The Historie Of The
Kennedyis
Translated by T. Kennedy from the Old Scots, (Pitcairn Edition).
Foreword
The Author of the original manuscript of this book
was a very educated anonymous Ayrshire man writing in the early 1600s. He
was a close adherent of the Bargany Kennedys and was writing of events that
either he or people he knew well had taken part in. The interest he shows in the Kennedy family indicates
that he was related to them by marriage at least. Sir James Fergusson of Kilkerran writes of
the possible identity of the author of this book in his fascinating book of
essays on Scottish history, 'The White Hind'.
Fergusson names a particular member of the Cathcart family residing in
the area of Girvan.
Where he delves into
older historical events, he relates information that is in some instances
inaccurate - for example kings turn up in the wrong era. I have included notes
in order to show the correct picture. I
have also included notes to try to show the context in which the feud was
fought. Feud was a way of life in Scotland
The Land of The Kennedys posting elsewhere on the Kennedy Family Blog shows photographs of some of the places mentioned in the story that follows.
TK Cheshire 2012
I have added some details taken from The Hereditary Sheriffs of Galloway by Sir Andrew Agnew, 8th Baronet, which concerns the history of the Agnew family who were near neighbours of the Kennedys and presents a more neutral view.
TK Orkney 2018
TK Cheshire 2012
I have added some details taken from The Hereditary Sheriffs of Galloway by Sir Andrew Agnew, 8th Baronet, which concerns the history of the Agnew family who were near neighbours of the Kennedys and presents a more neutral view.
TK Orkney 2018
The origin of
the Name of Kennedy
And first,
concerning their name; it is, out of all doubt, the same proceeded from the
name Kenneth; for of that name there were sundry Kings and also some very
fine Captains. For by the three kings that had the name Kenneth, there
was a Kenneth thane of Carrick who was one of King Gregory's [Giric mac Dungail,
believed to have ruled 878-889:
alternatively he could have been Steward to a King Eochaid] Captains in his war in the land, by his
skill of throwing stones down a high hill he won a great battle for King
Gregory. And of this Captain the Kennedies say they had their beginning.
But the Black Book of Scone sets their beginning to be in the reign
of King Malcolm II who was crowned in the year 1010 and was the fourscore King
of Scotland. [The
Kennedys are reckoned by James Paterson to have originally been known as
Montercasduff "the blackfooted race", noted as being led by John
McKennedy in a charter from King David II's reign,
1329 until 1371. See Paterson
There was with
this King one McKennane of the Isles that was slain by the Danes at the Battle
of Murlaig [The
only battle at this time was at Innisibsolian which the Scots are said to have
won. However the Danes raided
extensively during this period] and of him came the McKennane of the Isles
who holds the lands of Stroworddell to this hour. [This legendary ancestral
McKennane figure is not otherwise documented.
The title 'Lord of The Isles' came much later. Many records from this
time were lost due to Vikings ravaging the monasteries so proof is wanting and
traditions vary.]
This McKennane of
the Isles' succession was at the time of King Donnall's reign [Donald II, 889-900] when the Danes got the possession of the
whole of the Isles; and took from the Laird his father the twenty pound land of Donourtoune Galloway . [McKirlie says the Kennedys
did not get lands in Galloway until the second
Earl's time, much later.]
[Historical Notes:
McKennedy as a name appears in
the very oldest records of South West Scotland.
According to the Kennedy DNA Project there is no connection to the
Southern Irish family of the same name,
they being related to O'Brien - King Brian Boru's people. The Ayrshire
Kennedys, originally called
Montercasduff, are likely descended from Picts or an even earlier people -
based in Scotland
One Murtagh McKennedy was
assigned command of the Scottish garrison on The Isle Of Man when it was captured
in 1313, see McNamee.
Robert
The Bruce was Lord of Carrick by marriage. His wife Marjory was widow of Adam
de Kilconchar, Lord of Carrick. In 1385 one John Kennedy was described as Lord
of Kilconchar. Therefore it appears that
the Lord of Carrick was a Kennedy by the reign of Alexander III 1249-1286. See Paterson
The
McDowalls were Lords of Carrick before this time - Duncan McDowell Earl of
Carrick founded Crossraguel Abbey in 1244 in the reign of Alexander II. See
Crossraguel Abbey book on www.maybole.org. One source has it that the Kennedys were a
branch of the de Carricks - i.e. McDowalls.
This seems to be on the basis that the Kennedys are found to have
inherited the de Carrick properties and heraldry.
The
Kennedys were hereditary stewards in Carrick
- the steward and judge of Duncan De Carrick was Marcow McKennedy. The steward under Comyn between 1244 and 1285
was Fergus Kennedy. John MacKennedy is named as chief of the clan Montercasduff
in a charter of David II - 1329-1371.
John De Kennedy is also referred to elsewhere, fighting against the Gallovidians, and in
1357-8 he is granted a charter confirming all his possessions. This John is regarded generally by most
sources as the founder of the Kennedy family in Carrick. Paterson
John
had a son Gilbert who inherited his title and a son John who became the Laird
of Stair - which title eventually passed by marriage of the Kennedy heiress to
the Dalrymple family of Stair who hold that title today. It appears the legendary Aleschunder
mentioned below was one of John's sons.]
The House of
Bargany
[This section
chronologically should come after the next chapter as Friar Hew descends from
the first marriage of Gilbert Kennedy of Dunure mentioned below.]
The House of
Bargany came to their preferment by the valour of a second brother who was
first made a Friar ; but his courage, not so agreeable to so base an
office, he lost the same and passed with the [Kennedy] Laird of Blairquhan to France Holy Land .
And at his returning he received word that his brother the Laird
of Bargany was dead; Whereupon he took leave of the King of France and got
in recompense for his service many great rewards of gold and money and
above all he gave him leave to wear arms quarterly in his Arms, to whit fleur
de lys which that house wears to this day.
[Friar
Hew fought against the English with conspicuous bravery in a rearguard action
at the Bridge at the Battle of Baugé March 1421. There were Kennedys also fighting on the
English side at the Battle of Baugé. Two
Kennedys of Lenzie were fighting with King Henry V's army according to Paterson
He came to Scotland and bought the ten pound land of Ardstinchar
[Agnew says that the house of Bargany descended from Thomas, son of Sir Gilbert of Dunure - who died around 1440 - and Kennedy houses Blairquhan and Ardstinchar descended from sons Alexander and John respectively. These were by his first marriage to the daughter of James Laird of Calder, see below]
[Agnew says that the house of Bargany descended from Thomas, son of Sir Gilbert of Dunure - who died around 1440 - and Kennedy houses Blairquhan and Ardstinchar descended from sons Alexander and John respectively. These were by his first marriage to the daughter of James Laird of Calder, see below]
The House of
Dunure, Resumed
But now to return
to the House of Dunure again. There was a brother of the House, who was
the fourth or fifth brother. The eldest who was Laird being dead,
the friends convened to decide who would be Tutor; but this brother albeit the
youngest, started up and drawing his sword said, "I am the best and
worthiest and I will be Tutor". This brother was called Alschunder
and because he wore a dagger which at that time was not common he was
called Alschunder Dagger.
This Alschunder
or Alexander fell into feud with the Earl of Wigtown Douglas who was a very
great man and had a great force in the country. This Douglas was so
far offended at him because it was thought that he fought with him at Glenaip,
and another time against Lindsay thane Laird of Craigie at the Water of
Doon both in one day that the Earl offered anyone that brought this Alexander's
head the forty mark land
of Stewarton Wigtown
The next Laird of
Dunure [Gilbert,
son of John mentioned above]
had two wives. His first wife [Marion]
bore one son [actually
three according to Paterson Paterson says instead Laird of
Pollok's] daughter, [Agnes] Maxwell, who also bore him a son [actually several according
to Paterson
[ Historical Notes: The First Lord's and the Bishop's mother Princess
Mary was in fact the daughter not of James I but King Robert III 1390 -
1406. Agnew in his 'Hereditary Sherriffs of Galloway' says that Princess Mary was supposed to marry George Douglas, Earl of Angus but he was a prisoner in England at the time. Agnew discounts the above scurrilous explanation regarding the marriage. He says Princess Mary bore John, Gilbert, James and an unnamed daughter.
Bishop James Kennedy of St Andrews effectively ruledScotland Lancaster
Bishop James Kennedy of St Andrews effectively ruled
As
to the dispossession, elsewhere in Paterson Paterson Galloway .
Bishop Kennedy guided James II through the troubles with the Douglases and their allies who rose up against the King. The Kennedys remained loyal to the King and as a result suffered extensive pillaging of their lands by the raging Douglases. The Bishop also had his lands pillaged for supporting the King. Bishop James is said to have cursed one of the rebels The Earl of Crawford by bell, book and candle and within the year Crawford was dead - see The History of Scotland Volume II by Andrew Lang.
Bishop Kennedy guided James II through the troubles with the Douglases and their allies who rose up against the King. The Kennedys remained loyal to the King and as a result suffered extensive pillaging of their lands by the raging Douglases. The Bishop also had his lands pillaged for supporting the King. Bishop James is said to have cursed one of the rebels The Earl of Crawford by bell, book and candle and within the year Crawford was dead - see The History of Scotland Volume II by Andrew Lang.
The other children said, by the records of that time, to be of Gilbert Kennedy and Agnes Maxwell were: "Friar" Hugh who as said above distinguished himself in the French war, John who became founder of Blairquhan, Thomas the founder of Bargany and David, whose son Gilbert founded the branch of Kirkmichael.
Gilbert, First
Lord Kennedy
His eldest son, [actually grandson of the
previous chief, the son of the murdered James and the Princess Mary] Gilbert was made Lord by King James II [1437 to 1460]; at this time the King granted him the
lands of Lachsuad and Meurig at the forfeit of the Earl of Wigtown [Douglas]. These lands the House of Cassilis
holds to this day. This Gilbert was the King's sister son, which was
why he was made the first Lord Kennedy. He married Katherine Maxwell of
the House of Caderwood. She bore him four sons, John who was second Lord
Kennedy and Gilbert Kennedy Provost of Maybole. The others died young. [Some historians ascribe
the incident in St Ninian's Church at Yule, related above, to this Gilbert
instead of Alschunder.
