I.

NOTICE OF ST MARGARET'S CHAPEL, EDINBURGH CASTLE. By DANIEL WILSON, LL.D., HON. MEM. SOCIET ANTIQUARIEF YO S OF SCOTLAND.

historicaAmonw fe e gth l remain e Scottisth f o s h capital that have escape e destroyindth g hanf civio f timdo d c ean reformers chapee ,th f o l St Margaret, on the Castle rock, is the oldest, and in some respects the most interesting , indeedIf . t couli , showe db e chapeth n s than i i l t i t whic saintee th h d queen actually worshipped t i woul, d posses a valus e altogether unique; for few among those who played a part in our earlier national history claim a more honourable place than the good queen, who, long after her death, was successively canonised and made Scotland's patron saint n 106I . 7 A.D., whe e Normath n n conquero s reapinwa r g the first-fruits of his victory at Hastings, "the child Edgar," as the ^Etheling is called in the Saxon Chronicle, made his way to Scotland wits mothehi h rs sisterhi Agatha d s an Margare, d Christinaan t , accompanie y Merleswaynb d d sundran e y other faithful adherents. The noble fugitives brought with them some needful furnishings; and, precious above all, the famous Black Eood, which became the national palladium till 1346n i , , Davi . "violatedII e t peacCuthbert,dS th f eo " and Scotland saw the last of the famous relic at Neville's Cross. The exiles landee shor th f Fife o n ed werdo an , e hospitably entertainet a d 2 29 PKOCEEDING SOCIETYE TH F O S , JUN , 188713 E .

e cour th f Malcolo t m Canmorethed ha boyna e H , Duncan. whoo t , m "Wyntoun refers as " Maloolmy's bastard sowne," and in this he has been followed by subsequent historians. But the mother of Duncan was Ingibiorg e widoth , f Earwo l Thorfinn e ;estimatio th and n i , f no Malcolm'e b tha o t t fi age s s a ,quee e granddaughteth s na f Edmuno r d Ironside. Malcolm, we may therefore assume, was a widower by the recent deat f Ingibiorgo h e e arrivafaith th r f d s o Saxolan hi ; t a n court offere fittina d g successor. e SaxonTh Chronicle affirm refusen sme thas d hi ttheil Edgaal rd an r consent to the alliance; and Margaret herself was bent on taking the veil and devoting her life to God; " but the king urged her brother unti saie h l t dard no yeao refusee d t indeed d an r the;di fo e , yh , were now in Malcolm's kingdom." So the royal suitor had his way; and, as the old chronicler adds, the good queen " led the king out of the wrong path into the right; brought him and his people to a better way ; and abolished all the evil customs which the nation had followed afore- time t Pau;S fors la ,unbelievin e saysth ' fult , of l g husban s sanctidi - healed fiean d d throug e believinth h g wife.'" Thu e daughteth s f o r e lin f Alfreth eo d becam e queeeth f Malcolo n me Canmoredu n i d an , time the mother of successive Scottish kings. She left her impress in other ways on her adopted country. The Saxon Chronicle refers to her with all the partiality due to her connection with the native line of grand-niece th s kingst thougwa Bu e f .Edwar o esh h e Confessoth d r f foreigo s shenwa birt h; wherea s Malcol d passem ha s yout hi dd an h received his early training in England. Margaret was born in Hungary, and gre therp wu e r seventeenttilhe l h year, doubtless unde strictese th r t religious training. Her mother, Agatha, was a niece of the Emperor Henr himsels wa y o II.f ,wh canonise Popy b d e Eugenius III. thao s ; t r charactehe alreads wa r y moulde n accordanci d e wit e standardth h f so her age before the visit to the congenial court of the Confessor con- opinione th firmen i r s dhe whic e consistentlsh h y adhere o throught d - e thu t lifeSh sou .brough e refinementt th wit r e Continenhhe th f o s t to a barbarous court, exercising a wonderful influence on Malcolm and s rudhi e chiefs remodellind an , e ecclesiasticagth l syste n mconformiti y with tha f Eome o tclosine Th . g r scenee lifstrikinglhe ar e f so y asso- ST MARGARET'S CHAPEL, EDINBURG3 H 29 CASTLE.

ciated wit Castle hth f Edinburgheo e possibilitth d survivae an th ; f yo l there of any memorial of the good Queen is well calculated to stimulate zeal in the effort to identify it. When pursuing researches in the Castle in 1845, with a view to the Memorials of Edinburgh in the Olden Time, which I had then in hand, I learned of what was described to me by the garrison chaplain as a small baptismal font, existing in one of the vaults. With some diffi- cult yI obtaine d acces a powde to s r magazin Argylthe on le Battery, wher e gunpowdeth e r use n firini d g salute specian s-o l occasions wa s stored. The only light was derived from a small window in the west wall; and in the obscurity of the little chamber I was able to identify, not a font, but what proved to be one of the sockets for the pillars of the chancel arcsmala f ho l Norman chapel woodeA . n floor, which divided nave th e levea int storieso n o tw l s wit e sprinarch,wa e hd th th f an ,g o so effectually concealed the ecclesiastical character of the building. The gunpowder was stored in the apse ; the little round-headed window on its south side was built up; and the garrison chapel, a plain unsightly modern building, which then stood immediately to the east, effectually e blockecentrath p u dl window a larg n I e . volum f drawingo e s and engravings of Old Edinburgh, presented by me to the Society in 1867, will be found the sketch of the so-called font—the socket of the e nortpillath e chancehn o th rsid f eo l arch,—mad firsy m t n visieo o t t St Margaret's Chapel. t unknowno s wa n t I tha chapea t earlf o l y datstood eha d withie th n castle precincts, repeated reference whico t s he Exchequeoccuth n i r r Rolls and other ancient registers. In Gordon of Rothemay's bird's-eye view of 1547 it appears detached as now, with the three little round- headed windows on the south side, as reopened in our own day ; and showing thae superstructureth t , whic o effectualls h y obscures it d ecclesiastical character, was of more recent date. Vague references to t Margaret'S s Chapel more than once occu n moderi r r nSi worksn i s a , Walter Scott's Provincial Antiquities, where he refers to it as " the chapel within the Castle of Edinburgh founded by St Margaret, the wife of Malcolm Canmore, whose name it still bears"; but it is more knowledgy thaan n d e buildindoubtfuth ha f e referreeo w h gf no i . l to d 4 29 PROCEEDING SOCIETYE TH F O S , JUS , 188713 E .

