Chapter X (4)

The Earl of Bothwell was Warden of the west and middle marches, and also Lord of Liddesdale. In 1498, in a Justiciary Court held at Jedburgh, Bothwell was fined £550 as pledges or bail for a number of persons dwelling in Liddesdale, and in the Justiciary Court held in 1500 he was again fined a similar sum of £550, which made his total liability to the Court £1,100. Now, this sum represented the bail and fines of fifty criminals, whom Bothwell had enabled to escape by becoming security for them. But did Bothwell actually pay this sum of money to the Crown? No! the whole of it was remitted by letters under the Privy Seal. The ground of the remission was stated to be “the good services done by the Earl of Bothwell in many ways, and especially in settling the district which the aforesaid persons and other undaunted people inhabited.”¹ This is simply an example of what occurred more or less frequently in every quarter of the kingdom.

¹ _The Sheriff Courts of Scotland_, by John D. Wilson, LL.D.,
Introduction; _Exchequer Rolls_, Volume V. and XI.

In the burghs criminal cases were mostly decided by a jury, which varied in number from five to twenty. Their verdict settled the truth of the assertions and averments of the parties to the action, and then the judge applied the law to the fact. The adjustment of the issues seems to have been pretty rapid. This system of burgh law is now obsolete, though fragments of it, under more or less disguise, survived till recently.

There were various modes of punishment, such as fines, banishment from the town, burning on the cheek, cutting off the ear, and penance performed in the church, were common forms of punishment. The forms of torture were connected with the jougs and the branks, very old instruments. The usual form of the jougs consisted of a flat iron collar with distended loops, through which a padlock was put to secure the culprit in his ignominious durance. The branks were somewhat like a skeleton iron helmet with a gag, which entered the mouth and bridled that unruly member, the tongue. They were chiefly used as an instrument of ecclesiastical punishment, for the correction of female scolds, and those convicted of slander and defamation. The branks seem to have been used at a very early period, and sometimes might have been cruelly applied.¹

¹ _Burgh Records of Aberdeen_, Volume I., pages 24, 46, 319,
390, 402, 412; _Burgh Records of Peebles_, pages 127, 132,
146‒147, 164‒167; _Burgh Records of Edinburgh_, Volume I.,
page 86.

As penance was frequently applied as a punishment for common offences, an instance may be stated. In 1492 “Philip Whithede was fined in the burgh court of Aberdeen for the wrongous disturbance of Thomas Bard, and Thomas also was fined for the disturbance of Philip. Moreover, the court ordered that Philip, on the following Sunday, should go to the church in the time of high mass, with a candle of one pound weight of wax in one hand, and his knife in the other hand, drawn, and holding it by the point; and then in the church deliver his knife to Thomas and ask of him forgiveness, and beseech the worthy men present to pray that Thomas might remit the offence done to him; and then offer the wax candle to the Holy Light at the altar.”

Assaults and fights were common in the burghs, and many bye-laws were enacted to suppress them. In 1398 the town-sergeants of Aberdeen were charged with rebellion, and the following year the bailies of the burgh were charged with rebellion. In the latter year a man was fined for cursing and beating a woman, and another man was fined for beating his own wife. Many notices of persons breaking the peace of the burgh were recorded; and cases were frequently postponed owing to the weakness of the court, which meant the weakness of the law. A number of persons were fined for speaking aloud and cursing in the burgh court without licence; and one woman was banished from the town. About the year 1411 a list of thieves and receivers of stolen goods was drawn up, and in it there were enumerated twenty-three persons, male and female. Considering the comparative smallness of the population of Aberdeen at that period, the number of known thieves in the burgh suggests a state of crime much greater than prevails at present.