Agnew says that in 1431 Sir John Kennedy, brother to the First Lord Kennedy was arrested and incarcerated in Stirling Castle along with Earl Douglas who was locked up in Lochleven Castle. There was no apparent crime except for some perceived offence caused to His Majesty. This arbitrary double arrest was the reason why the Douglases murdered King James I and the trigger for the eventual uprising of the Douglases against the Crown. Sir John Kennedy seems to have died in his dungeon three years or so later]
Agnew says that in 1431 Sir John Kennedy, brother to the First Lord Kennedy was arrested and incarcerated in Stirling Castle along with Earl Douglas who was locked up in Lochleven Castle. There was no apparent crime except for some perceived offence caused to His Majesty. This arbitrary double arrest was the reason why the Douglases murdered King James I and the trigger for the eventual uprising of the Douglases against the Crown. Sir John Kennedy seems to have died in his dungeon three years or so later]
John, Second
Lord Kennedy
John Lord Kennedy
married Jean Montgomery [second] daughter to [first]
Lord Montgomery and they had one heir, a son called David Kennedy [and daughter Catherine who
is mentioned in an indenture 15-9-1465 as marrying Thomas, eldest son of Gilbert Kennedy of Bargany. Paterson Elizabeth
[some text apparently
illegible to the transcriber here.
Historical
Notes: Paterson - This Alexander was given charter of the lands of Girvanmains
in 1481. Also from this union came John, William, and Janet who was married to
Archibald Douglas "Bell The Cat" 5th Earl of Angus. Around 1497 still
recently married to Douglas she became the mistress of James IV who made her
Lady Bothwell and installed her in Tarnaway
Castle Paterson Scotland
David Third
Lord Kennedy and First Earl of Cassilis
After the death
of Lord John his son David succeeded to to be Lord. He married Agnes
Borthik [Borthwick], daughter to Lord Borthik and had four
sons ; Gilbert who succeeded him, William Abbott of Craragell [Crossraguel Abbey ], James of Brounstone and Thomas Laird of
[blank]; three daughters Kathreine Lady
Scheldoune and after Lady Scoirne; Helene Lady Knockdolyan; and Christiane Lady
Altrie. His second wife was Greikly Boyd [Margaret, daughter of the Earl of Arran and niece of James III] and by that deed [marrying her I presume] he was made Earl. [He died on Flodden Field in 1513 along with his
King James IV and much of the nobility of Renaissance Scotland.]
Gilbert,
Second Earl of Cassilis
Earl Gilbert his
son married Elisabeth Campbell daughter of the Earl of Argyll and they had
sons; Gilbert Earl after; Thomas; David of Culzean and Mr Quinteyne Abbot of
Corsragell [who
famously debated with John Knox];
Hew of Barquohouny [this is Bargany? Confusing] and James of Uchtrelour. They also had
two daughters Janet Lady Feochtt and Helene Lady Kenkill. He was slain by the [men of the] Sheriff of Ayr on the Sands of Prestwick
[said by some
to be arising from a feud with the Campbells of Loudoun, but the deed was allegedly directed by the
wife of Sheriff Adam Wallace, of Craigie Castle], but the Sheriff himself was not there, it was some
of his relations especially the Craufurds of the House of Loch Norris.
In recompense of
this slaughter, the House of Cassillis got the lands of Cornbanney and
Girvandheads from the property of the Sheriff of Ayr and his son Sir Mathew,
his heir. [On 1st July 1528 at Stirling, King James V exonerated Campbell of Loudoun and his followers for killing Cassilis. Loudoun had become one of the young King's supporters in his struggle to establish authority.]
Gilbert Third
Earl of Cassilis
Earl Gilbert his
son married Margaret Kennedy daughter of the Laird of Bargany and begat three
sons Gilbert, David and Thomas. But David died young and Thomas was Tutor
after him and Laird of Cassilis [should be Culzean] and was made a knight. [This is Sir Thomas Kennedy of Culzean, Tutor of
Cassilis who is one of the main characters of the central story.]
This Gilbert was
a wondrously wise man and a great courtier. He was Treasurer of Scotland.
He had two daughters, Jean Lady Orkney and Katterine Lady
Barnebarony. He was sent to France as ambassador and there died [he was poisoned on the
French King's orders for refusing to agree to the French taking possession of
the Scottish crown upon the marriage of the infant Mary Stewart to the Dauphin]. As was said he was a very wise
man and beloved of all.
Gilbert Fourth
Earl of Cassilis
Earl Gilbert his
son married Margaret Lyon daughter to Lord Glamis and had two sons by her John
his eldest who succeeded him and Hew his second son. This Hew was married
to the Laird of Cartland's sister who bore him two lads and a daughter.
Hew died within 24 years of age. He was a well conditioned man and
had the love of all men.
John Fifth
Earl of Cassilis
John Earl his son
married Dame Jeane Fleming Lady Thirlstane. Her previous husband Sir John
Maitland was Chancellor of Scotland but she bore no bairns to the Earl of
Cassilis.
This last Gilbert
[the Fourth
Earl] was a particular man
and a very greedy man and cared not how he got land as long as he got the
title. To that end he tried to get the Abbot of Glenluce Abbey to sign a deed
willing the lands to him when he died. The Abbot died first however,
so Kennedy found a monk who could forge the dead Abbot's signature on the
deed. He then became worried that the monk would reveal the forgery and
ordered a man named Carnacaine to kill the monk. He then got his
father-brother Hew of Bargany to accuse Carnacaine of theft and then hang him
at Craragell [Crossraguel]. And thus the lands of Glenluce
were gained.
Historical Note: Paterson -and
others- say that the Fourth Earl fought on the side of Mary Queen of Scots at
the fateful Battle of Langside, 13 May 1568, in which the Queen lost and had to
flee to England Galloway .]
Roasting of
the Abbot of Crossraguel
Now as concerning
the Abbacy of Corsragall [Crossraguel] this Earl Gilbert took the abbey as
follows: There was a father brother of his, Abbott Quintin a good man and
one that feared God after the manner of his religion. At the alteration
of the religion My Lord dealt with the Abbott and got the feu of the said Abbey
set to him but the deed was disputed by the next Abbot and because the deed
wasn't agreed by the King the deed was nullified. Then an Abbott [other accounts say he was
Commendator not Abbott. A Commendator
was a temporal post, administrator of the accumulated wealth and properties of
a religious house.] Allan
Stewart got the Abbacy and he had married a sister of Lady Bargany and for that
reason the Abbott was allied with the Laird of Bargany and followed his opinion
in all matters. My Lord of Cassilis, pursuing the deed wanted the Laird
of Bargany to tell the Abbott to confirm his right to it as agreed with Abbott
Quintin. But the Laird could not persuade the Abbott to visit him in
order that he could persuade him, despite faithful promises to use him
well. Whereupon the Laird persuaded the Abbott to go to Maybole to my
Lord. At his coming my Lord attempted to get him to sign over the deed
but could not. Thereupon he decided to take him to Dunure and there to do
violence to him in order to get him to sign. Finding him obstinate he
took him and tied him to a spit and cooked his bare legs over a great fire and
burnt him badly so that he was from then on unable to use his legs [Another account states
that the Abbott's legs were not all that badly injured]. The word of this deed having
reached the Laird of Bargany, he demanded that my Lord send the Abbott
back but Cassilis replied that he intended to keep the Abbott in custody.
When this reached Bargany he sent one David Kennedy of Maxalton who had
been his page before and 10 or 12 of his most faithful followers and in the
night they drew near the Castle gate, spending the night at the Chapel
which was at the drawbridge end. In the morning when the Gate was opened
they rushed from the Chapel and forced their way in, entering the Castle
and taking all the prisoners that were there. However it being daylight
and it being My Lord's territory they had to remain in the House and send away
to the Laird to tell him what had happened; but before he could gather a force
together, the Master and My Lord's brother entered the House with all My
Lord's force and with the deed, and entered the Chapel which adjoined the
dungeon, with the idea of piercing the wall. But the Laird's men
within threw great stones from the Dungeon onto the roof of the Chapel and
broke it in showing that they did not want to abandon the deed. They shot the
Master through the shoulder. The Laird of Bargany at this time gathered
his whole force and a great part of Kyle and Cunningham came with him, and were
such a number that the Master and My Lord were forced to retire and allow
Bargany to relieve his men and take the Abbott, burnt as he was to Ayr , home with him. This caused a great feud
between them and for a long period. However an agreement was brokered at
length, through the efforts of their relations. Mr David Lindsay of Leith , Minister, was the broker and My Lord, the Laird
and Abbott all agreed [to keep the peace]. My Lord gave the Abbott some money
to live on which would keep him all his days. And in this way My Lord
gained Corsragall by evil means.
Bargany and
Cassilis are reconciled
Despite the
dispute between the Laird of Bargany and My Lord being resolved they had fallen
out badly. And at that time the Laird of Kelwood, a dependant and
follower of Cassilis, bought a piece of gold called a leigna [thought by Pitcairn to be
a prehistoric Celtic torque],
from a poor wife, of a pound in weight. She had found it in a barn within
My Lord's lands. And word spread that that the value was twice what had
been paid. My Lord sent to Kelwood and said he desired it be sent to him
but he refused as said he had bought it. My Lord was in a great rage at this;
and the Laird of Bargany being in Maybole they made to take the Laird of
Kelwood out of his house and being owner of the fields, repossess his
deed. Coming in the night to the gate house which was not joined to the
main house they broke through the wall. The Laird of Kelwood fearing them
greatly, surrendered to the Laird of Bargany upon condition that his life was
spared. He was taken to Maybole. The gold was taken and he was
suffered to depart. As soon as he arrived in Edinburgh Ayr
with his relations, and the Laird of Carse being in the town there was a great
discord between My Lord's relations and Carse for the breaking of a drum which
was the prize for a horse race. In the scuffle John Kennedy of Penquhiren
[Penwhirn] was shot in the leg and James Craufurd brother to the Gudeman of
Camler was shot in the thigh, after which he was lame all his days.
Now My Lord of
Cassilis, after this, in the year [1576]
rode to Edinburgh and as he rode to Glasgow Edinburgh
[Historical Note: As told
differently on Stewart website: In his will Gilbert left for Glamis to be Tutor
not Culzean because Culzean had staged a night attack on Dunure with some of
his men - ostensibly pretending to be the Laird of Carse -Craufurd- but Gilbert
had found out that in reality Culzean by this intended to cause his wife to
miscarry. http://theroyalhouseofstewart.com/descendants_of_the_royal_house_of_stewart_013.htm].
Sir Thomas
Kennedy [of
Culzean], Tutor of
Cassilis
Now, my Lord of
Cassilis being dead, there falls great ill-will between the Chancellor and the
Master, over [the office of] the Tutory.