Its existence was unknown to Dr Kobert Chambers when I told him of s discoveryit t receivei ; notico sn e from Arnot d thougan ; h Maitland describes an ancient church in the castle, he had in view an entirely different building long since 'replaced by modern barracks. e venerablth t Bu e oratory, after being neglecte d forgottean d y b n successive mose generationsth ts a familiaancien w l al no s o i ,t r t archi- tectural relic within the city's limits. It crowns the summit of the Castle rock; and while even now presenting externally little indication s ecclesiasticaoit f l character, veradditionw yfe requiree ar s o restort d e s primitivit o t t i e condition. Possibl ya corbe l table surmountee th d present work t otherwisbu ; e masonr e th soute th f ho y wall, though including wor f morko e thae datenon , retain e threth s e little windows and other simple features such as it must have presented upwards of seven centuries ago. Internall e ancienth y t apsd chancean e l arch . have fortunately escape e destructivdth e wast f timo d esiege an ed an ; little th e orator presentw yno e sth muc n i same th hd edi aspect i s a t reign of David I. Some fine examples of Norman chancel arches still survive, as at Duddingston, Leuchars, and Dalmeny. That of St Margaret's Chapel is composed of two orders, enriched with double zigzag mouldings, under a trigona ls intermediatheait n o d e face d witan ;h strina f lozengego s running partially roun arche t changindth bu , pattere arbitrargth n a n ni y fashion after it has been carried some way. The capitals of the jamb shaft escalopede ar s , wit hheava y abacus restin e originaeachn go Th . l shafts were wanting s alreada , y indicated, whe e chape th ns ane wa lw brought into notice havd an , e been replace plaiy db n cylindrical columns. wils seeA e b l n fro accompanyine mth g ground pla buildine nth (fig, 1) . g is curiously unsymmetrical, both externally and in its internal arrange- ments. It measures externally 32 feet on the north side, and 31 feet 9 inches on the south. In width it is only 14 feet at the west end, exclusive of the projection of the modern doorway, while it is fully 16 feet at the east end. In this respect it resembles some of the primitive Celtic chapels bot f Scotlanho Irelandd an d ;e littl sucth es h a chape l or cell of St Columba on Inchcolm, which measures 15 feet 9 inches in length, with a width of 4 feet 8 inches at the west end, and 5 feet 10 ST MARGARET'S CHAPEL, EDINBURGH CASTLE. 295

inches at the east end. Those features, added to the unsymmetrical arrangement of the chancel, suggest the probability that the main walls f oldebuildine o oe th f b r daty gema tha ornate nth e chancel arch, whics hi not in the centre. The east window is also considerably off the centre, while therindicatioo n s ei apse th ef no externally entrance Th e .th o et chapel is by the original doorway in the west end of the north wall. This, which has been restored externally in the style of the chancel arch, was built up when the chapel was brought to light; but internally it remained unchanged moderA . n doorway, whic d beeha h n broken

Fig. 1. Plan of St Margaret's Chapel, Edinburgh Castle (by Sir Henry Dryden. 1886). throug wese th h t wall sincs ha , e beee internanTh buil . l up tdimen - chapee sionth aboue f so ar l t 1 6breadthn i fee e n lengt0 i t1 Th y .b h chancel arch separates this from the plain coved apse, 10 feet in depth, and nearly the same in width. Judging from the masonry of the north •wall t i seem, s probable that another buildin n s attacheo wa gt i o dt that side, which may have been the lodging containing the royal apart- ments, includin chartea referree n on i f Alexandeo e o rt d th g r IIIs a . the chamber of the blessed Queen Margaret, in the Maiden Castle of Edinburgh, and with which the chapel directly communicated. s witi t hI reluctance tha data t s suggesteei e littlth r e fo dorator y 296 PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY, JUNE 13, 1887.

whic romance h th mus f b io t ro te associated wit e actuahth l chapef o l Malcolm Canmore' e entirsth queen f ei t masonrbu ; ascribee yb e th o dt same date as the chancel arch, it can scarcely be referred to an earlier period tha reige nth n -of David e I.younges ,th r sons he whoy f b , o t m e abbeth f Holyrooo y s foundewa d n 1128i e ddat f Th Queeo e. n Margaret's deate 16t th Novembef hs o hi raccoune 1093e th th d f an o ,t attendant circumstances furnishe biographerr he y db "e h hear s a , d them narrated by a priest of hers whom she loved more fully than the others because of his -simplicity, innocence, and purity," seems to indicate that royae th l chamber nearly adjoine e oratorydth t onl, whicno yy havhma e occupied the site of the present chapel, but is not wholly unrepresented b t yevei n now. Tha existencchurcn a ti s Castle th hwa Edinf n ei eo - burgh in her youngest son's reign appears from the mention of it in his charte f Holyrooo r da late Abbeyt a r d date an ;s wil a ,e seenb lo tw , separate churches withi e fortresnth repeatedle ar s y referre. dto Malcolm Canmore and his eldest son Edward were both slain at the sieg f Alnwico e k Castlee 13tth f Novembehn o o , r 1093;e andw s a , read in Turgot's Life of Queen Margaret—" On the approach of the fourth day after the king's death, her weakness having somewhat abated, the queen went into her oratory to hear mass," and having so done, and partake e holth y f nviaticumo e returne r facd sh r bed, He ha ehe . o dt already grown palli n deathi d , when, sayr favourithe s e priest, from whom Turgot derive latese dth t incident lifer he ,directe e f "so sh d that e otheth d r ministeran , e sacreI th f do s altar along wit, shoulme h d stan d commendan nea r r sou he rpsalms r Chrisdo he t ou l y b t. More- over she asked that there should be brought to her a cross called the Black Rood, which she always held in the greatest veneration.'' She was still claspin e prizeth g r dhands he reli n n Edgari c, so whe r ,he n who had just returned from the fatal siege, entered the chamber of the dying queen. As he reluctantly hesitated to communicate to her the truth, " with a deep sigh she said, ' I know it, my boy, I know it. By this hol r blood ye e bonou crossth th f o telI e t ,dy o adjur b ,m lu yo e havino truths d g;an ' listene e fatath l o dt tidings , feeling that death was close at hand, she repeated the prayer used by the priest before he received the sacrament, and as she was saying the closing words ' deliver ST MAEGAEET'S CHAPEL, EDINBUEGH CASTLE. 297

me,' her soul was freed from the chains of the body, and departed to Christ. e chambeTh " re scen whicth f s thoseo hwa e last e hourth f so dying queen probably remained, with other ancient buildings in the castle, till the destruction of the whole in the siege of 1573, with almost the solitary exception of the little oratory. e veneratioTh n with whic e memor hth e piou th f sy- o queere s nwa garded required no formal pontifical canonisation to give her name a sanctity which doubtless received in time such additions as are the natural tribut superstitioua f eo schambee ageTh . whicn i r e closinhth g r lifscenhe e f transpireeo d continued thereafte e associateb o t r d with r memoryhe d designate an r ,name e earlieshe Th y .b d t notics ha e already been referret occurI . sdto ichartena Kinf o r g Alexander III., which grants to the monastery of the blessed Queen Margaret at Dun- f ermline, and to the monks there serving God, a moiety of the land of Beth "Waldef, " which John of Strathechyn unto us on the day following the Sabbath before the Feast of St Dunstan the Archbishop, in the month of May in the year of grace 1278, at the Maiden Castle of Edinburgh r chambeou n i , r whic calles hi chambee de th blesse th f o rd Queen Margaret, by rod and staff for himself and his heirs, remised, released, and quitted claim." * The death of Malcolm and his heir was the occasion of a disputed succession, and the usurpation of the throne for a time by his brother Donald Bane. The castle was besieged by the claimant to the vacant throne; and the removal, under the sheltering veil of a miraculous mist, e remain oth deceasee f th f so d queee conventuath o nt l Church which she had founded at Dunfermline, is faithfully chronicled by Fordoun. The original nave of the church still stands, with its massive and curiously ornate masonry of the eleventh century, when the early details of .Norman masonry were being introduced for the first time into Scotland; latee th rt anciene choith bu f o r t church, wit s shrin t hMargaretit S f eo , has long since disappeared bees ha n t i replace d an , d durin e presenth g t centur a tasteles y b y s structure erectede worsth n i t perio f revivedo d attemp t mediaevaa t l ecclesiastical architecturet a m ai d wit e an ;th h

