Notes on the Early History of the Parish of Colinton. by Tub Rev

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IV. NOTES ON THE EARLY HISTORY OF THE PARISH OF COLINTON. BY TUB REV. WILLIAM LOCKHART, A.M., F.S.A. SCOT., MINISTE r RTHo E PARISH. In or about the year 1095 (perhaps a few years earlier, certainly not o later)mortw r e,o thawhee e on kingdon nth f mScotlano d beeha dn extended to both sides of the River and Firth of Forth, and when the d Celtiol c Churc s givin wa stathw f gthingne o e placa so t e under Malcolm III. and his successors, what appears to be now the parish of Colinton received its foundation. This was done by Ethelred,—second son of Malcolm III. (Canmore) and his Saxon Queen Margaret,—presenting to the Church of the Holy Trinity at Dunfermline, which had shortly before this been foundes piouhi y s b dmother , certain gifts that were then denominate e namth f "Hale."y eo db e objecTh 1 t which this Scottish Prince had in view in doing this was obviously twofold, viz.—first, to enrich the royal church at Dunfermline; and secondly, to secure for the people living in the district of Hale the regular administration of religious ordinances by clergy belonging to and resident at the parent church. The 1 The other forms of the word in the Rcgist. de Dunf. are Hal. (a contraction), Hala, Hales, Halis, Halys, Heallis. The modern form of the word is Hailes, and the name of the church and parish for many years was Hailes or Collington, spelled variously ColHngtoun, Colington, or Colinton. EARLY HISTORPARISE TH F COLINTON5 F HO YO 36 . recor thif foune earln do b a s o n yt verdgife i pars th i ty f o tfirs t charter of the chartulary of Dunfermline Abbey, now in the Advocate's Library, Edinburgh printed Bannatyne an ,th y db e Clube deeTh d . in question is by David I., the youngest brother of Ethelred, and a monarch who, as is well known, enriched Scotland with many religious institutions. The statemenfollowine th grane n i th s f i tgo t terms, viz.:—" Dona Ethelredi fratris me iconfirmeds i Hale," t i d an 1 , sometimes with slight variations, in other charters by David, as well as in those of successive kings down to the reign of Alexander III.2 Besides this, these lands, and the church connected with them e frequentlar , e ysam th referre en i chartular o t d y confirmationn i bishopy b s d chapters an se bull th f popes n i so n i 5 d an , settlements and agreements as to teinds and lands, down to and even beyon perioe Reformatioe dth th f do middle th towardd d n ni e an en e sth of the sixteenth century.8 In inquiring into the origin and early histo'ry of a civil and ecclesiastical distric closn i t e proximit e metropolith o yt f Scotlandso , curiosity, firsf o t all, naturall statee b o t d y e founders thaturn th herd ha t o t t si eAn . littl knows ei f Ethelredno appeare h s a , havo st e died young, although that little is not without interest. His name was Saxon, and he evidently received it after ancestors of his royal mother, for there were three kings of this Saxoe nam th unite e n eni th heptarchyn i d o Saxotw d nan ,king - dom. In the month of November 1093; he had to communicate to his

mother, then in Edinburgh Castle, the painful tidings of the death of his Eegist,1 de Dunf., p. 3, Confirmacio Eegis Dauid, lines 9 and 10. Regist. do Dunf., Reg, 5 . .p , Dav.Eeg19 . p ; Male. , Reg28 . Reg, p ;Wil 40 .. ;p 2 Alex. II.; p. 46, Reg. Alex. III. Regist. de Dunf., Ep. pages 56, 57, 59, 62, 63, and 66, cap. 81, ag. 135, 136, 8 137147d an ,. Pont. Rom. Alexander IV. . 152p , . Pont. Rom. Lueius, 157. Pont. Rom. HoiA, 167. Pont. Rom. Gregory Ville Halise (D d a . 173p ) . Pont. Rom. Greg. IX., Eccle Hal.e d . . 175p , . Pont. Rom. Greg. IX. Smithetue d , Hal.e nd . p , 176; Carta de Halis, 190; Taxatio, p. 203. Lra. Sasine Jaeobi de Edmonston, Reg. Jae. I,, p. 284. Carta de Halis (Easter and Wester), Reg. Jae. II., p. 287. Con- firmacio Regis Jaeobi Secundi, &c., Reg. Jae. II. . 321p , . Conf°. thome yhar, &e., Abbreviat., p. 371. Conf°. C. Will, dm Creiglitoun, &c., Ab. 372, C. d. t. forestare, Ab., &c, p. 379. Con0, ter. ae Molendini de estir haillis, Ab., p. 384, Appendix I., p. 418. Rentale, 433, 447, 451, 459. Infeod., fee., 476, 487, 488, 492, 495, 502. 366- PROCEEDING E SOCIETY, 188314 TH Y F . O S MA ,