The Chancellor
sent to Carrick for to make provision for his coming into the country; but not
long before his coming, the Master destroyed all the provision both in Carrick
and Galloway. The Chancellor alleged that this was done on the Laird of
Bargany's advice; and for that he caused the Laird of Bargany to be imprisoned
in Edinburgh Galloway he, the [McDowell]
Laird of Gartland, entertained him but he got little obedience. For all
this time the Laird of Bargany's house was furnished to the Master and all
Bargany's relations stayed with him. The Chancellor returned to Edinburgh and left some men in Maybole Castle
The Tutor, being
unmarried and in Edinburgh, wooed Elisabeth McGill, daughter to Master David
McGill, Advocate to His Majesty, and brought her to Carrick and married her.
She had lately divorced the Laird of Lesterrick and had got from him
10000 pounds in contentment of her dowry which at the time was thought a great
sum. And matters being settled in this way John Kennedy of Pinwherry came
to the Laird of Bargany and the Tutor and desired their assistance against the
Laird of Carse in order to avenge the killing of George Kennedy [of Breoch] who had been his mentor. At this
he took six men and went in the night to Kyle and slew two Craufurds, John and
Roger, having had a spy in their house. After this killing the Laird of
Bargany took the said John Kennedy of Pinwherry in his household, Andrew
Kennedy, Robert Kennedy and Black James Kennedy. The Tutor took Oliver
Kennedy and Hew Kennedy of Craigneil and Gilbert Stewart of Craigincroy in his
household and this made a deadly feud between them and Carse. During this
time Kennedy of Blairquhan was not involved in the feud at all.
After the killing
of the Craufurds there were many brawls among them and great trouble began
between the Laird of Lochinvar and his Gordons, and the [McDowall, also styled Gartland elsewhere] Laird of Gairsland. The Laird of
Bargany and the Tutor took the side of Gairsland and supported him. In
this deadly feud sundry were slain on both sides and this continued for a long
time. [Kennedy
of] Blairquhan began to feud
with the Laird of Garleis [Stewart]
and there were a great many slain and hurt. But I will not detail this [business] any further. Instead I will
describe the deadly feud between the House of Cassilis and of Bargany which
stands unreconciled to this day.
Deadly Feud
Between The House of Cassilis and of Bargany
There was a
certain "Black Bessie" Kennedy who was married to the Gudeman of
Dineham [variously
spelt place one mile north of Maybole]
and then to the Laird of Culzean, the Vastor; and to his third Gudeman William
Kennedy of Bronstoun, Baillie of Carrick who settled on her his six pound land
of Bronstoun. This Bessie Kennedy was sister to the father of the Laird
of Bargany and sister of the mother of the Tutor of Cassilis. She being a
widow had been invested with the house of Bronstoun. Before his
investment, the Bailie of Carrick had invested the same land on the Earl of
Cassilis and my Lord had invested the same land on his wife Dame Mary Lyon.
She [being
previously married to John Lord Hamilton]
quarrelled with Bessie Kennedy's investiture and entered into a legal dispute
before the Lords. At this she [Bessie]
went to her nephew the Laird of Bargany and gave him her right to Bronstoun [in the hope that he would
be able to use force to prevail].
In return for this he invested her with the six pound land of New Wark
Letter of
Bargany to Culzean
"Sir
I see now having
considered what you have done at length, that ye have proved ungrateful
to every courtesy I have shown you, and as you know I have made you the man
that you are, and there is nothing that you have dared or done without my
support and sustenance. And you repay me like this. I vow that I
shall very soon do to you as you did when you deceived your brother's house and
shot at it; it is sad that this should have happened, you defiled yourself - if
you come to so much as borrow a shirt from me, be aware that you will be up
against real men."
This letter was
delivered to the Laird of Culzean and he wrote in answer as follows:
"Sir
I have received
your bullying letter and in answer I say I have done as much for you as you
ever did for me. As for your filthy slander I care not; but I vow that
you will not be able to carry out your foul intention towards me; I think you
caught glengoir [venereal
disease] on the bridge of
your nose last time you tried."
This answer being
sent back, the Laird of Bargany was heavily offended because his nose had been
struck by a golf ball by accident on the hills of Ayr .
On the receipt of this letter this was his reaction; but through the
mediation of relatives he was put under an assurance not to act for a time.
The Earl of Cassilis having returned from school remained neutral and
this had a strong influence on the Laird of Bargany.
Bond between
Auchendrayne and the Earl of Cassilis
The Laird of
Culzean, perceiving that this was getting out of hand, tried to get the
gentlemen of the country to think well of him by all means he could think of.
First he went to visit John Mure of Auchendrayne who was a godson of the
Laird of Bargany to ask him for his support. First he gave him the five
marks land of White
and Black Ganachts, with the two mark land of Mackmanstoun
At this time
there was one Gilbert Richard who was a relative of the [Stewart] Laird of Dunduff [http://theroyalhouseofstewart.com/descendants_of_the_royal_house_of_stewart_003.htm ]and this Gilbert had the right to a
small farm of my Lord Cassilis called Tandberg and another called Ferguson had
a claim to it. This Gilbert being left executor to one Thomas Legatt, his
godfather, who had willed some of his cattle, after he died, to Dunduff;
but Ferguson came to the Laird of Culzean and showed him that the Laird
of Dunduff had engineered this outcome, in contempt. Upon this my Lord
directed the Laird of Culzean with his household servants to the place of
Dunduff and with hammers break down the gate and take his goods, saying
that "If Dunduff had been there, he would rue taking my Lord's man's
gear"; he also said he wanted some of the house. Dunduff nursed a
grudge in his heart after this but he kept it to himself, waiting for an
opportunity to present itself.
But this time my
Lord of Cassilis was wooing the daughter of the Earl of Glencairn and after
they had met a few times and the time and place of the marriage was agreed, by
the advice of Culzean, he decided to visit France
The Earl of
Cassilis Takes Journey To France
Now my Lord of
Cassilis being on his journey to France
came to Edinburgh France
The Earl of
Cassilis Returns From France
Culzean was
reconciled in some measure and there was quietness in the country except for
some small quarrels between the Tutor and the Master over some particulars of
their own. The country was quiet up to the time that my Lord returned
from France
Quarrel
Between The Earl And The Master Of Cassilis
Now my Lord began
to be unkind to the Master his brother over information that as the Master
alleged that the Laird of Culzean [blank in the manuscript: presumably the original
was illegible]
And thus began a
coldness between them which continued until a time when the Master was staying
at my Lord's house in Maybole and he asked for the key to the gate as he wanted
to meet a relation in the town. When the Laird of Culzean heard this he
told my Lord that the Master had asked for the key in order to let in a man who
was to cut his throat. The Master admitted that he had asked for the key but
said that no man dare make the other accusation that had just been made. The
Laird of Culzean said that he said that the Master had asked for the key and he
was saying it again. The Master drew a dagger and struck at the Laird of
Culzean in my Lord's presence; at this my Lord sent the Master to be locked up
at Dunure where he remained for 20 days. In the meantime the Laird of
Culzean persuaded my Lord to make him the Tutor which he did. There was
nobody to argue against it but the Master and he was locked up. The Laird of
Culzean having achieved his aim thought nothing more of what was between the
Master and my Lord but word got to his mother's ears and she persuaded my Lord
Hamilton to write to my Lord to ask for the Master's liberty. At this, my
Lord sent him to the house of Lord Hamilton where he remained for a time.
There was a woman there named Agnes Bell who was carrying his child. [The Hamilton
[Historical Note: a Gudeman
is the same as a Laird but with the distinction that a Gudeman has property
granted him by his feudal lord and a Laird has property allotted to him by the
Crown.]
At this time,
John Baird, Laird of Kilhenzie died, and he had married a sister of the
Laird of Bargany as his second wife to whom he had left some victuals,
which the young Laird of Kilhenzie had taken from her by force.
She complained to her brother the Laird of Bargany who sent the young
Laird and ten or twelve horsemen to the place of Kilhenzie and broke
down the gate and took much victuals with them as was required for her and her
servants. On the day that the victuals were taken
from Kilhenzie my Lord and all his retainers were at Maybole at the
burial of the wife of John Chalmers of Trocquhane and because the Laird
of Kilhenzie was my Lord's supporter, my Lord regarded it as if the
same had been done to him and vowed to get even. He consulted with some of his
retainers and said he would go to Bargany that same night and take many
victuals from him, for he said he had brought explosives from Italy Ardstinchar
Castle
This being
planned by the Laird of Carlock, my Lord consulted with the Laird of Culzean
and the Gudeman of ...[blank]. When he had heard it all the
Laird of Culzean said he thought it was not the best way to deal with the
problem and he suggested a better way. For he said the Old Laird and the
Old Lady were honourable householders all their lives and would be greatly
lamented by everyone, and the young Laird had married a woman of the King's
house and her death would matter greatly to the King and Queen, and many
would think it cruel for innnocents to be put to death. He suggested a better
way - the young Laird and his brother are young and like to hunt in the fields,
so [ambush
and] kill them [then], and the old man will die for
sorrow. For he would have no heir to succeed him except Bennane who was a
debauched man. The end of his house would end his life. This
sounded a good idea to my Lord and so the first plan was halted and he set
about the second plan to slay the young men. The plan was revealed by the
Gudewife of Baltersan to the Old Laird of Bargany whereupon he sent to the
Laird of Culzean to tell him of the plan. Culzean answered that with my
Lord bent on such a plan he would have tried to talk him out of it, that he
would never have set about such a deed as he was a sister-son of the House of
Bargany and would not wish to spill their blood. This did not satisfy the young
men and they turned their hearts against him.
Plot To Murder
The Tutor Of Cassilis
This man [Culzean] had many enemies in the country and
therefore the Master of Cassilis as you have heard, perceiving this, and
himself an enemy convened with the Laird of Auchendrane and Dunduff who were
both malcontents as you have heard, at the meeting said the following: "If
I was in my brother's place I would not have used you as he has done; but he
has not the wit to do this [you can see his point],
it is the Laird of Culzean who has caused this to come about" and [he went
on to say] if they helped him [the Master]
to amend this wrong then he would be their ally till death." They
answered that if he would side with them, when he became Earl they would
hold him in as high regard as his brother and they would support him. At this,
they agreed on the pact.
