in the possession of the English. Sir Alexander de Ramsay of Dalwolsy,
ancestor of the present Earl of Dalhousie, was one of the most valorous
Knights in the brilliant galaxy of warriors at the Court of David II.
He had distinguished himself by bringing about the raising of the Siege
of Dunbar; and in 1338 he captured the Castle of Roxburgh, and expelled
the enemy. So pleased was the King with this exploit that he conferred
at once upon Ramsay the office of Sheriff of Teviotdale, forgetting
that the office was already held by the Knight of Liddesdale, and was
thus deprived of it that it might be given to his rival. So he captured
Ramsay while that unsuspecting Sheriff was presiding at a Court at
Hawick; carried him off to Hermitage Castle, and imprisoned him in one
of the deepest dungeons. There he was confined without sustenance until
he died of starvation; his life having been prolonged by some grains
of corn that fell from an upper chamber in the place where he was
incarcerated. It is certain that Ramsay died at Hermitage Castle, and
Andrew Wynton, the Chronicler, carefully remarks:--“Of his dethe wes
grete pete. To tell you thare-off the manere it is bot sorow to tell
here.”
The Earl of Angus in 1470 appointed David Scott of Buccleuch to the
office of Custodian of Hermitage Castle, and for many years the Scotts
fulfilled this duty. In 1492, Archibald Douglas, fifth Earl of Angus,
exchanged Liddesdale and Hermitage with Patrick Hepburn, third Lord
Hales, who was created first Earl of Bothwell, for Bothwell Castle
on the Clyde. Angus had married Mary Hepburn, daughter of the Earl
of Bothwell, who thus became a son-in-law to Bothwell. The second
Earl of Bothwell fell on the Field of Flodden, and the third Earl,
his successor, died in 1556, leaving a son, afterwards the notorious
James Hepburn, fourth Earl of Bothwell, whose marriage to Mary, Queen
of Scots, led to his downfall. The sister of this Earl was married
to John Stewart, Prior of Coldingham, a natural son of James V., and
became the mother of Francis Stewart, another turbulent nobleman, who
was created by James VI. the Earl of Bothwell of a new creation, but
retaining the designation of fifth Earl though he retained his mother’s
name of Hepburn.
[Illustration: HERMITAGE CASTLE _Valentine & Sons, Ltd._]
The story of the fourth Earl of Bothwell forms a prominent feature
in the history of the reign of Queen Mary. While he lay wounded at
Hermitage Castle in 1566, the Queen went from Jedburgh to see him, a
distance of about 40 miles, and returned the same day, thus bringing
on a severe attack of fever. This indiscreet action upon her part
told against her when her marriage to Bothwell took place in May
1567, as it was supposed that she had consented to this unfortunate
wedding. Bothwell escaped the vengeance of the Scottish nobles, fled
to Kirkwall, and became a pirate. He landed in Norway, was sent to
Denmark, and the King refused to surrender, but kept him in close
confinement, first at Copenhagen, and afterwards at Malmö, and thence
to Drangholm, where he died insane in 1578, having been imprisoned for
over ten years.
The story of Francis Stewart or Hepburn, fifth and last Earl of
Bothwell, was hardly less eventful and exciting than that of his
predecessor. He has been described as “one of the most treacherous men
of his time,” always plotting and counterplotting against his relative
James VI. After a very stormy career he went to France, was pursued
thither, and forced to fly to Spain and Italy. He died at Naples in
poverty and disgrace, in 1624, his title and possessions having been
forfeited in 1592, after a daring attempt to carry off the King from
Falkland Palace. His possessions in Liddesdale, including Hermitage
Castle, were conferred upon Sir Walter Scott of Buccleuch, who was
created, in 1606, as first Lord Scott of Buccleuch, from whom descended
the Dukes of Buccleuch, holders of the title. The present Duke is the
proprietor of Hermitage Castle.
XVII
STIRLING CASTLE
There are some Castles in Scotland which have become famous rather in
consequence of their beauty than their strength; but it will be found
that those of them which are most memorable in history are noteworthy
for both these elements. Edinburgh Castle, for instance, whilst long
celebrated as the Maiden Fort which defied the invader, commands a
prospect that alone would have made it worthy of remembrance. In
like manner the Castle of Stirling would have been noticeable for
its picturesque situation, even had there been no important events
connected with it. The beauty of its site attracted the notice of
the Kings and Princes of early times as forming the position for a
Royal residence, while its strength formed no mean recommendation as
a protection for the Court in a lawless age. Hence Dumbarton Castle,
Stirling Castle and Edinburgh Castle have at different times been the
seats of Kingly power. Dumbarton was replaced by Stirling, then Perth,
before the centre of government was settled at Edinburgh.
