Canonbie
Encyclopedia
Canonbie is a small village in Dumfries and Galloway
Dumfries and Galloway
Dumfries and Galloway is one of 32 unitary council areas of Scotland. It was one of the nine administrative 'regions' of mainland Scotland created in 1975 by the Local Government etc. Act 1973...

 in south west 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...

, six miles south of Langholm
Langholm
Langholm , also known colloquially as the "Muckle Toon", is a burgh in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, on the River Esk and the A7 road.- History:...

 and two miles north of the Anglo-Scottish border
Anglo-Scottish border
The Anglo-Scottish border is the official border and mark of entry between Scotland and England. It runs for 154 km between the River Tweed on the east coast and the Solway Firth in the west. It is Scotland's only land border...

. It is on the A7 road from Carlisle to Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...

, and the River Esk
River Esk, Dumfries and Galloway
The River Esk is a river in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, that flows into the Solway Firth. It also flows for a small way through the English county of Cumbria before entering the Solway....

 flows through it. There are frequent references in older documents to it as Canobie.

History

Canonbie was the main population centre within the Debatable Lands
Debatable Lands
The Debatable Lands, also known as Debatable ground, batable ground or thriep lands, was land lying between Scotland and England, formerly in question to which it belonged, when they were distinct kingdoms...

, bounded on the west by the River Sark
River Sark
Disambiguation: for other meanings, please see Sark The River Sark or Sark Water is a river best known for forming part of the western border between Scotland and England...

, to the east by the River Esk
River Esk, Dumfries and Galloway
The River Esk is a river in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, that flows into the Solway Firth. It also flows for a small way through the English county of Cumbria before entering the Solway....

 and Liddel Water
Liddel Water
Liddel Water is a river running through southern Scotland and northern England, for much of its course forming the border between the two countries, and was formerly one of the boundaries of the Debatable Lands....

, on the north by the Bruntshiell Moor
Moorland
Moorland or moor is a type of habitat, in the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome, found in upland areas, characterised by low-growing vegetation on acidic soils and heavy fog...

 and Tarras Moss
Bog
A bog, quagmire or mire is a wetland that accumulates acidic peat, a deposit of dead plant material—often mosses or, in Arctic climates, lichens....

, and on the south by the estuary of the Esk. The main families holding land and exerting influence in the area were the Graemes, Armstrong
Armstrong
- Places :* Armstrong Creek , various placesArgentina* Armstrong, Santa FeAustralia* Armstrong, VictoriaCanada* Armstrong, British Columbia* Armstrong, Ontario* Armstrong, Thunder Bay District, OntarioUnited States...

s, Elliot
Elliot
Elliot is a personal name which can serve as either a surname or a given name. Although the given name was historically given to males, females named Elliott have seen an increase in recent years...

s and Bells.

Canonbie Parish had an Austin priory at Hallgreen, dating back to about 1165. The priory was destroyed during the reign of Henry VIII
Henry VIII of England
Henry VIII was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was Lord, and later King, of Ireland, as well as continuing the nominal claim by the English monarchs to the Kingdom of France...

 after the Battle of Solway Moss
Battle of Solway Moss
The Battle of Solway Moss took place on Solway Moss near the River Esk on the English side of the Anglo-Scottish Border in November 1542 between forces from England and Scotland.-Background:...

 in 1542. A grassy mound in a field near the present day church is believed to be the only remnant of the ruins. Remains of a Roman station crown a rising ground near the old Gilnockie station; and ruins of famous mediæval strongholds are at Hollows and Harelaw; remains of other mediæval strengths are at Mumbyhirst, Auchenrivock, Hallgreen, Woodhouselees, and Sark.

Gilnockie Castle lies immediately left of the north side of Canonbie Bridge, occupying a strong defensive site and was once the seat of the Armstrongs, Lairds of Mangerton. It was the home of John Armstrong of Gilnockie and was unfinished at the time of his death. Not much of the castle remains. When James V became king of Scotland, one of his objectives was to restore order in his kingdom and to pacify the borders. He commanded an army of 12,000 men. He ordered all earls, lords, barons, freeholders and gentlemen to meet at Edinburgh with a month's supplies, and then to proceed to Teviotdale and Annandale. The nobles were to bring their dogs with them. After hunting for a few days, the King offered safe conduct to Johnnie Armstrong for an audience. John Armstrong was the laird of Kilnockie and was felt by all Scots to be as good a chieftain as there was within the borders, either in Scotland or England. Johnnie Armstrong may have been a loose-living man and although he never molested a Scotsman, he was of such a force that from the Scots border to Newcastle of England there were not many estates who did not pay tribute to him. When Johnnie came into the king's presence there was no trial but a hanging of Johnnie and his men in the trees of Carlanrig churchyard. There is a legend that persists to this day that the dule trees
Dule Tree
Dule or dool trees in Britain were used as gallows for public hangings. They were also used as gibbets for the display of the corpse for a considerable period of time after such hangings...

 upon which they were hung withered and died and that the same has happened to any trees which were planted since. John and his men would have fought when they realized what was to happen to them but chances are that they were seized and restrained before they could do so. He is said to have shouted to the King. "I have asked grace at a graceless face." His execution weakened James' authority in the borders and was a grave mistake on the King's part.

Canonbie was immortalised in a poem by Sir 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....

 entitled Marmion. A famous section covers the exploits of young Lochinvar
Lochinvar
Lochinvar is a loch in Scotland that is now a reservoir. It nestles in the hills of Dumfries and Galloway to the north-east of St. John's Town of Dalry. It is drained by the Lochinvar Burn, which flows south to the Water of Ken. The ruins of a castle stand on a now submerged islet within the loch...

. Having stolen the hand of the bride of Netherby Hall, about three miles south of Canonbie, the dashing knight is chased through Canonbie, but makes good his escape.
Canonbie church has a pipe organ built by the local GP, Dr. Will Lang, in his free time around 1976-79. A wonderful instrument!
Canonbie was deeply affected by the 2001-foot and mouth crisis
2001 UK foot and mouth crisis
The outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease in the United Kingdom in 2001 caused a crisis in British agriculture and tourism. This epizootic saw 2,000 cases of the disease in farms in most of the British countryside. Over 10 million sheep and cattle were killed in an eventually successful attempt to...

, with all the surrounding farms losing their herds. It is only five miles north of Longtown
Longtown, Cumbria
Longtown is a small town in northern Cumbria, England, with a population of around 3,000. It is in the parish of Arthuret and on the River Esk, not far from the Anglo-Scottish border. Nearby was the Battle of Arfderydd....

, where the disease was first spotted at the livestock market.

Facilities

The village contains a post office/convenience store, the Reivers Fayre Tea Rooms, a public hall and recreation ground http://www.any-town.co.uk/C/Canonbie/Texts/Canonbie.htm, a primary school, a Church, a clock shop, a hairdresser, the Riverside Inn inn (currently being refurbished) and the Cross Keys Pub. Canonbie crosses the River Esk, and Gilnockie Tower is a short walk away.

Canonbie is on two public bus routes; the X95 (First Edinburgh) and 127 (Telford's).

Canonbie hosts a local football team called Canonbie Bowholm FC which has been in existence since 1925.

Natural history

Knopper gall
Knopper gall
Andricus quercuscalicis is a gall wasp species inducing Knopper galls.Knopper galls develop as a chemically induced distortion of growing acorns on Pedunculate Oak trees, caused by gall wasps, which lay eggs in buds with their ovipositor...

s were first noted in Scotland at Canonbie in 1995; their distribution is often restricted to old country and urban estates where the Turkey oak has been previously planted.

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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