In 1436 the provost and bailies of Aberdeen assembled to consider how they could most effectively punish and extinguish robbers. All the citizens of the town, freemen and unfreemen, were then bound to assist the magistrates and the officers of the city in the maintenance of order, and to turn out immediately when the common bell was rung, or any sudden affray happened on the streets, and when they knew or apprehended any scath to the town impending, or any duels to be fought in it, they should instantly warn the authorities. At this period there were no regular police, but in times of threatening disturbance, or of war in the neighbourhood, a number of the citizens were appointed as a night watch for a time.¹

¹ _Burgh Records of Aberdeen_, Volume I., pages 3, 4, 6, 8, 38,
60‒63, 68, 73, 373, 377‒379, 382, 392, 421, 422.

Touching social vice, illegitimacy was prevalent amongst the royal family, the nobles, the clergy, and the people. Robert I., Robert II., Robert III., and James IV., had many natural children, and many of the highest nobles had natural children. In the fifteenth century, clandestine espousals and marriages were common among all classes in Scotland; but “espousals, however secret, if followed by sexual intercourse, might annul the subsequent marriage of either party so long as the other was in life.” This sometimes led to much heart-burning, serious crime, and strife; and this was especially the case in the royal family of Stuart in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. The Crown was much weakened owing to the large number of children which Robert II. had by his two wives, and his natural sons and daughters. One form of irregular cohabitation was called “Hand-fasted,” but not married. Early in the sixteenth century a statute of Archbishop Forman enacted “that clandestine espousals should be denounced, under the pain of excommunication, four times a year in every church in his diocese.” This statute ordered the same denunciation to be fulminated against those who after espousals lived together as man and wife without celebrating marriage openly and in the face of the church. Brothels were common in the burghs in the fifteenth century.¹

¹ _Statuta Ecclesiæ Scoticanæ_, Volume I., pages 86, 87,
275‒277.

The castles of the thirteenth century were briefly noticed, and some of them became associated with the struggle of Independence, and were embalmed in the history of the nation. The square towers which were erected in the latter part of the fourteenth century, but mostly in the fifteenth century, were characteristic of the state of society. The square towers of this period were stern keeps which rose storey above storey to a considerable height, and each storey usually consisted of a single apartment; the walls were very thick, and the entrance door was placed high for security, and the window-openings narrow. The floors of the apartments were strewed with bent, grass, or rushes mingled with sweet herbs. Such were the abodes in which the barons and their families and servants lived, and assembled together in the hall to take their food and enjoy their drink. There were no separate apartments for the women but their sleeping-rooms. The square tower usually contained a dungeon in which the prisoners were kept, partly underground.

Although towards the end of the fifteenth century a few good castellated edifices were erected, nearly another hundred years, however, elapsed before a radical improvement was effected in the dwellings of the Scotch nobles.

David II. in the latter part of his reign restored Edinburgh Castle, and made extensive additions to it, including the great tower, which was known as the Wellhouse Tower, and also the passage which formed the communication between it and the castle. The buildings were kept in repair and added to by succeeding kings, and thus it became a royal residence as well as one of the chief strongholds of the kingdom. James I. made considerable repairs on the castle and some additions. There was a royal castle at Linlithgow in the twelfth century, and Edward I. built a tower or peel there. Robert II. and Robert III. frequently resided at Linlithgow, and small sums were expended on this residence towards the close of the reign of the latter King. Shortly after the return of James I., the town, the palace, and the nave of the church of Linlithgow were destroyed by fire. James I. immediately commenced to re-build the palace in a new form and style, and the work of building and finishing the palace, and the park and fish ponds connected with it, were going on during the greater part of his reign. He expended a considerable sum of money on the works; and after his death the work of completing the building of the palace proceeded till 1451, when it appears the west side, and probably a part of the north side, were then erected. In 1467 the work was resumed, and during the succeeding four years a large sum of money was expended on it; and in 1468 the grounds around the palace were extended. Between the years 1488 and 1496 the south side of the palace seems to have been erected; and operations at the palace went on into the succeeding century. There was a garden at the palace and extensive grounds.

