V. NOTICE OF THE PRIORY CHURCH OF , -SHIRE. BY CAPTAIN T. P. WHITE, R.E., F.S.A., SCOT. Among the remains of religious establishments planted in during Mediaeva l lease timesth t t interestinno , Priore th s yi g Churcf ho Beaulie Beauly,r uo 1 situated withi e paristh n f Kilmoraco h n Inverki - ness-shire.2 Nearl centuriex ysi hala d f san hav e elapsed sinc founs eit - dation by Sir John de Bisset of Loveth,3 the then representative of an illustrious Scottish family residente neighbourhoodth n i e actuaTh . l date4 of the founder's gift appears to have been the 9th July 1223, the charter f endowmeno t being confirme Kiny b d g Alexande 1231n i . II ,r an Popy db e Gregory apparentl e samth en yi year , namely fourte th , f ho 1 Also spelt Bewly, Beuli, Beauli Latie Th n . e priortitlth f eyo -was " Prioratus de bello loco." * Sometimes stated to be Ross-shire:—an erroneous impression, arising, I suppose fro proximite mth Beaulf y bordeo e th thao f yt ro t county village milen Th te . a esi almos e -wesdu t t fro e towm th f Inverness no , 3 Written Byset, Bizet, Bisert, &c. . HistorMS 4 Frasersf yo , 1749. Advocates' Library. NOTICE OF THE PRIORY CHUKCH OF BEAULY. 431 pontificate.s hi e establishmenTh a fraternit1 r fo s ywa t knowe th s a n monk f Valliso s Cauliu Var mo l des-Choux a communit, y which sprang withip u e diocesnth f Langreeo e Duchth n i sf Burgundyy o , about A.D. 1193-7 under one Virard. They were a reform or offshoot of the Cis- tercians ; and, like that larger community, followed the rule of the fathere primitivth f f westere calleo o sb t e Benedicty eS d on n ma o wh , monastic institutions. " By their constitution," says Keith, " these monks were obliged to live an austere and solitary life, none but the prior and procurator being allowed to go out of the cloisters for any reason whatsoever." They were first introduced into Scotland between A.D. 1220-30 by William Malvoisin, Bishop of St Andrews, and had only three monasterie Nortn i s h Britain—Pluscardin Morayn ei , Beauly, Ardchattad an e countth n f i nArgyleyo , each unde e directioth r a f o n prior.2 Sometime monke sth Val-des-Chouxf so stylee 3ar d Benedictines from the saint whose rule was followed by this Order as well as by so many others. Father Hay, again. volumMS , e eautho th commonl f o r y knows a n " Scotia Sacra," 4 mentions another Order as having, in conjunction with that of Vallis-Caulium, been brought over by Bishop Malvoisin, and settled at Beauly. This Order, founded by St Gualbert, he styles " Vallis Umbrosse," so called from the Abbey of Yal-Ombre near Florence in Tuscany. Eithes confuseha e rh d thes Orders,o confraternite tw th r o 5 y t Beaula havy yema been partly mad frop eu m both. Fro accouns mhi f o t them,—and considerin s ecclesiasticahi g n unlikella positions wa y e h , person to exaggerate,—there was great need for reform somewhere. Speakin Order,—bue th f go t whethe meane rh Vallis-Cauliue sth m monks, those of Val-Ombre, or the Cistercians the former had branched from, is 1 A.D. 1230 is the year generally quoted. 2 Keith's Catalogue of Bishops. 3 Wardlaw MSS. of Frasers, &c., in Advocates' Library, date 1750. Advocatesn I « ' Library s datei t I d. 1700 d writte an ,a beautifu n i n l clerkly han Frenchn di , Latin d Englisan , h indiscriminatel e ysubscribe H mixe . up d s himself as Mr Richard Augustine Hay, Canon-Regular of St Genovers in Paris ; Priot PierremontS f o r , &c. Keith tells us this confusion often occurred. He calls the Val-Ombre monks 5 Camaldulians sayd an ;s they wer communitea hermitsf yo , founde centurda d yan half earlier tha Ordee nth yal-des-Chouxf o r . 2 43 PROCEEDING SSOCIETYE 01TH ' , JUN , 1870E13 .

t verno y clear,—he advert n briei st sever bu f e term theio st r infractions of discipline, the diversion to private uses of goods which should have been share commonn di overgrowte th , f wealthho othed an , r corruptions which .had crep amonn i t g them.1 In attempting to give a brief historical sketch of this ecclesiastical foundation befor I enotic e what relics have remaine presene th y o dt da t on the ground itself, it may be convenient to consider the subject sepa- rately, as far as practicable, first, with reference specially to the monks themselves as a religious community, and, secondly, in connection with the two or three leading families of the locality, including that of the founder, most prominently associated with this community misa s -i t I . fortune that the original chartulary of Beauly Priory has been lost sight of.2 Here we should have expected to meet with much bearing upon the transactions of the monks- and contemporaneous local history, for which we have, as it is, to depend mainly upon extracts not always at first hand ofted an , n fragmentary. addition I Macfarlane'o nt s transcripts fro Priore mth y Eegister bears a , - upog histore in nth Beaulyf yo , ther certaie ear n manuscript family records of last century, the Chartulary of , and a few other isolated notices. To begin with the monks, then. It was about 1222, according to one MS.3 on the Isle of Ach-na-badi, that the first prior, Pater Jacomo Baptista,4 with six French monks, landed within the demesne of Lovat. On this same spot stood, or had previously done so, a chapel of St Michael, and

divitii1m "Cu s ordo crevisset paulatim infraota diseiplina t moree , s corumpi corpor bonim da an communi s e absumendi privated a s s usiia abutuntur t aliie , s libidinum irritamentis." Brichanr "M 2e Origth n i , . Parochiales, Stuartr D d ," an bot h remark upon this. The latter tells us there are eleven religions houses, Beauly among them, whose registers cannot now be traced, though several of them were quoted by writers of lase th t century e thinkH . t i probabls e t founeth ye n some di b f they o e mma librarie r charter-roomso r greaou f t so proprietors.— Royal Commission Historicaln o MSS., first Report, 1870. * Called " Diplomata Prioratus de Bello loco." Ach-na-baidh, plain of the estuary name spotd th ol f .e o th It is just possible the writer bas mistaken the name of John the Baptist, 4 " Johanni Baptiste" occurring once or twice in the earliest of the Beanly Ohartulary transcripts patroa s a , n Saint Priore thar th f fo , o t. PE10BNOTICE TH F YEO CHURC3 43 BEAOLYF HO .

the king, Alexander II., in his confirmation to the monks of the lands of Strath Alvi, directs that the Priory is to be erected there. The brother- e maintainedb o e t publi e hootoldth s ar t wa da e c, w ,expense , tile th l founder of the priory was in a position to settle them in their -new sphere. The precise date of the erection of the Priory buildings cannot be fixed. One account giveA.Ds a t .s i tim1245e th Popf eo n ,i e Innocent IV.t ;bu supposing it to have been actually begun so early, many years may have elapsed before its final completion. Upon purely architectural grounds, indeed, ther e reasonar e r doubtinfo se presenth f gi t structure b n ca e earlier in date than the end of the thirteenth or the beginning of the fourteenth century. The monks, on landing, being struck with the fairness of the prospect, pronounced the isle of Ach-na-baidh to be a lovely spot, and it was thenceforward called Beau Lieu (bellus locu sa loc i amcenitate)e Th . recordeds e fieldi fruitth t i f , o s , were plentifu plaie th nn i l where eth monastery was situated;1 and by the liberality of the Lord of Byset the community soon found itself possessed of a goodly portion in lands. The exact precincts and extent of these lands has been noted in some of MSS.e th , and, like most monastic possessions, they must have been increased considerabl endowmenty yb s from successive proprietorse Th . first grant e namelandth f Strats o si d h Alvay n whici , e islf th ho e Ach-na-badi, now Beau Lieu, was included, and which extended from Inachterradal bure easth e Breasacf no o th t n eo h westward. nexe Th t 2 grants we hear of are as to certain multures bestowed by the Laird of Bisset within the parishes of Wardlaw and , namely, those on the lands of Loveth, Luss, Finask, Muniack, &c., all of which are con- firmesaie th d o dmonkt Kiny sb g Alexande n 1231i r . Again, between yeare th s 122 1241d 7an , when Pope Gregory confirm e Beaulth s y friars in their property, the lands of Fithenay and Karcurri, with the fishing of the Forne, are mentioned as further gifts from the liberal founder of the monastery.3 have "W e taken," says HolinessHi thin si s Bull, " your persons and the monastery specially under the protection of the blessed

In fertili planitie qua? nullis ferma extraneis fructibns, &c.—Ilaij. 2 MS. Hist, of the Frasers.—Advocates' Library. 3 Macfarlarie's Transcripts, Chart Beaulyf o , . 2 K VOL. VIII. PAR , TII 434 PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY, JUNE 13, 1870.

