Canonbie
| |
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Location within Dumfries and Galloway | |
Population | 390 (2001 Census) |
OS grid reference | NY393764 |
Council area | |
Lieutenancy area | |
Country | Scotland |
Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
Post town | CANONBIE |
Postcode district | DG14 |
Dialling code | 013873 |
Police | Scotland |
Fire | Scottish |
Ambulance | Scottish |
UK Parliament | |
Scottish Parliament | |
Canonbie (Scottish Gaelic : Canonbaidh) is a small village in Dumfriesshire within the local authority area of Dumfries and Galloway in Scotland, 6 miles (10 kilometres) south of Langholm and 2 miles (3 kilometres) north of the Anglo-Scottish border. It is on the A7 road from Carlisle to Edinburgh, and the River Esk flows through it. There are frequent references in older documents to it as Canobie. [1]
Canonbie was the main population centre within the Debatable Lands, bounded on the west by the River Sark, to the east by the River Esk and Liddel Water, on the north by the Bruntshiell Moor and Tarras Moss, and on the south by the estuary of the Esk. [2] The main families holding land and exerting influence in the area were the Graemes, Armstrongs, Elliots and Bells.
Canonbie Parish had an Austin priory at Hallgreen, dating back to about 1165. The priory was destroyed during the reign of Henry VIII after the Battle of Solway Moss in 1542. A grassy mound in a field near the present day church is believed to be the only remnant of the ruins. Remains of a Roman station crown a rising ground near the old Gilnockie station; and ruins of famous mediaeval strongholds are at Hollows and Harelaw; remains of other mediaeval strengths are at Mumbyhirst, Auchenrivock, Hallgreen, Woodhouselees, and Sark. [3]
Gilnockie Castle lies immediately left of the north side of Canonbie Bridge, occupying a strong defensive site and was once the seat of the Armstrongs, Lairds of Mangerton. It was the home of John Armstrong of Gilnockie and was unfinished at the time of his death. Not much of the castle remains. When James V became king of Scotland, one of his objectives was to restore order in his kingdom and to pacify the borders. He commanded an army of 12,000 men. He ordered all earls, lords, barons, freeholders and gentlemen to meet at Edinburgh with a month's supplies, and then to proceed to Teviotdale and Annandale. The nobles were to bring their dogs with them. After hunting for a few days, the King offered safe conduct to Armstrong for an audience. Armstrong was the laird of Kilnockie and was felt by all Scots to be as good a chieftain as there was within the borders, either in Scotland or England. He and his men were hanged in the trees of Carlanrig churchyard. There is a legend that persists to this day that the Dule trees (gallows) upon which they were hung withered and died and that the same has happened to any trees which were planted since. He is said to have shouted to the King. "I have asked grace at a graceless face." His execution weakened James' authority in the borders and was a grave mistake on the King's part. [4]
Canonbie was immortalised in a poem by Sir Walter Scott entitled Marmion . A famous section covers the exploits of young Lochinvar. Having stolen the hand of the bride of Netherby Hall, about 3 miles (5 kilometres) south of Canonbie, the dashing knight is chased through Canonbie, but makes good his escape.
Canonbie was deeply affected by the 2001-foot and mouth crisis, with all the surrounding farms losing their herds. It is only 5 miles (8 kilometres) north of Longtown, where the disease was first spotted at the livestock market.
The village contains a post office/convenience store, a public hall and recreation ground, [5] a primary school, a Church, a clock shop, [6] a hairdresser, the Cross Keys Hotel. [7] Canonbie crosses the River Esk, and Gilnockie Tower is a short walk away.
Canonbie is on two public bus routes; the X95 (Borders Buses) and 127 (Telford's).
Canonbie hosts a local football team called Canonbie Bowholm FC which has been in existence since 1925. [8]
Knopper galls were first noted in Scotland at Canonbie in 1995; their distribution is often restricted to old country and urban estates where the Turkey oak has been previously planted. [9]
Dumfries and Galloway is one of the 32 unitary council areas of Scotland, located in the western part of the Southern Uplands. It is bordered by East Ayrshire, South Ayrshire, and South Lanarkshire to the north; Scottish Borders to the north-east; the English county of Cumbria, the Solway Firth, and the Irish Sea to the south, and the North Channel to the west. The administrative centre and largest settlement is the town of Dumfries. The second largest town is Stranraer, located 76 miles (122 km) to the west of Dumfries on the North Channel coast.