The erection of the quaint building in the Castle of Stirling known as the palace, seems to have been commenced in 1496; and about the same time a large kitchen garden was formed, perhaps in the valley on the south side of the castle rock. The garden was well stocked with trees. It appears that the south front of Falkland palace as it now stands, was built in the early years of the sixteenth century. There were extensive grounds around Falkland Castle in which deer were kept, and there was also a garden.¹

¹ _Exchequer Rolls of Scotland_; _Accounts of the Lord High
Treasurer_, Volume I., Preface, pages 263‒267.

A considerable number of churches were built in the latter part of the fourteenth century and in the following one. David II. built and endowed the church of St. Monance in Fife. Most of the churches erected in Scotland during this period were of the decorated flamboyant style, and the polygonal apse was introduced from France. This class of churches generally ran into the three-sided apse, and double doorways with flattened heads which enclosed a pointed arch; battlements were rare, and the corby-stepped gable and saddle-backed towers began to appear before the close of the period. Portions of these decorated churches still remain in Scotland, and specimens may be seen in the nave of the Cathedral of Glasgow, the churches of Linlithgow, Perth, Stirling, and others. In some of these churches the details were admirably worked out, and the tracery of the windows very fine. The most striking characteristic of this style was its surface ornamentation, which was well calculated to arrest the eye of an onlooker. The walls were covered with a profuse variety of embellished devices, the stained glass glowed with variegated figures, and the screens, founts, and altars, were all wonderfully posited for producing effect. The whole accessories presented much artistic skill, a mastery of design, details, and execution of a high order.

Very few specimens of the woodwork of the churches of this period now exist, but some examples of the woodwork of the sixteenth century have been preserved.

The flamboyant style, which was partly initiated in Scotland, was excessive in its ornamentation. “Its essence seems to be elaborate and minute ornament, and this continues till the forms and combinations are sadly debased, and a strange mixture of Italianism jumbles with it. Its combinations in the earlier part of the style, for richness, elaborate ornament, and magnificent design, are admirable; and no one can visit Rouen, where there are many churches still used, and others now deserted, and contemplate leisurely the beautiful church of St. Maclou, without feeling the beauty of the style, and also the value of that fine stone which seems to have encouraged the flamboyant architects to vie with each other in elaborate decoration. The portals of Abbeville, Beauvais, Evreux, and St. Maclou at Rouen, parts of Caudebec Church, and various others, are some of the finest specimens of this style.”¹

¹ _Rickman_; _The Ancient Church of Scotland_, by Walcott.

Many notices of the workmen engaged in the building of these churches occur in the records, and some of them were a long time in process of building. The Cathedral of Aberdeen was more than a hundred years in building, and the choir of St. Nicholas more than half a century; while many of the fines imposed by the bailies in the burgh court, were ordered to be applied to the building of the same cathedral.

The Church still possessed extensive tracts of land which yielded a large income, and considering the other sources of her revenue, such as tithes, offerings, and the sums of money accruing from the Church courts in the form of fees and fines; and recalling the fact that the clergy were the best educated party in the kingdom, it seems that they could not have failed to command power and influence in the nation. The occasional efforts made by the Crown to limit the power of the Church only showed its own weakness, and the Scottish Kings usually found it more in harmony with their own interest to recognise and support the claims and privileges of the Church. The attempts of the Crown to recover the patronage of benefices failed, for at the Reformation, out of nine hundred and forty benefices, six hundred and seventy-eight were under the control of the Church.¹

¹ _Acts of the Parliaments of Scotland_, Volume II., pages 83,
85, 99, 133, 141, 166, 173, 183, 209, 232, 237.

Originally the monasteries tended to advance the progress of the country, as the monks for a long time took the lead in agricultural improvement and in dairy produce; but the principles on which the monasteries were established only harmonised with a comparative rude stage of civilisation, and in the fifteenth century they showed signs of decay. The chief religious houses in Scotland were very rich, and they had for a long period absorbed the greater part of the revenue of the parish churches. The result was that the religious instruction of the people was neglected, while the abbots and monks were rolling in wealth.