1 Register de Dunfermelyn, pp. 52, 53. 8 29 PROCEEDING SOCIETYE TH F O S , JUN , 188713 E .

fashioning it into a monument for the Bruce, instead of a memorial of' the sainted queen. It was not till the year 1246 x that the name of Queen Margaret was formally enrolle Popy db ecatalogue Innocenth n i f . saintso e IV td an ; four years thereafte r reliche r s were transferre d crypda ol fro o t e t mth fitting shrine in the Lady Aisle of the newly erected choir, not only with great pomp, but—according to the legend recorded by Wyntoun, and with greater minuteness in the Aberdeen Breviary—with miraculous attestatio r lovin he nr sanctit f alikhe go f devotiod eo r yroyaan he o lnt consort. But what has to be specially noted here is that there were from a date as early at least as the reign of David II., and probably much earlier, two chapels in the Castle of Edinburgh,—one known as St Margaret's, and the other dedicated to St Mary, both of which must have been in existence when Maitland wrot s Historyehi o f Edinburgh.tw o e th f O there remains now only the venerable little oratory which is appropriately t knowMargaret'S s a n s Chapel d possiblan ; y still includes it n i s masonry portions of the oratory of the saintly queen; but if so, it had then another dedication e ChapeTh f .Quee o l s nit 'Margare r fo d ha t most prized reli famoue cth s Black Kood calleo s , d fro s blacmit k casr eo fertory. The cross itself was of pure gold, about an ell long, and set with diamonds; and, as j?Elred says, " of most wonderful workmanship. It is shut and opened like a chest. Inside may be seen a portion of our Lord' s oftes ha cros ns (a bees n prove convinciny db g miracles), having a figure of our Saviour sculptured of massive ivory, and marvellously adorned with gold. Queen Margaret had brought this with her to Scotland, and handed it down as an heirloom to her sons;" and, as ^Elred adds, " the youngest of them, David, when he became king, built a magnificent church for it near the city, called Holy-Kood."2 chapee Th whicn i l h this precious relipreserves cwa d durin e lifgth e of the queen, and probably till the reign of David I., was certainly not dedicatenamey probabilite b r Th .he o dt y rather seeme th s s thawa t i t Chapel of the Holy Eood. Various charters, granted in the reigns of David I., Malcolm IV., and William the Lion, are dated "apud Castellum Register de Dunfermelyn, Pref., p. 13. 1 2 Bollandists, vol. xxi. p. 335, ap. Forties Leith. ST MARGARET'S CHAPEL, EDINBURG9 H 29 CASTLE.

puellarum" t onl bu ;onen y i ,e tent dateth hn de i pontificat yeath f ro e of Gregory IX., 1237 curioue A.D.th s i , s allusion madmonastere th o et y e Holth ofy Eood withi e castleth n . " Gregorius Episcopus, servus servorum dei, dilectis filijs abbat t conventue i i monasterij Sancte Crncis de Castro puellarum. ordinis Sancti Augustini, Sancti Andree diocesee." J The famous abbey subsequently founded in its honour by David I. eclipsed all others; but this dedication was by no means rare. The Chapee Holth yf o l Eood t stooGilesS n di ' nether kirkyard e tilth l Keformation. Another remained till a later date in the valley of Greenside, on the north side of the Calton Hill. There were also three t altarGilesS n i se Hol ' th Church f yo Cross e on : , anothe f Sancto r i Crucis de Locano, and the third of the Holy Cross of the Body and Bloo f Christdo r e musforgotteb no ; t i t n that Queen Margaret's first intermen befors rooe wa t th e de nav altath f Dunfermlineo n i r e Abbey. Certainl suco yn h dedicatio t Margares thaS na o t t t could have been ni use at any period prior to the canonisation of the queen, notwithstanding veneratioe th n with whic r nam hs justlhe ewa y regarde r royahe ly db descendants and by the people at large. Her life, as written by Prior Turgot at the request of her daughter, " the honourable and exellent Matilda, queen of the English," is no piece of mediaeval hagiology, garnished wit legende hth miracled san a credulou f so e th s s agei t I . biography of a very noble queen, wife, and mother, whose piety was genuine and practical, though naturally influenced by the ascetic spirit of the period. The special virtues ascribed to her in the roll of saints, eved miraclee an nth s associated wit relicr h he laten i s r centuries, alike pertained to her as a wife and mother. No wonder, therefore, is it that, as Lord Hailes says : " Long before Pope Innocent officially recognised her worth she had been canonised by the voice of a grateful though superstitious people, who affectionately remembered her sanctity and virtues." With the founding of the magnificent Abbey of Holyrood by Daviassociatione th . dI e sacreth f sdo relic, whic d bee speciae hha nth l object of veneration by his mother, were transferred to the new shrine: whil goonamthe the e d eof quee n would naturall "attacheybe the to d orator worshippedd whicn yi ha e hsh leso ,n schambee thath o nt whicn ri h 1 Liber Cartarum Sancte Crucis, pp. 53, 54. 0 30 PROCEEDING SOCIETYE TH F O S , JUN , 188713 E .

she died. Of this, however, there is no evidence till the latter half of the fourteenth century, when the name of St Margaret's Chapel first appears in the Exchequer Kolls; but then, as will be seen, references are more frequent to the chapel and the chaplains of St Mary in the Castle of Edin- burgh. Father Hay, an industrious but credulous antiquary of the seventeenth century, whose Abbace hopeth f o sf Holyroo yo d were extinguishee th y db Eevolutio 1688n i , gives currenc apocryphan a o yt l story abou Davit tS d displacing the nuns of the Monasterium Sanctse Crusis de Castello Puel- larume canons abbeyth hi y f fittes b ,so a , livo t r e among soldierst Bu . store th s yonli e latesyth d Casteltol versioe th Mynedh f o n Agnedh, e castruth m puellarum r maideo , n castl f mediaevaeo l chroniclers, where, according to Sir Arthur Wardour and antiquaries of his type, " the Pictish maidens of the blood royal were kept." But it accords with the known facts relative to the founding of the Abbey of Holyrood by the youngest t MargaretS so f no conneco t , t its inception wit little hth e oratore th n yi castle where the famous Black Rood was the object of her devout venera- tion, frod an m, broughs whicwa t hi t thamighe sh handr t he t clasn si t pi lasr he t momentsn i . The masonry of the chapel, as it now remains, is of very diverse periods squaree Th . d Norman ashlarsoute th n h,o side curiousls i , f o t you the horizontal, and overlies older and ruder masonry. The unsymmetrical plan, and especially the discrepancy between the exterior and interior of the chancel, appear to me to lend confirmation to the idea that we may still possess in this simple little oratory, however much modified by later additions, the actual scene of Queen Margaret's last devotions. It seems in. accordance with the spirit of filial piety, as well as with the veneration so generally attached to the memory of the good queen, to assume tha originae th t l walls were preserve sonsr ultimateld he ,an y db y beautifie youngestthe dby theof m wit additioh the chance the nof l arch which now forms the most characteristic feature of the chapel. It is difficult to conceive of its being pulled down, if only to be replaced by so small and unornate a structure. It could not have been dedicated to t MargareS date th whico e t t a tchancee hth l arch mus assignede b t r fo , t enrolle e no e calendaquee th th s n i wa d nf saint o r s till 1246 A.D.; ST MARGARET'S CHAPEL, EDINBURG1 H 30 CASTLE.