father, and eldest brother Edward, in the battle on the banks of the Alne. Thi event,d ssa - especiall kingdeate e yth th f ,ho which wels i s a l, known, threw Scotland into confusion, by creating a war of succession, fataa d le alread ha effecth n o ty enfeebled constitutio e queenth r f no fo , she died on that very day, or soon after; and Ethelred had the painful duty to perform of conveying the dead body of his mother secretly out of Edinburgh Castle, which was then besieged by the usurper (Donald Bane) to Dunfermline, where it was buried before the altar of the Holy Cross.1 Ethelred evidentl t lonno gd survivydi e these heavy mentrialso n r - fo ; tio afte s brothem mads e reigni hi hi th rf f no eo r Edgar, ascendeo wh 2 d the throne A.D. 1097 ; and indeed it is reasonable to suppose that he must have been dea t thida s date, otherwise secone Malcolmf o th n s a ,dso e h , would have been raised to the throne. And, curiously .enough, of all the six sons and two daughters of Malcolm and Margaret, Edward and Ethelre onle th ye onedar s referre "Wyrltoy b chronicles o dt hi n ni , whose bodie laie sar d beside tha theif o t r mothe same th en i rsepulchr t Dunea - fermline. Whe na merEthelre y bo e d appear havo st e been createy db s fathe hi abboy la r Dunkelf o t Eard df an Fife o l formee th , r office being ancestral, and implying the possession of large territories in the centre of Scotland. In all probability a considerable portion of Mid-Lothian had been gifted by the king to this son; at all events, he must have acquired lande th f Halso e thideedn ei th s n waysi r alreadfo ; y referre theo dt y are said to be his gifts to the church of the Holy Trinity at Dunferm- line.8 Earther. reference is made to this same prince in a deed recorded in the Regist. Prior. S. Andrews, at p. 115. There Ethelred is spoken of as " a man of venerated memory," and he is represented as giving " to God the Omnipotent and St Servanus, and the Keledei of the island of Lochleven ..... Ardmore with its rightful boundaries and divisions," states ani t di d " that this parents possessiohi y b give s whilm nwa nhi e he was yet in boyhood." The Keledei were a community of hermits

Hailes, Ann:, vol. i. ; Wynton's Ohron., vol. ii. pp. 271, 272.

1 Celtic Scot., "Wy . Skeneb F . ,. 370 p vol . .ii . 2 1 Near the site of the church is a place called Kingsknowes. EARLY HISTORPARISE TH COLINTONF F 7 O HO Y 36 . that then lived at Lochleyen, and the terms of this transaction indicates t merelno pioue ygenerouth d san s characte princee th f o r , busource th t e from which he derived those possessions which he subsequently bestowed for religious purposes. impossibls i t I thx efi o exacet t date whe e churcnth s erectehwa t da Hale, as no mention is made of this, although the church itself, as well as the lands, are often referred to in subsequent charters. In all probability this would follow soon aftee gify thb th rte pious founder. Accordin o Chalmert g s (Caledonia, . 793 pp vol ,. ii 794: e churcth ) h e spoth stoo t n o wherd e mansioth e n hous f Haileeo stands—iw no s n l probabilitfrod al circumstance mAn th . it eas e littlya f th o t o et that St Cuthbert was the patron saint, perhaps some rude religious house occupie e samth d e spot somr o , e place contiguou , somit o et s centuries before 1095. For it is well known that St Cuthbert—who lived about eighte th middl e f th ho toward d d centuryean en e whosd sth ,an e spiritual jurisdiction wels s successorsa , thas hi a lf o t , extende yearr dfo s ovee th r Lothians even beyond Abercorn—was frequentl habie th forsakinf o tn yi g s cel t hi Lindisfernea l d wanderinan , r dayd weekfo g an s s amone th g moors and solitudes of the country, in order that he might preach to the people in these remote districts the words of truth and Life. At all events, after Ethelred's gift, a church was erected at or near the spot indi- cated d occasionaan , l services woul doubo de n conductee th b tn i , it n di first instance by clergymen from the Church of the Holy Trinity at Dunfermline, and subsequently by those monks of Canterbury that were placed afterwards in the Abbey, and their successors. However, in the year 1226, and perhaps long previous to this, it had a resident clergyman; deea fon i dr dated "die sanctse fidis virginis," 1226 Magistea , r Eicard is denominated " Parson " of Halis, and this same person, in another deed abou same th t e time calles i , d " Eecto earle r th tha" o ye s ;y parth b t f o t thirteenth century, at all events, the church had become a rectory, and the rector, we may suppose, entitled to the fruits of the living. On the alleged authority of Fordun (vi. 42) it is said that the church and lands of Hales were taken from the monks of Dunfermline and given 8 36 PHOCEEDING S, SOCIETYE 1883O14 TH FY . MA ,

