Some fled to the water, and some another way (we were the most part new men). I fled to the baggage, and took a horse in order to ride the water; there follows me a highlandman with sword and targe, in order to take the horse and kill myself. You'd laugh to see how he and I scampered about. I kept always the horse betwixt him and me: at length he drew his pistol, and I fled; he fired after me.
I went above the Pass, where I met with another water very deep; it was about 18 foot over betwixt two rocks. I resolved to jump it, so I laid down my gun and hat and jumped, and lost one of my shoes in the jump. Many of our men were lost in that water.
The Prince's Flower
By Rodger Moffet
On the island of Eriskay in Scotland's Western Isles. There grows a small pink flower. Unique to the island this frail little Convolvulus flower has a link with Bonnie Prince Charlie.
Before he reached Glenfinnan to raise the Jacobite standard in 1745 the 'young pretender' first arrived at the island of Eriskay. He had traveled on the French Frigate La Doutelle. The weather was typical for the area and time of year and the small frigate was buffeted by harsh weather. Charles made the decision to land on the island and a small party rowed ashore.
The tiny boat made landfall at a small inlet which has come to be known as 'Coilleag d'Phrionnso' (The Prince's Strand). As the Prince stepped ashore he reached into his pocket and pulled out a handful of flower seeds. These he scattered close to the shore. The seeds grew by the beach and these rare pink flowers grew at the spot. They have come to be known as the princes flower for this reason. It has been observed that when anyone tries to move the plants from the island to another location they never flourish.
The Prince also brought something else with him which was more than welcome. When he met the MacKinnon's of Skye he gave them a recipe for a whisky liqueur. This liqueur was Drambuie which has become famous all over the world.
Saints and Religious Legends
Some call Scotland 'Gods own country'. With such a wealth of early religious symbolism in places like the beautiful island of Iona, the Celtic crosses that appear all over Scotland, the numerous abbeys and monasteries and of course great saints like St Columba, St Ninian, St Andrew and St Margaret. Scotland has a reputation as a pious country, find out more about or religious legacy...
St Margaret
By Rodger Moffet
It could be argued that St Margaret was Scotland's greatest female character. Born into a time where Scotland was a lawless and dangerous place St Margaret was a great civilising influence on the country and her legacy exists all over Scotland today.
Margaret was born, possibly in Hungary, in 1046. A member of an ancient English royal family, she was a direct descendant of King Alfred and was the granddaughter of King Edmund Ironside of England through his son Edward. The families claim to the English throne was usurped when The English nobility elected Harold Godwin as Edward's successor. Harold famously died at the Battle of Hastings when William the conqueror brought the Normans across from France.
Margaret's mother Agatha realised that as Saxon royals the family was in great danger from the advancing Normans so decided to return to the Continent. However a storm drove their ship to Scotland, where Scottish King Malcolm III took the party under his protection, after much convincing (Margaret was already a profoundly devout religious woman) Malcolm Married her around 1069.
Queen Margaret's influence on the Scottish court was immense, she brought European manners and culture which softened its barbaric reputation. Her greatest influence though was religious with many reforms, founded churches and monasteries including Dunfermline Abbey, put laws in place releasing workers from servile labour on the Sabbath and set up the 'Queens Ferry' over the forth so pilgrims could visit religious centres.
She also changed the language that mass was performed in from Gaelic to Latin. This aligned the church in Scotland closer to Rome but also may have been an attempt by Margaret to bring together England and Scotland and allow closer ties between the countries.
Margaret and Malcolm had eight children. Her time was given up to prayer and religious piety, however this may have led to her early death as constant fasting and abstinence weakened her (notwithstanding the eight children). In 1093 she fell gravely ill, only to learn that her husband and eldest son had been ambushed and killed at the Battle of Alnwick. She died shortly afterwards aged only forty-seven, her body was buried before the high altar at Dunfermline.
