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The Cistercian Abbey of Coupar Angus, C.1164-C.1560

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The Cistercian Abbey of Coupar Angus, C.1164-C.1560 1 The Cistercian Abbey of Coupar Angus, c.1164-c.1560 Victoria Anne Hodgson University of Stirling Submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy August 2016 2 3 Abstract This thesis is an examination of the Cistercian abbey of Coupar Angus, c.1164-c.1560, and its place within Scottish society. The subject of medieval monasticism in Scotland has received limited scholarly attention and Coupar itself has been almost completely overlooked, despite the fact that the abbey possesses one of the best sets of surviving sources of any Scottish religious house. Moreover, in recent years, long-held assumptions about the Cistercian Order have been challenged and the validity of Order-wide generalisations disputed. Historians have therefore highlighted the importance of dedicated studies of individual houses and the need to incorporate the experience of abbeys on the European ‘periphery’ into the overall narrative. This thesis considers the history of Coupar in terms of three broadly thematic areas. The first chapter focuses on the nature of the abbey’s landholding and prosecution of resources, as well as the monks’ burghal presence and involvement in trade. The second investigates the ways in which the house interacted with wider society outside of its role as landowner, particularly within the context of lay piety, patronage and its intercessory function. The final chapter is concerned with a more strictly ecclesiastical setting and is divided into two parts. The first considers the abbey within the configuration of the Scottish secular church with regards to parishes, churches and chapels. The second investigates the strength of Cistercian networks, both domestic and international. Through the exploration of these varied aspects, this study demonstrates that while Coupar maintained a strong sense of Cistercian identity and a European outlook, it was also highly enmeshed in and profoundly influenced by its immediate environment. The nature of Coupar’s experience was shaped by its locality, just as the abbey, in turn, had a reciprocal impact on its surroundings. Coupar was both a Cistercian house and a distinctively Scottish abbey. 4 5 Contents List of Maps, Figures and Photographs…………………………………………………..…….………………………9 Acknowledgements…………………………….……………………………….………………………………………….…11 Introduction………………………………………………………………………………………………………….…………..13 The Historiographical Context……………………………………………………….…………………………..13 The Sources……………………………………………………………………….………………………………………21 Chapter One: Land and Resource Exploitation………………………………….………………………..………31 The Foundation Site……………………………………………………………………………….………………….32 Land Acquisition and Consolidation……………………….……………………………………….…………35 Granges……………………………………………………….……………………………………………….35 Other Lands…………………………………………………………………………..………………………42 Labour Resources…………………………………………………………………………………………….………..45 Landed Resources……………………………………………………………………………………….…………….49 Common Rights ……………………………………………………………………………….…………..49 Functions of Granges………………………………………………………………………..…………..51 Water Resources……………………………………………………………………………………………………….56 Within the Precinct…………………………………………………………….………………..……….56 Beyond the Precinct…………………………………………………………………………..….……..58 Drainage: The Case of Carsegrange……………………………………..….……….58 Mills……………………………………………………………….…………………..……………58 Grain Milling………………………………………..…………………..………….62 Industrial Milling……………………………………..……………..……………63 Fisheries………………………………………………………………….……………..………..65 Management and Protection…………………………………….…………70 Woodland and Forest Resources………………………………………………………..…….……………….73 Vert: The Case of Campsie……………………………………..………………………..……………75 Venison: The Case of Glenisla………………………………………………..…………….……….76 Trade………………………………………………………….……………………………………………………………..82 6 Urban Property……………………………………………………………..…………………82 Wool…………….…………………………………………………………………………….……86 Salmon…………………………………….……………………………….………………………95 Chapter Two: The Laity - Donations, Devotions and Dedications……………………….………..……100 Motivations for Donations…………………………………………….…………………………………………101 The Urban Context………………………………………………….………………………………….104 Non-Property Donations……………………………………………………………………………….…………106 Pro Anima Clauses…………………………………………………………………….…………………………….107 The Impact of Tenurial Networks……………………………………………………………….……………114 Charity and Hospitality……………………………………………………………….……………………………116 Lay Religiosity……………………………………………………………………………….…………………………117 Pittances……………………………………………………………..………………………………………118 Confraternity……………………………………………………………….……………………………..119 Burial…………………………………………………………………………………..………………………120 Securing Burial Rights…………………………………………………………….………123 The Significance of Grave Location…………………………….…………………..125 The Importance of Burial amongst Kin……………………………………….