Annals of the Parish of Lesmahagow (Paperback)

Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: CHAPTER II. HISTOEY. CHIEFLY ECCLESIASTICAL. The history of Lesmahagow commences with the grant by David I., the "Sair Sanct for the Crown," who, A.d. 1144, for the soul's weal of himself, his ancestors, and successors, and by the advice and counsel of John, Bishop of Glasgow, gave to the Abbey of Kelso, and to the abbot and monks serving the Lord there, the church of Lesmahag, and the whole land of Lesmahagu according to their proper boundaries, with all manner of lawful pertinents in wood and open, moors and marshes, pastures and waters, with mills and other bmdings, with mansions to be built on their own land as they pleased, in free and perpetual alms, to be held for prayers for the weal of souls; the church to be free of all Episcopal dues and exactions, that the abbot and monks of Kelso might ordain a prior and as many monks of their own order and dress as the place would honestly support, and for the reception of poor travellers, also that it should be a place of refuge or sanctuary for those who in danger of life or limb should flee to the said cell, or come within the four crosses standing around it; of reverence to God and St. Machutus, the rung granted his firm peace. At the King's desire, and with the consent of the Bishop of Glasgow, a prior and monks of the order and habit of the Tyrouenscs were there planted. The Monastery of Kelso had been founded by the same monarch, A.d. 1128, and the monks who were of the reformed order of Benedictines, or followers of St. Benent, first established at Tyron (Tyroniuni), in the diocese of Chartres in France, were hence called Tyronenscs. Their founder was the eldest St. Bernard, who is to be distinguished from the great St. Bernard, so noted as a theological writer. The Tyronensian order of monks had six monasteries i...