S. Peter and ourselves; as also the possessions of Lithenay and Karcurri, wit Forne hth e fishery which John Bisset grante . youlikewiso d t . . ; e your landed propert d youyan r e confirothew u d r myo goodsan . . . ; in the same by our apostolic authority. . . . Given at the Lateran." . (Dat . . e omitted.) Abou e samth t e time, William, brothe Joho t r n de Bisset, grants to the monks, in the name of " God, the blessed Mary, anblessee dth d John Baptist, churce "th f Abertarf,ho diocese th n i 1f eo Moray d thian ;s gift wels a ,theis a l r tithe fishingd Speye san th s n i ,o s ratifie Beaule th o dt y monk Andrewy sb , Bisho f Moraypo , shortly after. e charteTh f ratificatioo r s i subscriben e Bishoth d fourteey b dpan n canons.2 This William frequently witnesse s eldehi o rt s brothers char- ters and donations. The terms of the founder's charter were, that the brethren shoul durindm hi pra s lifetimer ghi yfo ; afte s deathi r h take chargs bodd obsequieshi an yf o e d keean , p aliv e memors th ehi f o y departed soul by continual sacrifices and works of piety.3 Scarcely, however, was Bisset's endowment secured to the Beauly monks whe n evena n t occurred which entirely change e fortunes th d hi f o s family. And now let us note what is known of the history of this an- cient house. e nam Th f Bizeto e , Biseth r Byseto , , standearln i t y sou Scottis h his- tory under circumstances of unusual prominence. The family, according to Anderson originalls wa , y from England firsd an ,t settle Scotlandn di t i , is said, under William the Lion, though Abercroniby supports the position of their introductio reige th Malcol f no n i m thi s IIIA s. Malcol m (Ceann Mor) reigned A.D. 1057-93 fine w Bysea d d an t, abou centura t y later occupying a position of great eminence at the court of William, and actually marrying the king's daughter,4 there is no difficulty in accepting the latter view as the more probable. At all events, this John de Byset, son- e Scottisth o t hw la king n i , make s appearancshi e land Lors th ea f f sdo o Lovat A.D. 1170 previoue th , s possessors having apparently been Fentons

grane 1Th t includes some right fishingf so , specifie salmons a d , t garbarum."e " [" Garba " mean sheasa cornf o f , teind sheaves.—ED.] 2 Keith says fifteen. 3 " Ut pro ipso dum viveret, &c., &c., prosequerentur. 4 The Wardlaw MS. says her name was Agnes. NOTIC E1'RTOUE OFTH Y CHURC5 43 BEAULYF HO .

and Gilchrists or Grahams. Of these last names it may Le remarked that they continue districe persone th th n di n ti individualf so s holding Crown fortso wardshiptw , e Beauforth f o s r Downieo t d Lovatan , , durine gth Bysets' tenure of the lands these forts were huilt upon. And in the interval betweee Eraser e risth Bissete f th th e fal o e f f Lovatd nso th o l san , these Fenton Grahamd san s appea havo rt bact ego k som theif eo r properte th yn i neighbourhood.1 John de Bisset, first of Lovat, says one manuscript, was " a great courtier with William the Lion, and was settled in Lovat with commission from the king, a man of great courage and activity."2 To him succeede secons dhi d son, John marriedo ,wh , A.D. 1206, Jean Haliburton, daughter of the Lord of Culboynie. At this time the family had become sufficiently important as to have granted lands under conditions of vas- salage to several smaller lairds, who were styled the Bysets' barons, Fenton and Haliburton being amon e numberth g e M'KayTh M'Raes.d san , who were settle n Urquharti d , Abriachar e neighbourinth d an , g parts, were also vassal house th f Bisset.f so eo formee Th 3 r clae r septnar o e ,w told, were the only supporters the Lord of Bisset could muster in an expe- dition (date not named) into Glenelg to collect his rents;4 so that at some time that district, or part of it, must have been among the possessions of the family. In William the Lion's reign several families of Bisset were, according to Chalmers, settled in Moray and the Merse districts.6 One of them makes over to the Abbey of Kelso the manor of Upsetlington. Fro Chronicle mth r Melrosef Walteeo Si e Bizet e heaon e d ro w 6f o rwh , married Ada, daughter of Rowland M'Donal, Lord of Galloway, about e yeath r 1200s grandsonHi . e th , f Williao e e on Bissetmd s wa , auditors in the competition between Bruce and Balliol, A.D. 1291; and William's grandson, again, Thomas de Bisset, was second husband (the first being Willia e Ramsaymd f Isabello ) a M'Duff, heirese th f o s earldom of . To Thomas, King David II., in the year 1362, grante da charte f thao r t earldo e mCrowo revert th o t tn failing male heirs. He took the title of Earl of Fife, and died without issue, about 1366s widoHi . w married Walter Stuart, Ear f Menteitho l , who also died without issue; and in 1371 she disposed of.the Fyfe

i Chart Morayf o , . a &c ,Wardla . wMS 3 Anderson's Hist. * Wardlaw MS. '•> Anderson's Hist. G According to the Kilravock MS. 436 PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY, JUNE 13, 1870.

earldom to Eobert Stuart, afterwards Duke of Albany. Upon the forfeiture of this peer's son, Duke Murdoc, the earldom was annexed to the crown.1 According to the Kilravock MS., the first Bisset of Lovat was settled there, with many other strangers, by King Malcolm IV. (the maiden) in his northern expedition against Moray; and his son, the founde f Beaulyo r mads wa , e governo Tore th Lovat. f thu s o ti f ro t sI 2 pretty evident tha Bissete th t s wer erica powerfud han l family, connected with some of the first blood in. Scotland. John de Bisset had no sons that came to age. Of his three daughters, Mary,3 the eldest, married David de Graham; Cecilia, the next, William jFeiiton of Beaufort; and Elizabeth, the youngest, Sir Andrew de Bosco, Dominus de Eedcastle and Eddyrdor, whose daughte e ancestresth s famile Eooe th D wa r f f syo o s or Eose of Kilravock. By this marriage with Bisset's eldest daughter, whheiress owa f Lovatso Grahaa , m once more became possesso f thao r t lordship n 1258I ."Dominu s a , Loveth,e sd makee "h arrangemenn sa t wit Bishoe hth f Morapo y about some fishing Fornee th n o s,t partno f i , all, of which Ms father-in-law had, as we have seen, granted to the Beauly monks. n 1280I 4 , William Fenton Lor f Beaufortdo Cecilid an , a Bisset his wife, are excommunicated by the same bishop for unjustly retaining lande th Kiltalargyn.f so 1222n I 5mentioe th , "f n o nobili r Joannesvi s Bisseth, Dominus de Loveth," occurs in the chartulary of Moray. Two years later Joh Bysee nd t enters int oa compac t with Bryc Brisiusr eo , Bisho f Moraypo , with respece transferencth o t t e Churct th S f f eo o h Maurity in Doun-bealach -to Balbray or Mons St Marie, where it was erected into a mensal, and parochial church.6 This deed is subscribed by the bishop and the chanter.' In it the said John Byset, " for the soul of his father, and likewise for the safety and the souls of himself, his mother, and all his posterity, conferred upon and granted to the

1 Sibbald's Hist, and Kilravock MS. 2 Kilravock and Wardlaw MSS. favourita s wa t I e theory wit genealogiste hth Erasee th f o sr familf yo thae on t 3 their r Simohouse tooSi o determinee o kns wh th , dpara t against s Edwarhi n i . dI invasio. f Scotland o ns afterward wa d an , s beheade Londonn di , marrie dMara e yd Bisset d thereban , y acquire e Lovath d t property t thibu ;s assumptio bees ha nn shown to be incorrect; the dates, in fact, are all against it. '• Chart, of Moray. » Ibid. 6 Andersen's Hist. ^ Wardlaw MS. PEIOKNOTICE TH F YEO CHURC7 43 BEAULYF HO .

church of Dul-batelach,1 for the purposes of a free and perpetual alms seven acre f lansuitabla o s n di e plac nead parise ean rth h church, after its translation to Eyngart, in the place called "Wardlaw."2 Again, in 1226, he devotes the right of patronage or advowson of Kiltalirgy (Kiltarlity) church " to God and the Church of St Peter of Eothven for maintenance th leperf eo s devoting themselve than i d t place."Go o st n I 3 this grant the favours conferred upon the Bissets by King William are recognised givens wa ,t I say chartulary.e sth Lore th soue df th , o l r "fo William King of Scotland, and also for the preservation of my noble LorKind an dg Alexandersoul'e th r s fo ancestorhealt y d m an ,f ho d san successors."4 In 1228 the Lord of Lovat is again heard of, this time in dispute, as to certain church lands, with Bishop Bryce's successor, Andrew de Moravia, who laid the foundation stone of the magnificent cathedral church of the Holy Trinity at Elgin.5 So far we have traced nearly all that is known respecting the Priory and the family of its founder up to the period when the connection between the two was suddenly severed. The circumstance which led to that severance I shall quote in the words of the Eraser MS. :— "Abou yeae th t r 1244,6 while King AlexanderII greaa d tan .numbe f o r s nobilit hi t Haddingtona y yla lodgine th , Patricf go k Gumming, Earf o l Athole, too ka sudden firn o servanteo whicn tw i , eard e hth san l were burn o deatht t e fir t .know th e no Thoug w begana s ho nt wa ye t ,hi general suspicio againsn nra Bissetse th t , upon accoun standina f to g feud betwixt the earl and them. They were accordingly summoned to appear o answet r thafo r t murder greae th sucd s t an ,poweh wa interesd an r f o t e Cummingsth , that though William Bisset prove many b d y witnesses, amon ge queen t whoth Forfar—upwarda s s m,wa wa tha e h t f sixto s y miles from Haddington—the night that that villany was perpetrated, yet

1 In this transformation of the name (see Doun-bealach above) we have an ex- ample of the hazards to be encountered in attempting to interpret topographical etymologies. An easy transition from this rendering would give us Dal-bataile, which would read instea pass,e f "do th hil e "f fielth "o l battle.f o d " * Scotice, Balbrach ; Andersen's Hist. 3 I quote the Chart, of Moray as literally as possible. * Anderson's Hist. 5 Keith and Fraser MS. 6 Anderson makes it 1242. 8 43 PROCEEDING SOCIETYE TH F SO , JUN , 1870E13 . e Cummingth s insisted that severas servanthi f vassalo d l san s were seen there; upon whic wholthe h e famil banishedwas y theiand , r estates confiscated to the king." Bisset, finding himself attainted and stripped of his property, shortly afterwards leagues himself with Donald, , and accepts a charter from that potentate for the lands of Auchterles Aberdeenshiren si condition o , e customarf payinno th m ghi y homage. Thi incenseo s s e Kinth d f Scotlango d whe s t i ncamhi o t e knowledge, that Bisset was at once proclaimed an outlaw ; and, on being captured in the wood of Auchterless, where he had doubtless gone to take possessio s illegallhi f no y gotten acquisition banishes wa e h ,Ireland o dt , wher s fouhi e r brothers accompanied e yeahimth r n ,i 1249. Yes hi t forfeiture must have been partialln posi s - wa ye h remitted 8 n 25 J i s a , sessioe landth f Erchless."f o sno 1 Afte banishments hi r , accordino gt one account, the barony of Lovat was bestowed upon Sir Simon Eraser of Tweeddale,2 and passed on to his son, thus inaugurating the new house of that northe namth t thern ei bu ; e satisfactoro appearn e b o st y evidence of this, as ' the first Eraser styled of Lovat does not appear till A.D. 1367.3 A family genealogist would naturally make the most of his patron's pedigree e statementth d musan e , f on sucacceptee o s tb n ha d with reserve. Between the years 1242 aud 1278, charters for grants of land and quit claims from various individuals to the Beauly monks are recorded in the ancient registers.4 The names of Bisset's daughters and sons-in-law occur pretty frequently about this period 127n I Prioe . 9th r monastere ofth s yi appointed sub-deputy by the Abbot of Deir to settle a dispute as to the church lands of Kiltarlity, between Archibald, Bishop of Moray, and William de Eenthon, lord of Beaufort, who, as we have seen, was husband to one of Byset's daughters and co-heiresses.5 About 1293 this lady, • Cecilia Byset, then a widow, grants a charter to the monks of the third e landth par f f Altyre,o so t inheritedd 6 whicha e n 1295I sh h . , Eliza- beth, daughte e noblemanth o t r Lore th , d Joh f Bisseto n formerld an , y