…..126 The Hay Family…………………………………………….…………………………………127 Saints’ Cults………………………………………………………………………….…………………….132 Common Ground………………………………………………………………….………..135 Virgin Mary……………………………………………………………….……….135 St Andrew…………………………………………………………….……………136 St Malachy…………………………………………………….…………………..139 St Katherine of Alexandria…………………………………….…………..141 Pre-Existing Devotions……………………………………………….…………………..143 St Medan……………………………………………………………….………….143 St Adomnan…………………………………………………………….…………146 Evolving Trends……………………………………………………………….……………..148 St Duthac……………………………………………………………….………….148 Politics and Patronage………………………………………………………………….………………………….149 7 Case study: Thirteenth-Century Atholl…………………………………………….………….149 Recruitment…………………………………………………………………….………………………………………155 Rural Neighbours and Tenants…………………………………………….……………………..158 Burgesses……………………………………………….…………………………………………………..160 Chapter Three: The Abbey and the Religious World………………………………………………..……….170 Part One: The Scottish Church……………………………………………………………….…………………………….170 The Secular Church Hierarchy………………………………………………………………….………………170 Teind Exemption…………………………………………………………………………….…………..170 Relations with Bishops…………………………………………………………….………………….174 Possession of Parish Churches………………………………………………………….……………………..177 Bendochy…………………………………………………….……………………………………………..178 A Parish of Coupar? ……………………………………………………………….………180 Form of Coupar ‘Parish’……………………………………………….…………………183 Extra Lands Incorporated into the Parish……………………………..…………188 Airlie…………………………………………………….…………………………………………………….191 Other Churches……………………………………………………………….………………………….196 Unsuccessful Grants………………………………………………………………………….………..198 Chapels……………………………………………………………………………………….…………………………..202 Origins………………………………………………….…………………………………………………….204 Status within the Parochial System…………………………………………………….……….209 Carsegrange Chapel……………………………………………………..…………………209 Other Chapels……………………………………………………………………….……….211 Campsie: A ‘Household Chapel’………………………………….……..211 Forfar Loch Chapel………………………………………………….…………212 Forms of Worship: Cult Chapels……………………………………………………….…………213 Carsegrange, Balbrogie and Cally……………………………………………….…..214 Forfar Loch……………………………………………………………..………………………215 Gatehouse Chapel……………………………………………………………….…………217 Keithick and Glenisla…………………………………………………………….………..219 Campsie………………………………………………………………………….……………..220 8 Tullyfergus………………………………………….………………………………………….221 Part Two: Cistercian Identity………………………………………………………………………………….…………….222 International Networks……………………………………………..………………………………..…………..222 Attendance at the General Chapter………………………………………………..………..…222 The Later Medieval Period…………………………………………………………..………..……227 Domestic Networks………………………………………….……………………………………..……………...229 Personnel…………………………………………………………………………..…………….…………232 Monks…………………………………………………………………..…….…………………232 Abbots…………………………………………………………………………..….……………233 Outside Interference in Elections………………………………….……234 Conclusion………………………………………………………………………………………………..……………..………239 Appendix 1: Summary of Breviarium Antiqui Registri Monasterii de Cupro in Anegus……...245 Comments on the Arrangement of Material………………………………………….……255 Appendix 2: Rental of the temporal lands, teinds and annuals of Coupar Abbey, 1587…….258 Bibliography………………………………………………………………………….…………………………………………296 9 List of Maps, Figures and Photographs Maps Map 1: Geographical spread of property………………………………………………………….……………………31 Map 2: Abbey site…………………………………………………………………………………………………….……………34 Map 3: Granges……………………………………………………………………………………………………….…………….35 Map 4: Keithick grange……………………………………………………………………………………………….………….37 Map 5: Balbrogie grange……………………………………………………………………………………………….……….38 Map 6: Drimmie grange……………………………………………………………………………………………….…………39 Map 7: Carsegrange……………………………………………………………………………………………………….………41 Map 8: Glenisla properties………………………………………………………………………………………….………….43 Map 9: Fishing resources……………………………………………………………………………………..…………………66 Map 10: Forest resources…………………………………………………………………………………………….………..74 Map 11: Northern Glenisla…………………………………………………………………………………………..…………78 Map 12: Urban property………………………………………………………………………………….…………………….85 Map 13: Other monastic houses in the vicinity of the abbey……………………………………….……….136 Map 14: Parish churches held by the abbey………………………………………………………………….……..177 Map 15: Bendochy parish at the Reformation………………………………………………………..…………….178 Map 16: Coupar manor as granted to the abbey…………………………………………………………….……181 Map 17: Probable earlier form of Coupar manor………………………………………………………...….…..186 Map 18: Probable construction of Bendochy parish………………………………………………………..……191 Map 19: Chapels…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..204 Figures Figure 1: Filiation networks of Scottish Cistercian houses………………………………………….…………..32 Photographs Photograph 1: Present-day remains of the abbey……………………………………………………….………….12 Photograph 2: Tanning pits at Melrose abbey…………………………………………………………….………….57
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