The Bishops of Medieval St Andrews
subject: Sources relating to the medieval bishops of St Andrews
source: Letter of Pope Boniface VIII to William Comyn (1298) [Stevenson, Documents Illustrative of the History of Scotland, ii, 280-1] Boniface … to the dear son William Comyn our chaplain, provost of the church of Saint Mary in the city of St Andrews Your petition shown to us stated that recently the church of St Andrews being vacant by reason of the death of William bishop of St Andrews and a day being set for the election of the next bishop, you, asserting that it was owed to you by reason of your provostship of the church of Saint Mary to have an interest in this election, sought to be admitted to the performance of this election. And because the chapter of the same church of St Andrews, in contempt of you, proceeding to the same election, elected our dear son master William de Lamberton chancellor of the church of Glasgow to the bishopric, you, appealing because of this to the apostolic see, finally after many disputes here and there at the said see, you, led greatly by our approach, agreed to renounce your appeal freely, so that the said church of St Andrews may not be subjected to misfortune for a long time by reason of its bereavement, saving the right which belongs to you and your successors as provosts of the same church of St Mary’s and to the church of St Mary’s itself, or which may then belong to them in the time of the election of a bishop of St Andrews to be conducted hereafter. Because, we, to whom the care of all churches belongs in general, must therefore aid the same church of St Andrews, but we do not oppose the church of St Mary’s, even being inclined to your claim we wish and by the tenor of these present letters decree that, by the renunciation of these rights (as above) we do not prejudge them, indeed on the contrary you and your aforesaid successors may freely pursue and possess this right in seeking or in possessing as if the same had not be renounced. Given at Rome, at Saint Peter’s, 7th May 1298 Letters of Pope Boniface VIII confirming the electi…

The Burgh Laws
subject: The Leges Burgorum, translated by Ann Matheson (2011)
source: i. Concerning the King’s rents in burgh tenures In the first, it must be considered what the rent of our lord the king in burgh tenure is. Each man gives the king for his burgh tenure that he defends, for each square perch of land (c 25 metres square) annually. ii. Concerning newly created burgesses Whoever is made a new burgess of our lord the king in the first shall swear loyalty to the king and to his baillies and to the community in which he has been made a burgess. iii. Concerning taking strangers(upland men) into custody in the burgh Any burgess can take into custody strangers (upland men) from beyond the market and outwith his home and without permission of the burgh grieve, but not if the market fairs are held in the burgh and not if he is in the king’s army or indeed engaged in the custody of the castle. iv. Poinding a burgess through another burgess A burgess cannot poind another burgess without the permission of the burgh grieve. v. Concerning things loaned by a burgess to a stranger (upland man) If a burgess has loaned to men from outside the burgh, if the debtor concedes the debt, he shall yield it and if he negates the debt he shall do the right thing (before the lawholders of the burgh) vi. Concerning complaints in the burgh Cases that arise in the burgh shall be held and determined except those that are under the king’s crown. And all quarrels that take place within the burgh must be ended within the burgh, except those that are under the king’s crown. Those that belong under the king’s crown must be registered and kept safe until the arrival of the Justice and then they shall be pleaded against and resolved in the burgess court before the Justice. vii. Concerning complaints outwith the burgh If a burgess is called concerning any complaint he shall not plead outside the burgh unless it is in default of court nor must he respond without a day or term specified unless he has earlier made a foolish response, with the exception of cases that fall to the …
publisher: The Burgh Laws can be found, along with other material, in: R. Renwick (ed.), The Ancient Laws and Customs of the Burghs of Scotland (Edinburgh : Scottish Burgh Records Society, 1868-1910). http://library.st-andrews.ac.uk/search/Y?search=ancient+laws+and+customs+of+the+burghs+of+scotland