Kirkcudbrightshire or the County of Kirkcudbright or the Stewartry of Kirkcudbright is one of the historic counties of Scotland, covering an area in the south-west of the country. Until 1975, Kirkcudbrightshire was an administrative county used for local government. Since 1975, the area has formed part of Dumfries and Galloway for local government purposes. Kirkcudbrightshire continues to be used as a registration county for land registration. A lower-tier district called Stewartry covered the majority of the historic county from 1975 to 1996. The area of Stewartry district is still used as a lieutenancy area. Dumfries and Galloway Council also has a Stewartry area committee.
Langholm, also known colloquially as the "Muckle Toon", is a burgh in Dumfries and Galloway, southern Scotland. Langholm lies between four hills in the valley of the River Esk in the Southern Uplands.
Dumfriesshire or the County of Dumfries or Shire of Dumfries is a historic county and registration county in southern Scotland. The Dumfries lieutenancy area covers a similar area to the historic county.
Gretna is a town in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, originally part of the historic county of Dumfriesshire. It is located close to the A74(M) on the border of Scotland and England and near the mouth of the River Esk.
The River Esk, also known as the Border Esk, is a river that rises in the Scottish region of Dumfries and Galloway before crossing the border to the English county of Cumbria and flowing into the Solway Firth.
Clan Armstrong is a Scottish clan of the Scottish Borders.
The Debatable Lands, also known as debatable ground, batable ground or threip lands, lay between Scotland and England. It was formerly in question as to which it belonged to when they were distinct kingdoms. For most of its existence, the area was a lawless zone controlled by clans of "border reivers" which terrorized the surrounding areas. It became the last part of Britain to be brought under state control in the middle of the 16th century by James V of Scotland, and was eventually divided between Scotland and England.
Johnnie Armstrong or Johnie Armstrong was a Scottish raider and folk-hero. Johnnie Armstrong of Gilnockie was captured and hanged by King James V in July 1530. He is related to the Baird family. Child ballad number 169 tells of his life.
Gilnockie Tower is a 17th-century tower house, located at the hamlet of Hollows, 2.2 km north of Canonbie, in Dumfriesshire, south-west Scotland. The tower is situated on the west bank of the River Esk. It was originally known as Hollows Tower.
Clan Johnstone is a Border Reiver Scottish clan.
The River Sark or Sark Water is a river best known for forming part of the western border between Scotland and England. Most of its short length, however, is entirely in Scotland. It flows into the estuary of the River Esk just to the south of Gretna.
The Lochmaben Stone is a megalith standing in a field, nearly a mile west of the Sark mouth on the Solway Firth, three hundred yards or so above high water mark on the farm of Old Graitney in Dumfries & Galloway in Scotland. The area is also known as Stormont. Together with a smaller stone it is all that is left of a stone circle dating back to around 3000BC.
The Anglo-Scottish border is an internal border of the United Kingdom separating Scotland and England which runs for 96 miles (154 km) between Marshall Meadows Bay on the east coast and the Solway Firth in the west.
The Scots' Dike or dyke is a three and a half mile / 5.25 km long linear earthwork, constructed by the English and the Scots in 1552 to mark the division of the Debatable Lands and thereby settle the exact boundary between the Kingdom of Scotland and the Kingdom of England. The kingdoms were conjoined in 1707.
The Battle of Sark, or the Battle of Lochmaben Stone, was fought between Scotland and England on 23 October 1448 or 1449. It was a decisive Scottish victory, the first since the Battle of Otterburn in 1388, and the last pitched battle to be fought between the two kingdoms during the Medieval period.
Canonbie railway station served the village of Canonbie, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland from 1862 to 1967 on the Border Union Railway.
Castleton is a civil parish in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland, in the former Roxburghshire, in the extreme south of the Borders area. It is bounded by Northumberland (England), Dumfries and Galloway, and the parishes of Hobkirk, Southdean and Teviothead. The village of Castleton was commenced in 1793. It was built as a result of the land clearances in the 1790s when people were forced to move from Old Castleton village. While the parish retained the name Castleton, the village later became identified as New Castleton or Newcastleton. The parish is also known by its older name Liddesdale
Riddings Junction Viaduct is a disused cross-border railway bridge over Liddel Water between Kirkandrews, in Cumbria, north-western England, and Canonbie in Dumfries and Galloway, south-western Scotland. It is a listed building in both countries; the Scottish section is category A listed, and the English section is Grade II*.