Instead of dealing with a number of religious houses and entering into needless details, I will present a brief account of a typical monastery. Such monasteries as Melrose, Kelso, Holyrood, Paisley, Arbroath, Scone, and others, had each a greater or less number of parish churches attached to them; and taking the monastery of Arbroath, which was richly endowed, the working of the system can be realised. This religious house had lands in various districts, besides upwards of thirty parish churches. In the Highlands it had the church of Inverness, the churches of Banff and Aberchirder in Banffshire, the church of Fyvie in Buchan, Aberdeenshire, and churches in other places widely apart and far from Arbroath. It was then the duty of the Abbot of Arbroath to pay the vicars or pastors of these parishes, as they were impropriated to the monastery; thus the proceeds of such benefices were paid to the monastery, and the abbot might pay the vicars or not as he thought fit. The practical operation and the results of such a system can be easily realised.

The lands of the monastery of Arbroath and the benefices attached to it, brought in a large quantity of grain, and great numbers of cattle, sheep, swine, poultry, and fish, and other provisions of all kinds. In 1489 the annual consumption of this monastery stood thus:――30 chalders of wheat, 40 chalders or 640 bolls of oatmeal, and 82 chalders of malt; 800 fat sheep, 180 head of fat cattle, a number of lambs, a quantity of veal, and 24 swine; a large number of chickens and geese, and immense quantities of butter, cheese, and eggs; 12,000 dried haddocks and speldings, 1,500 ♦keelings, and about the same number of fresh fish, besides 9 barrels of salmon; 6 gallons of honey, a quantity of fruit, almonds, and raisins, and a large supply of wine and ale.¹ This monastery was a very large establishment, as its massive ruins still attest; yet it is somewhat difficult to understand how the monks and inmates of the monastery could have consumed such an enormous amount of food and drink, even after making an ample allowance for the visits of the King and the lords of the realm, the archbishops, and others, who occasionally sojourned at the establishment. It seems probable that there was a considerable waste of the gifts of nature and of industry in such establishments towards the close of the fifteenth century. Several of the other monasteries were as rich as that of Arbroath, perhaps one or two might have been even richer, so that at the period under consideration it was a fair specimen of the great monasteries of the kingdom.

♦ “kellings” replaced with “keelings”

¹ _Register of the Monastery of Arbroath_, Volume I., pages 3,
8, 31, 37, 41, 93, 212, 262‒263.

Nunneries were not numerous in Scotland, and were classed according to their rule, like the monks. At Coldstream there was a convent of Cistercian nuns, and a register of their house has been preserved. There was another convent of the same order at Haddington, which received forty shillings annually from the rents of the burgh. There was a nunnery in the vicinity of Perth, one in Aberdeen, and a few in other places.

The friars were a distinct class, and differed from the endowed monks and regular canons. They were a somewhat later offspring of the Church of Rome, having come to Scotland in the thirteenth century. The friars professed the rule of poverty, and practised begging; according to law they could not hold property, except their church and place of residence, which might include gardens. Unlike the monks, the friars usually settled in towns amid the busy haunts of men; they had no vows of seclusion, and some of them were very active men, and attained distinction as popular preachers.

The Dominicans were called “black friars” in Scotland from their dress; and in other countries this order was entrusted with the inquiries connected with the Inquisition, but it does not appear that they exercised this function much in Scotland. They had a large house in Edinburgh, which was frequently used for the assemblies of the National Church. Their establishment at Glasgow was very extensive; and there they had fine gardens and a cemetery. They had churches in Perth, Aberdeen, and in other places. The Franciscans, or the grey friars, professed to follow the strict rule of their order, which enjoined chastity, poverty, obedience, and simple food. They had churches in Glasgow, Lanark, Haddington, Ayr, Dundee, Perth, Elgin, and elsewhere. Their establishment at Lanark was a large one; and in 1496 a meeting of all the Franciscan brethren in Scotland was held in it. The Carmelites were called white friars from their habit. They were very strict in their rule of life, and had churches in Dundee, Irvine, Linlithgow, Aberdeen, Banff, and other places.