but her name continued to be attached to various prominent features of e ancienth t fortress, beside e chambesth t MargareS f o r t referren i o t d the charter of Alexander III., till all except the little chapel perished in e e itemssiegth th f exampler f 1573o eo fo , e .On , specified in "the Inventor Royae th f lyo Wardrobe,r fo . 168) irne t (p "a . an ye e s i ,"&c Sanct Margareth's tour." In the account of the siege in the Diurnal of Oeeurrents, it is noted that " the south quarter of the toure of the Castell callit Davids Toure, feil thro e vehemenwth d continualan t e schuting, togidder with some of the foir wall, and of the heid wall besyd Sanct Margareti sthus i Zet. t sI "apparen t thatmore th lono s ,es a gancien t features of the castle survived, the queen's name continued to be associ- ated wit royae hth l chambe oratoryd ran , towe gated addition I an r . o nt those, there still remains e descriptiowha referres th n wa ti o dt f somno e of the earliest gifts of David I. to the Abbey of Holyrood, as " the fountain which rises nea e e king'corneth th r f o sr gardene roath dn o , leading to the Church of St Cuthbert."1 It reappears in the account of the siege of 1573, when some of the garrison suffered owing to the watet Margaret'S f o r s well being poisone besiegere th y db s ; and—more fortunate tha miraculousle nth y gifted wel t Eestalriga l , whic alss ohwa dedicate t Margaret—thS o t d e fountain still flow s freela s s whea y n r son daughterd queee he th san d nan s walkee royath ln i dgarden d an , sprine waterss dranth it adorne s f f n 187gI o o k wa . t 3i d with orna- mental masonry, from a design furnished by a valued member of our Society e latth , e James Drummond e e officer th th e cos f f th o o tt s a , 93rd Sutherland Highlanders thus i t sI obviou. s that Queen Margaret's nams intimatelwa e y associated wit e fortresth h s which furnishea d secure place of residence for the royal family while Malcolm and the Scottish host were harrying Northumberland, and where her life drew closea o t . Above all, therefore, that name would naturall attachee yb d to the chapel which was her most favoured place of resort and the scene f devotior lateso o he t f ac t n immediately befor r deathhe e . t somA e period subsequen e deatth f Queeo ho t t n Margaret f whico , h no definite record exists, another chapel, or church, was built within the castle, dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary; unless we assume that the 1 Liber Cartarum Sancte Grucis,. xi . p 302 PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY, JUNE IS, 1887.

little chapel stilt Mary'S l d standinol s e Chapelth s thagd i largean ,a t r s erecteon wa d ededicate an dt MargareS o t d t subsequene th o t t canonisation of the queen. But this idea is not confirmed by the known facts, sligh thes a t y largee areTh .r churc havy hma e beene builth n i t reign of Alexander I., and so have been " the Church of the Castle of Edinburgh " referred to by David I. in the charter of the Abbey of Holy- rood; but the earliest notices now recoverable refer to its rebuilding. Unfortunately, the architectural features of the later structure are very imperfectly known, thoug t i stilh l existe n Maitland'i d d Arnot'an s s days. It is shown in a view of the castle from the east, drawn by T. Sandby in 1753, and the portion of it represented there lends some countenance to the assumption that the more ancient church had not been entirely displace rebuildine th n dfourteenti e th f go h century t stooI . n do the nort quadrangle h th sid f o e e style dPalace "Th e Yard "r "o Gran d Parade," and was not demolished till the present century. Its east gable, with low-pitched roof and small windows, forms a prominent feature in engravine th g from Paul Sandby's drawin Maitland'n gi s History of Edin- burgh nearld ;an same yth e vie repeatews i drawin a e Honn di th y b g. John Elphinstone, reproduced in 1788 in Arnot's History of Edinburgh. This may have been the east wall of the original Norman structure. The south elevation, with tall window buttressed san s mor accordancn ei e with probable th es rebuilding it dat f eo shows i ,earlien a n ni r drawing made by Gordon of Eothiemay in 1647. Unfortunately, the views here referred smala n o l l scale al d cannoe tan oar , e dependeb t d upo minutr fo n e accurac f detailo ye buildin Th . s describei g Maitlany b d a ver s ya d long, large, ancient church, which fro spacious mit s dimension assumee sh s smale th f service lo th garrison e t r onlus efo no y e t s builth " bu ,wa r fo t of the neighbouring inhabitants before St Giles's Church was erected for their accommodation." e latteTh 1r assumption would unduly antedate e buildin th e churc e th curiou th f o gr h fo ;s Norman doorwae th n yo north side of the nave of St Giles's Church, which only disappeared abou l appearancal t o 1760t s ,a wa wore f earlieo k r date thae th n chance lt Margaret'arcS f ho s Chapel. Unfortunately Maitland wrot s Historyhi e f Edinburgho a perio t a d Maitland's Hist, of Edin., p. 145. 1 ST MARGARET'S CHAPEL, EDINBURG3 H 30 CASTLE.

when little attention was give ecclesiologyo ns t furnishe ha e h o d n d an , detailed description of the architectural features of the ancient church. But the demolition during the present generation of the modern building thareplaced ha supplies t ha t di d some mean judginf so s stylit d f ean go date. Numerous fragments of mouldings, mullions, and tracery were found built into the modern masonry, indicating for the most part late fourteenth-century work. This fully accords wit e evidenchth e supplied Exchequethe by r Rolls, which seem poinrestorationsto its to t entirnot if e, rebuilding, towards the close of the reign of David II. The remains thus brought anew to light include a plain moulded stoup apparently of that period. But some mouldings of other stones are of earlier character, whil e tracerth e rathes yi r fifteenth-century work. This evidence thus serves to confirm the idea that the church underwent repeated modifica- tions befor s finait e l demolition t I appear. o havt s e fallen into neglect and disrepair in the sixteenth century, and even then to have been diverted for a time to secular uses, as is shown by an entry of the year 1595, in the Records of the Presbytery of Edinburgh, "Anent the desyre of James Reid, constabl e Castelth f eo f Edinburgh o l effecn i , t craving that, seeing thair was ane paroche kirk within the said castell, command wald be given to John Brand to baptise the barnis borne in the Castell. The Presbyterie understanding tha Kire th t k thairo unreparitts i f , willis the said constable to repair the same, and to dedicatt it for no uther use bot for preiching. Theirafter his desyre sal be answeritt."1 earliese Th t referenc thio et s churc Exchequee th n hi r Rollentrvn a s si , of date 9th January 1366, of the account of Simon of Edinburgh and other bailiee tow th f Edinburgh f no so , crediting them wit paymene hth t of ten pounds to William of Calebra, " the chaplain officiating in the Chapel of the blessed Mary, rebuilt within the Castle."2 Repeated entries n nearli e samth y e terms occur durin e twentth g y years immediately following, of payments to his successor "Sir Allan the Canon," "tothe brother officiating in the Chapel of St Mary within the Castle," or more frequently " to the chaplain," without his being named. There are no entrieyeare th r s sfo 1383-85 nexe 1387-8r th fo tr d paymentno an , 9; , 1 AVodrow, Misc., vol. 463p . .i . 2 Eotuli StMccarii Begum Scotorwn, Ed. by Geo. Burnett, LL.D., vol. ii. jt. 246. 304 PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY, JUNE ]3, 1887.

