Showing posts with label Durisdeer. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Durisdeer. Show all posts

Tuesday 30 August 2022

Skulferatu #80 - Durisdeer Roman Fortlet, Durisdeer, Dumfries and Galloway


On a misty morning I took a walk from Durisdeer up a path through the nearby hills.  It was a nice, dry path with a lovely and well-kept dry stane dyke running alongside it and a signpost that told me I was two miles away from a place I’d never heard of.  Let’s walk there I thought.  It’s probably some pretty village...maybe I can get a nice cup of tea there.  So, off I wandered up a path that gradually got steeper.  Not massively steep, but steep enough for a fat, sweaty old man like myself.   I huffed and I puffed my way up, the humidity of the day taking its toll on me and the armpits of my shirt.  Eventually I arrived at my destination, finding nothing there other than an old hut collapsing into the marshy ground, some stone wall sheep pens, and a sign by a path across the wall, pointing back down the hill.  This signpost informed me that I was a mile away from a Roman Fortlet.  Well, as it was on my way back down the hill, I thought I’d follow the path and go there to have a look.

 

A photo showing a mound on the ground with hills in the distance, all looking very green.  The mound is where Durisdeer Roman Fortlet once stood.  Photograph by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Durisdeer Roman Fortlet

 

A photo showing the green mound of the remains of Durisdeer Roman Fortlet with a hill in the background and a dry stane dyke wall running along in the lower foreground.  Photograph by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Durisdeer Roman Fortlet

 

I started off and could very soon see the mound that the Fortlet had once stood on.  Now you would think that when something is in your view that you couldn’t really get lost walking to it, well you haven’t met me then.  I am the man who on his first trip to Paris, went looking for the Eiffel Tower and managed to walk past it three times.  I was too busy looking down at the map I was using to notice that I was right across from it.  Then I looked up and had one of those ‘oh’ moments.  So, as I walked down to the Fortlet, I somehow managed to veer from the path leading there and ended up walking down a dry stream bed that led me into a marshy, boggy patch of ground.  I could only find my way out of this by following the sheep trails.  Luckily, they seem to prefer the dryer ground.  Unluckily, they never take the direct route anywhere.  Anyway, after walking this way and that way, I eventually got back on to the path again and made my way to the Fortlet.

 

A photo of a view down the valley leading to the Roman Fortlet at Durisdeer.  The Fortlet can be seen in the distance.  Photograph by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
View down the valley to the Roman Fortlet

 

A photo showing a grassy mound - this being where Durisdeer Roman Fortlet once stood.  Photograph by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
The Roman Fortlet

 

The Fortlet is described as one of the best preserved in Britain, though to be honest all I could really see was a mound with some slightly different coloured vegetation on it.  But still, it was weird to think that a couple of thousand years ago this was one of the outposts of the Roman Empire.  Hundreds of pairs of sandalled feet must have marched up here, probably following the road rather than wandering off into the marsh and bog like me.  On this damp mound there had been buildings where people had worked, eaten, slept and kept a careful eye out on what the locals were getting up to.  Now, just a few sheep stood around munching on the vegetation, and keeping a wary eye on me.

 

A photo showing tall wild grasses on top of the mound where the Roman Fortlet once stood and a view down the valley below.  Photograph by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
On the site of the Roman Fortlet

 

A photo showing the view down through the hills from the Roman Fortlet.  Photograph by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
View down through the hills from the Roman Fortlet

 

A photo showing a couple of wary looking sheep standing on the side of the mound of the Roman Fortlet at Durisdeer.  Photograph by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Wary sheep keep watch at the Roman Fortlet

 

The Fortlet is believed to have been built during the Antonine period, sometime around AD 142.  It was one of many built along the road that once ran along past it.  The Fortlet would have housed a detachment of soldiers from a larger fort, who were stationed in these smaller forts where they could more easily deal with, and control, the local population.

 

The Fortlet was built on a mound and surrounded by a protective ditch. Excavations carried out on the mound revealed that there had been some wooden buildings there.  These are believed to have been the barracks for the soldiers based at the Fortlet.

 

Diagram showing a plan of the Roman Fortlet at Durisdeer - taken from 'The Roman Occupation Of South Western Scotland' which was published in 1937.
Plan of Roman Fortlet near Durisdeer

 

Watched by some sheep, I left the Skulferatu that had accompanied me on my walk in amongst the small marsh plants growing where the Fortlet would have once stood.

 

A photo showing a small ceramic skull (Skulferatu 80) being held up with the mound of the Roman Fortlet at Durisdeer in the background.  A mysterious figure is standing on top of the mound.  Photograph by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Skulferatu #80

 

A photo showing a small ceramic skull (Skulferatu 80) lying in amongst the small marsh plants growing on top of the mound on which Durisdeer Roman Fortlet once stood.  Photograph by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Skulferatu #80 in amongst the marsh plants

 

A really useful map showing the location of Skulferatu #80
Map showing location of Skulferatu #80

 

The coordinates for the location of the Skulferatu are –

 

Latitude 55.325558

Longitude -3.731063


what3words - bedrooms.bibs.splice

 

I used the following sources for information on Durisdeer Roman Fortlet -

 

The Roman Occupation Of South Western Scotland

By John Clarke, J.M. Davidson, Anne S. Robertson & J.K. St Joseph

1937

 

Canmore

Canmore - Durisdeer Roman Fortlet

 

Article and photographs are copyright of © Kevin Nosferatu, unless otherwise specified.