to the canons of Holyrood by William de Malvoisin, Bishop of St Andrews, because occasioon n o en a deficiencther s ewa f wino yr fo e supper t thiBu s . statement seem requiro t s e verification s thia sr fo ; bishop lived before 1238, and as the grant to Dunfermlme is confirmed 1 by Alexander III. after41250 t seeme devoii ,b e o f truth.t sth o d n I beginning of the thirteenth century—shortly before or after 1226—there was a dispute between St Cuthbert's Halis and St Cuthbert's " Subtus Castellum de Edenburg" in regard to the teinds " de Craggis de Gorgin"; Abbee th d f Holyroodyo an f whoso e eon , churche t Cuthbert'ssS , Edin- burgh, then was, is ordered by the Abbot of Lindores and the Prior of St Andrews and Lindores—the umpires—for the sake of peace, to pay to the church of St Cuthbert's Halis, at Martinmas (ad festum Sancti Martini) each yeare bezan on d eleve, an t n shilling provido t s e lights (luminaria) for the latter church. On the 4th June 1280, an agreement coms i betweeo et n Lord Randolp abboe hd th Lor an t d Joh f Lastalno - rick (Kestalrig) concernin e lan f gth "Halys"ano d s pertinentsdit n i , which " Symon," son of the latter, is mentioned. On the 7th June 1163, Pope Alexander III. bula n ,i l issued from thirQuro e fourtd th dan n n i h year of his pontificate, refers to Halis. So also does Pope Lucius III. from Veron 14te th hn ao Novembe r 1184 answen I petitio.a o t r n from the abbot and convent of Dunfermline, Pope Honorius III. gives grants fro e churchemth f Haleso d Kinglassean s r meetinfo n e increasinth g g expenses of the monastery, and the date of the letter is the ides of Janu- arytente th , he pontificate th yea f lettea o r n f I Popo r . e Gregor. yIX from Eeate Augush 9t , t 1232 e towth , f Halino mentioneds si e th d an ; " Smithetun," in a letter by the same Pope, dated 8th October 1234. Chalmers n hii , s Caledonia, says e thae churcon th t t f a Haleo hs swa time e canont giveAnthonth S f o t no s n Leithi y d confirmean , y b d Bishop Kenned e sam n th 1445yi ed authoritan ; y mention a suis n i t Parliament in regard to it in December 1482. "It continued," says

1 The right of presentation to the living was taken away, not the lauds ; and the deficiency of wine was caused by the bishop's own attendants—not by the servants e monasteryoth f . EABLY HISTORY OF THE PARISH OF COLINTON. 369 Chalmers,1 " probably with the canons of Anthony till the Reformation. churce Th Hailef ho s appear havo st e been alway f greaso t valuet i d an , wa se ancien rateth n i d t Taxatio t sixta ye rector th merks s s yA wa . monastic propertyd serve ol vicara f y o db e cur.s th , ewa Thoug e th h church cease belono e monkt d th o f t gDunfermlineso , they continued superiors of the lands of East Hailes to the Reformation." Except that portio f thio n s statement which accurately describe e e valuth th s f o e living, the other parts of it would seem to require confirmation, because, as has already been stated, Mr Eicard was rector and not vicar in 1226, Thomaalss o s owa d Crechtoue an sd subsequena t na t date. wore Th d Hal Celtics ei d signifiean , mooa s hillockr o r thid san , title would accurately describ situatioe eth e churc th parisd f no han h towards elevente e closth th f eo h century. Indeed whole south-wese th ,th f eo f o t Edinburg t thaha t time woul e nothinb d g more tha nseriea -moorsf so , rising to the top of the Pentlands, with here and there, perhaps, near to the Water of Leith and the other small streams, patches of cultivated ground. Edinburgh itself, about 1095, consisted of little more than its Castle (Gastellum Puettarum). There might probably be a few houses outside the castle walls, and perhaps some rude Saxon church near to where St Giles' church now stands, but little else. Of course outside the fortress anciene th ther s ewa t churc t CuthbertS f ho , whic s lonha hg since dis- appeared,2 whilst within there was the little chapel, now called St Margaret's, where the members of the Eoyal Family worshipped whilst stayin Castlecomt e t Holyroodth ye eBu n t gi .int no od existenceha 3 , Canongate th d an e huntin a itsels wa f g field abounding with harts, hinds, foxes, and other animals of the chase. On the Water of Leith, where the parish of Colinton now is, there was in 1226 a mill, the property of Thomas of Lastalric (Eestalrig), in close proximity to the church property; and the boundaries of this mill and the land belonging to it formed the subject odisputa f e betwee proprietoe n th thee th n d rectoparishe an rth f o r , tho settlemen whicf o t duls hi y recorded. Thersame alsth s en oei wa yea a r 1 Caled., vol. ii. pp. 793, 794.