1 Afterwards Chisholmsownee th y db . 2 Frase. MS r 3 Anderson's Hist Chartd an , Morayf o , . 4'0rigine3 Parochiales. 5 Ibid. 6 " Diplomata " of the Priory. It is given " to the brethren of Vallis-caulium serving Go housn di e Belli Loci." PKIOKNOTICE TH F YEO CHURC9 43 BEAULYF HO .

spouse to the Lord Andrew of Bosco, subscribes a deed making over to her child, Mary de Bosco, the estates of Kilravock.1 In the year 1278, Andrew de Boscho, lord of Eddyrdor, and Elizabeth his spouse, grant an annual alms of two merks to the monastery of Beauly (domui Belli Loci), the same to be paid " at our castle of Eddyrdor by us and our heirs." The witnesses to this charter are William, Vicar of Eddyrdor, and Colin G-ove, Constabl Farnedalef e o date s i t i d d Venerie "an ,di Friday)r s "(o , . next aftee e ExaltatioFeasth th r f e o tHol th f yno Cross, A.D. 1278.2 j Somewhere about the same period a deed of gift appears in the Beauly Chartulary from " David de Innerlunan" (whom I take to be John Bisset's son-in-law r DaviSi , e Grahamd ) befor s marriageM e , granting, with consent of Gillecrist3 MacGilliduff, to the brethren of Beauly all his •I estate of Auchterradale, namely, one half of the davoch land which he I held of the said Gilchrist. The witnesses are—The Lord Walter of Moray; the Lord Andrew of Moray; William, Earl of ; \ Alan, brother to the said Lord Andrew; Isaac Mac Gillendre; John I Christinson (fili Cristini); Duncan Duff; Bechly Beg, and others.4 In e samth e registe chartea s i r Williay rb \ Fentone md , Lor f Beauforddo , t dateValentine'S n do s Fairday, 1328, grantin monke th merk o o gt s tw s 1 value of the Beauford multures. And, during the first quarter of the 14th century, we hear of Patrick de Graham, who gives one-third part of the Altyre lands in exchange or quit claim for certain multures for one- third of one hundred and twenty merks which his grandfather, Sir John Bisset d pledgeha , monke dth himsel y perpetuitn si pa o t f y towarde sth fabric of the priory church, and for other debts.5 The witnesses to this charte Johe ar rGrante nd , Thomas, Bisho Eossf po Lore th , d Williame d Fenton, and John de Fenton his son. In the south and elsewhere the nam Bissef eo t reappears from tim e differen timo eth t n ei t Chartularies ;c

i Fraser MSS. a Chart. Beauly. The Grahams were also styled Gilchrists, according to Anderson. 3 4 Chart. Beauly. 5 Origines Parochiales. 130n I 5 aBisse constabls i t Stirlinf eo g Castle therd proofe an , ebrancar a f so h 6 e familoth f y having hel e estatedth f Dairso Merchistod yan n near Edinburgn hi the reigns of Eobert I. and David II.—Anderson's Hist., Chalmers's Caledonia, &c. An n 143i d 1 Donald Balloce Isleth f so hinherite d through Ids mother, Marjory Bisset, the territory of the Glens in Antrim.—Gregory. 440 PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY, JUNE 13, 1870. e subjece presenth th s f a o tr t fa butpape o s , s concernedi r , this once distinguished family, which persoe foundee th Beauliee th th n f i ,no f o r u Priory, would seem, to have possessed the estates of Lovat, , Stratheriok,1 par f Glenelo e westt th ,n gi Allyre , Urquhart d Kian l, ravock, in all a princely heritage, may be said to pass out of notice in beginnine th e 14tth hf g o century . e havW e nex e glancotheo t tth t ra e Scottis h houses grouping them- selves aroun Monasterye dth . Firs importancn i t e come illustrioue sth s Fraserse racth f eo , who, afte a shorr t interregnum, replace Bissete dth s in the heritorship of Lovat. The genealogy of the family has been amply discussed elsewhere e entere b nee d t an ,d no d int jus- y ore there ma I . mark, however, that the name of Eraser or Friselle was undoubtedly amon e firsth g t introduced into this countr e Normath t ya n Conquest, thoug e family' th e dat f th ho e s entry into Scotlan s involvei d n i d obscurity. Their earliest settlements, says Anderson, Bordenorte th f ho r were in , whence they successively branched off into Tweeddale in the 12th and 13th centuries, and afterwards to Inverness- shire and . It was not, however, as we have seen, till the year 1367 tha Frasea t r figure writtea n i s n charte Baron e Lors th ra f do y of Lova principa e Ardd Th an t . l souther housne th lin f eeo terminated as to heirs male in the person of the Sir Simon Fraser who was beheaded in London in 1306, a year after Sir William Wallace had suffered a similar fate. The headship of the clan then passed to Sir Simon's uncle, r AndreSi w Fraser, whose son, also named Simon,2 equally devotes hi s da patriotic'* cousin to the house of Bruce, fell at the battle of Halidon Hill, A.D. 1333. Now, apparently, bot f thesho e Simon e Frase th alludee ar sn i r o dt MS n connectioi . n s witdistinguishewa h e o firstBeaulyth wh f , O d. from his father in the southern chronicles by the title of " films," the writer remarks, calling him " the brave Sir Simon," 3 that he settled

1 Strath Errick, on the east shore of Loch Ness to the north of Foyers. From whom the chiefs of the Lovat Frasers took their Gaelic patronymic 2 " Mac-Sbiini," or the Son of Simon. This Christian name had been popular in the earlier time thf so e family. 3 Ther s probabli e y some confusio ne writer' th her n o es part o betweetw e th n chiefe samth f eo s name. NOTICE OF THE PRIORY CHURCH OF BEAULY. 441

and marriee nortth hn i d durin father's ghi s lifetime d tha firss an ,hi t t act after his marriage was "to settle marches "betwixt him and the monks of Beauly." The MS. then proceeds to speak of the mother of him who was slai t Halidona n Hill whomd ,an t stylei fifte sth h spente lairdSh ., e toldwar e ,r timmuc he n act i e f f pietyo ho s , contributing liberally towards building beautifyind 1an intentior he monasterys e gth wa nt i d an , o erect a stont e bridge ovee wateth r f Beaulyo r whicr fo , h purposa e great hea f stonep o collected s wa s , "e see stilb yn no i elt river," called " Carn-na Baintighearna" (the lady's cairn); but death prevented her executin e workth g . This lad d estatecounte yha th n f si Caithnessy o , then within the sheriffdom of Inverness;2 and the probabilities are that the clan Eraser got its first footing in the north through Sir Andrew, her husband, and that it was their son Simon, and not his cousin, who had wito d ho t Beauly. Fro e yeamth r 133 portraite 3th Chiefe sth givef f Lovao o s - s nu be t come more distinct. !N"ext to the Simon of Halidon Hill memory, the generally admitted first Fraser of Lovat, came Simon, his eldest son, who died unmarried succeedes wa s brothe d hi an y , db r Hug r Hughoo , about A.D. 1348 firso . t wh Huge Frase appeard th s f Ar hLovai o rn d si an t the Moray Chartulary as such, A.D. 1367.3 This laird, we are told, was beloved by the clergy, who paid him every mark of esteem while he lived afte d deats an ,hi r hprincela gavm hi e y burial. Bishoe "Th f po Murray, Alexander Bar, and Tho8. Tulloch, Bishop of Eoss, w* all their dignitys Abbote th , Kinlosf so Fearnd s an Priore th , Pluscardinf so d ean Beaulie, with their orders, attended the funeral which appeared like a processio churchmenf no , tilbode interres th l ywa d withi Churce nth f ho Beaulie."4 He died in 1397 in his 70th year. Alexander was the next laird. In him, if the picture drawn be a true one, we have exhibited a character of devoted piety rarely found among laymen of that day, or ofteo to indee nt otheramonno y dd an clerge an ,g th y themselves. Unlike mos tnoble e of th live e f "thh so e d ein,ag caree ""h d not, learne "w ,r "fo

Perhap re-buildinsa f somgo e portio f tho ne church n additioa r o , n sucs ha cloisters1 , &c., ma meante yb , 2 Anderson. 3 " Dominu Lovethe d s t Portionariue , s terraru Ard.e md " J Fraser MS. 442 PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY, JUNE 13, 1870. nois e court,pome d th th ean t gavf po bu "e himsel retiremeno t p u f d an t prayer, spendin priorye gtims th mos hi cone n ei f , th o t -"wher d ha e h e versation of ye prior and the monks and their regular canonical devotions." " It was pity," says the writer of the Lovat Memoirs,1 "he was not a church- man, having often declared he would rather serve at God's altar than attain the highest state preferments. He was a pattern of primitive l arounpietal o yt d e nevehimH .r mentioned ye nam f Jesueo s Christ but w* this respectful additio Master.y M n ' educatios 'Hi firs t "a s t nwa conducted within the walls of the monastery at Beaulie, where he after- wards assiste e prio th dn beautifyin i r d adorninan g e churcth g d an h cloisterss expenshi t A a ebeautifu. l steepl erectes f carveo ewa k ddoa westere onth n pinnacl e buildingth a curiouf eo d an , s bell place. it n di Before his death he devolved the charge of his affairs on his brother Hugh who succeeded e diehim H n 14J.5di . . Alexande neves wa r r married, but the narrator of his extraordinary piety laconically informs us that he left one son Robert, commonly called by the country people " Kob-mac-a- rnanaiche," the monk's son, on account of his father's sanctity. From this Eobert sprang one of the principal branches of the house of Fraser. Of Hugh Eraser, or as he is termed in the old monkish chronicles, Hutcheon Frezel, fifth Lair d firsan dt Lor r Baroo d f Lovat,o n s i t i 2 recorded that " he built the north work of ye Church of Beulie and ye Chape Holf o lprivilege yth t Cross, faia go t Beaulyf a reo d "an , there- after styled Cross Fair, held annually on the 3d day of May. He also erected a famous cross at Wellhouse, on the high road, which was afterwards brough Beaulyo tt , "wher stilt ei l remains."3 This Hugh Frase supposes ri d havo t e been'create lorda Parliamenf do yeae th r n 1431,i t frod s *an mhi