Tuesday 16 August 2022

Skulferatu #79 - Durisdeer Parish Church, Durisdeer, Dumfries and Galloway

 

At the foot of the Lowther Hills there sits the tiny hamlet of Durisdeer.  In the centre of this little community, of no more than a dozen houses, there sits a rather grand Parish Church.  The unexpected grandeur of the church is due to the patronage of the Dukes of Queensberry, who resided a few miles away at Drumlanrig Castle.  The mausoleum for the Queensberry family is housed within a building attached to the church.  Since Medieval times a church has stood on the site, with the present building being the result of a major rebuild that was carried out in 1699.   Other major works were then carried out on the building in the 18th and the mid-19th century.

 

A photo of a square looking building with a clock tower above it, this being Durisdeer Parish Church.  Photograph taken by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Durisdeer Parish Church

 

A photo taken from a different angle showing Durisdeer Parish Church and the graveyard around it.  Photograph taken by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Durisdeer Parish Church

 

A photo looking onto the back of Durisdeer Parish Church and the mausoleum building for the Queensberry family.  Photograph taken by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Durisdeer Parish Church

 

Today, after walking along the winding country roads that take you to Durisdeer, I made my way through from the main gate of the church grounds and into the churchyard. Amongst the many old, weathered and moss covered gravestones there, my attention was drawn to one that stood by the walls of the church.  This being the ‘Martyrs Grave’, a table top gravestone dedicated to Daniel McMichael, a Covenanter who was killed in 1685.

 

A photo of a grey coloured gravestone standing over a lower stone - on the stone are carved the words The Martyrs Grave.  Photograph taken by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
The Martyrs Grave

 

A photo of the red coloured gravestone for the 'martyr' Daniel McMichael.  Photograph taken by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
The Martyrs Grave

 

The Covenanters were followers of the Presbyterian Church of Scotland who rejected the idea of the King being the spiritual head of the church.  As far as they were concerned only Jesus Christ could be the head of their church. The name Covenanter comes from the fact that in 1638 many of those who opposed interference in their church by the King signed a document to this effect called the National Covenant.  The Stuart kings, Charles I and later, after the Restoration, Charles II, were not happy about their roles and their ‘divine rights’ being called into question and saw the Covenanters as rebels.  This led to many hundreds of the Covenanters being imprisoned, transported, or executed.  Platoons of Dragoons scoured the land looking for these rebels and when they found any, they often summarily executed them.

 

Daniel McMichael was one of two brothers who had both become Covenanters.  His brother James had been killed the year before, in 1684, whilst fighting against a group of soldiers who had come to arrest him and his friends.  In January 1685, Daniel had come down with a severe fever and illness.  However, his friends would still come and meet with him at his house so they could worship together.  At one of these meetings a lookout spotted a platoon of Dragoons heading their way and, realising that they had been betrayed and the location of their meeting place given to the authorities, he ran back to inform his friends.  The group quickly packed up and left, wrapping Daniel in the blankets from his bed and taking him with them.  They then took shelter in a nearby cave, but soon learnt that the Dragoons had been informed about the cave, so had to flee again.  However, as they were burdened with carrying Daniel, they found the going slow and Daniel, who realised that the authorities would soon catch up with them, told then to leave him behind and flee.  The friends reluctantly did this and left Daniel in another cave in the hope that he would not be found.  Unfortunately for Daniel, the hounds the Dragoons had with them soon sniffed him out and he was taken prisoner.  He was then dragged down to Durisdeer where he was questioned, then asked to take an oath of allegiance to the King and recognise him as the head of the church.  Daniel refused to do this.  The next day he was taken to be marched to another village around 12 miles away, but it was found that he was too ill to walk that far.  So, a few miles from Durisdeer, at the entrance to the nearby Dalveen Pass he was told to prepare to die.  He was then given a few minutes to pray while a party of soldiers were brought together to carry out the execution.  At a given signal the soldiers then shot him.  His body was later taken down to Durisdeer and buried in the churchyard.

 

The epitaph on his gravestone reads –

 

As Daniel cast was into lions’ den,

For praying unto God, and not to men;

Thus lions cruelly devoured me,

For bearing unto truth my testimony.

I rest in peace until Jesus rend the cloud,

And judge ‘twixt me and those who shed my blood.

 

On walking round the graveyard and going into the main part of the church I found there was some major refurbishment work going on.  I had a nose around anyway and on making my way upstairs I found two young crows who had got trapped in the building and were desperately crashing against the windows in their effort to get out.  Taking off my jacket I managed to catch them one at time, wrap them in it and get them out.  They screamed at me all the way out, but happily flew off once outside.  My good deed done for the day I cleaned the cobwebs, feathers, and bird shit from my jacket, and then wandered around the outside of the building.  There I found an entrance at the back of the church and into the mausoleum. 