There are many derivations of the name of Stirling given by students
of Place-names, though these are mostly variations of one idea. Its
old name of “Strila” is evidently compounded of the Celtic words
_strigh_ (strife) and _laigh_ (the bending of the bow), and it has been
alleged that the name arose from the fact that the archery butts were
set up here at an early date. Its second name was “Stryvelin,” usually
interpreted as “strife,” and is poetically applied to the meeting of
the three waters--Forth, Allan and Teith--near the town. The most
reasonable notion seems to be that which derives its origin from _Ster_
(a mountain) and _lin_ (a river), since this exactly describes the
position of the town and the Castle. And the fact that its alternative
title of “Snawdun,” signifying “the fortified hill on the river” gives
additional weight to this conjecture, and finds corroboration in the
couplet by old Sir David Lyndsay:--
“Adew! fair Snawdun, with thy towris hie,
Thy Chapell Royal, Park, and Tabyll Round.”
No one can wonder that a Castle so beautifully situated became a
favourite residence with the monarchs of Scotland.
The hill upon which the Castle is built, though not in itself of any
great height, towers so precipitously over the Carse of Stirling that
it gains an advantage, so far as stretch of vision is concerned over
more lofty mountains. The stream of the Forth, which is here a goodly
river, flows around the base of the eminence, and meanders through the
level country betwixt Stirling and the sea, with many a graceful curve
and winding sweep. As seen from the Castle the view is exquisite. To
the north-eastward stands the solitary peak of Abbey Craig, now crowned
by the Wallace Monument, and overlooking the ever-memorable field of
Bannockburn. Here, too, may be seen the ruins of Cambuskenneth Abbey,
once a royal sepulchre; while the dark purple of the Ochil Hills
forms a dim receding background. Westward the wide carse of Stirling
stretches far as the eye can reach, presenting an unbroken surface
of fertile and variegated country, dotted with towns and villages in
rich profusion. The majestic river winds with serpent-like and sinuous
writhings through the green plain, casting abroad its gigantic folds,
like some stupendous chain, whose argent gleaming reflects the rays
of the sun with greater intensity because mellowed by the tint of the
verdant and fruitful banks through which it pursues its course.
There are few prospects in “braid Scotland” more charming than this,
and whilst the Castle was deemed important enough to be set aside as
the dowry of the Scottish Queens, the lovely scene which lies before
it did not escape the notice of the ancient ballad-singers. The river
Forth here takes so many tortuous windings that in the space of six
miles the stream measures twenty-four miles; and these wimpling links
are often celebrated in early Scottish song:--
“Are these the Links o’ Forth, she said,
Or are they Crooks o’ Dee,
Or the bonnie wood o’ Warroch-head
That I sae fain wad see?”
In very distant times Stirling formed the boundary of the great Nemus
Caledoniæ, or Caledonian Forest, which was an insuperable barrier
against Roman invasion. And at this day the ancient Seal of the Burgh
of Stirling shows a Forest, supposed to be this Scottish Wood, together
with a Cross, explained as signifying the great Cross set up at the
Castle, and a Bridge emblematical of the Bridge of Forth, both of which
erections were due to the Northumbrian invasion in 855, at which time
the Castle changed hands. Tradition asserts that from the Castle the
intelligent observer may descry thirteen battle-fields, among which may
be mentioned Bannockburn, Sauchie Burn, Falkirk (twice), Sheriffmuir,
and Stirling Bridge. It is evident that a locality such as this must be
rich in historic lore; and the Castle of Stirling has been the scene
of many deeds of crime, of many revelries and pageants, only equalled
by Edinburgh, the Capital of Scotland. Some of these incidents may be
related, even though they are not placed in chronological order.