In 1250 Margaret was canonized by Pope Innocent IV, and her relics were moved to a new shrine in 1259. Unfortunately the lot of a saint is such that your earthly body though revered doesn't get a lot of rest. During the Reformation her head passed to Mary Queen of Scots. It later was possessed by Jesuits but was lost during the French Revolution. Reputedly the rest of her relics, together with those of Malcolm, were acquired by Philip II of Spain but were also lost.
The feast of St. Margaret is now observed by the whole Church on 10 June. The Episcopal Church Commemorates St. Margaret each year on the Sunday closest to the anniversary of her death 16th November.
Saint Mungo
By Rodger Moffet
The saint most closely associated with the foundation of the city of Glasgow, St Mungo's true story must lie somewhere between fact and legend.
Mungo's mother was Denw (or 'Tenew' in some versions), his grandfather was a Brythonic king Lleuddun also referred to as King Llew or Loth after which the region of Scotland known as Lothian was named. He ruled an area (as you might expect) around East Lothian. Alas Denw had a guilty secret - she was guilty of having an affair outside marriage with Owain mab Urien who may have been the King's brother (her uncle). From this union Denw fell pregnant and when her father discovered it he had to follow the law of the time (which had many old pagan traditions) and sentence her to death.
Her execution was to be performed by throwing her from Traprain Law, a large hill to the south of Edinburgh. Miraculously she survived the plunge and rather than go through the same ritual her father arranged for her to be cast adrift in the forth is a coracle, a small flimsy boat. Once again fortune smiled on Denw and rather than being washed out to sea she drifted further up the firth and landed on the other side at Culross. She landed on the beach and right on the beach gave birth to a boy - Kentigern.
Once again Denw (and the child) had some good fortune - the small settlement of Culross was home to a religious establishment run by St Serf. He took the boy into his care and began his religious instruction; he also began referring to him by the pet name 'Mungo'. In the language of the time this could either have meant 'my dear heart' or less flatteringly 'my hound'.
After his instruction Mungo left, although some text say he went straight to Glasgow to practice there - there is some belief that he first established a base in Dumfrieshire. This was part of the old kingdom of Rheged, which was ruled over by his natural father. There is evidence to support the fact that this was reconciliation with his own family and also proof of his noble descent (many early saints - such as Columba, were of noble descent). Alas his situation there was made untenable when the area was conquered by Morken who ruled lands to the south. Urien was murdered and Mungo had to flee. His path led south through Cumbria and on into Wales where he practiced for some time and established many churches on the way.
Meanwhile Morken had been defeated by Redderech who's kingdom lay further north (around Dunbarton) Morken's large kingdom was incorporated into the new and vast kingdom of Strathclyde which stretched from the top of Loch Lomond to the borders of present-day Cheshire. Redderech invited Mungo to return and he complied by establishing an early base at Dumbarton.
Legend has it that one day while out traveling he came across St Fergus who was dying by the roadside. He lifted the old saint had placed him in an oxcart - he then instructed the ox to take the cart wherever God wished. The ox set off and some time later stopped at a site that had been previously blessed by St Ninian. Mungo took St Fergus from the cart and burie
d him on that spot and then established a church upon it. A large community grew around the church, and became known as Clas-gu (meaning the 'dear family'). Over the years this community grew into the city of Glasgow and on the site of his modest church, the grand Glasgow Cathedral.
In the coat of arms of the city of Glasgow one can see a tree a fish a bird and a bell, these all relate to the life of St Mungo and some to miracles attributed to him, The legend of the fish is however the most interesting.
The story goes that Redderich's wife; Queen Longuoreth had an affair with a young soldier. The king found out and then discovered that the soldier wore a ring which the Queen had given to him as a love token. Incensed, the king hatched a plan to expose his wife's adultery. Redderich took off on a hunting trip accompanied by the soldier, during the trip the King got the soldier drunk and as he slept, removed the ring and cast it into the Clyde. The King then returned home and accused his wife of the affair and demanded that she produce the ring to prove her innocence. When no ring was forthcoming she was thrown into prison and a death sentence pronounced. She was visited in prison by St Mungo and the distressed queen pleaded for his help. Perhaps the story reminded him of his own ancestry and so he decided to help her.
