cone in
the background of the view.
Southwards from Lochend, half-way up the rising ground
behind, is a locality whose name carries us back to very
early times. This is the Tom-a-mhoid, or "moot-hill" —
the place where the open-air courts and other meetings
1 See tnfra, chap. xi.
58 The Lake of Menteith.
were held, and local justice administered. As an occa-
sionally necessary adjunct to this administration of justice,
there is — or was — an aged ash-tree, which tradition pointed
out as that on whose boughs malefactors, in the olden
times, were " justified."
At Lochend the lake is drained by the water of Goodie,
which a little below its efflux from the lake, used to spread
out into a shallow lake called the Loch of Goodie (Gude,
Gudy, Gwdy, Gwidi).1 An attempt has been made to claim
for some position on this stream or lake the site of the
ancient Pictish town of Guidi, referred to by the venerable
Bede.2 Wherever that much-disputed site may have been
— Inchkeith, Inchcolm, Inchgarvy, Edinburgh, Queensferry,
Camelon, or elsewhere — the vale of Goodie has nothing to
answer to the circumstances of Bede's description, except
the — possibly accidental — resemblance in the name.3
IV. — THE EASTERN SHORE.
THE whole of this side is beautifully wooded, and diversified
with green and bosky knolls. The waters of the lake curve
'In grants by the Dowager Queen Margaret to her brother-in-law, James
Stewart, of the captaincy of Doune Castle, &c., dated at Stirling ist and 8th
September, 1528, mention is made of the "fischeing of the lowis (lochs) and
stankis of Lugnock (Lubnaig), Loch Banacher (Vennachar), and Gude." (Red
Book of Menteith, ii. 385, 387.)
2 New Statistical Account of Scotland, vol. x. p. iipo. This account of the
Parish of Port of Menteith is said to have been "principally drawn up from an
account written by a late incumbent, the Rev. W. M'Gregor Stirling."
3 Bede's words (Lib. i. cap. 12) are : — "Orientalis (sinus) habet in medio sui
urbem Guidi ; occidentalis supra se, hoc est ad dexteram sui, habet urbem
The Lake of Menteith. 59
in and out, forming pretty little bays whose gravelly shores
are overhung with trees. The road to the Port winds
along the margin, and affords most pleasing glimpses of
the lake and its wooded islands. Not far from the exit
of the Goodie is a fine tree-clad promontory jutting out
boldly into the deep waters, near which is said to have
stood the old Chapel of Inchy, another of the dependent
chapels of Inchmahome. No fragment of this ancient
chapel is now left, but it is traditionally said to have its
site at or near the place which is now the garden of the
farm-house of Inchie. A Chapel- well to the east of this
attested its existence. The promontory is reputed to have
been the burying-ground connected with the chapel.
The most general local tradition affirms that it was in
a house at Inchie where that wedding feast was laid out
which was devoured by the hungry followers of Donald
the Hammerer — the cause of the engagement on the
hills of Menteith, in which William, the third Graham
earl, lost his life. But another tradition, perhaps equally
entitled to credit, says that the depredation was committed
at the office houses of the Earl's stables, on the opposite
side of the lake : while a third, but less likely, traditional
statement has it that the roasted fowls were carried off
from the house of Talla itself.1
On the eastern shore of the lake is the fine estate of Bed-
nock, with what has been a strong old castle now in ruins.2
Alcluith." Alcluith is easily identified with Dumbarton, but the site of Guidi
has not yet been finally determined.
1 See chap. x.
2 This castle is said to have been built by George Graham, the first Graham
of Rednock.
60 The Lake of Menteith.
Kednook was long in the possession of the early earls
of Menteith or cadets of their family. In 1213, on the
death of Murdach, the second known earl, the succession
was disputed by his two sons, both named Maurice —
a quarrel which was settled by the intervention of King
William (the Lion). The arrangement agreed to provided
the earldom to the younger brother, while the elder
Maurice was to hold of the King, for life, certain lands,
among which is mentioned the town of Eadenoche.1 After
the death of this Maurice, Eednock reverted to the earldom.
The lands and Castle of Eednock are said traditionally to
have been the property of Sir John Menteith of Euskie.
Although this does not admit of documentary proof, it is
not unlikely, for Sir John, as a younger son of Walter
Stewart, the fifth Earl of Menteith, may have been in
possession of this property, which at that time formed part
of the earldom.
When the new earldom was formed in 1427, Rednock
was not included in it. It was part of the lands annexed
to the Crown as the Stewartry of Menteith. It was still
held, however, under the Crown, by families of the name
of Menteith, who regularly paid their feu-firms to the royal
Chamberlains of the Stewartry, as we learn from regular
entries in the Exchequer Eolls. It appears from these
records to have been divided into two portions. One of
these was held by a John of Menteith in 1456.2 It is
difficult to make out the identity of this John. He can-
1 Insptximus of this agreement by Henry the Third, dated 2oth September,
1261, in the Record Office— printed in the Red Book, ii. 214.
1 Exchequer Rolls, vol. vi. p. 278.
The Lake of Menteith. 61
not have been in the direct line of the Ruskie descent, as
that terminated in two female heirs much about this time.
Walter, one of the Ruskie Menteiths slain by the Drum-
monds in the clan-battle at Tar of Ruskie previous to 1360,
left a son at that time under age. This may have been
the Walter of Menteith who, in 1403, witnessed a charter
of Robert of Rusky : l and John may have been a son or
grandson of this Walter. John of Menteith was condemned
to death and escheated in 1457. 8
In 1473, King James the Third granted to James of
Menteith for the service he had done in killing the King's
rebel, Patrick Stewart, the ten pound lands of Rednok, to
"bruke and joiss the saide landis heretablye in feuferme."*
The Exchequer Rolls show that the ferms for these lands
continued to be paid by successors of this family of Men-
teith, down to some time in the sixteenth century.
Another portion of the lands of Rednock were set in
assedation in 1480 to John Menteith and Jonet Drummond
his spouse, and a third and smaller portion to one Gilchrist
M'Kessone. These Menteiths and M'Kessons continued
to hold of the Crown till 1499. In that year James the
Fourth made a grant to Sir Patrick Hume of Polwarth of
the lands of Argaty and Lundy, and also of the £3 6s. 8d.
lands of Rednock, otherwise called Inchanach, set to Patrick
Menteth (son of John), and the 33s. 4d. lands of Red-
nock, set to Gilchrist Mackesson in reward for the services
he had rendered the King in his wars.4 In 1582, these
1 Charter in Red Book, voL ii. p. 272. * Exchequer Rolls, vol. vi. p. 356.
8 Printed in the Red Book, voL ii. p. 300, from original at Rednock.
* Exchequer Rolls, vol. xi. p. 161.
62 The Lake of Menteith.
lands are mentioned as still pertaining to Patrick Hume
of Argaty and Kednock ; but in 1584, David Hume of
Argaty was executed and his lands confiscated, for com-
municating with the banished Commendator, David
Erskine, and his friends.1
In 1515, William Edmonston, the keeper of Doune
Castle, received sasine of the lands of Eednock.8 Archi-
bald Edmonston of Eednock appears in the Kolls in 1566.3
He was one of the tenants of the Stewartry who com-
plained, on the 17th of January, 1566, of the conduct of
the steward in insisting on lifting the rents of their lands,
which had been spoiled and utterly wasted by the Clan-
gregor and other lawless persons.4
Eednock is found, in 1584, in the possession of George
Graham, second son of John, fourth Earl of Menteith,
who was known as the " tutor of Menteith " from the
circumstance that he was legal guardian to his nephew
the sixth earl during his minority. This George is said
by Sir William Eraser to have been the ancestor of the
Grahams of Eednock. Mr. Graham Easton, however,
affirms that George was not of Eednock, but of Easter
Eednock only — the real Eednock being one Gilbert, who
was the ancestor of the Grahams of Leitchtown.5 He is
1 Register of the Privy Council of Scotland, vol. iii. p. 672 : Pitcairns' Criminal
Trials, vol. i. pt. iii. p. 136. In the latter work, the '' dome " is given as follows : —
" the said David suld be tane to ane gippet, at the croce of Edinburghe, and thair
hangit, quarterit and drawin ; and all his landis, takis, stedingis, rowmis, posses-
sionis and guidis, to be eschete to the Kingis use.'1
2 Libri Responsionum for 1515 ; Exchequer Rolls, vol. xiii. p. 579.
8 Ibid, vol. xiv. p. 334.
4 Register of the Privy Council of Scotland, vol. i. p. 418.
6 Genealogical Magazine for June, 1897, pp. 73 and 79.
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The Lake of Menteith. 65
designed or designs himself " George Graham of Bednock,
tutor of Menteith," in a document of date 1684.1 His
elder son James had charters of confirmation from the
King (James VI.) of Easter Bednock in 1584 and 1598.
James was succeeded by his brother John, whose daughter
Marion married John Graham of Duchray, and thus Bed-
nock came into the possession of that family, whose
descendants have possessed it since.
Contiguous to Bednock, on the east, is Blairhoyle.
This name is a reversion to the most ancient designation
of the lands — Blairquhoille. Judging from the name, it
must have been covered with woods in the early times.
It was in possession of the Crown as part of the Stewartry
till 1517, when James the Fifth granted it to John Leech,
a member of an old Perthshire family. John's father,
Finlay Leitch, had fallen at Flodden, and it was probably
to mark his appreciation of the loyalty of the father that
the King gave the property to his son. John Leitch was
succeeded by a son of the same name, whose only daughter
carried the estate to her husband, Bobert M'Gibbon.
Baron M'Gibbon, as he was called, again had an only
daughter. She married one Patrick Graham, and their
descendants, in regular succession, held the estate till
about twenty years ago, when the then James Graham
of Leitchtown sold it to A. H. Lee, Esquire. Mr. Lee
changed the name of Leitchtown to the older and more
euphonious style of Blairhoyle.
For this branch of the family of Graham a claim has
been maintained to the dormant earldom of Menteith.
1 Red Book of Menteith, vol. i. p. 321.
66 The Lake of Menteith.
Mr. Walter Malise Graham Easton — who traces his own
descent from the Leitchtown Grahams — has published
elaborate pedigrees to prove his contention that George
Marshall Graham, of Toronto, Canada, eldest son of James
of Leitchtown, is now " de jure fifteenth Earl of Menteith
and ninth Earl of Airth."1 This thorny question is not
for the pages of a book like this. It must be left to the
experts in genealogy.
North from Eednock and Blairhoyle is Euskie. To
the lake and island Castle of Euakie reference has already
been made. But there is another spot of some historic
interest yet to be referred to. This is the Tar (Gaelic
tor — a small hill) of Euskie, where the famous clan battle
between Drummonds and Menteiths — in which three
brothers of Sir Alexander Menteith of Euskie were slain —
was fought, about the middle of the fourteenth century.
Some account of this fight and its consequences will be
found in a subsequent chapter.2
1 Genealogical Magazine, June 1897, pp. 74, et seqq. 2 Chap, xii., infrd.
67
CHAPTER III.
The Lake and the Islands : A Chapter
of Description.
" Meek loveliness is round thee spread,
A softness still and holy."
" Islands that together lie
As quietly as spots of sky
Among the evening clouds."
" My dear Lord, Labe has made me in love with the Yles
of Menteith. He says the greatest things in the world
of it." — Graham of Claver/touse.
IT has often been said that the Lake of Menteith
is the only lake in Scotland. The substitution
of the English word lake for the more Scottish
loch is, however, of quite recent origin, and is
due not to local but to literary influences. This change was
the more easily effected, because even Loch of Menteith —
used by Sir Walter Scott and others — was so comparatively
recent that it had not had time to take firm hold before
it was displaced by the more Anglified form, Lake of Men-
teith.
The oldest documents in which the name of the lake
occurs are in Latin, and in these it is called Lacus de
68 The Lake of Menteith.
Inchmahomok (1485 l and 14932). The first occurrence of
the name in the vernacular is in the rental of the feu-
duties of Inchmahome, in 1646, in which are included the
" locJie of InchemaJmmmoe and fischeing thairoff."8 In
Timothy Font's Map of the Province of Lennox — printed
at Amsterdam 1654 — it appears as Loch Inche mahumo ;
and so, also, it is written in several other seventeenth
century maps.
Graham of Duchray (1724 4) is the first writer to call it
Loch of Monteatli. As Loch it appears in the old Historical
Account of the Parish (1799). Dr. Graham uses both Loch
and Lake in his Sketches of Perthshire (1812), and varies
these with Lake of Inschemachame and Inchmahave in
his Account of the Natural History of the district ; 5 while
the New Statistical Account (1845) reverts to Lake of
Inchmahome. During this century the country people of
the surrounding district were in the habit of speaking of
it as the Loch o' Port, and by that name it is still known
to the older among them.
The transference of the name of Menteith to the Loch
of Inchmahome has no doubt been the chief reason for the
limitation that has grown up in the territorial significance
of the former word, by which it has been diminished of its
1 Grant by Earl Malise, 8th December, 1485, to his son John of the lake of
Inchmahomok. — Red Book, i. 297.
* Sasine of Earl Alexander, 6th May, 1493.— Red Book, ii. 302 and 303.
8 Printed in Red Book, ii. 368.
•Description of Parish of Port, by Alexander Graham, Esq. of Duchray
(Macfarlarlan Papers in the Advocates' Library) quoted in Notes on Inchmahome,
Appendix ix.
6 Appendix x. to Notes on Inchmahome.
The Lake of Menteith. 69
ancient amplitude, and is now generally restricted to the
vicinity of the lake.
The lake lies beneath the Ben-dearg portion of the
Hills of Menteith, and so close to them that only a narrow
strip of meadow land intervenes between the northern
margin and the foot of the steeply rising hill. Although
the surface of its waters is only some 55 feet above the
sea level, and not more than five or six feet above the
level of the Carse of Forth, yet the ground all around
rises more or less gradually on all sides from the shore,
so that the lake occupies a cup-like depression of con-
siderable depth. These rising banks, clothed on the east
and south with luxuriant woods, which shelter it from
storms and screen it from the view in those directions,
give it that air of retirement and seclusion which is its
chief and most charming characteristic. The idea of
peacefulness thus suggested is intensified by the strength
of the mountain mass that shuts it in on the north. But
though generally calm and at rest, it can put on a scowl
occasionally. When stormy blasts from the west blow
across the bleak moorlands and strike its waters into foam,
the lake looks angry enough. The prevailing sentiment
of the scene, however, is that which has been so finely
interpreted by the late Dr. John Brown : " Set in its
woods, with its magical shadows1 and soft gleams, there
is a loveliness, a gentleness and peace about it more like
' lone St. Mary's Lake,' or Derwent Water, than of any
1This fine phrase has much to answer for. "The magical shadows" have
been written to death by all the writers of "gush" who have since essayed to
describe the scene.
70 The Lake of Menteith.
of its sister lochs. It is lovely rather than beautiful,
and is a sort of gentle prelude, in the minor key, to the
coming glories and intenser charms of Loch Ard and the
true Highlands beyond On the unruffled
water lie several islets, plump with rich foliage, brooding
like great birds of calm. You somehow think of them as
on, not in the lake, or like clouds lying in a nether sky
— 'like ships waiting for the wind.'"1
This tender little sketch of the scene has been taken
from the Port. That is the usual point of view; and,
indeed, the prospect, either from this, or from any point
on the eastern shore, is charming. But it may be doubted
if it presents the lake to the best advantage. The entire
western portion, with its shapely bays, is cut off from
sight. To see the whole expanse of water at one view,
let the spectator look at it from the top of Coldon Hill,
on the north shore opposite Inchmahome, or climb to the
summit of the knoll on the hill of Glenny, just above
the farm-house at Portend. These positions both afford
very complete and delightful views of the lake. But a
still finer, perhaps — with more of the picturesque, if less
of the bird's-eye — is to be had from the Aberfoyle road,
where it reaches the height above the farm-house of
Milling, about a mile to the west of the lake. This is
probably the best point from which to look at the lake.
The prospect is wider and opener than from the Port ; it
has less of that feeling of formality which is inseparable
from a bird's-eye view; at the same time, it partially
1Horae Subsecivae, by John Brown, M.D., second series, p. 170. (Edin.,
1861.)
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The Lake of Menteith. 73
conceals the rather bare and weak portions of the western
shore, and places the finely wood-fringed southern and
eastern sides full in sight, while the islands seem to group
themselves in the most effective way.
The lake is approximately circular in outline, with the
long promontory of Arnmawk breaking the line of con-
tinuity of the southern shore. It is between five and six
miles in circumference, with a maximum length of about
a mile and a half from east to west, and a mile from north
to south. Generally shallow, in some places it is abruptly
deep. Towards the eastern side, after a few yards of
shallow water at the shore, it sinks at once to a depth
of 46 feet. In the south-western bay, between Inchtalla
and the southern shore, it is about the same depth. But
greater depths are reached in the northern parts of the
lake. Soundings opposite Gateside, in the north-west bay,
give 63 feet of water, and between Inchrnahome and the
landing-place at Coldon the maximum depth of 88 feet
is attained.1
^The principal feeder of the lake is the Portend Burn,
which enters at the north-west corner. Some smaller
rills also add their little tributes to its waters. At a gap
in the encircling rim of rising ground, at the south-western
extremity, the superfluous waters are carried oS. by the
Goodie, which winds its slow way through the fields and
mosses of the Carse for nearly nine miles, till it joins
the Forth in the neighbourhood of Gargunnock.
Some description of the appearance and natural features
1 These depths are taken from soundings made for the Rev. W. M'Gregor
Stirling in 1815.
74 The Lake of Menteith.
of the islands in the lake will be necessary, before dealing
in detail with their ruined buildings, and the history of
those who reared and inhabited them.
Inchmahome, the largest of them, lies nearly in the
middle of the lake. It takes its name from St. Colman
or Colmoc, to whom its earliest Church would therefore
appear to have been dedicated.1 Colmoc is a diminutive
form of Colman. The kindly Celts had a habit of adding
this affectionate diminutive — oc, and also prefixing the
endearing ma or mo (" my ") to the names of their well-
beloved saints. So Innis Macolmoc, the original of the
island name, means the island of my dear (little) Colman.2
It is very nearly in this form in which it is written in
what is perhaps8 the earliest extant document wherein
it is mentioned, the Papal Instrument of 1238, which
authorised the foundation of the monastery. There it is
called Inchmaquhomok. For a century after that the
name appears only in the Gallicised or Latinized forms
of Isle de St. Colmock, Insula Sancti Colmoci, and Insula
Beati Colmoci — all attesting the understood meaning of
the word. The Gaelic word reappears in documents first
as Inchemecolmoc and Inchemacholmock, and then, by a
gradual process of softening, through Inchmaquhomok,
Inchmahomock, Inchmaquholmo, Inchmaquhomo, Inch-
1 See infra, chap. v.
2 Compare the name of a parish not far oft—Kilmaronock, the cell or
church of my dear little Ronan.
3 This qualification is necessary, because there is a reference in the Char-
tulary of Cambuskenneth (pp. 160, 161), assignable to the year 1210, to a persona
Macholem, whom Sir William Eraser and others agree to accept as parson of
Inchmahome. But may the reference in this case not be to St. Colme's Inch
in the Firth of Forth rather than to St. Colman's Isle in Menteith?
The Lake of Menteith. 75
mahomo, and Inchmahummo, reaches its present form of
Inchmahome.
It is noticeable that the form Inchmachame, which
Mr. M'Gregor Stirling adopts, and to which he gives the
poetical meaning of " Isle of my Best," does not occur
till 1610.1 There need be little doubt that it is a mere
corruption, more Scotico, of the ancient pronunciation.
The attenuation of the broad o into the indefinite Scottish
sound of a is too common to stand in need of illustration.
In this connection, moreover, the intermediate form, Inch-
mahummo, is instructive. It is almost a pity to disturb
an interpretation which has given occasion to so many
pretty and poetical imaginations. But M'Gregor Stirling
is entirely responsible for this version of the name, and
on no more definite ground than the circumstance that
he found the spelling Inchmacliame in the Charter of
James VI., and probably that Inchmahame was the local
pronunciation in his day. From this he jumps to the
conclusion that " Insche-ma-chame, or Innis-mo-thamb,
1 Isle of my Rest,' was probably the name in pagan times,"
and accounts " for the subsequent change to Inchmahome,
or Inchmahomo, by supposing it a Latinized and monkish
corruption of the original Gaelic."2 The Gaelic Insche-
machamhe, however, would be pronounced as if written
Inchmachave, and so we find Dr. Graham, who was a good
Gaelic scholar, and who seemed to adopt M'Gregor Stirling's
version of the name, actually writing it.3
The following are the various forms in which the name
1 In a Charter of James VI.
' Notes on Incbmahome, p; 119. 3 Ibid— Appendix x. p. 189.
76 The Lake of Menteith.
appears in charters and other documents, with the dates of
the earliest occurrence of each : —
Insula de Inchmaquhomok (Deed of Foundation), 1238;
Isle de St. Colmock (Prynne's Collections III., 653 —
referred to by Spottiswoode), 1296; Isle de Saint Colmoth
(Eagman Eoll, p. 117), 1296; Insula Sancti Colmoci
(Charter of Earl Alan), 1305 ; Inchemecolmoc (Letter of
Malise of Stratherne), 1306 ; Insula Beati Colmoci (Charter
of David II.), c. 1340; Insula Sancti Colmaci (Writ of
Robert the High Steward), 1358; Inchemacholmock (Ex-
chequer Rolls), 1358; Inchmaquholmok (Acta Concilii),
1478 ; Inchmaquholmo (Acts of Parliament), 1481 ; Inch-
mahomok (Register of the Great Seal), 1489; Inchmaholmo
(Acta Concilii), 1490 ; Inchemahomo (Lease by Prior
Andrew), 1526; Inchmoquhomok (Writ of Earl Alexander),
1534 ; Inchemaquhomo (Discharge by Queen Mary), 1548 ;
Inchmahomo (Lease by Commendator John), 1548 ; Inche-
mahomok (Charter of Commendator David), 1562; Insche-
machame (Charter of James VI.), 1610; Inchemahummoe
(Rental of the Feuduties), 1646; Inchmahumo (Pont's
Map), 1654. Of these, Inchmahomok and Inchmahomo
are far the most common from the sixteenth century
onwards. The final syllable seems to have been retained
in the pronunciation till last century. Graham of Duchray,
in 1724, still uses Inchmahomo.
There can be no doubt whatever that insula sancti
Colmoci was the interpretation of the name in the earliest
times to which written evidence extends.
Mr. M'Gregor Stirling himself eventually gave up his
cherished derivation from Innis-mo-thamb, and with it, of
The Lake of Menteith. 77
course, the noetical interpretation " Isle of my Rest." In a
manuscript addition to his " Notes on Inchmahome" (p. 32)
he says, " This etymology (Innis-mo-thamb) must give way
to Isle of St. Columba, or St. Cholmoc. A saint of the
name of Columba, and whose birth was English and noble,
is mentioned by Fordun as having been buried at Dunblane
about the year 1000 A.D. (Scotichronicon, sub anno 1295)."
He is probably wrong about the particular saint who gave
name to the isle ; but at any rate he admits that his former
derivation and interpretation of the island name cannot be
maintained.
The island is about five acres in extent ; generally level
in the eastern portion, but rising into pleasant knolls
towards the south and west. With its fine old trees,
through which the ruins of the priory buildings are partially
seen, it makes a very attractive picture as seen from the
shore of the lake. It is divided into two nearly equal
portions by a road or avenue, running north and south,
fenced on either side by a stone wall, and showing beside
the western wall some remnants of a row of ancient trees
by which it seems to have been bordered. This appears
to have been a common road or piece of neutral ground,
separating the gardens and other grounds of the monastery
on the east from those of the Earls of Menteith, which
lay on the west side — that nearest to their castle on
Inchtalla.
The gardens of the monastery and of the island gener-
ally continued to be cultivated for profit till well on to
the middle of the present century. In Mr. M'Gregor
Stirling's time, they were held in lease, he tells us, by
78 The Lake of Menteith.
one Alexander M'Curtain, who is said to have been "a
lineal descendant of the hereditary gardeners of the Earls of
Menteith."1 The fruits grown were gooseberries, cherries,
plums, pears, apples, Spanish filberts, &c. ; the filbert being
" the long, red, thin-shelled variety, of which the kernel
is much admired." These gardens, however, were after-
wards allowed to go to utter ruin, and became a mere
tangled wilderness. Although, about twenty years ago,
the grounds were cleared and fenced, and the wilderness
brought into better order, it is to be feared that most of
the old fruit trees are now dead or non-productive. But
should the visitor chance to be on the island in the spring-
time, his eye will be delighted by the luxuriant growth of
fine daffodils, which literally cover the meadows as if with
a carpet of gold.
The mutual road already referred to has traditionally
acquired the name of "The Nuns' Walk"; and at the
southern extremity of it is a sunny eminence called "The
Nuns' Hill." These names may be of comparatively
recent origin. Neither of them, at any rate, has any
warrant in historical fact, for there were no nuns on
Inchmahome. However, a local legend is not wanting to
account for the name at least of the Nuns' Hill. This, in
brief, is how the story is told. A nun of Cambuskenneth
— unfortunately for this detail in the story, there was no
nunnery at Cambuskenneth either — had fallen in love with
a son of one of the earls of Menteith, and he with her ;
1 John M'Keurtane seems to have been a sort of Chamberlain to the earl at
the end of the I7th century, for it was to him that " The just accompt of my Lord's
Close and Stockings, taken at the Isle on the 2oth of December, 1692," was
delivered. Appendix vi. to Notes on Inchmahome.
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The Lake of Menteith. 81
and the two had set a tryst to meet on a certain evening
at this particular spot on the island shore. Before the day
of tryst, however, the young lord was fatally wounded in
a clan fight on the hill of Glenny. In his dying moments
he confided to his confessor the story of his love for the
nun, and the time and place of the proposed meeting.
When the hour of tryst arrived, the holy father arrayed
himself in such hahiJiments as might give him a general
resemblance to the appearance of the dead youth, and
hied him to the shore. Then as the maiden stepped from
the boat, which had borne her across the lake, to receive,
as she imagined, the warm embrace of her expectant lover,
she was seized by the monk and hurled back into the
water. The other members of the holy fraternity must
have known of the plot of their zealous brother, or have
been informed of the deed when it was done ; for the
story goes on to tell that next day they recovered the
body of the hapless nun from the waters of the lake, and
buried it in an upright posture on the hill. Why they
should have thought it necessary to do so is not quite
clear. Anyhow, a large stone near the top of the hill
used to be pointed to as marking the place of this inter-
ment. The stone is not now to be seen.
If the names Nuns' Walk and Nuns' Hill are, however,
of ancient date, a suggestion may be here offered to account
for them. In the usual conventual arrangements, the hour
of dinner was twelve o'clock. After that, the monks were
set free for recreation until the bell rang for Nones — about
two o'clock or later. This recreation usually took the form
of walking about the gardens and precincts of the monas-
82 The Lake of Menteith.
tery when the weather was fine, and, in winter or bad
weather, sitting round the Kefectory fire, talking, disputing,
or telling stories. May we not suppose then that, at this
time of the day, the monks were in the habit of taking
their recreative stroll under the shadow of the great trees
which bordered this pleasant path, or of sunning them-
selves on the green knoll which terminated it on the
south? This might give origin to the names of Nones
(now corrupted into Nuns) Walk and Nones Hill.
There are in the grounds of the Priory and in the
Earls' Gardens several memorials of the brief visit of the
young Queen Mary to the island after the Battle of Pinkie.
A fine old sycamore, standing near the west doorway of
the Priory ruins, is known as " Queen Mary's Plane." The
reason why it has been so called is not known. Tradition
does not venture to say that it was planted by the Queen
— as is alleged regarding other Queen Mary trees in various
parts of the country — but it may have been planted, or
perhaps merely named, in commemoration of her visit.
This tree is easily distinguishable by its bright red and
scaly bark. It measures about 80 feet in height, and
girths 14 feet at one foot from the ground, and 11 feet
9 inches at the height of five feet ; and it is still in
vigorous health.1
1The number of sycamores to which Queen Mary's name is attached is
remarkable. There are, for example, a Queen Mary's Plane at Scone Palace,
another near Craigmillar Castle, and one on the island of Loch Leven, all of
which she is said to have planted. Whether she really did so or not, it seems
to be certain that the fashion of planting sycamores in gardens and pleasure
grounds was introduced into Scotland from France by the Queen and her
entourage. Previously, the tree— if it existed at all in Scotland— was extremely
rare there.
Queen flary's Tree.
The Lake of Menleith. 85
The other memorials are Queen Mary's Garden and
Tree, and Queen Mary's Bower. The garden is a square
enclosure, measuring about 30 yards on each side, and
surrounded with a stone wall. There are also the ruins
of a small building at the north-west corner. In the
centre of this enclosed space is an old box-wood tree,
planted — tradition affirms — by the hands of the young
Queen herself. The tree, which is yet flourishing, is about
20 feet in height, and the trunk measures 3 feet 2 inches
in circumference. Some filberts and other old fruit trees
still survive within the garden walls.
Outside, and to the west of the wall, on an eminence
which slopes to the lake shore, is situated the Bower.
This is a small oval plot, some 18 feet by 12, and about
33 yards in circumference, now enclosed with a paling.
In the centre is a thorn-tree, and round about the narrow
walk runs a double row of box-wood, now grown to a
considerable height. This box-wood, it must be said,
is not that which originally — or, at any rate, formerly
— adorned the Bower. The plundering propensities of
visitors, or (shall we rather say ?) their affectionate desire
to carry away with them a relic of the childhood of
the unhappy Queen, had caused it almost to disappear,
when, between thirty and forty years ago, the Bower was
replanted from the gardens of Cardross. The plants,
however, with which this was done, had been reared from
cuttings taken from the original box-wood of the Bower.
There has been a good deal of imaginative writing
on the connection of the child-Queen with this quaint
survival from the ancient gardens of the Earls of Menteith.
86 The Lake of Menteith.
Some will have it that the Bower was designed by the
youthful Queen herself, and planted by her own little
hands. Others, less daring, have restricted their fancy to
the belief that it was here that she and her Maries were
wont to disport and amuse themselves with their child-
gardening. "What is this?" asks Dr. John Brown. "It
is plainly the child- Queen' s Garden, with her little walk,
and its rows of box-wood, left to themselves for three
hundred years. Yes, without doubt, * here is that first
garden of her simpleness.' Fancy the little, lovely, royal
child, with her four Maries, her playfellows, her child
maids of honour, with their little hands and feet, and their
innocent and happy eyes, pattering about that garden all
that time ago, laughing, and running, and gardening as
only children do and can. As is well known, Mary was
placed by her mother in this Isle of Best before sailing
from the Clyde for France. There is something 'that tirls
the heartstrings a' to the life ' in standing and looking on
this unmistakable living relic of that strange and pathetic
old time. Were we Mr. Tennyson, we would write an
Idyll of that child-Queen, in that garden of hers, eating
her bread and honey — getting her teaching from the holy
men, the monks of old, and running off in wild mirth to
her garden and her flowers, all unconscious of the black,
lowering thunder-cloud on Ben Lomond's shoulder."1
This is very beautiful, and imagination delights to
follow the writer in his fancies of those happy days of
childhood. One would not willingly spoil the charming
picture. We may safely enough believe that the infant
1 Horse Subsecivae, by John Brown, M.D., second series, p. 172.
The Lake of Menteith. 89
Queen did once on a time toddle about these old-world
gardens, and as we look at the Bower, imagination is
justified in conjuring up her figure on the quaint little
pathway. But the place can neither have been made
by her nor for her. She was brought too hurriedly to
the island to permit the construction of a little garden
expressly for her use; and as she was but a baby, four
years and nine months old, her own little hands were not
yet fit for making bowers or even for much playing at
gardening. Neither, it is to be hoped, were "the holy men"
so cruel as to set her to lessons at that tender age. And,
it must be added further, that she was not more than
three weeks altogether on the island, and that at a season
of the year not generally the most propitious for flower-
gardening in this climate.1
The chief natural glory of Inchmahome is in its fine
old trees — chestnuts, walnuts, and sycamores, of great size
and age, besides oak, ash, hazel, thorn, and other trees.
That some, at any rate, of the largest of these ancient
trees were planted by the monks may be surmised from
two circumstances. In the first place they are of those
kinds — not indigenous to the country — which were most
favoured by the monkish arboriculturists; and, in the second
place, they have evidently been arranged in lines to suit
the walls and gateways of the building. As the visitor
steps ashore at the little landing-place, he will observe a
number of " felled specimens of chestnuts of immense size,
whose bark-stripped trunks and hollow butts serve as fire-
1For Mary's stay at Inchmahome, see infra, chap. vi. On the shore, below
" the Bower," there is an excellent echo— given back by the ruins on Inchtalla.
90 The Lake of Menteith.
places for the pic-nics of tourists." These were felled
nearly half - a - century ago. But there are others still
standing in more or less healthy condition. These were
carefully examined some years ago for the Highland and
Agricultural Society of Scotland, by an expert in forestry,
from whose reports the following particulars are taken.2
There has evidently, says this authority, been a line of
large walnut trees and Spanish chestnuts extending across
the garden ground at the western gate of the Priory. Im-
mediately outside of this gateway stood two "sentinel" trees
— a fine old walnut to the right, and a chestnut as its com-
panion to the left. The measurements of the walnut are
given as 80 feet in height, 10 feet in girth at one foot from
the ground, 8 feet 1 inch at three feet, and 8 feet at six
feet high. The chestnut is described as having a good bole,
but decaying ; and its dimensions are given as 85 feet in
height, 19 feet 10 inches at one foot, 16 feet 10 inches at
three feet, and 16 feet 6 inches at six feet from the ground.
Of the two trees thus reported on in 1879, the walnut, which
in the report was said to be decaying and oozing a good
deal near the root, has entirely disappeared — cut down and
removed some years ago — and the chestnut is now a mere
fragmentary ruin. Opposite these sentinels stands the
sycamore already mentioned as Queen Mary's Tree.
Eunning south, along the west side of the Nuns' Walk,
is a line of three great chestnuts. The first was reported
'Reports on Old and Remarkable Trees of Scotland, by Robert Hutchison
of Carlowrie : Transactions of Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland
fourth series, vols. xi. and xii. These trees were carefully re-measured for the
purposes of this work in October, 1898, and it is these revised measurements that
are given in the text.
The Lake of Menteith. 91
by Mr. Hutchison to be " decaying " when he examined
it. It still stands, but the measurements are not so great
as those he gives. It rises to a height of about 70 feet,
with a stem which measures nearly 14 feet at one foot,
13 feet at three feet, and 12 feet 4 inches at six feet from
the ground. The next is the picturesque tree known as
the "antlered chestnut." The top has suffered injury,
and the bare branches projecting above the foliage, and
resembling the horns of deer, give it the appearance that
is known as "stag-headed." Though stated in the report
to be "much decayed," it still retains its vigour, and, in
fact, appears to be in very good health. It has slightly
increased in size since 1879. Its dimensions now are —
height, about 80 feet ; bole, 25 feet ; girth — at one foot
from the ground, 20 feet 6 inches ; at three feet, 20 feet ;
and at six feet, 17 feet. The third tree — not mentioned
in the report — has a bole of 20 feet, a circumference of
16 feet 7 inches at one foot from the ground, and of
14 feet 6 inches at the height of five feet. It is in
vigorous health. The largest oak tree on the island is
on the Nuns' Hill. Its dimensions are not remarkable.
At one foot from the ground it girths 13 feet, and at five
feet 11 feet 8 inches. Other varieties of wood there are
in abundance, hazels, ashes, larches, elder trees, some
pines, and two Wellingtonias recently planted. The last
named somehow strike one as not being quite in keeping
with the feeling of the place.
The whole island now belongs to the Duke of Montrose,
to whose ancestor it passed by the will of William, the
eighth and last Earl of Menteith. Of old only the western
92 The Lake of Menteith.
half belonged to the earls — the eastern part being the
property of the Priory, and, therefore, subsequently of the
lairds of Cardross, to whom the Priory, with its possessions,
passed after the extinction of the monasteries. In 16461
the " monasterie and preoincte with the yairdis" were
held in feu from David, second Lord of Cardross, by
William, seventh Earl of Menteith and first of Airth, and
they must have passed, at a later date, into his possession
in some way that has not been certainly ascertained.
Immediately to the west of Inchmahome, separated
from it by a narrow channel, lies the island now called
Inchtalla, although throughout the seventeenth century,
when it was the residence of the later Graham Earls of
Menteith, it was designated by its proprietors always simply
" The Isle " (Ysle, 1642 ; Yle, 1646 ; Isle, 1679 ; The Isle,
1692 ; The Isle of Menteith, 1694 ; Isle of Monteath, 1724.)
Talla, or Tulla, as it is printed in Stobie's Map of Perth-
shire, is a recurrence to an older name, which therefore
appears never to have been lost. It is first met with in
writing in the Stirling Protocol Books, under date 23rd
October, 1476, in the shape of Inchtolloch.1 In the Eegis-
trum Magni Sigilli, in 1485, the form is practically the
same — Inchtulloche. In 1494 it appears with Eilan substi-
tuted for Inch and the termination softened, Ellantallo.
Throughout the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries this name
is retained, with, of course, the usual licenses in spelling.2
1 Rental of the Feuduties of Inchmahome.
1 This interesting document is quoted infra, chap. x.
2 The varied forms— in the order of date— are, Inchtolloche, Inchtulloche,
Illintulaich, Ellantallo, Ylyntullo, Ilyntullocht, Ilantullo, Yll Intulla, Tulla, Talla ;
then come Isle, Earl's Isle, and Isle of Menteith.
-: >« ••>
The Lake of Menteith. 95
As to the interpretation of the name, Inch and Eilan
are, of course, the same in meaning, both signifying
" island." Tulloch is the usual form in which the Gaelic
tulachy a "mound" or "knoll," is represented in place-
names. But that derivation is inapplicable here. Tallach,
however, is the adjective form from talla, a " hall " or
" great house." In the Highland Society's Gaelic
Dictionary, tallach is translated " aulis instructus ; ad
aulam pertinens." It is, therefore, a very appropriate
epithet for this island, which was literally covered with the
" halls " of the earls. This derivation, besides giving a
satisfactory explanation of the name, accounts for the ch
in the older forms of the word. We may conclude then
that Inchtalla means " the island of the halls," or more
simply "the castle-island."
Inchtalla is of an oval or rather egg shape, broadest in
the north, and tapering to a point at the southern end. It
must have afforded a fairly secure, if rather confined, retreat
for its turbulent lords in the olden times. It was crowded
with buildings — a small central court being the only
uncovered bit of ground on the island. In consequence the
earls' gardens, for use as well as for pleasure, had to find
room on the neighbouring island of Inchmahome, while the
park and pleasaunce was on the north shore of the lake,
where was the shortest passage from the mainland to
Inchtalla. But though the buildings were thus crowded
there could have been no want of air with the open lake all
round. So close were they to the water that the strong
winds, which occasionally blow from the west, must have
dashed the spray against the walls. This is perhaps the
96 The Lake of Menteith.
explanation of the curious fact that the windows on the
ground floor of the buildings looking to the west are so
small and so few.
The island had become a dense jungle of natural wood,
which not only covered the margins and filled up the
central court, but invaded the interior of the ruined
buildings. Seedling trees had grown up everywhere on the
walls and in the areas of the old castle. These not only
impeded entrance and rendered it difficult to get any view
of the interiors, but by their continued growth were
gradually loosening the stones and mortar, and accelerating
the period of complete overthrow. Last autumn (1898)
Mr. Erskine of Cardross caused this mischievous growth to
be cleared away. It is now, therefore, again possible to
obtain some idea of what these ancient buildings may have
appeared, and it is to be hoped that the process of rapid
decay may be for some time longer arrested. In a
subsequent chapter an attempt will be made to describe
them in detail and — so far as materials for the purpose are
available — to identify the various chambers and their uses.
Not far from the western shore of the lake lies the third
and smallest of the islands. It is called Inchcuan, or "Dog
Island," because it is supposed to have been used for the
kennels of the earls' hunting dogs. If that were so, the
kennels could not have been on a very extensive scale, as
the islet is a tiny one, only a few yards in circumference.
There seems, however, to be some ground for believing that
at the time when Talla was an inhabited house — or, at any
rate, when it was built — the surface of the lake was at a
somewhat lower level than now, for a corner of the south-
The Lake of Menteith. 99
west building on that island now overhangs the water, so
that the area of Inchcuan may have been rather larger then
than it now is. But at the most it can never have
been anything but a very small patch of ground — quite
insufficient, one would think, for the kennels of a lordly
establishment. And there is reason to believe that fox-
hunting on the hills of Menteith was a favourite sport with
the earls. William, the seventh earl, had a special breed of
terriers, whose reputation had reached the ears of King
James the Sixth long before their master had become a
famous politician, or was anything but a Scottish nobleman,
employing a good deal of his time, as is likely, in the field
sports of the country. On the 17th of August, 1617, the
King wrote from Houghton Tower to the Earl of Mar, then
Lord High Treasurer of Scotland, in the following terms : —
" These are moste earnestlie to require you, as yee will do
us moste acceptable service and procure our exceeding
greate contentment to searche oute and sende unto us two
couple of excellent terrieres or earth dogges, which are both
stoute and good fox killers, and will stay long in the
grounde. Wee are crediblie enformed that the Earle of
Monteth hath good of that kinde, who wee are sure wilbe
glade to gratifie us with them."1 His Majesty, we doubt
1 Letter printed in Red Book, vol. i. p. 335. Original in charter chest of the
Earl of Mar and Kellie. King James perhaps got his information about the Earl
of Menteith's terriers when he was staying with his friend, the Earl of Mar, at
Cardross. Mar himself, at a later date, had to go further afield for "earth-doggs."
On the 5th of November, 1631, he wrote to the Laird of Glenorchy, from Stirling,
saying that he was to be resident in that town a good part of the winter, and that
bis greatest sport was likely to be fox-hunting. " Thairfor," he says, " I will ernestly
intrett you to send me with this berar a couppill of good earth doggs." And he
adds in a postscript—" Quhat ye send me latt itt be good altho itt should be bott
on." — Innes's Sketches of Early Scottish History, 1861 : Appendix, p. 514.
G
100
The Lake of Menteith.
not, got his two couple of Menteith earth-dogs, and we
trust had exceeding great contentment therewith. The
Earl's pack, however, could not well have been all
accommodated on Inchcuan. It may be that the island
was only occasionally used — perhaps as an infirmary for
sick dogs or a place of detention for obstreperous animals —
while the usual kennels were at the stables on the western
shore of the lake, just opposite Inchcuan. No vestige of
these stables now remains, but the little promontory, on
and beside which they were clustered, still bears the name
of " the stable ground."
101
CHAPTER IV.
The Ruins of the Priory on Inchmahome.
"Rising from those lofty groves
Behold a ruin hoary."
" Buried midst the wreck of things which were —
There lie interred the more illustrious dead."
" All is silent now : silent the bell,
That, heard from yonder ivied turret high,
Warned the cowled brother from his midnight cell ;
Silent the vesper chant — the litany,
Responsive to the organ ; — scattered lie
The wrecks of the proud pile, mid arches grey."
N the north side of the Island of Inchmahome,
a few yards from the little landing-place, and
standing on ground rising slightly from the
level of the lake shore, are the ruins of the
Priory. It was not one of the great ecclesiastical founda-
tions of the country, but merely — so to speak — a family
priory, and does not exhibit any imposing building or
ornamentation. Still, with all its simplicity of style, the
Church has been a not inelegant specimen of Gothic
architecture, and standing on its island site, with its
lofty tower, it must have showed to great effect across
the surrounding waters.
./NCHMAHOME PRIORY
Plan of the Priory Church and Buildings.
C By permission^ from M* Gibbon &* Ross's Ecclesiastical Architecture of Scotland.)
The Lake of Menteith. 103
The Church stands, as is usual, due east and west. It
measures in all about a hundred and fifty feet in length
by thirty-five feet in breadth, and consists of a nave with
aisle on the north, and a choir. The nave is seventy-five
feet in length, and of unequal width — contracting from over
twenty-seven feet at the west end to less than twenty-four
feet at the east. It is entered by two doors. One of these is
at the south-west angle of the Church, and over this there
has evidently, from the marks on the wall above and at the
sides, been a stone-built porch or, as Mr. M'Gregor Stirling
calls it, a quadrangle. The main door is in the western wall.
This great doorway has been a really fine example of
early English Gothic. Although wasted by the unavoid-
able decay of centuries, it is still sufficiently entire to
afford an idea of its original elegance. The width of the
arched entrance is just half the height, six feet in the
one case and twelve in the other. The breadth of the
carved and clustered pillar work which surrounds the
opening is six feet. The shafts, with their moulded caps
and bases, have been wrought with great care, and notwith-
standing the centuries that have passed since they were
cut, are still wonderfully entire. On either side of this
doorway are two shallow recesses, with double Gothic
archings supported on pillars of very graceful construction.
The spandrils between the upper arches are ornamented
with recessed quatrefoil and trefoil decorations. A former
writer on the Priory1 says that there used to be "five
images " on the wall above the doorway. Nothing of the
kind is now to be seen. It must be added that it is hard
1 Dun's Summer at the Lake of Menteith, p. 8.
104 The Lake of Menteith.
to believe that there ever was any such sculptured work
in this position. The bottom of the great west window
appears to have come down so near to the top of the
arching of the gateway as to leave no room for it. That
window itself has now fallen down, with the whole upper part
of the gable in which it was placed. Traces of it, however,
may still be observed from the interior of the Church, and
these show that it had a breadth of about fifteen feet.
At the north-west corner of the Church is a square tower
rising to the height of four storeys. This is known as the
Bell Tower. It is twelve feet square, inside measurement,
and has walls of nearly three feet in thickness. Not a
vestige of the stair by which the upper storeys must have
been reached is now in existence; so that the fine view
which some former writers have spoken of as obtainable
from the Bellman's window1 must be taken on their credit.
There are now no means of reaching this window high up in
the west side of the tower. The ground portion of the Bell
Tower is said to have been used for the incarceration of
evil-doers by the last Earls of Menteith. The tower does
not seem to have been part of the Church as originally
designed and built, but an addition made at some later
— perhaps not much later — period. This is inferred from
the circumstances that it is built outside of and has
covered up one of the four fine arches that separated the
nave from the aisle on the north.2 To the shelter thus
1 Among others, Sir W. Fraser (Red Book i. 509), long before whose time
access to this window was quite impossible.
2 Perhaps it may be more correct to say that the Church buildings from the
first included a tower at this corner, which at a later period, was. rebuilt and
E
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The Lake of Menteith. 107
afforded we may trace the preservation of the two west-
most of these arches till the present time. The other
two fell rather more than a century ago.1 Judging from
the fragmentary remains of the arches, they must have
been in excellent taste and of cunning workmanship, and
a great adornment of the Church.
Marks of ragling on the east side of the Bell Tower
still show where the roof of the aisle terminated on the
west, and the foundations of the outer wall and buttresses
were disclosed by the excavations of Admiral Erskine. A
considerable part of the north wall — to the east of the
arches — is still pretty well preserved. It shows three
clerestory windows, one single and two with double lights,
of plain design. Outside of this wall has been another
building, apparently divided into two chambers. The
corbels on the wall show where the roof of this building had
joined the Church ; and the base mouldings, which the
excavations showed were carried round it, indicate that it
was a portion of the original design, and not a mere lean-to
addition afterwards made. This Mr. M'Gregor Stirling
has called the Chapter House, but this identification can-
not be regarded as correct. The Chapter House was
more likely, according to the usual arrangements of
monasteries, to have been adjacent to the cloisters, and
near the residence of the prior and canons. If that were
the case here, we shall have to look for it on the south
divided into storeys. This is the opinion of Messrs. M'Gibbon & Ross, founded on
the appearance of the base course of the tower. (Ecclesiastical Architecture of
Scotland, vol. ii. p. 177.)
JThe New Statistical Account, published in 1845, says that these arches
fell about fifty years previous to that time.
108 The Lake of Menteith.
side of the Church. The building now in question was
most probably the sacristy and vestiarium or vestry, from
which the officiating priests entered the choir. The door
of entrance still remains, nearly opposite where the High
Altar must have stood. This sacristy building or aisle did
not extend to the extreme east end of the wall. It left space
for a long two-light window coming down into the lower
storey and helping to light the choir. Neither this window
nor the other three in this portion show any ornamentation.
Though well-proportioned, they are all severely plain.
The great choir-window is in the east gable of the
Church. This gable — with the exception of its flanking
buttresses, which are much decayed — is still comparatively
entire. The window has been a very fine one, with
beautiful pointed arches. It is in five divisions, of which
the central one is eighteen inches, and the others each
twelve inches in width. The tracery, if there had been
any, is gone ; and the whole has been built up with
rubble work — at what time is not now known, but
certainly previous to the present century.
The interior of the choir — which measures sixty-six feet
in length by twenty-three feet eight inches in breadth — like
that of the nave, has been stripped of almost all its original
adornments. There still remain, on the south side, a sedile
or stall and two ambries, which are now used to preserve some
fragments of carved stones that have been found in the ruins.
Here, also, is the Piscina or sink into which the celebrating
priests emptied the water in which they had washed their
hands, and by which all consecrated waste stuff was carried
away. The choir is now pretty well filled with graves
Arches of the Aisle.
The Lake of Menteith. Ill
and tombstones of deceased Grahams, Drummonds, and
others. Some of these are noteworthy, and deserve a
more detailed description. This is reserved till the rest
of the buildings have been described.
The south side of the Church is in a very dilapidated
condition. It looks as if it had suffered from violence as
well as from natural decay. The choir portion of it has
been best preserved. In the centre of this is an arched
doorway, by which the monks entered from the Chapter
House and their dwellings on the south. Between this
door and the east corner are two windows which have
been separated by a buttress. They both reach from the
top of the wall to the level of the doorway arch. The
first has two lights and the other one only. Both are
well designed, and bear evidences of fine workmanship.
On the other side of the door are also two windows, but
smaller, and now much injured. A moulded projection or
string runs along the face of the wall at the base of these
windows. All the nave portion of the south wall is very
much ruined. It appears, however, to have been blank —
with the exception, perhaps, of the higher part, in which
there were no doubt windows for the admission of light
into the nave. Along this were the cloisters of the original
building. They have long ago disappeared, but the corbels
for the roof are still visible.
A building to the south of the Church, towards the
eastern end, usually known as the Vault, deserves some
attention. The common statement regarding it is that it
was run up hurriedly in 1644, to receive the remains, of
Lord Kilpont, who was murdered by Stewart of Ardvoirlich
112
The Lake of Menteith.
in Montrose's camp at Collace.1 But this seems very
unlikely, for several reasons. The house bears no trace
of having been "run up hurriedly." It is as good a bit
of building as any of the rest, and appears to be equally
old. If it is in better preservation, that appears to be
*New Statistical Account.
/ -
.<? ..;-—•-{
•- - ,->'
5"*
; /
.x*
>_
' '. : VAi-' t rf* " '11 1 ?!" '' ' ' *
The Chapter House, Inchmahome.
The Lake of Menteith. 115
due to the fact that it has been built on and over a very
strong semi-circular vaulting which has kept the structure
together. It is of two storeys, and burial vaults are not
generally so constructed — especially when built extempore,
as this one is said to have been. The under storey is
lighted by a very good three-arched window — giving an
amount of light that could hardly be considered necessary
for a mere tomb. The vaulting of the interior has been very
carefully constructed ; and round the wall runs a bench of
stone. These indications seem to mark it out as the ancient
Chapter House of the Priory. It measures twenty-four by
fifteen feet — not a very large chamber, but quite sufficient
to accommodate the Chapter of Inchmahome. The stone
floor and central bench would of course be removed when,
at some period subsequent to the Keformation, this Chapter
House began to be used as a burying-place for the Earls
of Menteith. That it was so used scarcely admits of
doubt. Sir William Fraser — who does not, however, give
his authority for the statement — says that the body of
Lord Kilpont was interred in the Chapter House of the
Priory, " the burying-place of the family."1 Here, perhaps,
also Lord Kilpont's father, the seventh earl, was buried: and
the inference from the will of the last earl makes it almost
certain that his remains were here interred.
The room over the Chapter House is lighted by a
window of two arches in the east. It had a door in the
west end, which appears to have been reached by a stair,
which can yet be traced, coming up from the Frateries
on the ground floor to the south. This pleasant apart-
JRed Book of Menteith, vol. i. p. 398.
H
116 The Lake of Menteith.
ment was probably the Prior's Chamber. It was close to
and most likely in connection with the apartments of the
canons, which seem to have occupied the second storey
of the long building running to the south, over the vaulted
kitchens yet to be seen. This chamber goes by the name
of "Queen Mary's Bedroom," because it is alleged that
the little Queen slept there during her stay on the island.
The tradition is not unlikely to be well founded. There
was no resident prior at the time. The Prior's Chamber,
however, was no doubt the pleasantest and best room in
the monastery, and as such, would be given up to the use
of the young Queen ; while her personal attendants and
retinue could be lodged close beside her in the apartments
of the canons.
Eunning out from the door of the Chapter House are two
parallel stone walls, enclosing an approach, and terminating
on the west in a stone-built gateway. The time of the
building of these long walls and gateway is not in doubt.
The last Earl of Menteith died, without issue, in 1694, and
left his personal estate to his nephew, Sir John Graham
of Gartmore, with the following instructions : —
" As also that Sir John shall be obliged to cause an
exquisite and cunning mason to erect two statues of fine
hewn stone, at length from head to foot, whereof one for
ourself, and the other for our dearest spouse, Dame
Catherine Bruce, now deceased, upon the west gable of
our burying-place, in the caster isle,1 and make an entry
from the said burial-place near to the east end of the
'Inchmahome is generally about this time designated "the easier isle," in
contradistinction to Inchtalla, "the wester isle."