 

Inside the mausoleum are the Queensberry Marbles.  These ornate, and very white sculptures, commemorate James Douglas, the second Duke of Queensberry and his wife, Lady Mary Boyle.  The Duke was known as the ‘Union Duke’ for his role in securing the union of the parliaments of England and Scotland in 1707.  This role made him very rich and led to him being given various honours and titles such as the Duke of Dover, Marquess of Beverley, and Earl of Ripon.  However, it also made him very unpopular with a large part of the population of Scotland, especially within Edinburgh, where he had a second home, Queensberry House.  There, the rumour soon spread that while the festivities, riots or whatever had been going on to celebrate the union, the Duke’s son James, who was a little bit strange, had killed, cooked, and eaten a young servant boy.  I’m not sure if the story has any truth to it, or if it was meant as a representation of the smaller country of Scotland being consumed by its larger neighbour, but it’s a story that has stuck and is still told today on many of the ghost tours that stroll around Edinburgh.

 

A photo inside the mausoleum at Durisdeer Church of the Queensberry Marbles - photo is looking through some white ornate pillars to a tomb with two old fashioned figures carved in white, resting on it.  Photograph taken by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
The Queensberry Marbles

 

A detail of the Queensberry Marbles showing a naked cherub crying with its foot resting on a human skull. Both are carved in white marble.  Photograph taken by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
A detail of the Queensberry Marbles

 

On leaving the mausoleum I made my way round to the old gravestones at the back of the church. 

 

A photo of an ornate gravestone in Durisdeer Churchyard with a figure carved on it.  Photograph taken by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Gravestone in Durisdeer Churchyard

 

A photo of an old and crusty looking gravestone in Durisdeer Churchyard with a skull and crossbones carved on it.  Photograph taken by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Gravestone in Durisdeer Churchyard


A photo of various gravestones leading up to the back of the church at Durisdeer Churchyard.  Photograph taken by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Durisdeer churchyard and Parish Church

 

A photo of moss covered gravestones in Durisdeer Churchyard.  Photograph taken by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Gravestone in Durisdeer Churchyard

 

I then found a rather marvellous moss and lichen covered stone.  It was for a David Scott, but other than his name and the fact that his body lay there I could make out nothing more of the inscription.  But what does that matter, when the carved skulls on the sides of his stone have become quite wonderful in the way they have aged.

 

A photo of various gravestones in Durisdeer Churchyard with a larger stone in the foreground which is that of David Scott.  Photograph taken by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Gravestones in Durisdeer Churchyard, with David Scott’s stone in foreground

 

A photo of a sinister looking skull carved on the side of a graveyard.  It is lichen covered and the stone rises up from its head like an old fashioned hat.  Photograph taken by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Carved skull on side of David Scott’s gravestone

 

A close up photo of the lichen covered skull.  Photograph taken by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Carved skull on side of David Scott’s gravestone

 

A photo of a moss covered carved skull on the side of a gravestone.  It looks vaguely comical in the way the moss has given it a soft, fluffy look.  Photograph taken by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Carved skull on side of David Scott’s gravestone

 

A close up of the moss covered skull.  Photograph taken by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Carved skull on side of David Scott’s gravestone

 

Before leaving the graveyard, I gave in to temptation, and left the Skulferatu that had accompanied me on my walk in the mossy nasal cavity of one of the carved skulls.

 

A photo of a small ceramic skull (Skulferatu 79) being held up in front of Durisdeer Parish Church and various gravestones.  Photograph taken by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Skulferatu #79

 

A photo of a small ceramic skull (Skulferatu 79) in the nasal cavity of the moss covered carved skull on David Scott's gravestone at Durisdeer.  Photograph taken by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Skulferatu #79 in the mossy skull on a gravestone

 

A close up photo of a small ceramic skull (Skulferatu 79) in the nasal cavity of the moss covered carved skull on David Scott's gravestone at Durisdeer.  Photograph taken by Kevin Nosferatu for the Skulferatu Project.
Skulferatu #79 in the mossy skull on a gravestone

 

TomTom Map showing location of Skulferatu #79 in Durisdeer Parish Church graveyard.
Map showing location of Skulferatu #79

 

The coordinates for the location of the Skulferatu are –

 

Latitude 55.315532

Longitude -3.743814

 

I used the following sources for information on Durisdeer Church and the churchyard -

 

Traditions of the Covenanters

Or Gleanings among the Mountains

By Rev. Robert Simpson

1870

 

The Martyr Graves of Scotland

By J. H. Thomson

1903

 

Monuments and Monumental Inscriptions in Scotland

by Charles Rogers

1871

 

Canmore

https://canmore.org.uk/site/46336/durisdeer-parish-church

 

Wikipedia

James Douglas, 3rd Marquess of Queensberry - Wikipedia