Castle of the Month - Drumlanrig Tapestry Treasure!

Drumlanrig Castle & Country Estate sits in the heart of Dumfries and Galloway in South Western Scotland in breathtaking surroundings and dramatic views. The Castle is the home of Duke & Duchess of Buccleuch and Queensberry and was constructed in the late 17thC (1691) on the commission of William Douglas, the first Duke of Queensberry.

The magnificent castle is a leap and bound from those styles which had gone previously and is often considered to be the first of its kind built in the Renaissance manner.

Nick named the 'Pink Palace' due to the warm red tones of sandstone from which it is constructed, the castle is built upon the site of an ancient Douglas stronghold within the Nith Valley. The woodlands and grounds of the castle are truly wonderful and span a considerable 40 acres and are open all year round to the public who can enjoy the footpaths and cycle trails and also utilise the cycle hire at the old stables in the castle courtyard.

The famous Douglas family have been associated with Drumlanrig since the 14thC when William Douglas became the first Laird (Scottish Lord) of the Estate. The story behind the Duchy of Buccleuch and how the crowned heart and wings emblem came about is quite interesting.

This enigmatic emblem of the Buccleuch Duchy is littered about the castle and estate; carved into the wood, engraved into the stonework, wrought out of iron, textured into the expensive leather wallpaper and even sewn into the carpets throughout. It can hardly go unnoticed by the visitor to Drumlanrig.

This flying heart is the result of the romantic and dramatic events, which unfolded in the summer of 1329 and the subsequent legacy of a dying man's wish. The Drumlanrig website elucidates;

In the early summer of 1329, Robert Bruce, King of Scots, lay dying. He had been ill for some time and not even a pilgrimage in the spring to the shrine of Saint Ninian at Whithorn had eased his pain. Robert had long hoped to go on crusade against the enemies of Christ. He summoned the most powerful men of his kingdom and reminded them of his desire to go, like his grandfather, on crusade. He asked that, after his death, his heart should be taken from his body, embalmed and carried on crusade by some worthy knight. Among those at Bruce's bedside was James Douglas, his closest companion. It was to this remarkable man that the task of carrying out Bruce's wish was given.

Robert Bruce died at the age of fifty-four, on June 7 1329. His body was buried with suitable pomp in Dunfermline Abbey close by that of his wife, Elizabeth. His embalmed heart was ready to begin its journey. There was no prospect of going directly to the Holy Land, where there had been no Christian presence since the loss of Acre in 1291, but the infidel could be found in Spain, where Alfonso XI of Castile was about to campaign against the Moors. It is likely that Douglas saw Spain as the first stage of a long journey for he had, we know, allocated seven years to the fulfilment of his promise to Bruce. In the early spring of 1330, Douglas, with companions such as Robert and Walter Logan, William Keith, William Sinclair, and his brother John set sail from Scotland. In a silver and enamel casket on a chain about his neck Douglas carried Bruce's heart.

At length, he reached Seville where he was welcomed by Alfonso. Alfonso entrusted to Douglas the command of a division of his army in the campaign against the Moors of Granada. The armies met outside the town of Teba de Ardales. What followed brings us back to the flying heart of Drumlanrig Castle. Douglas, known for his cautious and sensible methods in battle, for once forgot his military principles. He allowed himself to be enticed into a reckless pursuit of a number of fleeing Moors. He had been deceived by a tactic perfected by the Moors and cut off with three of his companions from the main flight. Tradition has it that Douglas, realising that he could not escape, took Bruce's heart from the casket about his neck and flung it ahead of him into the midst of the Moors, crying: "Forward, brave heart, as ever thou were wont to do, and Douglas will follow thee or die". That same tradition tells us that when Douglas' body was found after the battle by his grieving men, it was ringed by dead Moors. Douglas had died in battle fighting with the fierce courage he had always displayed in the service of Robert Bruce.