The Church of St Andrews and the Scottish Parliament
subject: The following comprises records from RPS in which St Andrews is mentioned. It does not include records in which the bishop, archbishop or any other clerics based in St Andrews acted as witnesses, judges, notaries or ambassadors. It also does not include references to St Andrew himself.
description: ‘The Records of the Parliaments of Scotland to 1707 (RPS) is a fully searchable database containing the proceedings of the Scottish parliament from the first surviving act of 1235 to the union of 1707. The culmination of over ten years’ work by researchers from the Scottish Parliament Project based in the School of History at the University of St Andrews, the online edition seeks to make this key historical source freely available to all in a technologically advanced and user-friendly format. The inclusion of new parliaments and conventions of estates, committee records, parliamentary minutes and additional material makes the online edition the most comprehensive record of Scottish parliamentary proceedings ever available. All the sources which make up the proceedings of the pre-1707 Scottish parliament are fully cited and an extensive editorial apparatus included, enabling for the first time a proper understanding of the many and varied sources which make up Scotland’s parliamentary record. A parallel translation of the original Latin, French and Scots text into English and the standardisation of place and personal names, where identifiable, enables keyword searches on an infinite number of subjects, with direct links from the modern translation to the original manuscript record.’
creator: K.M. Brown et al eds. (St Andrews, 2007-2015). All entries can be found at http://www.rps.ac.uk/
source: [A1321/7/1] Letters: patent of Agnes de Mordington recording the sale of Glanderstone in Garioch at parliament To all sons of holy mother church who shall see or hear the present writing, Agnes de Mordington, daughter and heiress of Sir Peter de Mordington, knight, greeting in the Saviour of all. All of you shall know that I, not by force, trickery or fear, but voluntarily, purely and simply, for me, my heirs and successors whomsoever, have sold to John, son of Adam Browning, and conveyed the title of the sale to him in person, all the land of Glanderstone in Garioch with all its pertinents, freedoms and profits whatsoever pertaining to the said land, or which may pertain in future in any way. Also [you should know] if, concerning the same, it was proper to make special mention for the 360 merks of good and legal sterling in coin paid into my hands, of which sum of money I quitclaim the said John by the present [letters] and renounce on this behalf, exception being made of money not counted and of any deceit which might be interposed. And for the faithful and inviolable observing of this, I gave a bodily oath into the hands of the venerable father the lord William de Lamberton, by the grace of God bishop of St Andrews, and notwithstanding I swore touching the holy Gospels in the presence of all the prelates assembled in council at Perth on 9 July 1321, that I hold my said sale to be established and valid in perpetuity for myself and my heirs and successors, and not to come against the same directly or indirectly by myself or through others in any way in future. And if it should occur that I, my heirs or successors oppose the aforesaid sale in any way de facto, since I shall not be able to do so de jure, I oblige myself, my heirs and successors to pay the said John, his heirs, successors and assignees £200 sterling before the same John, his heirs, successors or assignees are held to answer me, my heirs, successors or assignees, concerning the aforesaid lands in any w…

The cross on the back of the Rosermarkie Cross Slab
description: Featuring interlace and four bosses. Surrounded by a key pattern border.

The Eagle Stone
subject: The Clach an Tiompain (in English, the "Sounding Stone") or The Eagle Stone is a small Class I Pictish stone, located on a hill on the northern outskirts of Strathpeffer in Easter Ross, Scotland. The stone was originally located further down the hill, towards Dingwall, but was moved to its current site in 1411. One old traditional story, is that the stone marks the site of a Scottish clan battle that took place in 1411 between the Clan Munro and a branch of the Clan MacDonald, and that the stone commemorates a Munro victory as it is marked with their symbol, an eagle.
creator: image courtsey RCAHMS

The Peat Theif

The Pends 拱道
description: At the east end of South Street there is a pair of fourteenth-century arches known as "the Pends". These were part of a gateway to the walled enclosure surrounding St Andrews Cathedral. During the Middle Ages many cathedrals and monasteries had impressive gatehouses controlling access to and from the religious community. The Pends were originally covered by stone vaults (the supports for which can still be seen). The gatehouse is thought to have also had an upper storey with accommodation for a porter. Following the Reformation a pension was paid to the porter's widow. 在南街东边的尽头有一对建于十四世纪的拱门被称为“拱道”。通过它们能到达被围墙环绕的圣安德鲁斯大教堂。在中世纪，许多教堂和修道院都有令人印象深刻的城楼，它们控制着通往宗教场所的通道。拱道最初是被石头拱顶覆盖的(仍然可以看到支撑结构)。城楼被认为拥有第二层， 为看门人提供了住宿场所。随着宗教改革，那些成了寡妇的看门人妻子获得了抚恤金。 Audio - Katie Stevenson reading Walter Bower 音频 - 凯蒂·史蒂文森讲述沃尔特·鲍尔 Video 1 - Brief account of the arrival and life of the Papal Bulls in early St Andrews (Courtesy: Ever to Excel) Video 2 - The Cathedral Pends reconstructed by the Open Virtual Worlds Group 视频 1 - 短暂讲述教皇来到并生活在早期圣安德鲁斯 （感谢：电影 ‘Ever to Excel’） 视频 2 - 大教堂拱道 - 由开放虚拟世界组制作
date: 2015/6/3
language: English/中文

The Pictish Beast
description: The most common animal symbol of all is the Pictish Beast. The Pictish Beast (sometimes Pictish Dragon or Pictish Elephant) is an artistic representation of an animal depicted on Pictish symbol stones. It is not easily identifiable with any real animal, but resembles a seahorse, especially when depicted upright. Suggestions have included a dolphin, a kelpie and even the Loch Ness Monster. Recent thinking is that it may be related to the design of dragonesque brooches, S-shaped pieces of jewelry from the mid-1st to 2nd century CE that depict double-headed animals with swirled snouts and distinctive ears. These have been found in southern Scotland and northern England. The strongest evidence for this is the presence on the Mortlach 2 stone of a symbol very similar to such a brooch, next to and in the same alignment as a Pictish Beast. The Pictish Beast accounts for about forty per cent of all Pictish animal depictions, and so was likely of great importance. It is thought that it was either an important figure in Pictish mythology, and/or a political symbol.

