Holydean
Encyclopedia
Holydean is a Scottish feudal Crown Barony and Lordship which lies in Roxburghshire
in the neighbourhood of Kelso, in the Borderlands of Scotland
, along the River Tweed
. This area along the Tweed is home to the Scottish border clans, including the Armstrongs, Elliots, Johnstones, Kers, Moffats, and many others.
The first Lord Holydean was created by King David I of Scotland when he erected the Barony and Lordship of Holydean in 1128. The Abbot of Kelso
from Kelso Abbey
was the local lord, who ruled one of the most powerful ecclesiastical burghs in all of Scotland. This burgh was rivaled only by St. Andrews. David I brought the monks from Tiron in Picardy, whom he transferred from Selkirk. The monks were part of the peerage
of Scotland
until 1545 when the Earl of Hertford reduced the abbey to ruins. The next Lord of Holydean was made in 1602 when the Barony and Lordship of Holydean was assigned to Sir Rober Ker of Cessford, who was made 1st Earl of Roxburghe. One of his heirs became the Duke of Roxburghe
, and eventually the Lordship and Barony of Holydean were assigned in the traditional Scottish manner to Clan Moffat
, another Scottish border clan. The present holder of the Scottish feudal titles Baron and Lord of Holydean is Taylor Forrester Moffitt. This would make Moffitt the 15th Baron and Lord of Holydean since secularization in 1602. After the abolition of feudal tenure, feudal nobles no longer hold any automatic political authority, but are entitled to keep the dignity of their titles. Holydean is a Feudal Lordship
.
Roxburghshire
Roxburghshire or the County of Roxburgh is a registration county of Scotland. It borders Dumfries to the west, Selkirk to the north-west, and Berwick to the north. To the south-east it borders Cumbria and Northumberland in England.It was named after the Royal Burgh of Roxburgh...
in the neighbourhood of Kelso, in the Borderlands of Scotland
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...
, along the River Tweed
River Tweed
The River Tweed, or Tweed Water, is long and flows primarily through the Borders region of Great Britain. It rises on Tweedsmuir at Tweed's Well near where the Clyde, draining northwest, and the Annan draining south also rise. "Annan, Tweed and Clyde rise oot the ae hillside" as the Border saying...
. This area along the Tweed is home to the Scottish border clans, including the Armstrongs, Elliots, Johnstones, Kers, Moffats, and many others.
The first Lord Holydean was created by King David I of Scotland when he erected the Barony and Lordship of Holydean in 1128. The Abbot of Kelso
Abbot of Kelso
The Abbot of Kelso was the head of the Tironensian monastic community at Kelso Abbey in the Scottish Borders. Originally, he was the Abbot of Selkirk, because from its foundation in 1113 by David, Prince of the Cumbrians until it was moved to Kelso by David and John, bishop of Glasgow in 1127...
from Kelso Abbey
Kelso Abbey
Kelso Abbey is what remains of a Scottish abbey founded in the 12th century by a community of Tironensian monks first brought to Scotland in the reign of Alexander I. It occupies ground overlooking the confluence of the Tweed and Teviot waters, the site of what was once the Royal Burgh of Roxburgh...
was the local lord, who ruled one of the most powerful ecclesiastical burghs in all of Scotland. This burgh was rivaled only by St. Andrews. David I brought the monks from Tiron in Picardy, whom he transferred from Selkirk. The monks were part of the peerage
Peerage
The Peerage is a legal system of largely hereditary titles in the United Kingdom, which constitute the ranks of British nobility and is part of the British honours system...
of Scotland
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...
until 1545 when the Earl of Hertford reduced the abbey to ruins. The next Lord of Holydean was made in 1602 when the Barony and Lordship of Holydean was assigned to Sir Rober Ker of Cessford, who was made 1st Earl of Roxburghe. One of his heirs became the Duke of Roxburghe
Duke of Roxburghe
The Duke of Roxburghe is a title in the peerage of Scotland created in 1707 along with the titles Marquess of Bowmont and Cessford, Earl of Kelso and Viscount Broxmouth. John Ker, 5th Earl of Roxburghe became the first holder of these titles...
, and eventually the Lordship and Barony of Holydean were assigned in the traditional Scottish manner to Clan Moffat
Clan Moffat
-Origins of the clan:The Moffats are an ancient Borders family who were influential and powerful as far back as the time of Sir William Wallace. The ancestor of the Moffats most likely gave their name to the town of Moffat in Dumfriesshire. The origin of the name itself is thought to be Norse...
, another Scottish border clan. The present holder of the Scottish feudal titles Baron and Lord of Holydean is Taylor Forrester Moffitt. This would make Moffitt the 15th Baron and Lord of Holydean since secularization in 1602. After the abolition of feudal tenure, feudal nobles no longer hold any automatic political authority, but are entitled to keep the dignity of their titles. Holydean is a Feudal Lordship
Feudal Lordship
A feudal lordship is a Scottish feudal title that is held in baroneum, which Latin term means that its holder, who is called a feudal lord, is also always a feudal baron. A feudal lordship is an ancient title of nobility in Scotland...
.