1 Authoe KeferreFrasee th . th y f b o rMS r o dt According to Anderson. He says the Lovat family never had a patent of 2 nobility. It is not known precisely how early they were classed with the peerage. In Scotland there is often confusion between the greater and lesser barons, i.e., be- tween peers prope lairdd an rf estates o s , from their having been indiscriminately styled " Dominus " in the early charters. a Fraser MS. and Anderson's Hist. In Andersou's " Highlands and Isles " the shaft of this cross is said to be still visible in Beauly village, but I did not notice it. Anderson's Hist. Though the Fraser MS. says it was the fourth of the name 4 who first received this dignity, and that the Lordship was held under the Earls of Eoss and Moray till their forfeiture. NOTICE OF THE PKIORY CHURCH OF BEAULY. 443

timcertais i t ei n tha e familth t f Lovayo t have been ranked amone gth Scottish Peerage. e die H n 1440i d1 , having married Janet Fenton, representative sisteth f lairdd o r ol f Beaufortburiee o s s th wa f o d e an , at Beauly. His successor Hugh, fourth of the name, second , was educate t Beaula d y unde e car f th Jamero e s Reid priore o th , wh , "gooa brem d dhi schola devoud an r t man. e e onlH ag " y e liveth o dt of 28, and was buried in the priory church. His eldest son Thomas, who • also died young s prio f wa Beauly,o r d commendam.a , e thirth df O 2 Lord heae w , r nothin connection gi n wit monasterye hth s successorHi . , Hugh Fraser, fourth Lord Lovat, died at Beaufort Castle in 1524, and was burie t Beaulyda s eldesHi . t son, Kobert secona y b , d marriage, married Janet Gelly, heires e Brakf tolde s killeth so ar t wa a e ,n Fifey i dw d an , Water of Beauly, by the monks.3 The particulars of this deed of violence t wouli d have been interesting. whicMS he o learnreciteth t t bu t ,si does not seem to have added anything in the way of explanation to satisfy our curiosity. Some wanton act of sacrilege, perhaps, considering the period, something to do with the reforming tenets that were growing havlande y th uema ,n p i exasperatee th f o e churchmen e th d on t Ye . MSS. speaks of this Eobert as an amiable and esteemed individual. In 1521 injunction a , s issue wa nSylvestery b d , "Nunci Apostolie th f o c See," to the abbots of Kynlos and Fearn in favour of the " noble and potent Hugh Fraser of Loveth," respecting the lands of the Kirkton of Kilmoricht and the fishings of the same. It provided that a sum of L.5, e paib do t annualls e heir wa d assignth e lat. th an 6so sey t 8d f . o s Thomas Frase Lovaof r foufor t r barrel salmosof n fro yearlmthe y fish- ings of the Ess of Kilmoricht, &c. This injunction was executed in 1532. Hugh, sevent namee th f hpeeragee o , th fift n i h , procuret Ac n da of Parliamen weekla r fo t y fai t Beaulya r t thaA t. time there were three fair st Valee Mauritiu S helth e faif o th n d,i r t Beauforta s l SaintsAl , ' at , and of Michaelmas at Beauly. My Lord's retinue on the occasions when he rode to proclaim the fairs, was very imposing. In one of these ceremonial s traihi ns n saii i havthre o e dt d h s eha e lordd san

1 Andersoii's Hist. 2 Ibid, ut sujtra. 3 MSS. of the Lovat family in possession of the Frasers of Ouldu- thel. —Anderson. 444 PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY, JUNE 13, 1870.

barons,x si 1 wit l theihal r follower fuln i s l armour 154n knows I i .e 0h n a pee parliamenthavas in rto esat . Four years later bloodthe , y fight which took plac t a Loce h Lochy betwee e Clanranalth ne th d an d Frasers, cut him oif, and with him his son, the Master of Lovat, and eighty gentlemen of his clan. Four Frasers, it is told, and seven of the Macdonalds, were all that escaped with life, and of these every man was wounded, only one, Fraser of Foyers, ultimately surviving.2 The combat lasted twelve hours, and is said to have been the bloodiest ever fought than i countrye t parth bodiee f o tTh Lorwerf n .s o so des Lovahi d an t brought off the field next day by his people, and conveyed to Beauly for burialinscriptioe Th . n over this lord's tomb .was visible yeae tilth l r 1746, and was as follows :3—" Hie jacet Hugo Dominus Fraser de Lovat qui fortissime Pugnans contra Eeginalderios4 occubuit Julii 15. 1544." s fatherdeate hi th nexe f n ho th , O t son, Alexander youta , f sixteenho , succeeded beed t undeha npu e H r .charg Roberf eo t Beid combineo wh , d the functions of Bishop of Orkney, Abbot of Kinloss, and Prior or Com- mendator builo f Beauly o 5wh a great d tan , mansion-hous Beaulyn i e , where, says the 1746 writer, " his arms is yet to be seen." This priestly dignitary appears to have been worthy of his emoluments, for he was eminent for generosity and hospitality. He kept an open house for the children of the principal gentry, and had at the same time under his roof as guests, Lord Lovat brothes hi , r William lairde th , f Kintailso , Foulis, and others alse H o .kep "s pleasurhi t e barg transporo et betwixm hi t t Kinlos Beauley.d an s " Alexander, Lord Lovat, die n 1558i d , stila l youn s laig mandwa witd s predecessor,an hhi Priore th n i sy Churcf ho Beauly. In the year 1560, at an eventful period of Scottish history, Hugh, seventh baron, and twelfth laird of Lovat, was served heir to his deceased father. He was, like every one else, more or less mixed up with the factions and agitations which were in full force around the person of the beautifu t ill-fate bu a greal s tdwa intimat Marye H . e witr Si h

1 Lesser ones, or simple lairda doubtless. 2 Fraser MS.—Anderson. 3 Anderson. * From Reginald, son of Somarled. ancestor of the Lords of the Isles. 6 This term now makes its appearance. NOTICE OF THE PEIOEY CHUBCH OF BEATILY. 445

Walter Eeid, brother to the Bishop of Orkney above-mentioned, and this Sir Walte rI shal l hav mentioo et n agai morn ni e immediate connection with the priory. As to his relations with the young Lord Lovat, the famil . givea glimps s MS yu s f theo e m t whicwithouno s hi t interest fro incidentae mth l mentio f otheno r personages :— " Among ye other great acquaintance y1 Lord Lovat made thet a n court, he became very intimate with Sir Walter Eeid and his lady. This Sir Walter was brother to ye Bishop of Orkney, who was the great frien d patroan d f Alexandero n , Lord Lovat d whean , n y" bishos pwa with others sent to France to transact y° marriage of Queen Mary with y" Dolphin brothers hi , r WalteSi , f rParliament o Eeidt Ac , n wasa y , ,b made commendator of these two monasteries of Kinloss and Beauli. He was Lord Lovat's relatio yy eb n hous f Balnagowno e d thian ,s acquain- f signao Lort tanco s e de us lwa Lova yn i t" purchas f yeo e lands belong- yo t e priorg in Beaulif yo wils a , l appear afterwards." This Lord Lovat was one of the Lords of Association to whom the Queen surrendered herself after Bothwell's defeat and flight, and who confinen Loci r hhe d Leven e alsH o. subscribee th e bon r th d fo d defencr sonhe f , o Jamese , which followed upo r forcehe n d resignation. Sir Walter, seeing the clouds which were storming up on the ecclesias- tical horizon, lostimo n tn seekini e g what shelte e could h rs prio A .r d commendator,an with consene Beaulth f o ty t monkshimselgo e h ,f appointed heritable baillie of the priory by a charter dated in November 1571, and confirmed under the Great Seal in the following February. Finding this, however, to be an insufficient security, and fearful of falling a prey to some one of the powerful chiefs on the look out for crown grants of church property, he makes over in toto to the Lord Lovat, and s heirhi s male e benefice—viz.e landth th , f o s e tow d landth , an nf o s Beaulie, Ardnacrase, Eixandown, Inch-rori, &c. Both concessions are made in the same year;1 and in 1573, scarcely two years afterwards, the unluck yn disgusti priorf i s a ,, resign e prioratth s d commendatoran e - ship in favour of one Master John Fraser, who receives his appointment from King Jame . sLorVI d Lovat die t Towiea d Aherdeenshiren i , n o ,

1 Accordin "e Origineth o gt s Parochiale lande s "th s wer relinquishet no e d till 1573, after Sir "Walter's resignation. 446 PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY, JUNE 13, 1870.