Tumult in Edinburgh
At this time the
Laird of Bargany rode to Edinburgh Edinburgh Ardstinchar Castle
Marriage of
John Fifth Earl of Cassilis
Now upon 3rd of
November 1597 my Lord Cassilis married Dame Jean Fleming who had been wife to
Lord Thirlestane the late Chancellor without consulting his relatives.
She on finding my Lord in such anger with his brother pressed for him to
make [Hamilton The lady in question was a wealthy heiress of extremely mature years. This could be taken as one of many indications of greed in the young Earl
Death of the
Old Laird of Bargany
A little before
this the Old Laird of Bargany became very sick and the Laird of Culzean sent to
him asking that he could meet and speak with him before he died. As he
was about to die he was content to see Culzean and told his sons not to let or
hinder him. When Culzean came the old man was so sick he could hardly
speak but he said "Sir you have been very ungrateful, though I did you
many good deeds". Culzean answered "I hope to God you will give
me a fair hearing, though liars have said otherwise of me, but at this
time I ask only that God comfort you". And he left protesting that
if the Lord took Old Bargany then he would be a friend to his house and so took
his leave. The two young men did not seek to fight [Culzean] for the present. On the seventh
day of November God in his mercy took Old Bargany; he was the
noblest man in the country at that time. He was endowed with many great
virtues, First he feared God and was from the beginning on the right side
of religion. He was wise and courteous and stout and kind and such a
generous spender that his hospitality was the best there ever was in the land.
He was never in debt and lived within his means. He had 24 fine gallant
retainers each with two horses and finely dressed; his house was so well kept
that it was a wonder that he did not spend all his money on it. His wife
was Agnes Montgomery sister to [Hew Montgomerie]
the Earl of Eglinton who had borne him a great number of children but they all
died before him except two sons, the young Laird and Thomas [of Drummurchie] and four daughters, his eldest daughter
Dame Helen who was married to Hew Earl of Eglinton, and after his decease she
was married to John Graham of Knockdolian, knight; his second daughter Margaret
was married to one John Mure of Auchendrayne; his third was married to
Adam Boyd of Penkill; his youngest daughter was married to Allan, Master of
Cathcart. [Fergusson
in his book The White Hind makes a strong case for the Master of Cathcart -
surname Cathcart - to be the author of this book.]
Plot by The
Master of Cassilis and the Lairds of Auchendrayne to Murder The Laird of
Culzean
Now this noble
man having died, the Laird of Culzean raised summons on the old deed which he
had received from Black Bessie, as you heard before, of the lands of Newark Edinburgh
The King
Reconciles The Earl of Cassilis and the Laird of Bargany
At this time my
Lord Cassilis pursued the Laird of Bargany for arrears and alleged that he owed
the sum of 14000 marks. When this action came to court, Mr John
Russell, lawyer for the Laird of Bargany took exception to his client's
protestation and surrendered the case to my Lord who won his decree but it was
reduced, after which the Laird of Bargany obtained a suspension, then His
Majesty the King took up the case and decided the following: my Lord of
Cassilis should discharge the whole bill of 14000 marks and my Lord of Bargany
should pay to my Lord of Cassilis [blank]
at next Martinmas; for his part my Lord Casillis should discharge the the bill
with this provision - that if [Bargany]
did not pay the sum agreed by the time agreed then the whole bill would become
due. The King got them both to shake hands on this agreement, but in their
hearts there was still malice because that was not in the agreement. The
Laird of Bargany said that he had no reason to pay any of the sum and that my
Lord [Cassilis] would never have it or his heart.
Yet the day came and my Lord took the sum; despite appearances he handed
it over, he was under threat of the whole sum so he had the money ready
and handed it over. This was a great grief in Bargany's heart.
The Master of
Cassilis Murders One of The Earl's Tenants - his Marriage
At this time the
Laird of Culzean decided to award the tack of the land of [blank] to one MacIlwaine which my Lord had
previously promised to Patrick Richard. This Patrick Richard was foster
brother to the Master of Cassilis and for that cause the Master sent to
MacIlwaine and forbade him to take the man's land from him "or he would
beat out his brains!" This MacIlwaine being a proud man and having the
Laird of Culzean and the Sheriff of Galloway to support him, said he
would "take the land my Lord gave him". The Master receiving
this answer in a rage went to MacIlwaine and slew him. At this my Lord
was much offended and would not suffer [the Master]
to come in his presence. And the Master, remaining in Galloway
with the [McDowall] Laird of Gairsland fell in love with a sister
of his and married her which was against my Lord's will and he was more
offended than ever.
Feud Between
The Earl And The Laird Of Girvanmains
At this time the
Laird of Drommachreyne McAlexander came to my Lord of Cassilis and took a lease
of his tithes of Drommachreyne over the Laird of Girvanmains' head.
His house had always been tenants to my Lord of Cassilis house of these tithes
and the Lairds of Drommachreyne renewed these but
this Drommachreyne was a proud man and he now wanted to be tenant to
my Lord himself, and his man. The Laird of Girvanmains came to my Lord
and said he had done him wrong in giving his tithes to his own man over his
head and any gains he made through the deal would be small. My Lord said
"You dare not take issue with the man, because we know where you
live". The other said that [Drummachreyne] should repent of the deed and he could do what he liked.
My Lord said "You dare not trouble him, for fear of losing your
head." Then he told him to get back to his own house. The Laird of
Girvanmains rode away and thinking that the Laird of Drummachreyne was
coming after him he waited with his two servants that were with him, on a
moor called Craiddow behind a hillock and he saw him coming. His brother
the [McAlexander] Laird of Corseclays was with him and Oliver Kennedy of [blank] but they never struck a stroke in his
defence. Girvanmains pursued him and his two men, Gilbert McFiddis and
William McFidderis a boy who was the spy. They caught up with them on
horseback and struck [Drummachreyne] on
the head with a sword and slew him. When he heard of this, my Lord
was very offended at the deed and vowed to have retribution and put Girvanmains
to the horn and did all he could to have him killed and take his gear.
However there was
an agreement between the Laird of Culzean and Auchendrayne and this prevented
them from taking Girvanmains and getting retribution.
Feud Between
The Earl of Cassilis and his principal vassals in Galloway
Before this my
Lord had obtained a decree against all the gentlemen of Galloway such as the
Lairds of [McDowall, elsewhere styled Gartland or Garthland] Gairsland, [Adair] Kenhilt and [MacCulloch] Merton with the Sheriff of Galloway and
their relatives rode to his Castle of Inch in Galloway [Castle Kennedy] with forty horse in full gear with the
intention of executing his decree. The gentlemen of Galloway
seeing this gathered together with others and agreed that whoever my Lord tried
to dispossess they would defend him with their force. First my Lord
declared a court to be held in Glenluce to dispossess the Laird of Gairsland of
his [presumably tenancy]. At this the gentlemen of Galloway sent to him and asked that he treat them fairly
but he refused and demanded the full rigour of the law. The gentlemen
realizing this and realising that he would hold the court in the morning
gathered together, one hundred armed horsemen and said "My Lord may
think he is welcome here but the Laird of Gairsland says differently".
The Earl
Besieged in his House of Inche, Galloway
The way they came
was the Loch-end of the Inch where my Lord was [in those days the castle was on an island
in Loch Inch, only later was Castle Kennedy built where it is now]; my Lord had gathered some men to him in
case they came, so they issued from the island with the intent of sending
them back the way they came, but they would not withdraw and at length
there were parleys - no blood was drawn. The Galloway
men decided to surround the Earl's men because they knew he was short of
supplies. They thought that nobody in Galloway
would relieve him for he was on bad terms with Carrick and the Lairds of
Garleis [Stewart] and Lochinvar [Gordon] were with them. My Lord of
Cassilis realising the situation was most offended and could not get relief,
however he had with him the Minister of Colmonell and called upon
him and asked him to pretend that the Minister wanted to go to Kirk.
On those grounds they allowed him to pass. The Earl told the Minister to
go to Bargany and offer to make amends and regard him as kin till his life's
end if he would come to relieve the Earl. The Minister went to Ardstinchar at
night and followed the Earl's instructions diligently. Whereupon Bargany
sent for all his relatives and servants to come to him with all speed and with
forty horse he rode all night to a house of a servant of his called
Kirkcassy the house being a mile from Inch, and sent a gentleman to try
to find out what was going on, and asked him to tell my Lord that he was
there. He also asked the man to ask the Laird of [McDowall] Gairsland to come to him so they could
confer. They all came to him at Kirkcassy where he told them that my Lord
had asked him to come, but he just wanted to know what the matter was.
The Laird of Gairsland said "Sir you know that I and my house are
your servants and you are bound to support us and now I am about to lose my
office and possessions by my Lord, I have no doubt that you will do your
honourable duty to me as you always have done." The Laird of Bargany
answered "You know that in both our bonds the Earl of Cassilis is referred
to, and that I am not obliged to side with you in this; but if my Lord was to
do wrong and be unfair to you then I will support you to the last drop of my
blood! And if you try to kill my Lord, seeing that he has called
for me, I will defend him the best I can." They answered that
they did not want to pursue him but to defend themselves and their relations
from him. The Laird said that he would deal with my Lord and persuade him
to negotiate with them. They said they would abide by his judgement
whatever he would command.
On The
Mediation of The Laird of Bargany, They are Reconciled
The Laird on this
went to the Loch and went to my Lord but left
his retainers behind. At his coming my Lord was very glad and said Uncle
I thank you that you have done us this pleasure which we will never
forget." With his intercession Bargany brought a peaceful outcome to
the standoff but my Lord forgot his promise to Bargany after which [Bargany] was more aggrieved than ever.
[According to Agnew the Earl eventually settled with the Galloway Lairds through the good offices of the Sheriff of Galloway, Agnew]
[According to Agnew the Earl eventually settled with the Galloway Lairds through the good offices of the Sheriff of Galloway, Agnew]
Fresh Feud
Between The Lairds Of Bargany, Blairquhan, and the Earl of Cassilis
At about the same
time the Earl fell out with Kennedy of Blairquhan and others. They had
been on bad terms for a long time but relations had mediated an agreement and
on the invitation of Blairquhan the Earl had visited him with the intention of
staying for a day or two. The second day a messenger came from Culzean
saying that Blairquhan had plotted with Bargany to murder the Earl in his bed.
At this the Earl left via the back gate without saying goodbye.
Blairquhan was offended at being treated as treacherous and vowed to
avenge his honour against the rumour-mongers. Upon this there was a tryst
at Ayr between Lord Uchiltrie, The Laird of Bargany, Blairquhan, Girvanmains
and a band [agreement] "to die and lieff togidder in all
thair particulairis". Whereupon my Lord the Earl was very afraid.