The Lake of Menteith. 117
gravel walk, with a stone dyke on each side, and a fine
entry of hewn work upon the west end thereof, bearing
our name and arms, and our said spouse's."1
The gravel walk referred to is that which leads from
the landing-place on Inchmahome from the wester isle
across the Menteith portion of the grounds to the Nuns'
Walk. This walk is still distinctly traceable beneath the
turf with which it is now covered.2 As it came out on
the dividing road somewhat to the south of the straight
line from the Chapter House door, that accounts for the
awkward angle the approach thus constructed makes with
the line of the Priory buildings. It has cut obliquely
through portions of the cloister, and of what M'Gregor
Stirling supposes to have been the dormitory of the
monastery. The parallel walls and the gateway have
been built, and the niched stones on the " entry," designed
for bearing the names and arms of the deceased Earl and
his wife, are in their places ; but the stones are blank —
they bear neither names nor arms, and apparently have
never done so. Whether the " exquisite and cunning
mason " was ever commissioned to execute the two statues,
there is no evidence to show, beyond a statement of Mr.
M'Gregor Stirling's8 to the effect that he had been told
1The testament was dated 2oth October, 1693, and recorded nth December,
1694. It is quoted by M'Gregor Stirling (Notes on Inchmahome, p. 94), from
Wood's Edition of Douglas's Peerage.
8 In Wood's Douglas's Peerage the words are "gravel walk," but in the Disposi-
tion as printed in the Airth Peerage Minutes of Evidence (1839) they appear as
" gavel wall." The latter is probably the correct reading, as " gravel " is not a
Scotch word. It is difficult, however, to understand what is meant by the east end
of the gable wall, unless it be intended merely to indicate that the " burial-place "
was near the east end of the Church.
8 Notes on Inchmahome, p. 94.
118 The Lake of Menteith.
by the proprietor of G-artmore in his time that among the
Menteith papers preserved at Gartmore was a receipt for
the price of cutting two figures in stone to be placed in
Inchmahome. There are certainly no statues now at the
west gable of the Chapter House, or " burial-place," as it
then was, and we have not heard of any fragments of
what might once have been statues having ever been
found there.
The remaining monastic buildings on the south side of
the Church are in a state of great dilapidation, and any
attempt at identifying their uses must be to a large extent
conjectural. They seem to have been arranged in the
shape of the letter L. The long narrow limb — about a
hundred feet in length — running due south from the
Chapter House, has lost its upper storey. But the ground
floor — at least, the southmost part — easily identifies itself.
It was the great kitchen of the monastery. Portions of
the vaulting of this kitchen yet remain, and the great
fire-place and chimney are entire. The upper storey we
have supposed to have been occupied by the canons as
their private rooms. It was to these chambers or cells
that they were in the habit of retiring between the hours
of nones and vespers, to read or write, or otherwise employ
themselves. This is the building which goes by the
traditional name of the Nunnery. That is an obvious
misnomer. Graham of Duchray was, no doubt, right
when he called it "the dwellings of the Churchmen."
Of the wing running westwards from the northern
portion of this long building, only some fragments of
wall remain. In this Mr. M'Gregor Stirling has placed
2
£
£
1
3
4)
fi
The Lake of Menteith. 121
the Dormitory and the Kefectory. Perhaps in his time
there were indications, not now to be seen, which led him
to this identification. We can advance nothing either to
support or contradict it beyond this, that there has
evidently been an entrance — or perhaps two — from the
kitchen into what he supposes to have been the Kefectory.
The Dormitory he places on the north side. The upper
(northern) wall of it has been entirely removed to make
way for the last earl's " approach " to the family burial-
place. The west wall also has disappeared.1 In the south
wall is an entrance into the Refectory, and in the south-
east corner another, which may have led either to the
kitchen or to the apartments above. The Refectory has
lost entirely its west and south walls. Of the two doors
in the eastern wall, one seems to have led directly to the
kitchen, and the other opens on the foot of the stairs
which led up to the Prior's Chamber and the apartments
on the second storey. The vegetable garden is placed to the
south of the Refectory, but there were most probably exten-
sive gardens on the east side of the buildings as well.
The choir of the Church — including a space of nearly
seventy feet in length by over twenty-three feet in breadth
— is the last resting-place of Stewarts and Grahams of
the family of the Earls of Menteith and its branches, and
of Drummonds, a family related to the earlier earls, and
closely connected with the district and the Priory.
1 It may be doubted whether there ever was a dormitory building on the north
side of the refectory. More likely the whole space between the north wall of the
refectory and the south wall of the Church was taken up by the cloisters and the
cloister-gaith ; while the dormitory was in the upper storey of the building,
approached by the staircase, a portion of which is still to be seen near the entrance
to the kitchen.
CONJECTURAL GROUND FLAST OF PRIORI.
1815. .- .._,
P . Q
j Chapter Hotwe ;
4 Arches X fatten. : To-nibston* «
Clrurch. arul | Clwrir j | <rf' |
^t? JK J?
The above plan is reproduced, by permission, from the work of the Rev. IV.
McGregor Stirling. Since it was made, excavations conducted by the late Admiral
Erskine have shown more accurately the foundations of the aisle and other buildings
on the north side of the Church. In other respects, also, it is not perfectly accurate,
but it is extremely interesting as the first attempt to delineate the ground plan of
the buildings, and will serve to illustrate the references to Mr Stirling's remarks
in the preceding pages.
The Lake of Menteith. 123
The most striking monument is that near the centre
of the choir, supposed to occupy the space in front of
where the High Altar once stood. It is believed to com-
memorate Walter, the first Stewart Earl of Menteith, and
his Countess Mary, who was the younger daughter of
Maurice, the last earl of the original line of Menteith.
Earl Walter Stewart died in 1294 or 1295, his Countess
having predeceased him. The more ancient earls are said
to have had their place of sepulture in the Church of
Kippen. But in the year 1286, Earl Walter, along with
his son, Alexander, and his daughter-in-law, Matilda, gave
that Church to the Abbey of Cambuskenneth, in order
to obtain a burial-place in the Abbey. He was not,
however, buried at Cambuskenneth, but beside his wife
in the choir of Inchmahome.
The monument represents a knight and lady lying side
by side, their heads supported by cushions, and their feet
resting on lions (or dogs). The knight has his right arm
round the lady's shoulder, and his left is laid across her
waist, while the lady's left arm lovingly encircles the neck
of her lord. The lady is clad in a long flowing garment,
the folds of which are beautifully sculptured. Her head
is covered with an ample cloth falling down behind the
neck and shoulders. The knight wears a suit of armour,
covered with a surcoat. The round helmet which he
wears on his head is encircled by something like a coronet
or chaplet. The large triangular shield borne on the
knight's left shoulder has for armorial bearings the well-
known fess cheque, in three tracts, of the Stewarts, with a
label of five points, which latter, as heraldic writers tell us,
124 The Lake of Menteith.
is a mark of cadency. Walter Stewart was the second
son of the High Steward of Scotland. A seal of his,
appended to a document, dated 1292, preserved in the
Public Eecord Office, shows exactly the same armorial
bearings, with the legend, 8. Wcdteri Senescalli Comt de
Menetet. This coat of arms clearly establishes the identity
of the knightly effigy. Walter Stewart was the only Earl
of Menteith who bore the Stewart arms in this simple
form. A seal of his son, Alexander, the sixth earl, has
the three bars wavy — representing the arms of the old
Menteith line (his mother's) — surmounted by the fess
cheque. Earl Walter does not appear to have assumed the
armorial bearings of the earldom of Menteith.
The figure is cross-legged — thus indicating a crusader,
or at any rate, one who had vowed a crusade. For it
was not necessary for one to have actually gone on
crusade te entitle him to have his effigy represented
in this sacred and symbolic attitude. It was enough if
he had vowed. A substitute could be provided, or a
dispensation could be obtained for a suitable sum. But
it appears that Walter Stewart did really go crusading,
though it is doubtful whether he reached the Holy Land.
Along with his brother Alexander, the High Steward, and
other Scottish knights, he joined the crusade led by Louis
the Ninth of France (St. Louis). These Scottish knights
— Walter among them — are said to have fought valiantly,
and to have rendered valuable service to the Most Christian
King in his Holy War in Egypt in the years 1248 and 1249.
The monument is seven feet in length, and the figures
in very high relief. They have suffered a good deal of
The Lake of Menteith.
125
'^
mutilation. The left arm of the knight has been broken
off from the shoulder to the wrist, leaving only the gloved
hand resting on the lady's waist. His left leg and foot
have also suffered damage ; and from the lady's right arm,
which is bent across her chest, the hand has been rudely
broken off. Whether this damage has been wanton or
accidental is unknown, but one may be thankful to find the
monument still so well preserved after fully six centuries
of existence, and especially after an exposure of at least
Monument of Walter. Stewart, Carl of Menteith, and his Countess Mary.
two hundred years to the elements. This exposure
without protection to the weather has done more
than actual violence to destroy the finer traits of the
sculpture. These were gradually getting worn away more
or less rapidly. But some years ago, Mr. Erskine of
Cardross caused a canopy to be erected over the stone.
This gives it protection from the rain, and may be expected
to retard — it is to be hoped for a long time — the inevitable
progress of decay.
126 The Lake of Menteith.
Another very ancient and interesting stone is that which
marks the last resting-place of Sir John Drummond — said
to have been a liberal benefactor of the Priory of Inch-
mahome — who died about the year 1300 A.D., and was
interred near the High Altar. Deeply cut on the surface
of this stone, which is still in fair preservation, is a figure
of Sir John. The features of the face are now rather
worn, but they can still be made out, and somehow give
one the impression that they have been meant for a likeness
of the original. The figure is clad in chain armour, bears
in the right hand a long spear, and carries on the left
arm a shield with the three bars wavy — the well-known
armorial bearings of the Drummonds, which they seem
to have adopted from their superiors, the old Menteiths,
and which this Sir John is said to have been the first
Drummond to carry. On the head is a high conical
covering terminating in a cross. The chest is crossed by
belts which pass round the back of the neck. The waist
also is girded by a broad belt, and from this are suspended
two objects, one of which may be a dagger or knife,
although it is not easy to make out what they may have
originally represented. A long sword, depending from a
hook or catch about the middle of the body, hangs to the
left side. Beneath the feet, on which the spurs are plainly
visible, are two lions, placed back to back, and connected
by their intertwined tails. The lions underfoot, as well
as the cross on the apex of the head-dress, are common
enough Christian symbols.
In the vacant spaces on either side of the head of this
effigy are two smaller figures. That on the right seems
The Lake of Menteith. 127
to represent St. Colmoc in his bishop's robes. He holds
a well-defined pastoral staff in the left hand, while the
right, with two fingers held up, is raised in the attitude
of benediction. The figure on the other side represents
Saint Michael, winged, and carrying spear and shield. The
two holy men stand upon a dragon — St. Michael on the
body, near the shoulder, and St. Colmoc on the tail.
A legend, in raised lettering, runs round the border of
the stone on three sides. It has possibly run on to the
fourth side — the top of the stone — also, but the border
has scaled off at that part. What remains reads as
follows : — JOHANNES DE DKUMOD FILIUS MOLQALMI DE DBUMOD
VID .... SOLVAT ANIMAS EOKUM A PENA ET ACU. If, as
has been suggested, the reading — where the blank occurs
— should be VIDUA UT, the translation will be : — " John
of Drummond, son of Malcolm of Drummond, his widow,
that she may release their souls from the penalty and the
sting." If the legend was continued on the fourth side
of the stone, it probably went on to say what the widow
had done to release her soul and her husband's — or is it
the souls of her husband and his father? — the eorum may
be taken either way — from the pains of purgatory. Perhaps
this was nothing more than interment in this place ; for
proximity to the High Altar in burial was supposed to
ensure for the dead a safe and speedy passage to glory.
Sir William Fraser affirms that it was this Sir John
Drummond or his father who gifted the lands of Cardross
to the Priory of Inchmahome.1 He gives tradition, however,
as his only authority. Mr. M'Gregor Stirling, on the other
1 Red Book of Menteith, vol. i. p. xli.
128 The Lake of Menteith.
hand, on the authority of Malcolm's " History of the House
of Drummond," names Sir Malcolm, the son and successor
of Sir John, as the generous donor.1 Malcolm's authority
is perhaps not very great, but at any rate a reason for Sir
Malcolm's generosity is given — as a thank-offering, namely,
for his release from captivity in England, and an evidence
of gratitude for the lands with which he had been endowed
by King Eobert the Bruce after the successful issue of the
battle of Bannockburn. The Sir John here commemorated
is said, in the " New Statistical Account," to have been a
son-in-law of Earl Walter Stewart and his Countess, near
whose monument (already described) in the Choir of Inch-
mahome his remains repose.
It may be regarded as a probable inference from the
occurrence of St. Michael along with St Colmoc on this
monumental stone — taken in conjunction with the existence
of St. Michael's Fair at the Port — that there may have
been a joint dedication of the Church to St. Michael and
to Colmoc, the eponymous saint of the island.
A third old stone in the choir has the Graham arms cut
in bas-relief, with the four letters very distinct, G. D. E. D.
Were it not for the Graham arms, one would be tempted
to read these as the initials of two members of the Drum-
mond family. As it is, they have been ingeniously con-
jectured to represent the words GLOEIA DEO ESTO DATA — Let
glory be given to God.
The numerous other tombstones in the choir have less
architectural and historical interest. They commemorate
Grahams of every branch of the family of Menteith —
* Stirling's Notes on Inchmahome, p. 44.
The Lake of Menteith. 129
on the left, Grahams of Gartur, Eednock, Leitchtown,
Pheddal, and Soyock ; on the right, Grahams of Gartmore,
Glenny, and Mondhui. On the north wall appears, most
appropriately, a tablet to the memory of Admiral Erskine,
who loved the old place so well, and did so much to preserve
the remains and to prevent the whole precincts from falling
into absolute ruin.
130
CHAPTER V.
The Priory of Inchmahome under its
early Priors, 1238 to 1528.
" I am, said he, ane Channoun regulare,
And of my brether Pryour principall :
My quhyte rocket my clene lyfe doith declare,
The black bene of the death memoriall."
— Testament of tJie Papyngo.
"Arrayed in habit black and amis thin,
Like to an holy monck, the service to begin."
— Faery Queen.
HAT there was a religious settlement on the
island of Inchmahome at a very early period
is obvious from the name which has carried
down through the ages the memory of the
saint in whose honour it was founded. In the multitude
of Colmans in the hagiology,1 it would be impossible — if
we had no other indication of his identity — to determine
which particular saint of the name was the eponymus of
the island. One naturally thinks first of that St. Colman,
disciple of St. Columba, who became Bishop of Lindisfarne
in Northumberland, but returned to lona in 664 A.D., in
1 Baring-Gould (Lives of the Saints) says, " there were ninety-five St. Colmans
in the Martyrology of Donegal alone, besides numerous other Irish saints of the
name."
The Lake of Menteith. 131
consequence of being worsted by Wilfrid in the dispute
regarding the observance of Easter.1 Another Scottish
St. Colmack, said to have been Bishop of Orkney, circa
1000, is mentioned by Innes.2 But it is to neither of
Seal of the Priory oi Inchmahome.3
these, but to an Irish saint, that the name of the island
is due, if we are to accept the authority of the early
1 Scotichronicon a Goodall, vol. i. p. 154.
2 Innes, quoted in Chalmers' Caledonia, vol. i. p. 321, note. The day of this
St. Colmack is given as the 6th of June.
3 In the upper compartment of the seal is represented the Virgin Mother
crowned, and seated, holding a lily in her right hand. On her left knee sits the
infant Jesus, also crowned, with right hand upraised and two fingers lifted, in the
attitude of benediction, and holding a globe in His left hand. In the lower com-
partment, under a Gothic arch, stands a figure in the vestments of a Bishop,
probably intended to represent St. Colman, holding the pastoral staff in his left
hand, and lifting the right with the outstretched forefingers in the act of blessing.
The legend is S. Commune de Insula Sancti Colmoci.
I
132 T he Lake of Menteilh.
ecclesiastical chroniclers. The ' * Breviary of Aberdeen ' ' gives
the honour to St. Colmoc (i.e., Colman with the honourable
suffix -og or -oc), Bishop of Dromore, County Down,
Ireland. He is said to have been of a noble Scotic family,
to have been born about 500 A.D., and to have founded
the Monastery of Dromore, where he died and was buried.
His day was the 6th of June. It is added that the
Monastery of Inchemaholmock, in the diocese of Dunblane,
was solemnly dedicated to him.1 Lanigan gives many
particulars of his birth and education from the Irish
ecclesiastical annalists, stating that he was of a Dalriadian
family, and therefore a native of the territory in which
his see was situated, but giving his day as the 7th of
June.2 How he came to be honoured in Menteith is not
explained, but possibly the reverence for his name may
have been introduced into the west of Scotland by
his kinsfolk, the Dalriadic Scots. The "Martyrology
of Aberdeen " — in opposition to the statement of the
"Breviary" and the Irish annalists — affirms that he was
buried at " Inchmacome, where there was in after times
a Monastery of Canons -Eegular of the Order of St.
Augustine." By the "Martyrology of Aengus" he is
called Mocholmog3 of Drummor in Iveagh of Ulidia.
It would appear, therefore, that it is to this "Irish Pict"
— as Skene calls him — that the honour of giving name
1 Breviary of Aberdeen, foil. ci. cii.— quoted in Bishop Forbes' Kalendars of
Scottish Saints, 1872, p. 304.
2Lanigan's Ecclesiastical History of Ireland, 1829, vol. i. p. 432.
3 This form of the name has been explained above, p. 74. It brings us very near
to the most ancient form of the island name.
The Lake of Menteith. 133
to the first religious settlement on the island must be
attributed.1
It is reasonable to infer from the only evidence that
is still attainable that the early Culdee settlement on the
island was under the charge of the see of Dunblane. The
Culdee church at Dunblane dates back to the beginning
of the seventh century, and it became a Eoman see about
1160.2 Whether the island church was Eomanized at the
same time, or earlier or later, it is impossible to tell. But
that there was a Catholic parson there in 1210 seems likely
from a reference in the Chartulary of Cambuskenneth.8 A
charter of the Abbey, of about that date, is witnessed by,
among others, Malcolm, parson of the island of Macholem
(Molcolmo persona de insula Macholem). If Sir William
Eraser is right in his identification of Macholem with
Inchmahome, then there is proof sufficient that there was
a Koman church here at that period ; and that the parson
was under the direction of the Bishop of Dunblane is
inferred from the language of the Papal Instrument — to be
afterwards referred to — in implement of which the Priory
was erected.
The coming of the Augustinian monks to the island
is variously dated by the older writers. In fact, so obscure
is the early history of the settlement that it used to be
1 For full accounts of the life and miracles of St. Colman, consult Lanigan's
Ecclesiastical History of Ireland, 1829, vol. i. pp. 432 etseqq. ; Reeves' Ecclesiastical
Antiquities of Down, &c., 1847, pp. 104, note, 304, 311, 379 ; Forbes' Kalendars of
Scottish Saints, 1872, pp. 304 et seq. ; Skene's Celtic Scotland, vol. ii. p. 32.
1 Keith's Catalogue of the Scottish Bishops.
3 Chartulary of Cambuskenneth, pp. 160, 161. This charter makes a gift by
the Bishop, William of Dunblane, of the church of Kincardine in free alms to the
Abbey of Cambuskenneth.
134 The Lake of Menteith.
supposed that Inchmahome and Isle of St. Colmoc were
different places.1 Archbishop Spottiswoode affirms that
the Priory of St. Colmoc's Isle in Menteith was founded
by King Edgar. That must have been prior to 1107 — the
year of Edgar's death. But, if we are to trust Keith, or
rather John Spottiswoode, there were no Augustinians in
Scotland at that date. He says2 — " The Canons-Begulars
of St. Augustine were first brought into Scotland by
Atelwholphus, Prior of St. Oswald of Nostel in Yorkshire,
and afterwards Bishop of Carlisle ; who established them
at Scone, in the year 1114, at the desire of King Alexander
I." An earlier authority to the same effect is Fordun : —
" Scone was founded by Alexander the Fierce, who made
it over to the governance of Canons-regular, called from
the church at St. Oswald at Nostle (Nastlay, near Ponte-
fract), and of the others after them who should serve God,
until the end of the world."3 John Spottiswoode further
asserts that Inchmahome was an Abbey founded of old for
canons of Cambuskenneth.4 And Cambuskenneth we
know was not founded till 1147. Spottiswoode also notes5
1 See Spottiswoode's History of the Church of Scotland (4th ed.), vol. i. ;
compare app. p. 14 with p. 17 ; Keith's Catalogue of Scottish Bishops, with
Account by John Spottiswoode of the Religious Houses in Scotland at the time
of the Reformation, p. 391. ; Maitland's History and Antiquities of Scotland,
vol. i. pp. 255 and 259. It should be said, however, that John Spottiswoode
writes — "Although this place (Inchmahome) be mentioned in most of our old
lists of religious houses as a distinct monastery from that of Insula St. Colmoci,
yet I am apt to believe they are one and the same." (Page 239 of Account of
Religious Houses).
2 Keith's Catalogue, &c., p. 385.
3Fordun's Chronicle, book v. chap, xxviii. ; Skene's edition, vol. ii. p. 218.
See also Liber Ecclesie de Scon (Maitland Club, 1843).
4 Keith's Catalogue, &c., p. 319. * Ibid.
The Lake of Menteith. 135
that the Priory Insulae Sancti Colmoci was said to have
been founded by Murdach, Earl of Menteith, killed at the
battle of Dupplin in 1332 ; although he adds that the name
of Prior Adam is found in the list of those who swore fealty
to Edward I. in 1296. Maitland also states that the Priory
of the Isle " was founded by Murdach, Earl of Menteith,
for Augustine monks,"1 but he gives no date. The
authority relied upon by both is no doubt the Scoti-
chronicon, in which it is distinctly stated that the
Augustinian monks were settled in the island by Murdach,
Earl of Menteith.2 Now, the Earl who fell at Dupplin was
not the only one of that name. There was an earlier
Murdach, who held the earldom from about 1180 to 1213 ;
and it is neither impossible nor unlikely that he may have
brought the Augustinians to the island. He was the
father-in-law of the ascertained builder of the Priory, and
it is no great assumption to suppose that the latter may
have had in view the pious object of continuing the work
of his father-in-law.
Whoever it may have been that was responsible for
introducing the Augustinians to the island, the date of the
erection of the buildings, the ruins of which still give
distinction and interest to the place, and the name of the
builder, are not now in doubt. These facts were settled
by an authoritative document which was first published
by the Rev. W. M'Gregor Stirling in his " Notes on Inch-
1 Maitland's History and Antiquities of Scotland (1757), vol. i. p. 255.
a"Insufa Sancti Colmoci, ordinis Augustini, in Menteth; cujus fundator
Murdacus, comes ejusdem." — Fordun's Scotichronicon, continuation by Bower
(GoodalFs edition), vol. ii. p. 539.
136 The Lake of Menteith.
mahome" (1817). l This writ informs us that the Bishop
of Dunblane2 had appealed to the Pope regarding the
dilapidation of his church (which seems to have been in
a really lamentable condition) and the appropriation of its
revenues by secular persons ; and it may be inferred from
the terms of the agreement come to that the Earls of
Menteith and their vassals were responsible for a good
deal of the spoliation of the bishopric.3 In response to
this appeal, the Pope (Gregory IX.) issued a Mandate —
at Vitervi, 10th of June, 1237 — to William, Bishop of
Glasgow and Galfred (Geoffrey), Bishop of Dunkeld,
directing them to enquire into the case and adopt suitable
remedial measures. In pursuance of this mandate, the
two Bishops held an investigation. The Bishop of Dun-
1 This document was brought under Mr. Stirling's notice by Mr. Thomas
Thomson, Deputy-Register of Scotland, and was printed in full, in the original
Latin, in Appendix i. to the Notes, pp. 113-116. The original of this writ, it
seems, cannot now be found in the General Register Office (Eraser's Red Book,
vol. ii. p. 329, note) • but its existence had been known before it was again
brought to light in 1815. Mr. David Erskine, W.S., brother of the then laird
of Cardross, in a letter to Captain (afterwards General) Hutton, dated 5th Sep-
tember, 1789, mentioned that he had in his possession an old paper entitled
" The double of the apointment betwix the Bishop of Dunblain and the Pryor of
Inchmahomo, Drawine out of the Auld Register." (Fragmenta Scoto-monastica,
Edinburgh, 1842, app. p. 3). And in the Inventory of his Writs which was drawn
up by William, seventh Earl of Menteith, about 1622, the first item set down is
"ane apointment betwix Waltor Cuming, Erie of Monteith, and the Bishops of
Dunkell and Dunblane, be the direction of the Pope, quhair the said Earlle gives
libertie to the churchmen to build ane abbasie within his Ille of Inchmahome, of
the dait 1238." (Red Book, ut supra). This may have been the original of which
Mr. Erskme's " double " was a copy, or they may both have been copies ; but at
any rate they show that while the name of the builder of the Priory was quite
unknown to the Scottish ecclesiastical historians, the information was in the hands
of the families who were most immediately connected with the place.
1 He is not named in the writ ; but Clement was the Bishop at that time.
8 This letter of Pope Gregory IX. to the Bishops of Glasgow and Dunkeld is
to be found also in Vetera Monumenta Hibernorum et Scotorum Historiam
Illustrantia, &c. (Rome, 1864), no. xci. p. 35.
The Lake of Menteith. 137
blane and Walter Comyn, Earl of Menteith, appeared
before them; and, having stated their respective cases,
they submitted themselves to the jurisdiction of the
Bishops and their Court. The result was an agreement,
accepted by both parties, of which the following were the
principal provisions. The Bishop was to renounce all
right claimed, or that might be claimed, by the Church
of Dunblane, to revenues derived from the churches of
the earldom of Menteith, in which the Earl had the right
of patronage, and to desist from all complaints against
him. The Earl was authorised " to build a House for
Religious Men of the Order of St. Augustine in the Island
of Inchmaquhomok, without impediment or opposition from
the said Bishop or his successors." To these religious men
were assigned, "in pure and perpetual alms, the churches
of Lany and of the said Island, with all the liberties and
easements belonging to the said churches," reserving his
episcopal rights to the Bishop. The Bishop was not to be
allowed to make perpetual vicars in these two churches,
but to accept proper chaplains presented to him, who
should be responsible to him " in spiritual and episcopal
matters." The Earl, again, was to assign the church of
Kippen for a perpetual canonry in the church of Dunblane,
reserving to himself and his successors the right of presen-
tation to the canonry, and to give over to the Bishop
whatever right he held in the church of Callander.
The instrument recording this agreement is dated at
Perth on " the octave of John the Baptist," i.e., the 16th
of June, 1238 ; and we may assume that the building of
the Priory was begun as soon as possible thereafter.
138 The Lake of Menteith.
It is clear, from the terms of the writ, that there was
already in the island of Inchmahome a church, over which
the Bishop of Dunblane had Episcopal rights. At the
same time the words " Domum virorum religiosorum ordinis
sancti Augustini in Insula de InchmaquhomoJc construere,"
do not make it quite clear whether there was already a
body of Canons-Eegular in the island, for whom merely a
house was now to be built, or whether house and canons
were to be placed there together. But perhaps it is not
straining inference too much if we deduce from the
reference to impediment and contradiction (sine impedimenta
vel contradictione dicti episcopi) on the part of the Bishop
of Dunblane, a supposition that the Augustinians were in
the island, and that opposition had been offered by the
bishop either to their organisation or to the building of a
house for them. If the Priory was connected with the
Abbey of Cambuskenneth, he may have been inclined to
regard it as an intrusion into his diocese.
The Augustinian Order of Monks was much favoured
by the pious Scottish kings of the family of Canmore. Over
a dozen communities of this Order had been established,
in various parts of Scotland, by Alexander L, David I.,
and their nobles, previous to the erection of the Priory
of Inchmahome. They had the designation of Canons-
Eegular from the circumstance that they were not, like
other monks, confined to their monasteries, but might take
charge of parish churches and discharge ecclesiastical
functions wherever they might happen to be placed. The
canonical dress, according to Spottiswoode (apud Keith)
was a white robe, with a rochet (rochetum) of fine linen
The Lake of Menteith. 139
above the gown, and in the church a surplice (superpellicium)
and an almuce (lanutium), formerly worn on the shoulders,
thereafter on the left arm, hanging as far down as the
ground. This almuce was of a fine black or grey skin,
brought from foreign countries, and frequently lined with
ermine, and serves to this day to distinguish the Canons-
Eegulars from the other religious Orders.1 In this
picturesque dress, then, we may conceive the canons of
Inchmahome conducting the services in the Priory. When
not so engaged the surplice and almuce were laid aside,
and they appeared simply in their white tunic with gown
of fine linen, over which was worn a black cloak with a
hood covering the head, neck, and shoulders. So Sir
David Lindsay makes the magpie in its black and white
colours the ornithological representative of the Canons-
Eegular.2
The day in the convent was laid out in several divisions,
marked off by the hours of prayer. These were (1) Matins
and Lauds, at midnight ; (2) Prime, about 6 A.M. ; (3) Tierce,
about 9 A.M. ; (4) Sext, about noon ; (5) Nones, about
2 P.M. ; (6) Vespers, 4 P.M. or later ; (7) Compline, 7 P.M.
1 Keith's Catalogue, &c., p. 393. The following extract from Commissary
Spalding's account of Charles I. at Holyrood in 1633 may be compared with the
ahove description of the dress of the Canons-Regular : — " On Sunday, 23rd June,
the King heard John Bishop of Murray teach in his rochet, which is a white linen
or lawn drawn on above his coat, above the whilk his black gown was put on, and
his arms through the gown sleeves, and above the gown sleeves is also white linen
or lawn drawn on shapen like a sleeve. This is the weed of Archbishops and
Bishops, and wears no surplice, but churchmen of inferior degree, in time of service,
wears the samen, which is above their cloaths, a side (i.e., long) linen cloth over
body and arms like to a sack."— Spalding's History, of the Troubles in Scotland,
p. 18.
* Lindsay's Testament and Complaynt of our Soverane Lordis Papyngo ;
lines 654-657.
140 The Lake of Menteith.
All the monks, with the exception of the sick and those
who had dispensations of relief from the duty, rose for
Matins and Lauds, after which they returned to bed till
Prime. After Prime the Chapter was held. This meeting
took place in a room specially designed for its purpose.
The Chapter House was beside the cloisters, and during the
meeting the cloisters were not allowed to be entered, so
that what was going on in the Chapter House might not
be overheard. It had a row of stone benches round the
wall, with a reading desk, and a bench where culprits stood
in the centre. There was a higher seat for the Abbot or
Prior, and a crucifix. In the Chapter prayers for deceased
benefactors were said, misdemeanours investigated and
offenders punished by suitable discipline, and other con-
ventual business arranged. For some time after the business
of the Chapter had been completed, a period of silence
and meditation was observed. Then the monks were
dismissed to the cloisters till Sext — in some Orders this
period was given to study, in others to manual labour.
The dinner-hour was at noon. At this meal one of the
brethren read aloud, while the others kept silence and
listened. After dinner until the hour of Nones was the
period for recreation, when the monks rambled about the
grounds or otherwise amused themselves. When the Nones
prayers had been said, music was practised for a while.
Those who obtained permission from the Superior were
allowed to go beyond the precincts of the monastery. The
brothers who did not go out retired to their private
chambers or " cells," to read or write or practise some
manual occupation, or in some cases possibly merely to
The Lake of Menteith. 141
lounge away the time till Vespers. All were required to be
inside the walls to sing Compline after supper. Then they
withdrew to the dormitories, and were in bed by 8 P.M.1
The usual number of monks to a Prior was ten; and
this — judging from the signatories to the deeds of the
Chapter at the time when it may be reckoned to have
been complete — was the number at Inchmahome.
The Priory had several chapels attached to it — one at
Inchie, on the east shore of the lake, where the name
of Chapel-lands still survives, the sole relic of the past ;
a second at Arnchly, about a mile to the west of the lake ;
a third at Chapel-larach (i.e., chapel site or foundation),
not far from Gartmore ; and a fourth at Boquhapple (House
of the Chapel), near Thornhill. Besides these, the churches
of Leny, Port, and Kilmadock with its six dependent
chapels, were under the charge of the Priory.2 A fourth
church — that of Lintrethen in Forfarshire — belonged to
it at the time the lands of the Priory were secularised
by Act of Parliament (9th July, 1606) .8
PRIOR ADAM.
No Chartulary is known to exist. Only a few charters
and other documents relating to the Priory have been
preserved. It is not, therefore, possible to present a
continuous history of the House from its foundation to its
decay, but all the properly vouched facts that have been
1 This account of the conventual day is taken from Frosbrooke's British
Monachism, 1817, sub initio ; and Gordon's Monasticon, p. 8.
'Fasti Ecclesiae Scoticanae, vol. ii. pp. 724, 737.
3 Acts of the Parliaments of Scotland, vol. iv., under date. Lintrethin was
in the gift of the Prior, at least as early as 1477. See infra.
142 The Lake of Menteith.
gathered regarding it will be set forth. The name of its
earliest Prior is nowhere mentioned, nor for more than a
quarter of a century after its erection does the name of the
Priory occur in any extant document yet known. The
earliest reference is in what was known in Scotland as
Bagimont's Koll. Pope Gregory the Tenth sent to
Scotland an emissary, by name Magister Boyamundus
de Vitia, to collect the tenths of all ecclesiastical benefices
for the Holy Land. In the account of his collections,
rendered in 1275, appears the item, " De Priorie sancti
Colmoti, 9 marc. 13 sol. 1 den,"1 that is to say, the tithe
received from the prior amounted to 9 merks or £6 13s Id,
from which we can readily estimate the total income of the
Priory at that early period of its existence.2 The next
historical reference to the Priory — twenty years later —
gives us the name of the Prior who then held office. It
occurs in the Eagman Bolls,3 where, among those who
swore fealty to Edward the First of England, at Berwick,
on the 21st of August, 1296, appears the name of " Adam,
Prioure de lie de Seint Colmoth," who took the oath for
himself and his convent.
PEIOB MAUEICB.
The probable successor of Adam was Maurice, as his
name appears (along with that of Sir John Menteith and
others), as witness to a charter of Alan, seventh Earl of
1Theiner's Vetera Monumenta, no. cclxiv. p. 115. (The tithe of the Abbey
of Catnbuskenneth was at the same time £10 8s nd).
a At this time Scots money was of equal value with English. It was not till
well on in the reign of David II. that the deterioration in value began.
3 Ragman Rolls, 117.
The Lake of Menteith. 143
Menteith, which has been assigned by Sir William Fraser
to the year 1305. In this charter he is designed " domino
Mauricio, Priore de Insula Sancti Colmoci."1 It seems to
have been in the time of Prior Maurice that King Kobert
the Bruce made his three recorded visits to Inchmahome.
He was here for the first time, so far as we know, at a very
critical period of his life, just after his coronation at Scone,
which took place on the 29th of March, 1306. Alan, Earl of
Menteith, was one of his supporters, and to the quiet island
in his domain came the King after his coronation, perhaps
to meet his friends and consider his future course. The
fact that he was on the island at that time is ascertained
from a petition presented to Edward I. by Malise, Earl of
Strathern, who, after the battle of Methven, had been made
prisoner and sent to England. He affirmed that he had
always been loyal to the English King, and, although
admitting that he had on one occasion done homage to
Bruce, he said that it was done only on compulsion and in
fear of his life. He narrated how, deceived by a safe-
conduct, he had been seized by the Earl of Athole and
some others, and by them carried to " Inchemecolmoch,"
where Bruce then was. On refusing to do homage — as he
had twice before refused — Sir Robert Boyd advised Bruce
to behead him and grant his lands away, whereupon the
Earl was so frightened that he did their will, and they let
him go.2
The second occasion on which Bruce is known to have
1 Original in Gleneagles charter-chest : printed in the Red Book of Menteith,
vol. ii. p. 223.
3 This Petition is printed in Documents and Records illustrating the History
of Scotland, edited by Sir Francis Palgrave (1837), pp. 319 and clix.
144 The Lake of Menteith.
been at Inchmahome was in the autumn of 1308. By that
time he had fought his romantic battles in Galloway,
cleared the northern parts of his kingdom of the English
enemy, and chastised his old enemy, John of Lorn, in the
fastnesses of the West Highlands. On his way to Perth
from this last expedition he halted at Inchmahome,
probably to rest and give thanks for his victories. The fact
is instructed by a charter of Malcolm, Earl of Lennox, to
Sir John of Luss, which the King confirmed on the 28th of
September, 1308, " apud Insulam Sancti Colmoci."1
The third visit of King Eobert to the Priory cannot
have been made for any reason of the concealment or
security the place might afford, for it occurred after his
power was well assured and his claim to the throne had
been admitted by the people and the estates of the realm.
Bather it seems to indicate that he had some liking for this
sequestered retreat as a haven of rest from his warlike toils
and the cares of government, and possibly also that he had
acquired an affection for its Prior, Maurice. We hear no
more of this Maurice as Prior of Inchmahome, but is it
unreasonable to suggest that he may have been the same
who, as Abbot of Inchaffray, blessed the Scottish army at
the battle of Bannockburn ? If that were he, then we
know that he was advanced to still higher rank in the
Church. He was promoted to the see of his own diocese of
Dunblane in 1319.2 The Abbot of Inchaffray, in 1314, was
1 The original charter is preserved at Rossdhu, and was printed in Eraser's
The Chiefs of Colquhoun, vol. ii. p. 276.
3 Liber Insulae Missarum (Bannatyne Club, 1847), p. xiv. Appointment ratified
by Pope John XXII. in March, 1822. — Theiner's Vetera Monumenta, pp. 341-3.
The Lake of Menteith. 145
evidently a much trusted ecclesiastical friend of the King,
and if it could be proved that he was the same man as the
Prior of Inchmahome in 1310, it would give an additional
interest to the King's visit at that time, and would also
account for Maurice's preferment in the Church. From
his retreat at Inchmahome King Kobert issued a writ
confiscating the property of one John de Pollox, who had
adhered to the enemy and plotted treason, and bestowing
on the Convent and Abbot of Arbroath everything belonging
to the traitor that might be found within their lands and
tenements. This writ, which is dated " apud Insulam
Sancti Golmoci, on the 15th day of April, in the year of
grace 1310 and the fifth year of our reign," was first
published by the Kev. W. M'Gregor Stirling from the
Eegistrum de Aberbrothock.1
PRIOR CHRISTIN.
Shortly after Bannockburn, the Priory received a great
addition to its possessions. Sir Malcolm Drummond — if
we are to credit the historian of that house2 — bestowed
the estate of Cardross on the Convent of Inchmahome, in
the year 1316, probably, it has been conjectured, as " a
proof of pious gratitude for the donor's release from (a
long) captivity."3 For Malcolm had been taken prisoner
by the English in 1301, and was not set free till after the
1 Notes on Inchmahome, app. ii. p. 117: e Registro de Aberbrothock, fol.
xxiii. The copy was supplied to Mr. Stirling from the Panmure documents by
General Hutton. The Chartulary of Arbroath has since been published by the
Bannatyne Club.
* Malcolm's History of the House of Drummond, app.
3 Notes on Inchmahome, p. 44.
146 The Lake of Menteith.
battle of Bannockburn.1 He was a son of the Sir John
Drummond who died in 1300, and was buried in the choir
of the Priory, his mother being a daughter of Walter
Stewart, Earl of Menteith.2 If we are right in conjecturing
that Prior Maurice may have been translated to Inchaffray
prior to the battle of Bannockburn, this donation could
not have been given in his time. And indeed this is con-
firmed by the fact that a charter by Earl Alan3 was
witnessed by " domino Christine, Priore de Insula Sancti
Colmoci." The charter is undated, but as Alan was sent
as a prisoner to England after the battle of Methven in
1306,4 and did not return, he must have died there prior
to the general delivery of prisoners which followed the
victory at Bannockburn.
Prior Christin is next found witnessing a charter of
Earl Murdach (1318-1332) to Walter, son of Sir John of
Menteith, of the lands of Thorn and Lanarkins, with fish-
ings on the Teith. This charter also is without date, but
it must, of course, have been granted not later than 1332.5
It is quite possible that Prior Christin was the hero of
the next incident recorded in the history of the Priory,
1 Sir Malcolm must have been regarded as rather a notable captive, for
Chalmers informs us that on the 25th of July, 1301, Edward offered oblations at
the shrine of St. Kentigern in the Cathedral Church of Glasgow " for the good
news of Sir Malcolm de Drummond, Knight, a Scot, being taken prisoner by Sir
John Segrave." — Caledonia, vol. i. p. 667.
2 MS. addition to Notes on Inchmahome, p. 44.
* Of the lands of Rusky, to William de Rusky : Fragmenta Scoto-Monastica
(1842), app. p. ix.
4 Palgrave's Documents and Records, &c., p. 353.
'Fragmenta Scoto-Monastica, app. p. ix. Sir William Fraser, who has
printed this charter in the Red Book, vol. ii. p. 225, from the original in the
charter-chest at Blair Drummond, dates it circa 1330.
The Lake of Menteith. 147
but as no name is mentioned in the record, it may have
been a successor. Anyhow, the Exchequer Bolls let us
know that, in the year 1358, the Prior of Inchemacolmock
was accused of deforcing the representative of the Sheriff
of Perth.1 It would be interesting to have the whole story
of the violence offered to the minion of the law by this
holy prior, but the record gives no detailed information.2
In the same year that this happened there was resident
at Inchmahome one who was destined some years later to
become the King of Scotland. This was Eobert the High
Steward, the grandson of King Eobert Bruce, who had
just been been 'created Earl of Strathern by David II.,
and afterwards, in 1371, ascended the throne as Kobert the
Second. As overlord to the granter he gave his assent to
the gift of certain lands, " apud Insulam Sancti Colmaci,"
on the 12th of November, 1358.3 The Steward was to
make a still closer connection with the district, as his son
Eobert, the famous Duke of Albany of a later period, in
J361 married the Lady Margaret Graham, and through that
matrimonial alliance became the tenth Earl of Menteith.
By some writers the Priory is said to have witnessed
a royal marriage in 1363, namely, the marriage of King
David II. with Margaret Logy. The bride certainly had
1 Exchequer Rolls, vol. i. p. 558.
•Perhaps it was in connection with the collection— by this time grown some-
what difficult — of the ransom for King David II. In consequence of this difficulty,
David had been permitted by the Pope to levy, for a space of three years, a tenth
of all the ecclesiastical benefices in Scotland. But the King, not content with
that, compelled the churches, in addition to their tenth, to contribute in the same
proportion as the barons and free tenants of the crown, for their lands and
temporalities.— Fordun.
3 Liber Insulae Missarum, p. xlv.
K
148 The Lake of Menteith.
a local connection, for she was the daughter of Malcolm
of Drummond, the benefactor of the Priory, and the widow
of Sir John Logie of Logie and Strathgartney.1 But it
was not at Inchmahome that the marriage was celebrated.
The mistake has arisen from confounding the name of
the place as given by Fordun,2 Inchmurdach or Inchmachac,
with Inchmahome. Inchmurdach, however, appears to
have been a seat of the Bishops of St. Andrews, though
its precise locality is unknown.8
Another donation fell to the Priory about this time.
That was a grant by David II. of seven hundred shillings
sterling to be paid to the prior annually — the name of the
prior at the time is not stated — out of the proceeds of
the Sheriff offices of Fife and Perth.4 The grant, however,
was recalled in 1367, at the time when the most strenuous
efforts were being made to retrieve the dilapidation of the
revenues of the Crown.
From this time onwards, for about a century, there is
a blank in the annals of the Priory. Of the ecclesiastics
who ruled its affairs during that period, not a name
survives, nor is any document known to be extant that
so much as mentions the existence of the place. It is
to " The Acts of the Lords of Council in Civil Causes,"
1 Exchequer Rolls, vol. ii., introd., pp. Iv. et seq.
* Scotichronicon a Goodall (Lib. xiv. cap. xxxiv.), vol. ii. p. 379.
'Geographical Illustrations of Scottish History, by David Macpherson (1798),
sub voce.
4 Robertson's Index of Missing Chatters (1798), p. 51, No. 22 : " To the Prior
of Inchmahome of ane annual of 700 s. sterling furth of the Sheriffs offices of
Fyfe and Perth." Mr. M'Gregor Stirling, on the authority of a MS. Index of
Charters he had seen, puts the grant at one hundred shillings sterling.— Notes
on Inchmahome, p. 119.
The Lake of Menteith. 149
" The Acts of the Lords Auditors of Causes and Com-
plaints," and, especially, the " Protocol Books of the
Burgh of Stirling," that the next information regarding
the Priory of Inchmahome is due.1 It is to be hoped
that the disappearance of the Priory for so long from the
public records may be owing to the circumstance that the
priors of that time were men of peace, and that the convent
was undisturbed in any of its rights and possessions. And
it may be further observed that this blank period is about
co-extensive with the possession of the earldom of Men-
teith by the Albanies, whose powerful influence may have
availed to keep the monastery quiet and secure ; while
the fact that their usual places of residence were in other
parts of the country may explain the absence of the name
of Inchmahome from the records of their public trans-
actions.
PRIOR JOHN AND PRIOR THOMAS.
It is significant of the local disturbances that must
have accompanied the fall of the Albanies, that the first
notices of the monastery that occur thereafter point to
disputes regarding the priorate. A Prior John was in
office apparently about the middle of the fifteenth century.
How long he held the position is not known ; but he had
to face a rival claimant for the Priory. This rival makes
his first appearance — so far as is known to us — in the
1 The record of The Acts of the Lords of Council in Civil Causes (Ada
Dominorum Concilii) extends from 1478 to 1495 ; The Acts of the Lords
Auditors of Causes and Complaints (Acta Auditorum Concilii) cover the
period from 1466 to 1494 ; and the entries in The Protocol Books of the
Burgh of Stirling begin in 1460.
150 The Lake of Menteith.
Muniments of the University of Glasgow, where he is noted
as one of the persons who were incorporated with that
University in the rectorship of Master William Arthurle,
anno 1469 : — " Thomas prior insule Sancti Colmoci ordinis
Sancti Augustini."1 But John claimed to be the rightful
holder of the dignity. In the Stirling Protocol Book there is
an entry, under date 6th of November, 1472, which informs
us that in a Consistorial Court held in the Cathedral Church
of Dunblane, George of Abirnethe, Provost of the Collegiate
Church of Dumbertane, appeared as procurator for John,
Prior of the monastery of Inchmahomok, anent certain
sums due by the tenants of the said monastery and
William of Edmonstoune of Duntreth, asserted procurator
of Sir Thomas Dog, Prior of the said monastery.2 Dene
Thomas had thus the powerful backing of the Steward
of the Lordship of Menteith, and appears for a time to
have prevailed. Whether Prior John had died — as seems
likely — or had been otherwise got rid of, there is no means
of knowing; but the right of Prior Thomas seems to have
been unchallenged for several years. His name appears
as witness in Protocol entries of date 15th December,
1476 ;8 27th October, 1477 ;4 and 19th December, 1477.5
On the 14th December, 1477, " Thomas, Prior of Inchma-
home," presented John Edmonston, M.A., to the vicarage
of the Parish Church of Luntrethyn, and on the same
day he took instruments that William Edmonston of
1 Munimenta Alme Universitatis Glasguensis (Maitland Club, 1854), vol. ii. p. 76.
2 Abstract of the Protocol Book of the Burgh of Stirling, 1896, p. 13, No. 63.
* Ibid, p. 32. */&#, p. 35.
6 Ibid, p. 36. Prior Thomas' name as witness to these deeds has been
supplied from the MS. Protocols by Mr. W. B. Cook.
The Lake of Menteith. 151
Duntreth had promised to defend the honour of the said
Prior.1 This looks to trouble. The fact is, there was
another claimant of the priorate in the person of Sir
Alexander Ruch, who ultimately prevailed in the Ecclesi-
astical Courts, and the usurpation of Prior Thomas came
to an end immediately after the transactions referred to.
PRIOR ALEXANDER.
In an Act of the Lords of Council,2 dated 22nd March,
1478, they gave decree "in an action and cause persewit
be Dene David Ruch, as procurator for Dene Alexander
Ruck, Prior of InchmaquholmoJc," against Matthew
Forester,8 burgess of Stirling, for wrongously intermitting
with the teinds of Eow. Forester, it seems, had got a
lease of these teinds from Prior Thomas, but the Lords
decided that the tack was of no avail to him, " because
the Priory of Inchmaquhomock was opteinit and wounyn
fra the said dene Thomas dog be two, sentence definitive
in the Court of Rome befor that he maid the said tak to
the said Mathow." He was therefore ordered to restore
the teinds, or the value of them, to the Prior or his pro-
curator. After the right to the teinds of Row had been
thus vindicated, it is satisfactory to learn that an amicable
arrangement was come to between the litigants. Procurator
David Ruch agreed to discharge all claims against Matthew
Forester, and to let him the teinds on the same terms on
1 Abstract of the Protocol Book of the Burgh of Stirling, 1896, p. 36, No. 193.
-Acta Dominorum Concilii, p. 24.
3 Matthew Forrester was Provost of Stirling in 1470-1, and again in 1478-9.
—Extracts from Stirling Records, vol. i. pp. 272, 273.
152 The Lake of Menteith.
which he had held them from Sir Thomas Dog. Moreover,
for the good deeds done to the Convent by the said
Matthew, it was resolved to pay him the sum of forty
marks — twenty in money, and the other twenty in the
form of a grant of teinds free of rent for one year.
This Prior Alexander is evidently the same as appears
in the printed Fragments of Stirling Protocols as Sir
Alexander Ruth — most probably from an error on the part
of the transcriber. The forms of the letters c and t in
the old writing are very easy to be mistaken, the one for
the other. And Euch (now spelled Rough) is a good
Scotch name ; whereas Euth is, if not unknown, at least
uncommon in Scotland. The reference in this Protocol
entry is also to tithes belonging to the Priory. It is
dated 29th April, 1479, and the abstract sets forth that
" Mr John Euth, vicar of Garreoch, and Sir David Euth,
monk of Dunfermlyne, procurator for Sir Alexander Euth,
Prior of the Isle of St. Colmoc, of Dunblane diocese, con-
fessed them paid by Sir James Ogilvy of Ernby, knight,
of the sum of £30 Scots, for lease of the tiend sheaves
of the Parish Church of Leuchris, for two terms bypast
and one term to come."1 Here Dene David again appears
as procurator for the Prior, in conjunction with John Euch,
who had attained the degree of Master. We may conclude
that in all likelihood they were brothers, or perhaps
nephews, of Prior Alexander.
In the sederunt of the Parliament which met on the
1 Extracts from Stirling Records, 1519-1666, app. i. p. 264. The Abstract
of Protocols, which has been printed since the publication of the " Extracts,"
gives the name as Rucht, thus confirming the Act of Parliament.
The Lake of Menteith. 153
13th April, 1481, l in order to concert measures for putting
the country in a posture of defence against the " auld
enemy," appears a Prior of Inchinahome ( Prior e de Inclima-
quholmo), along with the Earl of Menteith. Considering
the closeness of the date, this was most probably Prior
Alexander. But as the name is not mentioned in the
record, room is left for the possibility that it may have
been his successor, whose name appears to have been
David.
PRIOR DAVID.
Prior David was certainly in office in 1483, for he is
mentioned in the Protocols on the 8th of June of that
year as requiring from one Duncan Forestar, burgess of
Stirling, a certain some of money from the goods of the
Prior then in Forestar's hands.2 In his time, litigation
regarding the revenues and possessions of the monastery
was continued, and became rather intricate. The first
of these lawsuits was decided by the Lords of Council
on the 18th of March, 1490.8 The opponent of the Prior
in this case was John Haldane of Gleneagles. Haldane
had married (1460) Agnes, the heiress of the Menteiths of
Eusky, and had thus acquired an interest in lands in the
district.4 The dispute was about the teinds of the kirks
1 Acts of the Parliaments of Scotland, vol. ii. p. 134.
'Duncan Forestare was Provost of Stirling in 1477-8, 1479-81, 1487-90.
— Extracts from Records of the Burgh of Stirling, 1619-1666, app. ii. p. 273.
*Acta Dominorum Concilii, p. 184.
* John Haldane and his spouse had before this afforded much employment
to the Law Courts : see various entries in the Protocol Books of Stirling from
1476 onwards. — Extracts from Stirling Records, vol. i. app. i. pp. 256, 260, 261,
262, 264.
154 The Lake of Menteith.
of Leny and Kilmadook. The Prior claimed, in name
of these teinds, thirteen chalders of meal, which Haldane
affirmed he had already paid to Henry,1 Abbot of Cambus-
kenneth, factor for the Prior of Inchmahome — with the
exception of five chalders and thirteen bolls, which the
Abbot had assigned to Dene Gilbert Buchanan, a canon
of Inchmahome, who was in charge of the Church of
Leny. Haldane's contention was upheld by the Court.
He was ordained to pay the proportion assigned to the
parson of Leny, and discharged of what was already paid,
for which the Prior, if he thought proper, might have
recourse against the Abbot, his factor.
The next action was in defence of the property of the
monastery. On the 20th of June, 1491, the Prior and
Convent complained against Kobert Buchanan of Leny for
purchasing the King's letter to eject the above-mentioned
Dene Gilbert Buchanan from part of the lands of Leny,
lying beside the church, of which they alleged they had
long been in possession. The Lords decided that the King's
letter had been improperly procured, and was of no effect,
and that Dene Gilbert and the Convent were to remain
in possession until, at any rate, the case was settled in
the next Justice-ayre to be held at Stirling.2
Before this case was settled, a dispute arose with John
1 Abbot Henry of Cambuskenneth appears to have been himself rather a
litigious person. He had a long dispute with the community of Stirling con-
cerning their respective rights to fishings in the Forth.— Stirling Charters and
other Records, 1124-1705, p. 54, &c.
