Newbattle

Newbattle

Newbattle (from Neubotle, i.e. new dwelling) is a village in Midlothian, in the ancient Roman Catholic Diocese of St. Andrews, about seven miles from Edinburgh. There was an abbey there founded about 1140, being the second of the six Cistercian Monasteries established by King David I of Scotland.

Contents

Newbattle Abbey

Gates of Newbattle Abbey

Newbattle Abbey was founded in 1140 by monks from Melrose Abbey. It lies near the village of Newbattle in Midlothian, Scotland. The patron was King David I of Scotland (with his son Henry). Its church was dedicated in 1234. The abbey was burned by English royal forces in 1385 and once more in 1544. It became a secular lordship for the last commendator, Mark Kerr (Ker) in 1587.

Newbattle Church

After the Reformation most of the remains of the Abbey church were removed and used to build a new church, the proverbial "stone's throw away", so still within the Abbey grounds. What resulted was a new independent Newbattle Church that would see traumatic times, as Scotland, in particular, entered the Period of Unsettlement.

Little is known about the Newbattle church built after the Reformation. It was situated somewhere on the other side of Newbattle Road from the present church. While it has always been Protestant, the form of church government has been at different times Presbyterian and Episcopalian. The first permanent minister was Adam Foulis who was translated from Heriot to Newbattle in 1570. He was followed by Robert Wilson in 1573, John Heries in 1583, Alex Ambrose in 1608 and then John Aird in 1615. During John Aird's incumbency, there were between 800 and 900 Communicants within the Parish. The Newbattle Communion Sacrament became such an occasion that it was held in the Churchyard Cemetery. Here a tent was erected and the Welsh Family Table monument was used to dispense not only the Communion but also refreshments after the Service.

Such was the popularity of the Newbattle Communion Sacrament that adjoining Parishes closed on such Sundays and the occasion became known as a Holy Fair. The principle was adopted by local Parishes, resulting in such events as the Dalkeith Fair. The Newbattle Fair became known as the Newbattle Sacrament, a Day of Freedom. The Rev Aird did many things for the Parish, such as implementing Knox's ideal for a Settled School in every Parish, the first Parish School being built in the area close to the site of the present church.

Robert Leighton [1], who was minister from 1641 to 1653 before becoming Principal of Edinburgh University, is still remembered today as a scholar and preacher.

The current building

In 1720, the building was in such a poor state of repair that the minister, the Rev. Charles Campbell, thought it would possibly fall down. In September 1725, the Marquess of Lothian presented plans for a new church to Dalkeith Presbytery and the heritors (landowners). Edinburgh architect Mr Alexander McGill had drawn up these plans, and, although the project was approved, work did not commence on the new building, and on a clean site, until 1727. The design included making use of material from the old Church, where suitable, in the construction. In fact a considerable amount of stonework was transferred, to such an extent that all that remained of the old Church was the Crypt, which remained as the Burial Chamber for the Kerr/Lothian family. The completion year is generally accepted as 1729.

At the beginning of the 18th century, the floor of a church consisted of earth, and, while the laird would erect a loft or seat, the majority of the congregation sat on stools placed upon the earthen floor. Although, in 1739, lofts were erected in the north and south aisles of Newbattle church, it was not until 1750 that seats were purchased and the passage-ways paved.

The South wall of the Church has three traditional style stained glass windows. This wall also supported a Gallery and the Organ until 1937, when the Gallery was removed and the Organ re-sited. The large central circular window, depicting the Creation, was designed by Catherine Hamilton, the mother of the Rev J Arnott Hamilton, a minister at Newbattle from 1922 to 1952. The window to the left of the circular window, is a memorial to those of the Parish who served during World War II. The third window commemorates that Newbattle was the Garrison Church for the Forces personnel, in particular the Royal Army Medical Corps, stationed at the Abbey and the adjoining Camp. An unofficial record of those who gave of their service during the period of the Second World war and beyond, remain written on the walls just inside the door beside the organ. Some stationed here, some recovering from wounds and/or traumas, some from local voluntary organisations.

Newbattle Parish Church (post 2003)

Newbattle Parish Church remains a parish church of the Church of Scotland. In 2003, the boundary of Newbattle Parish (covering Newbattle, Mayfield and Easthouses) was extended to include the village of Newtongrange - effectively restoring the original parish borders of several centuries ago. The 18th century Newbattle church building, together with those within the communities of Newtongrange, Mayfield and Easthouses, are maintained as centres of worship by the post-2003 Newbattle Parish Church of Scotland. The charge is currently vacant, after the former minister (the Reverend Monika R W Redman) left in 2010 to move to New Zealand.

See also

External links

Coordinates: 55°52′N 3°04′W / 55.867°N 3.067°W / 55.867; -3.067

References


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем решить контрольную работу

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Newbattle — • Located near Edinburgh, the second of the six Cistercian monasteries established by St. David, King of Scotland Catholic Encyclopedia. Kevin Knight. 2006. Newbattle     Newbattle      …   Catholic encyclopedia

  • Newbattle —    NEWBATTLE, a parish, in the county of Edinburgh; containing, with the villages of Easthouses and Newton Grange, 2033 inhabitants, of whom 159 are in the village of Newbattle, 1 mile (S.) from Dalkeith. This place, which forms a kind of suburb… …   A Topographical dictionary of Scotland

  • Newbattle — (spr. njūbättl), Gemeinde in Edinburghshire (Schottland), am Esk, 1,6 km südlich von Dalkeith, mit (1891) 2843 Einw. Dabei N. Abbey, Sitz des Marquis von Lothian, ehemalige Cistercienserabtei, 1140 gegründet …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

  • Newbattle Community High School — Challenge Location Dalkeith, Midlothian …   Wikipedia

  • Newbattle Abbey — Monastery information Order Cistercian Established 1140 Dis …   Wikipedia

  • Newbattle Abbey — Zisterzienserabtei Newbattle Lage Vereinigtes Konigreich  Vereinigtes Königreich Schottland …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Abbot of Newbattle — The Abbot of Newbattle (later, Commendator of Newbattle) was the head of the Cistercian monastic community of Newbattle Abbey, Midlothian. It was founded by David I of Scotland in 1140. List of abbots* Radulf, 1140 1147x1150 * Amfrid, 1159 1179 * …   Wikipedia

  • Robert Leighton (prelate) — this article is about the 17th century scholar and preacher Robert Leighton. For other people with the same name, see Robert Leighton Infobox Person name = Robert Leighton image size = 200px caption = A. W. Warren s 1825 depiction of the… …   Wikipedia

  • Marquess of Lothian — For early Earldom of Lothian, see Earl of Dunbar Arms of the Marquess of Lothian Marquess of Lothian is a title in the Peerage of Scotland. It was created in 1701 for Robert Kerr, 4th Earl of Lothian. The Marquess of Lothian holds the subsidiary… …   Wikipedia

  • Ashleigh Gray — is a British musical theatre performer who has worked on UK tours and is currently appearing as the standby for the role of Elphaba in the London production of Wicked . Early lifeGray was born in Fife, Scotland and educated at Newbattle Community …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”