Marriage of
Young Auchendrayne with the Daughter of Sir Thomas Kennedy of Culzean
After a time a
general amnesty was patched together excluding the Earl. The treaty
between Auchendrayne and Culzean had nearly expired so a new deal was
negotiated by mutual friends whereby the younger Auchendrayne, James, married
Helen the daughter of Culzean. With her he received a dowry of 4000 merks
for 3000 of which the Laird of Bargany was the debtor, Culzean letting
him off the 12000 marks dating from the Black Bessie dispute. The Laird
and he were made friends, Auchendrayne was no longer "on the
horn", Dunduff and Culzean became friends and even the Master of
Cassilis joined the agreement because the Earl had openly contemplated making [Hamilton] Lord Abercorn his heir with the
encouragement of his wife. The feud between Cassilis and Bargany
continued though.
Feud As To The
Drawing of The Tithes of Girvanmains
The tithes of the
ten-pound land of
Girvanmains Ardstinchar Castle
Plots To Take
The Earl's Life
The Earl was
aggrieved that the Laird of Bargany should gather such a large company in the
Earl's country and tried every means to cause him trouble: with this in mind he
demanded the arrears owed to him by Girvanmains. Bargany decided that it
would be best to kill the Earl. It is thought that he conspired on this with
Culzean and the Master of Cassilis. Cassilis had to ride to Galloway [through Bargany land] so Bargany gathered some friends at
Ardstinchar Castle including the younger Blairquhan and Girvanmains and they
decided to take the Earl's life as Culzean was not with my Lord, he being
allied with Auchendrayne.
Attempt to
Imprison the Laird of Auchendrayne
Culzean had
promised not to ride with Cassilis but he broke that promise so [Bargany] sent the Laird of Auchendrayne that
morning to Castle Kennedy to speak with Culzean about this. When he got
there Culzean asked him to take the boat to the island [where the old castle was] which he did, and they spoke for
an hour. Cassilis meanwhile had ordered that Auchendrayne should be kept
prisoner on the island. Cassilis at length himself came to the garden and
accused Auchendrayne and his associates of having designs on his life.
Auchendrayne rejected the charge and insisted that the person who had
made the accusation to withdraw it, if he was there. Immediately my
Lord was called away to dinner and Auchendrayne's man, on seeing that the
boat wasn't being watched, made a sign to his master. Auchendrayne,
aware of the danger he was in, took the boat along with [Kennedy of] Ardmillan's brother who was with him and
rowing over, leapt on their horses and rode away. [Again the Earl showing stupidity]
The Laird Of
Auchendrayne Escapes
They reached
Ballantrae where the friends of Bargany were assembled and Auchendrayne told
what had happened. The Laird of Bargany
was much offended and despatched the Gudeman of Ardmillan and young Carlton
Fresh Attempts
To Take The Laird of Culzean's Life
Shortly after
this, the Earl took out a decree stripping Kennedy of Blairquhan of Kelly
Castle and Killenhow, exciting the old
grudge between them to the point of fury. He caused the young Laird his son to
remain constantly with Bargany stirring up strife between them and from the
Earl's refusal to name the individual who had informed him of the design upon
his life it was concluded that the person was Culzean. As Culzean was riding to
Galloway ,
the young Laird of Blairquhan with Thomas Kennedy Bargany's brother, and
eight others went after him and lay in wait behind Ardmillan Hill at a place
called Glentressic. Auchendrayne however
had sent a letter on to Culzean to warn him, not because he wanted to save him
but because there was a band between them [!]
and he didn't want to be blamed for his death.
Culzean's servant was on the way to Auchendrayne to ask him what he
meant by the letter when he was seized by Bargany's party and detained some
time in expectation of his master's coming.
Culzean went to Edinburgh
Meanwhile in Edinburgh Paterson
Renewal of the
Feud Betwixt The Earl of Cassilis and the Laird of Bargany.
In the month of [blank] there came some servants of Bargany to
Maybole but they were bullied and driven out of town by the servants of the
Earl. Shortly after on their way to
Ballantrae the Earl's servants were compelled by Bennane and his retainers to
go round the town. After this Bennane went to Maybole with his brother Thomas
and a boy armed with a hagbut and proceeded to the Carne [the Earl's Castle in the
town www.maybole.org/places/maybolecastle/index.htm] and shouted if anyone wanted to come out
to him” and they, seeing him, sent out a relation of my Lord's named Antony
Kennedy of Balsarrocht and Patrick Rippeth brother of the Laird of
Rippeth. When Bennane saw them he rode
away, four miles to Treave House in
Kirkoswald. They said they called out to
him to stop but he disappeared down the road, so they caught the boy, took the hagbut off him then returned.
Plot To Murder
The Earl of Cassilis
Afterwards the
Earl rode to Galloway where he remained a long
time. The Laird of Bargany and the Master met in Glenapp and then in the Lady
Garland's house of Balsarrochs and then in Bargany, where some agreements were produced it is
thought with the intention of taking my Lord's life. Then my Lord travelled to Craigneill where he
stayed for a while. A little before this
Lady Bargany and her sister were riding to Ayr
with some others and my Lord saw them,
and sent out 20 horsemen to see who they were, who met them at Ballochmont near Maybole.
When they saw the Laird was not with them they rode away. Upon hearing this the Laird of Bennane went
to the heirs of Bargany saying that they had intended to take Bargany's life
and saying that the Earl was a beast and would wait for the time and the place
in which to murder Bargany. Bennane then asked for leave to solve the problem.
Bargany asked what could be done and Bennane answered that Cassilis was riding
from Craigneill to Maybole in the morning and then “we may do what we please”.
The Laird said “Do what ye think”.
Bennane asked Bargany's younger brother to join him which he did. And they with ten or twenty men laid in wait
for my Lord in the kale-yard [an abandoned old house without the roof, used to grow vegetables] of the Laird of Dalgorracheis, where my Lord was to ride the next morning,
and cut out holes in order to shoot my Lord.
That night as they lay in waiting,
Thomas' wife became sick and cried out for her husband, so that they sent a messenger and he had to
return and with his departure they all left.
It being almost daytime, they
were seen by some people who warned the Earl,
who changed his route to [blank]
and got to Maybole in safety and having found what he had heard to be
true, he was much offended and vowed to
get even and waited for the time and the place.
Deadly Feud
Betwixt The Earl of Cassilis and the Laird of Bargany.
In the month of
November there was a meeting at Craigneill between Sir John Graham of
Knockdolian and his wife [sister
of Bargany – the dispute seems to be about crucial family issues] and because they could not agree they
decided to meet again on the sixth of December in Ayr with the condition that
the Laird of Bargany should not be there [presumably for his safety's sake], only
The Laird of Carlton and Auchendrayne with some others. But Bargany, encouraged by Bennane and his
sister took to horse and accompanied them along with ten or twenty horsemen
riding to Ayr ,
passing the Bogend, within a
quarter mile of Cassilis gate.
The Earl saw them
and gathered all his retainers and servants and kept them together from Tuesday
till Friday, whilst spies watched
Bargany in Ayr to inform him when they left
town. Bargany was told of the danger but
he felt he had his retinue with him and also he held the tithes of the town and
therefore felt he could count on the town to provide followers to ride back
with him. Contrary to his friends' advice he set out from Ayr
on 11th December, a very
snowy day such that nobody can see a lance length in front of him. He had
eighty men on horse and on foot. Shortly
after leaving town they saw the Cassilis scouts William Cunninghame and Hew
Pennandgow at which Auchendrayne counselled Bargany to return, because his
followers were not those he could count on and the scouts would not fail to let
their master know that he was on his way.
And so saying Auchendrayne rode to the Brig O' Doon
and first took the two Cassilis scouts.
They sent Cunninghame on to Ayr on his
word, and took Pennandgow with them as a
free friend for he was of the same blood as Auchendrayne.
Fatal
Encounter Between The Earl of Cassilis and the Laird of Bargany
The Laird of
Bargany came to the Bridge O' Doon and stayed
there, gathered his retinue together and
said “Sirs I am here to protest before God,
I don't seek the blood of my Lord in any manner but to ride home, if he will let me. And if my Lord does pursue me I hope you will
do your duty as befits men; and he that does not want to do this with me can go
now.” And they all answered “We will die in your defense if he pursues you!” And so they rode forward, dividing into two companies, one with himself and the other with the young
Laird of Carlton.
There was with
him the Lairds of Auchendrayne, Cloncaird, his brother Thomas, Gilbert Kennedy of Knockdaw, a servant of Auchendrayne's called James
Kennedy with two others Edward Irving his page and Thomas McAlexander and some
others I need not name. The rest were
all with Carlton Ayr
would have begun to shoot at this point but Bargany stayed them saying “I will
not try to kill my Lord nor anyone that comes after me.” He then moved onward riding down the Bog side
of Dinene [variously
spelt place a mile north of Maybole]
in order to avoid the Earl's forces. But
the latter followed on the other side. At the foot of the bog there were turf
dykes to which the hagbutters on both sides rode, the one taking the head of
them the other the foot. The Earl's men
began shooting first. Bargany seeing
that his hagbutters were liable to be attacked because they were near the
Earl's men, went to them. My Lord's musketeers seeing him come forward
shot at him and the horsemen with him.
At the foot of the bog there was a small burn which the Laird and his
men had to cross; here Gilbert Kennedy's horse was slain and also the Laird's
brother Thomas's bridle was shot in two so that he was thrown and his shoulder
was put out of joint. None crossed the
stream save Bargany, the Auchendraynes and Cloncaird, James Bannatyne [a crucial figure at the
end of this affair] and
Edward Irving. For some reason the Laird
was not supported by his cavalry – and it cannot have been due to lack of
willingness to fight on the part of the men of Ayr . The group who had crossed the stream came
under fire from the Earl's musketeers then were charged by the Earl's cavalry
led by Captain Forster or Forrester.
They resisted despite the uneven odds and combat continued for a
spell. On the Earl's side young Laird [McIlwaine] Grimat was struck through the chin and
he and his horse struck in the ear. Row
Cunningham, Pochquhairn's brother was struck in the knee with a lance and out
at the buttock. Captain Foster's horse
was injured by swords and his pistolet struck out of his hand. His steel helmet
protected his head from many blows with a sword. Richard Spense, Master of my Lord's household
was slain by Cloncaird. On the Laird's
side the Laird himself was slain,
Auchendrayne shot and injured in the thigh and his horse also, James
Bannatyne's horse was slain, Edward Irving the page was slain by the stroke of
a lance and John McAlexander was hurt with a bullet in the thigh.