*Acta Dominorum Concilii, p. 201. Dean Gilbert Buchanan, vicar of Leny and
canon of Inchmahome, was the sixth son of Andrew Buchanan, second laird of
Leny, and uncle of the above-mentioned Robert, who was the fourth laird,
The Lake of Menteith. 155
Lord Drummond, who was bailie on some of the Priory
lands. He claimed the rents of certain lands which had
been assigned to him as his bailie-fee, and this claim the
Convent resisted. It would appear that he was receiving
more from the tithes of these lands than the Prior and
Convent thought he was entitled to, and to get even
with him, they let a portion of them to John Haldane
of Gleneagles. Thus the quarrel first came before the
Lords Auditors, on the 5th of May, 1491, l as a complaint
by John Haldane against John Lord Drummond, for with-
holding from him the tithes of Collouth, Borrowbanks,
Lochfield, Wat Dog's toune, Wat Smith's toune, and the
Spittals — all in the parish of Kilrnadock — which he had
received in assedation from David, Prior of Inchmaholmo,
for three years, the value of these tithes being equal to
one chalder of meal and two bolls of here yearly. It was
found that Haldane had no claim, as Lord Drummond held
these teinds in his fee for nineteen years, and his grant
preceded the tack to Haldane.
Driven thus into the open, the Prior next took action
directly against Lord Drummond himself. The feeling
became very bitter, if we may draw such a conclusion
from the fact that on the 19th of January, 1492, the Prior
of Inchmaholmo, in presence of the Lords of Council, took
instruments that Lord Drummond produced an instrument
in the form of excommunication upon the said Prior and
Convent.2 What that meant or how it was procured is not
easy to say, but it certainly has a serious look about it.
Auditorum Concilii, p. 147. 2Acta Dominorum Concilii, p. 226.
156 The Lake of Menteith.
On the 25th of January, 1492, the dispute came before
the Lords of Council1 in the form of an " action of the
Prior and Convent of Inchmaquholmo against John Lord
Drummond, for the wrangous uptaking of the teinds and
frottis (fruits) of their lands of the Lochfield, the Banks,
Calquhollat, the twa Collatts, and the Spittale tounis of
the last year bygane " — amounting to five chalders of meal
and a chalder of bere.2 The bailie-fee of Lord Drummond,
it appears, was four chalders of meal, and in payment of
it the Prior and Convent, by letters under their common
seal, had assigned to him these teinds, which were sup-
posed to be of the same value. Lord Drummond, however,
by careful management, or by a stricter exaction of the
dues, had increased the value of the teinds to the amount
above stated. The Convent now wished to recall the grant.
But the Lords decided that Lord Drummond had " done
na wrang," but they added that when the teinds of these
places amounted to more than the value of his fee of
baliary, he should pay the surplus to the Convent.
Once more Prior David appears before the Lords
Auditors, when, on the 21st June, 1493, he "granted that
he had in fermance and keeping Dene Patrick Menteth,
channone of the said place (Inchmahome) as ordinary to
him, quhare apone Maister David Menteth, allegeand him
procurator for the said Dene Patrick, askit a not and of
the privilege of law."8
1 Acta Dominorum Concilii, p. 265.
* The names of these places and others before mentioned are interesting as
showing some of the possessions of the monastery at that time.
8 Acta Auditorum Concilii, p. 181.
The Lake of Menteith. 157
With that case this litigious Prior disappears from the
public records. Whether he died shortly after, or, tired
of his legal encounters, thenceforth cultivated a meeker
spirit, there is no means of knowing. We do not meet
with the name of a successor till 1526.
PRIOR ANDREW.
This successor, whose name is Andrew, may have been
in office for a good many years previous to 1526. From
the fact that he held office for less than three years after
that date, we may be justified in assuming that it was so.
But even on the supposition that the transaction in which
Andrew is introduced to us was at or near the beginning of
his priorate, the length of time between that and the last
recorded lawsuit of Prior David, does not make it impossible
that the latter may have lived to be succeeded by the
former. In all the circumstances, therefore, it is likely
that there is no break here in the continuity of the
Priors, and that Andrew was the immediate successor of
David.
On the 16th of April, 1526, " Andro, be the permissioun
of God, Prior of Inchemahomo, with full consent and assent
of all our Convent cheptourlie gadderit, granted a lease to
1 Andro Stewart and Elezabetht Maistertoun his spous ' of
the lands of Drumlanniklocht, with twenty shillings' worth
of the lands of Arniclerycht, in their barony of Cardross,
for the term of nineteen years, at an annual rent of fifty
shillings, 'gud and usuall mony of Scotland.'"1 This
1 Lease printed in the Red Book of Menteith, vol. ii. p. 329, from the original
in H.M. General Register House, Edinburgh.
158 The Lake of Menteith.
lease, to which the common seal of the Chapter was
" affixit and hungyn," is signed by the Prior and ten
canons — presumably the whole Chapter. Their names
are as follows : —
ANDREW, PRIOR OF INCHEMAHOMO.
DENE JAMES BAD, SUB-PRIOR. DENE JAMES THOMSOUN.
DENE JOHN HUTOUN. DENE THOMAS MAKCLELLANE.
DENE DUNCANE PRYNGYLL. DENE ADAM CRISTESON.
DENE JHON YONGMAN. DENE JAMES BRADFUT.
DENE ADAM PEBLIS. DENE JHONE MONT.
Prior Andrew must have died in 1528, or very early
in 1529. He was the last of the strictly ecclesiastical
priors. On his death the Priory was given in commendam,
and the list of the Commendators is complete. They were
all but one members of the same family, and that one held
his office for so short a time that the family possession
of the Erskines can hardly be said to have been interrupted.
159
CHAPTER VI.
The Priory under Commendators —
1529 to 1628.
" For holy offices I have a time : a time
To think upon the part of business which
I bear i' the State."
COMMENDATOR EoBEBT EESKINE.
the first of the Commen-
dator-Priors, is dated by Sir William Fraser
1531-1547.1 The first of these dates is certainly
wrong: the second is probably also incorrect.
The same writer further assumes that this Commendator
was that Eobert, Master of Erskine, who fell on the field
of Pinkie-cleuch in 1547, and who was said to have been
beloved of the Queen Dowager, Mary of Lorraine.2 The
1 Red Book, vol. i. p. 522. Eraser's authority is the Fragmenta Scoto-
Monastica, app. p. viii. The statement founded on is contained in a letter from
David Erskine, W.S., to Captain Hutton. All that the writer says, however, is
merely that Robert was Commendator in September 1331,
2" In that same battel," says John Knox, "was slayne the Maister of Erskin,
deirlie belovit of the Quein ; for quhome sche maid grit Lamentatioun and bure
his deythe mony Dayis in Mynd." — Knox's History of the Reformation, edit. 1732,
p. 79. See also the poem of Alexander Scott, entitled " Lament of the Maister
of Erskyn," which depicts a lover's feelings on parting with his mistress in a state
of uncertainty whether they shall ever meet again, and is believed to have been
written with reference to the last parting of Erskine and the Queen Dowager. —
The Poems of Alexander Scott (Scottish Text Society, ed. 1896), p. 51.
160 The Lake of Menteith.
ground for this assumption appears to be that there is no
extant record in which John Erskine, the second Com-
mendator, is mentioned as such, until the visit of the young
Queen Mary to the island; and, as that was immediately
after the death of Eobert, it is inferred that John stepped
at once into an office which had been, up till that time,
held by his brother. It must be noted, however — and this
Sir William Eraser himself observes — that, while several
writs are extant in which Eobert, Master of Erskine, is
mentioned, there is not one in which he is at the same
time designated Prior of Inchmahome.1
The assumption of identity with the Master of Erskine
cannot be held as anything more than a guess, and indeed
there is ground for believing that it is an incorrect one.
The Eobert Erskine who became Commendator of Inch-
mahome was previously rector of Glenbervy in the Mearns,
and received his appointment to Inchmahome early in the
year 1529. In one of the Protocol Books of Stirling the
following record of his induction is found under date 15th
of March of that year : —
" Eobert, rector of Gilbervy and perpetual Commendator
of the Priory of the Isle of St. Colmoc, of Dunblane diocese,
holding in his hands certain Apostolic letters or bulls [of
Clement the Seventh] , past to the presence of Mr. Eobert
lOn the 2oth of May, 1536, King James V. granted to Robert, Master of
Erskine, and his wife, Margaret Graham, the lands of the barony of Kelle, which
his father, John Lord Erskine, had resigned — perhaps as a marriage provision
for his son. (Reg. Mag. Sig., vol. iii., No. 1584, p. 353). Again, on the 23rd
February, 1541-2, the King granted him, for himself and his heirs, a charter of
the lands of Schirgartane, Drumb de Kippan, and Arnebeg, with the mill of the
same. These lands were in the neighbourhood of the Priory possessions ; but
in this charter, as in the former, he is designated only Master of Erskine. (Reg.
Mag. Sig., vol. iii., No. 2602, p. 598.)
The Lake of Menleith. 161
Graham, vicar of Drurnmond (Drymen), and required him
to put the said letters to due execution, who, receiving
them with the reverence that became them, past to the
high altar of the church of the said Priory, and gave
institution and investiture of the said Priory and monastery
thereof, with fruits, rents, prevents and emoluments, lands,
baronies, &c., by delivery of a silver chalice gilt, missal
book, and sacred ornaments of the said high altar, as use
is, to the said Eobert Erskine, rector of Gilbervy, and
invested him in possession thereof; in presence of Alex-
ander, Earl of Menteith, &C."1
The question, therefore, is, who was this Master Bobert
Erskine, rector of Glenbervy? It is scarcely likely that
the Master of Erskine — the eldest son and heir-apparent
of an illustrious noble — would have held so small an
ecclesiastical benefice as this rural parsonage. But beyond
this general consideration, and the fact that the Master of
Erskine is never in any writ styled Prior of Inchmahome,
we have some independent information regarding the rector
of Glenbervy. He is met with frequently in the Public
Eecords, and almost invariably in the company of Sir
Thomas Erskine of Haltoun, lord of Brechin, who became
Secretary to King James the Fifth in 1524.
The first occurrence of his name is in the Register of
the Great Seal, when he witnesses a deed executed on
the 31st of March, 1525, and confirmed by the King on
the 30th of April following — other two witnesses being
Master Thomas Erskine de Haltoun and George Arrot
'Extracts from Stirling Burgh Records, vol. ii. p. 265.
162 The Lake of Menteith.
de eodem.1 The next document is still more conclusive
of his near relation to Sir Thomas of Haltoun and the
family of Dun to which Sir Thomas belonged. It is
quoted by Mr. A. H. Millar, apparently from the family
papers preserved at Dun House. " In 1526," he says,
uan instrument of sasine was executed in favour of the
Provost and Canons of St. Salvator's College, St. Andrews,
on precept of John Erskine of Dun, who was represented
by ' the noble lady Margarete, Countess of Buchquhan,
the venerable Mr. Robert Erskine, rector of Glenbervy,
and that honourable man Richard Mailuil de Baldouy.'"2
This John Erskine of Dun was the afterwards famous
Superintendent. He was at this time in his seventeenth
year. Sir Thomas Erskine of Haltoun was his uncle and
legal tutor. The Countess of Buchan was his mother,
and she is here associated with the parson of Glenbervy
as one of the youth's representatives in a way that seems
to argue near relationship. The Melvilles we know were
neighbours and close friends of the family.
The most common names in the Erskine family appear
to have been John, Robert, Thomas, and Alexander. John
Erskine of Dun, who fell at Flodden, is said to have had
several sons — the exact number is not by any genealogical
writer stated. Two of these, John and Alexander, were
slain along with their father in the battle ; Thomas of
'Reg. Mag. Sig., No. 306, p. 306. In the print of this deed Master Robert's
name is given as £rs/y—a.n apparent mistake for Erskine. Arrot was held in
vassalage of the lordship of Brechin, and lies in that parish. The Arrots were
superseded in the possession of their property by the Erskines of Dun. (Jervise's
Memorials of Angus and Mearns, vol. ii. p. 60.)
2 Millar's Castles and Mansions of Scotland, 1890, p. 348.
The Lake of Menteith. 163
Haltoun, the King's Secretary, was a third ; and if there
was a fourth son, his name is likely to have been Kobert,
and we are at liberty to conjecture that he may have been
this very rector of Glenbervy. At any rate, his close
connection with the family of Dun, and with Sir Thomas
Erskine in particular, is made clear by the association of
the two names in no fewer than eight deeds recorded under
the Great Seal between 1541 and 1544.1 In these deeds
it is to be observed that he is not styled Prior of Inch-
mahome, but Dean of Aberdeen, and that continued to be
his designation to the end of his life. In July, 1547, he
was instructed by the Bishop of Aberdeen to receive, in
his capacity as head of the Chapter, a new canon;2 and
in an inventory of the ornaments of the altar of St.
Maurice, made in 1549, occurs the following note of a
gift made by him — " cum duobus antependiis, quorum
unum ex dono venerabilis viri magistri Roberti Ersleyne,
decani Aberdonensis moderni."3 In 1552, he subscribes an
assedation made by the Bishop as decanus Aberdonensis.4
He still, however, held his old rectory, for he appears in
the Kegister of Brechin as " Prebendary of Glenbervy "
in 1556.5 On the eve of the KeformatioD, the Chapter of
the Cathedral of Aberdeen directed a memorial of advice
to the Bishop, making certain recommendations of reforms
which they thought might avail to stay or avert the
*Reg. Mag. Sig., vol. Hi., No. 2430, p. 556 (anno 1541) ; No. 2347, p. 536
(1541); No. 2432, p. 557 (1541); No. 2433, p. 557 (1541); No. 2439, p. 558
(1541) ; No. 2678, p. 618 (1542) ; No. 2973, p. 296 (1543) ; No. 3050, p. 74 (1544).
2Registrum Episcopatus Aberdonensis (Spalding Club, 1845), vol. ii. p. 318.
* Ibid) vol. ii. p. 199. *Ibid, vol. i. p. 456.
6 Registrum Episcopatus Brechinensis (Bannatyne Club, 1856), vol. ii. p. 204.
L
164 The Lake of Mentellh.
storm which they clearly saw was approaching. The first
signature to this important document — dated 5th January,
1558 — is that of Eobert Erskyne, "decanus Aberdonensis."1
Not improbably it was drawn up by Erskine himself ; and
the fact that it has been preserved among the collections
at the House of Dun may be another proof of his near
relationship to that family.2 His name is last met with in
the Brechin Register in April, 1585, where he is spoken
of as quondam Master Eobert Erskine, Dean of Aberdeen,
from which we may conclude that he was dead before
that time.8
The inference from these facts seems to be this, that
the Lord Erskine to whom James the Fifth is said to
have given the patronage of the Priory of Inchmahome,
put the rector of Glenbervy into the Commendatorship
to keep the place warm for his third son, John, who — as
a younger son, with two elder brothers between him and
the succession to his father — was being educated for the
Church; and that, when John Erskine was ripe for the
position, Eobert retired in his favour, or was superseded,
and probably received the Deanery of Aberdeen in com-
1 Reg. Epis. Aberd., vol. i. p. Ixi.
8 Jervise states distinctly that Robert Erskine, rector of Glenbervy, "belonged
to the family of Dun" (Memorials of Angus and Mearns, vol. i., p. 147). He adds
that he held in addition the provostry of the Collegiate Church of the Holy Trinity,
near Edinburgh, and was also apparently Dean of Aberdeen. The latter part of
this statement is sufficiently proved by the references to the Records given above.
Another document may be quoted in which Robert Erskine is brought into con-
nection with Dun. This is a lease of the fruits of the parsonage and vicarage of
Arbuthnott for three years by Wilzem Rynd, parson of Arbuthnott, and Robert
Erskine, Dean of Aberdeen, in favour of John Erskine of Dun. The lease is
dated at Brechin, 23rd April, 1552, and is in the Dun collection. (Historical
Manuscripts Commission, Fifth Report, p. 640).
* Regist. Episc. Brech., vol. ii. p. 348.
The Lake of Menteith. 165
pensation for the loss of Inchmahome. This would date
Eobert's tenure of the office from 1529 to about 1540 or
1541.
There are but few indications of what was going on
at the Priory during the time of this Commendator. Of
the canons who witnessed the lease already referred to as
granted by Prior Andrew,1 one is mentioned as witness to
a precept of sasine by Alexander, Earl of Menteith, to
William, Master of Menteith, and Margaret Mowbry, his
spouse, of certain lands specified. The precept was dated
" at Inchmaquhomok, 5th May, 1533, before Walter
Graham, the earl's son, John Hutoun, Canon professed of
the said monastery, and others " : — sasine recorded on 16th
and 17th July, 1533.2 Two others, John Youngman and
James Thomsoun, witnessed a deed of Earl Alexander,
on the 21st of August, 1534, in the court of the monastery
of St. Colmoc, on the island called Inchmoquhomok.3
A statement regarding George Buchanan's connection
with Cardross in the time of Commendator Eobert Erskine,
made originally by Dr. Eobert Anderson, is only partially
correct. As it refers to the foremost literary Scotchman
of his time, and has been repeated with several aggrava-
tions by Mr. M'Gregor Stirling and Sir William Fraser,
it may be of interest to examine it. Anderson, in the
"Life of Smollett," which takes up the first volume of his
edition (first published in 1796) of that author's works,
after stating that Buchanan was born at Moss in the
parish of Killearn, goes on to say that " having lost his
p. 157. * Extracts from Stirling Records, vol. i. app. i. p. 268.
3 Eraser's Red Book of Menteith, vol. i. p. 523.
166 The Lake of Menteith.
parents in infancy " (his father only ; his mother long
survived), " he was educated by James Heriot, his maternal
uncle. It is not generally known that his family was bred
on a lease of two farms hard by Cardross, granted by
Robert Erskine, Commendator of Dryburgh and Inchma-
home, to Agnes Heriot and her sons Patrick, Alexander,
and George Buchanan, in 1631." * Dr. David Irving,
whose " Memoirs of George Buchanan" were first published
in 1807, makes the same statement — expressly on Ander-
son's authority : — " In the year 1531, a lease of two farms
near Cardross was granted by Eobert Erskine, Commen-
dator of Dryburgh and Inchmahome, to Agnes Heriot and
three of her sons, Patrick, Alexander, and George."2
M'Gregor Stirling quotes Anderson, but gives the date
as 1581. 3 Sir William Eraser follows, and although he
puts Anderson's date (1531) in brackets, he seems to take
M'Gregor Stirling's 1581 as correct, for he adds in a note
that Eobert "is evidently a mistake for David, the writer
being misled by the wrong year."4 David certainly was
Commendator in 1581, but by that time Agnes Heriot was
far away from any region where leases are granted, and
her son, George Buchanan, was very near the end of his
earthly tenure. He died in 1582. Notwithstanding this
dreadful confusion of date, Stirling thinks it was to his
early connection with Cardross and the Erskines that
Buchanan was probably indebted for the positions he
1 Works of Smollett, ed. by Robert Anderson, M.D., 6th edit., 1820, p. 10, note.
" living's Memoirs of George Buchanan, ed. 1837, p. 4.
* Notes on the Priory of Inchmahome, p. 59.
4 Red Book, vol. i. p. 522, note.
The Lake of Menteith. 167
subsequently held as professional scholar to Queen Mary,
and tutor to her son, James the Sixth ; while Eraser
introduces the quotation from the "Life of Smollett" with
the remark, " this Commendator (Robert) has received
from the biographer of the great scholar the credit of
having materially assisted in the education of Buchanan
and his family." Dr. Irving, who appears to be referred
to, does not — and neither does Dr. Anderson — make any
such remark. He could not have done so in the face of
his own dates. In 1531 — the date of the lease referred to —
George Buchanan was twenty -five years of age; he had
been, for some years before that date, a professor in the
College of St. Barbe at Paris, and at that very time was
engaged as tutor to the Earl of Cassilis. Anderson merely
says that the family was bred on a lease at Cardross.
But notwithstanding the errors which the later writers
have introduced into the account, Anderson's statement
is, so far as it goes, correct enough. He does not seem,
however, to have been aware that part of Buchanan's
infancy really was spent at Cardross. The lease of 1531
was merely a renewal of one previously existing. George's
name appears on the later lease with the prefix of Maister
— he was then a graduate ; and he certainly was not living
at Cardross at that time. Whether he ever revisited it
we have no information to show. The original lease was
granted in 1513,1 long before Commendator Eobert's time,
1 These leases are in the possession of H. D. Erskine, Esq., of Cardross.
In the earlier lease the principal farm is called Gartladerland, alias Hill: in
the renewal, Oflferone of Gartladernick. This, with the Mill of Arnprior, consti-
tuted the farm of the Buchanans. Gartladernick appears to be the same place as,
in a charter by Commendator David to John Lord Erskine ($th August, 1562),
168 The Lake of Menteith.
and the name of George — although he was then a child
of only seven years of age — appears on it, along with
those of his mother and brothers. There is thus every
probability that the childhood of Buchanan, until he went
to Paris in 1520, that is, from his seventh to his fourteenth
year, was spent at Hill of Cardross. It is quite possible,
therefore, that he may have received at least part of his
early education in some school under the superintendence
of the monks of Inchmahome — perhaps at Port, where
there was a Church. Biographers in general say that
he was educated in the schools of Killearn and Dumbarton.
But there is no reputable authority for the statement.
Killearn was unlikely, after the removal to Cardross, and
for a more advanced school, Stirling was more accessible
than Dumbarton. He himself gives no information on
the subject. In the somewhat meagre autobiography
written two years before his death, he merely says that
he was brought up in scholia patriis — in the schools of
his country — until, at the age of fourteen, he was sent to
Paris by his uncle, James Heriot.1 It was to Cardross,
no doubt, that he returned, broken down in health, in
1522, and here, after this short campaign in England with
the French auxiliaries, he spent the winter of 1523 confined
to his bed. Hither, also, he might occasionally come when
studying at St. Andrews. But he left for the Continent
is denominated Gartcledeny — terrarum de Gartcledeny cum molendino de Arne-
priour. The name appears now to be lost, but the alias Hill survives in Hilltown
of Cardross. In the Rental of the Feu-duties of Inchmahome— October, 1646 :
Retour by David Lord Cardross, appears the item—" The landis off Gartle-
denye, alias Hiltoun."
Buchanan! Opera a Ruddiman, vol. i. p. i.
The Lake of Menteith. 169
in the summer of 1525, and there is nothing to indicate
that he ever saw the place again.
In the passages quoted from Anderson and Irving,
Eobert Erskine is styled Commendator of Dryburgh as
well as Inchmahome. But that is a mistake. The Com-
mendator of Dryburgh in 1531 was James Stewart.1
Thomas Erskine, however — who may have been the im-
mediately younger brother of Eobert, and who became
Master of Erskine on the death of the latter at Pinkie —
was made Commendator of that Abbey in 1541 :2 and
from his time onwards, the Abbey was held, almost with-
out interruption, by members of the same Erskine family.
COMMENDATOB JOHN ERSKINE.
Eobert Erskine was succeeded in the Commendatorship
of Inchmahome by John, the third son of John, fourth
Lord Erskine. He seems also to have succeeded Thomas
in the Abbey of Dryburgh in 1548 ;8 and along with
these two ecclesiastical offices, he held also that of Com-
mendator of the Abbey of Cambuskenneth. By the death
of his brother Thomas, he became Master of Erskine in
1551, and in the year following succeeded his father as
fifth Lord Erskine. Afterwards as Earl of Mar — created
1 Liber S. Marie de Dryburgh, Bannatyne Club ed., 1847, p. xxii.
* Ibid, p. xxii. In Theiner's Vetera Monumenta, Nos. 1057 and 1059, p. 612,
are two letters from James V. asking Pope Paul III. to sanction the appointment
as Commendator of Dryburgh of Thomas Erskine, who is described as a member
of an illustrious family, and odolescentem nobilem, animi et corporis -viribus
pollentem, qualities very necessary for the defence of a place so exposed to
incursions from across the borders. And, indeed, Thomas had his troubles
with the English marauders, who plundered and burned his Abbey in 1544.
'Liber S. Marie de Dryburgh, p. xxiv.
170 The Lake of Mentelth.
in 1565 — and Kegent of the Kingdom, he made a great
figure in the politics of the country. It is not, however,
the purpose of this history to follow his distinguished
career in statesmanship, but merely to note the facts of
his connection with Inchmahome.
It has already been mentioned that he was educated
in his youth for the Church, so that he may be said to
have had a professional training for his pluralities. He
held the office of Cominendator till 1555 — three years after
he had become Lord Erskine — when he resigned it to his
nephew David.
Signature of Cominendator JohnlErsklne.
In 1541 the Priory was the scene of the marriage of
Margaret Grahame, daughter of William, Earl of Menteith,
to Archibald, Earl of Argyle, which, according to the Stirling
Protocol Book, was solemnized at the church of Inchma-
home on the 21st of April of that year, after proclamation
three times made at the churches of Port and Dollar
(? — apud Ecclesiam de Port et Dolarie), the celebrant
being Sir John Youngman, canon of Inchmahome.1
But by far the most interesting incident in the history
of the Priory during the time it was held by John Erskine
— if not the most interesting in the whole of its history —
1 Red Book, vol. i. p. 523.
The Lake of Menteith. 171
was the residence, for a short period, within its walls of
the youthful Mary, Queen of Scots.
At the time of the battle of Pinkie (10th September,
1547), Mary was in Stirling Castle, under the guardianship
of Lords Erskine and Livingston, who had been entrusted
with "the keiping of our Sovrane Ladies persoun, in
cumpany with the Quenis Grace hir moder," rather more
than two years previously.1 After that disastrous battle,
Stirling was no longer deemed a safe residence for the
royal child, and she was removed to the island of Inch-
mahome. This was done most probably on the suggestion
of her devoted " keeper," Lord Erskine, that she might be
surrounded and protected by his own family and friends.
Otherwise, it is not quite easy to see why Inchmahome
should have been reckoned a more secure refuge than the
Castle of Stirling. Hill Burton endeavours to explain it
by saying — " The place selected as of greater security was
a flat island called Inchmahome, in the Lake of Monteith,
half-way between Stirling and the Highlands. From such
a spot no enemy could be assailed as from a fortress ; yet,
on the principle of the lake-dwellings of older ages, it
was deemed less assailable than a fortress on land or an
island approachable by sea."2 But, indeed, it could have
offered only a slight resistance to any army that would
have been thought strong enough to assault the fortress
of Stirling. Lord Erskine, as responsible for the safe
keeping of the infant Queen, most probably brought her
1 Acts of the Parliaments of Scotland, vol. ii. p. 463. Register of the Privy
Council, vol. i. p. n.
2 Hill Burton's History of Scotland, vol. iii. p. 275.
172 The Lake of Menteith.
here that she might be free from the discomfort and danger
of a possible siege of Stirling, and at the same time within
easy reach of the Highland hills, into whose fastnesses
she could readily be conveyed from her island retreat.
Much fable of a romantic and poetical kind has gathered
round Mary's residence on Inchmahome. Imagination
has revelled in pictures of the youthful Queen wandering
among the island groves with her four little Maries,
romping on the shores of the lake, planting bowers, or
diligently conning her lessons in the Prior's lodging. An
eloquent French writer,1 who seems to think that she
frequented Inchmahome during the whole period of her
residence at Stirling, attributes to the open-air and hardy
upbringing she there received her health and glowing
colour, her well -developed yet slender and supple waist
(taille svelte et souple) so much admired, and that " peasant
appetite " which afterwards at the court of Henry II.
required to be kept in check. He describes her as rising
at daybreak and rushing out, scarcely dressed, to run
merrily over the gravel paths, the heath, and the rocks;
then, recalled with difficulty to the chateau, applying herself
listlessly to her English and French lessons, to be by-
and-bye thrown aside for music and dancing, which she
pursued with such passionate ardour that it was necessary
to use authority to detach her from them. She was
delighted with the singing of ancient ballads, the recital
of the old national legends, and the varied strains of the
pibroch. She made a charming picture at this Monastery
of Inch-Mahome, " with her snood of rose satin, her plaid
^istoire de Marie Stuart, par J. M. Dargaud, Paris, 1850; vol. i. p. 31.
The Lake of Menteith. 173
of black silk fastened with a golden clasp, with the arms
of Lorraine and of Scotland." Even at this early age
she had the gift of charming every heart. She was adored
by her governors, her officers, her women, her teachers, and
all who chanced to come into contact with her, citizens
or gentlemen, tradesmen of the Lowlands, fishere, and
Highlanders.
Miss Strickland follows, in some details, the imaginative
Frenchman, but is more careful to restrict the period of
Mary's stay on the island to " several months," during
which time " she pursued her studies quietly and steadily
with her four Maries in the cloister shades of Inchma-
home."1 She was there taught, says Miss Strickland, in
addition to French, which was literally her mother tongue,
history, geography, Latin, tapestry work, and embroidery.
Dr. John Brown, in his charming paper, " Queen Mary's
Child Garden,"2 employs the infant Queen in tending
the plots in the curious little enclosure on the island
known as Queen Mary's Bower.8 Chalmers, who is Miss
Strickland's authority for the length of time Mary spent
at Inchmahome, says she remained there until she was
taken to Dumbarton in February of 1548.4
Sheriff Glassford Bell affirms that she was upwards of
two years on the island;5 and in this he is followed by
Charles Mackie, who asserts that here "the young Queen
1 Strickland's Lives of the Queens of Scotland, 1852, vol. iii. p. 20,
"Horae Subsecivse, 2nd series, 1861, p. 172.
3 See supra, p. 87.
4 Chalmers' Life of Mary, 1818, vol. i. p. 5. Miss Strickland refers to
Chalmers' Caledonia.
8 Life of Mary Queen of Scots, by Henry Glassford Bell, 2nd ed., 1831, p. 44-
174 The Lake of Menteith.
experienced for two years the most unalloyed tranquillity
which she enjoyed during her eventful life " — and then goes
on to imagine all the delights of that happy time.1
But it is not only these comparatively recent writers
who have allowed their imagination to attribute much of
Mary's accomplishments to her residence at Inchmahome :
older authors have done the same. An early Life, written
in Latin, states that she was taken to the island specially
for the purpose of her education, which was conducted by
her mother with peculiar strictness; that there her mind
was cultivated with the principles of the Catholic faith
and many suitable accomplishments ; that her time was
wholly taken up with study — no room being left for idle-
ness or useless amusements ; and that to instruction in her
native language, in which even then she was proficient,
were added Latin and French and the rudiments of Italian
and Spanish.2
Now, the real facts of the case are unfortunately against
all these suppositions. The little Queen was only four
years and nine months old when she was conveyed to
Inchmahome, and her stay there was limited to about
three weeks — a period too short to permit of much practice
in gardening, and altogether inadequate for the acquire-
ment of Latin, French, Italian, Spanish, and the other
accomplishments mentioned, even if she had been of an
lThe Castles, Palaces, and Prisons of Mary Queen of Scots, by Charles
Mackie, 1853, p. 95.
2De Vita et Rebus Gestis Mariae, &c., a Samuele Jebb, 1725, vol. ii. p. 13.
The writer of the Latin Life is described as Georgius Conaeus, a Scotsman, of the
Order of Friars Preachers, legate of the Roman Pontiff to the most serene Queen
of England, Henrietta Maria.
The Lake of Mentelth. 175
age fit for studying them. Besides, although she was
attended by her nurse and her governess — as well as by
her mother and certain Lords of Council — it may well be
supposed that it was too agitated a time to admit of much
attention being paid to lessons.
That the short space of three weeks was the whole
time spent by Mary at Inchmahome has been proved by
Dr. Hay Fleming in his recent careful and accurate
biography of the Queen.1 The authorities on which he
relies are indisputable, and are here indicated. First of
all, the statement of Bishop Lesley is distinct and definite.
He says : — " During the tyme of the Inglismennis byding
at Leith the Governour being in Striveling, be the counsell
of the Quene Dowarier, the Erlis of Angus, Argyle, Kothes,
Cassillis and utheris lordis, caused suddantlie convoye the
Quene to the yle and abbay of Inchemahomo within the
countrey of Menteith, quhair she was keped with the Quene
hir moder, be the Lordis Erskyn and Levingstoun her
keparis, till the Inglismen was departed furth of Scotland,
and than returned to Striveling."* Now, the Englishmen
were at Leith from the llth to the 18th of September,
1547, and they crossed the Tweed on their return home
on the 29th of the same month.8 It has generally been
believed that the Queen was taken directly to Dumbarton
from the island of Inchmahome ; but Lesley's statements,
1Hay Fleming's Mary Queen of Scots, 1897, vol. i. p. 12 and notes — a
work of thorough research and extreme accuracy.
2 Lesley's Historic of Scotland (Bannatyne Club ed.), p. zoo.
3 " My Lordes Grace (i.e. Somerset) this morening (Thursday, 29th Septem-
ber) soon after vii of the clok was passed over the Twede here." — Expedicion in
Scotlande, &c., by W. Patten, Londoner, p. 94.
176 The Lake of Menteith.
both regarding the time of her coming and as to her
returning to Stirling, are confirmed by official documents.
The Discharge granted to her " keepers," Lords Erskine
and Livingston, tells us that she was taken to Inchinahome
" in the monethe of September last bypast, sone eftir the
feild of Pynkyne Clewiche."1 That she went back to
Stirling is proved by a letter in the State-Paper Office —
Lord Grey to the Duke of Somerset — dated 22nd February,
1548, in which Grey informs the Protector that he has
learned that the Queen has been removed from Stirling to
Dumbarton.2 Thus the utmost limits of the time that
Mary could have spent at Inchmahome are from the llth
of September to the end of the month.
The only other transactions in connection with the Con-
vent during the period of John Erskine's commendatorship,
of which a record has been preserved, are two leases. The
first, dated 29th of July, 1548, grants a nineteen years'
tack of the lands of Lochend, extending to forty shillings'
worth in the rental of the Priory " of old extent " to
Alexander Menteith in Polmont mill and his four sons.
It is subscribed by the Commendator, the sub-Prior Dene
James Bradfute, and seven other members of the Chapter
— Dene Jhone Huten, Dene James Bad, Dene Johen
Youngar, Dene Adam Peblis, Dene Thomas M'Lellen,
Dene Adam Cristesone. Dene Jhonne Mont.8
It is interesting to compare these names with those
1 This Discharge, granted on the 2Oth July, 1548, is preserved in Lord
Elphinstone's charter-chest, and has been printed in the Red Book, vol. ii.
PP- 331-3-
a Thorpe's Calendar of State Papers relating to Scotland, p. 79, No. 49.
3 Preserved at Cardross. Printed in the Red Book, vol. ii. pp. 333-5.
The Lake of Menteith. 177
attached to the lease granted by Prior Andrew in 1526. 1
The Chapter has changed but little since that time. In
addition to the Prior, Duncan Pringle and James Thom-
son have disappeared from the list, and instead of John
Youngman there is John Youngar, which may possibly be
the same person with name differently written. With
these exceptions the names of the Chapter are the same
as those of twenty -two years before. No new name has
been added. The monks of Inchmahome apparently enjoyed
good health and long life.
The second lease is mentioned in a manuscript addition
by Mr. M'Gregor Stirling to his " Notes on Inchmahome,"
as having been found by him in an old collection of writs,
made by Laurence Mercer of Meikleour in 1612.2 It is a
tack granted by John Erskine, Commendator of the Abbacie
of Inchmahomo and the Convent u chapterly gaddered,"
to William Sinclair of The Banks, of the lands of the
Banks of Cragannet, &c., dated at the Abbey of Inchma-
homo, 25th of April, 1555. The seal of the Convent is
appended, and the tack is subscribed by the Commendator,
Den James Bradfut, sub-Prior, Den Adam Peblis, Den
Thomas M'Clellan, Den Adam Cirstesone, and Den Jhone
Monet. Three of the former canons — John Hutton, James
Bad, and John Youngar — have now dropped from the list,
and no new name has been added to it.
John Erskine had succeeded to the title of Lord Erskine
on the death of his father in 1552, but continued to hold
1See suflra, p. 158.
'He adds — "This curious collection, consisting of fifty-three folio leaves
closely written, is now (5th June, 1818) in the possession of Sir John M'Gregor
Murray, Bart."
178 The Lake of Menteith.
the office of Commendator for three years beyond that
time. In 1565, on the occasion of the marriage of Queen
Mary with Darnley, he was made Earl of Mar. Next
year, the infant Prince James was committed to his charge.
On the 6th of September, 1571, he was chosen Kegent of
the Kingdom in succession to the murdered Begent Lennox.
But he did not long hold that high office ; he died at
Stirling on the 28th of October, 1572. According to Sir
William Drury, he was " one of the best nature in Scotland,
and wholly given to quietness and peace."1
COMMEND ATOB DAVID EBSKINE.
In 1555, Lord Erskine — as his title then was — trans-
ferred the ecclesiastical benefices he then held to his
nephew David, the natural son of his elder brother Kobert.
Thus David Erskine became Commendator of Dryburgh and
of Inchmahome, as well as Archdean of Brechin. As he lived
for fifty-six years after, he must have been comparatively
young at this time. The bull of Pope Paul IV. appointing
him Commendator-Prior of Inchmahome for life is dated
10th of January, 1555; and he took the oath and was
formally inducted in the beginning of the following year.
A second bull, dated 17th of July, 1556, gave him the
authority of the Pope for holding the Abbey of Dryburgh
in commendam, along with the Priorate of Inchmahome.2
In these documents, the Priorate is styled " of the
1 Letter from Drury to Lord Burghley, I4th September, 1571, in the State-
Paper Office ; quoted by Tytler in the History of Scotland, vol. iii. p. 342, note.
(Ed. 1864).
2 These papal writs are preserved in the charter-chest of the Earl of Mar and
Kellie, and have been printed in the Red Book, vol. ii. pp. 335-349.
The Lake of Menteith. 179
monastery of the island of Saint Colmocius of Inchma-
homo," and David Erskine is described as " a venerable
man, Sir David Erskine, Clerk of the Diocese of St.
Andrews." From this description it is permissible to
infer that he had been trained for the Church. He is
characterised by Father Hay as "an exceeding modest,
honest, and shame-faced man."1
Signature of Commendator David Erskine.
Although he took the oath requiring obedience to the
Pope and the defence of the Church against heretics and
schismatics, he did not long remain bound by it. The
Eeformation, then in progress, was consummated in 1560,
and David Erskine, in common with the family of which
he was a member, cast in his lot with the reformers. In
his time, therefore, began the dilapidation of the revenues
of the Convent, by which his relatives, and especially his
uncle, the Earl of Mar, greatly profited. Sir William
Fraser has suggested that, when Lord Erskine resigned
the office of Prior to his nephew, it was on the under-
standing that he should obtain the grants of Priory lands
which were eventually assigned to him.
Whether there was any understanding of that kind or
not, the Commendator, on the 8th of August, 1562, granted
two deeds by which the lands of Borland, called the
dominical lands or Mains of Cardross, and the office of
1 Quoted in Introduction to Liber S. Marie de Dryburgh, p. xxvii.
M
180 The Lake of Menteith.
bailie of the barony of Cardross, and of all other lands
belonging to the Convent, with the feu-farms and duties
of certain lands in the barony, were assigned to his Lord-
ship.1 The office of bailie belonged heritably to James
Erskine of Little Sauchie, the uncle of John Lord Erskine,
but he was induced to resign it to the Commendator in
favour of his nephew. On the 31st of December of the
same year, the Commendator and Convents of Dryburgh
and Inchmahome granted Lord Erskine a yearly pension
of five hundred merks, in recompense of his many good
deeds and his protection of their interests in the troublous
times, and in consideration of the expenses he had incurred
in their service. The proportion of this pension payable
by Inchmahome was to come out of the fruits of the kirk
of Lintrethin and the lands of Borland, both belonging to
the Convent.
Earlier in the year 1562, two tacks had been granted,
which are interesting as giving the names of the then
existing Chapter. The first, dated 16th of January, is a
tack by the Commendator, with consent of the Convent,
in favour of Allan Oliphant, his servitor, of the teinds
of Newton of Doune and Wester Eow. It is signed by
the Commendator, the sub-Prior Den Thomas Maclellan,
Den James Bradfut, Den Eobert Schortus, Den Alane
Baxter, Den Vellem Stirleng, and Den Johin Baxter.2 Of
1 Red Book of Menteith, vol. i. p. 529. The names of these lands are
interesting— Arnprior, Cardene, Kepe, Wester and Easter Poldoir, Gartcledeny
with Mill of Arnprior, Arnevicar, Gartours Over and Nether, Lochend, Mill of
Cardross, Ardenclericht, Drummanikloche, Blairsessenoche, Ballingrew, Hornahic,
Waird of Guddy — with the astricted multures of said lands, and the lands of
Boirland, called the dominical lands of Cardross.
2 Liber S. Marie de Dryburgh, p. xxvi. Original of tack at Cardross.
The Lake of Mentelth. 181
these, only Bradfut and Maclellan have survived from
the Chapter of 1555. The other document was found
by M'Gregor Stirling among the Mercer writs already
referred to.1 It is a lease of three glebes in the neigh-
bourhood of the Kirk of Leny, "infra prioratum monasterii
sancti Colmoci Dunblanen diocesis vocatum vulgo Inchma-
homock,"2 and is signed by David, the Commendator, Mr
Alexander Drysdail, vicar of Lany, and Denes James
Bradfut, Kobert Short, John Baxter, and Thomas M'Clellan.
These names are identical with those of the subscribers of
the previous tack, except that Allan Baxter and William
Stirling do not now appear. William Stirling, however —
or another of the same name — appears in connection with
documents of later date. This lease purports to bear the
seals of the monastery and the vicar of Leny, " appended
at the said monastery and burgh of Stirling, 2nd February,
1562." From this Mr. Stirling infers that "the Convent
had moved to Stirling before the 2nd of February, 1562,
a circumstance which renders it not improbable that the
church and refectory had been attacked by the populace
at the Keformation about two years before."3 That the
Priory possessed a house in the burgh of Stirling is certain.
In the Act of 1606, erecting the temporal lordship of
Cardross, in the enumeration of the properties of the
Priory is included " the Prior's Manse or Tenement, with
the yaird and pertinentis thairof, in Stirling."4 The
" Kental of the Feu-duties of Inchmahome, 1696," also
mentions " ane tenement off land in the town of Striviling
1See supra, p. 177. *MS. addition to Notes on Inchmahome.
3 Ibid. * Acts of the Parliaments of Scotland, vol. iv. p. 343.
182 The Lake of Menteith.
and yarde callit the Priouris Manse."1 At the same time,
it is not very probable that the Chapter had moved to
Stirling because of the destruction of their buildings on
Inchmahome. The documents issued by them in the later
months of the year were subscribed at the island. The
explanation seems rather to be that while the seal of the
Convent was appended at Inchmahome, that of the vicar
of Leny, for some reason of convenience, was "to-hung"
at Stirling.
It is satisfactory to be able to add further that, through
the researches of Mr. W. B. Cook of Stirling, the site of
this old Prior's Manse has now been definitely ascertained.2
He has found in the Protocol Book of Eobert Eamsay,
under date 1st February, 1568-9, a registered deed, of
which the following is an abstract : —
" John Lechman, one of the bailies of Stirling, by
command of the provost and other bailies, proceeded to
that tenement of houses and stables, with garden and
pertinents, lying in the Castle Wynd on the south side of
the same, between the late Malcolm Kinross's tenement
on the south, the late John Kinloch's tenement on the
west, and the said Wynd on the north and east, and
there gave sasine of same to David Erskine, Commendator
of Dryburgh and Inchmahome : reddendot 40 shillings per
annum to the treasurer of the burgh."
1 In the second edition of Nimmo's History of Stirlingshire, vol. i. p. 378,
the editor (M'Gregor Stirling) says—" In a retour of David, second Lord of
Cardross, we find that the lordship and barony of Cardross comprehended,
amongst other things, the mansion of the Priory of Inchmahome in the borough
of Stirling. We cannot pretend to point out even the probable site."
* Mr. Cook's intimate acquaintance with the old protocols and sasines of the
burgh makes him the highest authority on the situations of old houses in Stirling.
Manse of the Prior o! Inchmahome (George Buchanan's House),
in the Castle Wynd of Stirling.
The Lake of Menteith. 185
Mr. Cook supposes that while the Commendator was
already in possession of the manse by virtue of his office,
legal sasine had been delayed by reason generally of the
troubles of the time, and specially because of the disputes
between the Town Council and the Erskines, which had
arisen from the seizure by the latter of the mills that had
belonged to the Dominican friars and were claimed by the
town. He has traced the history of this tenement, with
the neighbouring properties, through sasines and titles,
down to the present time ; and he identifies it with an old
house, with turreted chamber in the front, that used to
be known, at a later period, as George Buchanan's House.
It stood on the left hand side of the Castle Wynd — as
one goes towards the Castle — nearly opposite to the house
of the Abbot of Cambuskenneth. This old house was
taken down in 1835, but its appearance is preserved in a
drawing, which is here reproduced. It is rather ornate in
style, and certainly picturesque. Its apparent size and
its possession of stables — which in a deed of 1702 are
described as then in ruins (nunc vasto seu demolito) —
prove its importance as a town-house. Considering the
position that the Commendator held in the upbringing
of the King as one of the four friends of the House of
Erskine, who in turns were to be always with the King
and attend to his education, it is not difficult to understand
how the Prior's Manse — or a portion of it — should have
been assigned as a residence to his Majesty's preceptor.
Neither is it to be wondered at that the house should
have come down to later times with the name of its most
distinguished inhabitant attached to it, rather than that
186 The Lake of Mentelth.
of the Priory which had been abolished and forgotten.
Here Buchanan dwelt for about ten years (1570-1580).
The circumstance makes another interesting link in his
connection with Cardross and the Priory of Inchmahome.
Canons Allan Baxter and Robert Short have dropped
out of the Chapter in the latter half of 1562, and William
Stirling has come in. Stirling was probably the last
addition to the canons of Inchmahome. M'Lellan, who
made his first appearance as signatory to a deed of Prior
Andrew in 1526, is not found after 12th August, 1562.
Bradfute, John Baxter, and Stirling are co-signatories to
deeds of 1573 and 1583 ; and the last lease granted by
Commendator David Erskine and the Convent " togidder
convenit " is in 1587, and bears only two names in addition
to his own — those of Dene James Bredfute and Dene
Wellem Sterleng. These appear to have been the last of
the old monks of Inchmahome. Whether they continued
to hold by the old religion, or, like their Commendator,
became Protestants, cannot be said. There was a William
Stirling who was Reader in the Church of Port up to
1589, but beyond the name there is nothing to identify him
with the ere while canon of Inchmahome. The venerable
sub-Prior could not have long survived this last appearance
of his name. He must then have been a very aged man,
for — as the first occurrence of his name as a member of
the Chapter was in 1526 — he had over sixty years of
service behind him. In a lease granted by David Erskine,
as Commendator of Dryburgh, in the year 1600, he explains
that all the members of that Convent were then deceased;1
1 Liber S. Marie de Dryburgh, p. xxix.
The Lake of Menteith. 187
and that probably was also the case of Inchmahome at the
same or an earlier period.
The Commendator was one of the " four friends of the
House of Erskine " who were appointed by the Parliament
of November, 1572, to assist the Countess Dowager and
the young Earl of Mar in the charge of James VI.1 Two
of these were always to be with the King in the Castle
of Stirling, to look to his personal comfort and the manage-
ment of his household. It was perhaps in pursuance of
this duty that David Erskine was in Stirling Castle on
the 7th of September, 1573, when he granted a lease of
the lands of the Camp of Ardoch to William Sinclair of
the Camp and Elizabeth Striveling, his spouse. This lease
reveals the curious fact that the Chapel, which had been
built within the old Roman Camp, and the Camp itself,
belonged to the Priory. How and when it came into this
possession is as yet unknown. The tack is granted with
consent of the Convent chapterly gathered, and bears the
signatures of James Braidfut, William Stirling, and John
Baxter. One of the witnesses is David Hume of Argaty,
who afterwards (in 1584) suffered death for communicating
with his friend the Commendator, when the latter was in
exile.2
At this time the Commendator was in difficulty about
his Thirds. These Thirds were the proportion of their
revenues which, after the Beformation, the holders of the
*Acts of the Parliaments of Scotland, vol. ii. p. 8r.
2 Laurence Mercer's Writs, as quoted in the MS. of M'Gregor Stirling. The
Camp, at a later date, was called Raith, and also Chapel-lands (Retour of Sir
William Stirling, Bart, 1670) ; in the Old Statistical Account it is called Chapel
Hill.— MS. addition to Notes on Inchmahome.
188 The Lake of Menteith.
old benefices were ordained by Act of Parliament to pay
for the support of the Protestant ministry.1 They had not
been well paid ; and, by Acts of 1567, the collection of
them was put into the hands of the ministers themselves.2
David Erskine had never been asked for the Thirds of his
benefices (Abbey of Dryburgh, Priory of Inchmahome,
Archdeanery of Brechin) during the time of Queen Mary ;
and up till 1573, as he set forth in his petition, he had
been " owerlukit and not pressit with payment thairof."
Relying on this immunity he had spent not only the
whole revenues of his benefices, but other large sums on
his own credit, which made it impossible for him to pay
the great amount now demanded as arrears. He therefore
petitioned the General Assembly for a remission, affirming
that though he had the titles of the benefices, he had
"litill of the profeit thairof."8 The Privy Council, on the
20th of March, 1574, granted him a discharge of all the
dues up to 1573, and relaxed him of horning.4
David Erskine was made a member of the Privy Council
in 1579, although he had previously been a frequent
attender at meetings of that body as a Councillor Extra-
ordinary appointed by the King. In 1583 a lease of the
teind sheaves, fruits, rents, profits, emoluments, and duties
of the parsonage of the Kirk of Leny was given to James
Seton of Tullibody and his son John, for the sum of
eighty merks yearly. The deed was granted at Cardross,
1Acts of the Parliaments of Scotland, vol. ii. pp. 81 and 607.
*Ibidt vol. iii. pp. 24 and 37.
8 This is likely enough to have been true. The greater part of the " profeit
thairof" doubtless went to the Earl of Mar.
4 Register of the Privy Council of Scotland, vol. ii. p. 347.
The Lake of Menteith. 189
and the co-signatories with the Commendator were James
Bradfut, sub-Prior, Dene Wellem Steruiling, and Dene
Johin Baxter.1 But his lease-granting was now destined
to suffer interruption for a time. Trouble was brewing
for the House of Erskine. For their share in the raid of
Kuthven in 1582, and in the confused and troubled pro-
ceedings which followed that event, the Erskines were
obliged to flee from the country ; and on the 21st of
August, 1584, Parliament found them guilty of treason,
and declared their estates and offices confiscated.2
COMMENDATOR HENRY STEWART.
The Commendator's post did not remain unoccupied.
Two days after the confiscation of David Erskine, King
James the Sixth gave the Priory of Inchmahome for life
to Henry Stewart,3 the second son of James Lord Doune,
and brother of the " bonnie Earl of Moray." No docu-
ment signed by Henry Stewart as Commendator seems
to be extant ; but, on the 4th of June, 1585, the King
himself ratified a grant, formerly made by Commendator
David, in favour of Patrick Bathok, of a yearly pension
of nine merks out of the lands of Gartavertyne in the
Stewartry of Menteith. And, in this ratification, David
is designed " sumtyme Commendator of Dryburght and
Inchmahom."4
1 Printed in the Red Book, vol. ii. p. 364, from the original in the charter-
chest of the Earl of Mar and Kellie.
•Acts of the Parliaments of Scotland, vol. iii. p. 344.
3Registrum Magni Sigilli, Lib. xxxvi. No. 10.
4 Liber S. Marie de Dryburgh, p. xxviii. Original at Cardross.
190 The Lake of Menteith.
COMMENDATOR DAVID ERSKINE KEPONED.
The absence of the Erskines was not of long continu-
ance. In 1585, the banished lords returned to Scotland,
and succeeded in depriving Arran of his power. An Act
of Parliament was passed in December,1 reversing the
sentences of forfeiture. David Erskine was consequently
reponed in his offices. After this, till the end of his life,
he seems to have resided at Cardross. He possibly
enlarged the old house for his residence, as his initials,
with those of his wife, are cut on it. All the remaining
leases granted by him — whether as Commendator of Dry-
burgh or of Inchmahome — are dated thence. He showed
his interest in education by granting, on the 4th of March,
1586, a tack of the teinds of Wester Lanark to Mr. Duncan
Neven, schoolmaster at Dunblane, " for teaching of the
youth."2 The last lease signed by the remanent members
of the Convent was granted on the 20th of April, 1587,
in consideration of " certane sowmes of money, gratitudes,
guid deidis and pleasouris thankfullie payit and done to
us be oure weilbelovit cousing Michaell Elphingstoun,
servitoure domestik to oure soverane lord," to the said
Michael of the teind sheaves of Gartincaber, Wester
Spittiltoune, Murdochstoun, Ballintoun, M'Corranestoun,
in the parish of Kilmadock, for his lifetime and nineteen
years thereafter, at a rent of nine pounds, six shillings
and eightpence. The lease is signed by David, Commen-
dator of Inchmahomo, Dene James Bredfut, and Dene
1 Acts of the Parliaments of Scotland, vol. iii. p. 383.
8 Liber S. Marie de Dryburgh, p. xxviii. Copy, authenticated by Neven in
1617, said to be in possession of the Earl of Mar and Kellie.
The Lake of Menteith. 191
Wellem Sterleng.1 Later leases — one of them on the day
before his demission of office, 30th May, 1608 — in con-
nection with the lands of the Abbey of Dryburgh are
extant;2 but this is the last of his recorded transactions
with the property of Inchmahome. He lived for three
years after his demission, dying at Cardross on the 28th
of May, 1611. He left a widow, named Margaret Haldane,
and known as Lady Cardross and Lady Dryburgh,8 whom,
in his will, he earnestly recommended to the protecting
care of the Earl of Mar. It appears that he had a son
whose name was James, and who must have predeceased
his father, as no mention is made of him in the will.
COMMENDATOB HENRY EBSKINE.
By this time the Chapter of Inchmahome was extinct,
the " monastery and superstitions thereof " had been
abolished, and the church lands annexed to the Crown.4
The history of the Priory might therefore be said to
terminate with David Erskine. But, by the grace of King
James the Sixth, there was still another Commendator
appointed to enjoy the revenues of Dryburgh and Inchma-
home. This was Henry Erskine, the second son of John,
second Earl of Mar, by his marriage with Lady Mary
Stewart, daughter of the first Duke of Lennox. Both the
father and mother of the new Commendator were high in
the favour and friendship of the King. The Earl of Mar
had been educated along with King James under the rigorous
1 Printed in the Red Book, vol. ii. pp. 365-7, from the original in the charter-
chest of the Earl of Mar and Kellie.
