Devil's Beef Tub
Encyclopedia
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
town of Moffat
Moffat
Moffat is a former burgh and spa town in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, lying on the River Annan, with a population of around 2,500. The most notable building in the town is the Moffat House Hotel, designed by John Adam...
. The 500-foot (150 m) deep hollow is formed by four hills, Great Hill (1527 ft, 465 m), Peat Knowe, Annanhead Hill, and Ericstane Hill. It is one of the two main sources of the River Annan
River Annan
The River Annan is a river in southwest Scotland. It rises at the foot of Hart Fell, five miles north of Moffat. A second fork rises on Annanhead Hill and flows through the Devil's Beef Tub before joining at the Hart Fell fork north of Moffat.From there it flows past the town of Lockerbie, and...
; the other is from the neighbouring Hart Fell to the east. Its unusual name derives from its use by the Border Reivers, namely the Johnstone clan, whose enemies referred to them as "devils", to hide stolen cattle; it is also called Marquis of Annandale's Beef-stand after the Lord of Annandale
Earl of Annandale and Hartfell
The title Earl of Annandale and Hartfell was created in the Peerage of Scotland in 1661 for James Johnstone.In 1625, the title of Earl of Annandale had been created for John Murray, but it became extinct when his son James died without heirs....
, chief of the raiding "loons" (here meaning "lads", rather than "lunatic
Lunatic
"Lunatic" is a commonly used term for a person who is mentally ill, dangerous, foolish, unpredictable; a condition once called lunacy. The word derives from lunaticus meaning "of the moon" or "moonstruck".-Lunar hypothesis:...
s").
On August 12, 1685 fleeing covenanter
Covenanter
The Covenanters were a Scottish Presbyterian movement that played an important part in the history of Scotland, and to a lesser extent in that of England and Ireland, during the 17th century...
John Hunter attempted to escape pursuing dragoon
Dragoon
The word dragoon originally meant mounted infantry, who were trained in horse riding as well as infantry fighting skills. However, usage altered over time and during the 18th century, dragoons evolved into conventional light cavalry units and personnel...
s by running up the steep side of the Beef Tub. He failed, was shot dead on the spot, and is buried in Tweedsmuir kirkyard (churchyard). A monument to Hunter stands on the southwest rim of the Beef Tub.
In his novel Redgauntlet
Redgauntlet
Redgauntlet is a historical novel by Sir Walter Scott, set in Dumfries, Scotland in 1765, and described by Magnus Magnusson as "in a sense, the most autobiographical of Scott's novels." It describes the beginnings of a fictional third Jacobite Rebellion, and includes "Wandering Willie's Tale", a...
, novelist Walter Scott
Walter Scott
Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet was a Scottish historical novelist, playwright, and poet, popular throughout much of the world during his time....
said, "It looks as if four hills were laying their heads together, to shut out daylight from the dark hollow space between them. A damned deep, black, blackguard-looking abyss of a hole it is". Scott also describes the flight of a highlander fleeing the aftermath of the failure of the 1745 Jacobite uprising
Jacobite rising
The Jacobite Risings were a series of uprisings, rebellions, and wars in Great Britain and Ireland occurring between 1688 and 1746. The uprisings were aimed at returning James VII of Scotland and II of England, and later his descendants of the House of Stuart, to the throne after he was deposed by...
; the soldier rolls down the hill amid a hail of enemy gunfire, and escapes. The Beef Tub is also known as MacCleran's Loup after the tumbling highlander.