The Laird of
Bargany Defeated and Mortally Wounded
But now to speak
of the noble youth, how gallantly he behaved, my pen cannot express it for
against the five there were thirty horsemen who all engaged in the fight. When there was only himself left to
fight, Bargany rode hard at the Earl
shouting “Where is my Lord himself? Let
him now break his promise to me!” The
horsemen around Cassilis immediately assailed Bargany, especially Hew Kennedy
of Garryhorne and Patrick Rippeth and Quentin Craufurd of Sillyhoil the
younger, Garryhorne broke a lance on the Laird and the others struck at him
with swords and so forced him to retire.
Then a fellow named John Dick who had been favoured by Bargany before
and had never suffered an injury at his
hand, threw a lance at him and it went through his head and his throat as he
was fighting. The lance broke in him and
stuck in his throat, preventing him from
breathing. Quentin Craufurd struck him
in the face with his sword now that he could not defend himself, however his horse being a very good gelding
carried him back to his men where he fell dead
being unable to breathe. [Clearly he was able to breathe a bit as he
survived about a week, see below.]
By this time a
number of Bargany's followers seeing the superior force at the Earl's command
and their wounded leaders had left the
field. Those remaining took him up and
pulling the lance from his throat carried him on horseback in their
retreat. Some of Auchendrayne's people
took him to Dineme [also
styled Dinene or Dinehame, a mile north
of Maybole] a quarter of a mile away where he sent his
men away saying that they could not defend him and he did not want them to be
killed too. A boy remained to tend him. Shortly afterwards the Earl came to the barn
where he lay and would have killed him there and then, but his men counselled
him that Bargany would die anyway, or if
not Cassilis should have him executed in a legal fashion – for the Earl was the
Judge for the whole area. He was kept in
Maybole for 24 hours then sent to Ayr where he
showed concern for the safety of his friends.
Cassilis appealed to the King in Edinburgh
Although the incident is not recounted in the Historie, Agnew describes an incident not long before this battle in which Bargany and his men lay in wait for the Earl at a ford on the Stinchar river and would have assassinated the Earl but for the presence of Sir Thomas Kennedy of Culzean in the party. Agnew says that afterwards Mure went to Culzean and berated him for being with the Earl at which he was captured by the Earl. This implies that Sir Thomas had prior knowledge of the plot and bravely accompanied the Earl to prevent his assassination. In general this incident puts a different slant on the tale and shows that at best young Bargany allowed himself to be misled by Mure of Auchendrane and at worst was just as capable of murder as the Earl.]
Although the incident is not recounted in the Historie, Agnew describes an incident not long before this battle in which Bargany and his men lay in wait for the Earl at a ford on the Stinchar river and would have assassinated the Earl but for the presence of Sir Thomas Kennedy of Culzean in the party. Agnew says that afterwards Mure went to Culzean and berated him for being with the Earl at which he was captured by the Earl. This implies that Sir Thomas had prior knowledge of the plot and bravely accompanied the Earl to prevent his assassination. In general this incident puts a different slant on the tale and shows that at best young Bargany allowed himself to be misled by Mure of Auchendrane and at worst was just as capable of murder as the Earl.]
The Laird of
Auchendrayne Liberated
Bargany
successfully appealed to the King that Auchendrayne, who had been taken
prisoner, be set free. The commission was denied to the Earl. When he was
imprisoned Auchendrayne signed an agreement that he would not trouble the Earl
again but as it was signed under duress,
when he was freed he said that the agreement should not stand.
Death of The
Laird of Bargany – His Character
Meanwhile
Bargany's injuries became mortal. Doctor
Low who was treating him did nothing but bind up his wounds without regard to
the damage all the flowing blood was doing to his heart. Bargany realised he had no more time left and
he made out his Will and left his wife as Executor. Then his heart gave out and he died. Bargany was a gentleman of great
personal worth and manly
accomplishments. He was the bravest man
in any land of high stature, well
made, his hair black, a comely face, the
bravest horseman and the ablest at all pastimes. He was fierce and fiery and very nimble. He
was about the age of 25 years when he was slain but of his age he was very
wise. If only he had had some experience
to leaven his wits he might have survived.
It was a terrible loss to the
whole country. After his death he was laid in the Kirk in Ayr
in a coffin of lead for a long time whilst his funeral was prepared.
The Earl of
Cassilis Obtains Remission From The King
Immediately after
this awful day my Lady Cassilis rode to Edinburgh
Lady Bargany
Purchases Her Son's Ward
The Lady Bargany
rode to Edinburgh
Lord Ochiltree
Gets Gifts of the Respites Granted to the Laird of Bargany's Followers
My Lord Ochiltree
got the Gifts of Respites for those who were with Bargany on that day and a
command to the Treasurer to give Remissions to those who were with my Lord
Ochiltree. And immediately my Lord raised letters against those that were with
the Laird for the killing of his man Richard Spense and got them all to the
horn for none-compliance. At this Lord Ochiltree made sure their property was
safe, for Cassilis was after their blood
and their gear. But because of the
letters those that were with Bargany were mostly eager to sue for clemency with
the Earl. Only Thomas of Drummurchie the
Laird's brother, the Laird of Cloncaird,
and a few others held together alongside Lady Bargany. Auchendrayne was sick with his wounds. Nobody
cared what Bennane would do as he had already proved so untrustworthy. The Earl,
now free of any legal complications worked to get Bargany's old
supporters on his side.
Auchendrayne
Employed To Reconcile The Lairds of Drummurchie, Cloncaird and the Laird of
Culzean
Seeing that the
Laird of Culzean had procured exoneration for the Earl, Lady Bargany was infuriated and did all she
could to kill him and spoke to Thomas and Cloncaird to that effect. The first time this became an issue was when
Culzean was going home and the two were watching him from Cauff [Culzean] Hill and one said, there he is, the man we want to have”. But he
was too near to his own gate. But these
words came to the ears of some of Culzean's servants and they told him. At this he sent to Auchendrayne and he asked
him to arrange a truce between them. He
did this and got Thomas to concede that he would not pursue the feud with the
Earl over his brother's death.
Auchendrayne asked them and Culzean to come to his house and they did.
He had prepared a document to seal this agreement for them to sign. He had the two on one side in one chamber and
Culzean in another and he asked the latter if they should be brought together. Culzean said it should be done after dinner
when it can be done 'quietly'. After
dinner he asked Culzean either to go above to them or for him to bring the two
men to Culzean. Culzean said that this
could never be kept secret and that the Earl would be furious that he was
making deals with his enemies in such a way, behind his back. He said he would
prefer to bide time and try to talk the Earl round to agree to this deal. He said if the Earl did not agree he would
abide to the letter of the agreement but he would not sign. When this was put to Thomas he said that he
too was in as great danger from Bargany's widow - if she heard of this
agreement. At this Auchendrayne rode back to Culzean with the Laird and Thomas
and Cloncaird went their own way with their retainers.
Culzean rode to Galloway after this.
Where he stayed for a time. The
Lady Bargany came from Edinburgh Galloway they set a trap for
him but he got away, it was said by Auchendrayne's
intervention.
Quarrel
Between The Earl of Cassilis and the Laird of Culzean
At this time my
Lord returned from Edinburgh to Maybole and the
Laird of Culzean hearing that his eldest son had died in France and the office of Provost of the College of Maybole Woodland
Murder of
Culzean
On the day of 11th
May 1602 the Laird of Culzean was planning to ride to Edinburgh Maybole School Ayr on the dawn of the 12th.
The Laird of
Culzean came to Greenan
Castle
His man Lancelot
brought the body to Greenan
Castle
Measures Taken
For Detecting The Murderers of Culzean
Within four or
five days at the time of his burial which was in the little Aisle of the
College Kirk of Maybole, my Lord of
Cassilis, my Lord Cathcart, the Laird of Craigie and the Laird of
Barnbarrach, called for the Schoolmaster
and asked him to give the truth of the matter, that he had written the letter
and given it to the poor Scholar who had brought it back again saying that he
had met the servant of Auchendrayne who had said that his master was out. The boy confessed the same tale. The pair were released.
Auchendrayne
Charged of Being Accessory to the Murder
The Lady
Culzean, her heart filled with malice
against Auchendrayne would not hear reason and insisted that he was privy to
the plot and ensured that he was named in the Letters against the slayers of
the Earl despite all his protestation.
She pursued him despite everything.
Until he gained a remission from Lord Ochiltree at the price of 1000
merks and appeared with many noble friends.
At this Lady Culzean decided not to pursue Auchendrayne. [There was a tradition that
if a noble was accused of a crime then he would assemble a large entourage of
his prominent supporters for moral support.
Evidently it seems to have worked in this case.]
The rest were all
denounced at the horn. All relations
were instructed not to communicate or help Thomas or his cohorts and they [Thomas et al] were to leave the country never to
return.
The Earl and
Cassilis are Reconciled
My Lord became
reconciled with his brother. The Master
swore to avenge the murder and asked for the assistance of all my Lord's
retainers, but most thought that he
would not be sincere in this from his old friendship with Auchendrayne [actually the
reconciliation was due to money.
Cassilis promised the Master a huge bounty for the killing of
Auchendrayne - and sealed it in a document]. Auchendrayne was the most pursued of all of
them. His house was in woodlands and so
he left for Newark
The Master of
Cassilis Lies In Wait For Auchendrayne
Now the Master
sought revenge. He came to Newark Hill
with sixteen horsemen, in order to catch
Auchendrayne between his houses but by chance Lady Auchendrayne was passing
with a servant and she saw them and sent her man servant to warn her
husband. He asked for assistance from
his friends in Ayr and when they appeared the
Master was outnumbered and had to retire in shame.
Skirmishes
Between the Master of Cassilis and the Laird of Auchendrayne
At this time my
Lord rode to London [King James VI being there,
now King James I of England
The Laird of
Drummurchie Besieges And Fires The House of Auchinsoull and Takes The Countess
of Cassilis and Their Household Prisoner
Upon the 16th
day of April my Lady Cassilis rode to Galloway with the Master and all my
Lord's household and John Dick who had slain the Laird of Bargany which had
drawn the ire of his brother [Drummurchie]. My Lady remained in Galloway
until the 21st when she wished to return to Carrick of which Thomas
got intelligence. He being accompanied
by James Stewart son of the last Chancellor, Walter Mure of Cloncaird with nine
horsemen and 23 hagbutters came to Mure of Auchendrayne and there waiting for
my Lady and the Master and the whole household of my Lord with 15
horsemen. They saw the hagbutters
waiting and the nine horsemen waiting to charge and they fled to the house of
Duncan Crawford called Auchinsoull.
