stirling-1963-vol-1/05_043

Transcription

INTRODUCTION : GENERAL
over the operation of patronage. In 1761 the Rev. Thomas Gillespie formed the Presbytery
of Relief, a strongly Evangelical body; and by 1765 the Relief, Burgher and Anti-Burgher
congregations are said to have numbered jointly 100, 000 members. In 1847 the Relief and
United Secession Churches joined up, as the United Presbyterian Church.
The last and greatest secession took place in 1843, when controversy over the powers of
Church and State, again centring on the question of the appointment of ministers, led to what
is known as the Disruption. More than four hundred ministers, led by the Rev. Dr. Thomas
Chalmers, now broke away to form the Free Church of Scotland; this Church acquired a large
following and exerted great influence in the course of the 19th century, but in 1900 joined with
the United Presbyterian Church to form the United Free Church. This latter was in turn
reunited with the Established Church in 1929. A fragment of the Free Church, however,
survived the union of 1900 and a fragment of the United Free Church that of 1929.

3. SOCIAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE ORGANISATION
In mediaeval times the authority of the Crown in Stirlingshire was based on the Royal Castle
of Stirling. The king also possessed a considerable amount of land within the county, the bulk
of it lying fairly close to the Castle. Reference is made below (p. 180) to the formation in the
13th century of the Old and New Parks of Stirling, which stretched southwards from the
Castle Rock. Close by were the lands of Craigforth, Raploch and Skeoch, while to the west
and south other possessions included part of the lands of Touch, Sauchie, Auchenbowie and
the Tor Wood.
The Church too, held large grants of lands within the county, particularly on the fertile
soil of the carse of Falkirk. Considering its size and position, however, Stirlingshire was not
well endowed with religious houses, and most of the monastic properties were held by houses
which lay outside the county.
The only religious house of the first rank was the community of Augustinian canons at
Cambuskenneth, which was founded by David I before the middle of the 12th century (cf.
p. 38). In course of time the Abbey was endowed with many properties and rights within the
county. The lands of Cambuskenneth lie within a loop of the river Forth about a mile east of
the burgh of Stirling, and the Abbey was also in possession of a number of neighbouring
properties such as Muirton, Cockspow and part of St. Ninians, all on the south bank of the
river. The canons were also granted fishing-rights in the Forth, and payments from the rents
of the Crown lands about Stirling; other grants included the lands of Cowie, part of the lands
of Dunipace, the lands of Touch Mollar and the Church of St. Ninians.¹ At the Reformation
the lands of Cambuskenneth were erected into a temporal lordship and came into the hands of
the Earl of Mar.
A house of Cistercian nuns was founded before 1164 by Malcolm IV at Manuel, in the
parish of Muiravonside (cf. p. 38). The extent of its holdings within the county is not known,
but the house was not a wealthy one and its possessions were probably few. The lands of
Manuel lie at the extreme eastern limit of the county, on the west bank of the river Avon.
The only other houses of religious in Stirlingshire were two friaries in the burgh of Stirling,

1 Cambuskenneth, passim.

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