The Castle of Stirling had been conferred by James I. upon his English
bride, Lady Joanna de Beaufort--the heroine of “The King’s Quhair”--as
her dowry, and it was here that her son, afterwards James II., was born
in 1430, being the younger twin-son of the King, the elder of whom,
Alexander, died in infancy. Some of the chroniclers state that the
birth of the twins took place at Holyrood; but possibly this may be an
error caused by the anointing and crowning there of James II. in 1437,
a year after his father’s assassination at Perth. This may be doubtful;
but it is certain that the King (James II.), in February 1451-52,
perpetrated at Stirling one of the blackest deeds of treachery which is
recorded against the whole Stewart race to which he belonged.
From the time of King Robert the Bruce the family of Douglas, whose
founder was the fellow-warrior of that King, had been rising into
increased power. Honours were showered upon them by successive
Monarchs--at first in gratitude but latterly in fear. For the dominion
of the Douglases spread so widely, and drew within its scope so many
warlike nobles that the Lanarkshire Earl might soon out-number the
Crown in wealth, as in forces. As it was impossible, therefore, for
the King to quarrel with so powerful a subject, he endeavoured to win
the Earl over by making him Lieutenant-General of the Kingdom. But
the possession of so important a post seems rather to have inflamed
the ambition of the Earl than bound him to the King. So overbearing,
indeed, had he become that the Monarch, whose favourite Douglas had
been, was compelled to withdraw the Royal patronage, and to deprive the
Earl of his post. The disappointed nobleman retired in chagrin to his
Castle of Douglas and meditated schemes of revenge against the King
and the Court party.
Nor was he long without opportunity of gratifying his vindictive
spirit. One after another of the King’s followers were attacked upon
some pretext, sufficient in those times to justify sudden reprisal;
and the Monarch soon found that he had made a dangerous enemy in the
Earl of Douglas. But it was not until he had openly disregarded the
King’s mandate that he was finally abandoned. The Earl had summoned
his vassals to meet him upon a special occasion. Amongst those whom
he had thus summoned was M’Lellan, known as the Tutor of Bomby, in
Kirkcudbrightshire. This unfortunate man had provoked the Earl by
refusing to join with him against the King; and Douglas had kidnapped
this daring vassal, and carried him off to the Castle of Thrieve. The
uncle of M’Lellan, Sir Patrick Gray, Captain of the King’s Guard--then
a favourite with the King--obtained a Royal mandate ordering Douglas to
release M’Lellan.
Sir Patrick set forth with this missive, but was met by the Earl with
every demonstration of amity, inviting him to dinner, and protracting
the meal till his own evil purpose had been accomplished. Then he led
Gray into the courtyard; he pointed to a dead body lying there, and
said:
“Sir Patrick, the letter which you bear comes too late. There lies your
sister’s son, without his head. To his body thou art welcome, an’ it
please thee to mell with it.”
“Nay,” said Sir Patrick, “sen thou hast ta’en the head, make what
thou wilt of the body; for thou shalt answer shortly to the King for
both.” And mounting in hot haste, Gray sped to Edinburgh to report this
outrage, pursued by the myrmidons of Douglas.
The recital of this new attack upon his kingly prerogative decided the
King to adopt severe measures against the Earl of Douglas; but he took
a crafty method of doing so.
Having discovered that Douglas, who ruled in the south, had agreed with
the Earl of Ross, who was all-powerful in the north, and the Earl of
Crawford, whose influence spread throughout the east coast, to maintain
each others quarrels, even against the King himself, his Majesty,
fearful of the conspiracy, summoned his Parliament to Stirling to
advise upon it. After deliberation, it was decided to bring Douglas to
this conference, and to endeavour by argument to break this alliance.
A safe conduct, under the hand and Seal of the King, was sent to him
requesting his attendance. Trusting to the honour of his liege-lord,
Douglas approached with but a few adherents, and even those were
excluded from the precincts of the royal palace.
Alone, therefore, the Black Earl entered that portal through which he
never more should pass. The King met him with accustomed cordiality,
and, after supper, retired with him and a few of his counsellors to an
inner apartment to discuss the affairs of State. Here James thought
to persuade Douglas to abandon his league with the Earls Ross and
Crawford; but threat and persuasion were alike powerless upon him.
Irritated beyond measure by this continued obstinacy, and well aware of
the result of too great leniency towards him, the King at last drew his
dagger, and exclaiming “By Heaven, if you will not break this league, I
will,” he stabbed the unfortunate Earl to the heart. The old enemy of
Douglas, Sir Patrick Gray, with all the bitterness of his last grudge
against him, was not slow to aid the King in his felon intent, and
the body of the murdered nobleman was thrown from the window of that
apartment in the Castle which is still called “the Douglas Room.”