Bruce's heart was brought back to Scotland by William Keith of Galston for burial in Melrose Abbey. Douglas' bones, too, were returned to Scotland by William Keith and placed in the Church of St Bride in Douglasdale. To this day, the motto of the Douglas family, to which the present Duke belongs, is 'Forward", an evocation of that cry by which the most celebrated bearer of the name guaranteed his lasting fame. The story, like Drumlanrig Castle itself, has a beauty of its own.

The name Buccleuch - 'buck-cleugh' meaning 'deer ravine' or 'The Buck in the Cleuch' - Cleuch meaning ravine, derives from, i am told by the tour guide (who has an indefatigable knowledge of every artefact in the palace and every history, real or hearsay known about the family or estate), a hunting incident. Out riding one day in the woodlands for the hunt, the King and his companions where suddenly a deer ran in front of the kings horse and nearly threw him to the ground where upon the deer, or Buck, was killed and the King supposedly rewarded a young man for his bravery with all the estates of what is now know as Buccleuch.

In The New Statistical Account of Scotland, Volume 1, this history and legend is described more formally:

In the lonely vale of Rankle-burn, surrounded by a dense mass of hills, are the two forlorn farm-steadings of the Buccleuchs. A deep ravine, near the road leading from them to Hawick, is pointed out as the place where the buck was slain, and which gave, according to tradition, their name and title to the family of Buccleuch. Let the limping lines of old Satchels carry us thither.

" Good Lancelot Scot, I think his book be true,
Old Rankle-burn is designed Buccleuch now ;
Yet in his book no balls read he,
It was buck's cleuch, he read to me ;
He told me the name, the place, the spot,
Came all by the hunting of the buck.
In Scotland no Buccleuch was then.
Before the buck in the cleuch was slain."

A small crook, in the steepest part of the cleuch, about half-way between the east-house and the mill-dam-ford, (which is a pool or ford on the Hawick road,) is pointed out as the place where the buck was taken; but, if Satchels be correct, it was not here the buck was slain, for he says,

" The very place where the buck was slain,
He built a stone house, and there he did remain."

Now the foundations of such a house, as we might conceive it should be, were dug up between three and four years ago, and upon the spot has been built, within these twelve months past, the farm-house of Easter Buccleuch. * In the buck's cleuch are the marks of the site of an old mill.

" For they built a mill on that same burn,
To grind dog's bran, tho' there grew no corn."

Fifty years ago, the walls of this mill were " knee high;" now they are only a rude outline, being a very little above the ground, overgrown with moss. About a Scotch mile above the farm-steading, and close on the Rankle-burn, is to be seen the lonely spot on which once stood the noted kirk or chapel of Buccleuch. There is still here to be seen the feeble outline of the old wall, with the kirk-yard dike ; and around the whole is the crumbling form of a stell ovfauld, for the sheep on the farm at certain seasons. The marks where houses seem to have stood, are still visible on the burn side.

* " There are no vestiges of any building at Buccleuch, except the site of a chapel, &c." says Sir Walter Scott in his notes to the Lay of the Last Minstrel; and all the writers we have seen giving a description of this ancient and famed spot, use nearly the same language. But we are inclined to think that the family of Buccleuch had once a baronial residence here." See in the Notes to the Lay of the Last Minstrel, an account of this spot written by the person who dug up the foundations

For art lovers Drumlanrig also holds a wonderful interest housing one of the finest private collections of artworks and furniture in the U.K. with paintings by Rembrandt, Holbein & Thomas Gainsborough all on display. It seems however, that even the artworks in this castle hold as much mystery and intrigue as the castle history itself.

The ninth Duke of Buccleuch, John Montagu Douglas Scott, had been deeply upset in 2003 by the theft of a rare, small but priceless painting by Leonardo da Vinci from his private collection; The Madonna of the Yarnwinder.

The painting, dated to 1501, was estimated by Christy's at a conservative price of between 15-20m. It seems that somehow, during a tour of the castle, the painting was stolen from the wall by two men posing as tourists.