made by Adam Forster and William Naper, collectors of the town of s i subsequentl Edinburgh e r h Geoffrey Si s a o t , or s yi , , more fully designed r GeoffreSi , y Lyttyster ,chaplai e " th thio t sp nu tim e officiating in the Chapel of St Margaret, situated in the Castle of Edinburgh, and who for the future will officiate in the Chapel of St Mary, rebuilt in the same Castle. e largeTh "r chape s apparentlwa l y undergoing extensive alteration rebuildinr so g durin previoue gth s unnoted years whicn i , h divine service had been carried on in the small Chapel of St Margaret until the restorations wer edefinita completedw no et transfe Bu e service.th f o r s of the chaplain to the chapel of St Mary accompanies the "payment of e eighth t pounds yearls hi hi f d o ys an stipen e receiveb m hi o t d y b d successors, chaplains, who shall officiate in the same chapel in perpetual succession yearl r ever yfo n accordanci , e wit e r chartelordth hou ,f o r King Robert the third." The charter of King Eobert III. here referred to was executed 011 Decembed 3r e th ra confirmatio s 1390i d e executean ;on e f th o nt a d close of the previous reign, which sets forth, in the name of Eobert II., by the grace of God king of the Scots, " for the health of our own soul and that of our late dearest wife Euphemia, Queen of Scotland, as well as the souls of our late grandfather, Robert, of revered memory, and our uncle David, &c., have give d granted thir y presentan nb ou sd an , " charter have confirmed unto God and the Blessed Virgin Mary, and Saint Margaret the Queen, and to Geoffrey Lyttester, the chaplain officiating in the chapel of the same Saint Margaret the Queen, situated in our Castle of Edinburgh, and to his successors, our chaplains, who shall officiate in perpetual succession in the same, whose installation shall pertain to us, and to our heirs, kings of Scotland, in perpetual succession, eight pounds sterling receivee b o t , d yearly fro grear mou x tta of our town of Edinburgh." The gift was a liberal one according to the valu f moneeo t ythaa e chartetth dat d eran • which King Rober. II t executed very shortly before his death was ratified and confirmed by s successo hi e followinth n i r g mont f Decembero h t witbu ,h this e saiproviso—th d s a s Geoffresuccessor r hi fa d "o an Thas ye , ar sis t boxind to officiate in the Chapel of the Blessed Margaret, the Queen, by e e chartesaith th d f o lordrr fatherou ,e wilw , l that the aforesaid ST MARGARET'S CHAPEL, EDINBURG5 H 30 CASTLE.

Geoffrey and his successors be bound for ever to officiate in the chapel of the Blessed Mary in our Castle aforesaid."1 The only conceivable motive for such a transfer of the services of the chaplain from one to the other chape beed , ha than is l e officiatinh t smallee th while n i ge on r eth other was in process of restoration and enlargement. This, therefore, ma assumee yb determino dt face eth t thae largth t e church, which, till e eighteente closth th f o e h century ,e nort stooth n e ho d th sid f o e .palace yard, was St Mary's Chapel. The chapel of St Margaret was not, however, wholly abandoned, and the fact that the chaplain did from time to time officiate also at the altar in the little oratory, may account e entriefoth r f paymentso s mad o himet recordes ,a e Exchequeth n di r Kolls, sometimes being to the chaplain of St Margaret's, and at others to that of St Mary's Chapel. But a contemporary record of a very different character from the formal entries in the Rotuli Scaccarii Regum Scotorum supplies some interesting details wels a ,curious a l s traditions, relative ancienth o t e t Chapel of St Margaret; and serves to show that special attention was being directed to it at the very time when the first Stuart king made it the object of his pious largess. The great national epic, " The Story of Bruse th , wil Mastee b t r Johne Barbour Archdeco Aberdeen,f no n i s "wa progress indeed an , r advancedfa d towards completion n 1375i , e Th . poet assigns that year as the " tym of the compiling of this buk," in a passage which occurs after two-thirds of the poem had been com- pleted. Subsequent gifts authorise paie kine b Barbour o th dt o g t y db , e custom th e burg th f o f f Aberdeen o o hst ou e believear , o havt d e been in acknowledgment of his labours; and there is good evidence n prooi f a pensionthae giff th o ty Kint b ,g m madhi Kober o t e t n 0 1378shillingi 2 f o ,e ferm th s f Aberdeenf yearlo o s t a you s wa , special mar f royako l bounte completioth n s yo metrica hi f no l history of the achievements of his illustrious ancestor, King Eobert the Bruce. incidente Onth f eo s narrate e surprise poeth th s mi n f i dEdin o e - burgh Castle, abou yeae th t r 1312 bana y f Scotsdb ,o , unde leadere th r - shi f "Williao p m Erancis a followe, f Earo r l Eandolph e gallanTh . t

1 Register of the Great Seal, Roll X. No. 9, p. 197. VOL. XXI. U 6 30 PROCEEDING THF O SE SOCIETY, JUN , 188713 E .

deed is pronounced by the poet as unparalleled in courageous daring, unless it be by Alexander, the conqueror of Babylon's tower. " Outane this taking anerly I herd tynevia n m n ri gan e Castel stoutla ls thas ytwa tane. thif o sd takinAn g tha I ment e Sanct Margaret the gud haly quene Wist in hir tym throu reveling thal thinm Oal hi tft gknawi; wa d san Tharfor insted of prophesy Scho left ane takning richt joly, That is, that scho in hir chapell Gert wele he portrait ane castell, Ane ledclir up to the wall standand, tharapon ma An e dnan clymand; wrad An t owth him saisn ais ,a dme , In French, gardys wus de Fransais. thir fo s d worAn d soho gert wria s t Men wen Franchmee dth n sul t tadi ; Bot, for Fransas hattin was he Tha prevateclan a i s t p mu , Scho wrat that as in prophesy, And it fell eftirward suthly Eieh schs a t o said tanr fo ,t ewasi , And Fransa thad sle tha p mu t plas." 1 The brilliant and successful achievement thus referred to was of such an exceptional character that, according to the poet, it had been revealed t MargareS o t t upwardo centurietw f o s s before; upon whice th h favoured queen, instea f puttingdo writtee forrecora n o th f m o t i n i d n prophecy e scenth ed portraye,ha r oratory e wallhe th f n o sdo , wits hit ambiguous warning agains "Fransais,e th t whoy "b Engliss mit h garrison was to be so valiantly overcome. Whatever languages the early con- tinental training of the queen in Hungary, and her later residence at the English court, may have made her familiar with, only the spirit of prophecy could have anticipated the French of the fourteenth century. e paintinTh o whicgt h such prophetic significanc s assignee ewa th y db poet bore in the legend on its scroll sufficient evidence of its being the