However disreputable the means employed, it is certain that the step
which the King had taken ultimately compelled him to adopt repressive
measures against the Scottish nobility, and finally to overcome and
destroy the long-established feudal system. And, as a curious instance
of historical retribution, it may be mentioned that the murder of James
III. (son of James II.) at Sauchie Burn, was popularly attributed to
the son of this same Sir Patrick Gray, the King’s accomplice in his
attack upon the Earl of Douglas.
Many additions were made to the Castle during the turbulent reign of
James III., who made it his favourite residence. He built the large
hall, now called the Parliament House, and erected the Chapel Royal,
celebrated in song by the poets of the period, which was afterwards
demolished by James VI. to make way for a more pretentious structure.
There is little doubt that the violent death of James III. was
immediately caused by the treachery of the Castellane whom he had put
in charge of Stirling, and who refused to open the gate to the King
while in retreat.
During the reign of James V., Stirling was the scene of a very
ludicrous scientific fiasco. The reputation which the King had gained
on the Continent as a lover of literature and art had attracted many
foreign adventurers to the Scottish shore. Poets, musicians, and
alchemists flocked to the Court whose Monarch laid claim to a wide
sympathy with the art of each professor; and as the craze of the search
after the “philosopher’s stone” was not yet exploded, King James fell
an easy prey to charlatanry and imposture. Chief among the alchemists
that had gained an ascendancy over the King was an Italian monk, who
so dazzled his dupe by unlimited promises that nothing was withheld
from him. He was made Abbot of Tungland, and assigned apartments in the
Castle that he might pursue his Rosicrucian studies unmolested.
That this monk was neither a Dowsterswivel nor a Subtle, may be
surmised from the fact that he so far believed in his power as to
experiment on himself. Having made aerial flight his study for a
considerable time, he at last announced that he had solved the problem
which had perplexed mankind till his day. He invited a large company
to witness his triumph over gravitation; and having mounted the
battlements of the Castle he boldly flung himself from the parapet. But
he had miscalculated the attractive influence of our planet upon him.
And so the astonished multitude, who expected to see him cleaving with
mighty wings the blue empyreum, were shocked and dismayed to behold him
falling like some ordinary mortal earthward, unable, even with the aid
of all his familiar spirits, to escape the broken limb which the most
illiterate lord might have as easily gained, without bravado.
One cannot but admire the pluck which led the Abbot to make this rash
experiment, and the ingenuity with which he explained his failure.
“Many of the feathers,” he wrote, “whereof my wings were composed had
been unwittingly taken from barnyard and dunghill fowls. Hence the
earth had more influence upon them since they were unused to upward
flight. Had they been eagles’ feathers then the attraction of the
heavens would have been as great as the attraction of the earth was in
other conditions.” There is no record of his ever having tried aviation
afterwards.
For a considerable time the Castle of Stirling was selected as the
place of Coronation for the Scottish rulers, and the fact of its
being a favourite residence for royalty brought it into notice as the
birth-place of a succession of monarchs, and it was also the scene of
several tragedies connected with the royal family. Some of the latter
incidents may be briefly noticed here.
[Illustration: STIRLING CASTLE _Valentine & Sons, Ltd._]
Alexander I., who reigned from 1106 till 1124 is the first
Scottish King who is recorded as having died at Stirling. William the
Lion--1165-1214--died at Stirling in his 71st year. David, second son
of Alexander III., born in 1273, died in Stirling Castle in 1281,
aged 8 years, and as his elder brother Alexander died in his father’s
life-time, the succession fell to Margaret, “the Maid of Norway,”
whose death in 1290 brought about the trouble with the claimants, in
which Edward I. of England interfered. While James I. was a prisoner
in England, his uncle Robert, Duke of Albany, was Governor from
1388 till 1420, in which year he died at Stirling Castle. His son,
Murdoch, became Governor, but when James I. returned to his kingdom
in 1424, he accused Murdoch of treason, and caused him to be beheaded
at Stirling Castle in the following year, together with his son, his
nephew, and his father-in-law. James IV., in 1488, when he was only
16 years of age, was brought from Stirling Castle by the Lords, who
had rebelled against his father, James III., and was present at the
Battle of Sauchie Burn, near Stirling, where the King was assassinated.