Hospitals were pretty numerous, amounting to upwards of eighty, but they were poorly endowed. They were intended for various purposes, such as infirmaries for the sick and the aged, as hostels for pilgrims and travellers, or homes for those afflicted with leprosy. They were placed at the gates and in the vicinity of towns, at the river-side beside the ferry-boat, and in the mountain passes. The foundation of an hospital usually maintained a few brethren, who devoted themselves to the care of the sick and the poor; and sometimes small grants of money from the public revenue were given to them. Amid all the rudeness of the times the poor and the infirm were not altogether neglected; but many abuses prevailed in the hospitals, and Acts of Parliament were passed for visiting and reforming them.¹

¹ _Exchequer Rolls of Scotland_; _Origines Parochiales
Scotiæ_, Volume I., pages 6, 463, 464, 120; _Burgh Records
of Peebles_, pages 146, 151, 170; _Acts of the Parliaments
of Scotland_, Volume II., pages 7, 16, 49, 86, 97;
♦Walcott’s _Ancient Church of Scotland_, pages 339‒342,
376‒383, 343‒348.

♦ “Wallcott’s” replaced with “Walcott’s”

It is quite evident that the body of the people were firmly attached to the prevailing religious creed. They manifested their religious feelings in many ways. As already indicated, the craftsmen were closely associated with their special chapels, altars, and saints, and contributed a part of their means to uphold and adorn their favourite chapels and altars. Thus the special and personal form of their worship greatly intensified their religious feelings, and it became engrained into the very tissues of the nation’s life, and though time might change its form, its spirit and force endured.

A few examples of the avowed motives which induced men to assign property to the Church, may be presented. In 1321 Robert I. granted the church of Kirkmacho to the monastery of Arbroath――“For the health of his soul, and the souls of his ancestors and successors, Kings of Scotland, and especially for the souls of those whose bodies rest within the church and its cemetery.” In 1327 David Lindsay, Lord of Crawford, granted to the monks of Newbottle a tract of land in the territory of Crawford――“For the weal of his soul and the soul of Mary his wife; and with all the escheats which belonged to the land and the men dwelling on it: and transferred to the monks the right of pit and gallows, sock and sak, tol and them, infangtheft, and all the rights and the privileges which belonged to a baron’s court.” About the year 1358 Roger of Auldtion, a gentleman on the Borders, granted property and lands to found a chantry in the church of St. James at Roxburgh. His testament runs thus: “This is the form in which Roger of Auldtion founded the chantry of his chaplain officiating at Roxburgh in the church of Saint James; and this also is the form in which he ordained all alms and pious deeds which he has done, or in future may do:――First, namely, for the love of God, and the Blessed Virgin Mary, the mother of the same, and of all the saints; and also for the weal of his own soul and of the souls of Margaret and Felix, his successive wives, and for the souls of all to whom he is beholden and indebted, and for the souls of all against whom he has offended, and whose goods he has unjustly had or possessed, and for the souls of all the faithful departed, that the Lord may pardon them and bring them to eternal life. Amen.”¹

¹ _Register of Arbroath_, Volume I., pages 212‒213; _Origines
Parochiales Scotiæ_, Volume I., page 168; _Register of
Kelso_, pages 397, 370‒375.