2 Liber S. Marie de Dryburgh, pp. 316 and 319. * Ibid, p. xxix.
4 Acts of the Parliaments of Scotland, vol. iv. p. 345.
192 The Lake of Menteilh.
rule of George Buchanan, was his early playfellow — the
" Jock Sclaitis " of his familiar letters — and for a while his
Governor; while Lady Mary was the daughter of Esme
Stewart, the King's cousin and prime favourite. It was
to make provision for this younger son of the Mar family
that David Erskine was induced to resign his offices into
the hands of his Majesty. Immediately thereafter, on the
31st of May, 1608, the King granted a deed providing the
Abbey of Dryburgh and the Priory of Inchmahome to
Henry Erskine for his lifetime, along with a seat and vote
in Parliament. For twenty years he continued to enjoy
the fruits of these estates, but of course all pretence of
ecclesiastical function had ceased. Henry Erskine was
simply a country gentleman — of an unusually good type,
it may be hoped — who attended to his own affairs and faith-
fully discharged his Parliamentary duties. His portrait
by Jameson exhibits a remarkably sweet and pleasant
countenance. If he were as good as he looks, everything
must have gone well and pleasantly with the tenants of
the old kirk lands in his time. In 1617, the Earl of Mar
assigned the lordship and peerage of Cardross — which had
been erected a temporal barony in his favour in 1604 — to
his son Henry Erskine in fee. Hence he was known as
the Fiar of Cardross. He did not, however, enjoy the
dignity of the peerage, as he died in 1628, predeceasing
his father by about six years.
^ — -^
Signature Of Commendator Henry Erskine.
The Lake of Menteith. 193
APPENDIX.
SUBSEQUENT HISTOBY OF THE PKIOBY LANDS.
THE transference of the lands of the Priory to the House
of Erskine began in 1562, when Commendator David, with
the assent of the Convent, assigned (8th August, 1562) to
John Lord Erskine and his heirs-male, the lands of Boir-
land, commonly called the dominical lands of Cardross,1
as also the bailieship of their barony of Cardross, and of
all other lands belonging to them, with the feu-farms and
duties of certain lands specified as his bailie-fee.2 This
was the beginning of many complicated transactions in
connection with the Priory lands between the Convent
and members of the Erskine family. For example, the
Stirling Protocol Books8 contain notice of a charter granted
by the Earl of Mar to Commendator David Erskine, of
Shirgarton, Drums of Kippen, and Arnbeg, under date
19th March, 1571-2 ; and on the same day, a charter
granted by John Master of Mar, with consent of John
Earl of Mar, his father, to David the Commendator, of
Bordland, called the dominical lands of Cardross, and
Ballingrew.
It is rather difficult to follow these various transactions
and explain their significance ; but the next great step in
lu Tolas et integras terras nostras de Boirland, vulgo nuncupatas terras
dominicales de Cardross."
8 See supra, p. 180.
3 Protocol Book of Robert Ramsay, 1566-1573: extracts furnished by Mr
W. B. Cook, Stirling.
194 The Lake of Menteith.
the alienation of the ecclesiastical lands is clear enough.
This was accomplished by a charter which King James
the Sixth granted to John, second Earl of Mar, on the
27th of March, 1604, assigning to him the lordship and
barony of Cardross. Infeftment followed, and the charter
was ratified in a Parliament held at Perth on the 9th of
July, 1606.1 By an Act of this Parliament, the Abbacies
of Dryburgh and Cambuskenneth, and the Priory of
Inchmahome, were erected into a temporal lordship in
favour of the Earl of Mar. The Act, after reciting the
good deeds of the earl and his father — their care of the
upbringing and education of the King, and their various
labours for the good of the State — and declaring that
the said " monasteries and superstitiounis had now been
abolishit, and the kirklandis of the samin now annexifc to
his Hienes Crowne," ratifies, approves, and confirms the
charter of 1604, dissolves these lands from the Act of
Annexation to the Crown, and suppresses, abolishes, and
extinguishes for ever the said Abbeys and Priory. The
properties of the Priory are enumerated as follows : — The
place and mansion of Inchmahomo, the lands and barony
of Cardross, viz., Arnprior, East Garden, Kepe, West
Polder, East Polder, Gairtledernick, and Hilltoun mylne,
Mill of Arnprior, lands of Arnevicar, Clerkum, Garturs
Over and Nether, Lochend, Mill of Cardross, Ardinclerich,
Drummanikcloch, Blaircessnock, Ballingrew, Hornehaick,
Ward of Gudie, Bordland or Mains, the loch and isles of
Inchmahomo with salmon fishings in the Forth and Gudie,
Priors Meadow, Armavak, kirklands of Port and Leny, the
1Acts of the Parliaments of Scotland, vol. iv. p. 344.
The Lake of Menteith. 195
Prior's Manse or tenement with the yaird and pertinents
thereof in Stirling, house and yard in Dumbarton, Kow,
the Kirkis of Kilmadock, Port, Leny, and Lintrethin,
pertaining to Inchmahome. These lands — " estimat to
£100 land of auld extent " — are declared secular land,
free from ecclesiastical burdens, and the Manor-place of
Cardross is ordained to be the principal messuage thereof.
It has already been mentioned that the purpose of these
grants to the Earl of Mar is generally stated to have been
to enable him to make provision for his younger sons by
his second wife, Lady Mary Stewart. His son by the first
wife was, of course, destined to succeed his father as Earl
of Mar. The eldest son of Lady Mary became Earl of
Buchan by his marriage with the heiress of that earldom.
The Countess is said, by the family tradition, to have
complained to the King that her younger sons, Henry and
Alexander, were unprovided for, and the King promised to
look after their interests. This he did by granting to the
Earl of Mar the lordship of Cardross, with the right of
assignation to any of his heirs-male.1
The curious story related by David Earl of Buchan
regarding the marriage of the Earl of Mar and Lady Mary
Stewart will bear repetition. " Mar," he says, " as was
the superstitious custom of the times, had listened to the
nonsense of an Italian conjurer, who showed him a limning
of a lady whom he said Mar's future sweetheart and wife
resembled; and Mar thought he observed these features
in the lovely daughter of Lennox. He had heard she was
destined by the King for another, and wrote a plaintive
1 Alexander Erskine received the benefice of Cambuskenneth in 1608.
N
196 The Lake of Menteith.
letter to James, saying that his health had even begun to
suffer from the fear of disappointment. The King visited
Mar, his old class-fellow, and said, ' Ye shanna dee, Jock,
for ony lass in a' the land.' The King accordingly secured
for Mar the object of his attachment, Lady Mary Stewart,
second daughter of Esme, Duke of Lennox, the King's
kinsman."1 This story is, at any rate, characteristic of the
homely humour of King James the Sixth.
Whether the meeting with the Italian conjurer was prior
to his first marriage, or after it, does not appear from the
narrative. But that it was subsequent to the death of his
first wife may be inferred from the circumstances, and from
a pendant to the story which M'Gregor Stirling relates on
the authority of the then Countess of Buchan. Mar, it
seems, had obtained from the Italian the portrait of the
lady, and kept it in his residence at Alloa Tower. When
he first saw the Lady Mary Stewart — at Stirling, it is said —
and was struck by her resemblance to the carefully cherished
picture, he sent a servant to Alloa to fetch it for a more
careful comparison. Unfortunately, however, the servant,
by awkward handling, let the picture fall on the muddy
road. Anxious to conceal his carelessness, he tried to
clean off the mud, with the result that he succeeded only
in obliterating the features of the portrait. But, adds the
narrator, " it was a consolation to the love-sick peer that
the loss of the picture was supplied by the possession of
the fair original."2
xEarl of Buchan's Anonymous and Fugitive Essays, 1812, vol. i. pp. 288,
et seq.
2 Notes on Inchmahome, p. 60.
The Lake of Menteith. 197
On the 30th of May, 1608, David Erskine, Commendator
of Dryburgh and Inchmahome, resigned his benefices into
the hands of the King, and so, at the same time, did Adam
Brskine, the Commendator of Cambuskeimeth. Next day,
at Greenwich, a royal charter gave the first to Henry, and
the second to Alexander, the two younger sons of the Earl
of Mar. A charter was granted, dated at Greenwich, 10th
June, 1610, by King James, whereby the Earl of Mar, his
heirs-male, assigns, and successors were made free lords
and barons of Cardross, with the title and dignity and a
right to sit and vote in Parliament ; and another followed
on the 10th April, 1615, to the same effect. Next the
Earl, by a charter dated at Holyrood, 31st January, 1617,
and confirmed by the King on the 13th of March the
same year, assigned the fie of the barony and lordship of
Cardross — reserving his life-rent — to his son Henry.
It was in the summer of this year that Cardross
welcomed a royal visitor. King James the Sixth, impelled
by "a natural and salmon-like affection," revisited his
native land, where he was regaled, much to his satisfaction,
with addresses of welcome at all the principal towns, and
had opportunities of showing off his learning and wit and
dialectic skill in the conferences and disputations of the
most learned professors of the Scottish Universities. Mind-
ful of his old school-fellow and friend, he paid him a visit at
Cardross. Great preparations were made for his reception.
The old tower, the most ancient part of the building, had
probably served for the residence of the Commendators,
although it is said to have been considerably enlarged by
Commendator David in 1598. But on this occasion the
198 The Lake of Menteith.
Earl of Mar made a large and splendid addition to the
house for the express purpose of entertaining the King
with a magnificence worthy of his royal state.
Henry Erskine, Commendator of Dryburgh and Inch-
mahome, with a seat in Parliament, and Fiar of Cardross
by the charter of his father, did not attain the dignity of
the peerage, as he died in 1628, during his father's life-time.
His son and heir was David, a child of eighteen months at
the time of his father's death. He was served heir to the
estates on the llth of January, 1637. His grandfather,
before his death, had granted a charter conferring on him
the peerage of Cardross, and this charter was ratified by
an Act of Parliament at Edinburgh, 17th November, 1641. 1
Thus David is known as the second Lord Cardross.
In Lord David's time Cardross was garrisoned by the
troops of the Commonwealth. It was from the house of
Cardross that General Monck addressed his letter of 17th
May, 1654, to the Earl of Airth, ordering him to cut down
the woods of Milton and Glegait in Aberfoyle, "that soe
they may nott any longer bee a harbour or shelter for loose,
idle, and desperate persons."2 Possibly this occupation of
his house by the Parliamentary forces may have been
intended as some sort of punishment for Lord Cardross's
political opinions and actions. He had protested against
the delivery of Charles I. to the Parliamentary army, and
he had joined the " Engagement " of the Duke of Hamilton
in 1648. In consequence of this latter performance of his
he was fined in ^£1000, and debarred from taking his seat
1 Acts of the Parliaments of Scotland, vol. v. p. 547.
8 Letter printed in Red Book, vol. ii. p. 158.
The Lake of Menteith. 199
in the Parliament of 1649. David had a new charter of
Cardross in 1664, and died in 1671.
The house of Cardross may have suffered somewhat
from its Parliamentary garrison, although it is not likely
that there was any oppression of the tenantry or much
damage done to the estate. The same, however, cannot
be said regarding its next occupancy by the Government
troops, during the time of the religious persecutions in
Scotland that marked the reign of Charles the Second.
Henry, the third Lord Cardross, was a steadfast
Presbyterian and Covenanter, and in consequence suffered
severely, in person and property, at the hands of the
unprincipled gang who then ruled Scottish affairs. A full
account of the persecutions to which he was subjected is
given by Wodrow.1 They began in 1674 with a fine of
£5000 for listening to his own chaplain preaching in his
own house of Cardross. He paid £1000 of this fine, and
made efforts to procure a remission of the remainder ; but
this was refused, and he was ordered to be imprisoned for
four years in Edinburgh Castle. A party of guards, under
one Sir Mungo Murray, were sent to occupy Cardross.
They grossly ill-treated his lady, broke open his repositories,
and did much damage to the house, which had been recently
repaired and refurnished. While he was in prison, his lady
had had a child baptized at Cardross. On the ground that
the rite of baptism had been performed by a clergyman
who was not the minister of the parish, Lord Cardross was
again fined. He was only released from prison in 1679
on giving a bond for the amount of his fines. He then
1 Wodrow's Sufferings of the Church of Scotland, 1721, vol. ii. p. 122, et passim.
200 The Lake of Menteith.
went to London in the hope of obtaining redress, but was
repulsed with something more than insult. Despairing of
further relief at home, he set sail for America, where he
endeavoured to found a colony in Carolina. Misfortune
pursued him here also, for his colony was attacked and
destroyed by the Spaniards. As a consequence of his
accumulated fines and other misfortunes he became
insolvent, and the property of Cardross had to be given
up to others in security for his debts.
That portion of the Lordship of Cardross called the
" Abbacie of Dryburgh " had been sold by him to Sir
Patrick Scott, younger of Ancrum,1 in 1682; so that the
estate was now again reduced pretty much to the original
Priory lands. But somewhat better times were coming.
He left America, and proceeding to Holland, entered the
service of William of Orange. He accompanied that prince
to England in 1688, and was instrumental in raising a
regiment of dragoons in 1689. With these dragoons he
did good service in the war with the Highland partizans
of the exiled King.2 Under William III., he enjoyed a
few years of peace and comparative prosperity ; but his
numerous troubles and hardships had undermined his con-
stitution, and he died at Edinburgh on the 21st of May,
1693, in the forty-fourth year of his age.
Two years before his death, the house of Cardross was
again garrisoned by soldiers, but this time in a friendly
way. On the 2nd June, 169J, the Privy Council granted
1 Liber S. Marie de Dryburgh, p. xxxiii. The "disposition and rental,"
dated 24th June, 1682, are at Cardross.
8 Hill Burton's History of Scotland, ed. 1897, vol. vii. p. 388.
The Lake of Menteith. 201
warrant to Sir Thomas Livingston, Commander-in-Chief,
to send forces to defend the house of Cardross against the
Highland rebels.
Henry's eldest son David succeeded his father in the
Lordship of Cardross. In 1695 he became Earl of Buchan,
and the peerage of Cardross has since that time remained
with that earldom. The lands of Cardross — the ancient
property of the Priory of Inchmahome — had been disponed
by Lord Henry, in 1683, to the Earl of Mar and others,
for behoof of his creditors. Colonel the Hon. John Erskine
— the " Black Colonel " — a younger brother of Lord Henry,
set himself to clear off the burdens on the property, and
succeeded so far that, in 1699, David, Earl of Buchan,
disponed to him the estate of Cardross. Apparently all
the bonds had not been redeemed, for in 1739 the Colonel
began a litigation with his nephew the Earl, which had
not been settled at the death of the former in 1743. The
process was continued by his son and heir, John Erskine
of Carnock, the well-known Professor of Scots Law in the
University of Edinburgh, and author of " The Institutes
of the Laws of Scotland"; and on the 25th of July, 1746,
decree was given in his favour, and he was adjudged
purchaser of the estate of Cardross. His eldest son, John
Erskine, D.D., succeeded him in Carnock, while the estate
of Cardross went to the second son, James Erskine, in
1768. From James Erskine, Cardross has descended in
regular succession of the same family to the present pro-
prietor, Henry David Erskine. The estate is now of
greater extent than the lands held by the old Priory.
Additions have been made by successive lairds. The
202
The Lake of Menteith.
property, also, has been greatly improved and adorned
by several of them — by none more so than the present
highly esteemed proprietor. At the same time some small
parts of the original lands — such as the ancient Priory
itself, with its demesne on the island of Inchmahome —
have left the estate, it is not very well known how.
203
CHAPTER VII.
The Castle of Inchtalla : the old House
and its Furnishings.
" I looked and saw between us and the sun
A building on an island,
With floating water-lilies, broad and bright."
" Here desolation holds her dreary court."
[LMOST the whole surface of the island, Inch-
talla, is covered with the ruins of the old
Castle buildings and their central court-yard.
The date of erection of these is not men-
tioned in any extant writing, and can therefore only be
inferred from the character of the buildings themselves.
It is known that the principal residence of some of the
earlier Earls of Menteith was Doune Castle. But after
the extermination of the Albany family, and when a portion
of their old domain had been erected into a new earldom
in favour of Malise, formerly Earl of Strathern, by James
I., in 1427, the Castle of Doune was retained by the King.
Malise therefore — as is shown by his writs dated from the
place — made Inchtalla his chief seat ; and if, as has been
with probability conjectured, there was already a keep or
strong building of some sort on the island, it is equally
probable that Malise considerably enlarged it, or even
rebuilt it, in order to make it a suitable residence.
I JAM8S OF i
r KITCHEN H
fVVINOOWJ
O\_A!)
Plan of the Buildings on Inchtalla.
(By permission, from M* Gibbon and Ross's Castellated and Domestic
Architecture of Scotland.)
The Lake of Mentelth. 205
Whether any portion of the building, which must have
existed in his time, is to be found among the present ruins,
is doubtful. The character and style of most of what
remains point rather to a seventeenth century origin.
Stones are to be found in the walls which must have come
from the ecclesiastical buildings on the neighbouring island,
and these appear to show that the erection could not have
been earlier than the period of the Keformation. Some of
these stones are to be found even in what is admittedly
the oldest portion of the ruins — that at the south end of
the island. In the tower-like building at the west end of
the High House, for example, there has evidently been a
stair leading to rooms above the kitchen ; and the interior
wall of this tower still retains some carved corbels, which
have evidently been taken from the monastic buildings.
The moulded side of one of the small windows in the
kitchen wall is the mullion of a Gothic window, which
also has obviously been abstracted from the Priory. It
is possible, of course, that these Gothic fragments may
have been inserted when repairs or additions were being
made to the old house. If that be so, the High House,
still standing as a ruin, may have been built at some more
or less remote period prior to the Reformation. But the
general arrangement of the buildings, the thickness of the
walls, and the style of the work, no less than the circum-
stance that much of the materials seems to have been taken
from the Priory, all indicate the seventeenth century as the
period of erection of most of the buildings.
The plan is the common one of that period of a central
court-yard surrounded by houses. But it must be added
206 The Lake of Menteith.
that this design is so loosely developed as to favour the
idea that the buildings had not all been erected at the
same time. The Hall, which makes the north side of the
square, is evidently the most recent portion. It had
apparently been built when the High House was either
decaying or not considered sufficiently large or dignified
for the family use; and may have been erected by the
great Earl William (the seventh earl) when in the full flow
of his prosperity. This suggestion — as well as the infer-
ence from architectural characteristics regarding the period
of erection of the buildings — receives a certain amount of
confirmation from a document in the State-Paper Office
giving an account of " The Present State of the Nobility in
Scotland : July 1st, 1592." In that paper the then earl, John,
the sixth of the Graham line, and immediate predecessor
of William, is noted as having his residence at Kylbride.1
The High House — at the south end of the island — was
so called because it used to be loftier than the Hall at the
north end. It has now lost something of its height, and
is, in fact, greatly dilapidated. It is said to have formerly
had heraldic devices over the doorway, which Mr. M'Gregor
Stirling says had in his time been " partly abstracted."
He adds — "From one of these devices, where the crest,
representing (as is believed) an eagle coupe, is above a
shield, the charge of which is not legible, it would appear
that the oldest building was erected after the introduction
of the first-mentioned emblem into armorial bearings."2
1 State-Paper Office MS. printed in Tytler's History of Scotland, Proofs and
Illustrations to vol. iv., No. xxiii.
2 Notes on Inchmahome, p. 74.
The Lake of Menteith. 207
Mr. Stirling thus speaks as if he had himself seen this
heraldic stone. The statement must be left as it stands
on his authority. There is now no vestige of heraldic
device of any sort.
The lower apartment of this house measures thirty-six
feet eight inches in length, with a breadth of fourteen feet
eight inches. It has a vaulted roof. The space is divided
into two rooms. The upper floor is also in two divisions.
Access was had to these apartments by a stair — portions of
which remain — inside a tower on the north side jutting into
the court-yard. These were probably the family rooms when
this house was inhabited. They are lighted by four open-
ings in the south wall. The outside of this wall is
peculiarly interesting. There are indications that it once
had a kind of hanging gallery or wooden hoarding,1 such
as were sometimes used as a means of defence when the
place was attacked, and perhaps also, in more peaceful
times, as a place for enjoying the air and the prospect.
About eight feet from the ground, and just under the
openings in the wall already mentioned, are still to be seen
the corbels on which the joists that supported the hoarding
rested, as well as the " put-log " holes in which the ends
of these joists were inserted; while the corbels for the
wall-plate of the roof are also visible on the wall above
1 A hoarding of this kind, called a Bretess (Fr. Brethhe) " was usually con-
structed over a gateway or portion of a wall liable to be attacked ; it was of
sufficient dimensions to hold several archers or cross-bowmen, and projected
from the wall so as to allow openings to be made in its floor, through which
stones or burning materials could be let fall on the heads of the besiegers. The
sides of the bretess were provided with shutters or loops, for the discharge of
arrows or bolts." — Audsley's Dictionary of Architecture, vol. iii. p. 257. The
brethhe at Talla Castle must have been a mere architectural survival
208 The Lake of Menteith.
the windows. Still higher, a projecting stone band or table
runs along the wall — intended to protect the roof of the
hoarding at its junction with the wall from the rain-drip.
Of the four openings, the two in the centre were probably
windows. The other two were obviously doorways leading
out to the platform of the hoarding. They were closed
with doors opening outwards, as is shown by the checks
in the rybats. Traces of a similar hoarding are discernible
on the west side of the Hall.1
On the west end of the High House is the Kitchen —
about twenty-five feet in length by ten feet in breadth. This
includes a large arched fire-place at the south end, which
measures nine feet nine inches by six feet six inches.
Through a narrow opening in the wall, the kitchen and
fire-place communicate with the oven built outside.
Another opening leads into the ground floor of the High
House. There are two very small windows — only about
ten inches square — in the kitchen, looking to the west.
Overhead a square tower seems to have risen to a con-
siderable height. The remains of a circular stair in this
tower have already been referred to.
Northwards from the kitchen, in a line parallel to the
shore of the lake, runs a long building, about eighty feet in
length, which was possibly appropriated to the household
servants and other attendants on the earls. Only the
wall on the side next the lake, and fragments on the north
and south ends, are now standing. This wall has been
peculiarly destitute of lighting. There are only two small
1 See M'Gibbon & Ross's Castellated and Domestic Architecture of Scot-
land, vol. iv. p. 288.
The Lake of Menteith. 209
windows in it — both in the southmost portion. Each of
these seems to have lighted a separate room, and, judging
from their positions, there may have been two other apart-
ments in the length of the entire block.
On the north side of the court-yard stood, and still
stands, the Hall, evidently the most recent of all the
buildings on the island. It consists of an oblong house of
about sixty feet in length by thirty feet in width, and two
storeys high, with a square tower at the north-west angle.
Over the doorway, which is towards the east end of the
south wall, is a stone which appears to have had armorial
bearings, but these are not now decipherable. The ground
floor is one undivided room, with a great fire-place in the
west end. It measures fifty-five feet in length, and is
twenty-three feet four inches wide, and in the days of
its inhabitation must have been a fine and imposing
apartment. Fortunately, we are able to obtain a clear
idea of the appearance of this room, and indeed, of the
arrangement and furnishing of the whole House, in the time
of the last earl. An inventory of the "haill Household
Stufie and Plenishing," taken on the 22nd of May, 1694,
and preserved among the Menteith papers at Gartmore,
has been printed by Mr. M'Gregor Stirling.1
The Hall — as this lower floor of the house was specially
named — was draped with green drugget hangings, dependent
from gilt rods. It had also two window curtains, a pair of
virginals, my Lord and my Lady's portraits with green
hangings before them, a large table, a folding table, and a
1 Notes on Inchmahome, appendix vi. p. 159.
210 The Lake of Menteilh.
house clock with case. No mention is made of chairs in
the furniture of the Hall, but a separate inventory is given
of the chairs belonging to the house, in addition to those
that are mentioned in connection with the various bedrooms.
They numbered eighteen new red leather chairs, of which
two were armed, and fourteen old leather chairs. Besides
these, there were eighteen fine carpet chairs — two of them
armed — and ten old carpet chairs. For lighting the Hall
and the other rooms, the house had fourteen brass candle-
sticks, old and new, and as necessary adjuncts to these,
two pairs of brass snuffers with their pans, besides two
pairs which were broken, and also two pairs of snuffers
made of iron; and — no doubt for the great Hall and on
great occasions — two silver candlesticks, with snuffers, plate
and chains of the same metal.
On the floor above the Hall were two bedrooms, entrance
to which appears to have been obtained from behind. These
were called respectively the East and the West Chambers.
The furnishings of the East Chamber were mostly in blue,
and those of the West in green. Moreover, the furniture
of the former seems to indicate that it was meant for ladies'
use, while that of the other seems rather to point to male
occupancy. In the East Chamber — according to the
inventory, hung with blue — was a standing bed with blue
damask knot hangings lined with orange, having the pand
of gimp silk, eight cane chairs — two of them being arm-
chairs— a dozen of flowered satin cushions, two white
window curtains, a looking-glass with olive wood frame,
a fir table, two " standers," a blue damask table-cloth, and
a coffer. In the West Chamber, hung with green drugget,
The Lake of Menteith. 211
were a large standing bed with green drugget hangings,
lined with white and fringed on the inside, a glass with a
black frame, two white crepe window curtains, with a large
oak chest, a smaller chest, and a little table with a green
table-cloth.
The square tower at the north-west had an entrance
from the Hall. The ground floor of this tower was called
" the laigh back-room." It had hangings of stamped blue
cloth, two trunks covered with leather, two dressing boxes,
one of olive, the other of sweet (fragrant) wood, and a large
chest. This chest held a considerable quantity of holland
and linen sheets, six large dornick table-cloths, eleven
dozen new dornick serviettes, and four dozen towels.
A turnpike stair on the west side of the tower led to
the upper rooms. That on the second storey was my
Lord's Chamber. It contained a standing bed, with gold
knops, hangings of stamped cloth, and pand of gimp silk
with white linings and pand within. The whole room was
hung with stamped cloth similar to that of the bed hangings.
The rest of the furniture consisted of a chest of shotles
(drawers), two cabinets — one of larger, another of smaller
size — with shotles, a little table with a drawer, a looking-
glass with a black " brissel " frame.1
Above my Lord's Chamber was the Wardrobe, which
also served, as occasion required, for a bedroom. It held
an old standing bed, two trunks, and four chests.
On the east side of the court-yard was the Brew-house,
furnished with all the apparatus and utensils necessary for
1 Brissel, *>., Brazil wood — the bright-red coloured wood which gave name
to the country that produces it. This may have been dark through age, or stained.
O
212 The Lake of Menteith.
brewing ale, and apparently cider, for the use of my Lord
and his household. For, besides a masking fat, wort
stands, and other apparatus for the manufacture of ale,
it had a " syder press and trough." To eke out the
somewhat limited accommodation of the mansion-house,
the upper part of the Brew-house was utilized for sleeping
room. This large chamber — which, from the warmth of
the Brew-house underneath, must have been very comfort-
able in the cold season, though the odour, when the
" browst " was on, must have been a trifle heavy — was
hung with green cloth, and had two beds. One of these
beds had hangings of " red scarlet " cloth, and the other
of green stuff, and they had each rods and pands " conforme."
Besides these there were a red scarlet resting-chair, a little
table with a red table-cloth, and, for use in emergencies
probably, a wooden folding bed. Built on to the ends of
the Brew-house were " to-falls," and these, too, were
appropriated as bed-chambers, and held between them three
beds — two of them hung with red cloth, and the third
with brown drugget.
With the buildings thus described crowded round the
central court, there was no vacant ground to spare for
other purposes, so that, as has been elsewhere stated, the
gardens had to find room on the neighbouring island of
Inchmahome, while the earls' pleasaunce was on the north
shore and their stables on the west shore of the lake.
But, though closely set, the buildings were airy enough,
with the open water all round. In fact, the strong winds
which often blow over the lake — especially from the west —
must have occasionally sent the spray well over them,
The Lake of Menteith. 213
and this may have been the reason why the windows to
the west are so few and small.
Some of the items in the inventory enable us to obtain
glimpses of the mode of living in this island mansion at
the time. Ale and cider would appear to have been the
more common household drinks; while, for the heads of
the family and guests, there were also brandy, sack, and
wine — for the consumption of which liquors the earl had
eighteen glasses. Meal girnels, flour kits, and baking
tubs point to the supplies of daily bread. The large
number of herring barrels shows that salt fish of that
description was a considerable item in the daily menu ;
and the spits, branders, dripping-pans, frying-pans, ladles,
and flesh-crooks tell their tale of more generous living.
The vessels were mostly of pewter. When the seventh
earl was disgraced by Charles I., and denied the payment
of the pensions and other moneys to which he was entitled,
he had to part with almost all his lands, and finally with
his silver plate. This went to the laird of Keir in 1645
to satisfy a claim he had as security for the earl in
certain of his transactions.1 Neither Earl William nor
his successor were ever in a pecuniary condition to replace
this plate. The very short list of "silver work" that
appears in the inventory must therefore have been the
poor remains that had been left in 1645. The most
important piece in this small collection is that mentioned
first and specially as " ane large basone and lawer of
silver." It would be interesting if we could believe that
this was "the Mazer" gifted by the first Earl Malise to
1 Red Book of Menteith, vol. i. p. 388.
214 The Lake of Menteith.
his spouse, and transmitted from one generation to another
as a family heirloom.1 No doubt the silver vessels — such
as they were — were reserved for special and great occasions
in the castle.
Domestic crafts are represented by the " two little
wheels, ane chack reel, four pair of tow cards, two pair
of wool cards, and ane haire-cloath," as well as by the
quantities of " new-made linning, harne, and dornick "
among the stores. My Lord's personal wardrobe is set
out in full detail — his coats of Spanish cloth, of velvet,
and of scarlet and grey cloth; his vests of velvet and
flowered silk ; his Highland coats ; his doublets, belts, and
bandelier; bis grey worsted and snuS-coloured, black and
pearl-coloured stockings ; and his two pairs of breeches
of grey cloth, one pair of which was new. There were
also saddles for my Lord and my Lady — the former
embroidered, the latter of velvet ; three pairs of pistols —
one pair with iron stocks ; an unusually large stock of
night-caps ; and, last of all, two house Bibles — " ane
large and ane less."
The very small proportion of female properties in the
inventory — besides the saddle, the only other thing
mentioned is a skirt and a hood, " which was my Lady's "
— is accounted for by the circumstance that the earl died
a widower, his last wife — for he was twice married — Lady
Katherine Bruce, having predeceased him in 1692. At
her death, she left her own money, her gold watch, rings,
bodily ornaments, and other trinkets to various relatives,
so that little belonging to her was left in the house. Her
1See infra, chap. x.
The Lake of Menteith. 215
Ladyship, moreover, was not much in love with her island
home. Her rest was said to have been broken and her
nervous system upset by the croaking of the frogs that
persisted in holding their nightly concerts under the
window of her chamber. Whether that were the case or
not, it is certain that for some time she left her husband
alone in the castle and went to reside in Edinburgh, and
my Lord had much curious manoeuvring to get her to
return.1
The whole inventory does not give a very exalted idea
of the wealth of this, the last Earl of Menteith, or of
the grandeur of the castle in which he dwelt. It was
taken on the 22nd of May, 1694 ; and, in September of
that year, the Earl died. His household gear and other
personal estate was left by him to his nephew, Sir John
Graham of Gartmore, while what was left of the property
of the old earldom — now reduced to narrow dimensions —
went to the Marquis of Montrose. The house of Talla
has not been inhabited since, but has been left for over
two hundred years to neglect and decay. There is little
wonder, therefore, that it should have become the utter
ruin it now is. All over the island, around the roofless
walls, and inside them too, has sprung up a dense natural
wood, which, in its summer foliage, all but conceals the
ruins from outside view.
1 See infra, chap. xi.
216
CHAPTER VIII.
The earlier Earldom of Menteitb :
Menteith, Comyn, and Stewart Earls,
previous to 1425.
" How forcy chieftains, in many bloody stours,
Most valiantly won landis and honours,
And for their virtue called noblemen."
" Old, unhappy, far-off things,
And battles long ago."
" The knights' bones are dust
And their good swords rust."
(HE ancient Province of Menteith and Stratherne
had doubtless its Mormaers, but no mention of
any of them has been preserved. The old
Celtic title of Mormaer passed into that of Earl
(Comes) in the time of Alexander the First, that is, about
the beginning of the twelfth century; and the first reference
to an " Erl of Meneteth " appears in a statute of David I.
(1124-1153), Alexander's brother and successor.1 The name
of this earl is not given. It may have been either Gilchrist
— the first whose name has come down to us — or an
unknown predecessor. From this statute, as well as from a
later one of William the Lion (1165-1214), it is known that
these old Earls of Menteith had jurisdiction in the districts
of Cowal and Kintyre.2
1 Acts of the Parliaments of Scotland, vol. i. p. 603. 2 Ibid, vol. i. p. 372.
The Lake of Menteith. 217
GlLCHRIST. T
Earl Gilchrist is a mere shadow on the page of history.
Nothing is known of him beyond the name — and that only
from its occurrence as witness to certain royal charters. In
1164, he witnessed a charter granted by Malcolm IV. to the
Abbey of Scone,2 and again he was witness to a deed
whereby William the Lion made a grant of the burgh of
Glasgow to Jocelin, the Bishop of that place, somewhere
between 1175 and 1178.8 Sir William Fraser has put the
date of Gilchrist as from about 1150 to about 1180.
MUEETACH.
His successor — Earl Muretach or Murdach — is equally
shadowy. He is known as having witnessed an agreement
between the Prior and Canons of St. Andrews and the
Culdees there in 1199 or 1200.4 He was certainly dead
by 1213, as in that year there was a quarrel about the
succession. His tenure of the earldom may therefore be
reckoned as extending from 1180 to 1212 or 1213.
MAURICE (SENIOR AND JUNIOR).
After Muretach, the earldom was held in succession by
two brothers, both named Maurice. The elder could have
been in possession, if at all, only for a short time, as his
claim was immediately challenged by the younger brother.
1 An Earl Murdach is said to have been mentioned in the Cartulary of
Dunfermline as living in the reign of David I. That is not the case. The
mistake may have arisen from confusion with Murdach, the successor of Gilchrist
8 Liber Ecclesie de Scon, p. 8.
3 Registrum Episcopatus Glasguensis, vol. L p. 36.
4 Registrum Prioratus Sancti Andree, p. 318.
218 The Lake of Menteith.
The fact that the brothers bore the same name would seem
to indicate that they were sons of Muretach by different
mothers, and that the illegitimacy of the elder was the
ground on which the earldom was claimed by the younger.
But the documents leave us in the dark as to this. What
we do know is that Maurice junior laid claim to the earldom
" sicut jus et hereditatem suam" and that his right was
acknowledged by the King (William II.), to whom the
matters in dispute had been referred, while the elder brother
was compensated by certain lands he was to hold in bailiary
of the King, and which were to revert to the earldom on
the death of the holder.1 The agreement is dated at
Edinburgh, 6th December, 1213.2
Maurice was one of the seven earls who, along with
William Malvoisin, Bishop of St. Andrews, on the morning
after the death of King William (5th December, 1214),
carried the young Prince Alexander to Scone, and had him
crowned and enthroned there on the 10th of the same
month.3 That he was Sheriff of Stirling we learn from the
Chartulary of Cambuskenneth.4 He held the earldom for
about seventeen years, dying probably in 1230. He left
two daughters — the elder, Isabella, married to Walter
1 These lands included the two towns (villae) of Muyline and Radenoche, and
the lands of Turn (Thorn), Cattlyne, Brathuly, and Cambuswelhe. There were
other lands he was to receive for the marriage portion of his daughters. Presum-
ably^these did not revert, with the others, to the earldom.
* This agreement is quoted in the Inspeximus granted by Henry III. of
England, 2oth September, 1261, to Isabella, Countess of Menteith, and her
husband, John Russel : printed in the Red Book, vol. ii. p. 314.
3 Fordun Gesta Annalia xxix. Vol. i. of Skene's edition, p. 280. The seven
earls were Fife, Stratherne, Athol, Angus, Menteith, Buchan, and Lothian
(D unbar). See also Balfour's Annals, i. 38.
4 Chartulary of Cambuskenneth, ed. by Fraser, p. 176.
The Lake of Menteith. 219
Comyn, Lord of Badenoch, and the younger, Mary, who
was the wife of Walter Stewart, third son of the High
Steward of Scotland. With these two ladies may be said
to have begun the many remarkable vicissitudes to which
the Earldom of Menteith has, in the course of time, been
subjected.
WALTEB COMYN.
The Lady Isabella, the elder of Maurice's daughters,
was married to Walter Comyn probably in January, 1231,
and her husband at once assumed the style and dignity
of Earl of Menteith. He was the second son, by the first
marriage, of William Comyn, who had, by his second
marriage, become Earl of Buchan. Walter Comyn was
much older than his wife, and had, previous to his marriage,
risen to high distinction in the affairs of the kingdom.
The frequent appearance of his name as a witness to
royal charters shows that he was frequently in the train
of King William the Lion and Alexander the Second.1
He became Lord of Badenoch about 1229.
Under the designation of Earl of Menteith, he rapidly
rose to a position of influence in the management of
Scottish affairs. The English King, Henry III., was
aHe witnessed several charters by King William between 1211 and 1214
(Chartulary of Arbroath, &c.) In 1220 he accompanied Alexander II. when he
went to York to make arrangements with Henry III. for marrying his daughter
Joanna, and the agreement in the case was signed by Comyn, ijth June of that
year (Red Book, vol. i. p. 14). Sir William Fraser says that in a document of
date 1225, he is styled Cleticus domini rent's, or Lord Clerk Register. However,
in the two charters granted — one at Kincardin, i8th August, 1226, and the other
at Edinburgh, 2oth July, 1227 — by Alexander II. to the burgesses of Stirling, he
is named (as witness) simply Walter Comyn. (See Charters and other Docu-
ments relating to Stirling, pp. 9 and n).
220 The Lake of Menteith.
endeavouring, by every means in his power, to reduce the
kingdom of Scotland to a condition of vassalage, and there
was a considerable party among the Scottish nobility that
favoured the English interest. The Earl of Menteith as
— since the death of his father, the Earl of Buchan, in
1233 — the head of the powerful Comyn family, and a
man distinguished by his ability both in the council and
in the field of battle, was regarded as the leader of the
patriotic party. He made the Comyn family for years
the dominating factor in Scottish politics. On the death
of Alexander II. (on the 8th of July, 1249), he acted
promptly and successfully in the national cause. When
the assembly of the nobles met at Scone for the purpose
of crowning the youthful Alexander III., Alan Durward,
the Justiciary, and others in the English interests
endeavoured to prevent or delay the ceremony. They
represented that the day fixed for the purpose was an
unlucky one, and that the King could not be crowned
without being previously knighted. But Menteith strongly
urged the danger of delay as King Henry was known to
be intriguing with the Pope to procure an interdict against
the coronation on the ground that Alexander was his
vassal and could not be crowned without his permission.
He therefore proposed that the Bishop of St. Andrews
should both knight and crown the young King. His
advice was taken ; and David de Bernham, the Bishop of
St. Andrews, girded the boy with the belt of knighthood
and the sword of State, and formally crowned him King
of Scotland.1 Shortly after this Menteith was appointed
1Fordun (ed. Skene), vol. i. pp. 293-4 (isth July, 1249).
The Lake of Menteith. 221
one of the guardians of the King, and for some years he
appears to have been in pretty constant attendance on
the royal person, as is shown by the various royal deeds
to which he was witness.
In 1255 the Durward faction, supported by the influence
of the English King, gained a temporary supremacy, took
possession of the young King and Queen, and removed
the regents and councillors. A deed was drawn up at
Koxburgh which virtually gave to King Henry the entire
management of the Scottish King and Scottish affairs.
To this the Earl of Menteith refused to affix his seal, and
in this refusal he was backed by the Bishop of Glasgow
and the Bishop-elect of St. Andrews.1 The Earl's party
was the popular one, and the feeling against the English
continued to grow. Gamelin, Bishop-elect of St. Andrews,
succeeded in obtaining from the Pope a sentence of
excommunication against the royal counsellors. Taking
advantage of these favourable circumstances, Menteith
ventured on the bold stroke of seizing the King and Queen
at Kinross — 28th October, 1257 — and conveying them to
Stirling. The English2 faction was scattered, and Durward
again took refuge in England. The next important step
was to enter into a treaty with the Welsh (dated 18th
March, 1258), who were at that time engaged in a struggle
with Henry. But not long afterwards a compromise was
concluded, in the arrangement of which the Earl bore
a principal part. And thus, after a long struggle, he
1Tytler's History of Scotland (ed. 1867), vol. i. p. 6 ; Chronicle of Melrose,
p. 181 ; Scotichronicon a Goodall, lib. x. cap. ix. ; Wyntoun, bk. vii. chap. x.
8 Ty tier's History, i. p. 7.
222 The Lake of Menteith.
succeeded in freeing his country — for a time, at least —
from the interference of the English monarchs.
He did not long survive this national service. He
died unexpectedly — although he was now an old man —
in November, 1258. In England, the report was that
his death was caused by a fall from his horse ; while in
Scotland, it was rumoured, and generally believed, that
he was poisoned by his Countess, who had conceived an
attachment for an Englishman named John Eussell, whom
she married almost immediately after the Earl's death.
Walter Comyn, Earl of Menteith, was undoubtedly the
foremost Scotsman of his time — able, energetic, courageous,
and faithful to his country's independence. He appears
to have been a great builder as, in addition to the Priory
of Inchmahome, which he founded in 1238, he built, in
1244, the great Castle of Hermitage in Liddesdale,1 and
that of Dalswinton, or Comyn's Castle, in Galloway. He
left no son to take his place — his son Henry having pre-
deceased him — and his daughter Isabella was disinherited
— so far as the earldom was concerned — along with her
mother. The place of his burial is unknown. It may
have been in the Priory which he had founded, although
no evidence to that effect has been preserved, and the
conduct of his Countess makes even the supposition
doubtful.
Isabella of Menteith, who had brought the earldom to
Walter Comyn, was probably, as has been said before,
1 So says Sir W. Fraser, but by others the builder of this the second Her-
mitage Castle is said to have been Nicholas de Soulis. See M'Gibbon & Ross's
Castellated and Domestic Architecture of Scotland, i. p. 524.
The Lake of Menteith. 223
much younger than her husband, although, as she had
been his wife for twenty-seven years, she could not have
been very young at the time of his death. The accusation
of poisoning him was not proved, but her hasty marriage
to Sir John Kussell naturally gave rise to much suspicion
and indignation. It may have added to this indignation
that probably some of the Scottish nobles had hoped them-
selves to receive the hand of the well-dowered Countess of
Menteith. At any rate she and her second husband were
thrown into prison and deprived of the estates. When
ultimately set at liberty they left the kingdom and retired
to England. There she made several attempts to recover
the earldom of which she had been despoiled, by appealing
first (1262) to Henry III. of England, who could do
nothing more than inspect her writs1 and certify them to
be authentic — her late husband had effectually prevented
the authority of Henry from running in Scotland — and
next to the Pope, Urban IV. The Pope's interference was
resented by the King, Alexander III., and notwithstanding
the fact that the country was laid under a papal interdict,
it came to nought. The Countess never regained her
dignities or estates, nor did she return to Scotland. She is
supposed to have died about 1273. Who the John Eussell
whom she married was, has never been clearly ascertained.
He has been called2 " ignoble," but incorrectly. In the
Pope's letter committing the affair of Countess Isabella to
certain Scottish Bishops for judgment,8 he is styled " a
1 It is from these Inspeximus that we have the account of the dispute
between the two Earls Maurice and its settlement.
2 By Boece and Buchanan.
3Theiner's Vetera Monumenta, No. 237, p. 93.
224 The Lake of Menteith.
noble man, John Eussell, of the diocese of Ely." Most
of those who have written of him content themselves with
calling him " an obscure Englishman " ; and obscure in
the sense of unknown, he certainly is. One writer had
dubbed him " a futile Englishman." The epithet has a
kind of vague vigour about it, but does not seem to mean
anything in particular. In fact, whatever has been written
regarding his origin is of the nature of more or less
plausible conjecture; and almost all that can be conjectured
on the subject will be found in Sir William Eraser's "Ked
Book of Menteith."1
WALTER STEWART.
On the death of Earl Walter Comyn and the confis-
cation of the Countess Isabella, the earldom passed to a
member of the noble House of Stewart. Lady Mary, the
younger daughter of Earl Maurice, had been married to
Walter Stewart, third son of Walter the High Steward of
Scotland, and to her and her husband the earldom was
adjudged, notwithstanding the efforts of the Comyns to
retain it in their family. Eirst of all, Sir John Comyn,
younger brother of the deceased Earl of Menteith, forced
the Countess Isabella, when she was in prison after the
death of her husband, to renounce in his favour. On the
ground of this renunciation he set up a claim to the
earldom, but it was rejected. The next claim was
made on behalf of William Comyn, Lord of Kirkintilloch,
the son of this Sir John. William had married Isabella,
the only daughter of the late earl, and on the death of
lRed Book, vol. i. pp. 44 and 45.
The Lake of Menteith. 225
her mother, the elder Isabella, in 1273, a claim was
advanced to the earldom on her behalf and that of her
husband. Proceedings in support of this claim were
instituted at York, but to no effect, as King Alexander
would not permit an action affecting dignities and estates
in his kingdom to be prosecuted in England or anywhere
else furth of Scotland. The Comyns, however, did not yet
give up their pretensions, till in 1285 a final settlement
was made by the King and Parliament assembled at
Scone. The result, a division of the earldom between the
parties, seems to have been acquiesced in by both. It
is thus stated by Wyntoun: —
The Kyng than of his counsale
Made this delyverans thare fynale ;
That erldume to be delt in twa
Partis, and the tane of tha
Wyth the chemys assygnyd he
Til Walter Stwart : the lave to be
Made als gud in all profyt ;
Schyre Willame Comyn till have that quyt
Till hald it in fre barony
Besyd the erldume all quytly.'
That is to say, that while Sir William Comyn received half
of the great estates belonging to the earldom, Walter Stewart
retained the other half, with the chemys , i.e., the chief
messuage or castle, and the dignity of Earl of Menteith.
Sir William Comyn died, without issue, in 1291; and
Edward I. of England, who was at that time paramount
in Scotland, directed the marriage of the widow to Sir
Edmund Hastings in 1293. The Comyn portion of the
estates of the earldom therefore now passed to the posses-
1 Wyntoun, ed. Macpherson, vol. i. p. 397.
226 The Lake of Menteilh.
sion of this English knight. Sir Edmund was one of those
who signed the famous letter sent by the earls and barons
of England to Pope Boniface in 1301. The legend on his
seal affixed to that document is " 8. Edmundi Hasting
Comitatu Menetei" and his designation is " Dominus de
EnchimchelmoJcy" which evidently means Lord of Inchma-
colmok or Inchmahome.1
Seal of Sir Edmund Hastings, Lord of Inchmahome.
It is a curious fact that not long after this the other
portion of the earldom, then held by Alan, son and suc-
1 We may perhaps gather from this designation that the lake and its islands
were in that half of the earldom which had been given to his wife, the Lady
Isabella Comyn and her first husband. If that were so, the Castle of Inchtalla
could not have been the chemys at the time. Possibly it may have been at
Doune— although the erection of the present Castle there is generally assigned
to a later period.
The Lake of Menteith. 22?
cessor of Walter Stewart, was taken from him by Edward
(in 1306) and granted to Sir John Hastings, the elder
brother of Sir Edmund. At that time, therefore, the whole
lands of the earldom were held by these two brothers. But
Edward apparently did not grant the title of Earl of
Menteith to either — possibly to avoid displeasing either
the one or the other. The dates of the death of Lady
Isabella Comyn and her husband are not known. He is
known to have been alive in 1314, but no doubt he and
his brother had been cleared out of Menteith before that.
King Eobert was at Inchmahome in 1310, and it is not
likely that the Hastings family were there at the time.
With Isabella, all connection of the Comyns with the
earldom of Menteith ceased.
To return now to the earldom under Walter Stewart,
known to his contemporaries as Ballochj or Bulloch (i.e.,
The Freckled). He was a personage of distinction before
he came to be Earl of Menteith. After that, his position
gave him still greater prominence and influence, and he
took an ample share in the affairs of the kingdom. Although
the Stewarts belonged to the English faction as opposed
to the patriotic party headed by the late Earl of Menteith
and the Comyns, the new Earl during his long life did
much good service to his country. In valour and wisdom,
and, indeed, in genuine patriotism, he was a worthy suc-
cessor of the distinguished man who preceded him in his
title. In his earlier life (1248-9), his brother Alexander
and he had gone a-crusading, at least as far as Egypt,
where they greatly distinguished themselves, with Louis
the Ninth (Saint Louis) of France. Hence the crusader
228 The Lake of Menteith.
attitude of his effigy in the choir of the Priory of Inchma-
home. Whether he bestowed benefactions on that religious
house is not known ; there is no evidence to show it ; but
documents are extant which prove his liberality to other
churches, especially those of Kilwinning and Paisley.
He bore a prominent part in the battle of Largs, 2nd
October, 1263, where his brother Alexander, the High
Steward, who was in chief command under the King, was
slain. Besides his actual share in the fighting, the Earl
of Menteith was at the time Sheriff of Ayr, and as a duty
of this office, had the charge of all the arrangements for
defending the coast and watching the movements of the
enemy.1 After the successful issue of that battle, he was
one of the nobles sent by the King to reduce to subjection
the chieftains of the Western Isles — a task which was
successfully accomplished. It was after this, in 1273, that
he had the contest with the Comyn family for the earldom,
the result of which has been already given.
He was one of the witnesses to the marriage contract
between the Princess Margaret of Scotland and King Eric
of Norway, settled at Eoxburgh on the 25th of July, 1281,
and gave his oath to see the deed faithfully carried out.
Along with his Countess, he was of the company that
attended the Princess to Norway in order to take part in
the nuptial celebrations and witness the coronation. The
expedition left Scotland on the morning of the 12th of
August, and reached Norway on the evening of the 14th,
1 The nature of these arrangements may be learned from the claim of expenses
made by the Earl in connection therewith, as set down in the Exchequer Rolls,
vol. i. p. 5.
The Lake of Menteith.
so that the old ballad appears to be perfectly accurate on
this point —
They hoisted their sails on a Monday morn,
Wi' a' the haste they may ;
And they hae landed in Norroway
Upon the Wodensday.1
When the ceremonies they had gone to witness were
concluded, the Earl and the Countess Mary, with the
most of the Scottish nobles, returned home in safety ; but
a second ship, conveying the Scottish ecclesiastics who
had taken part in the ceremony, and others, never reached
Scotland. She went down, with all on board, probably
in the neighbourhood of one of the Orkney Islands.2 It
is this tragic event that is the subject of the ballad just
quoted — one of the oldest and finest ballads in the Scottish
minstrelsy.
The Earl was again present at the Council held at
Scone on the 5th of February, 1283, and appended his
seal to the declaration subscribed by the nobles that, in the
event of the death of King Alexander without further issue,
the Maiden of Norway would be accepted as sovereign of
the realm.3 Alexander died without further issue on the
16th of March, 1285, and his grand-daughter, then about
three years of age, became his successor. Meantime, those
Scottish nobles who, from affinity or otherwise, thought
1 Ballad of Sir Patrick Spens. See Aytoun's Ballads of Scotland, vol. i. p. 5.
2 Professor Aytoun, in his introduction to the ballad, says that " in the little
island of Papa Stronsay, one of the Orcadian group, lying over against Norway,
there is a large grave or tumulus, which has been known to the inhabitants,
from time immemorial, as 'The Grave of Sir Patrick Spens.'" — Ballads of
Scotland, i. 2.
3 Acts of the Parliaments of Scotland, i. 424.
230 The Lake of Menteith.
they might be able to put in a claim for the crown should
anything happen to the young Queen, began to prepare
for such a possible contingency by forming parties for their
support. The Earl of Menteith adhered to the party of
the Bruces, and, along with other relatives, entered into
a bond of mutual defence at Turnberry Castle in 1286.1
After the death of the Maid of Norway in 1290, he
continued to take part in the negotiations regarding the
succession. He was one of Brace's Commissioners. On
the 13th of June, 1292, he took the oath of fealty to
Edward I. of England; but, while he tacitly acquiesced
in Edward's decision in favour of Baliol — he could scarcely
do otherwise — he seems privately to have been still for
Bruce. He did not live, however, to give the latter
effective help in his efforts to reach the throne. He died
in the latter part of 1294, or in 1295.
He survived his wife, who had brought him the earldom,
by several years. The Countess Mary was certainly dead
before 1290, the date of his charter to the monastery of
Kil winning, in which he makes certain grants " pro salute
anime mee et domine Marie quondam sponse mee, comitisse
de Menetheht."2 And it is probable that she died before
1286, when he gave the Church of Kippen3 to the Abbey
of Cambuskenneth, in order to obtain a burial-place in
the Abbey, as his daughter-in-law, Matilda, not his wife,
is mentioned as concurring in that grant. He was not,
1 Printed in the Red Book, vol. ii. p. 219.
*Red Book of Menteith, vol. ii. p. 220.
3 The tradition is that the earlier Earls of Menteith had their burial-place
in Kippen. The Stewarts, of course, were buried in their Abbey of Paisley.
The Lake of Menteith.
231
however, buried in Cambuskenneth. He rests, with his
Countess Mary, near the high altar of the Priory of
Inchmahome. The fine monument, which there preserves
their memory, is elsewhere described.1
Earl Walter had two sons — Alexander his successor,
and the notorious Sir John Menteith of Eusky, whose
career forms the subject of a separate notice.2
Seal of Walter Stewart, Earl of Menteitb.
ALEXANDER.
