Gillian's Bruce Journey
Today finally arrived – awaited with
pleasurable anticipation. We began to explore places where Robert the
Bruce aka RB (of the Norman family, de Brus who came to England with
William the Conqueror 1066) lived and 'worked'! The day dawned wet,
misty but a balmy 16 degrees – great temperature for this time of
year we were told but sorry about the rain! We have heard this '
sorry about the weather' several times today from Scots!
Off we went first to Loch Maben castle
where Bruce may have been born and certainly where is family had
their ancestral home. We found the ruins and plaques which told us
that this site was actually built by Edward I in 1300s ( in stone I
gather)and then fought over for the next hundred years or so by the
English and Scots, each vying to hold this important site. It is a
pretty place, on a peninsula that juts out into the lake but... is
not the Bruce pile! So we retreated out of the wind and drizzle and
mist into the car and drove to the golf course in Lochmaben town
where we saw where the Bruces actually had their motte and wooden
bailey castle. No sign of any castle now but interesting to see this
site. They had come to Lochmaben as, after having been given the
Annandale lands and built a castle in Annan by a grateful Willie the
Conq - for the support and endeavours of the original de Brus, they
were soon flooded and they left to settle in the drier option of
Lochmaben. News to me. So once more we left the drizzly site for the
dry car and motored down south to Annan. There we went into the
museum and found that the castle there had been a motte and bailey
affair – of course – and sited by the river. By this time Stephen
was becoming immersed in the history and made the connection that
from these Bruces probably came the family of his paternal grand
mother – Susan Bruce. ( having seen her photo my mother declared
she was 'The Beautiful Susan” and decided that Stephen looked just
like her!!!) I have been telling him I was sure there was link there
ever since I started reading up on RB.... So much tallied in my mind
– despite the huge time since 1274 (DOB RB)
Statue of Robert in Lochmaben
OK – from small Annan museum I beat a
hasty path to cafe and loo in that order – we had a bite to eat and
a coffee. Some amusing anecdotes followed – will only cite the one
as to do more could be construed that I am being unkind – which I
don't want to be. So – I ordered the soup of the day – was told
it was lentil. Good. I like lentil soup. When it arrived I found it
to be a yummy, thick soup of potato, carrot, a little cabbage and a
few small pieces of ham!!! I am now searching the cottage for a
dictionary to check the meaning of lentil before I ask our Scottish
hostesses why her delicious lentil soup had no potatoes in it!
Lunch break over we found the car and
set off for the Bruce castle site in Annan. Following our instincts
we ended up at the docks – in a derelict area surrounded by brick
buildings with no roofs – this is not it obviously. Back up then
was in order – and soon 2 nice big lads in fluoro coloured vests
took my eye. Stephen manfully stopped the vehicle, leapt out and went
to ask directions – to save me from the rain he said!!!
Some time later – after much manly
dialogue, while the wind whipped at his trousers and the rain fell,
and loud Scottish sounding noises rent the air , Stephen returned
smiling smugly and we drove straight to the place.
Hmmm – a car park and a sports centre
occupy the area directly beneath the motte and bailey – pretty
impressive height to the area actually. There is a path for people to
walk up to where motte and bailey existed – well annotated by a
plaque in the car park but it was still dribbling rain and I
absconded to the car – requesting Stephen to drive up along beside
the path instead. Actually, the whole site is tree clad – which I
think is great – so there wouldn't have been much to see. At the
far end, where the motte was there is a house – otherwise the site
remains as a park.
So where to now? Dumfries! Where our
lad stabbed John Comyn and his mate Kilpatrick finished him off –
they then took Dumfries castle – by surprise - acting very quickly
, and the die was caste for RB. He had no choice – grab the
kingship or flee the country.
Further travel on these appallingly
surfaced and drained Scottish roads and we were in Dumfries.
Following my instinct we found the Greyfriars Kirk that replaced the
original abbey. We parked and plodded along the street to the steps
of the Kirk – crossed the road and found the plaque on a shop wall
that recorded that this was the place RB had stabbed the Red Comyn
and that Kilpatrick, had hot footed it saying “I mak siccar' ( I
will make sure” )
I did know that the abbey and monastery
where these events occurred had been removed and a kirk had been
built in the area. I also knew that the castle no longer existed. I
also knew there was a plaque and where the plaque was situated …
However the knowing and the seeing are quite different!
To read this plaque meant edging in
amongst lots of people waiting for their bus and having a good old
natter with their friends, a quiet smoke and a not so quiet scream at
a stroppy child - as buses and cars went about their usual 21st
century business. Not quite the moment in the abbey, looking at the
alter where the deed had been committed that I had anticipated.
Message being … don't rely too much on the comprehension strategy of
visualisation. I shall be sharing this one with my colleagues when I
return!
Plaque in Dumfries, behind a bus stop and on the wall of a discount shop
What a day – not quite as I expected
but – as always we have seen and learnt so much more than we
thought we knew.
I now have a schema for where the
events occurred. I also have an image of these very flat, lush
borderlands – so close to the sea and obviously so desirable to the
English .
This shire of Dumfries is from where
our Caldwell family left to go to Northern Ireland when William and
Mary of Orange were on the throne. It is good to have seen this land
and it is a very good land if somewhat wet!
So – with a knowledge now of where we
lived I am ready to move on to the highlands.
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