The four great Border Abbeys now stand in various states of decay, monuments to the power of religious devotion in the Middle Ages. All four are of interest and worth a visit, wether history is your bag or not. The romance of the ruins and their gorgeous settings outweighs any religious doubts the modern pilgrim may have. Cycle and walking routes link all four over a multi day excursion but a drive (or tour!) will take you to all four in a great day in The Borders. Before we talk about the four buildings, it’s worth dipping back into time to understand what was happening in Scotland at the time, and find out more about the remarkable King who drove this reform forward.

Jedburgh Abbey, Augustinian.

Founded in 1138, during the reign of Daibhidh I mac Chaluim (David I)

What was Scotland like in the mid 1100’s? Well for a start it wasn’t called Scotland. When David I took the throne his main kingdom was Alba, a combination of former Pictish lands north of the River Forth and the Gaelic kingdoms of the West, including the Scots (who were Irish. Just to make it clearer). Before being King, David was Prince of the Cumbrians, a vast Welsh speaking area including Glasgow, Lanarkshire, Dumfriesshire and parts of The Borders. The Border with England was set a century or so earlier after the battle of Carham in 1018, but subsequent invasions and recaptures did occur and at one point David counted Carlisle and Newcastle as part of his extended Scottish Kingdom. So, in short (!), let’s think of Scotland being similar to now, but fluid and not fully formed yet. And we won’t mention Galloway or the islands.

So, who was this David then?

Memorial window for King David I of Scotland. Humbie Kirk, East Lothian.

David was never really expected to be king. His father King Malcolm III had 8 (legitimate) children with his wife Margaret (later to be Saint Margaret - I reckon having 8 kids in the 11th century made her well qualified!), and David was the 6th son. On his fathers death fighting the English at Alnwick, David was shipped off to England and the court of King William Rufus. The expectation was that he would live the life of an Anglo-Norman prince and he was given significant lands to manage - he became Earl of Huntingdon, rich and fertile land, as well as being Prince of Cumbria. Various misfortunes occurred to his brothers and on the death of King Edgar (third son) there was only David and Alexander left. Edgar bequeathed lordship of Alba to Alexander and he became King of Scots, while David was given control of Lothian (eastern Scotland from Edinburgh to the river Tweed) as well as Cumbria (Glasgow to the Border - basically the M74 kingdom). I hope you are keeping up! When Alexander also died it wasn’t a given that his brother David would finally become King, it wasn’t as straightforward a succession as now where if you recall on the death of Elizabeth the note was very quick to point out who the new King was. You had to ensure significant support, and David seems to have had enough to have himself crowned King of Scots at Scone in the spring of 1124. A revolt was launched against his coronation but it was soon quashed and arguably the most significant reign in the history of Scotland had begun. This post is about the mighty Border Abbeys, but it’s worth also touching on some of the other reforms David put into action. He was responsible for the first towns in Scotland, or Burghs. Scotland had until this point no understanding of how trade, commerce worked in a semi urban setting so David used his Anglo and Norman connections to populate these towns with people who did from Northern Cities such as York and Lincoln, as well as Flemish town dwellers from places like Ghent, Lueven and Antwerp. Perhaps this Flanders influence accounts for some of the weird vowels of the Border accent! David’s Burghs were mainly focused in the east, two of the most important were here in The Borders - Berwick and Roxburgh. Indeed, he made Roxburgh his castle and regular residence. Why there, on a peninsula between Tweed and Teviot? Same problem which faced hundreds of years of Scottish leaders - England. This show of strength and confidence in his sovereignty over the lands north of the Tweed was designed, in my view, as a bugger off to any Northumbrian fancying taking a big chunk of the Scottish Kingdom back. I also believe this is why he instigated the four huge Border Abbeys - Kelso, Melrose, Dryburgh and Jedburgh. A show of religious piety which helped earn him his sainthood and glowing reputation among the great religious figures of the time - but was also canny strategy as he battled to unite the Northern part of Britain into what we know as Scotland, while also keeping the Anglo wolves from the door. David was so much more than I’ve hastily tried to highlight on this blog - I heartily recommend Professor Richard Oram’s book ‘David I - King of Scots’ to anyone who wishes to learn more about the medieval ruler. A great read, seriously academic but also very accessible.

Right, we’ve unpicked what Scotland was, and painted a bit of a picture about what King David was all about - let’s move on to the Abbeys. I am not going to bore you with hundreds of years of history on each (hooray!) - the best idea is to visit them yourselves, soak up the atmosphere and learn as much or as little as you wish about each. I will instead give you a few wee tidbits on each and encourage you greatly to consider visiting all four.

Melrose Abbey

Most intact and probably best known of The Border Abbeys
Reputed to be the burial place of King Robert the Bruce’s heart.
Home to magnificent gargoyles, including the bagpipe playing pig!
Plays host to ceremonies during Melrose Civic Week, a truly evocative setting.

Dryburgh Abbey

Surrounded by beautiful woodland, planted by one time owner David Erskine.
A romantic ruin, it regularly hosts weddings.
Nearby are other works commissioned by Erskine, including the Temple of the Muses and Wallace Statue.
Located in a large meander of the Tweed, it feels very remote but isn’t that far from St Boswell’s as the crow files.
Burial place of Sir Walter Scott and Field Marshall Haig.

Jedburgh Abbey

A real wow moment when travelling into town from the south on the A68.
Extensively excavated in the 1980’s, giving massive insight into medieval Scotland
King Alexander III was married here and is reputed to have been haunted by a foretelling of his death, which occurred less than a year later.
The Abbey Church, dedicated to St Mary The Virgin, is incredibly well preserved.

Kelso Abbey

Originally founded at Selkirk, it is the earliest of the Monastic communities and was moved to Kelso, closer to Roxburgh in 1128
Largely ruined, but the western remains suggests a truly massive building, with military hints - unsurprising given its location next to The Border.
Burial place to many local Dukes of Roxburghe.
Location of our wedding photos in 2016 😊
The cloisters were built in 1933 as a memorial to one of the Roxburghes. They were designed to mimic the Abbey’s original look

There you have it, four ruins which played a huge part in the Borders early dominance of Scotland. With the loss of Berwick, centuries of warfare and later reformation towards Protestantism, The Abbeys and the wider Borders moved to the margins of the modern country - but in my view we should still be front and centre. There is an unfortunate elephant in the room - access to all four is currently curtailed due to ongoing masonry assessment being undertaken by Historic Environment Scotland. While this is undoubtedly frustrating, I do hope that the work will allow people full access for generations to come. There is however still plenty to see and a truly special atmosphere to savour at each and I hope this blog has whetted your appetite to visit.

The Border Abbeys

Melrose Abbey

Dryburgh Abbey

Jedburgh Abbey

Kelso Abbey

St. Ronan’s Border Games & Cleikum Ceremonies - The Unofficial Guide

Glasgow street art