Alexander, the elder son and successor of Walter
Stewart, seems, as well as his brother Sir John, to have
dropped the surname of Stewart and recurred to that of
Menteith. He lived in very troubled times, and his tenure
of the earldom was short. He must have been of age
in 1286, when he was a signatory of the agreement at
Turnberry. Along with his father, he swore fealty to
Edward at Norham in 1291. Immediately after his
accession he threw himself into the midst of the exciting
^ee supra, chap. iv. p. 123. *See chapter ix.
232 The Lake of Menteith.
events of the time. In the battle of Dunbar (1296), where
he fought on the Scottish side, he was taken prisoner,
and sent to the Tower of London.1 But his confinement
extended over only two or three months. Bruce and the
Earl of Dunbar — both of them parties to the agreement
of Turnberry — were then in favour with Edward ; and it
was perhaps to their friendly influence that his speedy
release and restoration to his estates were due. On the
28th of August, 1296, at Berwick, he again took the oath
to Edward, signing a document in which he acknowledged
that he had received from the said King of England his
earldom and its pertinents, together with its other vassalages,
to hold at his pleasure ; and swearing on the Holy Gospels,
for himself and his heirs, to serve the said King well and
loyally against all mortals.2 Two of his sons, Alan and
Peter, were left as hostages in the hands of the English
King. Alexander was in England in the summer of 1297;
but it is certain that he returned to Scotland before the
battle of Stirling Bridge.3 If he were at that battle at
all — and there is no evidence that he was — he can scarcely
have been in the ranks of the Scottish patriots, because,
just after it, on the 26th September, 1297, a letter was
addressed to him by Edward, thanking him for his fidelity,
and requesting him to co-operate with the new Governor,
Brian Fitz-Alan.4 Nothing more is certainly known of
Earl Alexander. He must have been dead before 1306,
because Alan is mentioned as Earl in that year. By his
1 Historical Documents relating to Scotland, vol. ii. p. 19.
2 Ragman Rolls, p. 120.
'Historical Documents relating to Scotland, ii. 175. 4 Rotuli Scotia?, p. 50.
The Lake of Menteith. 233
wife Matilda — whose name only is known from the deed
granting the Church of Kippen to Cambuskenneth — he
had four sons, Alan, his successor, Peter, Murdach — who
succeeded Alan — and Alexander. Where he died and
where he was buried are alike unknown, though the con-
jecture is permissible that his Countess and he may have
been interred in the burial-place which they had provided
in Cambuskenneth Abbey.
ALAN.
The career of Earl Alan was short and unfortunate.
It has been already stated that he and his brother Peter
became hostages for the fidelity of their father to King
Edward. They went with that King to the wars in
Flanders in 1297, fitted out for the campaign at the royal
expense.1 Ifc is possible that Peter was slain in this
campaign; at any rate he is not again heard of. Alan
succeeded to the earldom probably in 1303 or 1304.
Duncan, Earl of Fife, made an entail of his earldom in
favour of Alan;2 but the latter, with his usual bad luck,
never obtained possession. When Kobert Bruce resolved
to vindicate by force of arms his right to the Scottish
crown, Alan supported his cause. In the fight at Methven
Wood (1306) he was captured and sent as a prisoner to
England, assigned to the keeping of Sir John Hastings.
King Edward stripped him of his earldom and estates, and
— as has already been stated — bestowed the latter on
Hastings. Alan never returned to Scotland. He is sup-
accounts of the Keeper of the King's Wardrobe, 1296-7: Historical
Documents, vol. ii. p. 138, et seqq.
2 Red Book of Menteith, vol. ii. p. 257.
234 The Lake of Menteith.
posed to have died in captivity. With his death the
earldom of Menteith might be said to have ceased to
exist. But the fact is the Scots never recognised the
usurpation of Hastings. Alan left a daughter Mary, and
she was regarded as the heiress and made a ward of the
Crown. When Bruce succeeded in freeing the country
from the English domination, the brothers Hastings were
of course turned out of Menteith, and the two divisions
of the earldom were re-united. Sir John Menteith of
Husky became guardian of the consolidated earldom on
behalf of the Countess Mary. By a family arrangement,
however, the earldom was for a time transferred to Mur-
dach, the third brother of the late Earl Alan, on the
condition that it should revert to his niece on her marriage,
or in the case of his own death without male issue.1
MURDACH.
Murdach first appears under the style of Earl of
Menteith as witness to a deed of King Robert in 1318.
He received numerous gifts in lands and money2 from
that King, from which it may be inferred that he was
regarded as a faithful subject. He continued this faithful
service to Robert's son and successor, David II. He was
distinguished by his gallant conduct at the battle of Dup-
plin, 12th April, 1332, when the Scottish regent, Earl of
Mar, was disastrously defeated by Edward Baliol. This
:That Murdach was meant to be only a temporary earl is shown by the
fact that at the time he was enjoying the style and dignity of Earl, Sir John
Menteith — in the subscription of the letter from the Scottish barons to the
Pope in 1320— still styles himself guardian of the earldom. — Acts of Parliament
of Scotland, vol. i. p. 474.
2 Exchequer Rolls, vol. i. p. 178, et passim (year 1329).
The Lake of Menteith. 235
was the last of his fights. He fell on the field of battle.1
His wife was probably the Alice, Countess of Menteith,
who appears for several years later as a pensioner on the
bounty of Edward III. As the arrangement which had
been made with her husband threw her out of the pos-
session of the earldom, she perhaps went to England and
came under allegiance to Edward in the hope that, if he
recovered the country, she would regain possession of the
estate ; and no doubt Edward also expected that in that
case the advances he made to her would be repaid.
COUNTESS MARY AND SIB JOHN GBAHAM.
The earldom now reverted to the Lady Mary, the only
child of Earl Alan. She had been brought up by her
grand-uncle, Sir John Menteith of Eusky, and seems to
have formed an enduring regard for that family. She was
now about twenty-six years of age, and for the safety of
her possessions in the disturbed state of the country it was
necessary that she should have a husband to guard and
protect them. Accordingly, she married in 1333 a gallant
knight called Sir John Graham. The precise family of
Grahams to which he belonged is uncertain, but he is
supposed to have been a younger son of Sir Patrick Graham
of Kincardine who was killed at Dunbar in 1296. If that
were so, he must have been a man of mature years in
1333. As he was related to his wife "in the fourth
degree of consanguinity," a papal dispensation had to be
procured in order to legitimate the marriage already con-
1 Wyntoun's Cronykil (edited by Laing), vol. ii. p. 388 ; Fordun (ed. Skene),
vol. i. p. 354 ; and other authorities (Walsingham, Lanercost, Liber Pluscardensis).
236 The Lake of Menteith.
tracted. Accordingly, a dispensation for the celebration
of a new marriage was issued by Pope John XXIV. at
Avignon on 1st May, 1334.1 Sir John, in right of his wife,
assumed the title of Earl of Menteith. He was one of
the most distinguished soldiers of the time. In 1346, he
went with King David II. on that invasion of England
which resulted so disastrously. Had Menteith's advice
been taken, the battle of Neville's Cross might have had
a different issue. He entreated the King to allow him to
charge the English archers in flank. " Give me but one
hundred horse," he said, " and I will disperse them all."
If David had but remembered the success of a similar
movement in the battle of Bannockburn, he should have
granted the request. But he refused. Menteith then
attacked the archers at the head of his own followers.
But they were too few to effect his purpose. His horse
was shot under him, and with difficulty he was able to
rejoin the main body.2 The battle resulted in the slaughter
of a great number of the Scottish soldiers, the capture of
the King himself and many of his nobles — the Earl of
Menteith among them. He was sent to the Tower of
1TheineiJs Vetera Monumenta, No. 515, p. 262 ; the marriage appears to
have been already contracted.
'The incident is thus described by Wyntoun : —
Than gud Schyre Jhone the Grame can Bay
To the Kyng, "Gettis me, but ma,
Ane hundyre on hors wyth me to ga,
And all yhone archerys skayle sail I :
8wa sail we fecht mare sykkerly."
Thus spak he, bot he mycht get nane.
His horse in hy than has he tane,
And liyin allane amang thame rade,
And rwdly rwme about him made.
Qwhen ho a quhille had prekyd thare,
And sum off thame had gert sow Bare,
He to the battaylis rade agayne.
Sa fell it, thai hU hors hea slayne.
— Wyntoun's Cronykil (ed. Laing), ii. p. 475.
The Lake of Menteith. 237
London. Orders arrived from Edward III., who was then
at Calais, that the Earls of Menteith and Fife should
be tried for treason. Instructions were also sent for the
finding of the Court. Of course, a trial of this kind could
have but one ending. The two earls were convicted,
and condemned to be drawn, hanged, beheaded, and
quartered, their heads to be placed on London Bridge,
and the fragments of their bodies to be sent to York,
Newcastle, Berwick, and Carlisle, there to hang in chains
as a terror to the enemies of the King. The Earl of Fife,
however, as a blood relation of the King, was spared;
but in the case of Menteith no item in the horrible details
of the brutal sentence was omitted. So, in the beginning
of March, 1347, died this gallant soldier.
His widowed Countess remained in her island home,
fully occupied with the composition of the family feuds
that were raging in the neighbourhood,1 and with the
matrimonial alliances of her daughter. This daughter,
Lady Margaret, was the only child of her marriage with
Sir John Graham, and was born in 1334. As the heiress
of an ancient and powerful earldom, she was no doubt a
very interesting personage to the Scottish nobles of the
time. She was, in fact, early and often married. The
Popes — Clement YI. and Innocent VI. — had a good deal
of business to do for her — no fewer than five papal dis-
pensations having been granted for her four marriages.
The first of these marriages took place in 1348, when
Lady Margaret had reached the age of fourteen years.
Her husband was Sir John Moray, Lord of BothweU, son
chap. xii.
238 The Lake of Menteith.
of the brave and patriotic Sir Andrew Moray, who had
been regent of Scotland in the minority of David II. Sir
John lived but three years after his marriage, and died
without issue. The Lady Margaret's widowhood was of
short duration. An ardent wooer appeared in the person
of Thomas, Earl of Mar, who, within six months after the
death of Moray, obtained from Pope Clement VI. a dis-
pensation for his union with the widow.1 The document
went astray, but the impatient Mar married without it,
and then applied for a dispensation to have the union
properly legalised. This was granted by Pope Innocent VI.
in 1354.2 But Mar's ardour did not endure. Scarcely
had the papal dispensation arrived when he divorced his
young wife — " at the instigation of the devil " (instigante
diabolo), says Fordun.8 The Earl was the last male
of his line, and was anxious for an heir; as no heir
appeared, he got rid of his wife and married another —
to be disappointed again, it may be added, and go to his
grave without issue. The divorced wife — still little more
than twenty years of age — returned to her mother and
the solitudes of Menteith. The Countess Mary was then
endeavouring, by every means in her power, to settle the
bloody feud between the Menteiths and the Drummonds.
With this end in view, she persuaded her daughter to
marry the chief of the rival family, John Drummond of
Concraig. This third husband was a man of much more
mature years than his wife; for his daughter Annabella
was already married to John Stewart, afterwards King
*At Avignon, I5th August, 1352.— Theiner's Vetera Monumenta, No. 601, p. 300.
2 At Avignon, 29th May, 1354. 'Fordun a Laing, vol. i. p. 317.
The Lake of Menteith. 239
Robert III.1 The marriage took place in 1359, but it
was discovered to be irregular, and a dispensation had to
be obtained. This was granted by Innocent VI., in 1360,
on the condition that the transgressors should erect and
endow an altar in the Cathedral of Dunblane. As in this
dispensation2 Margaret is styled Countess of Menteith, it
is not unlikely that her mother, in order the more strongly
to commend the marriage to Drummond, demitted the
earldom in favour of her daughter.8 Not very long after
this dispensation was received, John Drummond died — he
does not seem to have taken the title of Earl of Menteith
— and next year (1361) we find the Countess Margaret
married for the fourth time. She was now twenty-six or
twenty-seven years of age, and her matrimonial vicissitudes
were at an end.
ROBERT STEWART, EARL OF MENTEITH, EARL OP FIFE,
DUKE OF ALBANY.
The fourth husband was Robert Stewart, the third son
of the Earl of Stratherne who became afterwards Robert
II. This apparently was a marriage of political convenience,
arranged between the parents. Not only, however, were the
parties themselves connected by blood, but their relation-
1 Drummond was doubly related to royalty, for besides being the father of
Queen Annabella, he was the brother of Margaret Logic, the second wife of
David II.
2Theiner's Vetera Monumenta, 640. The dispensation is dated i8th April,
1360. The marriage had taken place previously.
3 In a charter granting the lands of Aberfoyle to John Drummond, the Lady
Margaret is designed " Margaret of Moray, Countess of Menteith." Charter
confirmed by David II. at Scone, I2th November, 1361. Printed in Red Book,
vol. ii. p. 246.
240 The Lake of Menteith.
ship was much complicated by the previous marriages of
the Countess, so that application had again to be made to
the Pope. Once more the dispensation was granted,1 and
the grantees were ordered to found a chapel to the honour
of God in the city or diocese of Dunblane, and endow it
with an annuity of twelve marks of silver. On his marriage
Sir Eobert Stewart took the style of Lord of Menteith;
and at the accession of his father to the throne (1370), he
was created Earl of Menteith. The Countess Margaret
lived to see her husband add the earldom of Fife to that
of Menteith. She did not, however, survive to see him
reach the higher dignity of Duke of Albany. She is
supposed to have died about 1380.
The earldom of Menteith had now come back again to
the Stewart family. Kobert Stewart was the most famous
man who had ever held the dignity; but he is better
known to history by the titles of Earl of Fife and Duke
of Albany than by that of Earl of Menteith. His life and
achievements, moreover, belong rather to the history of
Scotland in general than to his special connection with
the district of Menteith, and need not here be narrated in
detail. We do not hear of his residing at Inchtalla,
although there are letters and deeds of his which are
dated from the Castle of Doune, which seems to have
been the principal messuage of the earldom during his
time, as it perhaps was in the case of some of the earlier
earls. The Castle of Falkland, however, was most fre-
quently his place of residence.
1 Dated 9th December, 136'!.— Theiner's Vetera Monumenta, No. 645,
P- 317.
The Lake of Menteith. 241
He was born in 1339 or 1340, and was therefore about
five years younger than his wife. Of his life previous to
his marriage in 1361, nothing is known. In the Exchequer
EolJs of 1364, he is designed simply Eobert Stewart of
Menteith.1 As Lord of Menteith, he appeared in Parlia-
ments held in 1367, 1368, and 1369.2 His father was
crowned at Scone as King Robert the Second on the 26th
of March, 1371. That he was then created Earl of
Menteith is inferred from the fact that, among the nobles
who next day performed homage to the King, he is found
under that designation. Why he had not assumed the
title on his marriage with the Countess — as others had
done in similar circumstances — is not clear; although it
has been suggested that it might have been because of
the jealousy with which David regarded the High Steward
and his family.
Very soon after assuming the title, he added to his
dignities and possessions the ancient earldom of Fife.
Isabella, the widowed and childless Countess of Fife,
entered into an agreement with him to the effect that,
if he aided her to recover the earldom which she had been
compelled to part with to others, she would resign it into
the hands of the King for a regrant to be made to the
Earl. In the indenture, which is dated 30th March, 1371,3
the Countess recognised the Earl as her lawful heir, both
by reason of the entail made by her father in favour of
AJan, Earl of Menteith, the grandfather of the Countess
1Exchequei Rolls, vol. ii. p. 166.
2 Acts of Parliaments of Scotland, i. pp. 501-507.
'This indenture is printed in Sibbald's Histoiy of Fife.
242 The Lake of Menteith.
Margaret, and also because of the entail made by herself
and her late husband, Walter Stewart, brother of the Earl
of Menteith, in favour of the latter. That this agreement
was carried out is shown by the fact of his witnessing a
charter at Scone, 6th March, 1372, as Earl of Fife and
Menteith. On the 4th of December, 1371, he had witnessed
a royal confirmation at Dundonald as Earl of Menteith
simply, so that the additional dignity must have been
acquired between these dates. Fife, as the older dignity,
thenceforth takes precedence of Menteith ; and by the first
title alone, in fact, he is generally known.
He was made keeper of the Castle of Stirling in 1373,
and during his forty-seven years' tenure of that office he
considerably strengthened the Castle.1 In the same year,
by a Grand Council of Parliament held at Scone, it was
ordained that, failing John, Earl of Carrick, eldest son of
King Robert, the succession to the throne should devolve
on the second surviving son, the Earl of Fife and Menteith.2
During the succeeding years Earl Robert was much with
his father, who had great confidence in his business
ability and activity. He received in consequence many
grants of lands in various parts of the country, and other
favours. He was made High Chamberlain of Scotland
in 1382, and held the office till 1408, when he gave it over
to his second son, the Earl of Buchan. His wife, the
Lady Margaret Graham, must have died about 1383, and
thereafter he married Muriella, daughter of Sir William
1 Among other additions to the Castle, we learn from the Exchequer Rolls
(iv. p. 164) that he built a chapel there.
* Acts of Parliaments of Scotland, vol. i . p. 549.
The Lake of Menteith. 243
Keith, Marischal of Scotland.1 Towards the end of 1388,
the King, feeling the infirmity of age, and knowing
that his eldest son and heir apparent was physically dis-
abled, submitted to his Council2 a proposal that the Earl
of Fife should be made Guardian of the Kingdom. And
this was agreed to. When John, Earl of Carrick, ascended
the throne, in 1390, as Eobert III., the Earl of Fife still
retained this position until at any rate 1392 ; that was
the year in which the payment of his salary as Guardian
ceased.
At a meeting of Parliament at Scone on the 28th of
April, 1398, the Earl of Fife and Menteith was created
by the King Duke of Albany, and at the same time his
nephew, Prince David, Earl of Carrick and Athole, was
created Duke of Rothesay. This is the first appearance of
the title of Duke in the Scottish peerage. The ceremonies
which took place at the investiture were on an elaborate
and splendid scale. They are said3 to have occupied fifteen
days. Next year the Duke of Rothesay was appointed
Lieutenant of the Kingdom for three years, with a Council
of Advice, at the head of which was the Duke of Albany.
The conduct of Rothesay in that position was such that
the King, at the close of the period of office, wrote to
Albany to have him arrested. This was done, and Rothesay
was confined in the Castle of Falkland, where he died of
1 Among the Stirling Charters is one granted by Robert, Duke of Albany,
Earl of Fife and Menteith, and Governor of the Kingdom of Scotland, to St
Michael's Chapel " for the salvation of the souls of Margaret and Muriel, his
wives." It is dated 26th June, 1407, and witnessed by (among others) Robert,
son of Murdach, and grandson of the Duke.
2 Held at Edinburgh, ist December, 1388. 3 Liber Pluscardensis, p. 332.
Q
244 The Lake of Menteith.
dysentery on the 26th of March, 1402. Pity for the
untimely fate of the young Prince roused suspicions in
the minds of the people, and a rumour got about that he
had been starved to death by the instructions of his uncle
Albany. These rumours in course of time crystallised
into the well-known story related with circumstantial details
by Bower.1 At the request probably of Albany and the
Earl of Douglas, brother-in-law of Kothesay — who were both
implicated in the suspicion of foul play — an investigation
was made by Parliament in 1402, with the result that the
two nobles were pronounced innocent of the charge, and
the Prince was declared to have died from natural causes.2
This is likely enough to have been really the case, but the
popular mind was never quite disabused of its suspicions.
After the expiry of the Lieutenancy of the Duke of
Eothesay, and apparently before his death, Albany was
appointed Governor of the Kealm under the King. When
Kobert the Third, wasted with grief for the fate of Prince
David, and heart-broken by the captivity of his only sur-
viving son, the Prince James — who had been made prisoner
by the English King, Henry IV., during a time of truce —
sank under his misfortunes, and died on the 4th of April,
1406, Albany was chosen by the Estates8 Governor of the
Kingdom. This office he held till his death in 1420.4
1 Scotichronicon, ii. p. 431. 2 Acts of Parliaments of Scotland, vol. i. p. 582.
3 In a meeting held at Perth in June.— Wyntoun, bk. ix. ch. 26.
4 Albany had a salary of ;£iooo as Governor (Exchequer Rolls, iv. pp. 152,
189, et passim}, and an annuity of 200 merks as Keeper of Stirling Castle (Ibidy
PP- 39» et alia). The resources of the earldom of Fife and Menteith have been
estimated at ^1200, and the whole income of the Regent at ^2500— exclusive of
certain allowances. See Introduction to the fourth volume of the Exchequer
Rolls series by George Burnett, Lyon King at Arms.
The Lake of Menteith.
245
*. ^m^
Official Seal of Robert Duke of Albany.
This is not the place to narrate the events of that
period. It is enough to say that, on the whole, he ruled
well and wisely, and that the country enjoyed a measure
of peace and made consequent progress during his govern-
ment. All the time the Scottish Prince — and for a great
portion of the time the Duke's own son, Murdach, also —
246 The Lake of Menteith.
was a prisoner in England. It has been asserted that
Albany made little effort for the release of his nephew,
willing rather to leave him a prisoner so as to gratify his
own ambition of ruling. But official documents show
that throughout the whole long period of the captivity
negotiations for the release of the Prince seldom ceased,
although the English Kings, while plausible enough in
their communications with the Scottish Governor, resolutely
stuck to their prize. There are not wanting indications,
however, that the Prince himself was not convinced of
the sincerity of his uncle's desires for his release, and
this may have been one of the causes of his otherwise
inexplicable severity to the family of Albany when he
did return to his kingdom.
Bower states that Albany died on the 30th of September,
1419, but the correct date must be put a year later.
The Exchequer accounts show that he was alive in July,
1420,1 and he granted a charter at Falkland on the 4th
August of the same year.2 He was thus over eighty years
of age at his death. He was buried in Dunfermline Abbey.
His widow, the Duchess Muriella, survived till 1449 — the
Exchequer Bolls show that a pension of £66 13s 4d
annually was paid to her from 1428 to 1449.3 He had a
family of four sons and six daughters. Murdach, the
eldest of his family and the only son of Countess Margaret,
succeeded his father. John, the eldest son of Muriella,
was that gallant Earl of Buchan, the Constable of France,
who was slain at Yerneuil, 18th August, 1424. The third
'Exchequer Rolls, iv. p. 310. 2Reg. Ma?. Sig. lib. iii-> No. 81.
8 Exchequer Rolls, vol. iv. ; accounts for those years.
The Lake of Menteith. 247
son, Andrew, died in 1413. Kobert, the fourth son, is
known to have been alive in 1431.
It was recently the fashion among Scottish historians
to decry the character of the Duke of Albany. He has
been spoken of as cowardly, crafty, cruel, cold-blooded,
unscrupulous, and selfishly ambitious. The earlier historians,
Bower and Wyntoun,1 on the other hand, refer to him in
terms of the highest praise. As these historians, although
contemporary in their lives with Albany, wrote after his
death, they could have been under no temptation to colour
their estimates in his favour. Kather, considering the
conduct of James I. and his obvious ill-feeling towards
his uncle's family, they might have been expected to say
as little in his praise as they possibly could. Their
testimony, in the circumstances, must be held therefore
as strongly in his favour.
MUBDACH STEWART, DUKE OP ALBANY, EABL OP FIFE
AND OP MENTEITH.
Kobert Stewart was succeeded in his dignities by his
eldest son, Murdach, who thus became the second Duke of
Albany, as well as Earl of Fife and of Menteith. Murdach
was the son of Lady Margaret, and was born probably in
1362. In 1389 he was appointed, by Eobert III., Justiciar
of Scotland north of the Forth.2 In one of the documents
issued in his justiciarship, he is designed Lord of Apthane,8
1 Scotichronicon, lib. xv. c. 37. Wyntoun (Cronykil, lib. ix. c. 26) calls him
" a mirror of honour and of honesty."
'Acts of the Parliaments of Scotland, vol. i. p. 557.
8 He received the Abthania of Dull— or rather ^136 as an equivalent for its
revenues— from his father.— Exchequer Rolls, vol. iv., Introd.
248 The Lake of Menteith.
but, in most of them, his style is Lord Kinclevin, and that
was generally his title during his father's lifetime.1 In
pursuance of a treaty made between his father and Duncan,
Earl of Lennox, at Inchmurrin in Lochlomond (17th Feb-
ruary, 1392), he married Isabella, the eldest daughter and
heir of Lennox.2
He was taken prisoner by the English in the battle of
Homildon, 14th September, 1402, and underwent a long
captivity in England. Notwithstanding repeated embassies
and negotiations for bis release, he did not receive his free-
dom till the year 1416, when he was exchanged for the
young Earl of Northumberland, who had been long held
prisoner in Scotland.8
After his return he was appointed lieutenant to his
father the Governor, and when the latter died in 1420,
he succeeded him in his high office. It is more than
likely that he was appointed to the office by Parliament,
but there is no extant documentary evidence to that effect.4
He was fifty -eight years of age when he assumed the
Governorship in succession to his father, and, if we are to
credit the statement of the contemporary historian Bower,
he did not hold the reins with the same firm hand as his
predecessor.5 He was troubled also, it appears, by the
disobedience and turbulence of his sons. But his tenure
1 A charter of Robert Duke of Albany, granting an annual rent to the chaplain
of St. Michael's Chapel in the Castle of Stirling (dated at Perth, 26th June, 1407),
is witnessed by " Robert Steward, eldest son of our dearest son and heir, Murdach
Steward, Knight? But this was during Murdach's captivity in England. See
Stirling Charters, p. 29.
'Eraser's The Lennox, vol. ii. p. 43. 3Rotuli Scotiae, p. 214.
4 He succeeded his father also as Keeper of Stirling Castle, and drew the
allowance for that office— 200 merks.— Exchequer Rolls, iv. 338, £c.
6 Scotichronicon (Goodall), ii. 467.
The Lake of Menteith. 249
of the government was not destined to be long. Negotia-
tions were resumed for the release of King James, and,
after many delays, resulted at last in the return of the
King in the beginning of the year 1424.
One of the first acts of the King, on arriving at Edin-
burgh in April of that year, was to arrest Sir Walter
Stewart, the eldest surviving son of Duke Murdach, and
to send him prisoner to the Bass.1 Two other barons were
arrested at the same time. For what reason these arrests
were made is not by any one stated.
At the coronation of the King and Queen at Scone, on
the 21st of May, 1424, the King was placed in the royal
chair by Duke Murdach, in virtue of the ancient privilege
of the Earls of Fife ; and at the same time his son, Alex-
ander Stewart, received the honour of knighthood from
the King.2 This did not look as if James was bent on the
destruction of the House of Albany. But the storm soon
burst. Later in the year the Ear] of Lennox, Albany's
father-in-law, was seized and committed to prison. And
in the month of March next year, while a meeting of the
Estates was being held at Perth, the King ordered the
arrest of Duke Murdach himself,3 his secretary, and his son
Alexander, the recently made knight. Only one of Albany's
family, his second surviving son James, eluded the King,
and after several exciting adventures, found refuge in
England, and finally in Ireland.4 The Duke's castles of
'Walter Stewart was arrested on the I3th of May, 1424.— Scotichronicon,
lib. xvi. c. 9; Exchequer Rolls, iv. 386.
'Fordun a Goodall, vol. ii. p. 482. 8On the I4th March, 1425.
4 A safe conduct to Ireland was granted to James Stewart by Henry VI.,
loth May, 1429.— Rotuli Scotise, ii. p. 265.
250 The Lake of Menteith.
Falkland and Doune were seized. In the latter was found
the Duchess Isabella, who was sent, with the other
prisoners, to St. Andrews Castle. Afterwards she was
transferred to Tantallon Castle, while her husband was sent
to Caerlaverock, where he was confined in a portion of
the castle known thereafter as Murdach's Tower.
The local traditions differ as to the scene of Duke
Murdach's capture. One places it at a spot still called
by the name of Murdach's Ford, on the old road between
Doune and Dunblane, where a small stream is crossed by
the road, not far from the farm of Anchors Cross, and
about a mile from the town of Dunblane ; while a
second legend affirms that he was taken from his castle
on Dundochill, a small island in Loch Ard.1 Both tradi-
tions are probably in error. He and the others appear
to have been seized while attending the Parliament at
Perth.
After these arrests the Parliament was adjourned, to
meet again at Stirling on the 18th of May. The first of the
captives to be brought to trial was Walter Stewart, who
was convicted and executed on the 24th of the month.
Next day witnessed the trial, conviction, and execution of
the Duke of Albany, his son, Sir Alexander Stewart, and
his father-in-law, the Earl of Lennox. Five persons of
subordinate rank, who had been engaged with James
Stewart in his attack on Dumbarton Castle, were, at the
'The foundations of a strong building, locally called Murdach's Castle, can
still be traced on this island, and the people of the district say that it was built
by this Duke of Albany as a residence. It seems too small, however, for that
purpose ; but it may have been a hunting seat or tower of refuge for some of
the earlier Earls of Menteith. There were earlier Murdachs among them.
The Lake of Menteith. 251
same time, put to death with horrible tortures.1 The
execution of the Albanies took place on what is known as
the Heading Hill, the northernmost spur of the ridge that
runs out from the Castle rock of Stirling. From here, as
Sir Walter Scott has said, the Duke might see the towers
of the Castle of Doune, in which he had been wont to
live in princely state.2 The bodies of the unfortunate
victims of the royal severity were interred in the Church
of the Dominican Friars, on the south side of the great
altar.
The nature of the charges made against the Albanies
has not been preserved. Walter Stewart is stated in the
Scotichronicon3 to have been indicted for robbery (de
roborea), but in what instance or instances is not stated.
It is obvious that James had resolved on the extermination
of the family, but why must remain an unsolved problem.
Certain expressions in recently published letters of his lead
us to think that he did not believe the late Duke of Albany
had done all he might have done to obtain his restoration,
1 According to the Scotichronicon (vol. ii. p. 483), they were torn to pieces
by horses, and the mutilated fragments of their bodies suspended on gibbets.
2 According to Sir Walter Scott, the name of Gowlan Hills — as he calls the
knolls to the north of the Castle — originated in the lamentation (Scottice, gowling)
made by the populace and onlookers at the time of this execution. This
popular etymology, however, must be taken with caution. The Scottish people
have never at any time been demonstrative in the expression of their griefs ; and
at that period scenes of cruelty were not so uncommon as to have been likely to
move them to tears and lamentation. If Gowlan was the original in use before
any local records that have been preserved, it perhaps represents the Gaelic
" guallan " (i.e., shoulder), a word which aptly enough designates the topographical
relation of the hills to the Castle rock. But the name of the hills in the Burgh
Records is invariably written Gowane (or Go-vane) — the form still in common use —
never Gowlan. Against this can only be set the monkish monies dolorum, and the
occurrence of Gowlan once, at least, in the Kirk Session Records of the seven-
teenth century.
'Cupar MS. quoted in Fordun (Goodall), vol. ii. p. 483, note.
252 The Lake of Menteith.
and he may have cherished a suspicion that the family had
purposed to supplant him on the throne. Or the popular
opinion of the time, as expressed in a contemporary account
of the murder of James I., quoted by Pinkerton,1 may not
be far from the truth — " the people ymagynd that the Kyng
did rather that vigorious execucion upon the Lordes of his
kyne, for the covetise of thare possessions and goodes, thane
for any other rightfull cause, althofe he fonde colourabill
wais to serve his entent yn the contrarye."
Murdach and his sons were men of tall stature2 and
splendid presence, and the Earl of Lennox was a venerable
man of eighty years of age. Moreover, the Duke had been
an easy-going ruler, and was popular with all classes, while
his son Walter was a general favourite. Among the people,
therefore, their fate was greatly lamented ; and, if the King
imagined that, by this instance of inflexible severity, he would
strike terror into the hearts of the haughty and turbulent
nobles, his hopes were disappointed. He succeeded only in
inspiring some of them with a spirit of hatred and revenge,
which issued some years later in his own assassination (1436).
The possessions of the Duke of Albany were forfeited, and
the earldoms of Fife and Menteith now came into the hands
of the King. Of the sons of the Duke, Eobert, the eldest,
had died without issue before 1421, Walter and Alexander
perished with their father in 1425, and James, surnamed
More, was outlawed, and died in Ireland in 1451. His daugh-
ter, Isabella, married Sir Walter Buchanan of Buchanan.
1Pinkerton's History, vol. i., appendix, p. 453.
2 Homines giganteae staturae.— Fordun (Goodall) ii. p. 483.
253
CHAPTER IX.
Sir John Menteith and the Capture
of Sir William Wallace.
"The fause Menteith."
" Rycht suth it is, a martyr was Wallace."
[E JOHN MENTEITH was the second son of
Walter Stewart (Bulloch), who had married
Mary, the younger daughter of Maurice, the
third known Earl of Menteith, and in right of
his wife, had succeeded to the earldom.1 Sir John,
therefore, though he is always known as Menteith, or de
Menteith, was by birth a Stewart of the family from which
came the Kings of Scotland. The date of his birth may
be placed some time between 1260 and 1265. He had, at
any rate, arrived at manhood in 1286, when he was a party
to a bond entered into by the Earl of Dunbar and his sons,
Walter Stewart, Earl of Menteith, and his sons (Alexander
and JoJm), Kobert Bruce, Lord of Annandale, and his sons,
and other noblemen, to adhere to the party of Kichard de
Burgh, Earl of Ulster, and Sir Thomas de Clare. This
bond, which was entered into a few months after the
aSee supra, p. 224.
254 The Lake of Menteilh.
death of Alexander III., was in effect an agreement to
support the claim of Bruce to the throne.1
When Baliol attempted to throw off the yoke of Edward,
Sir John of Menteith was one of his supporters. He and
his elder brother Alexander — who had by this time become
Earl of Menteith — were in the Scottish army that was
routed at Dunbar on the 28th of April, 1296, and were
both made prisoners on that occasion.2 He remained in
captivity in England — first at Nottingham, afterwards at
Winchilsea — for over a year, but he secured his liberation
and the restoration of his lands in Scotland by agreeing
to serve King Edward in his French wars. The expedition,
on which he bound himself to serve, sailed for France on
the 22nd August, 1297, and returned in March, 1298. The
probability is that after having fulfilled the conditions of
his liberation by serving on this expedition, he returned as
soon as possible to Scotland; but there is no authentic
evidence by which his movements at this time can be traced.
On reaching his native land, he did not long remain
faithful to the interests of the English King. The statement
that he accompanied Wallace and Sir John Graham on a
punitive expedition against the men of Galloway in the
month of August, 1298, rests on the authority of the
Relationes Arnaldi Blair? But we have the more certain
1 It is dated at Turnberry, Carrick, 2oth September, 1286.— Hist. Doc. Scot.,
vol. i. p. 22.
2 Calendar of Documents relating to Scotland, vol. ii. No. 742.
* These Relationes consist of extracts from the Scotichronicon. The particular
passage referred to here is not found in the edition of Fordun and Bower's work
published cura Goodall, but it is supposed to have been part of one of the two
missing chapters in book xi., the writer of which book was Bower, not Fordun. See
also Balfour's Annals, vol. i. p. 84, where the same statement regarding Menteith
is made.
The Lake of Menteith. 255
authority of the public documents that he was at this time
and later a member of the patriotic party opposed to the
supremacy of Edward. In a communication to Edward,
of date October, 1301, he is designated " The adversary
of the King."1 And the King's adversary he continued
for some time longer to be.
The next glimpse we have of him in the historic scene
may be regarded as characteristic both of his own disposition
and of his attitude towards the troubles of his country.
In September, 1303, he made his appearance at Berwick,
along with Sir Alexander Meyners, to negotiate a truce
with the English. But when he saw the state of destitution
to which the Irish troops serving in the English army were
reduced, he refused to proceed with the negotiations,
thinking, no doubt, that starvation would soon drive them
from the country. He was evidently willing to be on the
patriotic side so long as it appeared to have any chance
of success. These chances of success, however, geemed
to disappear when the army of the Eegent Comyn was
defeated by Edward on the banks of the Forth at Stirling
in December, 1303. The result of this defeat was the
submission of the whole of the Scottish nobles and barons
to the English King, save only two. Wallace and Sir
1 Calendar of Doc., vol. ii. p. 437, No. 1255. This seems to give some
confirmation to the statement of Blind Harry that Menteith, some time after the
battle of Stirling, joined the party of Wallace. Harry's authority— especially in
regard to dates — is not to be implicitly trusted, unless confirmed from other
evidences ; but his words — if we may venture to quote a writer whom Lord Hailes
said everybody refers to but no one ventures to quote — are as follows : —
" Schir Jhon Menteth was than off Aran lord,
Till Wallace come, and maid a playne record :
With witnes thar be his ayth he him band,
Lanta to kep to Wallace and to Scotland."
—Schir William Wallace, by Henry the Minstrel, Scottish Text Society Edition, book riL, 1200.
256 The Lake of Menteith.
Simon Fraser alone held out ; but the latter was compelled
at length to give way, and Wallace was left alone, irrecon-
cilable, and marked for death by his implacable enemy.
Menteith was, of course, one of the barons who gave
in their submission to Edward, and he seems to have
been speedily taken into favour by that monarch. Within
three months of his submission he was formally entrusted
with the custody of the Castle, town, and Sheriffdom of
Dumbarton. The grant, which is dated at St. Andrews,
20th March, 1304,1 was probably a renewal, under the
authority of the English King, of offices formerly held by
him in the Scottish interest.
And now we come to the event in the life of Sir John
Menteith which has lived in the memory of his countrymen
while all his other doings have been forgotten, and which —
whether it was after all an evil but necessary consequence
of the office he held rather than the result of a covetous
and treacherous character — has branded him as the repre-
sentative traitor in the estimation of the Scottish people,
and left his name to be execrated by them from that
time to the present.
So determined was King Edward on the capture of
Wallace that he not only set a price upon the head of
the patriot, but issued the most stringent orders to the
captains of his forces and the Governors of the Castles
and towns to be constantly on the watch to seize him.
He even made this capture a condition of the restitution
of their estates to the barons who had given in their
submission to his will; so that not only Menteith but
xHist. Doc. Scot, vol. ii. p. 474.
The Lake of Menteith. 257
many others were interested in the capture of the hero.1
Besides all this, he offered bribes to certain persons to
undertake the enterprise. Kalph de Haliburton, one of the
prisoners taken from Stirling Castle on the fall of that
fortress, was sent to Scotland, under the charge of Sir John
Mowbray, with instructions to search for Wallace and
effect his capture. It is not clear what share, if any, these
two had in the event. Neither is it quite certain who
it was that actually discovered the hiding-place of Wallace
and betrayed him to Menteith. Blind Harry attributes the
treachery to a young man, a relative of Sir John, and
engaged by the latter for the purpose.2 Langtoft8 says
that a servant, to whom he gives the name of " Jack Short,"
was the traitor, and that, acting on his information,
Menteith came and seized Wallace when in bed. The
popular imagination, as represented by the minstrel, has
added numerous romantic incidents, that all tend to deepen
the stain of the treachery. These need not be mentioned
here. They are in want of confirmation. So also is the
statement made by other Scottish writers that Wallace
finally surrendered to Sir John only on a promise that he
was to be secretly set at liberty, and that it was necessary
to submit to being made a prisoner temporarily that his
life might be saved from the overwhelming English force
by which he was surrounded. It is not necessary to believe
all these things. But, after all, the fact remains, proved
by historical evidence, that it was Menteith who was
1 Palgrave's Historical Documents relating to Scotland, p. 276.
2 " His syster son."— Schir William Wallace, &c., xi. 950.
'Langtoft Chron., p. 329.
258 The Lake of Menteith.
responsible for the capture of the hero, and also that
treachery of some sort— whether directly arranged by him
or not — was employed in the capture. The most trustworthy
historians, both English and Scottish, who wrote most
shortly after the event, leave no doubt of this.1 It is no
less certain that he was rewarded by the English King
for his share in this business. In a memorandum of the
English Council, quoted in Palgrave's Historical Docu-
ments,2 mention is made of 40 marks "to be given to
the valet who spied out William Waleys," of 60 marks
to be divided among others who were present, and " a
hundred livres for John of Menteth." And he had other
rewards. He was chosen a Scottish Commissioner by
Edward, and was accordingly one of the ten Scottish
representatives who met in the Union Parliament at
Westminster in September, 1305. He was made one of
the Council of the Royal Guardian of Scotland (Sir John
de Bretagne),8 and he was continued in the office of Sheriff
and keeper of the Castle of Dumbarton. In 1306, Edward
still further marked his high satisfaction with his conduct
by giving him the ward of the Castle and Sheriffdom for
life ; and in June of the same year he conferred on him
the earldom of Lennox.4
Next year, after the death of Edward I., we find his
son and successor, Edward II., communicating with
1 Chronicle of Lanercost ; Wyntoun's Cronykil ; Fordun and Bower's
Scotichronicon ; The Arundel MS. ; The Scala Chronica, &c. The words
of Fordun are quite distinct : " In the year 1305 William Wallace was craftily
and treacherously (fraudulenter et proditionaliter) taken by John of Menteith,
who handed him over to the King of England." — Historians of Scotland : Fordun,
ed. Skene, vol. ii. p. 332.
2Palgrave's Hist. Doc., p. 295. * Ibid^ p. 305. 4 /&'</, p. 293.
The Lake of Menteith. 259
Menteith as Earl of Lennox, and " one of his faithful in
Scotland."1 This faith, however, he did not long retain.
The fortunes of Eobert Bruce were rising, and Sir John
went over to his side. His name is found among those
attached to the answer sent by the Scottish nobles, who
acknowledged Bruce as their King, to the message in which
the King of France recognised his sovereignty. This letter
was drawn up at St. Andrews, 16th March, 1308.2 There-
after he seems to have been as much in the confidence
of Bruce as he had formerly been in that of the English
Kings. He had now, however, to drop his claim to the
earldom of Lennox, for Malcolm, the real Earl, was one
of King Robert's most intimate friends. Possibly his tenure
of the earldom had been but a shadow ; at any rate, he
does not appear to have made any difficulty in surrendering
it. He seems even to have been on friendly terms with
Earl Malcolm. In the year 1309 he was one of the Com-
missioners appointed on behalf of King Robert to treat for
a peace with the Earl of Ulster, the English Commissioner.
From this time to his death there are but few notices
of Menteith in the records. The story of his attempted
treachery to Robert Bruce in the Castle of Dumbarton,
narrated by Bower,8 and more circumstantially by Buch-
anan, is probably mere legend. He was pardoned by the
King, says Buchanan, on condition that he should take
his place in the front of the battle at Bannockburn, and
1Rymer's Foedera, ii. 22.
2 Acts of the Parliaments of Scotland, vol. i. p. 289.
8 Scotichronicon, lib. xii. cap. 16 and 17. These two chapters are omitted
from some of the MSS. ; but are to be found in those of Cupar, Perth, and
Dunblane.
R
260 The Lake of Menteilh.
there await the issue. " There," says the historian, " the
man, otherwise treacherous, served the King faithfully,
and behaved with so much bravery, that by his exertions
that day he not only procured pardon for his former deeds,
but even an ample reward for his conduct."1 It will be
observed that in this story Buchanan makes it a condition
of Sir John's pardon that he should take his place in the
Scottish ranks at Bannockburn. The inference therefore
is that the date of the treachery of Dumbarton was
immediately or, at the most, shortly before that battle.
But it has been shown that Menteith was in favour with
Bruce some years previous to the fight at Bannockburn.
An entry in the Chartulary of Dunfermline shows that he
was with King Eobert in the neighbourhood of Stirling in
November of 1313, seven months before the battle.2 That
Menteith fought at Bannockburn is likely enough, although
there is no certain evidence to that effect. That he was
much engaged thereafter in public affairs and much in the
confidence of his sovereign, is manifest from the little we
do know of his later life. He is said — on somewhat
doubtful authority — to have accompanied Edward Bruce
on his expedition to Ireland in 1315. If that were so,
he did not remain till the end of that unfortunate adven-
ture, for in 1316 he was sent, along with Sir Thomas
Eandolph, on a special mission to Ireland.8 He was one
1Aikman's Translation of Buchanan's History, vol. i. p. 428.
2 Sir John Menteith was witness to a charter of King Robert, dated at
Cambuskenneth, I4th November, 1313, by which the King granted to the Church
of Dunfermline the Church of Kinross and Chapel of Orwell.— Registrum de
Dunfermleyne.
8 Rhymer's Fcedera, ii. 302.
The Lake of Menteith. 261
of the Scottish barons who subscribed the famous Memorial
to the Pope, dated at Aberbrothock, 6th April, 1320, in
which they vindicated the right of their country to inde-
pendence, and declared their resolution to maintain it.1
He signs this letter in the style of Guardian of the earldom
of Menteith. Although Murdach was at this time earl, he
was holding the title only temporarily with the consent of
the Lady Mary, daughter of the late Earl Alan, who was
under the guardianship of her father's uncle, Sir John
Menteith. The latest public act of his of which we have
any notice was in 1323, when, in company with Kandolph,
Earl of Moray, the Bishop of St. Andrews, and Sir Kobert
Lauder, he went to Newcastle and negotiated a truce for
thirteen years with the English King.2 He probably did
not long survive this last national service. He certainly
died before King Kobert.8
Sir John Menteith, besides possessing the lands of
Kusky, seems also to have inherited as his portion of his
father's earldom, the lands of Arran and Knapdale. He
had two sons and two daughters. The eldest son, Sir
John, is styled Lord of Arran and Knapdale, and so is
his son — also a Sir John. With the third John, the direct
line of descent ended. Eusky was inherited by the second
son, Sir Walter. The direct Eusky line of descent termi-
nated in the fourth generation in two heiresses — Agnes
Menteith, who married, 1460 or 1461, John Haldane of
1 Fordun a Goodall, vol. ii. p. 277 ; and Anderson's Diplomata Scotiae, where
a facsimile of the document is given, plate li. ; Acts of the Parliament of Scotland,
vol. i. p. 291.
2Rymer's Foedera, ii. 521 ; Acts of Parliaments of Scotland, i. 479.
'Robertson's Index to Missing Charters, p. 18.
262 The Lake of Menteith.
Gleneagles, and Elizabeth, who married, much about the
same time, John Napier of Merchiston. Between these
the estates of Husky were divided. Collateral branches
of the family are descended from John, the second son of
Sir Walter Menteith of Rusky.
Sir John Menteith was obviously an able man of affairs,
and, not less clearly, a valiant soldier. If his steady
patriotism is not so evident, it can at the least be said
that in this respect he was only a fair representative of
the Scottish nobility of that period, whose allegiance seems
to have varied with what they considered their personal
interests. Unfortunately, however, for his reputation with
posterity, it was into his hands that the national hero was
betrayed; and, when we consider the passionate devotion
of the Scottish people to the memory of Wallace, there
is scarcely room for wonder that the name of Menteith
should have come down in the traditions of the country
as that of the greatest traitor in the national history
(immanis proditor). He had certainly once fought on
the same side with Wallace in the national wars, and
there is therefore no inherent improbability in the state-
ment made by Scottish writers that he was acquainted
and even friendly with the hero. It is not, however,
necessary to believe that they were on the terms of close
intimacy implied in the repeated statement of Blind Harry
that Wallace had been Menteith's "gossip,"1 i.e., the god-
1 " Schyr Jhon Mtnteth Wallace his ffostop was."
— Henry the Minstrel, xi. 795.
" Ticyt befor he had his gossop been."
— Ibid, viii. 1598.
" For cowatice, Menteth, apon fals wys
Betraysit Wallace, at was his gossop tieyi."
—Ibid, li. 847-8.
The Lake of Menteith. 263
father of one or more of his children : even although Blind
Harry is, in this instance, supported by the authority of
John Major — a historian who is careful to guard himself
against being supposed to give unlimited credit to Henry's
writings. Major affirms that the greatest intimacy was
supposed to exist between Wallace and Menteith,1 and
distinctly says that Wallace had been godfather to Men-
teith's two children. The statement therefore may be
taken, not as a gratuitous invention of the blind minstrel,
but as the common belief. There is no nearly con-
temporary evidence, however, in proof. It may have
been merely one of those figments by which the popular
imagination endeavoured to deepen the baseness of the
treachery.2
The popular feeling of later times against Menteith fails
to take into account the character, morally and politically,
of the period in which and the men among whom he lived.
He does not appear to have been worse than the other
Scottish nobles of the time. They took oaths and broke
them with the same facility. Their country was little to
them ; their own interests were everything. They were all
equally bound by Edward, as a condition of their personal
safety and security of their estates, to hunt down the
outlawed patriot, and it need not be doubted that the most
of them would have been glad enough to commend them-
selves to the favour of Edward by the capture. Neither
must it be forgotten that, for the time, Menteith was an
1 Ipsi Vallaceo putatus amicissimus. — Major, De Gestis Scotorum, lib. iv.
ch. 15.
8 The fact that Menteith hadlwo sons may be held as accounting for, although
it does not justify the belief, or prove the statement
264 The Lake of Menteith.
English officer, in the pay of the English King — however
little that may say for his patriotism. But to him — and
not to any of the others who were engaged in the search —
it fell to apprehend Wallace, and that under circumstances
in which treachery (whether directly concocted by him or
not) was undoubtedly involved, and his memory has had
to bear the odium. That his conduct was not reckoned
unpardonable, or even disgraceful, by his fellows at the time
is evident — however curious it may seem to us now — from
the way in which he was received into favour by King
Kobert the Bruce. Under that King he did good service
to his country, as the notes regarding his later career,
which have been given above, will show. Blind Harry has
been accused of originating the feeling of abhorence with
which Menteith has so long been regarded by his country-
men. But that is not so. He had been denounced by
Scottish, and even English, writers before the time of the
Minstrel. In fact, the latter is the only early Scottish
writer who exhibits any feeling of tenderness for Menteith.
He represents him as not entirely lost to honour. In the
interview with Sir Aymer de Yallance, he makes Sir John
say that it would be a " foul outrage " to sell the patriot,
and he represents him as consenting to effect his capture
only on the assurance that the life of Wallace would be
spared and his person kept in safety.1
The popular estimate of the character of Menteith, and
the detestation of the treachery which Jed to the capture
of Wallace, was formed long before Blind Harry's time.
For example, the persistent tradition of the district is that
1 See book xi . 809, et seqq.
The Lake of Menteith. 265
when the Drummonds attacked the Menteiths at the Tar
of Husky,1 and slew three of their chiefs, they were urged
by the desire to avenge the perfidy of Sir John on his
descendants, and eager to exterminate the whole hated
race. That may not have been the real reason of the
attack, but the tradition is a very old one — older possibly
than Blind Harry, who was not born till more than a
century after the fight of Eusky.
There is a curious legend, referred to by Sir Walter
Scott, regarding the signal that was made for setting on
Wallace as he sat or lay in the cottage at Eobroyston in
fancied security, and all unwitting of treachery. It
affirms that when arrangements had been completed for
surrounding the cottage with the soldiers of Menteith,
the domestic traitor — Jack Short, Menteith's nephew, or
whoever he was — was to watch the time when the hero
was quite off his guard and had laid aside his arms,
and then to give a silent signal to his confederates by
turning upside down a loaf which had been laid on the
table. There must, by this account, have been more than
one traitor within the hut, or the operation must have
been watched from the outside, through the door or the
window.
The story is not a very likely one in itself, and is not
found in any reputable author — not even in Blind Harry.
In fact, the Minstrel's account represents the traitor,
Menteith's nephew, as waiting till Wallace and his faithful
friend, Kerle, were fast asleep, and then going out to
inform his uncle of the fact. The circumstance, however,
1 For this fight and its consequences see t'n/ro, chap. xii.
266 The Lake of Menteith.
that the traitor is represented as a " cuk " (cook), may
have given some countenance to the tradition, or even
originated it. Purely legendary as it is, the story long
continued to live, and nowhere more vigorously than in
the country of the Menteiths, where it was employed by
jealous neighbours as a means of annoying those of the
name.
Sir Walter says that " in after times it was reckoned
ill-breeding to turn a loaf in that manner, if there was a
person named Menteith in company ; since it was as
much as to remind him that his namesake had betrayed
Sir William Wallace, the champion of Scotland."1 To
" whummle the bannock " — as the performance was called
in the vernacular — before a Menteith was regarded as
offering him a deadly insult. Till not so very long ago,
it used to be resorted to when the intention was, either
in joke or seriously, to irritate a person of that name —
sometimes with unpleasant results to the practical joker.
A local writer of about forty years since2 asserts that
even in his own time he had known a fiery Menteith take
signal vengeance on one who had dared to " whummle the
bannock " before him.
The tradition is now dead in the country of the Men-
teiths. The stranger may " whummle the bannock " —
even in the presence of a Menteith, should he happen to
meet one, for the name is now rare in their old country
— without any fear of consequences. The action will not
likely be regarded as having any significance whatever.
1 Scott's Tales of a Grandfather, second series, chap, vii., sub fintm.
a Dun's Summer at the Lake of Menteith, p. 26.
The Lake of Menteith. 267
It must be added, however, that the feeling of hatred
against Sir John Menteith has not yet been eradicated
from the heart of the Scottish people. It will probably
continue to exist as long as the memory of Wallace is
cherished by his countrymen.
Sir John's Castle of Husky has already been noticed.
Tradition avers that he died there, and was buried in the
Priory of Inchmahome ; but no stone marks the place of
his interment. There is no evidence in support of the
statement, unless we regard the fact that his father was
buried there as rendering it not unlikely.
268
CHAPTER X.
The First Six Earls of Menteith of
the Name of Graham: 1427-1597.
"The gallant Grahams."
" A race renowned of old,
Whose war-cry oft has waked the battle-swell,
Since first distinguished in the onset bold,
Wild sounding when the Roman rampart fell."
FTEE the death of Murdach, Duke of Albany,
the earldom of Menteith was in possession of
the Crown till 1427, when it was granted by
James I. to Malise Graham, in compensation
for the earldom of Strathern, of which he had some time
previously been deprived by the King on the ground that
it was a male fief. The new earldom of Menteith did not,
however, comprise the whole of the ancient possessions.