The will of Sir James Douglas of Dalkeith, executed about 1390, contains some very curious items. “He gave the half of all his free goods for his funeral, and for masses and alms for the weal of his soul; and also his best horse and his arms as a funeral offering to the Vicar of Lasswade.... He bequeathed a chalice and missal to the chapel of St. Nicholas of Dalkeith, a small sum of money for the support of the fabric of St. Andrew, and a jewel of St. John, worth forty marks, to the church of Newbottle. He gave for the building of the church of Newbottle and the wages of the masons twenty-three pounds, six shillings for the use of the refectory, and other sums to the monks to pray for his soul. He left twenty pounds to the monks of Kelso ... and legacies to the friar preachers of Edinburgh and Haddington.... His robes of cloth of gold and silk and his furred robes were to be given to the church of St. Duthac at Tain, the chapel of Dalkeith, and to other churchmen.... He left his third best horse to the Monastery of Newbottle, and vestments to each of the churches of Lasswade, Newlands, and St. Fillans’ of Aberdour.” Sir James lived many years after he had made this testament.

In 1349 Adam Urquhart of Inchrory, sheriff of Cromarty, granted five marks annually from the rents of the lands of Inchrory, and a croft called the Alehouse in the same territory, for a perpetual chaplain officiating in the chapel of St. Mary at Inchrory――“to pray for the souls of William Earl of Ross and his parents, and for his own soul and the souls of his parents, and all the faithful departed.” Adam reserved to his heirs the right of patronage, and of giving instructions to the chaplain. In 1456 Alexander Sutherland of Dumbath bequeathed six marks annually from the rents of the lands of Easter to a priest to celebrate mass continually for his own soul and the soul of his wife in the chantry of Ross; and of thirty trentals for his soul, he ordered eight to be said at Ross, four in Tain, four in Fearn, and four in Dornoch. He also left six marks to the chanter of Fearn for celebrating mass, with a note of the requiem, and other sums for religious purposes. In 1451 Robert Sutherland, the son and heir of John Sutherland of Fors, granted to the chaplain of St. Andrew’s Chapel of Golspie forty shillings annually from the rents of the town of Drommoy――“to pray for me and the souls of my forefathers and successors.”¹

¹ Bannatyne’s _Miscellany_, Volume II.; _Origines Parochiales
Scotiæ_, Volume II., pages 239, 416, 436, 607, 843, 650.

In 1487 James III.――“for the weal of his own soul and the souls of his ancestors and successors, Kings of Scotland, and all who had contributed to the foundation, erected the church of St. Duthac of Tain into a collegiate church for a provost, five canons, two deacons, a sacrist, and three singing boys.” James II. had founded a chaplainry at Tain, and endowed it from the lands of Dunscathe and the ferry of Cromarty; and in the reign of James IV. a sum of five pounds a year was paid to Sir Donald Rede, chaplain, appointed to sing for the soul of James III. in St. Duthac’s Church. James IV. also paid for masses for his own soul in St. Duthac’s Church.¹

¹ _Exchequer Rolls of Scotland_; _Registrum magni sigilli
regum Scotorum_, Book X., _n._ 109; _Accounts of the Lord
High Treasurer_, Volume I.

All classes of the people gave liberally to the Church, some for one purpose and others for different purposes. In 1363 William Soreys, a burgess of Elgin, granted property to the altar of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the cathedral of Elgin――“for the safety of his own soul and the souls of his ancestors and successors, and all the faithful departed.” The same year William Pope, also a burgess of Elgin, granted the rents of several crofts and portions of land in the vicinity of the city to the Church, under the condition of praying for his own soul and the souls of his kindred, and all the faithful deceased. In 1365 Richard, son of John, burgess of Elgin, bequeathed one hundred shillings sterling from the rents of Bortharum to the altar of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the cathedral of Elgin――“for a perpetual celebration of mass for his own soul and the soul of Eliza, his wife, and the souls of John and Emma, his father and mother, and the souls of all the faithful departed.” In 1495 George Spalding, a burgess of Dundee, “of his own good mind, and in honour and love of God Almighty, and his mother the blessed Virgin Mary, and all the saints of Heaven,” bequeathed through the provost, bailies, council, and the community of the burgh, a number of articles for adorning the Lady Church of Dundee. Among other articles there were a great bell, a silver chalice gilted over, a new mass book, a new ward stall for the vestments of the high altar, and twenty shillings of annual rent. Very minute and curious conditions were framed for carrying into effect the intention of the donor. It was enjoined that the provost, the council, and the community of the burgh, and their successors, should for ever cause the priest officiating at the altar of the Lady Church to exhort all the people present to pray for the soul of George Spalding, and the soul of his wife, and the souls of their ancestors and successors. Further, there were directions to go to his grave and his wife’s and then “say psalms and cast holy water on them.” The documentary deed itself was written in the vernacular, of which the following is a sample: “For the said George hys sowll, hys wyf, and yar antecessowris and successowris.”¹