Thomas followed and laid siege to it,
setting fire to the house and causing them to escape. My Lady parlayed with Thomas at this
point. Duncan Crawford had some friends
with him Andrew Cunningham brother to the Laird of Poquharne, the Young Laird
of Grimatt and Quinten Craufurd of Sillyhoull.
The three had assurance from Thomas that as they were not with my Lord
and his retinue. The assurance was
mediated through the Laird of Carse and Lochnorris. Duncan Craufurd communicated with them to
Thomas who said he knew that John Dick had slain his brother and if they gave
him up the rest would be safe. The
gentlemen passed on this message at which John Dick fled. He fled behind a dyke and they did not see
him until he was far away, far enough
for his horse to get him away from the pursuers. They returned and took the Master, Andrew Cunningham, the Young Laird of
Grimatt and Quinten Craufurd of Sillyhoull and William Kennedy called William
The Sigour and John Baird the brother of the Laird of Kilkenzie [?]. During the
struggle they slew one John McGraham.
The rest, this John Dick excepted, rode to London
[Meanwhile] the Master was released by Thomas, and
by the mediation of the Laird of Garland,
his god-brother, at the Laird of Carse and Lochnorris's request my Lord
Ochiltree and his younger brother Josias and Auchendrayne got Grumatt, Andrew
Cunningham and young Grummatt freed: the Lady Girvanmains interceded for John
Baird and got his release.
Proclamation
That None Should Reset Drummurchie etc
Now my Lord
returned home from London
Plot To Take
The Earl of Cassilis' Life
About this time
my Lord riding to Hamilton, the
relatives of the House of Bargany waited for him at the Monkton, yet my Lord received word of this and he
stayed in Ayr whilst he sent for more
retainers then rode on. And being in Edinburgh he laid charges against the supporters of
Bargany before the Council and got most of them brought to the horn and did not
meet any of them on the way back home from Edinburgh
The Laird of
Stair's Brother [Dalrymple] Taken by The Earl of Cassilis and Hanged
His Lordship
riding to Galloway met by chance Thomas Dalrymple of Stair and the night being
dark he being at the Bridge of Girvan, was upon the Earl's men before he knew
it and he was taken, not being well
horsed, and was badly hurt. My Lord took him to Craigneill and on the morning
tried him [for
no crime!] and hanged him
from a tree by the Gate of
Craigneill, he being the Laird of
Bargany's sister-son though he was also related to the Earl. He was brother to the Laird of Stair a
handsome small man and “werry kynd. He
was kyndly handlitt, quha was ane manne that had neuer offendit manne”.
The Laird of
Cloncaird Revenges Dalrymple's Death
Now to avenge of
this act Walter Mure of Cloncaird and Thomas Wallas the page raided the Earl's
Estate of Inch in Galloway and there in the house of Mathew Miller set upon
David Girvan, son and heir of John Girvan of Calliboliston and slew him, he being my Lord Cassilis' Master of Works
for his new house at Auchins. My Lord
was highly offended at this and pursued them with renewed vigour.
The Laird of
Drummurchie Escapes To France
Thomas was
persuaded by the advice of the Lady Bargany and his wife and god-brother Josias
Stewart to flee to France
Death of The
Laird of Cloncaird
The young man
seeing this and that he was so evilly rewarded by Thomas, who had chosen a
stranger to go to France and refused to take him, took a fierce melancholy and died.
This was a great loss for he was both stout and kind and if he had lived
longer he would have been “ane werry fyne manne”.
Auchendrayne
Gets A Gift Of The Ward of Cloncaird
After the death
of Cloncaird my Lord got the gift of his forfeiture. He had already possessed the Castle and put
ten or twelve men in there. But Auchendrayne who had the gift of the Ward
raised a charge and went to Cloncaird,
waiting till the keepers went out and then seized it – there was only a
boy left inside.
At this the Earl
was furious and vowed to get equal with Auchendrayne. He charged Auchendrayne to appear before the
Privy Council which he did. Then the
Earl proceeded to allege that Auchendrayne was complicit in the murder of
Culzean. Then the Council imprisoned
Auchendrayne in Edinburgh
Castle
My Lord, seeking to destroy the House of Bargany
turned his attentions to Bennane and took him from Ayr, imprisoning him in Edinburgh Castle
Death of the
Laird of Blairquhan
At this time the
Laird of Blairquhan died who was a very noble man and the best of his
House. He was never deceiving to any
man. He built the House of Blairquhan
which is the finest to be found of any Baron's house. He
was the finest of hosts. He had
but two sons, the Laird that succeeded
him called John, and his second son
James who was Laird of Croceltoune. He
had three daughters; the eldest was married to Lord Ochiltree, the second to
[blank] and the youngest to the Laird of Girvanmains.
Lady Bargany
Pursues Auchendrayne At Law
The Lady Bargany
was strongly influenced by her brother Josias [Stewart] who turned her against all the friends of the House. And among the rest she raised a Summons of
Declarator on the gift of Escheat [forfeit]
she had of Auchendrayne and would not let him be. This greatly angered Auchendrayne as he had
been taken for communicating with Thomas and been so much distressed for the
cause of the House.
Lady Bargany's
Sickness And Death
She being sick of
“eittik” [tuberculosis] had taken medicine from Doctor
Martyn. He being in London London Ayr
where she was met by all the relations and retainers, and she was laid in St John's
Josias Stewart
Becomes the Tutor of Bargany
The friends of
the House convened at the Kirk of Girvan to put the affairs of the House in
order, because Thomas was the King's rebel and could not be Tutor. Bennan was entitled to the office but he was
a vain man. When he heard of this, Josias Stewart rode to Edinburgh Ayr and asked for all Bargany's relations to meet him and
he promised to be their master and defend them especially from
Auchendrayne. But he didn't think he
would have to fulfill his promise.
The
Magnificent Funeral Obsequies of The Laird and Lady Bargany
At this time Lord Abercorn said that the
funeral should be on the 25th of September [1605] in the New Kirk of Ballantrae which the
Lady had had built for her husband and where she had built up a great and
glorious tomb and indeed Josias made great preparations for the funeral both in
Bargany and Ardstinchar. The preparations were painstaking. When the day came there was many Nobles, the
Earl of Eglinton and Abercorn,
Winton, the Lords of Sempill, Cathcart, Loudoun and Ochiltree. The Lairds of Bombie, Blairquhan and Gairland
and a great number of followers which I cannot express. His honours were borne by the Gudeman of
Ardmillan, the Gudeman of Kirkhill with
many more of their relations. His sister
son Young Auchendrayne bore the banner of Revenge on which was painted his
portrait with all his wounds, with his
son sat at his knee and this legend written between his hands “Judge and
revenge my cause O Lord” and so it was carried to Ayr but very honourably to
the number of a thousand Gentlemen on horseback and laid in the tomb.
Measures
Proposed For Securing The Interests Of The Young Laird of Bargany
The burial being
over the relations desired that the property should be put in responsible hands
and that the commodity of the living should come to the child's use. My Lord promised that this would be done. The most earnest in this was
Auchendrayne. A great argument arose
between him and Josias Stewart because Josias pursued his escheat [forfeit] and did all he could against him.
Auchendrayne
Again A Prisoner
At this time
Ardmillan and Auchendrayne were in Edinburgh
The Laird of
Ardmillan Attempts to Procure The Tutory of Bargany
Ardmillan by
Auchendrayne's advice applied before the Steward of Corcorberie to be Tutor to
the Laird and also there was a William Kennedy who testified that being with
the Laird at the time of his death he had written a testament with his own hand
that in case his wife Janet Stewart died,
Thomas Kennedy of Ardmillan should be Tutor. This William Kennedy was the Laird of
Ardmillan's bastard brother's son. He
told this to Lady Auchendrayne who told her husband. He promised to get the Tutory for Ardmillan. But Josias hearing of this got to William and
asked him to destroy the letter, which
he successfully convinced him to do.
William said that he had made it up in order to get the property for
Ardmillan. And Ardmillan had to drop his
challenge.
Death of the
Dowager Lady Bargany
At this time the
old Lady Bargany died, who was a noble woman
and most noble in all her affairs. By
her death Josias Stewart got the whole living of Bargany in his hands.
The Laird of
Drummurchie Resides In Ireland
Thomas
Drummurchie, the Tutor of Bargany that should have been, was all this time in
Ireland with a friend, Sir Hew Mongomery
and he was well entertained as were several of those who had attended the
slaughter of Culzean.
Auchendrayne
and His Son Attack The Laird of Garriehorne
In the month of
October 1607 Auchendrayne, his son and a servant were coming from Ayr to Auchendrayne and at a place before the town called
the Foullveir [Foul
Vennel] they saw Kennedy of
Garriehorne one of the attackers of Bargany.
With him were his two brother sons and Gilbert Fergusson of
Dunduff, Thomas Fergusson, brother to
the Gudeman of Threff and Gilbert McHareine with one Walter McCaw. Upon
meeting they shot pistols at each other then took up swords at which the
Young Laird of Auchendrayne was hurt on the middle finger with a sword. But the
Provost and his men were able to separate them though they could not be
reconciled.
The Old And
Young Lairds of Auchendrayne Accused of The Murder of William Dalrymple
At this the Earl
and his retainers renewed their onslaught against Auchendrayne and his
son, and their servant. They were
determined to prove that Auchendrayne had done away with the boy who had
carried the letter from the Schoolmaster on the day Culzean was murdered [here the Historie comes to
a sudden end].
2009
Conclusion
The murder of
Dalrymple occurred in September 1607 and the conviction of the Mures of
Auchendrayne only happened in July
1611. They were endlessly cross-examined
and even tortured by the “bottis” or boots but would not admit guilt. Public opinion
turned in their favour but the King was determined that they were guilty and
kept them imprisoned which many thought
was an abuse of his power. Eventually
the Earl of Abercorn succeeded in getting a witness James Bannatyne in
Chapeldonan, a tenant and servant of Auchendrayne who admitted to involvement. When Auchendrayne was imprisoned again, the
Young Laird of Auchendrayne had Bannatyne sent to Ireland Scotland ,
to his house in Paisley and extracted a
testimony from him. This was, it was
said, because the Mures had threatened
his life and partly due to threats from Abercorn. The Mures were confronted by Bannatyne but
they strongly denied his statement.