2 It is said that the present building occupies the old site. 3 Regist. Holyrood, page 12. 3*70 PROCEEDINGS E , SOCIETYOF188314 TH - Y . MA ,

mill, called "Dregem" mill, whic disputa teindeds n i hwa d e an ,whic h arose between the brethren of St Leonard's Hospitalj Edinburgh, and the parson of the parish, the acting mandatories of the Pope gave the teinds brethree toth t Leonard'sS f no t ordaine churce bu , th o t h dy thepa mo t of Hailes three shillings, viz.: eighteenpence-at Pentecost (Whitsunday), and eighteenpence at the Feast of St Martin (Martinmas), for providing light thar sfo t church. Almos vestigeo n tanciene th f so t churc- be f Hal ho s it Haler eo d san longings remain. There is at the west side of the west door of the present church a broken piece of what has evidently been an early grave-stone. Abov edoorwaa y gardee i nwala th n f i lHailen o s House wese th f o to t , that house, there is a rude stone, with three seated figures on it, evidently representing the Holy Trinity. There is also a square tower, under which near o , whicho t r wella e wates i , th , whicf o r a s forcei y hb p du pump; while over the grounds are parts of old walls. Some time during last century, while diggin gfoundatioa pigeon-housea for n fiela to din , the east of Hailes House, through which the Balerno branch of the Cale- donian Eailwa runs w e workmeyno th , n came upon human bonesd an , the conclusion come to was that this was the burial-ground of the ancient church.1 More minute inquiries might perhaps result in additional traces remaind anciene an th f so t ecclesiastical establishment l probaal n i -t Bu . bility the church and its belongings were completely destroyed at the Reformation nea s metropolise rwa th t I . closn ,i e proximit scenee th o yt s .wher greatese eth t excitement prevailed 28t e whed th h,an n nMarco h 1561, .the Lords of the Congregation " past to Strivling (Stirling) and by the way kest dou Abbee nth f Dunfermling"yo l probabilital n i 2 nearee yth d an r smaller ecclesiastical edifice, attacked by the mob, was before this a ruin.

e inside soutth th f n heo e 1I presen walth f o l t church, unde a windor e th wn i area, there is a panelled stone, having this inscription:—" HERE • LYIS ANE HONORABI LVOMA• . HlRtOA N• T SPOV !'•• O FOVLIT S F COLINO S G TOVN VAS QVHA • DIED • 8 AVGVST -1593." As there is a burial-ground of Foulie th s family immediately beneath this stone churc e asd th removes an , hwa o dt it3 present plac l probabilit1636n ei al n i , y burial-grouna ther s wa e d her yearr efo s previously. Jiegist, cle Dunferm., Introd . xxvp . . 2 EAliLY HISTORPARISE TH F COLINTONF O HO Y . 371

l probabilital n I e plurayth e worl th for df m o Hale arose froe mth circumstance tha whole th t undulatinn ea districf o s wa tg description— full of moors or hillocks. At all events, there came in course of time to be an Easter and Wester Hailes in the parish. And Chalmers says there wa Nortsa h Hal Soutd ean h Hail Easn ei t Lothian, diocese whilth n ei e of Lincoln e presenth t a , t day n Nottinghamshirei , , thera paris s i e h called Hale (magna et parva), and other places of the same name in England. Accordin o Chalmerst g , also e worth , d Hale s signifyina , ga moor, is still retained in the Cornish, for in Cornwall there is a village of this namee firsTh t .mentio wore th df n o Colinto cliartulare th n i s yi in the Register of Feus, and it is there spelled Collingtoun, and used in connection with a Mr Henrie Foulis, evidently between the .years 1557 and 1585. When the parish was first founded, in all probability there mansion-houseso n werd villageo an n e t i e onln i s Th y . evidenca f eo proprietor distinct from the abbot and .convent of Dunfermline for centuries afterward s Thomai s f Lastalricko s . Wit e exceptiohth f o n one property that has been added since 1560 (Craiglockhart), the ancient boundaries of the parish must have been the same as they are now.