The. Brus, Ixxxiv. 150-172. 1 ST MARGARET'S OHAPEL, EDINBURGH CASTLE. 307

work of a later age than that of Queen Margaret. If such a picture did actually adorn the chapel wall, it was probably an allegory; somewhat after the fashion of Bunyan's " Mansoul," rather than the picturing of any actua descriptioe th l t interessiege n nows a u Bu s r ., nha fo tapar t from its reference to St Margaret's Chapel, as an illustration of the style of church decoration in Scotland in the reign of King Eobert II. Turning once e evidencmorth o et e whic e prosaihth c recorde th f so Exchequer Kolls suppl referencn yi anciene th o et t chapel chaplaind san s of the Castle of Edinburgh, an account of Sir John Lyon, Lord of Glammys, chamberlain of Scotland, of the year 1380, records the delivery o Joht . f £707no 4d Gra . m d Joh8s ,su yan e n th Pollo f o o kt m hi y b keep in custody within the Castle of Edinburgh, in the place above the Chape Blessee th f o l d Margaret, assigne theo dt thir mfo s purpose th y eb chamberlain. But for a quarter of a century subsequent to the year 1365, the chapel and chaplain of St Mary are alone referred to in all disbursements for the services at the altar in the castle. The reoccupation for a time of the Chapel of St Margaret, under the chaplainc r GeoffreSi f yo y Littyster, apparently durin e rebuildingth f go St Mary's Chapel, has already been referred to, along with the transfer s service oe hi lattef th o rt s chapel. But, unles e assumw s e thae th t o chapeltw namee sth werf so e used interchangeabl e recorth f n yo i d payments to the chaplain of Edinburgh Castle, service continued to be maintaine t Margaret'S t a d s e entriealtare Exchequeth Th .n i s r Bolls record the payments made from year to year to Sir Geoffrey Littyster, as the chaplain officiating in the Chapel of St Mary in the Castle of Edinburgh, till January 1393 ; and then in the following year a payment of eight pounds appears "to the chaplain officiating in the Castl f Edinburgeo e Chape t th Margaret S n h i f e s salar o lth hi r r yfo fo , year." There is no entry for 1394, but similar entries to the above reappea followine th 139n ri d 5an g chaplain e yearth o t , , unnamedn I . 139 r Geoffrename Si 7th f eo y reappears, unde designatioe th r e f "nth o king's chaplain officiatin Chapee t th Mar S n gi f o ly withi Castle nth f eo Edinburgh " ; and in nearly all the succeeding entries from 1397 to 1405 chaplaie th n continue referree b officiatins o sa t o Chapedt e e th th n f i go l o entrieBlessetw chapeo r n so d e s specifiedi lVirgin on n i n I t . bu ; 8 30 PROCEEDING SOCIETYE TH F O S , JUN , 188713 E .

e firs f th thoso t f eigho e m yeart su shilling sa allowes i s r "adfo lump of wax bought for light for the altar of the Chapel of the Blessed Mary within the Castle of Edinburgh, delivered to the chaplain of the same."1 Another interval occurs, from 1414 to 1425 A.D., during which neither chapel nor chaplain is specifically named; but the latter is generally referre e s chaplai"a th o t d n officiatin Chapee Castle th th f f n i eo go l Edinburgh on behalf of the soul of the late king," or, more generally, of the kings.- The period is chiefly embraced within the usurped regency e Dukeoth f f e captivitAlbanso th d yan f Jame yo s poee I.th , t king. In 1424 he wedded the Lady Jane, after embodying the romance of the courtship of the royal prisoner of Windsor, in his beautiful poem of "The Kingis e 21sQuair. th f Maye samo tn th O es n ",i yearwa e h , crowned at Scone, and Scotland entered on the new epoch of its history, " the period of the Jameses." But the favourite residence of James I. and his court was at Perth, which may perhaps account in part for the fact that from 1425 to 1434 no entries in the Exchequer Eolls refer to the chaplaincy of Edinburgh Castle. Then " the chaplain officiating in the chapel of St Margaret" reappears. In 1446 A.D. Sir.Kinian of Spot names incumbenti e th s continuee da h d an ; o servt t d altae S th ef o r Margaret's Chapel till 1450, when he was succeeded by Sir Henry of Crichton. Only once thereafte e Chape t Marth S s f i ro y l mentioned. entriee Th s run, with slight variation thesn i , e term schaplaie :—th o "T n of the Blessed Queen Margaret, officiating in the chapel of the same, withi e Castlnth Edinburghf eo , fro foundatioe mth f Kinno g Kobere th t Second; a specia t bu " l entr 146n yi 6 draws attentio face th t o nthatt , although the said chaplain has, by royal grace, been the recipient of £10, originae th lmoro e n receivegran s H e thawa e tlarge. th m sn£8 su r for that year " at the risk of the Accountant; and it is enjoined on the Accountant that he pay to him no more than eight pounds without fresh instructions. n 146I " r 9JohSi n Eynd s namei e s "tha d e chaplain officiatin Chapee t th Mar S n gi f o ly withi Castle nth Edinburgh,f eo o "t whom a payment of £10 is made " at the risk of the Accountant." But e nexd lasth an tt entry returne oldeth ro t s title wit d e caran ;hdu e lespaymene e th tlarge shalth m drawe f su b ro lt n int establishen a o d 1 Exchequer Bolls, vol. iii. p. 438. ST MAKGABET'S CHAPEL, EDINBURGH CASTLE. 309

precedent, records the payment "by the grace of the king, ten pounds ; although the foundation contains only eight pounds, as is evident in the preceding rolls of the year of account, from the command of our Lord e Kingth , unde s royahi r l signe d sigan nt t ovemanuae ou th rt se l account." e definitTh e recorde Exchequeth f o s r Kolls relativ e chapelth o et s and chaplains of Edinburgh Castle thus abruptly end in the latter part of the fifteenth century. It was a period of extreme confusion and disorderly violence, during the minority of James III., a sovereign who in later years incurred the ire of his rude Scottish barons by his preferenc e societth r f artisto fo y e d musicians an s . Unhappilo n y trustworthy record remains from which a judgment might be formed of the true character of Cochrane, the mason or architect who stood foremost amon e royath g l favourites f whoo d man , Pitscottie says, " this Cochran d sicha ek authoriti f cour eo credencd kinge an t th f ,eo that no man gatt audience of the king bot be his moyane." It is wholly inconceivable thae royath t l favourit a mer s e wa estonemason ; but, like royal favourite l agesal e probablh n ,i s y abuse s influenchi d e with the king, and increased the aversion of the nobles, by his magnificent establishmen e insolenc th s numerou hi d f an to e s dependantse Th . reign of James III. was remarkable for a striking revival of architec- tur n i Scotlande . Tile demolitioth l n i 184e nCollegiat th 8f o e e ChurcHolth f yo h Trinity, founde t a Edinburgd s queenhi y b h, Mary of Gueldres, in fulfilment of his own purpose, one remarkable exampl e architecturath f o e l skild bolan ld exuberanc f fancyo e o s , characteristic of the period, remained among the historical buildings of the Scottish capital. - But Stirling Castle was the favourite residence of James III.; and there accordingly, and not in Edinburgh Castle, the king gratified that lov "r ebuildinfo trimmind gan g of chapells, hallsd an , gardens," with which Drummond of Hawthornden charges him as a taste that usually pertains to the lovers of idleness.1 The charge comes some- what ungraciously from a poet's pen. If the buildings erected during that reign in Stirling Castle are the work of the king's master mason, they prove him to have been an artist of great fertility and bold originality 1 Drummond of Hawtkomden,. 61 . p 310 PEOCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY, JUNE 13, 1887.