¹ _Register of the Diocese of Moray_, pages 312‒314; _Register
of the Diocese of Brechin_, Volume II., pages 316‒317.

The preceding examples were drawn from a class of documents which are very numerous in the religious records of Scotland, and they cover a period of nearly two centuries. It should be observed that the historic value of these indications of the religion of the people consists partly in its relation to the worship of ancestors, which prevailed in prehistoric times. The most characteristic thought and sentiment in these writings was “the souls of their ancestors, and the souls of all the faithful departed.” It thus appears that the worship of ancestors, though associated with other elements, still survived in Scotland.

Another important phase of the religious feeling of the people manifested itself in the pilgrimages. Pilgrims sometimes travelled in companies to places that were esteemed holy, and during the journey they were under the special protection of the King’s peace. In the fifteenth century Whithern, the shrine of St. Ninian, Tain, Dunfermline, Scone, Paisley, and Melrose, were among the chief places of pilgrimage in Scotland. In 1473 the Queen, accompanied by her husband James III. and a suitable retinue, made a pilgrimage to the shrine of St. Ninian at Whithern; and on this occasion ten pounds and ten shillings were paid for livery gowns to six ladies of the Queen’s chamber, which were made of grey cloth bought from David Gill at ten shillings per yard; and the Queen’s riding gown for the pilgrimage was made of black cloth, and cost six pounds and six shillings. James IV. had a habit of going often on pilgrimage to the tombs, the shrines, and altars of the saints throughout the kingdom. He often went to Whithern and usually made offerings varying from ten to eighteen shillings. He also paid considerable sums of money for masses; in 1497 he gave ten pounds to the church of Whithern for ten trentals of masses. During his reign he made offerings at the following sacred spots connected with St. Ninian:――The outer kirk, the rood altar, the high altar, our lady’s altar, the reliques, and at the feretrum in the outer kirk, so it appears that the shrine――feretrum――in which the actual remains of the saint were supposed to be kept, was placed in the outer kirk of Whithern; and no doubt it was an object of extreme devotion to the people. James IV. also made offerings at the Lady’s Kirk of Kyle, and gave five pounds for five trentals of masses for his own soul; in Glasgow he made offerings, and also paid for masses in our Lady’s chapel at the end of the burgh of Dumfries, in the Cross Church of Peebles, in St. James’ Chapel of the Craig of Stirling, in the chapel of St. Mary at Perth, and in many other churches James made offerings and paid for masses.

James IV. was born in Tain on the 17th of March 1473, and St. Duthac’s Church of Tain was his great favourite place of pilgrimage. He made many pilgrimages to this place, and always made offerings of ten to eighteen shillings to St. Duthac’s Church, and he usually gave a gratuity to the man who bore St. Duthac’s bell.¹

¹ _Accounts of the Lord High Treasurer_, Volume I.; _Origines
Parochiales Scotiæ_, Volume II., page 453.