James I. reserved to the Crown the eastern part of the
old earldom, with its messuage of Doune Castle, and thus
formed what was called the Stewartry of Menteith. The
charter of erection of the new earldom — dated at Edinburgh,
6th September, 1427 — enumerates the lands included in
it. These may be said generally to extend from the lake
The Lake of Menteith.
269
of Menteith westwards.1 As the Castle of Doune, along
with the eastern lands, thus became the property of the
Crown, Inohtalla became the residence of the earls, and
the Lake of Menteith and its Islands were more closely
connected with these Graham earls than with their pre-
decessors. There they resided for more than two centuries
and a half, great men in their own country-side, and gallant
fighters all of them, although not — with one or two notable
exceptions — conspicuous in the history of the country.
MALISE, FIRST EARL.
Seal of Malise Graham, First Earl of Menteith.
Malise Graham was related to the royal family on both
sides of his descent. His father, Sir Patrick Graham, son
1The lands of Craynis Easter and Craynis Wester, Craguthy Easter and
Wester, lands of Glass werde, Drumlaen, Ladarde, Blareboyane, Gartnerthynach,
Blareruscanys, Foreste of Baith the Sidis of Lochcon, lands of Blaretuchane and
of Marduffy, of Culyngarth, Frisefleware, Rose with the Cragmuk, Inchere,
Gartinhagel, Bobfresle, Bovento, Downans and Baleth, Tereochane, Drumboy,
Crancafy, Achray, Glassel and Cravaneculy, Savnach, Brigend, Lonanys and
Garquhat, Drumanust, Schanghil, Ernetly and Monybrachys, Gartmulne and
Ernomul, Ernecomy, Achmore, the Porte and the Insche with their pertinents.
No mention is made of any castle or dwelling, so that the buildings on Inchtalla
were probably not in use — if they existed — at this time. (Charter printed in Red
Book of Menteith, voL ii. p. 293).
270 The Lake of Menteith.
Sir Patrick Graham of Kincardine, by Egidia, niece of
Eobert II., married the Princess Euphemia, daughter of
David, Earl Palatine of Strathern, eldest son of Eobert's
second marriage. Malise was therefore a great-grandson
of King Eobert the Second. He was but a youth when
he was denuded of the earldom of Strathern by the King,
and he could scarcely have reached his majority when he
received the grant of the new earldom of Menteith. There
is ground for believing that even after recieving the
earldom he did not for some years, at any rate, enjoy
the revenues. Within two months — in November, 1427 —
he was sent to England as one of the hostages in security
for the payment of the King's ransom. And the Exchequer
Eolls show that the rents of the earldom were in the hands
of the King up till 14341 at least. In England Malise
remained for a quarter of a century, and married there.
He obtained his release, 17th June, 1453, only on the
condition that his eldest son, Alexander, should take his
place as hostage. Alexander accordingly went to England,
and never came back from his exile.
Earl Malise, after his return, was a fairly regular attender
at meetings of Parliament, but was never very prominent
in their business.2 He seems to have been a favourite with
James III., who, on the 8th of February, 1466, granted
him a charter erecting the town of Port into a burgh of
barony, " for the singular favour which we bear towards
1 Exchequer Rolls, vol. iv. pp. 530, 560, 589, &c. These accounts give the
names of the various camerarii of Menteith, from Patrick Don in 1431 onwards.
* He was present in the Parliament of 1455 when the Douglasses were declared
traitors by John II. ; and he appended his seal to the instrument of forfeiture. —
Acts of Parliament, ii. 75, &c.
The Lake of Menteith. 271
our beloved cousin Malise, Earl of Menteith, and for making
provision for ourselves and our lieges, in the highland of
Menteith, in the time of the huntings and at other times."1
There were royal forests and hunting lodges both at Glen-
finlas and at Duchray,2 and it was while making their way
to the latter forest especially that the royal hunting parties
would require accommodation at Port of Menteith. He
remained faithful to James III. in the rebellion which led
to the death of that King and the establishment of his son,
James IV., on the throne. Old as he was, he raised his
men and went to the assistance of his King, and, in the
battle of Sauchie, held the command of the men of Stirling-
shire and the West, who formed the rear division of the
royal army.3 He did not long survive the King — dying
probably in 1490, after holding the earldom for more than
sixty years.
He was twice married. About the identity of both wives
there is considerable dubiety. The first wife was married
in England, and was therefore most likely an English lady.
By some writers she has been called Anne Vere, daughter
of the Earl of Oxford, or Jana Kochford. Mr. Graham
Easton names her " Lady Jana de Vere, daughter of
Aubrey, tenth Earl of Oxford."4 In the Protocol Books
1 Charter printed in Red Book, ii. p. 297.
* In the Exchequer Rolls are notes of sums paid for building a hall and
chambers at Glenfinlas in 1459 (vi. p. 579), and for repairing the hunting lodge
at Duchray in 1469 (vii. p. 614) The fermes of the lands of Duchray were assigned
to the King in 1461 (vii. p. 62). Donald Neyssoune was the royal forester of
Menteith in 1467 (vii. p. 485).
'Balfour's Annals, i. 213; Tytler's History of Scotland, vol. ii. p. 239; and
other Scottish Histories.
4 See Graham, Earl of Menteith, by Walter M. Graham Easton, in the
Genealogical Magazine for June, 1897.
272 The Lake of Menteith.
of Stirling, she is certainly called, and by Earl Malise
himself, Lady Jonet — which may or may not be (as Mr.
Graham Easton suggests) a Scotch corruption of the English
Jana. Besides this determination of the lady's name, the
transactions recorded in the Protocols are otherwise so
interesting, that the passage may be quoted in full: —
" 23rd October, 1476. Malize, earl of Menteth, sound in
mind and body, out of natural affection, and considering
the manifold services and most tender good deeds done
to him in youth and age by his dearest spouse, Lady Jonet,
Countess of Menteith, in the realms of England and Scot-
land, gave and bestowed to her for her life-time a silver-gilt
horn gilded on the surface with gold, a dish called le Masar,
a silver cup, a missal book, with other things suitable for
celebrating mass ; nine silver spoons and a silver salt-fat,
gilt on the top, having a beryl stone (lapidem birraneum)
set in the middle, acquired by his own conquest and
industry, from him and his heirs to the said Lady Jonet,
and that by placing a gold ring on her finger.
"Done in the chamber of the said earl, in the isle of
Inchtolloch, the second hour after noon.
" The same day, the said earl bestowed all and sundry
the foresaid jewels on John Graham, his son natural, for
his good deeds and services, also giving him sasine of a
carucate of land called le Ahyr in the burgh in barony of
Port and Shire of Perth."1
Although the Earl here speaks of his old age, he married
again after the death of Lady Jonet. At the time of his
death, the name of his Countess was Marion or Mariota —
Extracts fiom Stirling Burgh Records, 1519-1666, appendix, p. 260.
The Lake of Menteith. 273
supposed to have been a Campbell of Glenorchy. She
was no doubt much younger than her husband. She
married again shortly after his death. In 1491 she was
the wife of John of Drummond.1
By his two wives the Earl had five sons and one
daughter. The eldest son, Alexander, who had taken his
father's place as a hostage in England, died there previous
to 1471, without issue.
The second son of Earl Malise is said by Sir William
Eraser to have been John, whom he designates — without
authority — Master of Menteith or Lord Kilpont.2 He is
followed by Mr. W. M. Graham Easton, who, however,
simply designs John as "of Kilbride."8 Both genealogists
appear to be wrong. Sir William Eraser puts the death
of John as before 1478, because in an instrument of sasine
in that year, Patrick Graham is described as son and heir
of Earl Malise ; while Mr. Graham Easton dates the death
as before 19th April, 1471, so as to suit the circumstance
— apparently unknown to Eraser — that, in a Stirling Pro-
tocol of that date, Patrick is styled " son and heir of Malise,
Earl of Menteith."4 The fact, however, is that in the
Exchequer Eolls, " John le Graham, son of Malise, Earl
of Menteith," is found receiving a certain annual " fee," in
virtue of letters under the King's privy seal, from 1467 to
1473.5 The inference seems clear that since Patrick is
designated " son and heir," within the limits of these years,
*Acta Auditorum, p. 154. 'Red Book, vol. i. p. 296.
3 Genealogical Magazine for June, 1897, p. 71.
4 Stirling Protocol Book, 1469-84 (Abstract, p. 5).
6 Exchequer Rolls, voL vii., pp. 486, 574, 624; and viii., 70, 172,
274 The Lake of Menteith.
he must have been senior to John.1 Patrick Graham prede-
ceased his father, but left two sons, Alexander and Henry, the
former of whom succeeded his grandfather in the earldom.
John, whom we must therefore call the third son of
Earl Malise, is designed " of Kilbride," of which property
he received a charter under the great seal in 1469. He
has come down in tradition as "John of the Bright Sword."
It must be added that in the tradition he is usually called
the second son of the Earl of Menteith. This may well
enough be explained by the circumstance that Alexander,
the Earl's eldest son, from his long captivity and death
in England, could hardly have been well-remembered in
Menteith ; and also that the proud title John bore is
always connected with him as of Kilbride, and possibly
when he received that estate — certainly very shortly after
— Alexander was dead, and John was the second surviving
son of the Earl. The traditional epithet indicates that he
must have been a warrior of renown, but none of the
special exploits which gave him the title have come down
to us. There is a further tradition that he was the ancestor
and founder of the Grahams of Netherby and other families
of Border Grahams.2 This tradition has not been verified.
1 The question of the seniority of Patrick and John has been fully and ably
discussed in an article on " John Graham of Kilbride," signed B., in the Scottish
Antiquary, vol. xi., No. 43, p. 108. To this article the reader is referred.
*" John Graeme, second son of Malise, Earl of Menteith, commonly surnamed
John with the Bright Sword, upon some displeasure arisen against him at Court,
retired with many of his clan and kindred into the English Borders, in the reign of
King Henry the Fourth " — Henry IV. was dead before John Graham was born —
" where they seated themselves, and many of their posterity have continued there
ever since." — Introduction to the History of Cumberland, quoted by Sir Walter
Scott in Notes to the Lay of the Last Minstrel. There appear, however, to
have been Graemes on the Borders before the time of " Bright Sword."
The Lake of Menteith.
275
It awaits further genealogical investigation. The date of
John le Graham's death is uncertain. He seems to have
been alive in 1478, and it is not unlikely that he survived
several years beyond that time.1
Lady Euphame Graham, the daughter of Earl Malise,
married Sir William Stewart of Dalswinton.
By the Countess Mariota the Earl had two sons, John
and Walter, who had charters of lands from their father;
but they do not concern the present narrative.
ALEXANDER, SECOND EARL.
Seal of Alexander, Earl of Menteith.
Alexander Graham, grandson of Earl Malise, was infeft
in the earldom in 1493. The "malis" had been ain the
kingis handis the space of thre yheris."2 The cause of
delay in infeftment is not stated, but it must have arisen
1 Stirling Protocol of 7th March, 1477 ; Instrument of Sasine, 8th October,
1478. — Red Book, vol. i. p. 302. John of Kilbride appears to be the John of the
protocol of 1476, quoted above. Although described there as "son natural," it
does not seem to be a necessary inference that he was illegitimate. It would have
been an extraordinary — almost indecent — proceeding on the part of the Earl, to
conjoin an illegitimate son with his Countess in the disposal of his jewels.
2 Precept of sasine from William, Lord Ruthven, Sheriff of Perth ; printed in
the Red Book, vol. ii. p. 302.
S
276 The Lake of Menteith.
either from the part the last Earl took with James III., or
because Alexander was under age. On the 6th of May,
1493, Michael Dun, bailie of the Sheriff of Perth, came "to
the shore of the lake of Inchmahomok, near the Coldon, on
the ground of the lands of Forth," and there, by giving
earth and stone, in the usual manner, invested Alexander
Graham in the possession of the earldom of Menteith. The
particular spot where the investiture took place is described
as "at the shore of the lake of Inchmahomok, between the
said lake and the Coldone," and the time as the twelfth
hour at noon or thereabout.
Earl Alexander was a member of the King's Council
which sat at Stirling, 25th August, 1495 j1 and the records
of the Scottish Parliament show that he attended a meeting
of that body on the 10th of July, 1525. 2 A bond which he
and other noblemen and gentlemen of Perthshire entered
into at Perth, 27th May, 1501, with King James IV.,
wherein they engaged to do their utmost to suppress crime
within their bounds, and bring the criminals to justice,
gives indication of the disturbed state of the country and
the prevalence of lawlessness at the time, as well as the
methods by which that energetic King was endeavouring
to restore order. The nobles, however, were still forming
parties among themselves, and providing for their own
interests in the old way of "bands" for mutual defence
and support. Such a bond was entered into at Edin-
burgh, 20th November, 1503, between Alexander, Earl
of Menteith, and James, Earl of Arran, Lord Hamilton,
*Acta Dominorum Concilii, p. 385.
"Acts of the Parliaments of Scotland, ii. 292.
The Lake of Menteith.
the instrument bearing to be written in " the court of
the monastery of St. Colmoc, in the island called Inch-
maquhomok."1
It was in Alexander's time that the first perpetual
Commendator made his appearance at Inchmahome. The
Earl himself was present at the ceremony of institution,
15th March, 1529.2
The large family of the late Earl Malise had rendered
it necessary to grant charters of lands in the earldom to
his younger sons for their support. It was the policy of
Alexander to redeem these lands ; and we find a transaction
of this sort recorded in the Stirling Protocol Books, under
dates 15th and 16th July, 1533. This was the sasine of
William, the eldest son of Alexander, and his spouse,
Margaret Mowbray, in the lands of Miltoun and Kirktoun
of Aberfoyle, and sundry others mentioned, which had been
lawfully redeemed from Walter Graham, the youngest son
of the deceased Earl.3
Earl Alexander had married Margaret, daughter of
Walter Buchanan of Buchanan. Of his two sons, William,
the elder, succeeded him. The younger is said to have
been the ancestor of the Grahams of Gartur. In the sasine
above referred to, he is simply called Walter Graham, the
Earl's son. The Earl died in 1536 or 1537. 4
1 Red Book of Menteith, vol. ii. pp. 303 and 306.
1 Extracts from Records of Stirling, vol. i. p. 266.
8 Ibid, vol. i. p. 268.
4 The Macgregor raiders were troublesome in the time of Earl Alexander. On
1 5th November, 1533, the "robbers of the clan Gregor" were put to the horn for
stealing forty cows from him and his son William, Master of Menteith. — Pitcairn's
Criminal Trials, i. 164*.
278 The Lake of Menteith.
WILLIAM GEAHAM, THIRD EARL.
Seal of William Graham, Third Earl of Menteith.
The infeftment of William Graham, third Earl of his
line, took place on the lands of Ernchome, on the shore
of the lake of Inchmahome, on the 16th of May, 1537.
While still Master of Menteith and Lord Kilpont, he
had married, in 1521, Margaret, daughter of John Moubray
of Barnbougle. His family by this lady consisted of five
sons and two daughters. One of these daughters, Margaret
Graham, became the second wife of Archibald, fourth Earl
of Argyle. The marriage was solemnized at the Church
of Inchmahome on the 21st of April, 1541 — the celebrant
being John Youngman, Canon of the Monastery.1 The
other, Christian by name, was married to Sir William
Livingstone of Kilsyth.2 Of the sons, John, the eldest,
1 Stirling Protocol Books under date.
2 Both Sir William Fraser and Mr Graham Easton make Christian Graham,
wife of Sir William Livingstone, a daughter of John, the fourth Earl. But it does
not seem possible that Earl John could have had a daughter of marriageable age
in 1553 (his eldest son and successor was not of age for at least fifteen years later),
previous to which time both writers agree in saying Lady Christian was married.
All doubt on the point is removed by a clause in the will of Robert Graham of
The Lake of Menteith. 279
succeeded his father in the earldom. The others held
various lands within the earldom, which need not here
be enumerated. But it may be mentioned that it was
through one of these sons, Eobert, that G-artmore came
into possession of the family.1 This property belonged to
one Alexander Makauly of Erngobil, who, on the 23rd of
May, 1547, granted Kobert Graham a charter of the two
merk land of Gartmore — charter granted at Inchmahome,
and witnessed by James Bad, Canon of the Monastery ;
and on the 3rd May, 1554, a charter of sale of the twelve
merk land of Gartmore was granted by Walter Macaulay
to the same Kobert Graham.2
Beyond various business transactions in lands, little is
known of the life of Earl William. But his death, which
took place in circumstances in which comedy and tragedy
are intermingled, has kept his memory alive in the tra-
ditionary lore of the district. It is almost needless to say
that the story, as narrated by local tradition, assumes
different forms, and that these forms vary both as to the
names of the combatants and the cause of the quarrel in
which the Earl fell. One story makes the victim, not the
Gartmore (second son of William, the third Earl), in which he bequeaths " six ky
and a bull or forty merks in hir choise" to his sister Cristane, Lady Kilsyth.
Moreover, the inventory of Robert's daughter, Margaret Graham, was given up
by Lady Kilsyth, her father's sister.
1 Sir William Fraser makes Robert the third son. Mr Graham Easton says
he was the second. Their names were John, Andrew, Robert, Gilbert, and Walter.
Mr Graham Easton makes Andrew the youngest of the family.
2 On the death of Gilbert Graham of Gartmore, the last laird of his line, without
issue, in 1634, his sister Agnes succeeded. She had been previously married to
John Alexander, a younger son of the first Earl of Stirling, her petition for service
as her brother's heir bearing that it was made with the consent of her husband.
Gartmore was sold in in 1644 to William Graham of Folder, who was made a
baronet in 1665.
280 The Lake of Menteith.
Earl himself, but one of his sons.1 According to this
account, the Hurrays of Athole had come down on a foray
into the realms of Menteith, and were intercepted and
driven up the Pass of Glenny by the Grahams, led by
a younger son of the Earl, when, at the summit of the
Pass, an Athole man, from his concealment behind a tree,
mortally wounded the young Graham as he was rushing
past in the pursuit. Another version sends the men of
Athole to the Isle on a friendly visit. The Earl happened
to be out at the time, but his dinner was cooked and
waiting his return. The Hurrays, probably thinking it a
good joke, gathered up the roasted fowls destined for his
dinner, and took their departure. Soon the Earl arrived,
and, learning what had occurred, set off in eager and
angry pursuit up the slopes of Hondhui. The leader of
the Hurrays turned in a friendly way, no doubt intending
to explain the joke, and, as he saw the Earl fitting an
arrow to his bow, he shouted out as he handled his own :
" Over me and over you." " No," cried the incensed Earl,
"in me and in you." And in him it was, for the Hurray's
arrow pierced his heart. His men, however, drove the
enemy over the hill, and returned with their dying master
to the Isle.
In commemoration and in proof of this story, it is
pointed out that the Grahams of Glenny and Hondhui
were long known to the countryside as "Hen Grahams."
And in this connection a veracious local legend tells the
following gruesome tale. Once on a time a Graham and
JIt is certain, however, from authentic documents, that all the Earl's sons
survived their father.
The Lake of Menteith. 281
a Macgregor had a quarrel on the hillside above the lake.
Angry words were bandied, and the Macgregor's vocabulary
of abuse being exhausted, he bethought him of the oppro-
brious epithet, and was just about to give it utterance, when
the Graham, divining his intention, whipped out his sword,
and smote off his opponent's head so swiftly that he cut
off the words along with it, and " Hen Graham " escaped
from the lips of the severed head as it rolled down the
hill.
When we turn from these local legends to more trust-
worthy accounts, we find that it was not the Hurrays of
Athole, but the Stewarts of Appin, led by the famous
Donald nan Ord (Donald of the Hammers) who were
responsible for the Earl's death. In an account of the
family of Invernahyle, in a MS. communicated by Sir
Walter Scott to Jamieson's edition of Captain Burt's
Letters, the story is told in the following terms : —
11 One time, as returning from Stirlingshire, on passing
through Menteith, his (i.e., the Hammerer's) party called
at a house where a wedding dinner was preparing for a
party, at which the Earl of Menteith was to be present;
but, not caring for this, they stepped in and ate up the
whole that was intended for the wedding party. Upon
the Earl's arriving with the marriage people, he was so
enraged at the affront put upon his clan, that he instantly
pursued Donald, and soon came up with him. One of the
Earl's men called out ironically,
'Stewartich chui nan t' Apan,
A cheiradhich glass air a chal.'
282 The Lake of Menteith.
One of Donald's men, with great coolness, drawing an
arrow out of his quiver, replied —
' Ma tha 'nt Apan againn mar dhucha,
'S du dhuinn gun tarruin sin farsid';1
i.e., ' If Appin is our country, we would draw thee (thy
neck) wert thou there' ; and with this took his aim at the
Menteith man, and shot him through the heart. A bloody
engagement then ensued, in which the Earl and nearly
the whole of his followers were killed, and Donald the
Hammerer escaped with only a single attendant, through
the night coming on."2
In "The Stewarts of Appin"3 the story is told in
substantially the same way, but — as might be expected —
1 These Gaelic couplets appear to be incorrectly given, and badly spelt. The
first may be translatable thus :—
" You Stewart black from Appin,
You tinker sallow upon kail."
The " tinker," of course, was meant as a hit at the upbringing of Donald in the
smithy. The second couplet may be translated : —
" If the Appin be ours as a country,
'Tis black for us (or, possibly, it is necessary for us) to draw a shaft. "
In Sir Walter's own version of the affray, as given in the account of Donald the
Hammerer (Tales of a Grandfather, vol. i. p. 424, edit. 1892) the taunt of the
Graham appears thus in English : —
" They're brave gallants these Appin men,
To twist the neck of cock and hen."
And Donald replied : —
" And if we be of Appin's line,
We'll twist a goose's neck in thine."
And he states that Donald escaped with a single follower.
2 Letters from a Gentleman in the North of Scotland, &c., edited by R.
Jamieson, vol i. Introduction, p. xxiii. Sir Walter Scott adds, in a note: — "As
the quarrel began on account of the poultry devoured by the Highlanders, which
they plundered from the earl's offices, situated on the side of the Port" — Sir
Walter must mean the lake — " of Menteith, to accommodate his castle in the
adjacent island, the name of Gramoch an gerig, or Grames of the hens, was fixed on
the family of the Grames of Menteith."
'The Stewarts of Appin, by John H. J. Stewart and Lieutenant-Colonel
Duncan Stewart (Edinburgh, 1880), p. 168.
The Lake of Menteith. 283
with a colour rather more in favour of the Stewarts. They
are represented, not as on a marauding expedition to the low-
lands, but as returning from the battlefield of Pinkiecleuch.
It is not denied that they ate the wedding dinner, but they
were travel- worn and hungry ; and when the Grahams over-
took them on the hill, they insulted them in a way the
Stewart blood could not stand.1 Finally, it is asserted that,
in the conflict which followed, while the Earl of Menteith
and most of his men were slain, " the Appin men marched
off in triumph, the pipers playing the Stewarts' march."
The earliest version of the tale — unless Sir Walter's
Invernahyle MS. be of older date — is that given very
shortly by Duncan Stewart, which must have been written
before 1730, as that is the date of the author's death. He
says simply : — " This Donald of Innernahail commanded a
party of men at the battle of Pinkie ; and in his return was
attacked by the Earl of Menteith, in resentment of a little
malverse some of Stewart's men had been guilty of in their
march, when the Earl and some few of his friends and
followers were killed."2
1 One of the Grahams taunted them thus : —
" Yellow-haired Stewarts of smartest deeds,
Who could grab at the kail in your sorest needs."
To which a Stewart replied : —
" If smartness in deeds is ours by descent,
Then I draw — and to pierce you this arrow is sent."
The Homeric way in which the representatives of the Grahams and the
Stewarts in this clan fight taunt each other in epigrammatic verses need not be
taken as invalidating the substantial truth of the story. No doubt, the earliest
forms of it were arranged by the bards of the clans, and certainly the allusions to
the "kail" and the "hens" were very unlikely to have been invented without a
basis of fact. We know that Donald of the Hammers himself was a noted
improvisator^ and was in the habit of launching stinging epigrams at his oppo-
nents in the field and the council.
2 A Short Historical and Genealogical Account of the Royal Family of Scotland
and of the Surname of Stewart, by Duncan Stewart, M.A. (Edin., 1739), p. 196.
284 The Lake of Menteilh.
Duncan Stewart and the authors of " The Appin
Stewarts " are both wrong regarding the date of the
incident.1 Whatever the Stewarts were doing in Menteith
at the time, they could not be returning from the battle of
Pinkie. That battle was fought in September, 1547, when
John Graham, the son of William, was Earl of Menteith.
The death of Earl William must be dated in 1543, or, at
the latest, early in 1544.
JOHN GEAHAM, FOURTH EAEL.
John Graham succeeded his father in 1544, although
he was not infeft in the earldom till the 26th of May, 1547.
He at once began to take an active part in the affairs of
that troubled time. He was present at the Convention
held at Stirling on the 3rd of June, 1544, which suspended
the Earl of Arran and transferred the regency to the
Queen-mother. He signed the agreement then drawn up
as "John Erie of Mentieth."2 Between that date and his
infeftment he attended several meetings of Privy Council.3
It was in his time that the island of Inchmahome afforded
a refuge to the young Queen Mary.4 But the statement
made by Sir William Eraser,5 and repeated by Mr. Graham
Easton,6 that he accompanied the young Queen Mary to
France as one of her guardians, seems to be erroneous.
1 For the scene of the occurrence see supra, p. 27.
* Document in the State-Paper Office, first published by Tytler.— History of
Scotland, vol. ii., notes and illustrations, Y.
3 Register of the Privy Council of Scotland, vol. i. pp. 22, 60.
4 See page 171. 5 Red Book of Menteith, vol. i. p. 318.
9 Genealogical Magazine for June, 1897, p. 78.
The Lake of Menteith. 285
Lords Erskine and Livingston were the guardians of the
Queen. Besides, the date given by both writers — August,
1550 — is manifestly wrong. The young Queen left Dum-
barton for France in the end of July, 1548.1 In September,
1550, however,2 the Queen-mother, Mary of Lorraine, left
Scotland on a visit to France, and the Earl of Menteith
may have been one of her large retinue.8 If so, he probably
returned to Scotland with her in the following year, as
he was present with her at a meeting of Privy Council at
Stirling on 20th March, 1552. He was certainly one of
her active partisans for several years, sitting in various
Parliaments ; and, apparently in reward for his activity and
fidelity, he received (16th August, 1554) a commission as
Justiciar of the earldom and stewartry of Menteith.
In 1559 his political attitude was changed. He joicted
the Lords of the Congregation at Perth, and was in their
army when that town was surrendered to them in June,
1559.4 Thenceforth he steadily adhered to the Protestant
party. He was one of their leaders at the siege of Leith.
He sat in the Parliament of 1560 which established the
Keformation.5 He was one of the twenty-four members
nominated by the same Parliament, out of whom the
Council of Twelve was to be chosen.6 And although he
was not one of the elect Twelve, yet he was certainly
1 Diurnal of Occurrents, p. 47 ; and numerous other authorities.
•Lesley's Historic of Scotland (Scottish Text Society), vol. ii. p. 335.
3 The writer has not been able to find any evidence to this effect Sir
William Fraser gives no authority for his statement.
4 Calderwood's History of the Kirk of Scotland, i. p. 476.
6 Acts of the Parliaments of Scotland, ii. p. 525.
•Tytler's History of Scotland (ed. 1864), vol. iii. p. 132.
286 The Lake of Menteith.
present at one at least of the meetings of the Privy
Council.1 He subscribed the first Book of Discipline.2
Calderwood notes his presence in the General Assembly
in June, 1564 ;3 but he must have died very soon there-
after.
He left a widow, Marion Seton, daughter of Lord
Seton, who was subsequently married to John, tenth Earl
of Sutherland, and along with her husband was poisoned
in July, 1567, at Helmsdale, by Isabel Sinclair, wife of
Gilbert Gordon of Gartay.4 By the Countess Marion he
had two sons — William, his successor, and George, said
to be the ancestor of the Grahams of Kednoch — and one
daughter, Lady Mary, married to John Buchanan of
Buchanan.
WILLIAM GRAHAM, FIFTH EARL.
William Graham was not of age at his father's death,
and the earldom was in the hands of the Crown for upwards
of seven years. His infeftment did not take place till the
20th of November, 1571.6 But Earl William, like his
father, was a precocious politician, and was busy with
affairs of State before he attained his majority. He was
one of the Commissioners of Parliament who received the
demission of Queen Mary,6 and he attended the Coronation
of James VI. at Stirling, 29th July, 1567.7 He took part
1 Acts of the Privy Council of Scotland, i. p. 192.
* Calderwood's History, &c., ii. p. 50. z Ibid, p. 282.
4 Gordon's Genealogical History of the Earldom of Sutherland, i. p. 146.
6 Red Book, vol. i. p. 325.
'Signed at Lochleven, 24th July, 1567.
7 In the Parish Church, Knox preaching the sermon.— Register of Privy
Council of Scotland, i. 537, 541.
The Lake of Menteith. 287
in the battle of Langside (13th May, 1568) l with the
Eegent Moray, and attended many meetings of Privy
Council and Parliament held thereafter.2 He married, in
1571, Margaret Douglas, daughter of Sir James Douglas
of Drumlanrig and widow of Edward, Lord Crichton of
Sanquhar. After the death of Regent Moray, he continued
to enjoy the favour of the Regents Mar and Morton, and
was a member of the Council of the latter. And when
King James had assumed the royal authority, he was
appointed one of the Councillors Extraordinary.8
During this Earl's time one of those local feuds, which
were unhappily so common in Scotland, broke out between
the Grahams of Menteith and their neighbours the Leckies,
on the south side of the Forth. What the original cause
may have been is not known. It is said in the records of
the affair4 to have been " licht and slendir." But the
quarrel increased in intensity till several persons on both
sides of it had lost their lives, and the Privy Council had
to intervene. An attempted arrangement resulted only in
a further outbreak of violence ; and finally, the Earl of
Menteith and Walter Lecky of Lecky were summoned to
appear before the Council. This was on the 23rd of May,
1577. In February, 1578, Hugh, Earl of Eglinton, and
George Buchanan of Buchanan became sureties for the Earl,
under a penalty of £5000, that he would appear before
the Council on the 1st of April following and bind himself,
1Calderwood, vol. ii. p. 415. *lbidt Hi. p. 119.
'Acts of the Parliaments of Scotland, vol. iii. pp. 4, 47, 48, 56, 84, 115,
119, &c. Register of Privy Council, vol. iv. pp. 24, 27, 97, 320.
4 Register of Privy Council of Scotland, ii. pp. 612, 672, 729.
288 The Lake of Menteith.
his servants and dependants, to keep the peace and observe
good order in the country. But the Earl was now John,
a mere child, and the unruly Grahams and Leckies did not
at once bury the hatchet. For at least five years longer
the quarrel went on, and again made its appearance in
court in the beginning of 1593, when it is to be hoped it
was finally settled.1
Earl William died in 1577, leaving two young sons,
John and George, and a daughter, Lady Helen.
JOHN GRAHAM, SIXTH EABL.
John Graham could scarcely have been more than five
years of age at his father's death, and he was in minority
for the greater portion of his tenure of the earldom. He
was placed, as a ward of the Crown, under the guardianship
of his uncle, George Graham of Eednoch, who was conse-
quently known to legal and family documents as the Tutor
of Menteith. In October, 1587, in virtue of a dispensation
obtained from the King (James VI.), he was infeft in the
earldom, although not yet fifteen years of age. In the
same month, with consent of his curators, he entered into
a marriage contract with Mary Campbell, sister of Duncan
Campbell of Glenorchy, who brought him a dowry of eight
thousand merks. In a MS. in the State-Paper Office,
noting " the Present State of the Nobility in Scotland,"
1 Pitcaim's Criminal Trials, i. 282 : — 23 January, 1 592-3, John, Earl of Men-
teith, finds John Blair of that ilk, John Graham of Knockdolean, and Robert
Graham of Thornick cautioners in 10,000 merks that " he sail in nawayis invade
or persew Walter Lekky of that ilk, his kin, &c., in the deadlie feid standing betwix"
them. And Walter Lekky finds John Murray of Polmaise his surety in 3000 merks.
The Lake of Menteith. 289
and dated 1st July, 1592,1 the condition of this Earl is
described as follows : — Earl of Menteith : surname, Graham :
religion, young : of nineteen years : his mother, daughter
to the old Laird of Drumlanrig: married to Glenorchy's
daughter : house, Kylbride.2 He was not distinguished in
the history of the times, and little is known of his private
life, beyond accounts of lawsuits with his mother and
quarrels with his relations.
He died in December, 1598, leaving one son, William,
and a daughter, Christian, who married Sir John Black-
adder, of Tulliallan, a Nova Scotian Baronet.
1 Printed in Tytler's History of Scotland, proofs and illustrations to vol. iv.,
No. xxiii.
2 The fact that Earl John's house was Kilbryde Castle may indicate that by
this time the old castle of Inchtalla had fallen into decay, and may be held as
countenancing the supposition advanced in the chapter (vii. p. 205) on the
existing ruins, that these represent buildings of seventeenth century origin,
which were probably either erected wholly of new, or very largely rebuilt, by
William the seventh Earl, son and successor of Earl John.
290
CHAPTER XL
The Last Two Graham Earls of
Menteith, 1598-1694.
" Wha climbs too high, perforce, his feet mon fail."
" Base Fortune, now I see that in thy wheel
There is a point, to which when men aspire
They tumble headlong down. That point I touched."
WILLIAM GRAHAM, SEVENTH EARL OF MENTEITH, EARL
OP STRATHERN, FIRST EARL OF AIRTH.
ILLIAM, the seventh of the Graham Earls of
Menteith, was, both from the length of his
tenure of the earldom and the nature of his
public services, the most distinguished of his
line. His long life was not without its vicissitudes. After
his entry on public life, he rose rapidly to the highest
place in the councils of his country and the esteem of his
sovereign, and still more suddenly he fell from his high
estate. Deprived of his only son by the dagger of an
assassin, stripped of titles and harassed by creditors, he
spent his old age in poverty and distress.
He was born probably in 1588,1 and was thus the third
lS'ir Harris Nicolas — History of the Earldoms of Strathern and Menteith,
p. 29— says he was born in 1589, but Sir William Fraser gives reasons to show
that the date must be placed earlier.
The Lake of Menteith.
291
minor who, in succession, had inherited the earldom. The
wardship was given to his mother, along with James and
George Elphinstone, and after passing through the hands
of George Balfour, came to Sir Colin Campbell of Lundie,
his mother's second husband.1 He was infeft in the earldom
in August, 1610. In 1612, he married Lady Agnes Gray,
Seal of William Graham, Seventh Earl of Menteith.
daughter of Patrick, Lord Gray. The marriage settlements
gave rise to some litigation with his mother, but this was
amicably arranged, and the mother — whose second husband
was by this time dead — renounced all claims on the estate
in consideration of an annuity of seven hundred merks.
'Ward given to his mother and the Elphinstones in 1598; in 1600 disponed
to George Balfour, who in turn transferred it to Lundie.
T
292 The Lake of Menteith.
The young Earl had decided talents for business ; and
these he exhibited at the outset of his career in two ways.
First of all he undertook the task of arranging and making
inventories of the contents of his charter chest in the
island of Talla. This business he did not quite complete,
as certain memoranda appended to the inventories show.
"Twa hundreth evident es not inventored" were in "ane
meikle greit quhyt buist within the chartour-kist." The
original charter of the earldom with "twa uther greit
evidentis" were in "ane little coffer bandet with brass,
and the key of the same hanging at it," an<J a "little
kist" contained all the discharges, while there was "the
number of ane hundreth and fyftie evidentes lying louss
in the charter-kist of the lordschippe of Kilpont, quhilk
is not inventored."1 In the next place, he set himself
to redeem the lands which had been alienated from the
earldom and were now in the possession of others, and in
this he was very successful. An instance of his care for
the moral and spiritual welfare of the district was his
purchase of the patronage of the Church of Aberfoyle from
the Bishop of Dunblane, and the presentation of a minister
(John Cragingelt, A.M., 1621). There was a nominal
parson of Aberfoyle at the time, but he was a pluralist
and non-resident,2 so that — in the words of the Bishop's
Kesignation — "that desolate congregation of Aberfule
presentlie hes great necessitie of ane pastor, quhair never
1 Inventory in the charter-chest of the Duke of Montrose : printed in the
Red Book, vol. i. p. 333.
2 Mr. William Stirling, who had been presented to the parsonage of Aberfoyle,
27th August, 1571, had also the vicarage of Kilmadock and a manse in Dunblane,
and to these, in 1574, was added the cure of the Parish of Port.— Fasti Eccl.
Scot, vol. ii. p. 718.
The Lake of Menteith. 293
in no man's memorie leving thair wes ony resident minister
to preatche the word of God, nor minister his holie sacra-
mentis, quhairthrow the maist pairt of the paroschinneris
thairof remanes in great blindness and ignorance."1 In
return for the right of patronage, the Earl added £100
(Scots) yearly to the stipend, besides giving the teinds of
Boquhapple and Drumlean, and securing the manse and
glebe to the use of the minister.
His first transaction with King James appears to
have been in connection with the affair of the " earth-
dogges " elsewhere referred to,2 and from that King he
received his first public appointment, when, on the 15th
of February, 1621, he was made Justiciar "within his
hail boundis of the erledome of Menteithe, for the
speace of ane yeir allanerlie," for the suppression of
the crimes of theft and " pykrie," which had become too
common in the district. In that year also he attended
his first Parliament.3 But it was under Charles I. that
he rose to high distinction in the political affairs of the
kingdom. On the 27th of December, 1626, he was
appointed by the King a member of the Privy Council of
Scotland and a Commissioner of Exchequer. On 21st
February, 1628, he was installed President of the Privy
Council in succession to the Earl of Montrose deceased;
and in 1631 he was made President for life. Also in 1628
(llth of July) he had received the additional appointment
of Justice-General for Scotland. This dignity, which had
formerly been hereditary in the Earl of Argyll, was con-
1 Red Book, vol. ii. p. 320.
2 See suprc^ p. 99. s Acts of the Parliaments of Scotland, voL iv. p. 593.
294 The Lake of Menteith.
ferred on the Earl of Menteith for one year; but the
commission was renewed in the following year, and he
continued to hold the office till 1633. In 1630, he was
further honoured by being made a member of the Privy
Council of England.
Earl William was now about the summit of his power,
trusted by the King, and undoubtedly the most influential
man in His Majesty's kingdom of Scotland. But he was
laying the foundations of future difficulties for himself.
The expenses of frequent journeys to London on the public
business, and the general expenditure which his great
position necessarily involved, together— if we are to believe
the Earl himself — with the extravagances and unbusiness-
like stupidities of his Countess, were getting him steadily
into debt, which afterwards was the cause of the greatest
misery to him, and eventually obliged him to alienate
great portions of the property of the earldom. He was
the recipient, certainly, of numerous promises and pensions
from the King, but the promises — like most of those of
Charles — were not often fulfilled, and the pensions were
seldom, if ever, paid. The list of these visionary gifts is
a curious one. In 1628 he was granted a pension of £500
a year for life, to be paid out of the Exchequer of Scotland.
In the following year, the King issued a warrant for a gift
of £5000 sterling to the Earl, and also instructed the Earl
of Mar, Lord Treasurer of Scotland, to pay him £500,
because he had " furnished roabes for the Judges of our
Circuite Courts, and sent out his deputies in that our
service upon his own charge." Again, in 1630, on the
Earl's resignation of his claim to the lands of the earldom
The Lake of Menteith. 295
of Strathern, the King granted a precept to the Lord High
Treasurer, the Earl of Morton, for payment to him of
£3000 sterling. In the beginning of 1631, the Lord High
Treasurer was ordered to pay him the sum of £8000, and
again, in the end of the year, £15,000. This seems to
imply that the previously promised sums had not been
paid, and were now included in this gross sum of £15,000.
But none of this reached him. When the Earl's misfortunes
had overtaken him, he wrote to the King reminding him
that the expenses he had incurred in his service had never
been repaid, and beseeching him either to satisfy his
creditors or suffer him to leave Scotland. The King
proposed to give him for the satisfaction of urgent creditors
132,000 merks, and until that sum was paid £500 yearly;
also, to buy his house near Holyrood for 18,000 merks,
and to give 30,000 merks for the Countess's pension of
£500. None of these sums were paid. In 1641 again
the King acknowledged a debt of £5000 to the Earl, and
instructed the Lords of the Treasury to give him a lease of
the free rents of the lordships of Fife and Menteith,
calculated to amount to £700 a year, until the debt should
be paid. The Treasury, however, did not obey the royal
command, and on the 18th of March, 1643, the King again
issued a warrant to the Treasury for a payment of £7000
out of the revenues of the customs. This, too, was
disregarded ; and no further effort was made by Charles I.
to pay his debts to the Earl of Airth.1 It is scarcely to
be wondered at. His subjects were getting more and
1 The documents instructing these facts are all either printed or referred to in
the Red Book of Menteith.
296 The Lake of Menteith.
more beyond his control, and his very life was now in
danger.
Throughout the whole of this wretched pecuniary
business one can see that the King was not without a
sense of the good service that had been rendered him by
the Earl of Menteith, and was not untouched by feeling
for the calamities that had overtaken him. It is also
obvious that the Earl had numerous and not too scrupulous
enemies among the nobles and the official class in Scot-
land. One wonders, however, at the King's impotence in
the control of the government of his northern kingdom.
His usual obstinacy seems to have deserted him. It
was not an instance of the duplicity for which he has
often been blamed. The Scottish Treasury calmly dis-
regarded all his precepts and warrants, all his orders and
instructions.
Charles II., while at Portend, on the shore of the Lake
of Menteith, in the year 1651, acknowledged the royal
indebtedness to the Earl. He wrote that he had seen the
warrant of his " umquill father of ever blessed memorie "
for the principal sum of £7000 sterling and £700 yearly
till that principal was paid, and added, we " doe heirby
promise on the word off ane prince to sie it faithfullie
payed when ever we find occasione." Occasion was so
long in arising that the word of a prince was forgotten.
The Earl survived till the Kestoration, but died not long
after, without an opportunity of jogging the royal memory.
His grandson and successor tried it, but his faith in the
word of princes, if he had any, was also doomed to dis-
appointment. In the petition which he presented to the
The Lake of Menteith. 297
King in 1661 he put the amount of the debt due to his
grandsire at upwards of £50,000.
Let us return to the Earl at the height of his prosperity,
and note the causes of his downfall. An Act had been passed
by James VI., in 1617, allowing those who might desire
to make claims to heritable estates a period of thirteen years
in which to investigate and make up their claims. Taking
advantage of this Act, Menteith laid claim to the earldom
of Strathern, from which his ancestor Malise had been
ejected by James I. The lands which had been annexed
to the Crown he renounced in favour of the King, as he
did his right to the earldom, " provyding thir presentis
nor noe clause thairof prejudge me and my foirsaidis of
our right and dignitie of bluide perteining to us as aires
of lyne to the said umqhile David, Erie of Stratherne."
In consequence of this renunciation, and to mark his
satisfaction therewith, the King was pleased to issue a
patent, dated 31st July, 1631, ratifying and approving to
Earl William of Menteith and his heirs-male the title of
Earl of Strathern. While Strathern renounced all claim
to those lands of the earldom which had been annexed
to the Crown, he prosecuted his claims to the others —
with sufficient success to make enemies of those who thus
either were deprived or feared they might be deprived of
their possessions. Besides the properties acquired through
these claims, he also made about this time considerable
additions to his estates by purchase. The barony of Drum-
mond or Drymen was acquired from the Earl of Perth
in 1631. In 1632 he bought the lands, with the tower
and fortalice, of Airth from the Earl of Linlithgow, and
298 The Lake of Menteith.
a royal charter re-erected these lands into a new barony
of Airth.
Now it was that his troubles began. His enemies — of
whom the ablest, if not the highest in rank and position,
was Sir John Scot of Scotstarvet — saw in his assumption
of the title of Earl of Strathern a means of his overthrow.
They had a statement drawn up and presented to the King
in which they insinuated that, if the Earl was recognised
as the legitimate heir of succession to Prince David, there
might be danger to the present royal family : they affirmed
that to restore the earldom of Strathern to the successors
of Malise Graham was an insult to the memory of James
I., and would justify the murder of that monarch by Sir
Eobert Graham, the Tutor of Malise ; that the revenues
of the Crown would be prejudiced and many honest gentle-
men ruined in their estates by the separation of the earldom
from the Crown ; and that James VI. had refused to grant
the title even, much more the earldom, to any subject, on
the ground, as he said, that he had no more for the blood
and slaughter of King James the First.1 To add to the
force of these and other insinuations, the King was also
informed that the Earl had made it a boast that "he had
the reddest blood in Scotland." By these accusations it
is evident that the suspicions of the King were aroused,
but he was as yet unwilling to give up his friend. He is
reported to have said that "it was a sore matter that
he could not love a man but they pulled him out of
his arms." However, he recalled the title of Strathern,
1 Sir John Scot's True Relation (Sir Harris Nicolas's History of the
Earldoms of Strathern and Menteith, app. p. xxviii.)
The Lake of Menteith. 299
and reduced all the documents in connection with the
grant. To make some compensation he granted a patent
for the creation of a new earldom, that of Airth,
which was therefore (21st January, 1633) conferred on
Menteith.1
But his enemies were not satisfied. They desired his
complete ruin, and to that end accused him of treasonable
language which they affirmed had been used by him. On
the 1st of May, 1633, a Commission was appointed by the
King to examine these charges and, in particular, as to
a statement alleged to have been made by Airth that "he
should have been King of Scotland, and that he had as
good as or a better right to the crown than the King
himself." The Earl, in an interesting letter to the King,2
absolutely denied having used this language — "words which
I protest to God I never spoke." The same letter also
gives indication that the vultures were already gathering
for their prey, for he informs His Majesty that he was the
" subject of obloquy of the whole kingdom, and his creditors
had already served inhibitions against him as if he were a
bankrupt." The King arrived at Holyrood on the 15th of
June, 1633; and the Commission for trying the case met
on the 10th of July following. Airth, while steadfastly
denying that he had ever uttered any such words, submitted
himself absolutely to the King's pleasure. The Com-
mission found the charge proven. Then the Earl, at the
1 The earldom of Menteith was annexed to the new creation of Airth,
with the precedence due to the Earls of Menteith by virtqe of the charter of
1427.
* In the charter-chest of the Duke of Montrose : printed in the Red Book
of Menteith, i. 369.
300 The Lake of Menteith.
suggestion of Traquair, signed the following submission to
the King : —
SIB, — Having examined myself from my infancie, I
cannot, upon my soule, remember that ever I spok those
words as ar conteined in Sir James Skeene his paper, zit
finding by the depositiones of persones of qualitie to zour
Majestie that sum such words may have escaped me as in
law may bring my lyf and fortune in zour Majestie' s
reverence, I will not stand outt, bot as guiltie, in all
humilitie submitt my self at your Majestie 's feett.
AlBTHE.1
At Halliruid Hous, the 15 Julij, 1633.
The King's decision was declared on the 8th of November.
The Earl had to give up his posts as President of the Privy
Council and Justice-General, together with his pension of
£500, and everything else that had been granted to him by
the King ; and he was ordered to be confined to his own
house and the bounds thereof.
He retired to Airth, and his creditors immediately began
to swoop down on him. He wrote to the King informing
him that he had had to sell one barony and mortgage
another, and that those friends to whom he had given his
lands in security had obtained a decree before the Lords
of Session, and were now taking possession, so that he
would be denuded of them at Whitsunday. He had the
right of reversion at the following Martinmas, but, if the
debts were not paid then, all was gone, and he was a land-
less noble. He entreated His Majesty to satisfy these
1 Original at Traquair : printed in Red Book of Menteith, i. 376.
The Lake of Menteith. 301
cautioners ; or, if not, to give him leave to retire from the
kingdom to some place " where he might live and die
obscurely and not see the fall of his house."1 The King
promised, and issued warrants, which seem, as usual, to
have been neglected. It is, perhaps, to this first dis-
appointment that another pathetic letter2 to the King refers,
in which he again begs permission to go out of the country,
" that I sie not," he says, " such miserie, not having bene
bred that way." After all, means were found to pacify
some of the Earl's creditors, and stave off final ruin.
After his treatment by the King, it is rather wonderful
that the Earl of Airth continued faithful to his cause. Yet
he not only did so, but so exerted himself as to some extent
to regain the royal favour. In 1636, the King sent him a
letter of thanks for his services in capturing a Highland
freebooter called John Dhu Koy Macgregor — a brother of
Gilderoy — in securing whom a near kinsman of the Earl
had been slain.3 In 1637, his confinement to the bounds
of his own earldom came to a close, by the King's com-
mand, and in a letter dated 17th March, 1638, a London
correspondent, who signs himself Jo. Wishart, congratulates
him on his restoration to the royal favour, which he com-
pares to a " resurrectione frome the grave."4 This year —
1638 — was that in which the opposition to the King's
measure in Scotland rose to its height, culminating in
the signing of the National Covenant. The Earl steadily
1 Letter written from Airth, dated 3rd April, 1634.
"Preserved among the Menteith Papers at Gartmore, and printed in full
in Notes on Inchmahome, p. 151.
3 Letter printed in Red Book, H. 58.
4 From the Gartmore Papers : printed in Notes on Inchmahome, p. 141.
302 The Lake of Menteilh.
discountenanced this movement — so far as his influence
extended — and he and his son, Lord Kilpont, were severally
thanked for their conduct at the time, and informed that
His Majesty would acknowledge their affection to his
service in a real manner when occasion should offer.1
As symptomatic of his growing favour with the King,
he was, in 1639, again appointed a member of the Privy
Council, and was requested to attend His Majesty's Com-
missioner— the King seemed to think the latter required
to be watched — as one of the Council, at the meeting of
the Assembly and the Parliament to be held that year.
Of the proceedings at these meetings he sent a confidential
account to the King, and was afterwards instructed to
repair in person to Hampton Court for conference and to
learn His Majesty's further pleasure. When the Covenan-
ting war broke out, the Earl of Airth and his son were, of
course, for the King. They were made Lieutenants of
Stirlingshire for raising men for the royal army ; and they
executed their commission with much vigour. Lord
Kilpont served with distinction under Montrose, but his
career was cut short by his assassination, in Montrose's
camp at Collace, by his kinsman and retainer, James
Stewart of Ardvoirlich.
Meanwhile, the Earl's pecuniary embarrassments con-
tinued. The lands of Airth had been apprised from him
in 1638. Mondhui was wadset in 1641 to Walter Graham
of Glenny on a letter of reversion which was afterwards
(in 1652) renounced. Kilbride was disposed of in 1643; and
his silver-plate went to satisfy the claims of the Laird of
1 Printed in Red Book, ii. 59.
The Lake of Menteith. 303
Keir in 1645. He was now pretty well plucked. During
the supremacy of the Commonwealth he could not look
for assistance. In fact, the poor remains of his posses-
sions seem to have suffered further dilapidation at that
time. His house of Airth was made a garrison by Crom-
well's troops.1 General Monck, from Cardross, 17th May,
1654, ordered him to cut down the woods of Milton and
Glassart in Aberfoyle parish, as being " great shelters to
the rebells and mossers." In August of the same year,
the parish was burned and wasted by the English army,
cultivation was utterly ruined for the time, and the houses
destroyed. The house of Drymen, also, with its furniture,
was burned.2
He lived to see the restoration of Charles II. to the
throne, but not much more. He was alive and staying
at Inchtalla — where he seems to have spent the most of
his later life — on the 1st of January, 1661, for that is the
date of a letter addressed to him by his son-in-law, Sir
John Campbell of Glenorchy, who had come to pay his
father-in-law a New Year visit, and to consult him about
his affairs, but could not get access to the island on account
of the ice. Next month his grandson is mentioned as
second Earl of Airth and Menteith.3
The Countess survived him. Their domestic life had its
disagreements, some of which are most amusingly told — not
1 Act of the Parliaments of Scotland, vol. vi. p. 687.
2 Petition presented to Parliament in 1663 by William, second Earl of Airth. —
Acts of Parliaments of Scotland, vol. vii., app. p. 100.
3 This is the statement of Sir William Fraser (Red Book, vol. i. p. 390) ; but a
letter is extant, written to him by his grandson, then still Lord Kilpont, on the I3th
April, 1661.
304 The Lake of Menteith.
the less amusingly, perhaps, because the Earl is in down-
right earnest about it all — in a manuscript written by his
own hand.1 He speaks of her Ladyship as " my divelish
wyf," "this wofull wyfe of myne," "that wicked woman,"
and, with bitter irony, "this wyse woman of myne," "my
prudent wyfe," "my goode wyfe," and tells a sad tale of
her lamentable ongoings, which were bringing debt and
ruin upon him. She had, without her husband's know-
ledge, bought from her " false uncle," the Earl of Carrick,
his pension of 9000 merks yearly from the Exchequer, for
which she agreed to pay him the sum of 7000 merks a
year, Lords Forrester and Tulliallan becoming securities
for the payment. The payment fell into arrears, and the
Earl of Carrick " put hard at the Lord Forrester, intended
a process against him, and took infeftment of his lands
of Corstorphine." To relieve Forrester the Earl had to
pay, "in layed doune money," 42,000 merks. "This," he
cries out, " wes one of my divelish wyf hir wys actes, fortie
two thousand mks., 42,000 merks ! " Next, when again
the Earl was in London, his "prudent wyfe" married her
second daughter, Margaret, to Lord Garlics, eldest son of
the Earl of Galloway, giving in tocher 27,000 merks, for
which sum again she gave some of her husband's friends
as cautioners ; and before the " said doghter went home
to her awin, she was four thousand merks more;" but
in his indictment of his wife, the Earl — as they do in the
law courts — restricts the total sum to "threttie thousand
merks." All this money, he says, was as much lost to
Printed in the Notes on Inchmahome, app. iv. p. 145-150, from papers at
Gartmore.