of design. But if any similar work was executed by him in Edinburgh Castle, it must have been expended on the chapel which formed the nort e hPalac th sid f o e perishe o squares s demolition it d n an o ,d . No doubt, however, the service in the castle chapel, though interrupted and repeatedly allowed to fall into neglect amid the troubles that marked the prolonged minorities of successive kings, must have been resumed on those occasions when the castle became the royal residence, as it minoritierepeatedle th n i d sydi bot Jame d f Jameho an . s II sIII.d an , again in that of James V., when he had for his faithful page and monitor Sir David Lindsay, whose Satire of the Three Estates contributed so largely to the revolution alike in opinion and in govern- subsequene menth n i t n Scotlani t d reign en broughd e dth an n , a o t t reverenc saintr efo saintld san y shrines. Amon queene gth s specially associated wit e Castlhth f Edinburgheo , Marie de Lorraine, daughter of Claude, duke of Guise, claims a prominent place. In the month of June 1538, when in her twenty-fourth year, she was received at Edinburgh as the bride of James V. with every demonstratio f loyano l welcome e anniversarTh . f Scotland'yo s patron sain quee and tbee nhad n chosen foauspiciouthe r s receptionso, and ; diarisd ol n atsa remarks, Sancn "O t Margarete thairaiftery da s e sh , mad r entreehe n Edinburgsi h with greit trivmphe d alsan , with ordour haile oth f l nobillis r Grachi ; e comWese th firsn i et ta t Port raid an d, doun the hie gait to the Abbey of Halyrudhous, with greit sportis playit to hir Grace throw all the pairtis of the toun."1 The experiences of Mary of Guise, as wife and queen, lie beyond the present theme. It is subsequent to her widowhood that her name comes into notice in connection wit e castleth h . Once more, under altogether exceptional circumstances, the crown of Scotland had passed to a child ; and troubles grew ever more violent, whil e hapleseth s Mary Stuart l unconscioual , s of the tragic romance on which she was so soon to enter, was passing her youth in pleasant dalliance at the court of France. Mary of Guise was unquestionably a woman of exceptional ability; and her accession regence toth weae d e incapablplacn th y1554i th an kf o en i , e Earl of Arran welcomes s naturall wa l , partieswa al e y b dSh y . inclineo t d 1 Diurnal of Occumnts, p. 22. ST MAEGAEET'S CHAPEL, EPINBUBG1 H 31 CASTLE.

moderation e e enteregovernmensh th t n o dbu ; f Scotlano t d under circumstances that demanded rare •wisdom; and her relations with France and the House of Guise rendered it impossible for her to pursue an impartial course. The bitterness, moreover, of factious strife was intensifie presence th y boda db f f eFrenco y o h troops sen o overawt t e the populace. Amid the troubles of foreign invasion and civil war, Holyrood Palace was deserted for the " Guise Palace " in Blyth's Close, opposit e "Wes e heath th ef to d Bow, e whicearlieth n i hr e yearth f so present centur mose th y tf forme o curiou e don s historical memorialn si towd o abandonol t f Edinburgh no e d th ha t thi,e Bu firstsh sr . fo , safety under the protection of the French garrison in Leith; and finally, for the royal chambers in the castle. There, enfeebled in health, distracted an e careth f stateo y s b de hav w , imagino et r anxiouslehe y watching froe rampartmth e neighbourin e siegth sth f o e g seapory b t the Lords of the Congregation. Knox thus pictures to us the scene :— " The Queen Eegent satt all the tyine of the assault (quhilk was baith terrible and lang) upon the foir wall of the Castell of Edinburgh; quhed an n sche pereeivi d tha overthrae e ensenyeith an t th t, us f wf o so e Frencth r aganhwa e displayit upou e wallisnth , sche gawfe gaian f o e lauchter, and said, ' Now will I go to the Messe, and prayse God for that quhil y eyem k ss Freihavwa ro e s Blacsene!d An k ' reddy for that purpose." Friar John Black whof o , thue mw s obtain noticlase th t s recordeea d chaplain officiating in the chapel of the castle, was a Dominican, celebrated for his learning; but whom Knox, and other contemporary writers, including the metrical satirists, describe as more notorious for open profligacy. He is styled. " The Queen's Black Chaplane, weill surnamed Black, and not nicknam'd; for Black were all his workes." Mr David Laing gives some account of him in the appendix to the Works of John Knox. He was Master of " Our Lady College " at St Andrewss slai t wa Holyrooa n e d nighth an f ,Davi o n t o d d Eiccio's murder. e Thachapel e th alta th f t o r, t eitheMargareS t f o S r r o t Mary, continue dule b yo dt serveofficiatinn a y db g pries r chaplaio t o ns long as the Queen Eegent, Mary of Guise, survived cannot be doubted. 1 Works of John Knox, Laing. 67 . p , vol. ii . 312 -PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY, JUNE 13, 1887.

Buonle th ty further notic eI hav e been able to recover e occurth n i s official record of details relative to her funeral rites. The death of the Queen Regent occurred in the castle at midnight of the 10th of June 1560 ; and in the Treasurer's Accounts for the same month the follow- ing entries appear:— Item, to Johne Weir, pewterrar, for ane wobe of leid weiand —— stanis, to sepulture bean incloso et Queenie eth s Grac , ein ... iii. js Ibv x . saie Item,th d o Johnt sowdanr efo saie th d f . exxxiwobo leidf . eo s j. , Item, for ijc dor nalis to the Quenis Grace sepulture, . . iij s. e hal f blaan o j felni d kItem,xx an sr gra fo o hin t ye chapel e gth th f o l Oastell of Edinburgh the Quenis G. bodie lyand thairin, . vj Ib. ij s. iiij d. Item, four elnys of quhite taffateis of the cord to mak ane cross abone the Queni . summs. . s Gracej Ibj aii xv . . ,el e pricnth xxiiif . eo . s j Great as were the changes which had come over Scotland in the long interval since the dead body of the widowed queen of Malcolm Canmore was lai e chape n statdi th recentlo s n ei d l wherha y e beesh e worna - shipper circumstancee th , s that attende deate th d f anotheho r queen ni Castle th Edinburgf eo h present some interesting analogies bode f Th yo . the deceased Eegent lay there, as Knox tells us, "lappet in a cope of leid," apparently till the following spring, when, as narrated in the Diurnal of Occurrents—" Upoun the xvj day of the said moneth of March, at xij hourie nychtth e n corpesi th , f vmquhilo s e Marie Quene Douriare of Scotland d Eegentan , s convoyiwa , t secretli ee Castelfurtth f f o ho l Edinburgh e schian pn i ,in t ari Leithpu d d convoyian , t thairfro t a France."J But it is in the reign of Mary Stuart, the daughter of James V. and Mary of Guise, that, under very singular circumstances, the name of t MargareS t reappear association si n wit hr whos thahe f eo t misfortunes and tragic fate have won for her a no less prominent place in romance than in the national history. The Queen of Malcolm Canmore stands alone among mediaeval e mothesaint th a larg s f a so r e family o rearewh , d sons and daughters to do her credit, and died surrounded by her weeping children. Hence the exceptional virtues ascribed to her. Good mother n theii s r rlooke he materna o t d l e troublessh d an ; 1 Diurnal of Occurrents,2 28 . p ST MARGARET'S CHAPEL, EDINBURGH CASTLE. 313

occupie e placth dn i mediaevae l hagiolog e classith f o cy Eleithyia. Hence Sir David Lindsay, when in The Monarchic he denounces super- stitious pilgrimages, thus includes the royal saint in his anathema:—