However the facts
tended to stack up against them. After
the killing of Culzean they had kept the boy in hiding, then sent him to the Laird of Skelmorlie in
Arran then to John Mure of Fleet to serve in Flanders
with the Duke of Buccleuch's regiment.
He did not die in the Army as might have been expected. Upon his return he was taken again and kept
at Walter Mure of Glenhead's house and at Chapeldonan. Eventually Auchendrayne junior confessed to
the killing.
The two
Auchendraynes were executed in 1611 at the Market Cross in Edinburgh
Translator's Summary
It is the opinion
of some people that history is written by the winners and therefore cannot be
trusted. This cannot be said to be the
case regarding the Historie. No
character, including even the King, emerges with any credit, except a few of the older, more peripheral figures who are eulogised at
death.
In the light of
what the Earl got away with and the extermination of the Bargany family to whom
the Auchendraynes were allied and married, it seems entirely unfair that they
were painted by such as Walter Scott as villains. Culzean was guiltier than most. He was clever (except for choice of his last
leisurely ride), not an unreasonable man
at times, and he was the senior Kennedy and should have shown some moral
leadership. He stirred the Earl up at crucial
moments and colluded in many of his excesses.
The Earl was impulsive, had no morals (look at the example set by his
father!), and was clearly not very smart.
He was highly likely to value Culzean's word, the latter being his Tutor
since he was a boy.
The younger Earl
of Bargany was a tragic figure but he was not above sanctioning assassination
if it suited him. He encouraged less
worthy individuals such as his brother and Bennane in this regard. Having done so he acted hypocritically and
stupidly by acting the martyr when Cassilis came to assassinate him. His wife exacerbated the already murderous
atmosphere by demanding vengeance after her husband's death, when Drummurchie and Auchendrayne the elder
realised that it had all gone too far and wished to mend some bridges, she prevented them from doing so and sowed
the seeds for the further tragedies that followed.
On a more comical
note, Kennedy of Bennane is the butt of
many an acid jibe from the author throughout this tale (described as debauched
and unreliable) despite his being the closest related branch to Bargany. The episode in which he takes a boy with a
hagbut to Maybole
Castle Ayr . Later he adds insult to injury by reconciling
with John Dick, Bargany's killer. Josias Stewart, the brother of Lady Bargany
appears as a rather sinister figure-
usurping the Tutorship from Ardmillan and getting control of the
property of his sister upon her death. Thereafter
he presided over the frittering away of the heir's inheritance according to Paterson
There seems to be
something of 'the love that dare not speak its name' between Cloncaird and
Drummurchie, when Cloncaird dies of
heartbreak when Drummurchie doesn't take the former into exile with him and
instead goes with 'a stranger'. There was a thriving gay scene amongst the
Scottish nobility. King James VI was
intimate with his male favourites (who included another Kennedy, John of Baltersan).
Perhaps the most unsettling
figure is King James. The King's tactic of solving disputes by getting the
rival parties drunk together is naive in the extreme. He allows the abuses of
the Earl to go unpunished whilst allowing the same Earl to be judge and jury on
those whom he severely provoked, wronged, plotted against and in some cases
murdered at will. In the Borders at that
time he had ordered the rounding up of thousands of admittedly lawless reivers
and exiling them to Ulster and elsewhere - using the equally lawless reiver
lord and his retainers, Scott of Buccleuch as his instrument. There were many
other dark deeds committed in the name of James VI but that is another book...
In general it can
be said at that time, murders committed in Scotland
Background to
the Roasting of The Abbot of Crossraguel
This was a
terrible deed which still echoes down through Scottish history. Pitcairn provides this additional testimony
of Dr Irving in his Life of George Buchanan. It sheds more light on the rapacious old Earl
and also gives further insight into the kind of man Sir Thomas Kennedy of
Culzean really was. The following is
translated from the Old Scots.
In 1564 Mary
Queen of Scots rewarded [the
great Scots scholar] George
Buchanan with the temporalities of the Abbey which was £1000 Scots. The Abbott Quintin Kennedy and brother to
Buchanan's old pupil The Earl of Cassilis had just died. About the time that Buchanan was appointed
Preceptor To The King he began to be concerned for his safety and his
pension. Buchanan made a statement that
the Earl had entered the Abbey and said that he would not let Buchanan have the
temporalities unless he was compelled to.
There was a meeting of "The Lords of Secret Council" - the
Privy Council- at which the Earl was ordered to hand over the Abbey and lands
to Buchanan "under the pane of rebellion" and if he failed he would
be 'put to the horn'.
[Some years later] Master Allan Stewart friend to Captain
James Stewart of Cardonall, by means of the Queen's corrupted court obtained
the Abbacy of Crossraguel. The Earl
thinking himself greater than any King in these parts, decided he would have
the whole benefice of the Abbey as he had much else besides and because it
would not be given to him he devised a plan.
Master Allan in the company of the Laird of Bargany and his
retainers, was enticed by the Earl to
come and make good cheer with him. This
simple man was misled into spending some days in Maybole with Thomas Kennedy [of Culzean, later Tutor of
Cassilis ] father brother to
the Earl. Afterwards Stewart visited
Crossraguel with a few friends and the Earl put his plan into action. And so, as King of the country, he arrested
Master Allan and carried him to the Castle of Dunure where for a season he was
honourably treated (if that were possible for a prisoner) but after that time
the Earl realised he could not get the service of the lands of Crossraguel as
he wished and so he set in motion a plan that he thought would secure what food
and drink could not achieve.
And so Master
Allan was carried to a secret chamber and with him went the honourable Earl and
his worshipful brother and such as was appointed to be servants at that
banquet. In the chamber there was a
great iron chimney, under it a fire but otherwise there was no great provision
to be seen. The first course was as
follows "My Lord Abbot" said the Earl "It would be best for you
to say that you are here of your own free will because we dare not commit you into
the hands of others." The Abbot answered "Would you, my Lord, want me
to sign a statement to that effect? because in truth I am no way here of my own
free will and I take no pleasure in your company." "But you will remain with me
nonetheless" said the Earl. "I cannot resist your will" said the
Abbot, "in this place-" "Ye man then obey me" said the
Earl. And with that certain letters were
presented to him amongst which were a five year tack and a nineteen year tack
and a Charter of Feu of all the lands of Crossraguel with all the clauses
necessary for the Earl to "haift him to Hell!. For this adulterie, facriledge, oppreffione,
barbarous creweltie and thift heaped vpon thift diferve Hell, the great King of
Carrick can no more efschape Hell, for ever, nor the imprudent Abbot efchaped
the fyre for a ceffone, as followes."
After that the
Earl espied repugnance and that he could not achieve his purpose by fair means
he commanded his cooks to prepare the banquet [what manner of men must these cooks have
been?] And so first they
fleeced the sheep, that is to say they took off the Abbot's clothes even to his
bare skin, and next they tied him to the chimney. his legs to the one end and his arms to the
other and they began to build the fire, sometimes to his buttocks, sometimes to
his legs, sometimes to his shoulders and arms.
And so that the roast would not burn but would roast in it's juices they
did not spare the oil. (Lord look at
such cruelty!). And that the crying of
the miserable man should not be heard, they gagged his mouth. (It may be
suspected that the King's mother was there at the Castle). In that torment they held the poor man whilst
he oftimes cried out for God's sake to dispatch him, for he had enough gold in
his purse to buy powder [drugs?] to
deaden his pain. The famous King of
Carrick and his cooks perceiving the roasting to be sufficient commanded it to
be taken from the fire and the Earl began the grace in this manner:
"Benedicte Jesus Maria! [a clear sign that the Earl was not an adherent of the
reformed Church or perhaps the author was trying to smear the Earl as a
Catholic] you are the most
obstinate man that I ever saw! If I had
know that you would be so stubborn I would not for a thousand crowns have
treated you so! I never did so to a man,
before you." And yet he returned to
the same practice within two days, and ceased not till he had obtained his
purpose that is that he got all the letters signed as well as a half-roasted
hand could do it! The Earl thought
himself safe enough for as long as he had the half-roasted Abbot in his keeping
and yet being ashamed of his presence by reason of his cruelty left the place
of Dunure in the hands of certain of his servants and the half-roasted Abbot as
their prisoner. The Laird of Bargany, with whom the Abbot had been when he was
enticed away realising that he had been detained (but not the extremity) sent
to the Court and raised Letters of Deliverance of his person according to the
order, if disobeyed, the Earl would be denounced as a rebel for
his contempt and put to the horn. But hope
was there none that either the afflicted would be delivered or that the
purchaser of the letters would get them assented to by the Court, for in that time God was despised and the
lawful authorities were held in contempt in Scotland by those, including the
Earl, who waited in hope of the sudden return of the regiment of that cruel
murderer of her own husband [Mary Queen of Scots].
This was despite the fact that he had solemnly sworn more than once to uphold
the rule of the young King and of the Regent.
The true report and narrative of this fact is to be seen in this Act
made before the Privy Council written by Alexander Hays' hand.
Act of Privy
Council Apr 27 1571
At Stirling the 27 April 1571. Regarding the complaint made by Allan Stewart
Commendator of Crossraguel, against Gilbert Earl of Cassilis, Thomas Master of
Cassilis his brother and their accomplices contained in the said Mr Allan's
supplications which is as follows:
Unto your Grace
and Lords of Secret Council, your servant Allan Stewart humbly ..[to be continued]
Bibliography
The Historie of
The Kennedyis edited by Robert Pitcairn. 1830
The Wars Of The
Bruces by Colm McNamee 1997
The White Hind by
Sir James Fergusson of Kilkerran
History of the
Counties of Ayr and Wigton Volume 2 : Carrick
by James Paterson. 1863
The Life and
Times of James Kennedy, Bishop of St Andrews
by Annie Dunlop. 1950
History of the
Lands And Their Owners in Galloway by P.H.
McKerlie. 1879
Glossary
Bottis - torture
instrument designed to crush the foot and leg.
Commission - an
officially sanctioned 'posse'
Hagbut/Hackbut -
arquebus: an early kind of firearm.
Master - younger
brother of a Lord or Laird
Steward - deputy
or governor appointed by a lord or king
Teinds -
tithes. Derived from the old tenth paid
to clergy. After Reformation the rights
to teinds passed into the hands of nobles.
Tack - rent
Tutor - the
appointed teacher of a young heir