New Year's day 1577, some said of poison, and he must'have had many enemies who would not scruple to get rid of him in that way. He was on his return home from , where he had gone as one of the confederate lords to consult with Morton on the affairs of the North. There was never, says the chronicler,1 such a funeral seen in these parts (i.e., about Beauly grandeur fo ) magnificenced an r . There were upwards of 2000 men under arms that conveyed the body from Towie to Inver- ness, besides all the nobility and gentry in the North. They arrived at e firsLovaf Februaryth o s tremain n hi o t d an s, were laid amone th g ashes of his noble ancestors before the great altar in the Priory Church 'of Beaulie. According to the same account, this was the last funeral procession of the race of MacShimi which entered its walls, as hereafter e familth y burial-plac s removewa e o Kirkhillt d . Another authority, however, says that Simon e eightth , h Lord r diedo Si 1633a n wh ,i d an , Alexander Erase f Doorso r dieo dwh , seven years before whil guesea t a t Lovat, were both buried in St Catharine's aisle within Beauly Church.2 priore lasth e heae f w n tconnectioyTh i o r n wite Lovath h t famils ywa durin minorite gth e sai th d f yLoro d Simon s uncleHi . , Thomas Eraser of Knockie and Strichen, having, not without some trouble, got himself appointed tutor to the young lord in 1576, takes the first opportunity of seeing the dispossessed monks of Beauly reinstated in their cells and pro- vided for during the rest of their days. He then turns his attention questioa o t disputef no d marches betwee e priornth y land thosd san f eo - Mackenzie of , which had long been in an unsettled state. The two parties were very nearly goin subjecte o battlgt th n o e ; e butth n ,o tutor bringin imposinn a g ge front th forc o ,t ewhic h advancee th o t d banks of the Conan, the chief of the clan Kenzie grew alarmed for his own property, and made overtures which resulted in an amicable adjust- ment of their differences. On the 13th October 1576, a tack or lease is granted by the prior of Beauly, with the chapter's consent, of the vicarage e paristitheth f f Canventh.o hso Simono t 3 , Maste d f Lovato an r n so , apparent hei Hughf o r , Lord Lovat. Abou same th t e time Strichene th , '.' goo s calledd wa tutor, e h , appoints a " a regalits y cour t Beaula t o yt

1 Lovat Memoirs, quote Frasen di . MS r Als8 o spelt Cornwatli2 Warrllaw. MSS. PRIORNOTICE TH F YEO CHURC7 44 BEA.ULYF HO .

confirm the late lord's patent and rights to the priory lands, which, wo have seen, had been absolutely surrendered to him by the late prior, Sir Walter Eeid. Finally, in 1592, after the general surrender of church benefice crowne th o t s , Lord Simo grantes charten i w Kin e th ne ga y rd b lande oth f Beaulyf so henceforte ,b whico t e har h baronyhela s da . The next great clan or family we have to notice in connection with Beauly is that of Mackenzie, the chief representative of which was the hous Kintailf eo Eoss-shiren li , havin theis ga r principal seabeautifue th t l region on the north side of , with the castle of a picturesqu e lochn islanow th a n no ,n i d e e "ruin DominTh . e d i Kintaill" became peer f Scotlano s s Lorda d s Kintaill d afterwardan , s Earls of Seaforth,—but this was not till post-reformation times. With the exception of the Campbells, this noble race was at one time the most powerfu Westere th n i l n Highlands,1 having sway over nearl whole yth e extenlarge th ef o t count f Eossyo t theibu , r invariable adherence th o et Stuart cause resulte attaindee th Eare n d i th f Seafort o lf o r 171n hi r 5fo his participation in Mar's rebellion, and the old property has now passed into other hands. Notwithstandin e disappearancgth e f mano eth f yo collateral branches of this family there still remain a sufficiently goodly numbe o showidespreat rw who d influentiaan d e Maekenzieth l s must have been. Beauly, we know, was the burial-place of the later Kintaill chiefs, also of some of the branch families of Mackenzie, probably those that were within comparatively easy . reacit Mos f ho t fortunatele yth tomb of one is still to be seen within the ruins of the Priory Church, engraven, a still rarer circumstance, with a very perfect and legible inscription givin date gth f 1491 eo thif O s. tomb more presently. The first noticeable ancestor credited to the Maekenzies is one Colin Fitzgerald, s supposei o 2wh o havt d e figurebattle th f t Largseo a d d an , receive s servicehi r wardshie dfo th se Castlth f f Eileapo eo n Donar no Danton3 from Walter Stewart, Earl of March and Carrick, along with a chartee landth f f Kio so r n tail, dated A.D. 1266. Having marriea d

1 Gregory's Hist. 2 Chief of the Geraldines the writer calls him, which gives a wide margin for an antecedent pedigree.—Mackenzie MSS. in Advocates' Library. 3 Ibidnamedo S . sayse h , , from its having bee n"e dauntinbuilth r fo t thf go e Isles." 448 ' PKOCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY, JUNE 13, 1S70.

daughter of the chief of the Macmahons, the former possessors of Kintaill, Colin had a son, Kenneth; and, as Fitzgerald it is alleged was a stranger in the country, this Kenneth, being the first chief of native blood, came - to be the ancestor from whom the clan patronymic of MacChainich (or Mackenzie s derived wa , )e wtold ar eHe ,. married Morba, daughtef o r Macdouga f Lomeo l d sister'an , s daughte Cummino t r , Ear f Atholeo l . The next Kenneth distinguished himself by his devotion to the royal hous f Bruceo e d helan , d Eilean Donan s interestCastlhi n i e , which fortress s afterwardwa t i , e Mackenziese boasth th sf o t neved ha , r been commande Brace'e th y db s enemies, either Englis Scotsr h o Kenneth f O . , the third laird, nicknamed " Nistroir" 1 from his big nose, Murdoch Dow2 (M'Kynich), who is granted a charter of the Kintaill lands by King Davin 1362i . Murdocd dI an , h " Mchroich, e fiftth "h laird, (perhaps another sizeable-nosed one), ther nothins ei recoro gt connection di n with Beauly. The last named Murdoch had to wife, first, Anna, daughter of Macdougal of Lome,3 by whom was Kenneth, sixth laird, and from a second marriage came Hector e Gairloc,th firs f o t h Mackenzies.2 This Kenneth, sixth of Kintaill,4 is the chief whom the beautiful tomb, with recumbent effigy t Beaulya , s erectewa , o commemoratet de w m hi f O . know something mor s twic ee otherswa th ethae f marriedH o n. s hi , first wife, Margaret, being a sister to the celebrated Donald Dubh, or the black Islese Lorth f d,o (who also styled himself r Ear he f Boss)o ly B . namen so e d on Kennetd ha g e (younh f Oi ho e g on Kenneth) s wa o wh , the hostages kept in confinement at Edinburgh Castle for the good behaviour of the Island chiefs, but, having made his escape thence, was followe e Torwoo killed e th lair an th df Buchanann o i dy b d r Si . Kenneth's second wife was Anne,5 daughter of Hugh, third Lord Lovat, and the MS. gives a curious account of the rough and ready way in which he made his proposals for the lady's hand. " Sir Kenneth," says Anderson, " went to Lovat, accompanied by 200 armed men, and besieged

1 What Gaelic thiI canno s si t mak corruptiot a unles e eou b t si Srbina f "no N e mhbr." 2 Mackenzie MSS Advn i . . Lib. 3 De Ergadia, also an ancient and powerful, we may say a princely, family. * Anderson calls him by mistake the eighth laird. 5 Mackenzie MSS. NOTIC EPEIOEE OTH E Y CHURC9 44 BEAULYF HO .

the house. Lord Lovat demanded his purpose, when he coolly told him he wanted to marry his daughter, Ann, and vowed friendship or revenge as his suit was received. His lordship gave his consent to the match, provide e younth d g lads favourableywa e fortunatelSh . y proved sub- missive d Mackenzian , e returned wit s bride."hi h 1 Fro e sammth e authorit leare yw n thar KennetSi t h divorce s firshi d t wife d afteran , - wards, namel n 1491i y , obtained froe Popmth a sanctioe r thifo ns irregular proceeding. If so, the sanction was just in time for the peace f consciences Februaroo hi f h s tom7t hi e ys bth a ,e die h telln o ds u s e recordeth s i 1491. e dH 2a hergrea f o t fight which took place near Park betwee Mackenziee nth nephe a Isles e Lore d e th th sf an on df ,wo o Gillespie M'Donald o muswh , t have bee a connection s divorcehi f o n d wife, and who was, partly perhaps on that account, in arms against the lor f Kintaiilo d e IslanderTh . s wer n considerabli e e numberst bu , Mackenzie, with a hundred bowmen sent by the Master of Lovat to assist him, was too much for M'Donald, whose men, when their enemies got within half a mile of them, became alarmed at the sight of the hostile clans in such force. "Kintaill," says the MS., "asked G-laissan Fraser (Gow), who commanded the Lovat bowmen, how he would behave if he were in command that day."3 "By St Mary of Kirkhill," was Fraser's reply, "I would soon be in ye heart of them."3 After this engagement such of the Macdonalds as escaped, being ignorant of the country, were nearly all drowned in the water of the Conan. This action was fought in the year 1478. Sir Kenneth is said to have been named Kenneth " lolair " (or the Eagle) by the Highlanders on account of this victory.4 s famil r Kennethi e firs Si f th o y t s buriehwa t Beaulya ds pre hi -l al , decessors having been interred at Icolmkil.6 He left four sons and two daughters eldeste th , , John, having afterwards serve s priva d y councillor d Quee o Jamean t . nV s Mary. Roderick e thirth , d son, from whom spran Mackenziee gth Achiltyf o s , Faerburn, Ardross othersd an , , diet da Contin in 1533, and was buried at Beauly. The families of Suddy, Ord,

1 Hist, of Frasers. p. 70. Tha , 1491-92is t . Anderson has evidently mistake e dateth n s e hereh s a , 2 put r Kenneth'Si s s deat t abouha t 1506-7. Fraser MSS. * Mackenzie MSS. » Anderson V 2 VOL. VIII. PART II. 450 PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY, JUNE 13, 1870.

