Glenluce Abbey, near to

Glenluce Glenluce ( gd, Clachan Ghlinn Lus) is a small village in the parish of Old Luce in Wigtownshire, Scotland. It contains a village shop,a caravan park and a town hall, as well as the parish church. Location Glenluce on the A75 road between Stranra ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to ...

, was a

Cistercian The Cistercians, () officially the Order of Cistercians ( la, (Sacer) Ordo Cisterciensis, abbreviated as OCist or SOCist), are a Catholic religious order of monks and nuns that branched off from the Benedictines and follow the Rule of Saint B ...

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer whic ...

called also ''Abbey of Luce'' or ''Vallis Lucis'' and founded around 1190 by Rolland or

Lochlann, Lord of Galloway Lochlann of Galloway (died December 12, 1200), also known as Lochlan mac Uchtred and by his French name Roland fitz Uhtred, was the son and successor of Uchtred, Lord of Galloway as the "Lord" or "sub-king" of eastern Galloway. Family Lochlann w ...

and

Constable of Scotland The Lord High Constable is a hereditary, now ceremonial, office of Scotland. In the order of precedence of Scotland, the office traditionally ranks above all titles except those of the Royal Family.p60-61, Bruce, Alistair, Keepers of the King ...

. Following the

Scottish Reformation The Scottish Reformation was the process by which Kingdom of Scotland, Scotland broke with the Pope, Papacy and developed a predominantly Calvinist national Church of Scotland, Kirk (church), which was strongly Presbyterianism, Presbyterian in ...

in 1560, the

abbey An abbey is a type of monastery used by members of a religious order under the governance of an abbot or abbess. Abbeys provide a complex of buildings and land for religious activities, work, and housing of Christian monks and nuns. The c ...

fell into disuse.

Ballinclach

On 23 January 1497,

James IV James IV (17 March 1473 – 9 September 1513) was King of Scotland from 11 June 1488 until his death at the Battle of Flodden in 1513. He inherited the throne at the age of fifteen on the death of his father, James III, at the Battle of Sauch ...

erected "Ballinclach in Glenluce" into a

burgh of barony A burgh of barony was a type of Scottish town ( burgh). Burghs of barony were distinct from royal burghs, as the title was granted to a landowner who, as a tenant-in-chief, held his estates directly from the crown. (In some cases, they might also ...

in favour of the abbey, although there is no record of the burgh operating.

Glenluce and the Kennedy family

In 1560, after the

John Gordon of Lochinvar Sir John Gordon of Lochinvar and Kenmure (died 1604), was a Scottish courtier, landowner, and supporter of Mary, Queen of Scots. He was the son of Sir James Gordon of Lochinvar and Margaret Crichton. On 20 August 1547 his sister Janet Gordon (die ...

took possession of Glenluce Abbey. His servant Cuthbert Kirkpatrick refused entry to the abbot, Thomas Hay. Lochinvar removed himself and his servants in November 1561, and gave the key to Gilbert Kennedy, 4th Earl of Cassilis. Gilbert Kennedy, 4th Earl of Cassilis persuaded one of the monks of the abbey to counterfeit the necessary signatures to a deed conveying the lands of the abbey to him and his heirs. To ensure that the forgery was not discovered he employed a man to murder the monk and then persuaded his uncle, the laird of Bargany, to hang his paid assassin on a trumped up charge of theft. The success of these actions encouraged him to obtain the lands of

Crossraguel Abbey The Abbey of Saint Mary of Crossraguel is a ruin of a former abbey near the town of Maybole, South Ayrshire, Scotland. Although it is a ruin, visitors can still see the original monks’ church, their cloister and their dovecot (pigeon towe ...

through the torturing of Allan Stewart, the commendator at his castle of

Dunure Dunure (Scottish Gaelic: ''Dùn Iùbhair'', meaning Yew Hill) is a small village in the South Ayrshire area of Scotland about from Ayr, Scotland. It is located on the coast of the Firth of Clyde, and is near to Maybole, south of Ayr. The villa ...

. In March 1587 the king's tutor Peter Young tried to find manuscripts of Caesar's Commentary and a Greek "Hegisippus" that the last Abbot of Glenluce had promised to him. The ruins were consolidated and partly restored in 1898 by the Glasgow architect,

Peter MacGregor Chalmers Peter MacGregor Chalmers LLD (14 March 1859 – 15 March 1922) was a Scottish architect specialising in country churches, and also being involved in several important restoration schemes. Life Chalmers was born on 14 March 1859, the son of Georg ...

. They are a

scheduled ancient monument In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a nationally important archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorised change. The various pieces of legislation that legally protect heritage assets from damage and d ...

References

External links

* Historic Environment Scotland
Visitor guide
* Undiscovered Scotland
Glenluce Abbey

Abbey Portal
* The Gazetteer of Scotland by Robert Chambers. VOL.I
The gazetteer of Scotland, With plates and maps
Cistercian monasteries in Scotland History of Galloway Christianity in Dumfries and Galloway Christian monasteries established in the 12th century 1602 disestablishments in Europe Historic Scotland properties in Dumfries and Galloway Ruined abbeys and monasteries Ruins in Dumfries and Galloway 1192 establishments in Scotland Scheduled Ancient Monuments in Dumfries and Galloway Former Christian monasteries in Scotland {{Scotland-church-stub

Ballinclach

Glenluce and the Kennedy family

See also

References

External links