St Mungo sends for a messenger and tells him to go fishing in the Clyde and bring back the first fish he catches. The messenger returns some time later with a salmon, St Mungo cuts open the fish and there is the ring that had been cast into the river by the King.
Many have considered this tale to to be the inspiration behind the story of the affair between Lancelot and Gwennevere, this is compounded by the fact that an almost identical story exists concerning King Maelgwn of Gwynedd and Saint Asaph.
Around 612 or 613 (although some manuscripts claim the date to be even earlier at 603) St Mungo died, the story goes that he died in a bath but other versions of the story say that he caught a cold after immersing himself in water during a baptism service in the middle of January. His body was interred on the site of Glasgow cathedral and his death date of January 13th was made a feast day in Scotland.
The great city that has grown around the bones of this early Christian saint has the motto 'Let Glasgow Flourish'. This relates to St Mungo's famous call of "Let Glasgow flourish by the preaching of the word"
St Æbbe
By Rodger Moffet
Like many of the early Christian Saints, Æbbe was from royal blood.
Æbbe was the daughter of King Æthelfrith the Ravager of Bernicia and his third wife Acha of Deira. She was also related to St. Oswald and St. Edwin, King of Northumbria. Æthelfrith had become the first king of Northumbria when he had invaded the kingdom of Deira in 604, he had taken princess Acha of Deira as his wife to strengthen his position at the same time deposing Edwin her brother who fled into exile. Into this troubled kingdom Æbbe was born in 615.
At the age of ten her father died and the throne passed to Edwin who had returned from exile. Escaping possible persecution Æbbe fled with her seven brothers to Scotland. They were taken into the care of Dumnual Brec, the King, and were converted to Christianity.
Æbbe took to her new religion with some degree of enthusiasm. Deciding to follow a celibate life she took the veil from St. Finan, Bishop of Lindisfarne. This did not please Aidan, a Scottish prince who had intended to marry Æbbe and he decided to pursue her and take her by whatever means at his disposal ('courting' was not quite as delicate a ritual as it has become more recent times!). Æbbe escaped to a place of safety on a high rock by the sea. As she prayed and Aidan approached the tide came in around the rock, cutting it off from his advance. There the tide stayed high for three days and Aidan took the hint and gave up his attempt at wooing.
Oswiu, her brother decided to give her a site of an old roman camp in County Durham where she could found a monastery. This site was called Ebchester (Aebbe's castle or camp), however her more famous monastery was built on the site of her escape from Aidan further north in Berwickshire. The site was extremely defensible with high cliffs on three sides and a mostly impassable marsh on the other. The site is known as St Abbs Head.
The Monastery was held in high regard, visited by St. Cuthbert, Prior of Melrose, and Abbot of Lindisfarne.
It is said that Æbbe gave him a piece of cloth as a gift and that the saint treasured the gift so much that he was buried in it. The monastery was also a famous place of refuge, helped by the tidal phenomenon that had also saved Æbbe, St. Etheldreda wife of Egfrith, King of Northumbria escaped there. When Egfrith attempted to bring her back the tide once again flowed into the marsh and sealed off the island. Etheldreda then became a nun under Aebbe's care.
Egfrith soon married again taking Ermenburga as his Queen. Egfrith was also Æbbe's nephew and visited the monastery under a more peaceful banner one evening as he toured his kingdom with his new Queen. However during the night the Queen suffered a severe flagellation and was found in convulsions the next morning. Æbbe immediately identified the cause of the suffering to be the result of their persecution of St. Wilfrid, Abbot of Hexham and Bishop of York. The pair had imprisoned him at Dunbar and Ermenburga had stolen from him of a valuable reliquary which she carried with her wherever she went. After Æbbe's intervention St. Wilfrid was released and his property restored.
