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Cockpen is a parish in Midlothian, 
From the 12th to the 19th centuries the parish of Cockpen comprised the same area as the Barony of Dalhousie (a corruption of Dalwolsie).Topographical Dictionary of Scotland and the British Isles, by Nicholas Carlisle; publ. Bell and Bradfute, Booksellers, Edinburgh;1813 (article on Cockpen) The lands of Dalhousie have been owned by the Ramsays since the 12th century Record on Dalhousie Castle held by the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland and its successors http://canmore.org.uk/site/53605 retrieved April 2016 having been given to them by the monks of Newbattle Abbey. The patronage of the parish church belonged anciently to this family. In May 1542, James V granted to Nicol de Ramsay, of Dalhousie, a power of Justiciary over his lands of Dalhousie, and Carrington, in the county of Midlothian (Edinburghshire), but this appears to have expired on his death in 1554. There have been a succession of fortresses at their seat, Dalhousie Castle, which lies on the north bank of the South Esk. The castle was successfully defended against Henry IV in 1400, and in 1648, it was occupied by Cromwell. The present building dates from the 15th century.
The
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...
, containing at its north-west corner the town of Bonnyrigg, which lies south-west of Dalkeith. It is bounded on the west and north by the parish of Lasswade
Lasswade is a village and civil parish in Midlothian, Scotland, on the River North Esk, nine miles (14.5 kilometres) south of Edinburgh city centre, contiguous with Bonnyrigg and between Dalkeith to the east and Loanhead to the west. Melvil ...
, on the east, by Newbattle
Newbattle (from Neubotle, i.e. new dwelling) is a village and civil parish in Midlothian, in the ancient Roman Catholic Diocese of St. Andrews, about seven miles from Edinburgh. There was an abbey there founded about 1140, being the second of t ...
and on the south by Carrington. It extends about from north to south and its greatest breadth is about miles (4.0 km).Gazetteer of Scotland, 2nd edition, by W. Groome, publ. 1896. Article on CockpenThe Statistical Account of Edinburghshire, by the Ministers of the Respective Parishes, publ. William Blackwood and Sons, Edinburgh, 1845. Article on Cockpen
The parish lies between the rivers North Esk and South Esk, which join about 2 miles north of the parish. At Lasswade the parish reaches the North Esk which at that point forms the boundary on the north-west side, such that the suburb of Westmill on the south-east bank lies in the parish of Cockpen. The South Esk briefly forms the southern boundary of the parish then flows northward through the parish past Dalhousie Castle
Dalhousie Castle is a castle in Cockpen, Midlothian, Scotland. Dalhousie Castle is situated near the town of Bonnyrigg, 8 miles (13 km) south of Edinburgh. The castle was the seat of the Earls of Dalhousie, the chieftains of Clan Ramsay.
H ...
, exiting in the north-east into Newbattle parish.
A Parochial Board was established under the Poor Law (Scotland) Act 1845. Within the parish of Cockpen a police burgh was created at Bonnyrigg in 1865 (although part lay in the parish of Lasswade). Police burghs were communities over a certain size which were entitled to police many of their own affairs, such as cleansing, street lighting and water supply as well as public order. Police burghs were run by elected commissioners or magistrates.Catalogue of Midlothian Burgh Council archives retrieved April 2016
With the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1894
The Local Government (Scotland) Act 1894 (57 & 58 Vict. c. 58) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It created a Local Government Board for Scotland, and replaced existing parochial boards with parish councils.
Part I of the ac ...
the Parish Council was established, but this only administered the “landward” part of the parish, i.e. outside Bonnyrigg. Under the terms of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1929
The Local Government (Scotland) Act 1929 (19 & 20 Geo 5 c. 25) reorganised local government in Scotland from 1930, introducing joint county councils, large and small burghs and district councils. The Act also abolished the Scottish poor law syst ...
, Bonnyrigg and Lasswade were united to become the burgh of Bonnyrigg and Lasswade. The burgh was abolished in 1975 and subsumed into Midlothian district of Lothian region The parish council ceased in 1930 when parish councils in Scotland were abolished, but civil parishes persist for census and other non-administrative purposes.
From the 12th to the 19th centuries the parish of Cockpen comprised the same area as the Barony of Dalhousie (a corruption of Dalwolsie).Topographical Dictionary of Scotland and the British Isles, by Nicholas Carlisle; publ. Bell and Bradfute, Booksellers, Edinburgh;1813 (article on Cockpen) The lands of Dalhousie have been owned by the Ramsays since the 12th century Record on Dalhousie Castle held by the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland and its successors http://canmore.org.uk/site/53605 retrieved April 2016 having been given to them by the monks of Newbattle Abbey. The patronage of the parish church belonged anciently to this family. In May 1542, James V granted to Nicol de Ramsay, of Dalhousie, a power of Justiciary over his lands of Dalhousie, and Carrington, in the county of Midlothian (Edinburghshire), but this appears to have expired on his death in 1554. There have been a succession of fortresses at their seat, Dalhousie Castle, which lies on the north bank of the South Esk. The castle was successfully defended against Henry IV in 1400, and in 1648, it was occupied by Cromwell. The present building dates from the 15th century.
The parish church
A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in community activities, ...
is south-east of Bonnyrigg on rising land on the west bank of Dalhousie Burn. The building dates from 1820 and replaced an earlier structure.
The South Esk, after leaving Dalhousie Castle, passes close by the romantic place where Cockpen House stood, the mansion of the Laird o' Cockpen, the subject of the traditional Scottish song of that name.
The area of the parish is .Acreage from Gazetteer of Scotland, publ, by W & AK Johnston, Edinburgh, 1937; article on Cockpen
The civil parish has a population of 10,466 (in 2011).Census of Scotland 2011, Table KS101SC – Usually Resident Population, publ. by National Records of Scotland. Web site http://www.scotlandscensus.gov.uk/ retrieved March 2016. See "Standard Outputs", Table KS101SC, Area type: Civil Parish 1930
Etymology
''Cockpen'' is agreed to be aCumbric
Cumbric was a variety of the Common Brittonic language spoken during the Early Middle Ages in the ''Hen Ogledd'' or "Old North" in what is now the counties of Westmorland, Cumberland and northern Lancashire in Northern England and the souther ...
name cognate with Welsh ''coch'' 'red' + ''pen'' 'peak'.Bethany Fox, 'The P-Celtic Place-Names of North-East England and South-East Scotland', The Heroic Age, 10 (2007), http://www.heroicage.org/issues/10/fox.html (appendix at http://www.heroicage.org/issues/10/fox-appendix.html).
In popular culture
The late-18th century song '' The Laird o' Cockpen'' by Carolina Oliphant, Lady Nairn, describes a Cockpen estate owner who fought on the Royalist side at the 1651Battle of Worcester
The Battle of Worcester took place on 3 September 1651 in and around the city of Worcester, England and was the last major battle of the 1639 to 1653 Wars of the Three Kingdoms. A Parliamentarian army of around 28,000 under Oliver Cromwell d ...
.McGuirk, Carol. “Jacobite History to National Song: Robert Burns and Carolina Oliphant (Baroness Nairne).” The Eighteenth Century, vol. 47, no. 2/3, 2006, pp. 253–287. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/41468002. Accessed 24 Jan. 2020.
See also
* Thomas Pitcairn * List of listed buildings in Cockpen, MidlothianReferences
{{Authority control Geography of Midlothian Parishes in Midlothian Bonnyrigg and Lasswade