Corrovalzie, Highfield, Inverlal, Little Findon, Scatwell, and others, claim Kenneth, the fourth son, as their ancestor. He fell at Hodden h Septembe9t e Fielth n do r 1513 r KennethSi informede . ar e w , , was knighted "for being highly instrumenta n reducini l s fiercghi e country- blessingmenthe to civilise sof doubted-if be d may lif it thae in , ;"tbut 1 stormy age, the golden spurs would be conferred on any one for such peaceful services ; moreover lore Kintaill'f th ,d o s mod f courtshieo s pwa not, as we have seen, quite of the most civilised kind. The tomb of this chief archen a s i 2 d portioe nichth n ei f wal no l separatin maie gth n aisle from the north transept, which latter formed a side chapel or sacristy, apparentl chapee yth f "o l Hol y Cross " buil Hughy b t , first Lord Lovat, and is probably what the family writer means by " Mackenzie's aisle." This monument is of the kind known as "high" or "altar" tombs. ornamenta n niche a s Th eha l canopy facing intchapele usuae th oth f lo , style of this kind of enriched work. The arch is a pointed one with square crockets, terminating in a pretty finial, and there is a plain shaft alongsid e nicheth e , which latter contain a recumbens t figure. This figure, a full length one, is carved in stone richly elaborated, in this respect occupying a middle place between the ruder effigies of the High- lands, and the exquisite work of our mediaeval alabaster sculptures to be met with in England. The front of the tomb below the figure is panelled into six trefoil headed compartments. On the side of the nave the niche has been subsequently bricked up, leaving only the projecting sill and the side shafts. It is on the sill that the inscription is written, the date being carried on up one of the shafts. It runs thus, and is in the old English character—

1 Anderson. Sketches of this tomb, the two other mediaeval ones described further on, a view 2 of the church with a few bits of its detail, and an approximate plan of the buildinsr, kindl brothea yy b sen e rm t officer, were exhibite e meetinth t a dpurposer gfo f so general illustration. It was not till after the proofs of this paper were in my hands tha e existencth t n elaborata f f architecturao o e t se e l drawing f Beaulyo s , lately prepared by Mr Anderson, architect. F.S.A. Scot., was made known to me. These drawings, which I have since had the pleasure of seeing (along with lithographs Sprine foth r g Gardens Sketch Club) executee ar ,mose th tn di minut e architectural detail. NOTICE OF THE PKIOEY CHUKCH OF BEAULY. 451 it jscet . Jiattjratm . s . fa J^grttsgl . q . flhiit hii . frie J^bruarii . a . Jri m.«a;fem.

The feet of the figure rest upon a dog, the head upon a double cushion, and the hands are joined in prayer. The detail of the armour is com- plet e: elbofee and t w plates, spurs, sword belt wit slingshits daggerthe , , or misdricorde calleds wa t i , oves a e ,righ th r t thighshora d tan , tunif co mail reachin glittla e belo waiste wth , wite sword-belth h t carried over succeedine Th . it g lairds appea havo t rl beeal e n burie t Beaulda y till comparatively modern timese FentonTh Graham.d an s s have already been spoken of, and if to these names we add that of Chisholm or Ches- holm a ,famil y anciently settle n Strati d h Affrick, member f whico s h appear occasionall n earli y y documents d whosan , e burial-placs wa e Beauly, the list of the families connected with the monastery appears to completee b . We now return to the history of the monastery itself.1 The monkish record e oftear s n unsatisfactorily brief, containing little beyone th d priornamee witnesseth d f chartersan e so th o t s t stils ;bu l these scanty detail bettee sar r than nothinge yeath r n 125I charte.a 5 s grantei r d y Lawrencb e Soldie th e enoblema th r Knightf o ro n nso , wardef o r Inverness, devoting all his estate in Bromiholm and the island to St John Baptiste th , belle "d dateprioros e i loco, th t Bosmart I da d . "an Jove'n co s day (or Thursday) next after the feast of the exaltation of the Holy Cross. n 127I Mastey 5b e therron es Henri Foltynghamf yo , churcrectoe th f ro h of Tarnedale. After reciting that there had been a controversy between him and the prior of Beauly, the charter continues : — " At length . . . on Jove's day, within the octave of the Epiphany, anno 1274, in the cathedral churc arbiterse th f Elgy h. o . . ngav e judgmen follows.s a t " That the said Master Henry was to pay tithes of all his land appertaining to the church of Tarnedal for eight years " from next term to Pentecost of 1275. . "Tha . . " t each half-yea brethree th r n entitlee werb o et o dt

1 My information here is principally derived from tlie Orig. Parochiales and a numbe f transcripto r s froe "Diplomatamth f Maefarlaneo " , supplie o Ddt r John Cosmr StuarM y ob t Innes verd an .y kindl e formerth y b len .e m t 2 45 PROCEEDING SOCIETYE TH F SO , JUN , 1870E13 .

clai saie mth d Master Henry's services, withorseso htw t duobu e ' , m gar- cionibus' (whatever s faithfullmean)y tha wa thad ma te an h ,t diso t y - charge all due expenses, besides giving his protection and services to the prio convend e saian rth dr periofo t eighf do t years."1 In the years 1341, 1356, and 1357, Eobert Prior of Beauly appears in record. In 1362 Symon is the superior of the monastery. Between 1336 and 1372 a Sir Manrico, prior "belli loci," witnesses a charter by Willia me Ide th f March,Earso f Eossn o l "I e thir . th ". ds yeahi f o r pontificate,3 Pope Gregory XI. issues a bull to the prior and convent, confirmin l theigal r liberties Bule dates Th i l . d from Leghorn 138n I . 0 there is a charter by John of TJrchard, perpetual Vicar of Abertarff, respecting certain tithes of fishings at that place. It is -given at Beauly, Sundae onth y next befor t Peterfease S eth f o t . In 1458 we have a curious record of the value-of an article of food, necessara which t t leasno a saif e y i life,f b t givy o o dt ma ,. spicea it o et This year, the king's chamberlain north of the water of Spey, in render- ing his accounts for the year preceding, takes credit for a sum of L.4 Prioe th Beaul frof e o fermes'oro e t m du th whic m s y a paihi s y hfdwa b baroniee th Avacf so Eddirdald han ancieny b e t infeftment alsd r an ofo ; the sum of 3s. 4d., also paid the said prior, as the price of 1 Ib. of pepper due to him yearly on the same account.4 Under date A.V. 1471 is noted the death of Alexander Frisale, prior of Bewly.5 About 1478- e prior 9th s repaired ye wa expens th e . th at , f eo superior, a natural son of Alexander of Kintail,6 who is there buried. In 1480 appear in record Sir John Fynlay, prior, and Sir Patrick Morra anr JohdSi n Duncan, monks. same Th e7 year, William Bisho Moraf po y addresses the Lord Fynlay, vicar of the parish church of Wardlaw, "in our diocess," regarding the vicariate to which he had succeeded, vice Donald Galle deceased n thiI .s documen e namee prioth td th f an rso monastery of Bewly are introduced by the bishop, apparently in some connection with the presentation and " our contribution " to the parish

1 Transcript Chart. Beauly • . 2 Orig. Parochiales. 3 A.D. 1373-4, on Keith's Computation. * Orig. Paroch. (Exchequer Rolls, No. 227). 5 Orig. Paroch. (Exchequer Rolls . 227)No , . 0 Mackenzie MSS. and Anderson's Hist. " Oris*. Parochiales. NOTICE OF THE PRIORY CHURCH OF BEAULY. 453

church, of Conveth. William Jackson, procurator, and the Lord Alex- ander Fany—afterward latea s r record tell Vicas su Conveth—arf o r e also mentioned as priests of the diocese. The charter is " given under our roun r dpalac Septeniher.ou h sea t f 7t Spynie,a eo l e th r Joh n Si "o 1n Fynlay appears to have heen succeeded as superior of the monastery by Hugh Fresal, who died " extra Eomanam curiam,"2 for what offence does not appear. His death must have taken place about 1496-7. In 1497 Dougal M'Eory (Roderici) is presented by Pope Alexander VI. to the priorate, whose fruits he alleged were not above L.40 per annum. The bull and execution thereof, and the form of oath taken, by the said Dougal, were given in the Chartulary of Beauly.3 Apropos of this Prior Dougal, the Beauly Chartulary give lettea s scensurf u o r e Jameaddressey b m shi o dt Courtois (Quartus), general of the Vallis Caulium order, the details of which relieve the somewhat monotonous uniformity of the monasterial records. The letter is dated on the 18th of December 1506, and in it the writer styles himself " Brother James Courtois, prior of the monastery of Vallis Caulium, hea r generado f thao l tDuche ordeth Burgundyn f i yro , near Chatillo e Seine. e th reprimane caus th n followsTh s f o na "o e s dwa . A certain Scottish priest, named William Thomson, had appeared at Vallis Caulium d presentean , d some letters unsigne unsealedd an d , pur- porting to be from the Prior of Beauly, and addressed to the Prior-general of Vallis Caulium n thesI . e letter Prioe sth f Beaulro y complains that Bishoe th Eosf po s claime dgeneraa l jurisdiction d righ an visitatio,f o t n over his priorate to which he had no title. In reply, the prior-general inform e superioth s Beaulf o r y quits thai e eh t wrong, tha Francn i t l eal the houses of the order were regularly visited by the bishops, and that, at the same time, he must recollect they were but a limited community, numbering only thirteen small houses. He cannot supply a copy of the institutio confirmatiod nan privilegee th f e orderno th f requestes so a , y db Prioe th f Beauly ro e origina th s a , s kepi l t theia t r treasur t Bivionya , and he (the prior-general), by reason of ill health and the approaching Feast of the Nativity (Christmas day), cannot go there himself for it. That the Prior of Beauly was to blame for never having sent to him for a proper legal induction into the priorate, and he therefore orders him,

1 Transcripts Chart. Beauly. 2 Orig. Parochiales. 3 Macfarlane. 454 PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY, JUNK 13, 1870.

under the usual penalties, to appear in a chapter of the order, to be held e nexoth n t Inventioe Feasth e f Holo t th 1507)y f yno Ma Cros d , (3 s when he would learn their statutes, privileges, &c. Further, he complains tha Priore tth Beaulf so od fy latha e faile atteno dt d quadrenniall Vallit ya s Caulium, eithe n persoi deputyry e prior'b th r no s a s, last predecessor (Hugh Frisel) had promised they should do. Nor had any of the salmon come to him from Beauly which the same Hugh Frisel had undertaken should in future be sent to the prior-general's agents at Bruges or Valen- ciennes. However, concludes the general, he hears the Prior of Beauly uprighn isa pioud an t shopee h man d s an , these things wil rectifiede b l , and that next summer the Prior of Beauly will pay up all arrears of fish, &c., &C.1 Besides giving us an interesting glimpse of the relations and dis- ciplin Romisa f eo h confraternity, this lette rlimitee showth w dsho export trade of that period between Scotland and the Continent must to some extent have been affected by this kind of ecclesiastical intercommunion. In precediny Ma e receipe th gth f thio t s admonition, Prior Douga beed ha l n given, we find, by the same Courtois a commission empowering him to visi e monasterth t Ardquhattanf yo weste makd th an n ,i , e such regula- tions there, as he should find requisite for observing the rule and consti- e tutioorder.th f no 2 Probably Father Thomson's batc f letterho d ha s not then comsame th hando et e n I yea. r (1506), Pope Julius II. issues a Bull in favour of the said Dougal and the convent of Beauly, threaten- ing with excommunication all who had interfered with their property, unless restitutio made.s nwa 3 Thi t executesno Buls wa ld till 1513n O . 1512llte y th e superiohMa th , r e monasterdateth t a s ydeea f predo - sentation to the perpetual vicarage of Conweth church, vacant by the e latdeatth e f h(dominio ) Donald Watson d receive, priestha o e dth wh , same presentation from the prior in 1493, in the room of Alexander Fany (above mentioned), deceased. In 1529 King James V. promoted Master James Haswell, chaplai t Margaret'S f no s Chapel n Edinburghi , e b o t , Prio Beautyf ro . Next year Eobert Eeid, already spoke connection i f no n with the Lovat family, received the priorate or commendatorship of Beauly, in addition to the abbacy he already held. Ten years later, namely, in 1540,