The community Æbbe had founded was a mixture on both nuns and monks, this was common in Saxon times but did lead to trouble, human nature and temptation being what it is. Behind her back all manner of antics went on. The cells, which had been built for prayer, were converted into places of revelry, drinking, and other amusements. The nuns would also dress in fine garments rather than their more pious habits which led to greater temptation.
One night a monk called Adomnan had a vision that the monastery would be burned to the ground as a punishment from God. He immediately told Æbbe of his vision and she was greatly distressed, however Adomnan told her that the vision had conveyed that the event would not happen in Æbbe's lifetime. The divine warning also alarmed the other occupants of the monastery and they mended their ways.
Alas their new found piety only lasted until the death of Æbbe in 683, after this they fell back into their old ways with even greater zeal and whether through fulfilment of the prophesy or perhaps just drunken carelessness the monastery caught fire and did indeed burn to the ground.
Much later, around 1099 another priory was built slightly further inland. Build by Edgar, King of Scots this one was dedicated to three saints; Cuthbert, Mary and St Aebbe.
St Aebbe would have been delighted to learn that in recent years the area around At Abbs head has once again become a refuge of a different sort as a sanctuary for wildlife and in particular nesting seabirds
St Andrew
By Rodger Moffet
On the 30th of November St Andrews day is celebrated across Scotland and indeed around the world. So how did this most eligable of all saints come to be Scotland's patron saint?
Saint Andrew was one of the original Christian Apostles, he was the older brother of Saint Peter. The name 'Andres is though to come from the Greek Ανδρ?ας or Andreas, This was common among Jews living around Galilee at the time. Although not much is known about Andrew the bible stories tell us he was a fisherman and originally a disciple of John the Baptist. He joined Jesus at the same time as John the Evangelist with who he shared a house at Capharnaum. On becoming a follower of Christ he introduced his brother to him and both became his disciples. He was the disciple that pointed out the boy with the loaves and fishes to Christ.
Andrew became one of Jesus' closest followers and after his crucifixion went on to preach across Asia Minor and along the Black Sea coast up into Russia as far as Kiev. This is why Andrew is also patron saint of Romania and Russia. He founded the See of Byzantium in AD 38, later developing into the Patriarchate of Constantinople. There are very few incidents recorded of his time preaching and no recorded miracles. Andrew would have appeared to have lived a simple life.
A legend from the 4th cen
tury says that he was eventually crucified at Patras in Achaea by the Black Sea. It is said that he declared himself unworthy to be crucified in the same manner as Christ so asked instead to be crucified on a cross called a Crux decussata (X-shaped cross). This shape has become known as Saint Andrew's Cross. Andrews was tied to the cross ('nailing' was generally not used in crucifixions) and remained there for several days, preaching to those who came to see him.
After his death his relics were moved to Constantinople. by order of the Roman emperor in 357. From there Crusaders stole Andrew's alleged body in 1210 and took them to Amalfi in Italy. His head and some other parts was removed and taken to Rome in the 15th century where they were enshrined in St Peter's Basilica.
As is the unfortunate lot of saints the 'Relics' ('bones' in other words) tend to be moved around and traded between churches like currency. Some of the relics from Rome were returned to Patras asa gesture towards the Greek Orthodox Church.
There are several opinions on how some of the relics made their way to Scotland. The romantic tradition is that they were brought here by St Rule (Regulus) an Irish monk who had been expelled from Ireland along with Saint Columba. The story going that he landed with the relics in Fife Scotland and the place where he landed took the name St Andrews. There is another theory though that the relics came into the hands of Acca, bishop of Hexham in the 700's and took them north when he fled from Hexam in 732 AD. Sometime around the middle of the tenth century Saint Andrew became Scotland's patron saint. Saint Columba had been venerated before then but it was decided that Saint Peter outranked him and that Peter's older brother would 'trump' the lot! The Declaration of Arbroath in 1320 cites Scotland's conversion to Christianity by Saint Andrew, "the first to be an Apostle".
Scottish Myths and Legends Page 5