Alexander, Duke of Ross, sixth child of James IV., was born in Stirling
Castle, and died there in 1515 in his second year. Prince James and
Prince Arthur, sons of James V., both died in infancy at Stirling
Castle, in 1541, thus leaving the succession to the Throne open to
Mary, Queen of Scots, who was born in 1542, the year of her father’s
death. She was crowned in the Chapel at Stirling Castle in September
1543. The year 1571 witnessed a series of tragic incidents. John
Hamilton, Archbishop of St Andrews, was accused as concerned in the
murders of Henry Darnley and also the Regent Moray, and was hanged at
Stirling Castle. The Regent Lennox, father of Darnley, was shot in a
skirmish at Stirling; his successor, the Regent Mar, died at Stirling
Castle in 1572. James VI. was baptized in the Chapel of Stirling Castle
in 1566; and his beloved eldest son, Prince Henry, was born in the
Castle in 1593, but died in 1612 in his 19th year, and thus the King
was succeeded by his second son and fourth child, afterwards Charles I.
These are all facts relating to the connection of the Royal Family with
Stirling Castle.
The Union of the Crown in 1603, when the King and Court removed
to London, had an important effect upon the whole of Scotland,
and especially on Stirling Castle. The place fell out of notice
for a considerable time, and until the great Marquess of Montrose
restored the renown of Scottish chivalry its existence was placid and
uneventful. The brilliant exploits of this famous commander brought
renown to Scotland; and during the century which followed, the position
of Stirling Castle as the key to the north by the east coast made it a
scene of continued turmoil and strife. Stirling Castle was captured and
held for a short time by the Covenanters. In 1651, after the defeat of
General Leslie and the Covenanters at Dunbar by Cromwell, the fugitive
Scots made Stirling Castle their rallying-place. This led General Monck
to besiege and reduce the Castle, and to carry off many of the national
documents that had been brought from Edinburgh as less secure than
Stirling. It was from the Castle in the same year that Charles II. set
out upon his invasion of England, which was terminated by the fatal
Battle of Worcester.
At the time of the Union of the Parliaments in 1707 Stirling was one of
the four Castles that were specially described as the most important in
Scotland. The first trial of its strength occurred in 1715, when Argyll
on his way to Sheriffmuir was well-supported from the Castle. The
next attempt on the Castle was in 1745-46, when the army under Prince
Charles Edward was retreating northward. The leaders of the Highland
forces promised the Stirling people would not be molested; but this
pledge was not respected by the Jacobites, and general plunder was the
result. Preparations were made to besiege the Castle; but the conflict
at Falkirk, where the Prince was victorious, led to the prolongation of
the siege (against the will of Prince Charlie) until the advance of the
Duke of Cumberland’s army compelled a retreat northward, which ended at
Culloden. Since that time Stirling Castle has remained unassailed.
James VI. was the last Scottish Sovereign to live in residence at
Stirling Castle. The Duke of of York (afterwards James VII. and II.)
was here with his family for a short time in 1685, amongst them being
the daughter who became Queen Anne. In September 1842, Queen Victoria
and Prince Albert visited the place; and in 1859, the Prince of Wales
(afterwards Edward VII.) examined the historic Castle, so closely
connected with the lives of his remote ancestors.
XVIII
ST ANDREWS CASTLE
The situation of St Andrews Castle is exceedingly picturesque. The
shore on each side of the ruins trends inwards, leaving a projecting
headland, upon whose rocky summit stand the ruins of the Archiepiscopal
Palace. The ceaseless beat of the wild North Sea has swept away the
ancient landmarks upon either side, gradually leaving the foundation of
the Castle to form an apex between two bays:--
“The peak on an aerial promontory,
Whose caverned base with the vexed surge is hoary.”
If this spot be really the site of the original Castle of St Andrews,
built by Bishop Roger in 1200 as there is little reason to doubt, it
savours more of romance than of practical utility. For even though the
encroachments of the sea have been great in this locality they cannot
have so seriously altered the position of the Castle in little over
seven centuries as to transform an inland fortress into a sea-washed
ruin. And, however conducive to reflection in a recluse, it could not
be altogether pleasant for men of the world, as many of the Prelates
were, to hear the “hollow-sounding and mysterious main” dashing against
the rock-bound coast, or watch it flinging its wintry spray defiantly
upon the topmost battlement.