Dryburgh
Abbey is know is a beautiful place to hold an intimate wedding ceremony.
The
abbey was founded in 1150 by Hugh de Moreville, an Anglo-Norman who
had befriended David in England and had come north at his invitation.
He was granted extensive estates in the eastern Border country and by
1150 Hugh was constable of Scotland and one of the most powerful men
in the country.
The
whole purpose of an abbey such as Dryburgh was to 'create a beacon of
prayer in a sinful world'. Much of Medieval society depended on the
fear of God and the afterlife and these 'beacons of prayer' were a kind
of passport from this world to the next.
The early building work took place during a peaceful time but this peace
was shattered during the Wars of Independence with England, which erupted
in 1296.
In
1322 Edward II's army, retreating south after yet another unsuccessful
invasion and hearing in the distance the abbeys bells ringing out the
celebration, turned aside and set fire to the place. The heat-cracked
masonry on the south side of the south transept below the original roofline
of the canons dormitory may be a legacy from this attack, the first
of several that afflicted the brethren throughout the Middle Ages.
The
task of rebuilding began immediately with the financial help from King
Robert the Bruce.
If we associate the clear evidence for the burning down of the dormitory
with the events of 1322 then Brother Patrick's appeal was evidently
very successful for the reconstruction of the dormitory was on a grand
scale, quite unparalleled anywhere else in Scotland. Judging by the
evidence in Slezer's engraving of 1678, the canons' new sleeping quarters
rose to the full height of the south transept, giving them at least
one extra floor.
The abandonment of the stone vault over the east cloister walk and its
replacement by a timber lean-to roof, and alterations to the warming
house may also have been necessitated by this first recorded English
attack.
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"...Congratulations
on your engagement, and best wishes for a very special experience
in Scotland. You can be certain that Yvonne will take care of
you and help build your own special memories."
Mr
& Mrs Hammashuk, Michigan, USA
|
[text and some pictures
courtesy and copyright of Historic Scotland]
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