On the great saint’s days processions were held and the day spent as a holiday. The different classes in the burghs, the provost and bailies, the burgesses, and the craftsmen, turned out and assembled at the appointed place, and each class and craft, with their distinctive emblems displayed, then formed into marching order and paraded the streets, accompanied by music and shouts of joy and mirth. These commemorative displays were performed with all the circumstance and spirit which the nation could command; but it appears that these rejoicings and processions sometimes terminated in a somewhat rough fashion.

The shrines and the wells of the saints were regarded with much devotion, while their relics were objects of extreme veneration, and it was believed that they possessed marvellous virtues. The continuator of Fordun, who wrote in the first half of the fifteenth century, gave an account of a cross which was found when the church of Peebles was founded in the reign of Alexander III.; and he then tells that, “In the place where the cross was found frequent miracles were worked by it, and are still worked, and multitudes of the people flocked thither, and do still devoutly flock, making their oblations and vows to God.” The relics of St. Fergus were preserved at Scone, where they performed many famous miracles; and the bones of one of the arms of this saint were preserved in the cathedral of Aberdeen. The relics of St. Fillan were in great repute, especially his crosier, which was believed to possess many rare virtues, the most singular of which was its power of tracing stolen cattle and goods. James IV. had a relic of St. Duthac set in silver, which was preserved for its miraculous power of healing.¹

¹ _Burgh Records of Peebles_, pages 152, 156; _Acts of the
Parliaments of Scotland_, Volume II., page 97; _Origines
Parochiales Scotiæ_, Volume I. page 229; Pitcairn’s
_Criminal Trials_, Volume I.

The ideas concerning the sacredness of Sunday which subsequently obtained currency, were totally unknown in Scotland in the fifteenth century. Sports and amusements were openly and freely practised and enjoyed, and shooting at the butts on Sunday in every parish of the kingdom was commanded by Act of Parliament.

In closing this account of the social condition of the people during a period of two centuries, the chief subjects touched on may be briefly recapitulated. The chapter commenced with a statement touching the origin, the development, and the peculiarities of parliament, and the functions which it assumed and exercised. After a brief reference to the law courts of the kingdom, subjects connected with the land were taken up. It was stated that from the accession of David I. to the termination of the War of Independence, the greater part of the land of the country had changed owners many times, and that new families had risen to power; but it was observed that Robert I. rather increased than limited the feudal privileges of the nobles, and consequently their power soon overshadowed the authority of the Crown, and they became oppressive and anarchial. The state of the occupiers and the tillers of the land was indicated; and a reference was then made to the extent of the Crown lands in the fifteenth century, and the tenants and occupiers of these lands. The condition of the labourers of the land; and the causes of the emancipation of the bondmen and serfs were treated. The burghs of the kingdom and the communities inhabiting them were handled at length, and the custom, the revenue, the commerce, and the coinage of the kingdom were noticed. The internal and every day life of the burgh communities were then treated in detail, and many interesting particulars and points were narrated, including the incorporation of the different craftsmen of Edinburgh. A brief notice of the burghs which belonged to the Church was presented. The military characteristics of the people, their armour, weapons, and tactics, and the introduction of cannon, were described. The probable number of the population was indicated; and the state of the roads, the establishment of inns, the sanitary condition, and the want of medical science, was pointed out. Drinking customs, festivals, and the amusements of the people were handled; the dress of the people, and of the different ranks of society, sumptuary laws, and ornaments, were described. The price of the staple articles of food during the period was indicated. After careful consideration, I then made a statement touching the condition of the tenants and the labourers on the Crown lands, embracing the period from the return of James I. to the end of the fifteenth century. Having indicating the wages of tradesmen and labourers, the custom of begging, the state of crime, the defects in the administration of justice, and the forms of punishment were handled and explained. Social vice was touched on. The dwellings of the nobles, royal palaces, and the church architecture of the period were briefly treated. Monasteries, nunneries, the different orders of friars, and the hospitals, were handled concisely; and finally, the religious feeling and sentiments of the people were dealt with, and various forms of their practical manifestation were presented.