The Lake of Menteith. 305
him as if it had been cast into the sea. The Earl of
Galloway was nearly related to him, their estates were far
apart, the children of the married couple had died, and
for the sum given as tocher he might have married three
of his daughters to barons in his neighbourhood, any one
of whom would have been more useful to him than the
Earl of Galloway. In the third place, she wanted him
to buy a house in Edinburgh, instead of paying rent for
the little house he dwelt in there "besyde the Churchyaird,
pertaining to one Kidderfoord." He refused, notwithstand-
ing her protestation that it would serve as a house for
the lands of Kinpont. After that, however, in some
transactions with the Earl of Linlithgow, he bought from
that nobleman a house at the back of Holyrood Abbey,
paying for it 8500 merks, " and it wes no ill pennieworth,
for it wes worth the money." But no sooner had he
gone again to London than his wife set all manner of
tradesmen to re-edify the house, so that he calculates
that it cost him in all 25,000 merks, but he "will only
sett doune heir 20,000 merks." And after all, when he
had to leave Edinburgh, he disponed the house to his
son James, and within two years it took fire and was
totally burned. This calamity could scarcely be laid to
the blame of the Countess, but he cries in his vexation,
" so becam of everie thing that the unhappie woman, my
wyfe, hade hir hand intoo." The speculations of the
Countess had now cost her husband, according to his
reckoning, 92,000 merks. " Bot," he says, "this is nothing
to that which will follow heireefter." This was a business
venture in coal and salt. The Earl had a coal heuch and
306 The Lake of Menteith.
six salt-pans at Airth, which were let on a nine years'
lease to William Livingstone, " ane very honest man," at
a yearly rent of 2500 merks in money and a supply of
coals — estimated at 500 merks — to the house of Airth.
The Countess had been persuaded by " sum unhappie
bodies " that she could make 6000 merks a year out of
the works if they were in her own hands. Her lord,
however, refused to break the lease, which had still some
years to run, as Livingstone was a good tenant and paid
regularly. " So shee parted in ane greate snuffe, and shee
tooke ane uther way to worke." She harassed Livingstone,
and withdrew the tenants and workmen from his service,
so that he came to the Earl and, " with tears in his
eyes," offered to surrender the lease on any terms his
Lordship might think just. Out of pity he gave him
4500 merks. The Countess then went to work with great
energy, sunk great and deep " sumps," erected a water
mill and a horse mill, and built two new salt-pans, all at
great cost, and all without her husband's authority. We
are given to understand that this, like the other business
speculations of the energetic lady, came to sad grief; but
the amount of deficit which her husband had to make
good is not mentioned, as the Earl's narrative of his
wife's delinquencies has been interrupted, and breaks off
abruptly.
The Earl of Airth had a large family — six sons and
four daughters. The eldest son, John, Lord Kilpont,
was killed at Collace, 6th September, 1644. The second
son, Sir James, became Governor of Drogheda, and had a
daughter, Helen, who was much in evidence in connection
The Lake of Menteith. 307
with the negotiations for settling the earldom in the time
of its last holder. Eobert, Patrick, and Charles are known
only by name. Archibald was a country gentleman, and
a douce elder in Port of Menteith Parish Church. Of the
daughters, Mary was married to Sir John Campbell of
Glenorchy, Margaret was the young lady disposed of by her
managing mother to Lord Garlies, Anne became the wife of
Sir Mungo Murray of Blebo, and Jean is only a name.
William, the eldest child and only son of Lord Kilpont,
succeeded his grandfather in the earldom.
WILLIAM GBAHAM, EIGHTH BAEL OP MENTEITH, SECOND
EAEL OP AIBTH.
This Earl, who held the title for thirty-three years,
gives one the impression of eccentricity ; although it must
be admitted he had a rather hard time of it. All his life
he had to struggle with comparative poverty and general
ill-health. His domestic relations were not happy : he
divorced his first wife, and had difficulties with the second.
He had no children by either; and was greatly worried by
questions of the succession. A large portion of his time
was spent in dunning the King and endeavouring to obtain
payment of the arrears of pensions and other debts due
to his grandfather ; and it is to be hoped he found some
pleasure in this pursuit, for profit of it he had none. The
only pleasurable bit of excitement that came into his life
was when he hunted the Covenanters in his neighbourhood.
He professed that he enjoyed this — rejoicing with special
delight over the capture of one Arthur Dugall, an obstinate
Covenanter of Kippen, " who was the verie first man that
u
308 The Lake of Menteith.
did harbor and reseat the horrid murderis of the lat Arch-
bishop of St. Androws."1 He lamented that he had
narrowly missed Hackstoun and Balfour, who happened
to be at the same conventicle at which Dugall was taken.
He wished, with all his soul, that he had " one sure bout "
of them, so that he might more fully prove his affection
to His Majesty's service. " I doubt not," he wrote, " to
put them in a verie great fear, all betwixt Dumbarton and
Stirling, and sail put them from thes disorderly mittings,
for on all occassions I'll hazard my life for the royall
interest." For his encouragement in this laudable frame
of mind, the valiant Earl received the acknowledgments
of the Privy Council, and a message from the King, that
he would show him the royal favour " upon a fitt occasion."
It is scarcely necessary to say that the fit occasion never
came. In 1681, his friend and relative, Claverhouse, also
wrote him from London, complimenting him on having
" taken his trade off his hand," and having become " the
terror of the godly." "I begin to think it tyme for me,"
he added, " to set a work again, for I am emulous of your
reputation." In all of which phraseology one can detect
something like a sneer, or, at least, a smile, at the valetudin-
arian Earl and his man-hunts in the wilds of Kippen.
A good deal of the Earl's correspondence has been
preserved, and it is both interesting and amusing. He
strews his page — especially when he is labouring under
excitement — with irrelevant whiches in the most lavish way.
1The correspondence of the Earl on this and other subjects is in the
charter-chest of the Duke of Montrose, and has been printed in the Red Book
of Menteith, from which the quotations heie given are taken.
The Lake of Menteith. 309
Here is an instance in a letter to his uncle, Sir James
Graham — " Let him know if he wold be welcum, wich for
my sak at least ye will admit of a visit from himself wich
will be soon as you ar pleased to return a favorable ansyre
to me in his behalf; wich my Lord Marquis of Montrose
has wreatten a letter to you on his behalf." Sairey Gamp
could not have bettered that.
Much of this correspondence deals with what was his
most pressing business all his life through — the attempt
to raise money for his immediate needs, and to satisfy
his ever-pressing creditors. Writing to the Earl of Wemyss,
from The Isle, on the 18th November, 1667, he declares
that he is " warpt in a laberinth of almost a never ending
truble," and not the least trouble is that he cannot make
his Lordship payment of his claim against him. " What
I sal doe this year," he goes on to say, " the Lord knows,
for I know not. Both myself, land, woods, ky and horses,
I lay all befor your Lordship, doe as it seemeth good in
your eyes, for on everie syde I am perplext by to pressing
credditors, and in consenc this terme of Martimis they
wil get no monyes tho' they should tak my life."
A letter written from "the He," 27th June, 1681, to
James, third Marquis of Montroge, furnishes an instance
— not without its ridiculous side — of his continued impe-
cuniosity. He had resolved to " ride the Parliament "
at Edinburgh next month, and was determined to make
as brave a show as his rank required. He was to have
four footmen in livery — footmen were probably cheap in
Menteith at that time — but he had no suitable robes for
himself. Those that had belonged to his grandfather had
310 The Lake of Menteith.
been destroyed in the English time, and he had never
been able to procure new ones. He therefore earnestly
besought the Marquis to obtain for him from some earl
the loan of his earl's robes, foot-mantle, velvet coats, and
other things necessary for his appearance in proper Par-
liamentary outfit. He promised to use them only for one
day, and to keep them carefully so that none of them
should be spoiled. With a touch of vanity he added,
" the last tyme when I reid the Parliment, I cearied the
secepter," and, as if it would be taken as a guarantee of
his honesty, he reminded the Marquis that on that occasion
he "head the lene of the deces'd Earle of Lowdian's
robes." He further asked " the lene of a peacable horse,"
as it seems he was troubled with gouty affections both in
his hands and feet. He did attend the meeting of Par-
liament, so it is to be assumed that he succeeded in
getting "the lene" of an earl's robes and a sufficiently
peaceable horse.
Another interesting section of the Earl's correspondence
concerns the succession to the earldom. He had no
children. The nearest heir was his uncle, Sir James
Graham, who resided in Ireland, and was now an old
man.1 This Sir James had one unmarried daughter, named
Helen ; and it is around this young lady that all the
correspondence circles. The well-known John Graham
of Claverhouse offered himself to the Earl to be adopted as
1Sir James Graham, second son of William, the seventh Earl, married
Margaret Erskine, daughter of the Earl of Buchan, and had by her one daughter,
Marion, who was married to Walter Graham of Gartur. By his second wife,
Isabella, daughter of the Bishop of Armagh, he had a daughter named Helen
or Eleanor.
The Lake of Menteith. 311
his son and to be married to Helen Graham. The letter in
which he makes this offer is extremely interesting, clever,
and plausible. He tells how Julius Caesar had no occasion
to regret his want of issue, because in his adopted son
(Augustus) he secured a faithful friend and a wise successor,
neither of which he could have promised himself by having
children of his own, " for nobody knows whether they begit
wyse men or fooles, besids that the tays of gratitud and
friendship ar stronger in generous mynds than those of
natur." "I may say," he adds, "without vanity, that I
will doe your family no dishonor, seing there is nobody you
could mak choyse of has toyld so much for honor as I
have don, thogh it has been my misfortun to atteen but a
small shear." His proposal was that the Earl should settle
the succession on Helen Graham and her heirs, that she
should then be married to himself, and in this way, as
he pointed out, the earldom would be preserved in the
family of Graham. He had seen the young lady, and pro-
fessed the greatest devotion. He protested that it was not
for the expected honour she was to receive that he desired
to gain her hand : he would take her " in her smoak."
The Earl was willing to agree to this arrangement, but
Sir James and his wife — we are not informed of the feelings
of the young lady — were not. An arrangement was then
made with the Marquis of Montrose, by which the earldom
of Airth and Menteith was to be provided to the Marquis
on condition of his marrying Helen Graham and securing
the Earl in a life annuity of £150. This proposal was well
received by Sir James and his lady and by the fair Helen
herself; and all seemed to be in good train for success
312 The Lake of Menteith.
wh*en the Marquis, proving faithless, went off and married
another.
Meantime the charter conveying the lands and honour
of the earldom of Menteith to the Marquis of Montrose
had received the signature of the King. Sir James
Graham made representations to his Majesty, with the
result that the portions concerning the peerages and the
lands of Airth were cancelled, and the gift was restricted
to the lands of the earldom of Menteith only. Thus it
happens that the estates of the ancient earldom — or rather,
the small portion of them then left — are now in the pos-
session of the Duke of Montrose, while the titles are in
the air, waiting for the advent of a claimant who shall
prove himself an undoubted representative of the family.
The Earl was, after all this, urged by Claverhouse to recall
the disposition to Montrose, and to make him his heir,
and again recommend him to Sir James Graham, who, he
hinted, would not now be averse to accept him as a son-
in-law. Miss Graham, however, was given in marriage to
Captain Eawdon, heir apparent of the Earl of Conway.
The disposition of the estate was never recalled, although
the Earl, after a letter received from his uncle in 1683 — in
which it is plainly stated that there had been a combination
between Montrose and Claverhouse to overreach the poor
old man — resolved to visit the Court next year and submit
the whole affair to the King. But, the Marquis of Mon-
trose having died in April, 1684, he was dissuaded by John,
Master of Stair, from going to Court at the time. Stair's
letter to the Earl is somewhat contemptuous in tone — as
if he were dealing with a crank with whom it was difficult
The Lake of Menteith. 313
to have patience. It lets us know the curious fact that
Menteith, who was now fifty years of age — possibly in the
hope of yet having a natural successor to his titles — had
married a second wife, and that before the divorce from
the first had been completed. The letter does not spare
the Earl : — " I shall never believ yow have bein so ill
advysed as to have entred into another mariage till this
was dissolved, if it be possible. I must say it's hard to
determin whither yow hav bein more industrious to preserv
or destroy yourself : only I am convinct they do not thriv
that medle with yow."
In all the marriage and succession correspondence,
Claverhouse proves himself a very clever writer. He
shows much ingenuity in his ways of putting things, and
his style is not only clear and vigorous, but even graceful.
It contrasts with the obscure and fumbling manner of the
Earl. The latter generally confines himself to not very
clear statements of business ; but in one letter addressed
to the Marquis of Montrose after the latter had got married
— not to Helen Graham — he attempts a poetical compli-
ment, thus : — " Be pleased to present my verrye humble
servise to my speciall good Ladey, to whom I heave sent
some chimes " — no doubt from the fruit gardens at Inch-
mahome : it was the 27th of June, old style — " to kiss hir
fair handis, who blushes that they are not worthe to present
themselves to so vertious and excelant a Ladey." But he
does not often break out in that way. And, after all, he
does not come out of the affair worst. He was honest, and
his intentions were good ; but he wanted adroitness and
possibly suppleness. The Marquis of Montrose appears
314 The Lake of Menteith.
but little in the correspondence. Sir James Graham's
letters show him a clear-headed man of business.
The Earl's first wife was Anna Hewes — to judge by the
name, an Englishwoman — but really nothing is known
regarding her. The decree of divorce is dated 19th July,
1694, but it would appear that even before it was issued
he had, greatly daring, married again.1 The second
wife was Katherine Bruce, daughter of Thomas Bruce
of Blairhall. In the Earl's circumstances it was praise-
worthy, and even necessary, to practise economy ; and
he set about it in his usual fussy way. He drew up a
paper in which he minutely specified the quantities of
provisions and materials and sums of money that were
to be allowed annually to my Lady for the maintenance
of the house. This document shows that there must
have been a fairly numerous household on the island at
the time, and is of interest as indicating the sort of fare
on which they lived. He allows four score bolls of good
oatmeal — "quhilk is to be layed in the old girnell in the
Isle, and my Ladie to keep the keye of it," and three
score bolls of bear to be made into malt, " in my Lord's
oune kill at the stables." Cheese must have been a
favourite article of diet, as forty stones of it are allowed,
" whairof ten stone Glaschyle cheese." The Glassachoil
1 The Earl charged his wife with infidelity — one of the co-respondents, it may
be noted, was the novelist Fielding — and the lady replied with a similar charge
against her husband, a plea of connivance, and an allegation of bigamy on account
of his marriage with Catherine Bruce while legal proceedings were still pending.
The whole wretched history of the case and the curious manipulation of legal forms
by which the bigamy charge— of which the Earl really was guilty — was evaded and
finally departed from, may be found in the law reports. (Fountainhall's Decisions,
pp. 248-308).
The Lake of Menteith. 315
cheese was perhaps a superior brand, reserved for the
family circle. Butter was not in such common use —
only ten stones of good salt butter being required. For
fish, two thousand herrings were allowed, and all the fishes
" that can be had in the loches and waters there." Her
ladyship might also supplement the allowance of meat with
"all the veneson and wyld foule that can be gotten."
The allowance of eggs was a hundred dozen, " or else six
pounds Scots theirfor." That works out at ten for a
penny sterling — eggs were cheap in those days. Four
stots, ten quarters old, were to supply the fresh meat, and
eight fat kyne and oxen for "mairts"; besides "all the
reek hens, poultrie, and capones in the bounds of Menteith
and Drummond." The milk for the house was to be sup-
plied by five new-calved cows to be kept on Portend, and
one good cow in the Easter Isle (Inchmahome) both
summer and winter. My Lady was to have three hundred
merks (£16 13s. 4d. sterling) for her clothes and purse,
and four hundred merks " for whyte bread, flour, sheugar,
spycerie and aquavite, brandi, reasins, plume demis and
soap " — a modest sum, surely, for such a miscellaneous
catalogue of luxuries. All this, and much more — set down
at length in the agreement — was formally subscribed by
my Lord and my Lady, before witnesses, at the Isle of
Menteith, on the 1st of January, 1685.
It is not surprising that the Countess soon got tired of
this over management, and went off to Edinburgh. The
story was that she could not stand the croaking of the
frogs outside her chamber window, but the probability is
that it was the croaker within who was the chief cause
316 The Lake of Menteith.
of her flight. At Edinburgh she remained, evincing no
disposition to return, until the Earl got alarmed, and com-
missioned his man of business there to tempt her back
with promises and agreements. In this he was successful.
A marriage contract — there had been none before — was
drawn up, and signed by the parties on 16th and 18th
March, 1687. This contract contains a clause very charac-
teristic of the Earl. After providing the estates to the
eldest son — should there be a son — of the marriage, it
gives 20,000 merks to the daughters — if there should be
daughters — indicating at the same time that these 20,000
merks existed as yet mainly or only in the imagination,
and depended for their materialisation on the " freugall
and verteows leiving " of the Earl and his Countess. The
lady undertakes to reside in the Isle with her husband,
and when his lordship is absent, to stay at home at their
ordinary place of residence. By these arrangements, the
domestic harmony was restored, although the Earl, not-
withstanding all manner of frugal and virtuous living,
remained all his life hard up, and found it anything but
easy to maintain his household.1
xThe impecuniosity of the Earl is indicated in the traditionary story of
" Malise Graham and the Roe-skin Purse." As told by M'Gregor Stirling it
runs thus : — " The last Earl of Monteath being obliged, for the reason already
mentioned (*.<?., debt) to retire to the asylum for debtors, the Abbey of Holyrood,
applied to one of his vassals, and his kinsman and namesake, Malise Graham,
of Glassart, on the southern shore ol Loch Catherine, for such a supply of money,
or such security, as might relieve him. Faithful to the call of his liege lord,
Malise instantly quitted his home, dressed like a plain Highlander of those days,
travelling alone, and on foot. Arriving at the Earl's lodging, he knocked for
admittance, when a well-dressed person opening the door, and commiserating his
apparent poverty, tendered him a small piece of money. Malise was in the act
of thankfully receiving it, when his master, advancing, perceived him, and chid
him for doing a thing which, done by his pecuniary friend, might tend to shake
The Lake of Menteith. 317
The Lady Katherine died early in the year 1692. Two
years later — in September, 1694— the Earl himself passed
from his troubles. His estate had already been disposed
of to the Marquis of Montrose. His personal property —
it was not much, or valuable1 — he left to his nephew, Sir
John Graham of Gartmore, on condition that he paid
certain debts and legacies, provided for the decent burial
of the Earl, and erected a monument for him and his
Countess. To what extent his wishes were obeyed is stated
elsewhere.2
APPENDIX.
THE MURDER OP LORD KILPONT AT COLLAGE.
JOHN, LORD KILPONT, was born in or about 1613. When
his father held the title of Earl of Strathern, he married
Lady Mary Keith, eldest daughter of the Earl Marischal,
receiving with her a dowry of ^30,000 Scots, while the
lady was infeft in the baronies of Kilbride and Kilpont,
his credit more than ever. The Highlander, making his appropriate obeisance,
but with the utmost nonchalance, took from his bosom a purse, and handing it to his
lordship, addressed him in the following words, originally in Gaelic, but now
translated : — ' Here, my lord, see and clear your way with that. As for the
gentleman who had the generosity to hand me the halfpenny, I would have no
objection to accept of every halfpenny he had.' The story declares that his
lordship's necessity was completely relieved, and that he instantly returned
with his faithful vassal to his castle in the Loch of Monteath." — Notes on
Inchmahome, p. 12.
1See the inventory and details of his personal possessions, chap. vii.
pp. 209-215.
2 See chap. iv. pp. 116-118,
318 The Lake of Menteith.
and received an annuity of 1000 merks out of the barony
of Drummond. The contract is dated llth April, 1632, and
the marriage took place in the course of that year. Lord
Kilpont acted as his father's assistant in the justiciarship
of Menteith, and in that capacity was instrumental in
bringing to justice the noted robber, John Dhu Macgregor.
For this service he was thanked by the King in 1636.
He also received a letter of thanks in 1639 for his steady
adherence to the King's interest as against the Covenanters.
In 1644 the Committee of Estates authorized him to
assemble the men of Menteith, Lennox, and Keir, in order
to guard the passages to Perth against the Irish levies
who were on their march from the west. With this force,
amounting to about 400 men, he was posted at the hill of
Buchanty, in Glenalmond, when he was met by Montrose
at the head of the Irish and Highland troops, and so far
from resisting, he went over to him with the whole body
of troops under his command.
The battle of Tibbermuir was fought on the 1st of
September. After a rest of a few days in Perth, Montrose
crossed the Tay on the 5th of September, and pitched his
camp at Collace. That night he gave an entertainment
to his officers to celebrate the victory at Tibbermuir. After
the banquet a quarrel of some sort arose between Kilpont
and his intimate friend, James Stewart of Ardvoirlich, who
had shared his tent and his bed, which ended in Stewart
stabbing his friend with his dagger and escaping from the
camp. The murderer fled to the Covenanting army,
where he was received by Argyll, and promoted ultimately
to the rank of Major. The body of Lord Kilpont was
The Lake of Menteith. 319
conveyed to Menteith and interred in the Chapter House
of the Priory of Inchmahome.1 Lady Kilpont was so
affected by the death of her husband that she lost her
reason. A bitter feud which lasted long between the
Grahams of Menteith and their friends and the Stewarts
of Lochearnside was another consequence. Kilpont's son
was a boy of about ten years of age at the time of his
father's death, but he never forgot the circumstances. At
the very earliest opportunity he had, that is, immediately
after the Eestoration in 1660, he tried to open the question
of his father's murder by a petition to the King. After
his accession to the earldom, he addressed the King again
on the subject. Neither of these petitions had any effect.
But the Earl continued to cherish his feeling of resentment,
and as late as 1681, in a letter to the Marquis of Montrose,
he refers to one Eobert Stewart, who had purchased Stra-
gartney, as "the treterous son of that cruell murderer of
my faither, who was his Lord and Master."2
The motive of Ardvoirlich in this slaughter of his friend
is obscure, and the accounts are somewhat conflicting. The
sources of information in regard to it are three. First, there
is the story as told by Wishart, the Chaplain of Montrose.
This was the version that was before Sir Walter Scott
when he wrote the Legend of Montrose, and it of course
reports the incident from the Boyalist point of view. Next
there is the account handed down in the Ardvoirlich family,
and sent by one of the members of that family to Sir
Walter, who published it in a postscript to his story.
1See chap. iv. p. in.
* Letter in the Red Book of Menteith, ii., p. 192.
320 The Lake of Menteilh.
That, as might be expected, puts the action of Stewart in
a distinctly more favourable light. And, in the third place,
there is the statement of the circumstances in the Act of
Parliament which ratified the pardon for the deed previously
granted by the Privy Council, which — if it may not be
held as an absolutely impartial statement — may at least be
taken as putting the case in a light that was not regarded
as unfavourable to Ardvoirlich.
Wishart accuses Ardvoirlich, whom he calls " a base
slave," of a plot to murder Montrose. He endeavoured to
draw Kilpont into the plot, and when the latter expressed
his detestation of the villainy, he stabbed him with many
wounds before he had time to put himself on his guard;
then killing a sentinel, he escaped in the darkness. He
adds — " Some say the traitor was hired by the Covenanters
to do this ; others, only that he was promised a reward
if he did it " — the distinction seems rather a fine one.
" However it was, this is most certain, that he is very
high in their favour unto this very day ; and that Argyle
immediately advanced him, though he was no soldier, to
great commands in his army." And he concludes with a
touching account of Montrose's tribute to his dead friend —
" Montrose was very much troubled with the loss of that
nobleman, his dear friend, and one that had deserved very
well both from the King and himself ; a man famous for
arts, and arms, and honesty ; being a good philosopher, a
good divine, a good lawyer, a good soldier, a good subject,
and a good man. Embracing the breathless body again
and again, with sighs and tears he delivers it to his
sorrowful friends and servants, to be carried to his parents
The Lake of Menteith. 321
to receive its funeral obsequies, as became the splendour
of that honourable family."1
The family account is to the effect that Stewart was
not a subordinate of Kilpont, but in an independent
command ; and through his intimacy with Kilpont he had
induced the latter to join the royalist cause. The Irish
levies, when coming from the west under the command
of Colkitto, had plundered the lands of Ardvoirlich, and
of this Stewart complained to Montrose, but obtained no
redress. He then challenged Colkitto, and Montrose, on
the information and advice of Kilpont, it is said, put both
under arrest and then patched up a sort of reconciliation.
But Stewart was far from being satisfied; and after the
banquet, when the friends had returned to their tent, he
broke out into fierce reproaches against both Kilpont and
Montrose. Kilpont replied also in high words. From
words they went to blows, and Stewart, who was a man
of great strength, slew Kilpont on the spot. He fled after
the deed and, for his own safety, was obliged to throw
himself into the hands of the Covenanters.2 This account
frees Ardvoirlich from the accusation of treachery to
Montrose, though it represents him as a man of violent
temper.
The Act of Parliament narrates that John, Lord Kilpont,
being employed in the public service against James Graham,
then Earl of Montrose, the Irish rebels and their associates,
did treacherously and treasonably join himself and induce
1 Wishart's Commentaries on the Wars of Montrose, quoted by Sheriff Napier
in his Memoirs of Montrose, ii. 446.
2 Legend of Montrose, Postscript to Introduction (edit. 1829).
322 The Lake of Menteith.
400 others under his command to join the said rebels ; that
Stewart and some of his friends, repenting of their error,
resolved to forsake their wicked company, and imparted
this resolution to Kilpont, who endeavoured, " out of his
malignant dispositione," to prevent them, and fell a
struggling with the said James, who, for his own relief,
was forced to kill him, along with two Irish rebels who
resisted his escape ; and that then, with his son and friends,
he came straight to the Marquis of Argyle and offered
their services to the country.1
The particulars in this narrative would in all probability
be supplied by James Stewart himself, and they seem, in
every point, to contradict the family tradition. No mention
is made of the plot to murder Montrose ascribed to him
by Wishart, but in other respects the account of that writer
is confirmed. He tried, according to this statement
approved by himself, to make Kilpont false to the cause
of the Eoyalists, and killed him when he did not succeed.
It is quite possible that the statement may be not
altogether ingenuous, as he might suppose that his zeal
for the Covenant would be likely to condone the offence
of killing one of its enemies. But if not accepted as it is,
the plot to assassinate Montrose must still stand on a
footing of at least equal authority with the grievance
against Colkitto as the cause of the quarrel which ended
so fatally.
'Acts of the Parliament of Scotland, vol. vi. pt. i. p. 359 (ist March, 1645).
323
CHAPTER XII.
Some Miscellaneous Matters of Greater
or Less Interest.
" Old, unhappy, far-off things,
And battles long ago."
" O gentle reader, you will find
A tale in everything."
FEUD BETWEEN THE MENTEITHS AND DRUMMONDS IN THE
FOURTEENTH CENTURY.
" In their baronial feuds and single fields,
What deeds of prowess unrecorded died ! "
[BOUT the middle of the fourteenth century a
deadly feud arose between the Menteiths and
the Drummonds. The origin of this feud is
obscure. A local tradition has come down to
the effect that it arose from the hatred the patriotic
Drummonds bore to the family of the man who had
treacherously captured Wallace and handed him over to
the English King, and that it was their fixed deter-
mination to wipe out for ever the whole kin and
name of Menteith. That is a quite incredible story —
x
324 The Lake of Menteith.
although one can well enough conceive how it might
commend itself to the popular mind, and even be con-
nived at by the Drummonds as giving a fairly plausible
excuse for their acts of violence. The quarrel, no
doubt, originated in a more vulgar, but unfortunately
usual cause in Scotland — the mutual jealousies of two
neighbouring families anxious for supremacy. The im-
mediate occasion of the outbreak was the slaughter of
Brice Drummond of Boquhapple, a cousin of John of
Drummond, in 1330. The contention then rose to its
height till at last a fierce clan battle was fought at
the Tor — or Tar — of Kusky, about a mile north-east of
the Lake of Menteith. In this fight three sons of
Sir Walter Menteith1 of Eusky, named Walter, Malcolm,
and William, were slain. The Campbells of Argyle
were also involved in this quarrel in alliance with the
Menteiths. The battle of the Tar, so far from ending
the quarrel, only increased the enmity of the clans,
and reprisals and bloodshed devastated the countryside.
At last the King (David II.) found it necessary to inter-
pose his royal authority in the interests of humanity and
peace.
An agreement was accordingly made on Sunday, 17th
May, 1360, " upon the banks of the river Forth, near
Stirling, in presence of Sir Eobert of Erskyne and Sir
Hugh of Eglinton, justiciars of Scotland, and of Sir Patrick
Grahame, and many other noblemen and upright gentle-
1 Sir Walter Menteith was the second son of Sir John, the captor of Wallace.
He succeeded his father in Rusky, while his elder brother John was Lord of
Arran and Knapdale.
The Lake of Menteith. 32£
men."1 In compensation for the slaughter of the three
Menteiths and other injuries done to them and their
adherents, John of Drummond agreed to give up the lands
of Rosneath in the earldom of Lennox to Sir Alexander
Menteith of Rusky, the eldest son of Sir Walter, and his
heirs. These lands, it may be said, had not been long
in Drummond's possession. They had been given to him
by the Countess Mary of Menteith, when she was arranging
a marriage between him and her daughter Margaret, greatly
with a view to staying the existing feuds between the
families. This gift and the marriage were both prior to
the agreement here recorded. The lands of Rosneath,
therefore, now came back to a branch of the family of
their former possessors. Drummond also bound himself
and his friends to leave the Menteiths unmolested for the
future.
On the other hand, the Menteiths pledged themselves
to faithfully observe the agreement, to live henceforth at
peace with Drummond, and to aid him against the
Campbells of Argyle, should these rise up against him.
And both parties, " embracing each other sincerely with
affection, bound themselves to others with the constancy
of a solid mind, as if dissension had never prevailed between
them."
Then the principal parties to the treaty — John of
Drummond, Maurice Drummond, and Walter of Moray,
on the one part, and John and Alexander of Menteith, and
1The original of this agreement is pieserved in Drummond Castle. A
copy (with translation by Mr. George Home) was printed by M'Gregor Stirling
in his Notes on Inchmahome : Appendix iii., pp. 121 et seqq.
826 The Lake of Mentelth.
Walter of Buchanan, on the other part — gave their oaths
by touching the holy Evangels. To make security still
more secure, the High Steward of Scotland, as the principal
relation of both parties, and other related nobles, solemnly
ratified the treaty, and promised that, if it were infringed
(which God forbid !), they would proceed against the party
guilty of such infringement.
A final clause was added to the effect that if the
Menteiths should compass the death of John of Drum-
mond, or any of his adherents, or should not oppose any
one who did so, the lands of Rosneath should return to
Drummond. The latter part of this clause has probably
reference to Gillespie Campbell and his son Colin, who
had previously aided the Menteiths against Drummond,
and whom the former professed themselves unable to
bind. Their hostility to Drummond was, however, bought
off by the Countess Mary, who persuaded them to
acquiesce in the agreement by a gift of her lands of
Kilmun and other considerable grants of land in her
barony of Cowal.
By these means the peace was assured, and friendship
and good neighbourhood was maintained between the
families. The lands of Eosneath never returned to the
Drummonds. They remained with the Menteiths till, in
1455, they were annexed to the Crown.1 Since 1489 they
have been the property of the family of Argyle.
xThe Menteith possession of Arran had also by this time terminated. John
of Menteith, Lord of Arran, died in or before 1387. And in that year, Janet Keith
or Erskine, who had become the representative of the family, resigned Arran to
the Crown in exchange for an annuity of ^100 from the burgh fermes and fishings
of Aberdeen. — Exchequer Rolls vol. vi. p. xcvi.
The Lake of Menteith. 327
THE BEGGAR EARL.
"A blessing on his head,
And, long as he can wander, let him breathe
The freshness of the valleys, let his blood
Struggle with frosty air and bitter snows ;
And let the chartered winds that sweep the heath
Beat his grey locks against his withered face."
"And in a mendicant behold a Thane."
The person who bore the name of the " beggar Earl "
was not so called in any metaphorical sort of way, or
because of his comparative poverty, but in sad and literal
fact. He was actually and really a beggar for many years,
wandering about the country living on the alms of the
charitable.
When the eighth Earl of Menteith died in 1694, he
left nothing behind him but an empty title. The Marquis
of Montrose had his estates — what had been left of them ;
and Sir John Graham of Gartmore had his personal pro-
perty— burdened with the payment of his debts, which not
improbably were in excess of the value of the legacy. In
these circumstances it is little wonder that candidates for
the dignity of the earldom were slow in making their
appearance. For fifty years no one was found to put in
a public claim to the title.
But on the 12th of October, 1744, when the Scottish
peers were assembled at Holyrood to make one of their
elections of Eepresentatives to the House of Lords, as the
roll was being called, they were surprised to see a young
man rise and answer to the name of Earl of Menteith —
a call which had elicited no response for the last half-
328 The Lake of Menteith.
century. On the name being called, says the official record,
" compeared William Graham, who answered thereto, and
being asked to describe himself because that title had been
for some time in abeyance and disuse of any person taking
it up, he answered that he was a student of medicine in
Edinburgh, and was executor confirmed to the last Earl,
as would appear from an extract of the testament lying in
his process before the Lords of Council and Session."1 He
therefore claimed to take the oath and declaration quali-
fying him to take part in the election.
There is no doubt about his pedigree ; although whether
it entitled him to the dignity of Earl of Menteith is another
question. He was the direct descendant of Lady Elizabeth
Graham, one of the three daughters of that Lord Kilpont
who fell at Collace, and sister of the last Earl William.
This Lady Elizabeth had married, in December, 1633,
William (afterwards Sir William) Graham of Gartmore ;
and to them were born a son, Sir John, and a daughter,
Mary. Mary Graham married James Hodge of Gladsmuir,
advocate, and had a daughter, also named Mary. When
Sir John Graham of Gartmore died in 1708 without issue,
Mary Hodge was served next and lawful heir to her uncle,
and was confirmed executrix dative to him in 1713. She
married, in 1708, her cousin, William Graham, who was
a younger son of Walter Graham of Gallangad. Of this
marriage the claimant of the earldom was the second son.
His elder brother, James, had died in the beginning of the
year 1740. Although there is ground to believe that James
1 Minutes of Evidence before Committee for Privileges in Petition of Robert
Barclay-Allardice, p. 88.
The Lake of Menteith. 329
regarded himself as the representative of the Earls of
Menteith, he is not known to have taken any steps to
assert his claim. That claim was now taken up by his
brother and heir ; and hence the appearance which so
startled the Scottish peers at Holyrood in 1744.1
William Graham resembled the last known Earl in two
respects. He appears to have been somewhat eccentric,
and he was always in want of money. On the death of
his elder brother — who died without issue — he had been
confirmed executor to Sir John Graham of Gartmore, his
grand-uncle ; but, on the 24th of May, 1740, he renounced
his interest in Gartmore to Nicol Graham, for the sum of
one thousand merks wherewith to purchase "chirurgical
instruments and utencils and phisicall and chirurgical
books," and to maintain himself withal during his study
for his profession.2
The step he now took was a most unfortunate one
for himself. It seems to have utterly unsettled him,
and rendered him unfit for work of any kind and dis-
inclined to earn his own livelihood. Instead of becoming
— as he might have become — a fairly respectable medical
practitioner, he sank into the half-crazed mendicant he
eventually became, claiming always his shadowy rank in
the midst of beggary.
For a period of seventeen years he continued to present
himself at the occasional meetings for the election of peers.
1 These facts regarding the descent of the beggar Earl are taken from the
Minutes of Evidence in the peerage case formerly referred to, and may be found
in the print thereof, pp. 33-130.
8 Printed Evidence, p. 83.
330 The Lake of Menteith.
He attended and voted at the meetings held in October,
1744; August, 1747; March, 1749; July, 1752; November,
1752; and 5th May, 1761.1
Then the House of Lords took notice of his case, and
summoned him to appear before a meeting of the Committee
for Privileges on the 1st of March, 1762, to show by what
authority and on what grounds he took upon himself the
title. That meeting he did not attend. Probably he had
no means to take him to London, and no one to assist, and
certainly his own conviction of his rank could not have
been made stronger by any favourable decision of the
House of Lords. The result of his failure to attend was
an order issued by the Lords on the following day, pro-
hibiting him from using the title until his claim should
be properly examined and duly allowed.2
He did not desist, however, from calling himself by the
name he fancied he had a right to ; but he went to no more
meetings of peers thenceforth. Indeed, it is said that
whenever such a meeting approached, he fled in disgust
from the neighbourhood of Edinburgh, and betook himself
to the country. His claim never, during his lifetime, was
examined or allowed. He made no further effort ; but he
clung to the empty title, with feeble obstinacy, to the
very last. Without a profession and without means,
nothing was left for him but the beggar's wallet, and for
several years he wandered about the country, subsisting
on the contributions of old friends and neighbours. For
he preferred to work the district around his native place
'Printed Evidence, pp. 88-90. 2 Ibid, pp. 90, 91.
The Lake of Menteith. 331
of Gallangad, where many must have known him and had
a kindly feeling for the poor and demented old man. A
witness at the peerage trial, who remembered having fre-
quently, in his boyhood, seen him on his rounds, describes
him as " a little man — a little clean man, that went about
through the country. He never saw him act wrong or
anyone act wrong to him. He was just a man asking
charity. He went into farm houses and asked victuals,
what they would give him, and into gentlemen's houses."1
It was in this district that he came to his melancholy
end. When on one of his journeys in the summer of 1783,
in the parish of Bonhill, he would appear to have become
faint and left the road to lie down in a field. There,
on the morning of the 30th of June, his body was found
lying some twenty or thirty yards from the roadside by
some workmen who were passing on their way to Bonhill.
Thus died a beggar's death by the roadside one who —
whether he was entitled to be Earl of Menteith or not —
had, at any rate, the blood of the royal family of Scotland
in his veins.
The body was carried to the parish church, and buried
by the parish authorities. The " beggar Earl " was, how-
ever, saved the last indignity of a pauper's funeral, for the
family of his sister, who had married an exciseman of the
name of Bogle, paid the expenses incurred in his burial,
amounting in all to £3 5s. 6d. The account rendered,
apparently by the session clerk, who had managed the
arrangements for the interment, was found in the reposi-
1 Printed Evidence, p. 143.
332 The Lake of Menteith.
tories of Mrs. Bogle, the wife of the " Earl's " nephew,
and is sufficiently curious to deserve reproduction.1
Acct. of the Expence of William Graham Earle of MonteatKs
founrill, Jully th. ist, 1783.
To a coffin and mounting by John M'Allaster, ... ^o 18 o
To creaps and dressing by Thos. M'Bean, o 14 o
To two women dressing th. corps when brought to th.
church, 026
Accot. to John Alexander.
To brandie, 080
To whiskie .048
To bread 026
To whiskie when th. corpse was found, 034
To th. bellman, brandie and beer, 006
To diner for a man and woman, and horse hay, ... o i 6
To a shirt, 050
To th. mor. cloath, 040
To bell and grave digging, o i 6
£3 5 ~<>
Bonhill, August th. 2oth,
then received th. above in full,
per me, JOHN ALEXANDER.
John Bogle, the exciseman who had married William
Graham's sister Mary, was anxious to set up a claim to
the dormant earldom for his family ; but his only son, John,
a miniature painter in London, was lukewarm. After the
death of the latter, his sister, Mary Bogle, made some
pretensions to the succession. But the claim of the Bogles
was never adjudicated upon, and with the death of Miss
Mary Bogle, the line of Lady Elizabeth Graham became
extinct.
1 Printed Evidence, p. 145.
The Lake of Menteith. 333
SUBSEQUENT CLAIMANTS OF THE EAELDOM.
The descendants of the other sister of the eighth Earl —
Lady Mary Graham — afterwards put in claims to the
earldom. Kobert Barclay -Allardice, of Ury and Allardice,
descended from Lady Mary, who it was averred was the
elder sister of Lady Elizabeth, preferred his claim to the
title of Earl of Airth in 1834, and again to the earldoms of
Strathern and Menteith, as well as that of Airth, in 1840.
Voluminous evidence was taken in this suit, and it is from
the minutes of that evidence that the particulars given
above are derived.
In May, 1838, Sir William Scott of Ancrum petitioned
for the dignities of Airth and Menteith as the heir of line of
Walter Graham of Gallangad, and lineal representative of
Sir John Graham of Kilbride, son of Malise, first Earl
of Menteith. The petition was referred to the House
of Lords, but no measures were taken to follow it up,
and Sir William was understood to have abandoned his
claim.
In 1839, still another claimant appeared for the earldom
of Airth. This was Mrs. Mary Eleanor Bishop, wife of
Nicholas Donnithorne Bishop, of Cross Deep Lodge,
Twickenham, in the County of Middlesex. She presented
a petition to the House of Lords on the 22nd of July, 1839,
in which she stated that while she had no desire to assert
her own right to the dignity, she was anxious to protect the
interest of her grandson, James Bogle Denton Graham
Matthews, the infant son of her daughter and only child.
The petition was referred to the Lords' Committees for
334 The Lake of Menteith.
Privileges. The claim was founded on the Bogle descent
of the petitioner, but on investigation it turned out to
be a bogus one. It was asserted that Mrs. Bogle,
the " beggar Earl's " sister, left a son Andrew Bogle,
who was father of James Andrew Bogle, father of Mrs.
Bishop. It was proved, however, that Mrs. Mary Bogle
had no son called Andrew, and that all her descendants
were extinct.1
In 1870, the Barclay-Allardice claim was renewed by
the daughter and heiress of the previous claimant. Opposi-
tion was offered by William Cunningham Bontine of
Gartmore, who maintained that the title of Earl of Menteith
was transmissible only to heirs-male, and claimed it, there-
fore, in right of male descent from Malise Graham, the
first Earl. Neither of these claims has yet had final
adjudication.
As has been mentioned already, Mr. Graham Easton
has tried to make out that the right to the dignities belongs
to the family of Grahams of Leitchtown, but no formal
claim to them has been made on their behalf, and Mr.
Easton' s opinions are strongly controverted by other expert
genealogists, who seem rather to favour the claims of
Gartmore. The Barclay-Allardice claim assumed that the
dignities were descendible through females, while the others
proceed on the understanding — which, having regard to the
charter of Earl Malise, seems really to be the case — that
they were limited to heirs-male.
1 Sir Harris Nicolas's History of the Earldoms of Strathern, Monteith, and
Airtb, 1842, p. 178.
The Lake of Menteith. 335
THE LAST EARL AND THE GRAHAMS OF DUCHRAY —
FRACAS AT THE BRIDGE OF ABERFOYLE.
The account of the incident now to be narrated is taken
from the records of the Privy Council. It illustrates the
difficulty of serving legal writs on the Highland borders at
that period. Among the neighbours with whom William,
the eighth Earl, had debts and disagreements, was John
Graham, laird of Duchray. The Earl had procured " letters
of caption " against Duchray and his son, Thomas Graham,
but for some time he found it impossible to put these into
execution. No sheriff-officer was willing to enter Duchray
Castle with his writs. At length, what seemed to be a
favourable opportunity presented itself.
The younger Graham was to have a child baptised at the
Kirk of Aberfoyle on the 13th of February, 1671, and it
seemed to the Earl that, not only the father of the child, but
old Duchray and the whole family would be likely enough
to be present at the interesting ceremony. He resolved,
therefore, to seize the opportunity for serving his letters of
caption. Having collected a number of his friends and
servants, and taking with them the messenger-at-arms,
Alexander Muschet, he intercepted the christening party at
the Bridge of Aberfoyle. Duchray seems to have had
warning of the intentions of the Earl, for, in addition to the
ministers and elders of Aberfoyle and the indispensable
baby, he had with him a strong party of his friends and
tenants, all well armed. Muschet and his attendants
advanced to execute the writ, the Earl with his armed
followers remaining at some little distance behind. But
336 The Lake of Menteith.
when the messenger informed Duchray that he must
consider himself his prisoner, the latter defied him to lay
hand upon him, and, taking from his pocket a paper which
he alleged was a protection from the King, he shouted,
"What wad ye dar? This is all your master!" The
baby was set down on the ground, and the Duchray men,
with swords, guns, and pistols, fell fiercely on Muschet and
his satellites, and, threatening loudly that they would slay
half of them and drown the rest in the Forth, drove them
back upon the Earl and his friends. The latter at first gave
way, but quickly rallied, and a stubborn fight ensued. The
Earl himself narrowly escaped the bullets of the assailants,
and several of his servants were wounded, one of them —
by name Robert M'Earlane — having two of his fingers shot
away. At last his party was fairly driven from the field,
and turned in full flight to Inchtalla. After this little
interruption of the ceremonies of the day, it is to be hoped
that the Duchray Grahams completed the celebration of the
christening in a peaceful and Christian frame of spirit.
Duchray's "protection," as it turned out, was no pro-
tection at all against his apprehension for a debt, but a
document bearing reference to quite another matter — his
removal from certain lands. Nevertheless, it may have
served his purpose at the time by giving a certain air of
legal authority to his resistance of the officer. His own
followers were not likely to require any such pretext ; they
were probably indifferent enough to any legal authority
whatever. But it may have imposed upon the minister and
elders, who, it is to be hoped, were spectators merely, and
not participants in the combat.
The Lake of Menteith. 337
The Earl, foiled in this attempt at force, had again
recourse to the law, and this time with greater success.
Duchray was imprisoned in the Tolbooth of Edinburgh, and
only released on giving sufficient caution that he would
keep the peace towards the Earl of Airth and his tenants.
Two LOCAL LEGENDS: I. — THE BUTLER AND
THE WITCHES.
This legendary tale was taken down by the Eev. W.
M'Gregor Stirling from the narration of the Rev. Dr.
Macfarlane of Drymen. One of the Earls of Menteith —
which one, the tale does not condescend to say — was
entertaining a company of his friends in the halls of
Inchtalla, when it was found that the supply of liquor was
running out. Late though it was, he summoned his butler
and ordered him to set off at once for Stirling, procure the
necessary supply, and be back as early as possible next day.
The butler immediately took his cask, and, unmooring the
boat, proceeded to row himself to the shore. As he neared
it he observed two "honest women" among the reeds at
the margin. Watching them, he saw each cut a bulrush
for herself, then crying the one to the other, " Hae wi'
you, Marion Bowie ! " and " Hae wi' ye, Elspa Hardie ! "
they mounted their bulrushes, and immediately rose sailing
into the air.1 The butler, seized with a sudden impulse,
1 According to the testimony of the witches themselves in the Criminal
Trials, " Horse and hattock ! " was the usual exclamation when they mounted
their bulrushes or broomsticks and rode off on their nocturnal journeys through
the air ; but there is no reason why " Hae wi' ye " should not have been equally
effective.
338 The Lake of Menteith.
also cut a bulrush, and shouting " Hae wi' ye ! " found
himself flying at lightning speed through the realms of
space. Together they descended in the palace of the King
of France, where, being invisible, they enjoyed themselves in
their several ways. The butler, in some mysterious manner,
never let go his cask ; and finding himself in the royal
cellar, he replenished it with the choicest wine. But that
was not all. In case the truth of the marvellous story of
adventure he had to tell might be doubted, he resolved to
carry off a memento of his visit, and so laid hands on the
King's own drinking cup of silver. Then, with the cup
and barrel, getting astride of his bulrush again, another
" Hae wi' ye ! " brought him back to the servants' hall at
Inchtalla, where he was found by the Earl in the morning
sound asleep beside his barrel. The Earl, thinking that
he had drunk too much and neglected his message, awoke
him and began to reproach him with his dereliction of duty,
when the butler, begging his lordship's pardon, informed
him that he had got the wine, and much better wine than
could be found in the burgh of Stirling. Then he told
the whole story of his adventure, and in confirmation, not
only pointed to the full cask, but handed over the valuable
silver cup he had brought with him. The Earl believed,
or affected to believe, the story, and that day entertained
his guests with a wine the quality of which astonished
them ail. The silver cup, with the fleur de Us and the
royal arms of France, also graced the board.
The legend does not put anything like a date to this
wonderful story ; but witches had a high time of it in
Scotland for a long period, and they were specially rampant
The Lake of Metiteith. 339
in the time of the wise and learned James the Sixth. Had
the adventure happened in the reign of that monarch, and
reached his Majesty's ears, it would have been no joke for
the butler and the two " honest women." And where were
the minister and Kirk Session of Port ? Or was it that
the Earl was so grateful to them for having been the means
of getting him out of the difficulty with his guests, that
he saved them from the rebukes and punishments of the
civil and ecclesiastical authorities ?
While the story is purely imaginary, it is quite possible
that there may have been two reputed witches at one time
in the district answering to the names of Marion Bowie
and Elspeth Hardie, from whose reputation it originated.
But these names are not to be found in any of the
numerous accounts of trials for witchcraft. If the names,
like the story, are pure invention, it must be said that they
are well imagined. Elspa Hardie and Marion Bowie have
the distinct flavour of witchery about them.
II. — EIVAL LONG-BOWS.
This story, at any rate, deals with two real persons —
William, the eccentric last Earl of Menteith, and James
Finlayson, a well-known writer or law-agent of Stirling in
the latter portion of the seventeenth and beginning of the
eighteenth centuries. The two seem to have been on
friendly terms. They had some likings in common : both
were inclined to be bon-vivants, and were fond of a good
story. Finlayson was a reputed adept in the use of the
long-bow. No one could more cleverly cap an extraordinary
340 The Lake of Menteith.
tale by one still more extraordinary. The Earl, too, had
ambitions in that direction, and was anxious to get the
better of his friend. So he bent his wits to the invention
of a tale that would make Finlayson confess himself
vanquished. On the occasion of the writer's next visit to
Talla, the Earl enquired if he had ever heard of the wonder-
ful sailing cherry tree. Finlayson said he had not, and
desired to be told about it. He was then gravely informed
that a goose had swallowed a cherry stone, that the seed
had germinated and grown inside the bird, and that the
goose went paddling about the lake with a full-grown
cherry tree springing from her mouth, " which tree," added
the veracious Earl, " can be seen at the present time bear-
ing a full crop of ripe cherries." The visitor was duly
impressed with this marvel, and owned that it would be
hard to beat. Then he asked his chuckling lordship if he
had ever heard of the famous shot that was made by one
of Cromwell's artillerymen, when they were in garrison in
the Castle of Airth. " No," said the Earl, interested at
once in what happened in the old house from which he
derived his title, "how was it?" "The man fired his
cannon in the direction of Stirling Castle, on the battle-
ment of which was a trumpeter, with his instrument at
his lips, in the act of blowing defiance to Cromwell and
all his host. The ball went straight to this mark, and
lodged in the mouth of the trumpet." "And was the
man killed? " asked the unsuspecting Earl. " No, indeed,"
said Finlayson, " he simply drew in his breath, and blew
out the ball with such force that it travelled all the way
back to Airth and killed the artilleryman who had fired it."
The Lake of Menteith. 341
It is a tall story in every point of view. Airth is a
good many miles distant from Stirling. In this contest
of wits, as it has come down to us, Finlayson is always
called the Town Clerk of Stirling. But he could not have
been Town Clerk at the time of the encounter. He did
not become so till after the Earl's death in 1694 ; although
he had previously been associated with the actual clerk
in some special pieces of business. However, he was well
known in Stirling and neighbourhood, then and afterwards,
as Clerk Finlayson.
QUAINT MODE OP FISHING FOB PIKE.
The Lake of Menteith abounds with pike which afford
exciting sport to the angler with rod and line. If we are
to believe an author who wrote a century ago, the farmers
in the neighbourhood, when they wanted fish as relish to
their usual fare, used to resort to a rather curious method
of obtaining them — in something like wholesale quantities,
so to speak. They employed for the purpose of the capture
their farm-yard geese. The manner in which the fishing
is described seems to indicate that it was a kind of holiday
sport, or engaged in at set times and with the consent
and combination of the dwellers around the lake. But it
will be best to let the writer tell his own tale in his own
words. " The manner of catching this fish here," he says,
" is somewhat novel and diverting. On the islands a num-
ber of geese are collected from the farmers who occupy the
surrounding banks of the lake. After baited lines of two
or three feet in length are attached to the legs of these
342 The Lake of Menteith.
animals, they are driven into the water. Steering naturally
homeward, in different directions, the bait is soon swallowed.
A violent and often tedious struggle ensues; in which,
however, the geese at length prevail, though often much
exhausted before they reach the shore."1
It is to be inferred that the owners of the geese would
claim the fish landed by their respective birds. After
1694, at any rate, there was no lord of the manor resident
on the islands, who could organise such fishing tourna-
ments or lay claim to the spoils. Yet the author speaks
as if this method of catching pike was common, and still
practised in his time. In fact, his language encourages
the inference that he had himself been an eye-witness to
such a scene as he describes. On the other hand, Mr.
M'G-regor Stirling, whose " Notes on Inchmahome " was
published just eighteen years later than M'Nayr's "Guide,"
and who was himself a native of the lake -shore, affirms
that he had never seen — and, until he read M'Nayr's state-
ment, never even heard of — this method of fishing. Other
natives of the district, of whom he made enquiry, reckoned
it " fabulous."
Mr. Stirling, however, afterwards had the fortune to
meet with an old G-lasgow lady, brought up in her girlhood
at Lochend, who distinctly remembered a diversion of the
kind, and had herself taken part in it. From her state-
ment it is quite clear that about the middle or the earlier
part of the eighteenth century a sport resembling that
1 A Guide from Glasgow to some of the most remarkable Scenes in the High-
lands of Scotland, &c., by James M'Nayr, Glasgow, 1797, p. 55.
The Lake of Menteith. 343
described by M'Nayr was occasionally practised by the
family at Lochend.1 It seems, however, to have been
nothing more than a " merry diversion," possibly devised
merely as a good joke by the young folks at Lochend, and
certainly practised purely for amusement. It never could
have been a common method of fishing, or it would have
been remembered among the " farmers of the surrounding
banks," of whom M'Nayr speaks. He cannot himself
have seen it in the form in which he describes the process.
He may have heard some account of the merry doings at
Lochend, and misunderstood or misrepresented them as
the usual mode of pike fishing in the lake. The touches
about the neighbouring farmers collecting their geese, and
the birds making their way in different directions across
the lake to their own homes — thus ensuring that the whole
water was fished — are probably due to a lively imagination.
