Deer Abbey was a Cistercian monastery in

Buchan Buchan is an area of north-east Scotland, historically one of the original provinces of the Kingdom of Alba. It is now one of the six committee areas and administrative areas of Aberdeenshire Council, Scotland. These areas were created by ...

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 ...

. It was founded by 1219 under the patronage

William Comyn, jure uxoris Earl of Buchan William Comyn was Lord of Badenoch and Earl of Buchan. He was one of the seven children of Richard Comyn, Justiciar of Lothian, and Hextilda of Tynedale. He was born in Scotland, in Altyre, Moray in 1163 and died in Buchan in 1233 where he is bu ...

, who is also buried there.

History

There was an earlier community of Scottish

monk A monk (, from el, μοναχός, ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a person who practices religious asceticism by monastic living, either alone or with any number of other monks. A monk may be a person who decides to dedica ...

s or priests, never numbering more than fifteen. The ''notitiae'' on the margins of the '' Book of Deer'' record grants made to the Scottish religious community in the 12th century and a claim that it was founded by Saint Columba and Saint

Drostan Saint Drostan (d. early 7th century), also Drustan, was the founder and abbot of the monastery of Old Deer in Aberdeenshire. His relics were translated to the church at New Aberdour and his holy well lies nearby. Biography Drostan was a Scotti ...

. In 1219 the Earl of Buchan founded the Cistercian abbey of New Deer about two miles westward of the old foundation, granting to the new abbey a portion of the lands of Old Deer, the rest going to the maintenance of a parochial church. William brought Cistercian monks from

Kinloss Abbey Kinloss Abbey is a Cistercian abbey at Kinloss in the county of Moray, Scotland. The abbey was founded in 1150 by King David I and was first colonised by monks from Melrose Abbey. It received its Papal Bull from Pope Alexander III in 1174, ...

near Elgin to establish the new monastery. The old religious community was probably absorbed by the new foundation, which was dedicated to the Blessed Virgin. Deer Abbey was always a small community, with never more than 15 monks at any one time. The history of the abbey after the 1210s is obscure until the 16th century, when it was beginning to be secularized. The abbey was turned into a secular lordship for Commendator Robert Keith II (becoming Lord Altrie) in 1587. The church was

cruciform Cruciform is a term for physical manifestations resembling a common cross or Christian cross. The label can be extended to architectural shapes, biology, art, and design. Cruciform architectural plan Christian churches are commonly describe ...

in shape, , with a north aisle to the nave. Some fragments of this remain, along with a

piscina A piscina is a shallow basin placed near the altar of a church, or else in the vestry or sacristy, used for washing the communion vessels. The sacrarium is the drain itself. Anglicans usually refer to the basin, calling it a piscina. For Roman Ca ...

. Considerable portions of the south range of the

cloisters A cloister (from Latin ''claustrum'', "enclosure") is a covered walk, open gallery, or open arcade running along the walls of buildings and forming a quadrangle or garth. The attachment of a cloister to a cathedral or church, commonly against ...

remain, approximately by . The Abbey was included in the lands obtained by Lord Pitfour, and became part of the

Pitfour estate The Pitfour Estate, in the Buchan area of North-East Scotland, was an ancient barony encompassing most of the extensive Longside Parish, stretching from St Fergus to New Pitsligo. It was purchased in 1700 by James Ferguson of Badifurrow, wh ...

in 1766. His son, the third laird, built the high enclosing wall in 1809 and used the grounds as an orchard. The four-columned Doric

pediment Pediments are gables, usually of a triangular shape. Pediments are placed above the horizontal structure of the lintel, or entablature, if supported by columns. Pediments can contain an overdoor and are usually topped by hood moulds. A pedim ...

ed portico was taken from an earlier mausoleum. He also discovered some of the graves but did not disturb them. The fifth laird had the site cleared and used the stones from the Abbey building to have a mausoleum constructed in which to bury his daughter when she died aged 21 years in 1851. The only other person buried in the mausoleum was Ferguson's mother-in-law. By the early 1900s, the estate was bankrupt. The property was acquired around 1926 by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Aberdeen, which shortly thereafter gave custody to the state Ministry of Works. The house, which was in poor repair, was demolished; much of its stone was said to have been used for the construction of council houses in Aberdeen. The mausoleum was removed in the 1930s and parts of it were used to build an entrance; however this was undertaken without disturbing the graves of Lady Langford and Ferguson's daughter, Eliza. The property is managed by Historic Scotland.

Burials

William Comyn, Lord of Badenoch William Comyn was Lord of Badenoch and Earl of Buchan. He was one of the seven children of Richard Comyn, Justiciar of Lothian, and Hextilda of Tynedale. He was born in Scotland, in Altyre, Moray in 1163 and died in Buchan in 1233 where he is ...

* Alexander Comyn, Earl of Buchan * Alexander Comyn (died 1308)

Antiquities

There is considerable evidence of

prehistory Prehistory, also known as pre-literary history, is the period of human history between the use of the first stone tools by hominins 3.3 million years ago and the beginning of recorded history with the invention of writing systems. The use ...

in the local area, most notably in the form of the

Catto Long Barrow Cairn Catto is a Neolithic long cairn near the village of Longside, Aberdeenshire, Scotland. Historic Environment Scotland established the site as a scheduled monument in 1973. Description Cairn Catto is located southeast of Longside, in Aberde ...

and numerous

tumuli A tumulus (plural tumuli) is a mound of earth and stones raised over a grave or graves. Tumuli are also known as barrows, burial mounds or ''kurgans'', and may be found throughout much of the world. A cairn, which is a mound of stones built ...

slightly to the south.C.M. Hogan, 2008

Inline references

Bibliography

* Ian B. Cowan and David E. Easson (1976) ''Medieval Religious Houses: Scotland With an Appendix on the Houses in the Isle of Man'', Second Edition, London, pp. 47, 74 * D.E.R. Watt and N.F. Shead (eds.) (2001) ''The Heads of Religious Houses in Scotland from the 12th to the 16th Centuries'', The Scottish Records Society, New Series, Volume 24, Edinburgh, pp. 54–8 * C. Michael Hogan (2008
''Catto Long Barrow fieldnotes'', The Modern Antiquarian
{{Coord, 57, 31, 24, N, 2, 3, 14.5, W, display=title, region:GB_type:landmark_source:dewiki Listed monasteries in Scotland Religious organizations established in the 1210s Buildings and structures in Aberdeenshire Cistercian monasteries in Scotland History of Aberdeenshire Category B listed buildings in Aberdeenshire Listed churches in Scotland Christian monasteries established in the 13th century 1587 disestablishments in Scotland Ruins in Aberdeenshire Tourist attractions in Aberdeenshire Historic Scotland properties in Aberdeenshire Scheduled monuments in Scotland Former Christian monasteries in Scotland

History

Burials

Antiquities

See also

Inline references

Bibliography