1 Transcripts Chart. Beauly Origd an . . Paroch. Transcripts Chart. Beauly and Keith. Transcripts Chart. Beauly. 2 3 NOTICE OF THE PKIORY CHURCH OK BEAULY. 455

bishoprie th f Orkneco y cam swelo t eothee th l r dignitie thif so s prelate. 153n I receivee 7h d seven monk s youna n sgme intpriore oth Beaulyf yo , t thaa d toldte s engagetimear an wa ,e w , preparinn di g materia builo t l d or rebuild the nave of the church.1 In 1540 he transferred five of the Beauly monks to the abbey of Kinloss, to the tutorship of one Ferrerius,2 a French ecclesiastic. Their names were Sir Thomas Togay, Sir David Dason, Sir John Crawford, Sir James Pop, and Sir Gilbert Gray. The same yeae commendatoth r r build e priore th nav th sf o ye churcf o h Beauly at great expense, roofs it with oak, and repairs the belfry, which d beeha n struck with lightning. e deatth f n Jameho O 3 s ~V~. n 1542i , , Ferrerius sends the five monks back to Beauly, and returns to France. n 154I 4 Bishop Rober\ t Reid appearo wh , havo t s e take ngreaa t interest Beaulyn i , substituted ricketol e th yv r prior'dfo s onehousw ne , larga e e elegantd an , wit vaultx hsi s jbelow 4—a requisite addition, doubtless, con- '! siderin open-handee th g e habid th hospitalit f dispensingn o ti s wa e yh . I This very commendable commendator died in 1558. } Religious confraternities, though they e maiwerth n ei enlistee th n do j orderd an w , werla sid f eo s ewel i nott i l s see,a n from y historyan y b , jl means always so. "When an individual became obnoxious to a community f churchmeno , they I o manfounto n yi d instance a ssummar f o y wa y \ gettin f him o e Beaul d Th gri . y brethre e clergdiocese th th f d yo ean n of Eoss appear to have been no exception to their class. In 1543, Sir James Haisty,5 a monk of Beauly, found surety before a civil court to ap- pea answen i r charga o t rf havino e g aide d abettean d e Bishoth d f o p Eoss and his accomplices in oppressing one Master Gawin Dunbar, trea- diocesee sureth f layino y r b , g withi m hand hi cathedrae n nth so e th o t l effusion of his blood.6 Another case of violence we have already met with in the murder of one of Lord Lovat's sons, said to have been committed monke th y Beauly.f b so 7 Between 1561-6 the records give us an enumeration of the rental of the priory, which appears to have been in various kinds, viz., silver, victual, mutton, malt, meal, oats, poultry, salmon, &c.8 At the Kefor-

1 Origines Parochiales. 2 Ibid. 3 Ibid. 4 Ibid. In Button's collections, a MS. volume in Advocates' Library, Haisty is noted as 5 prior. 6 Origines Parochiales. Ibid8 . 7 Ibid. 6 45 PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY, JUN , 1870E13 .

matioii, the monasterial income, according to Playfair, was L.I36,13s. 4d. Soots; oats chalder4 1 , boll2 s firlot3 s s 3J pecks; marts, -10; sheep, 20 ; 21 dozen of fowls ; and 2 lasts and 6 barrels of salmon.1 In 1568, "Walter Reid, already alluded to, the last Prior but one, gives a tack of part of the lands of the benefice to " our louit seruent, John Clerk in Bewlie," and failing him, Alexander Clerk, his lawful son, for nineteen years following Whitsunday of 1568. This deed is subscribed by the . Prior, Brother John Crawfurde, James Eose r ThomaSi , s Taynam, monk, Georgd an e Moray.2 n 1573I , Walter Eeisucceedes dwa Mastey db r John Eraser, -the last of the superiors of the priory, and the history of the monastery closes with | the dissolution of the religious houses, when, as we have seen, the church / property of Beauly passed into other hands.3 / proceew no noticI o dt e existineth g f remainso e e churcon Th s . i h those long narrow ones without aisle frequentlo • ss /e wes t witth ytme n hi of Scotland. It consists of nave and choir, extending to a length of. 136 / r thereabouto 1 2 feey b t s insid eo smal walls,tw ld sidan 4 e buildings ] so disposed as to form a transept, making the church cruciform. These ' wings , a perfechowever t no te pairar , e southerth , , e beinon n g smaller than the other, and not placed symmetrically with it. It was probably ', a later addition; and where the transept came, the width of the new building would have to be increased, so as to take it in, as there was already a large window in the south wall. The style appears to be an early specimen of Middle or Second Pointed Gothic, and may date, Mr Mure thinks, from about the first decade of the 14th century.5 Playfair'a Stat. Description of Scotland (Anderson). In the Libellus Taxa- 1 tionum the Priory of Beauly is valued at 400 merks, and in the Taxatio, see. 16, it is rated at L 62. Button makes note of an original feu charter dated the next year, 1574, wherein 2 Lord Lovat grant Joho st n Mackenzi f Gairlocheo d Agnean , s Eraser lande th , f so Ardnagrask, withi Barone nth Priord yan Beaulyf yo , wit l rightshal , libertiesd an , privileges.—MSS. Collections. Origines Parochiales. 3 II The general plan of the building appears to be very similar to that of the Abbey n makca t out)i e w t Saddela -s a Churcr n Kintyrefa i l s h(a , describe Voln di . VIII. of the Society's Proceedings. In both cases the lengths I obtained by pacing identicale ar , viz. feet4 meae 13 th ,, n widt f Saddelho l beins againsa 5 g 2 fee 1 2 t t Beaulyn i . Thes etakee figuresb absolutely o o t nto t coursef o ,no e ar ., 6 Mure's Church Architecture of Scotland. NOTICE OF THE PRIOEY CHURCH OF BEAULY. 457

There are no architectural distinctions dividing the aisle and choir be- yond a change in. the character of the details. The walls and most of the window pretta n i e y sar entir e state, thoug rooe eas he th gones r i f o tTh . choir window, whiclease th ts h i perfect vera s y wa wid, e one jambe ,th s approaching quite building e e angleclosth th f o et o s . These jambd san the soffits of its'arch evidently formed a continuous set of mouldings,1 and, according to Mure, the window must have been of six or seven lights. The west gabl entires ei containd an , s three long narrow windows without mullions centrae th , elevatee lon dlittla e abov otherse eth , almos exacn a t t counterpart, onl miniaturen yi windoe th f o ,w arrangemen e westh tn i t front of Wells Cathedral, which is known to be Early English. Under thes shalloa s ei w ogee headed niche d undean , r that agai a ncircula r headed doorwa rolhollod o an ltw f wyo orders with quasi e shaftth n i s jambs.2 Ove doorwaye th routsidee th a weathen o ,s i , r moulding, ter- minating in plain corbels. On one is a pretty monogram of I • H • S., and on the other a heart between a pair of hands and a pair of feet. Higher gable a saint'th us i en pi s nich r tabernacleo e , wit a hsmal l panen o l the sill, havin ga stag' s head Bishoan d p Keid's initials, E. JR.it.n o ,3 The remaining window f varieo e dar s e choipattern th e thre ar rn I e . long pointed one eithen so r side pretty hig , wit up ha hplai n moulding carried ovee headth r f theio s r interior openings d continuean , s a o s d to fill up each intervening space with a smaller arch giving a graceful effect. These windows have a single mullion, forming a triplet of e soutth lights n he clear-story O th side. n i , e threar , e small spheri- cally triangulated -windows enclosin a trefoig l lightt a , t whicno s i h a commo l al n type. Ther e threar e e piscina niches e beloe on , wth triangular windows, -with another square niche d anothebesidan , it er a recess, wit a hnea t double cinque-foil arc d containinh an ove t i r g two basins, situated in the south wall immediately to the right of the hig outside norte th h th thire n altarf ho o e Th walls di . littla , e wesf o t transept,—wite th hdoorwaa builyw neano t t up,—whici r h would leao dt

1 Cordiner's drawin churce Mureth 2 f go h .shews this. date thif 3Th eo s tabernacl therefory ema e with tolerable certaint t dowpu ne yh as 1540, the year the bishop is recorded to have repaired the nave and belfry (vide ante, p. 455). 458 PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY, JUNE 13, 1870.