This same quality of imagination is not absent from
M'Gregor Stirling's own account of the sport as it was
described to him by Mrs. Kowan — the lady who was his
authority. His description of the pike-and-goose fight is
quite Homeric. It deserves quotation.
" A line, with a baited hook, was tied to the leg of a
goose, which, thus accoutred, was made to swim in water
of a proper depth. A boat containing a party, male and
female, lord and lady fair, escorted this formidable knight-
errant. By and by he falls in with an adventure. A
marauding pike, taking hold of the bait, puts his mettle
to the test. A combat ensues, in which, by a display on
the part of both the contending heroes of much strength
1 Then the property of the Campbells ; now belonging to Cardross.
344 The Lake of Menteith.
and agility, the sympathetic hopes and fears of the anxious
on-lookers are alternately called into lively exercise, until,
at length, the long-necked, loud-shouting, feather-cinctured,
web-footed champion, vanquishing his wide-mouthed, sharp-
toothed, far-darting, scale-armed foe, drags him a prisoner
in triumph."1
EOYAL VISITORS TO THE LAKE AND NEIGHBORHOOD.
The more important of the royal visits to the lake and
district have been referred to and discussed at greater or
less length in the course of the preceding narrative, but it
may be advisable to sum up these here, and to add some
others of which, as yet, no notice has been taken.
The statement that King Duncan II. was slain in
the Castle of Menteith in 1094 has been shown to be
erroneous. Another statement made by popular, writers2
that King Edgar, who reigned from 1098 to 1107, resided
frequently at Inchmahome, has no authority whatever to
vouch for it.
We are on more certain ground when we come to the
time of King Robert the Bruce. Three visits of that
monarch to the Priory of Inchmahome — in 1306, 1308,
and 1310 — have already been mentioned,3 and it is not
unlikely that he may have been there oftener. There is
a local tradition current that he slept in Cardross, the
manor-house of Inchmahome, on the night before the
1 Stirling's Notes on Inchmahome, p. 68.
2 Dun's Summer at the Lake of Menteith, p. 15 ; Marshall's Historic Scenes
in Perthshire, 1880, p. 382 ; and others.
3 See supra, chap. v. pp. 143-145.
The Lake of Menteith. 345
Battle of Bannockburn.1 If taken quite literally, the story
is impossible. Bannockburn was fought on Monday, the
24th of June, 1314. The two nights preceding that day
were spent by Bruce on the field of the battle, and pre-
viously to that, he had been with his army at the Torwood,
awaiting the approach of the English. Some time earlier,
however, a visit from the King was not impossible,
as he seems to have been resident mostly, during the
assembling of his army, in the neighbourhood of Stirling —
living, it is believed, chiefly in the Castle of Clackmannan.8
But there is no record of any such visit.
It is right to add that a most interesting relic of the
Bruce has long been carefully preserved at Cardross.
This is a mighty sword reputed to have belonged to the
hero-king, and said to have been left by him at Cardross
on the occasion of one of his visits to his friend the
Prior of Inchmahome — although why he should either
have forgotten his sword or left it as a present to the
Prior is not clearly accounted for. There can be no doubt,
however, either of the antiquity or of the formidable
character of this weapon. The total length of it is 6 feet
2J inches, while the blade alone measures 4 feet 7£ inches ;
and it is no less than ten Ibs. in weight. It was certainly
no ordinary man that could skilfully wield a weapon like
this. Whether the sword was left by the King on one
of his ascertained visits to the Priory previous to the
battle of Bannockburn, or at some later period of his life,
1Dun, p. 127; Hunter's Woods, Forests, and Estates of Perthshire, 1883,
p. 296.
'Sir Herbert Maxwell's Robert the Bruce, 1897, p. 193.
346 The Lake of Menteith.
the tradition does not say. The Cardross where he died
was, of course, not Cardross in Menteith, but the place
of the same name in Dumbartonshire, on the shore of
the Firth of Clyde.
David II., the son of Eobert Bruce, was a benefactor
of the Priory, but there is no distinct evidence to show
that he ever visited the place. The story of his marrying
Margaret Logy at Inchmahome has been shown to be a
mistake. David's successor, Eobert II., was certainly
living at Inchmahome in 1358, but he was at that time
High Steward ; he had not yet reached the throne.
From the time of the forfeiture of the Albanies, the
Castle of Doune, in Menteith, became a royal residence,
occasionally occupied by the monarchs of the Stuart line
from James the First onwards. Doune Castle, with the
lordship of Menteith, formed part of the dowry of the
queens of James the Second, James the Third, and James
the Fourth successively. The Castle was conveniently
situated for the royal huntsmen enjoying their sport in the
forests alike of Glenfinglas and Menteith. Many a time,
no doubt, the monks of Inchmahome and the dwellers on
Talla saw the royal cavalcade passing along the lake shores
on its way to the forests of Duchray and Lochcon. The
Chamberlains' Accounts1 include sums for the maintenance
of the Castle and its officials in the time of James the
First, but there is no evidence to show that he went a
hunting in the neighbourhood. He had possibly too much
of sterner work to do in reducing his turbulent nobles to
Exchequer Rolls, vol. iv., pp. 279-280; Chamberlain Rolls, vol. iii., pp.
551-552.
The Lake of Menteith. 347
order to leave him much time to spare for that amuse-
ment; and, indeed, Glenfinglas, at any rate, was no.
afforested in his time. But it is certain that he and his
family occasionally sojourned in the Castle of Doune.
That they were there with the infant Prince James in 1431
is attested by an entry in the Exchequer Eolls.1 After this
young prince had become King (James II.), and had
reached the period of his vigorous manhood, we learn —
on the same authority2 — that he recreated himself with
hunting in Menteith in the intervals of his struggles with
the power of the Douglases. Indeed, it was he that
afforested Glenfinglas in 1454, and built the Hunt Hall
there in 1458.8
The erection of the burgh of barony of Port in favour of
the Earl Malise, in 1466, proves that James the Third had
experienced the hospitality of the Earl at that place, and
expected often to be there again. John le Graham was
made keeper of the forest, and the Earl would no doubt
aid his son in looking after the royal convenience and
comfort.
On a dark night in October, 1489, James the Fourth
galloped past the lake on his ride from Dunblane to Talla
Moss and Gartalunane. Even had it been broad day, and
James had been disposed to halt, it is not likely that
the old Earl could have had any desire for a visit from
his young King at that time. He was too recently from
the field of Sauchie, where he had backed, with all the
'Exchequer Rolls, voL iv. p. 529.
*Ibid, vol v. pp. 595i 677 J vol. vi. pp. 284, 640. ' Ibid, voL v. p. 676.
348 The Lake of Menteith.
forces of Menteith, his unfortunate sovereign, James the
Third. That, however, may have been forgiven, as the
men of Menteith had obeyed the muster for the siege of
Dumbarton Castle in 1489. But the King did not stay to
visit the Earl or his fortalice. He was hurrying on to
take the enemy by surprise. Neither did he disturb him
on the following day, as he returned to Stirling, apparently
by way of Buchlyvie and Kippen. James the Fourth was
certainly at Doune Castle in April, 1490,1 but he did not
on that occasion seemingly advance further up the vale of
Menteith. He was, however, hunting in Menteith in July,
1492, and again in May, 1496.2 After his death, Queen
Margaret was frequently at her dower house of Doune.
King James the Fifth, like the others of his line, was
a keen hunter, and probably enjoyed the chase in the forests
of Menteith. But the only recorded instance of his having
been on or in the immediate neighbourhood of the Priory
lands is that visit of his to Arnprior — a place whose name
bears witness to its early connection with Inchmahome —
narrated by Buchanan of Auchmar,8 and retold in his
interesting style by Sir Walter Scott.4
" Once upon a time," says Scott, "when the Court was
feasting in Stirling, the King sent for some venison from
the neighbouring hills. The deer was killed, and put on
horses' backs to be transported to Stirling. Unluckily,
they had to pass the Castle gates of Arnpryor, belonging to
1Lord High Treasurer's Accounts, p. 133. * Ibid, pp. 198, 200, 274.
3 Buchanan's History of the Family of Buchanan, 1723, p. 60.
4 Scott's Tales of a Grandfather, First Series, chap, xxvij,
The Lake of Menteith. 349
the chief of the Buchanans, who chanced to have a con-
siderable number of guests with him. It was late, and the
company were rather short of victuals, though they had
more than enough of liquor. The chief, seeing so much
fat venison passing his very door, seized on it ; and to the
expostulations of the keepers, who told him that it belonged
to King James, he answered insolently that if James was
King in Scotland, he, Buchanan, was King in Kippen ;
being the name of the district in which the Castle of
Arnpryor lay. On hearing what had happened, the King
got on horseback, and rode instantly from Stirling to
Buchanan's house, where he found a strong fierce-looking
Highlander, with an axe on his shoulder, standing sentinel
at the door. This grim warder refused the King admit-
tance, saying that the laird of Arnpryor was at dinner, and
would not be disturbed. ( Yet go up to the company, my
good friend,' said the King, 'and tell him that the Goodman
of Ballengeich is come to feast with the King of Kippen.'
The porter went grumbling into the house, and told his
master that there was a fellow with a red beard at the
gate who called himself the Goodman of Ballengeich, who
said he was come to dine with the King of Kippen. As
soon as Buchanan heard these words, he knew that the
King was come in person, and hastened down to kneel
at James's feet, and to ask forgiveness for his insolent
behaviour. But the King, who only meant to give him a
fright, forgave him freely, and, going into his castle, feasted
on his own venison, which Buchanan had intercepted.
Buchanan of Arnpryor was ever afterwards called the King
of Kippen."
350 The Lake of Menteith.
Queen Mary resided occasionally at Doune Castle. The
rooms she is said to have occupied when there, in the west
tower of the Castle, still bear her name. Whether she
ever revisited the peaceful Isle of Inchmahome, where she
spent a brief period of her infancy, has not been ascer-
tained.1 Perhaps she had pretty well forgotten that early
episode in her life. Had she stayed on the island so long
as has been generally supposed, or enjoyed so much happi-
ness there as imaginative writers have feigned, one might
suppose that, in the less happy circumstances of her maturer
life, she would have been tempted — at least when living in
the neighbourhood — to revisit the scene of her childish
felicity. But there is no indication that such was ever
the case.
James the Sixth is said to have been frequently at
Doune,2 and his visit to Cardross is a matter of constant
tradition. Whether this visit was paid before he ascended
the throne of England, or on the occasion of his return to
his native land in 1617, is not in any account definitely
stated.
One recent writer affirms that Charles I. " took his poor
dejeune " at Milling Farm — on what authority the present
writer does not know.8 But that Charles II. halted at
Portend in February, 1651, is certain, and the letter he
addressed from that place to William, seventh Earl of
Menteith, is still extant.4
'For a full account of Mary's residence at Inchmahome, see chapter vi.
pp. 170-176.
2 Red Book of Menteith, vol. i. p. 481.
3 Notes on the District of Menteith by R. B. Cunninghame Graham (1895), P- 4-
chapter xi. p. 296.
The Lake of Menteith. 361
No other royal personages found their way to Menteith,
until Prince Charles Edward Stuart made his appearance in
the neighbourhood in " the forty-five." There is a local
tradition to the effect that he either stayed for a night, or,
at any rate, halted for refreshment at the Ferry Inn of
Cardross, on his way to visit Buchanan of Arnprior.1 But
this tradition finds no support in the authentic annals of
the expedition. On the 12th of September, Prince Charles
marched from Dunblane to Doune, where he was entertained
at Newton House, and " pree'd the mou' " of Miss Kobina
(or Clementina) Edmondston. On the following day he
crossed the Forth by the Ford of Frew (or Boquhan, as it is
called in some of the records), below Kippen, and proceeded
to Leckie House, where he remained for the night. Again,
on his return from the raid into England, he crossed the
river by the same ford, on the 1st of September, 1746, and
rode straight to Drummond Castle, leaving his troops
quartered in Doune, Dunblane, and the neighbouring
villages. These were the only occasions on which he was
in the neighbourhood, and on neither was there time or
opportunity for a visit to Cardross and Arnprior.'
The most recent royal visitors to Menteith have been
our present gracious Queen Victoria and her daughter, the
Princess Beatrice. In the autumn of 1869, they spent a
" quiet and cosy " fortnight at Invertrossachs — the ancient
Drunky — lying on the north side of the Menteith Hills,
1 Dun's Summer at the Lake of Menteith, pp. iioand 128 ; Marshall's Historic
Scenes in Perthshire, p. 389 ; and other writers.
2Blaikie's Itinerary of Prince Charles Edward Stuart (Scottish History
Society), 1897, pp. 13 and 38.
352 The Lake of Menteith.
above Loch Vennachar. During their stay the royal party
twice visited the Lake. These were private visits, without
ceremony or formality, and the royalties were not disturbed
by crowds of curious sightseers. The first journey was
made on the 2nd of September. After passing the little
Loch of Eusky and Eednock Castle, they " came," says the
Queen's Journal, "upon the Loch of Menteith (the only
loch in Scotland which is ever called lake.) It reminds one
very much of Loch Kinnord, near Ballater, and very low
blue and pink hills rise in the distance." They drove down
the eastern side of the lake, past the gate of Eednock
House, and Her Majesty made special note of " the very
fine large trees in the park."
The second visit was on the 8th of the same month,
when the drive was along the north shore of the lake, on the
way to Aberfoyle and Loch Ard — with the " intenser
charms " of which region the Queen seems to have been
much delighted. " Here " — after passing Aberfoyle — she
says, " the splendid scenery begins. . . We came upon
Lochard, and a lovelier picture could not be seen. Ben
Lomond, blue and yellow, rose above the lower hills, which
were pink and purple with heather, and an isthmus of green
trees in front dividing it from the rest of the loch. . .
Certainly one of the most lovely drives I can remember,
along Loch Ard, a fine long loch, with trees of all kinds
overhanging the road, heather making all pink ; bracken,
rocks, high hills of such fine shape, and trees growing up
them as in Switzerland. . . Altogether the whole drive
was lovely. . . This solitude, the romance and wild
loveliness of everything here, the absence of hotels and
The Lake of Menteith.
353
beggars, the independent, simple people, who all speak
Gaelic here, all make Scotland the proudest, finest country
in the world. Then there is that beautiful heather, which
you cannot see elsewhere. I prefer it greatly to Switzer-
land, magnificent and glorious as the scenery of that
country is."1
With this royal appreciation of the scenery of Menteith,
and of the humble dwellers therein, one may be well
content to leave the subject.
1 More Leaves from Our Life in the Highlands, pp. 122, 123.
NOTES AND CORRECTIONS.
Page 3, line 22 — For Killearn, read Aberfoyk.
Page 9, note — For Cosmographic, read Cosmographie,
Page 29, line 3 — For tobair, read tiobair.
Ibid, line 5 — For stone, read stones.
Page 30, second line from foot — For of, read to Inchtalla.
Page 89 — In opposition to the opinion generally held that some at least of
the very aged trees on Inchmahome may have been planted by the
inhabitants of the Priory, there is a statement by one of the M 'Curtain
family reported in Ramsay's " Scotland and Scotsmen in the Eighteenth
Century," vol. ii. p. 128, note: — "John M'Courton, whose predecessors
for four generations have been gardeners in the Isle of Menteith, says
it is a tradition in their family that the first of them who came to the
Earl of Menteith's service, soon after the Restoration, planted the
whole trees that are now in the island — there being then only a few
to the south of the Priory, which have long ago been cut down."
Page 141 — Leny remained an independent parish for some time after the
Reformation. From 1567 to 1585 it was supplied by a reader named
Salomon Buchanane — possibly a member or connection of the family
that had supplied so many of the pre-Reformation vicars. But, because
of the insufficiency of its revenues for the support of a minister, the
parish was suppressed in January, 1615, and united to those of Cal-
lander and Port. (Fasti Eccl. Scot.)
Page 156 — The bailieship of Inchmahome held by John, Lord Drummond,
in 1492, is found some years later in possession of Alexander Drum-
mond of Carnock, by whom it was disponed, previous to 3ist December,
1530, to James Erskine (of Little Sauchie). This fact is instructed by
an entry in the Protocol Book of John Graham, where Erskine protests
that a certain arrangement made between Drummond and Sir John
Stirling of Keir should not prejudice his right and interest in the office
Z
356 Notes and Corrections.
of bailiary of Inchmahome — "and that because the said Alexander
Drummond has disponed the said office of bailiary, with the profits of
the same, to the said James Erskine." The protest was taken before
witnesses in the Chapter of the place of the Friars Minors, situated
within the burgh of Stirling, on the 3ist December, 1530. The bailiary
remained with Erskine of Little Sauchie till it was resigned in favour
of John, Lord Erskine, in 1562 (see page 180).
Page 1 66 — M'Gregor Stirling, in his edition of Nimmo's History of Stirling-
shire, gives the date of the (second) Buchanan lease correctly as 1531.
The 1581 of the Notes on Inchmahome may therefore have been a
misprint merely, but it seems to have misled Sir William Fraser.
Page 1 68 — The Autobiography of Buchanan here referred is the short
tractate printed in his collected works under the heading, Georgii
Buchanani Vita ab ipso scripta biennio ante mortem. George Chalmers
(in his Life of Ruddiman) strenuously maintains that this Vita was not
written by Buchanan himself, but by Peter Young, his coadjutor in
the tutorship of the King. He admits, however, that Young obtained
his information from Buchanan.
Page 170 — The reading of the Protocol on this page is taken from the
transcription of Sir William Fraser as printed in the Red Book. In
the Manuscript Protocol Book — which was not available at the time of
writing — the reading is found to be apud ecdesias de Port et Dolare —
which makes the matter quite clear. Port was the parish of the young
lady, and Dollar that of the Earl of Argyle.
Page 179 — David Erskine, Commendator of Dryburgh and Inchmahome
sat in the Parliament which met at Edinburgh, ist August, 1560, and
effected the Reformation settlement (Acts of Parliaments of Scotland,
vol. ii. p. 525). In a Parliament of James VI. at Edinburgh, 28th
August, 1571, he was appointed member of a Commission for treating
with the Queen of England (vol. iii. p. 64). On i7th September, 1571,
at Stirling, he was chosen to be of the Privy Council (Ibidt p. 69) ;
and he was in the sederunt at Edinburgh, 24th December, 1572 (Ibid,
P- 77)-
Page 1 86 — Den Thomas MlLellan. On 22nd December, 1559, Sir Thomas
Maknellan, Canon of Inchmahomok, as lawful heir of Sir William
Litstar, Chaplain (who was also Town Clerk of Stirling), resigned an
annual rent from a house in the burgh in favour of Agnes Nicoll, relict
of William Forrester. (Ramsay's Protocol Book, 1556-63.)
Notes and Corrections. 357
Page 1 86 — The statement that Robert Short dropped out of the list of
members of the Convent in 1562 must now be altered. Among the
Laing Charters — published since this portion of the text was printed —
is one, dated at Stirling Castle, 25th July, 1573, in which Commendator
David, with consent of the Convent of Inchmahome, granted to George
Graham of Blaircessnoch and his heirs a tack for two terms of nineteen
years each of the teind sheaves of Garturs Over and Nether, Blaircess-
noch, Ballemannoch, Easter Dullatur, Nether Glenny, and others, for
a yearly rent of ^6 135 4d. The tack is signed by the Commendator
and by Robert Schortus, John Baxter, James Bradfut, and William
Stirvling. Short was therefore alive in July, 1573. His name does
not appear on the deed of 7th September of the same year. (Laing
Charters, No. 88 1, p. 221.)
Page 191 — The same collection contains another lease of the same subjects,
granted apparently on the expiry of the former one by Commendator
David to Jasper Graham of Blaircessnoch. It is signed by the Com-
mendator alone, and is dated at Cardross, 6th November, 1610. That
was after David had demitted, and the Priory had been given to Henry
Erskine. It appears, therefore, that David continued not only to reside
at Cardross, but to manage the estate of Inchmahome till his death,
which took place six months after the date of this deed. (Laing
Charters, No. 1591, p. 386.)
INDEX.
ABBBDBBN, Robert Erskine, Dean of.
159-69.
Breviary of, 132.
Aberfoyle, Forest, 10, 14.
Skirmish at, 23-6.
Patronage of Church and Settlement
of Minister, 292.
Fracas at the Bridge, 335-7.
Abirnethe, George of, Procurator of
Prior John, 150.
Abthane, Lord of, 247.
Account for Beggar Earl's burial, 332.
Achray, Loch, 1, 16, 269, note.
Achmore, 269, note.
Adam, Prior, 141 ; Swears fealty to
Edward I., 142.
Agreement between Menteiths and
Drummonds, 324-6.
Airth, William, first Earl of, 299-307.
William, second Earl of, 307-17.
Castle of, garrisoned by Cromwell,
303.
Earldom of, created, 299.
Lands apprised, 302.
Tower and Fortalice acquired by
Earl of Strathern, 297.
Salt-pans and coal-pits, 306.
Aisle of the Priory Church, 104.
Albanies, 2, 243-52.
Duke Robert, 243; Governor of
Scotland, 244; estimates of his
character, 247.
Duke Murdach, 247 ; Governor, 247 ;
made prisoner, 248; place of his
arrest, 250 ; execution, 252.
Akyr, le, 272.
Alan, Earl of Menteitb, 143, 146, 226,
233-4; earldom of Fife entailed
in bis favour, 233 ; captured at
Methven, 233.
Alexander, Earl of Menteith, captured
at Dunbar, 232 ; swears fealty to
Edward, 232 ; eons left in England
as hostages, 232.
Alexander, second Graham Earl, 275-277.
Anderson's (Robert) Statement* Regard-
ing George Buchanan, 165-7.
Andrew, Prior, 157, 158, 177.
Approach to Vault, 116.
Ard, Loch, 1, 70, 354.
Ardenclericht, 180, 194.
Ardmach— see Arnmaitk.
Ardocb, Camp and Chapel, 187.
Ardvoirlich, Stewart of, 318-22.
Argyle, Earl of, hereditary Justice
General, 293.
Archibald, Earl of, 170.
Arnbeg, 193.
Arnchly, 47, 141.
Arnevicar, 180, 194.
Arniclerycht, 157.
Arnmawk, 73.
Traditional story, 52.
Colonel Erskine in hiding at, 64,
194.
Arnprior, Mill of, 180, 194.
Arran and Knapdale, 261.
Earl of, band with Earl of Menteitb,
276.
Arrot of Arrot, George, 162.
Arthuile, Master William. 150.
Auchveity, Tradition of, 46.
Auchyle, Cliffs of, 15, 17.
Augustinians (Canons Regular), settle-
ments in Scone, Cambuskennetb,
Inchmahome, 133-4.
Dress, 138-9.
BAD, Dene James, 158, 176, 177, 279.
Baleth, 269, note.
Balfour, George, 291.
Ballingrew, 180, 193, 191
Ballintoun, 190.
Balloch (Bulloch), 227. i
Balquhidder, Braes of, 16.
Banished Lords, the. 190.
Banks, Lands of, 156.
Bannock, Whummle the, 265.
360
Index.
Bannockburn, Sir John Menteith at,
260.
Eobert Bruce at, 34.
Barclay-Allardice claim to the earldoms,
333-4.
Bathok, Patrick, 189.
Baxter, Dene Alan, 180.
Dene John, 180, 181, 186, 187, 189.
Bede, The Venerable, 58 and note,
Beggar Earl, the, 327-32.
Bell, John of Antermony, 37.
Patrick, minister of Port, 34, 36.
H. Glassford, on Queen Mary at
Inchmahome, 143-5.
Bellenden, 9.
Bell-tower, 104.
Ben-dhu, Ben-dearg, 14, 15 ; Ben Arthur,
Ben Chonzie, Ben Gullipen, Ben
Ledi, Ben Lomond, Ben Venue,
Ben Voirlich, 16.
Bishop of Glasgow, William, 136.
Dunkeld, Galfred, 136.
Dunblane, Clement, 136, note, 138.
Bishop, Mrs, claims earldom for her
grandson, 353.
Blaircessnock, 180, 194.
Blairhoyle or Leitchtown, 65.
Blareboyane, 269, note.
Blaretuchane, 269, note.
Blareuscanys, 269, note.
Blind Harry's story of the Capture of
Wallace, 257.
Bobfresle, 269, note.
Boece, Hector, 8, 11.
Bogle family, the, 331-2.
Band to support the claim of Bruce, 253.
Boquhapple, Chapel of, 141.
Borland, 179, 193, 194.
Borrow-banks, 155.
Bovento, 269, note.
Bowie, Marion, witch, 337.
Bradfute, Dene James, Sub-Prior, 158,
176, 177, 180, 181, 186, 187, 189,
190.
Bretagne, Sir John de, Guardian of
Scotland, 256.
Breteches or Hoards, traces of at Talla,
207-8.
Brew-house of Talla, 211.
Brigend, 269, note.
Bright Sword, John with the, 274.
Brown, Dr John, on the Teith, 6 ; the
Lake, 69; Queen Mary's Bower,
86 ; the Queen at Inchmahome, 173.
Bruce, Lord of Annandale, 253.
Edward, Irish Expedition, 260.
Dame Catherine, wife of last Earl
of Menteith, 116, 314-7.
King Eobert, his visits to Inchma-
home, 153-5, 344; his sword at
Ciirdross, 345-6.
Buchan, David, Earl of, 195, 201.
Buchanan, George, of Buchanan, 287.
Dene Gilbert., 154.
Margaret, wife of Earl Alexander,
277.
Eobert, of Leny, 154.
George, his account of Menteith, 10,
11 ; his connection with Cardross,
165-9; his house in Castle Wynd,
Stirling, the Prior's Manse, 185-6.
Burgh, Richard de, Earl of Ulster, 253.
Burial-vault on Inchmahome, 111, 114-6.
Butler and the Witches, the story of
the, 337-9.
CALEDONIAN Forest, 9, 10.
Callauder, 2.
Calquhollat, 156.
Cambuskenneth, resigned by Adam
Ersldne, 197.
Campbells of Argyle in alliance with
Menteiths, 324.
Campbell, Sir Colin of Lundie, 291.
Duncan of Glenorchy, 288.
Gillespie and Colin, 326.
Sir John of Glenorchy, 303, 307.
Mary, wife of Earl John, 206.
Cardross— Estate and Mansion, 54.
Mains of, 179, 180.
Bailie of Barony, 157, 180, 193.
Mill of, 180, 194.
Lordship of, 192, 194, 197.
Manor Place, 195.
Eesidence of Commendatprs, 190.
House — Enlarged by David Erskine,
by Earl of Mar, 197 ; occupied by
General Monck, 199, and by
Eoyalist troops, 197, 200.
Lord David, 198.
Lord Henry, his persecutions, 199.
David, fourth Lord, 201.
Lady, 191.
Carrick, Earl of, 304.
Chapel-larach, 141.
Chapels dependent on Priory, 32, 47,
59, 141.
Chapter House, 107, 115.
Index.
361
Charles I. and Earl of Airtb, 293-302;
at Holyrood, 299 ; at Milling, 350.
Charles II. al Portend, 44, 350 ; acknow-
ledges his father's debts to the
Earl, 296.
Charles, Prince, in Meuteith, 351.
Charter-chest at Talla, 292.
Cheese of Menteith, 10.
Choir of Church, 108 ; Monuments in, 121.
Christin, Prior, 145-9.
Churches belonging to Priory, 141.
Claimants of the Earldom, 333-4.
Clare, Sir Thomas de, 253.
Clement, Bishop of Dunblane, 136, note.
Clerkum, 194.
Cloisters, 111.
Cnoc-nan-bocan, 53.
Coldon, 43, 276.
Colkitto, 321.
Collatts, 156.
Collouth, 155.
Colman (Colmoc), 40, 74, 76, 130-2.
Commendators — Robert Erskine, 159-69.
John Erskine, 169-78.
David Erskine, 178-91.
Henry Stewart, 189.
Henry Erskine, 191-2.
Comrie, hills of, 16.
Comyn, Walter, Earl of Menteith, builds
the Priory, 137-8; sketch of big
career, 219-224.
Regent, defeated at Stirling, 255.
Con, Loch, 5.
Forest of, 269, note.
Conaeus, Georgius, his Life of Queen
Mary, 174.
Conjurer, story of Earl of Mar and
the, 195.
Conventual day, 139.
Countess of Airth, her unfortunate
speculations, 303-6.
Countess Mary of Menteith, 325.
Covenant, signing of the National, 301.
Cragannet, Banks of, 177.
Cragingelt, Rev. John, 292.
Craguthy, Easter and Wester, 269, note.
Craig of Port, 17.
Crancafy, 269, note.
Cravaneculy, 269, note.
Craynes, Easter and Wester, 269, note.
Crichton, Lord, of Sanquhar, 287.
Cristisone, Dene Adam, 158, 176, 177.
Crockmelly, 20.
Cross at Port, 32.
Culdee Cb arches at Dunblane and
Inchmahome, 133.
Culyngarth, 269, note.
Cup-marked stone at Milling, 47-8.
Cunningham-Bontine claims Earldom
334.
DABOAUD, J. M.— Childhood of Queen
Mary, 172-3.
David II.— Grant to Priory, 148; marriage
to Margaret Logy. 147, 346.
David, Lord Cardross, 198.
David, Prior, 153-7.
Deforcement of the Sheriff of Perth, 147.
Dog, Sir Thomas, Prior, 150 : deposed, 161.
Domestic arrangements of last Earl of
Menteith, 314.
Domestic crafts at Talla, 214.
Donald the Hammerer at Tobanareal,
27,59.
Donaldson, Rev. James, minister of
Port, 33, 35-6.
Doorway of the Priory, 103.
Dormitory, 118, 121.
Dougall, Andrew, reader at Port, 34.
Dougia*, Earl of, tried for death of
Rothesay, 241.
Margaret, wife of Earl William, 287.
Doune Castle. 2, 346-8, 350.
Downans, 269, note.
Drinking on Sundays, 33-4.
Dromore, Colman, Bishop of, 132.
Drumannet, 269, note.
Drum boy, 269, note.
Drumlaen, 269, note.
Drummaniklocbt, 157, 180, 194.
Drummond, Brice of Boquhapple, 324.
John of Concraig, 238.
John, 324-6.
Sir John, monument, 126, 146.
John, Lord, disputes with Prior, 155.
Lord, at Tillymoss, 51.
Sir Malcolm, 128; gift to the
Priory, 145.
Maurice, 325.
Barony of (Drymen), 297.
Drummonds and Menteith?, fend, 323-6.
Drury, Sir William, letter to Lord
Burghley, 178.
Dryburgh Abbev, 191, 192, 197, 200.
Lady, 191, 194.
Drymen, House of, burned, 303.
Drysdail, Mr. Alexander, vicar of Lany,
181.
362
Index.
Duchray, Graham of, 65.
Glencairn's Rising, 20, 23.
Quarrel with Earl of Menteith, 335-7.
Forest of, 271.
Dugall, Arth ur, a Kippen Covenanter, 307.
Dumbarton, 195.
Castle and Sheriffdom, 256, 258.
Alleged Treachery of Menteith, 259.
Dun, Erskine of, 162, 164.
Dun, Michael, gives infeftment to Earl
Alexander, 276.
Dunbar, Earl of, 253.
Duncan II., murder of, 11, 344.
Dupplin, battle of, 235.
EARLDOM of Menteith, divided between
Stewart and Comyn, 225 ; confis-
cated by James I., 252 ; erected of
new, 268.
Earls of Menteith — see Menteith.
Earls' Residences, 203 ; Stables, 45.
Earth-dogs— Earl of Menteith's, 99.
Laird of Glenorchy's, 99, note.
Eas-gobhain, 5, 16.
Easter Isle, 116, note.
Edgar, King, 134, 344.
Edmonstone, John, M.A., 150.
William and Archibald, 62.
William of Duntreath, 150.
Edward I. of England, and Capture of
Wallace, 263.
Eglinton, Hugh, Earl of, 287.
Elphicstone, Michael, 190.
James and George, 291.
Eric, King of Norway — Marriage to
Princess Margaret, 229.
Ernchome, 277.
Ernecomy, 269, note.
Ernetly, 269, note.
Erngobil, 279.
Ernoml, 269, note.
Erskines of Cardross, 201.
Erskine, Admiral, 57.
David, Concmendator, 62, 178-191.
Henry, Commendator, 191-192.
Fiar of Cardross, 198.
Henry David, of Cardross, 201.
Hon. John ( th e Black Colonel), 57,201.
John of Dun, 162, 164.
John, Commendator, 165, 169-178;
Master of E.
Lord E., Earl of Mar, Regent, 169-
170 ; receives pension from Inch-
mahome and Dryburgh, 180.
Erskine, John, D.D., of Carnock, 201.
John of Carnock obtains Cardross,
201.
James of Little Sauchy, Bailie of
Cardross. 180.
James, first Erskine of Cardross, 201.
Lord, Queen Mary's keeper, 171.
Robert, Rector of Glenbervy, Com-
mendator of Inchmahome, Dean
of Aberdeen, 159-169.
Robert, Master of Erskine, identified
by Fraser with the Commendator,
160.
Thomas, Commendator of Dryburgh,
169 and note.
Sir Thomas of Halton, 161, 162, 163.
FAIR, St. Michael's, 32.
Ferguson, Rev. John, minister of Port, 37.
Ferries to Inchmahome and Inchtalla, 30.
Feuds— Grahams and Leckies, 287-8.
Menteiths and Drummonds, 323-6.
Fiar of Cardross, 198.
Fife, Earldom of, 133, 240.
Finlayson, James, Town Clerk of Stir-
ling, 339-40.
Fintry Hills, 16.
Forbes, Rev. Arthur, minister of Port, 37.
Forester, Duncan, 153.
William — teinds of Row, 151.
Forests, Royal, in Aberfoyle and Glen-
finglas, 9, 31.
Forrester, Lord, 304.
Fraser, Sir Symon, 256.
Frisefleware, 269, note.
Furnishings of House of Talla, 309.
GALBRAITH, Thomas, 51.
Galfrid, Bishop of Dunkeld, 136.
Galloway, Earl of, 304.
Expedition of Wallace to, 254.
Gallows Hill, 45.
Garbh-uisge, 5.
Garden, 194.
Gardens of the Monastery and of the
Earls, 77, 78.
Garlies, Lord, 304, 307.
Garquhat, 269, note.
Gartalunane, 51, 347.
Gartavertyne, 189.
Gartincaber, 190.
Gartinhagel, 269, note.
Gartladerland, Gartladernick, Gartcle-
deny, 167, 194, note.
Index.
303
Gartmore, 278.
Gartmulne, 269, note.
Gartnerthynach, 269, note.
Gartur, 64.
Over and Nether, 180, 194.
Gateside Ferry, 31, 44.
Gateway of the Burial Place, 117.
Gilchrist, Earl, 217.
Glasgow, William, Bishop of, 136.
Glassachoile-Cheese, 314.
Glassart and Milton — Woods cut down,
303.
Glassel, 269, note.
Glasswerde, Lands of, 269, note.
Glenbervy, Rector of — vide Robert
Erskine.
Glencairn, Earl of, his Rising, 20.
Glenfinglas, Forest of, 10, 31, 271.
Glenny, Skirmish at, 22.
The Pass and its Traditions, 26.
Glenorchy's Earth-dogs, 99, note.
Goodie, Gudy, Guidi — Loch and Water,
68.
Ward of, 180, 194.
Bede's Pictish town, 68.
Goose with the cherry tree, 340.
Goose and pike fight, 343.
Graham, Rev. Dr., of Aberfoyle, 3, 5, 75.
Grahams of Duchray — Alexander, 7, 118.
John, his quarrel with the Earl of
Airth, 335-7.
Thomas, younger of, 335.
Graham, Alexander, son of Earl Malise,
273.
Anne, wife of Sir Mungo Murray,
307.
Archibald, 307.
Charles, 307.
Christian, wife of Sir W. Living-
stone, 278 and note.
Christian, wife of Sir John Black-
adder, 289.
George, of Rednock, 62; tutor of
Menteitb, 288.
Euphame, 275.
Helen, daughter of Sir James, 306,
308-12.
Sir James, Governor of Dundalk,306;
negotiations for marriage of his
daughter and succession to the
earldom, 310-12.
Jean, 307.
Sir John, of Gartmore, 116, 328.
Sir John, Earl of Menteitb, 235-7.
Graham, John with the Bright Sword.
272-6.
John of Claverhouss — Compliments
Earl of Airth, 308; proposes to
marry Helen Graham, 310 ; corres-
pondence with the Earl, 312.
Margaret, 170.
Margaret, married to Earl of Argyle,
278.
Margaret, wife of Lord Garlies, 307.
Mary, wife of Sir John Campbell of
Glenorchy, 307.
Nicol, 329.
Patrick, son of Earl Malise, 273.
Patrick, son of seventh Earl, 307.
Robert, vicar of Drummond, 160.
Robert, son of seventh Earl, 307.
Robert of Gartmore, 278.
Walter, son of Earl Alexander, 165.
Walter of Gartur, 277.
Walter of Gallangad. 328.
Walter of Glenny, 302.
William of Gartmore, 328.
William, the Beggar Earl, 327-32.
Grahams of the Borders, 274.
Feud with the Leckies, 287.
Earls of Menteith— vid* Menteith.
Gray, Lady Agnes, wife of William,
seventh Earl, 291.
Gregor, Robbers of Clan, 277, note.
Grey, Lord, 176.
HALDANK, John of Gleneagles— Trans-
actions with Teinds of Leny and
Eilmadock, 163, 154, 165.
Margaret, widow of Commendator
David, 191.
of Gleneagles, 261.
Haliburton, Ralph de, engaged in search
for Wallace, 267.
Hall of Talla, 209-11.
Hammerer, Donald the, incursion into
Menteith and tight with the
Grahams, 27, 59, 281-4.
Hardie, Elspet, witch, 337.
Hastings, Sir Edmund, obtains Comyn
portion of Earldom, 226.
Sir John, obtains Stewart part of
Earldom, 227.
Henderson, Rev. Thomas, minister of
Port, 35.
Henry III. of England, &
Henry, Abbot of Cambuskennetb, factor
for Prior of Inchmahome, 164.
364
Index.
Henry the Minstrel — Wallace and Men-
teith, 263 et segg.
Hewes, Anna, wife of last Earl — her
divorce, 314.
High House of Talla, 205-8.
Hills of Menteith, 14 et segg.
Hilltown of Cardross, 167, 194.
Hoardings or Bretecbes, traces of, at
Talla, 207-8.
Hodge, James of Gladsmuir— Mary, 328.
Holyrood, meeting of Peers in 1744,
327-8.
Hornahic, 180, 194.
Horseman's Rock, 22.
Hume, Sir Patrick of Argaty, 61.
David, 62, 187.
Hutchison, Robert of Carlowrie— report
on trees on Inchmahome, 90.
Hutton, Canon John, 158, 165, 176, 177.
INCH-CUAN, Dog Isle, 99, 100.
Inchere, 269, note.
Inchie, Chapel at, 59, 141.
Inchmahome — origin, meaning, and
various forms of name, 74-6.
Description of Island, 77-92.
Priory, site and description; 101-129.
Writ of foundation of Monastery,
136.
Inchmurdach, 148.
Insche, 269, note.
Inventories, furnishings of Talla House,
209 et segg.
Earl William's (seventh Earl), Char-
ters, 292.
Irving, Dr. David, statement regarding
George Buchanan at Cardross, 166.
Isabella, Countess of Menteith, marriage
to Sir John Russell and subse-
quent history, 222.
the younger, wife of Sir John
Comyn, 224.
Isle of my Rest — a misinterpretation, 75.
JAMES I., 2 ; prisoner, 244 ; negotiations
for release, 246 ; coronation, 249;
arrests and executes the Albanies,
249-50 ; death, 252 ; at Doune, 347.
James II., 347.
James III.— Makes Port a burgh of
barony, 31, 270, 347.
James IV., at Tillymoss, 51, 347; at
Doune, 348.
James V., story of the King of Kippen,
348-9.
James VI., letter about terriers, 99;
coronation, 286 ; Earl of Mar's
marriage, 196 ; visit to Cardross,
197, 350.
Jebb, Samuel — his History of Queen
Mary, 174.
Jonet, Lady, wife of Earl Malise, 271 ;
her husband's gift, 272.
John, Prior, and his rival, Thomas,
149-50.
Johnston, Rev. J. J., minister of Port, 39.
Justiciar of Menteith, appointment of,
293.
KATHERINE, Lady, her bequests, 214.
Katrine, Loch, 1, 16.
Keir, Laird of, 303.
Keith, Lady May, wife of Lord Kilpont,
317.
Kepe, 194.
Kidd, Colonel, at Glenny, 23.
Kilbryde, John of, 274; house, 206;
house sold, 302.
Kilmadock, 2.
Parish of, 190, 155.
Church and chapels, 141, 195.
Teinds, 154.
Kilpont, Lord — burial place, 111, 115;
thanked by Charles I., 302; death,
306, 317-22.
Kincardine, 2.
Kinloch, John— tenement, 182.
Kinross, Malcolm — tenement in Castle
Wynd, Stirling, 182.
Kippen, 2.
James IV. at, 51.
Church of, 123.
Drums of, 193.
King of, 348-9.
Kirktoun of Aberfoyle, 277.
Kitchen— of the Monastery, 118 ; of
Talla, 208.
LADARDE, 269, note.
Lanark (Lanrick), 190.
Langside, battle of, 286.
Langtof t, story of the capture of Wallace,
256.
Largs, battle of, 228.
Lauder, Sir Robert, 261.
Law-tree at Port of Menteith, 32.
Leckies— feud with the Grahams, 287-8.
Index.
365
Lennox, Earldom of, given to Sir John
Menteitb, 268.
Leny, Teinds of, 154.
Kirklunds of, 194.
Kirk of, 195.
Lenchris, Church of, 152.
Linlitbgow, Earl of, 297, 305.
Livingston, William, and the Countess
of Airth,306.
Lochcon, Forest of, 269, note.
y, Sir John, 148.
Margaret, married to David II.,
147.
Lonanys, 269, note.
Lord of Menteith— Walter Stewart, 240.
MACANKEB, Loch, tradition regarding,
46.
Macaulay of Erngabil and Gartmore,
279.
M'Corranestoun, 190.
M'Curtains, hereditary gardeners, 78.
M'Gibbon of Blairhoyle, 65.
M'Gregor, brother of Gilderoy, cap-
tured, 801.
M'Kessons in Rednock, 61.
Mackie, Charles— Queen Mary at Inch-
mahome, 174.
Maclellan, Dene Thomas, 158, 176, 177,
180, 181.
M'Nayr's Guide— mode of fishing, 342-3.
M 'Queen's Pass, 21.
Maiden of Norway, 229.
Maistertoun, Elizabeth, lease to, 157.
Major, John -Intimacy of Wallace and
Menteith, 263.
Malcolm, Parson of Insula Macholem,
133.
Malcolm, Earl of Lennox, 144.
Malise, Earl of Stratherne, 143.
Manse of the Priors in Stirling, 195.
Maolpeder, Macpender, 11.
Mar, John, Earl of, marriage and family,
195-6.
Thomas, Earl of, 238.
Mardufiy, lands of, 269, note.
Margaret, Princess— Marriage and coro-
nation, 228-9.
Lady, her four marriages, 237-9.
Mariota, second wife of Earl Malise,
272.
Marriage Contract of last Earl, 31 B.
Martyrologies of Aberdeen and Angus,
132.
Mary, daughter of Earl Maurice and
wife of Walter Stewart — marriage,
224; death, 230; monument, 123.
132, 231.
Mary of Lorraine. Queen Dowager of
James V., 159.
Mary, Countess of Menteitb, marries
Sir John Graham, 235.
Masar, le, 213, 272.
Matilda, wife of Earl Alexander, 123.
Maurice, Prior, receives Robert Bruce
at Inchmahome, 143.
Maurice, senior and junior — Earls.
217-9.
Meikleour Writs, 177, 181.
Memorial of Scottish Nobles to Pope.
261.
Menteith— District, earldom, stewartry,
1-3, 13.
Derivation, meaning, and varied
forms of the name, 6-8.
References by early writers, 9-18.
Hills and their traditions, 13-29.
Vale of, 16.
Huntings in, 9, 10.
Lake of, 67-100.
Lands of later earldom of, 268-9.
Residences of Earls of, 216.
Mprmaere, 216.
Menteith Earls— early Earls : Gilchri-t,
217.
Muretach, 217.
Maurices, 217-9.
Walter Comyn, 212-24.
Walter Stewart, 224-31.
Alexander, 231-3.
Alan, 233-4.
Murdach, 234-5.
Sir John Graham, 235-7.
Countess Mary, 237-9.
Robert Stewart— Earl of Fife, Duke
of Albany, 237-47.
Murdach, Duke of Albany, 247-63.
Graham Earls— Malise, 268-75.
Alexander, 275-7.
William, 278-84.
John, 284-6.
William, 286-8.
John, 288-9.
William, Earl of Strathern, Earl
of Airth, 290-307.
William, Earl of Airtb, 307-17.
Menteith, Alexander, of Rusky. 324-325.
Alexander in Polmont Mill, 176.
366
Index.
Menteith, Agnes, co-heiress of Husky,
261.
Maister David, 156.
Elizabeth, co-heiress of Husky, 262.
John of Menteith, 60.
John in Red nock, 61.
Sir John, 253-67.
James, 61.
Malcolm, of Husky, 324-5.
Dene Patrick, 156.
Walter, son of Sir John, 146.
Walter, of Husky, 325.
William, Master of Menteith, 166.
William, of Husky, 325.
Lord of (Robert Stewart), 240-1.
Menteiths of Rednock, 18, 60.
Menteitbs and Drummonds, 323-6.
Mercer, Laurence of Meikleour, 177.
Mercuriua Politicus, extracts from, 24,
25.
Meyners, Sir Alexander, 255.
Michael, Fair of St., 32, 45, 128.
Milling, Fair, 32, 45.
Cup-marked stone, 47-8.
Milton of Aberfoyle, lands of, 277.
Monacbedin, Mondynes, 12 and note.
Mondbui, lands of, wadset, 302.
Mont, Dene John, 158, 176, 177.
Montrose, Earl, 293.
Marquis, 311 et seqq.
Monuments in Choir of Church — Earl
Walter and Lady, 123.
Sir John Drummond, 126.
Others, 128-9.
Monybrachys, 269 note.
Moray— Sir John, 238.
Walter of, 325.
Moss, birthplace of Buchanan, 165.
Mowbray, Sir John, sent to take Wal-
lace, 256.
Margaret, wife of William, Master
and Earl of Menteith, 165, 277-8.
Murdach, Earl, 234-5.
Murdochstoun, 190.
Muretach, Earl, 217.
Muriella, wife of Duke of Albany, 242.
Murray, Sir Mungo, 199, 307.
Muschett, Alexander, messenger-at-
arms, 335.
My Lord's Chamber, 211.
NAPIBR of Merchiston, 262.
Neven, Duncan, schoolmaster of Dun-
blane, 190.
Neville's Cross, battle of, 236.
Newcastle, truce of, 261.
Newton of Doune, 180.
Nobles, Scottish, in the War of Inde-
pendence, 264.
Nomenclature, local, 2.
Nunnery, 118.
Nuns' Walk and Nuns' Hill, 78, 81.
OCHTERTYRE, 3.
Ramsay, John of, 355.
Ogilvy, Sir James, of Ernby, 152.
Oliphant, Allan, 180.
PABLIAMBNT, riding the, 309.
Peace Stone, 47.
Peblis, Dene Adam, 158, 176, 177.
Pensions and promises of Charles I.,
294-7.
Perth, Sheriff of, representatives de-
forced by Prior, 147.
Earl of, 297.
Piper's House and Strand, 45.
Plate of Earl William claimed by Keir,
213
Polder, West and East, 194.
Pollox, John de, confiscated, 145.
Popes— Gregory IX., 136.
Gregory, X., 142.
Paul III., 169, note.
Paul IV., 178.
Clement VI., 238.
Innocent VI., 238-9.
Port of Menteith, 2, 30.
Made a burgh, 31, 270.
Church, 32, 39, 170, 195.
Kirk Session Records, 33-4.
Ministers from Reformation, 34-9.
Lands of, 40, 43, 141, 269 notes.
Kirklands, 194.
Portend.30,40; Charles II. at, 43; burn, 19.
Princess Margaret, marriage and coro-
nation of, 228-9.
Princess Beatrice in Menteith, 352-3.
Pringle, Dene Duncan, 158, 177.
Priors of Inchmahome — Adam, 141.
Maurice, 142-5.
Christin, 145-9.
John, 149.
Thomas Dog (Doig), 149-50.
Alexander Ruch (Rough), 151-3.
David, 163-7.
Andrew, 157-8.
Disputes regarding Priorate, 150-1.
Index.
367
Priors' Chamber, 116.
Priors' Manse in Stirling, 181-6.
Priors' Meadow, 40, 194.
Priory — Valuation by Bagimont's Roll,
142.
Church described, 103-29.
Marriage of Earl of Argyle at, 170.
QUEEN, Mary, of Scots — Memorials at
Inchraahome, 82-9 ; residence
there, 170-6 ; bed-chamber at the
Monastery, 116; chamber at Doune
Castle, 350; demission, 286.
Mary of Lorraine, 159; at Doune, 350.
Victoria — visit to Menteith, 352-3.
RAMSAY, Robert, minister of Port, 36.
Robert, notary, Stirling, 182.
Randolph, Earl of Moray, 261.
Read, Colonel, at Aberfoyle and Glenny,
245.
Rednock— Castle, 59 ; estate, 60-5.
Refectory of Monastery, 121.
Robert II., 147, 346.
Robert III., 243, 244.
Robertson, Rev. Dr., of Callander —
Derivation of Teith, 3.
Colonel, 4.
Rose with the Cragmuk, 269, note.
Rosneath, 325.
Rothesay, Duke of, 243-4.
Row— Wester, 180 ; teinds of, 151, 197.
Ruch, Sir Alexander, Prior, 151-3.
David, Procurator for Prior, 151.
John. Vicar of Garioch, 152.
Ruskie, 251, 257.
Loch, 18.
Castle, 18, 19.
Fight at Tar, 61, 66, 265, 324.
Russell, Sir John, husband of Countess
Isabella, 223-4.
SACBISTY of Church, 107.
St. Andrews, 259.
Bishop of, 261.
St. Colman (Colmock), 74, 76, 128, 130.
St. Michael, effigy on monument, 128.
Savnach, 269, note.
Schanghill, 269, note.
Schort, Dene Robert, 180, 181.
Scot, Sir John, of Scotstarvet— True
Relation, 298.
Scott, Sir Walter, 4, 28, 257, 265, 281,
319, 348.
Scott, Sir William, of Ancrum, claims
earldom, 333.
Seal of the Priory, 131, note.
Session Records, lost and recovered, 33,
37.
Seton, James, of Tullibody, 188.
Marion, widow of Earl John, 286.
Seytoun, Rev. James, minister of Port,
35.
Shirgarton, 193.
Short, Jack, Wallace's man, 256.
Silverplate, Earl of Airth's, 302.
Sinclair, William, of the Banks, 177.
William, of the Camp, 187.
Somerset, Duke of, 176.
Spittals, 155.
Spittaltoun, 156.
Stables, Earl's, 45.
Stair, Master of— Letter to Earl of Airth,
312.
Stewarts of Appin, 281-4.
Stewart Earls— vide Menteith.
Stewart, Alexander, son of Duke Mur-
dach, 249, 250.
Andro, lease to, 157.
Henry, Commendator, 189.
Isabella, daughter of Duke of Albany,
252.
James, son of Duke Murdach, 249.
250.
James, of Ard voirlich — death of Lord
Kilpont, 316-22.
Lady Mary, Countess of Mar, 195.
Prince Charles Edward in Menteith,
351.
Robert, the High Steward, 147.
Walter, son of Duke Murdach, 249,
250.
Sir William, of Dalswinton, 275.
Stirling— Town, 195; Prior's manse in,
181-6.
Elizabeth, 187.
Robert, minister of Port, 37.
William, minister of Port, 35.
William, reader, 34.
Dene William, Canon of Inchma-
home, 180, 186, 187, 189, 190.
Rev. W. Macgregor, minister of Port,
38 ; his works, 38 ; his interpreta-
tion of Inchmahome, 75, 77 ; refer-
ence to his Notes, oflwm.
Strathern, Earldom of, 297, 298.
Strickland, Miss, on Queen Mary at
Inchmahome, 173.
368
Index.
TALL A, the Island, 92-6.
The buildings on, 202-13.
Household arrangements at, in time
of last Earl, 314-16.
Tar of Kusky, 61, 66, 261, 265, 267, 324.
Teith, the river and. the name, 3-5.
Tereochane, 269, note,
Thaich, district, 56.
Thirds, the Commendator's, 187-8.
Thorn and Lanarkins, 146.
Thomson, Canon James, 158, 165, 177.
Tibbermuir, Battle of, 318.
Tilly Moss (Talla), battle, 51, 347.
Tobanareal, Tipardnerheil, name and site,
28.
Cairn at, 29.
Earl William's death at, 27.
Legendary and historical accounts
of the fight, 279-84.
Tom-a-mhoid, 57.
Trees on Inchmahome, 89.
Trumpeter of Stirling, story of the, 340.
Tulliallan, Lord, 304.
Turnberry Castle, 253.
Turner, Eev. Dr., minister of Port, 39.
Tyeper's path, 27.
UAM-VAK, 16.
Ulster, Earl of, 259.
VAULT, the, 111, 114-5.
Vennachar, 1, 16.
Visitors, royal, 344-53.
WALLACE— Expedition into Galloway,
254; capture, 256-8.
Wardrobe of Talla, 211 ; of last Earl, 213.
Wat Dog's town, 155.
Wat Smith's town, 155.
Wemyss, Earl of, 309.
Whummle the bannock, 265.
Will of last Earl, 215.
Wishart, chaplain of Montrose— Account
of Kilpont's death, 319-20.
John, correspondent of Earl of Airth,
301.
Witches in Menteith, 337-9.
Wylie, William, minister of Port, 39.
YLE, 92.
Youngar, Dene John, 176, 177.
Youngman, Canon John, 158, 165, 170,
177, 278.
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