The painting then turned up associated with a Lancashire lawyer, named Marshall Ronald who tried to extort a reward from the late Duke for the safe return of the painting to Drumlanrig. The Guardian reports;

Marshall Ronald admitted in court that he committed the "cardinal sin" of taking his clients' money because he "passionately" wanted to return the masterpiece by Leonardo da Vinci to its rightful owners, the Duke of Buccleuch and his family.

Ronald, a lawyer from Skelmersdale in Lancashire, is one of five men, including two other solicitors, accused of plotting to extort money from the duke with a threat that the masterpiece, Madonna of the Yarnwinder, would be destroyed if he failed to comply.

and the trial still continues though the original has been safely found!

The Castle truly has some remarkable objects and an incredible history linked with almost each and every one! For me however, the most intriguing and playful artefact of the estate has to be the tapestry in the magnificent entrance hall. From glimpses of anecdotal verbal histories gleamed from my tour guide (well worth taking!) and from communications with Sandra Howet, Private Secretary at Buccleuch estate, the tapestry, dated between late 16thC and early 17thC, is;

believed to have been worked by Mary, Queen of Scots, assisted by her ladies-in-waiting, while imprisoned

Although the current inventory of the work states that it is;

A rectangular needlework panel worked in colours with a Queen, a nobleman, attendants and soldiers in an extensive landscape, and with animals, buildings and trees, late 6th/early 17th Century 22in. x 73in., in later carved oak frame with the Scottish Royal Arms to the cresting and the thistle to the base, circa 1830

A detailed and intricate piece of tapestry, i found it genuinely delightful to look at, in those diluted tones of pale green and blue. But on closer inspection, when admiring the main figure of the tapestry, made as an obvious representation of Queen Elizabeth I, one can't help but smile as you notice the beard lacing the Queens chin, in a bold and conspicuous fashion. This Queen with full facial hair is accompanied by male followers, whilst an opposing Queen is mirrored on the other side, surrounded by ladies.

This i feel, is clear representation of the two battling Queens, one with all the appearance of a true Queen, a woman who seems to know her place in court perhaps, and in society. Whilst the other Queen is in the disguise of a regal leader; one who assumes to do a mans job? Or in the Catholics eyes, one who has taken the throne without the consent of God.

To me it speaks volumes of Mary, Queen of Scots feelings regarding Elizabeth I and her provenance from the man who set out to destroy the Catholic Church in England. The beard being an allusion to the heritage of Elizabeth I and her role in society. If this tapestry is not by Mary, Queen of Scots however, it speaks of much more dangerous attitudes towards the Queen from the public in general.

Drumlanrig was a most fascinating and enjoyable visit as an example of late Renaissance in the U.K. It has a lovely tea rooms, several working artisans shops in the courtyard, full cycle & walking facilities in the grounds and of course, a wonderfully eclectic array of historisocities within its walls. Well worth the trip!

For more information on how to visit Drumlanrig Castle & Estates, and for details on news, events and histories linked to the Drumlanrig Estate and the Douglas family, please see the links below:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/artanddesign/2010/mar/03/leonardo-duke-buccleuch-trial

http://www.guardian.co.uk/artanddesign/2010/mar/29/leonardo-plot-marshall-ronald-evidence?INTCMP=SRCH

http://www.guardian.co.uk/artanddesign/2010/mar/02/leonardo-da-vinci-extortion-plot?INTCMP=SRCH

http://www.drumlanrig.com/default.asp?PageId=47

http://everything2.com/title/Duke+of+Buccleuch

http://books.google.com/books?id=Do_VAAAAMAAJ&pg=RA2-PA66&lpg=RA2-PA66&dq=The+Buck+in+the+Cleuch&source=bl&ots=j_7X2gu6Nr&sig=aMoUOP7XpEU6UtT980C-gA1fRE4&hl=en&ei=5RYuTcChNImFhQf3gcWyCQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=5&sqi=2&ved=0CC0Q6AEwBA#v=onepage&q=The%20Buck%20in%20the%20Cleuch&f=false

http://www.lairweb.org.nz/leonardo/yarnwinder.html