the impression that it had at one time been intended to fill up this angle with a chapel. The stoup, or holy-water stone, a small plain basin 16 inches square by 10 deep, projects from the wall near the west door. To doorwaye th lefe f o th t , after enterin soute gth h transept t KatharS r o , - ine'calleds swa aislt i , fros ea navee md exactlth an , y opposit r KeneSi - neth Mackenzie's tomb, is another semi-circular recess, obviously also designed for a monumental effigy, but afterwards built up. Through this portio f built-uo n p wal a small l square reces s beeha s n pierced. It cannot have been meant for a genuine squint, as the high altar is not visible from it, • but it may have been used to pass the sacred elements into the chapel after consecration. The walls of the church, whic 3e |har fee t thick havI shoul,o t 3 e e2 r ey dstoo o e judg2 th d2 y eb feet to the wall-plate, and the roof had a steep pitch of about 15 feet more of vertical height norte Th h. transept buildin s saii g o havt d e beena chapter housecathedrals a t bu , s alon chaptersd eha mors i t i ,e probablt ei wa sacristrsa sidr y o vaulte a e d chapelha dt I roof. , wit paiha diagonaf ro l croso tw sribd springerssan f whico , e corbelth h s only remaine Th . churc buttresses hwa d throughout, thoug e buttresseth h s have entirely disappeared proprietore Th tolds . wa , I ,intende time restoro on et t da e them somd an f ,the eo m have lately been restored, wit e intentiohth n of reappropriating the church for Kornan Catholic worship ; but, finding there were difficulties with some public board of conservancy, he stopped the work. The arrangement of the Priory buildings was what we should expect to churca fine kinde south-wesn th di Th f h.o t angle formenave th ey db transepd an t appear havo t s e been fille p witu d a rangh f dwellingseo , as at Saddell and elsewhere, one chimney only remaining at the corner westere oth f n gable. These building r cloistero s s would see o havmt e been lean-tos, as a projecting moulding underneath the clear-story runs the whole length of the nave, and round the transept as .far as its western angle. The broken prolongations of the walls are still visible, and from the mt ii s eviden e cloisterth t s were carrie t somdou e distance in a southerly direction beyond the transept. At the north-west angle of e sacristrth a smal s yi l hexagonal tower, wit e remainth h spiraa f o s l staircase in it, evidently the belfry of the church. In early English NOTICE OF THE PEIOKY CHURCH OF BEAULY. 459

architecture these bell turrets were placed in various positions, and often took a polygonal form.1 state preservatiof Th eo thesf no e interesting ruin satisfactora s si y con- unsightle trasth o t t d neglecteyan d conditio mano s f nyo otherse Th . situation of the priory is well deserving of its name, commanding, as it does, a charming view of the Beauly , with the beyond, an dbackgrouna heathf o d yinlane hillth n sdo side t standI flaa . n t so of ric rivee hth soi ry larga b sideld ean , field adjoinin stils i g l pointed out as the site of a very fine orchard which belonged to the monks, where two solitar thef yo apple mseene b On eo t . treet unknowf ye so e ar e nag certainly looks ancient enough, and is said to be the largest in girth, of any in this part of Scotland. Of the ancient tombs I have already described one, that of Sir Kenneth Mackenzie of Kintaill. The interior of the church is what Cordiner describes it to have been in his time, full of gravestones, but they are almos l moderal t n ones, belonging principall Eraserso yt , Mackenziesd an , Chisholms thesef o t factn i , Ou ,. afte carefua r l search I coul, d only find mediaevae twth f oo l period, which seems unaccountable, considerine gth lon gLovae linth f eo t chiefs know havo nt e been buried here. Probably a more thorough investigation might bring others to light, but to carry this out, many of the later slabs would have to be taken up from their present position. If St Catharine's Chapel, besides the choir, waLovae sth t burial-place Wardlae th s a , w account say t wassi tombe th , - stones must all have been removed, for not one is now to be seen there. Of the two pre-Eeformation slabs, the smaller is of oblong shape, of the usual length, wit incisen ha d wheel pattern cros snead e upoan th r , nit right-hand edge wha I imagint o havt e e bee a lonn g sword hile f th ,o t which has disappeared. The long irregular-shaped panel between the swor e cros s probablshafd th dwa f an s o t y intende n inscriptiona r fo d . The incision t deeplno I e shouly ar s d cutthiy an sa ,ds lats slaebwa mediaeval. The modern initials A. G., KMC., referring most likely to some one named Kenneth M'Kenzie, have been mercilessly cut right across the middle of the shaft of the cross, and disfigure it very much. This slab 1 Barker's Glossary Statisticaw e "Ne Th . l Account" states tha ruinte "th s bear no trace of turrets or steeples, and are entirely destitute of sculpture or ornament" —a loose . lease assertionit th f o ty sa o t , 462 PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY, JUNE 13, 1870.

tainl mucd yha h declined in later ages. e addsH " , tha vaulte tth "n si of the abbey there are some remains of bodies found in the stone coffins. Oe lid nf th thess o e warriorar e s well carvedfinn i e d reliefan , . These have Latin inscriptions in old characters round the margin, which seem to be dated in the fifteenth century, but are in general so much defaced, it s impossibli copo t e y them."l Accompanying these remark e havw s e two viewchurche th f so meano n , whicy b s e unlikhar placee eth , though spoilt to modern ideas by the introduction of a pile of slabs huddled into the foreground, one across another, in the stiifest manner conceivable, by way of giving a comprehensive illustration of swords, crosses, and warriors onen i l . al Dr rfo Maccullochs A doee h , s condescen mentioo dt name nth Beaulf eo y- in one of his letters to Sir Walter Scott; but it is only to make short . worit Afte f ko r adopting Cordiner's statement, almost wor r worddfo , as to the large number of the tombstones within the building, he dis- misses the subject with the assertion, that "the church is neither picturesqu r interestingno e , being buil a dard sandstonef re ko t d an , withou y featurean t f architecturo s s disagreeablo it atont e r fo e w ra e colour."2 Suc remarha k fro ableo ms , observant racd ,an ywritea r would seem strange in the present day, when every relic of real antiquity is guarded as a treasure, and can hardly be too minutely sketched or described. But we have to remember that the writer lived at a time when ideas of architecture, church architecture especially, were only just emerging fro lowese m th e thetast e b eveth d th eb f t y eha o d r sunan , kto educated could thin f nothinko g worthie imitato t r e tha e pompounth s facades and sham temples of a bastard-classic school. Besides which, it is very doubtful if Macculloch personally knew anything more of Beauly than coul seee db n fro mpost-chaisea declaree h s a , s ther nothins ewa o gt the north of Inverness, including the scenery along all the various roads leadin e westh o tgt coast, which would repa e troublyth f lookineo g for. And we all know by experience, that what we have ourselves passed by without examining, it is often convenient to set down as not worth

1 It seems extraordinary he should have overlooked Hie very perfect Mackenzie inscription. 2 Macculloch's Islandsd san . NOTICE OF THE PRIORY CHURCH OF BEAULY. 463

examination. We have seen that the original name of Beaulieu1 was " Ach-na-baidh," plain or field of the estuary. In the end of last century the place was locally known as " Vanechan," or the place of the friars; and the river as " Avin-na-Manich," "the monk's river."2 I shall conclude this notice with the mention of two ghost stories relating to the priory. In the north wall of the church is an imprint shaped like a human hand,3 which is thus explained. For some time a ghostly visitant was said to have been seen in the church, and people neafearego plac the r to de after sunset certaiA . n tailor, however, engaged to finish two pair of hose in it on a certain night. Accordingly, appointee th t a d hou e arriveh r d withi dare d silenth nan k t wallsd an , began his work. He had not long been engaged before a gigantic spectre made its appearance, and stretched out a skeleton arm, exclaiming in a curdling voice, " Behold, tailor, a great hand without flesh and blood." The only reply vouchsafe tailoe th w ry se b dwas, I thate d se "an , I time th ey this;thesb d ean " mutua l parleying beed sha n thrice repeated, needle th completed f o e ha n skurryins ma taskwa s e dd hi th ,an g off with hoses hi . With uplifted han spectrae dth l form pursued plucke th t ybu , tailor escaped, the blow which the ghostly hand intended for his head, takin ge wall d leavinth effec an ,n e maro tth g k still visible.4 This would not be a bad addition to the collection of stories in the " Night Side of Nature," and it is a great pity to disturb such a tale in any way. But it is necessary to note, that the identical story, with scarcely a varia- tio detailn i tols i , f Saddeldo l Abbey thereford an ; muse ew t conclude there were two congenial spirits in the two places, who were both well aware that there might be a connection between tailors and geese. The other legend, relatine birthth n o 1666i t ,g f Hugo , h eleventh Lord Lovat, is picturesquely told by a well-known author,6 and I take the liberty of quoting it in his own words :—" At the time of this child's birth, it is recorded that round the old mansion and the still older priory of Beaul wondroua y' s blazs see o gleam, wa t nvoicea d e an ' callen do him who would dare to look into the future fate of the mighty race of There was also a Cistercian abbey of this name near Southampton, founded by 1 King John in 1204 2 Origines Parochiales. Statw 3Ne . Ace. (Kilmorack). * Ibid. 5 J. H. Burton : Life of Lord Lovat. 4 46 PROCEEDING SOCIETYE TH F SO , JUN , 1870E13 .

MacShimi, to enter the sacred root and take from the altar the scroll on which their weir inscribes dmortawa o n y db l hands tutoe LovatTh f ro . , who appear havo st e "bee e samnth e wit hero'r hou s persoe fatherth s nwa , who dare seizo dt mystie eth reportes c clansmee scrollwa th t I o dt . o nt be written in an ancient and obsolete character, on a venerable shred of parchment predico t d an , traia t f evilno s coming fro e rivamth l sepf o t Mackenziese th ,obviate e onlb Erasere o th yt y db s remaining united dan placing trust in each other." Hugh had a large black spot on his upper lip, whence he derived the name of " Mac Shimi Ball dhu," or the black spotte f Simono n dso . Three other Highland chieftains t appearsi , , were t thia s time distinguishe y physicadb l deformities—Me Keinich Glindu (black-kneed Mackenzie), " Squint-eyed" Mackintosh (Mac-an-Tochich Claon), and Shisalach Came, or Chisholm of the crooked eyes.1

As an instance of the desecration of the ancient church fabrics which was carried on in Scotland after the Reformation, I may mention that in building the citadel of Inverness, 1652-7, recourse was had to the monasterie f Beaulso Kinlossd yan bishop'e th , s castl f Chanonryo e e th , G-reyfriars' Churct Mary'S d han s Chape t Invernessa l purpose th r fo f , eo supplying the stonework. The latest reference I find with regard to the ruins of Beauly is by General Hutton noteo ,wh papers a 1815y , dateMa ,d arrangind2 invitgo t e subscriptions for the repair of the church from certain gentlemen who had their family burial-places there. The object is stated to be " for repairing the breaches in the walls, and particularly for raising and building up the churche th f whicy o b ,eas d hen t idle persons ente d loitean r r abouo t t detrimene e westh o preventh t e place ty th d b accesy f an o ,t an t bu s door." The parties to be consulted were the families of Lovat and , The Chisholm, M'Lean of Craigs Coirie, and the Erasers of JSTewtown Ayis and .

Andersuu's History of the Erasers.