" Some wyfes Sanct Margaret doith exhort Into thair birth thame to support." The training of Queen Mary, at the court of Francis I., was not calculated to rob her of her faith in saintly shrines; and when ac- cordingly in 1566 she retired to Edinburgh Castle as a safe retreat, in anticipation of the birth of her son, the future King of England as well f Scotlando s a e bethoughsh , t hersele speciath f o f l virtues ascribeo dt r saintehe d ancestress leare W n. accordingly, from Papebroch's additions to the Life of St Margaret, that the most eifectual means were resorted securinr fo o t e materiagth l efficace saint'th f o ys relicse bodTh f yo . t MargaretS , whic d beeha h n secretl d wityan h much difficulty trans- ported from the Castle of Edinburgh immediately after her death to e churcBenedictine th th f ho e Abbe t yDunfermlinea founder he y b d , was transferred e 19tth n hf Juno o , e 1250, fro s originamit l resting e costlnava plac th o t en y ei e choirshrinth n i .e There n spiti , f o e revolutions and changing dynasties, her relics had been preserved, and attracte e veneratioth d f devouo n t pilgrim r upwardfo s f o thres e centuries. But the reverence which had so long guarded the remains of the dead saint from profanation had to give way to the exigencies of a living queen. The faith which Queen Mary manifested in their special virtue s show singularla swa n ni y irreverent fashion heae Th d . of St Margaret was detached from her body and brought to Edinburgh Castle,—probably wit o leshn s secrecy than whe e bearerr th nhe f o s body stole away, unde re mis coveth o whict tf o r h Fordoun assigns a miraculous origin, when Donald Bane and his Islesmen were laying siege to the castle in 1093. earlien a n I r age, whil faite eth n suchi h saintly relic universals swa , e fertore royath th f lo y saint would have been transported from Dun- fermline to Edinburgh with every public demonstration of ecclesiastical pomp. But all that was at end for the time. Only eleven years before, unde e regence queen'th rth f o ys mother, Mar e Guised y , whee th n 314 PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY, JUNE 13, 1887.

• canons of St Giles's Collegiate Church, and the chief clergy of the city, undertoo o beakt e statu t Gileth S r f eo s throug e streethth f Edino s - burgh, dressed in their full canonicals, "with tabrons and trumpets, banners and bagpipes," the Eegent herself gracing the procession, the imag s profanewa e d wit e grossesth h t indignities e ceremoniath d an , l ignominiouenden a n i d s rout. t improveMatterno d ha s d since then, for only the year before that in which Queen Mary gave birth to her sonr JameSi , s Tarbat a priest, d beeha ,n imprisoned, exposee th n o d pillory at the Market Cross, and pelted by the rabble, for the crime of "Massing, r officiatino " a celebran e seaso s e th altaa g th f n i o nt r a t Easter. Hence, no doubt, the desecration of the saint's remains. Queen Mar falled yha evin no l whad dayan st; otherwise woul chargeable db e as a grossly irreverent mutilation of the body of St Margaret, may doubtles e ascribeb snecessite th o dt y of transportin relice gth , witl hal s prizeit d virtues castle th o et , wit utmose hth t secrecy. The little oratory stood then as now on the summit of the Castle rockd perpetuatean , e associationth d s wit e saintlth h y queen which tradition has preserved through so many centuries. When, therefore, t heaMargaree S th f do broughs wa t t back, afte lono s intervaln r ga t i , seems most probable that the chapel which bore her name would be selected for its safe keeping. No account has been preserved whereby learo t n what special results were ascribe s presencit o dt ee therth t a e time; but the little chamber still remains familiar to all where, on the 19th of June 1566, the infant was born in whom the rival crowns of Elizabeth and Mary were united, and Shakespeare's phantasy in the vision of Macbeth was realised. Banquo's line had stretched thus far crace th doof "ko o firse t f thosth m o thers d "e;an ewa

" That twofold ball trebld san e sceptres carry."

The subsequent history of St Margaret's relics is curious, but it would r afielcarrfa s dy u fror presenmou t subjec o retract t n detaii e l their devious wanderings. On the flight of Queen Mary to England in 1567, the head of St Margaret was secretly transferred to the house of the Lair f Durydo , guardes wherwa r yeart ea Benedictini fo dy sb e monk. thes wa n t I conveye Antwero t d Johy pb n Kobie Jesuia , t fathern I . ST MAEGAKET'S CHAPEL, EDINBURGH CASTLE. 315

162 e Bishoth 0 f Antwero p p issued letter f authenticatioo s e th f o n sacred relic granted an , d exposurs leavit r efo publio et c venerationt I . was next translated, in 1627, to the Scots College at Douay, where it wa historiae s seeth y nb n Caruther thes 1785excellenn n si ni wa t I . t preservation, wit e finhth e fai Saxore haith f no r princess still abundant, nearly seven centuries after her death. Pope Innocenb X., by special brief, grante dplenara y indulgencshoulo wh l d al visi churce o et th t n ho festivae t Margaretth S e privilegf o th l d renewes an ;ewa d from time to time by his successors, till in the furor of the French Eevolution thi e ssainte th reli f o cd queen passed beyond reac f furtheho r venera- tion or indignity. Meanwhil headlese eth s body, ejected fro shrins mit earliey eb r revolu- tions, was translated at length, under favour of Philip II., to the church of St Lawrence at the Escurial. There, according to Papebroch, two urns containing the royal remains of Malcolm and his queen are inscribed " St Malcolm, King ; St Margaret, Queen "; for it would seem that not onle queenth y t alsbu ,o Malcolm Canmore d beeha , n enteree th n o d rol f saintso le lat Th e . Bishop Gillie f Popso invoked e ai Piu e dth s . wit IX e restoratio ha vieth e o saintlwt th f o ny relica Scottis o t s h chapee shrint Margaret'S th f n o ei l s Covenant, built unde s overhi r - sight on the Borough Muir; but possibly the Spanish custodians of the accumulated e churcEscuriarelice th th n f i so h l were reluctan paro t t t witreporteds a h, themso d , an ,the y coul longeo dn identifiede rb . lass Whe n Edinburgi twa friendd nI ol Williar y M ,m h m Kelson, had already conceived the idea of liberally carrying out, at his own cost, a serie f restorationo s e mosf somth o s f to e historical featuree th f o s ancient castlee wor Th f restorationo k. , includin e Argylth g e Tower e anancienth d t banquet halle nowar , I , believe r advancefa , d towards completion d cannoan , d e greatlattractivth tad faio o t yt l e interese granth d fortressf ol do t t Margaret'S . s Chape s alswa ol included in the proposed work. But every stone of the venerable little oratory is historical; and it is to be regarded as fortunate on the whole that it escaped the renovating process which an architect is too apt to carr t unde ynamou e th rf restoration o e e deliberationth n I . s whicI h hel d friend ol wit referencn y di h m reneweo t thio d et sle s workd wa I , 316 PROCEEDINGS OF THE SOCIETY, JUNE 13, 1887. inquiry into the history of the chapel, to which I first drew public attention upwards of forty years ago; and I now transmit to the Society this sketch of its history, in so far as I have been able to retrace it under the disadvantages incident to want of access to the stores of the Advocates' Library d othean , r source f informationo s ,n i familia e m o t r early days.