Holywood is a village and

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authorit ...

in the historical county of Dumfriesshire in

Dumfries and Galloway Dumfries and Galloway ( sco, Dumfries an Gallowa; gd, Dùn Phrìs is Gall-Ghaidhealaibh) is one of 32 unitary council areas of Scotland and is located in the western Southern Uplands. It covers the historic counties of Dumfriesshire, Kirkc ...

, Scotland. The village of Holywood was developed in the mid twentieth century. In 1949 eighteen houses were built by the county council and followed shortly after by another 38. Holywood was the site of a

Premonstratensian The Order of Canons Regular of Prémontré (), also known as the Premonstratensians, the Norbertines and, in Britain and Ireland, as the White Canons (from the colour of their habit), is a religious order of canons regular of the Catholic Church ...

abbey which was established in 1225 and dissolved in 1609. The abbey was dismantled and used to build the parish church in 1778. No remains are now visible. The site of

Holywood Abbey Dercongal Abbey (or Holywood Abbey) was a Premonstratensian monastic community located in Dumfriesshire, Scotland. History The date of its foundation is not known, but it was certainly in existence as a Premonstratensian monastic community by 12 ...

was previously called '' Dercongal'', 'Congal's oak-copse'. The name Holywood refers to this oak-copse. The saint commemorated in this name may be Convallus, disciple of Saint Mungo. However, there are a number of other saints to whom the dedication could apply. The surrounding landscape has several prehistoric monuments, including two

cursus 250px, Stonehenge Cursus, Wiltshire 250px, Dorset Cursus terminal on Thickthorn Down, Dorset Cursuses are monumental Neolithic structures resembling ditches or trenches in the islands of Great Britain and Ireland. Relics found within them in ...

es and the

Twelve Apostles In Christian theology and ecclesiology, the apostles, particularly the Twelve Apostles (also known as the Twelve Disciples or simply the Twelve), were the primary disciples of Jesus according to the New Testament. During the life and minist ...

stone circle, which suggests a continuity of sacred or administrative tradition in the area. The parish previously had three schools: Speddoch, Steilston and Holywood, near the village. The current school building was built in 1967. Its catchment includes the Woodlands area of

Dumfries Dumfries ( ; sco, Dumfries; from gd, Dùn Phris ) is a market town and former royal burgh within the Dumfries and Galloway council area of Scotland. It is located near the mouth of the River Nith into the Solway Firth about by road from t ...

and part of the catchment of Auldgirth Primary School, which closed in 2000. Holywood railway station opened as Killylung in 1849 but was renamed Holywood within a year and closed in 1949.

References

{{authority control Villages in Dumfries and Galloway Parishes in Dumfries and Galloway