The St Andrews Foundation Legends
source: The St Andrews Foundation Legend A Translated by Professor Dauvit Broun Andrew, which according to Hebrew etymology is translated ‘beautiful’ or ‘responding’, is nonetheless translated ‘manly’, from ‘man’ in the Greek language. Brother of the blessed apostle Peter as far as the flesh is concerned, but his co-heir in grace; the first apostle chosen by Our Lord Jesus Christ according to John the Evangelist, but second according to Matthew and Mark; he received by lot as his mission the northern nations, that is the Scythians and Picts, finally the Achaians and the city called Patras where, furthermore, he was crucified on November 30th; and he was interred there. And there his bones were kept for a period of about 273 years until the time of Constantine the Great son of Helen and his sons, that is Constantius and Constantine with Constans. In their reign they were taken up and translated out of there in a marvellous and famous procession by the citizens of Constantinople, and re-interred there at Constantinople with great glory and the greatest honour; and they remained there throughout until the time of the Christian emperor Theodosiusthat is to say, for a period of 110 years. At that timenot by chance but by divine instigationa king of the Picts called Ungus son of Urguist, rising up with a great army, killing with the cruellest devastation the British nations living in the south part of this island, finally reached the plain of Mercia and wintered there. Then all the peoples of nearly the whole island, coming with a united force, surrounded him, intending to destroy him and his army completely. Next day, the aforementioned king went out for a walk with his seven most intimate companions, and a divine light shone around them, and they fell forward onto their faces, unable to bear it (the light). And lo, a voice was heard from heaven: ‘Ungus, Ungus, hear me, an apostle of Christ, Andrew by name, who am sent to defend and protect you. Get up, behold the image of th…

The Town of St Andrews and the Scottish Parliament
subject: The following comprises records from RPS in which St Andrews is mentioned. It does not include records in which the bishop, archbishop or any other clerics based in St Andrews acted as witnesses, judges, notaries or ambassadors. It also does not include references to St Andrew himself.
description: ‘The Records of the Parliaments of Scotland to 1707 (RPS) is a fully searchable database containing the proceedings of the Scottish parliament from the first surviving act of 1235 to the union of 1707. The culmination of over ten years’ work by researchers from the Scottish Parliament Project based in the School of History at the University of St Andrews, the online edition seeks to make this key historical source freely available to all in a technologically advanced and user-friendly format. The inclusion of new parliaments and conventions of estates, committee records, parliamentary minutes and additional material makes the online edition the most comprehensive record of Scottish parliamentary proceedings ever available. All the sources which make up the proceedings of the pre-1707 Scottish parliament are fully cited and an extensive editorial apparatus included, enabling for the first time a proper understanding of the many and varied sources which make up Scotland’s parliamentary record. A parallel translation of the original Latin, French and Scots text into English and the standardisation of place and personal names, where identifiable, enables keyword searches on an infinite number of subjects, with direct links from the modern translation to the original manuscript record.’ All entries can be found at http://www.rps.ac.uk/
creator: K.M. Brown et al eds. (St Andrews, 2007-2015).
source: [A1304/1] Proceeding: summons to parliament The king to Sir Nicholas de la Hay, greeting. We command you, strictly enjoining you, by the faith which you owe us, to be at our parliament in the town of St Andrews this next Monday in mid-Lent, by all means. Wemyss, 5 March [1304] [1309/1] Letters: by the magnates of Scotland to Philip IV, king of France To the most Christian and triumphant prince and reverend lord the lord Philip [IV] by the grace of God illustrious king of the French, William, earl of Ross, Malcolm, earl of Lennox, William, [earl of Suther]land, and the communities of the earldoms of Fife, Menteith, Mar, Buchan and Caithness, the heirs of which are in ward, likewise the communities of all the other earldoms of the kingdom of Scotland [except] [D]unbar; Edward de Bruce, lord of Galloway, James the steward of Scotland, Alexander de Argyll, Donald de Islay, John de Menteith, Hugh, the son and heir of the earl [of Ross], Gilbert de Hay, constable of Scotland, Robert de Keith, marischal of Scotland, Thomas Randolph, lord of Nithsdale, James, lord of Douglas, Alexander de Lindsay, Alexander de [Fraser], [William] Wiseman, David de Barclay, Robert Boyd, barons; and also all of Argyll and the Hebrides and the inhabitants of all the kingdom of Scotland recognising the fealty of the lord Robert by the grace of God king of Scotland, all [... ... ....] Your credence having been revealed to us in writing, and having been fully understood [by us], in the full parliament of our lord the king solemnly held not long ago at the city of St Andrews, impressed upon our minds the joyfulness of [your] devot[ion] [... ... ....] For we conclude that your majesty’s mind is devoutly disposed to take on the business of the Holy Land, to prosecute which all followers of the Christian faith justly ought to strive and with humble devotion incline their hearts [... ... ...,] we saw that it was contained [in your letter] that your royal grace considers and calls to mind the treaties …