The Abbey of Saint Mary of Crossraguel is a ruin of a former abbey

Abbey

An abbey is a Catholic monastery or convent, under the authority of an Abbot or an Abbess, who serves as the spiritual father or mother of the community.The term can also refer to an establishment which has long ceased to function as an abbey,...

 near the town of Maybole

Maybole

Maybole is a burgh of barony and police burgh of South Ayrshire, Scotland. Pop. 4,552. It is situated south of Ayr and southwest of Glasgow by the Glasgow and South Western Railway. ‎...

, South Ayrshire

South Ayrshire

South Ayrshire is one of 32 council areas of Scotland, covering the southern part of Ayrshire. It borders onto East Ayrshire, North Ayrshire and Dumfries and Galloway....

, Scotland.

Foundation

Founded in 1244 by Donnchadh, Earl of Carrick

Donnchadh, Earl of Carrick

Donnchadh was a Gall-Gaidhil prince and Scottish magnate in what is now south-western Scotland, whose career stretched from the last quarter of the 12th century until his death in 1250...

, following an earlier donation of 1225, to the monks of Paisley Abbey

Paisley Abbey

Paisley Abbey is a former Cluniac monastery, and current Church of Scotland parish kirk, located on the east bank of the White Cart Water in the centre of the town of Paisley, Renfrewshire, in west central Scotland.-History:...

 for that purpose. They reputedly built nothing more than a small chapel and kept the balance for themselves. The Earl took the matter to the Bishop of Glasgow

Glasgow

Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...

 for arbitration and, winning his case, forced the monks to build a proper abbey.

Name

The origin of the abbey's name is unclear but may refer to the ancient Cross of Riaghail (Latin form St Regulus) that stood on the spot. Crossraguel was a Cluniac abbey and the monks - members of a branch of the Benedictines - were known as the "Black monks" after the colour of their clothes.

History

Crossraguel was sacked in 1307 by the army of Edward I

Edward I of England

Edward I , also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England from 1272 to 1307. The first son of Henry III, Edward was involved early in the political intrigues of his father's reign, which included an outright rebellion by the English barons...

. It was rebuilt on a larger scale and remained a monastery until 1560, when the Reformation

Scottish Reformation

The Scottish Reformation was Scotland's formal break with the Papacy in 1560, and the events surrounding this. It was part of the wider European Protestant Reformation; and in Scotland's case culminated ecclesiastically in the re-establishment of the church along Reformed lines, and politically in...

 ended monastic institutions in Scotland. Some of the stone has been removed for local construction, but the Abbey ruins remain some of the most complete of any medieval religious house to survive in Scotland. The site is looked after by Historic Scotland

Historic Scotland

Historic Scotland is an executive agency of the Scottish Government, responsible for historic monuments in Scotland.-Role:As its website states:...

 and is open to the public with an entrance charge.

The Kennedy family, Earls of Cassilis

Marquess of Ailsa

Marquess of Ailsa, of the Isle of Ailsa in the County of Ayr, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created on 10 September 1831 for Archibald Kennedy, 12th Earl of Cassillis. The title Earl of Cassillis had been created in 1509 for the 3rd Lord Kennedy. This title had been...

 famously obtained the lands of Crossraguel Abbey through the torturing by Gilbert Kennedy, 4th Earl of Cassilis

Gilbert Kennedy, 4th Earl of Cassilis

Gilbert Kennedy, 4th Earl of Cassilis, PC was a Scottish peer, the son of Gilbert Kennedy, 3rd Earl of Cassilis. He succeeded to the titles of 6th Lord Kennedy and 4th Earl of Cassillis on 28 November 1558...

 of Allan Stewart

Allan Stewart

Allan Stewart is a Scottish comic and impressionist born 11 December 1950.-Career:His career began in the 1960s when he performed as a cabaret pop singer and musician....

, the commendator at his castle of Dunure

Dunure Castle

Dunure Castle is located on the west coast of Scotland, in South Ayrshire, about 5 miles south of Ayr and close to the village of Dunure. Dunure Castle today stands in ruins on a rocky promontory on the Carrick coast, protecting the small Dunure harbour....

.

See also

• Abbot of Crossraguel
  Abbot of Crossraguel
  The Abbot of Crossraguel was the leader of the Cluniac monastic community of Crossraguel Abbey, near Maybole in Carrick, south-west Scotland. It was founded in 1260s by Donnchadh mac Gille Brigte, earl of Carrick with monks from Paisley Abbey...
  
  , for list of abbots and commendators
• Abbeys and priories in Scotland
  Abbeys and priories in Scotland
  List of religious houses in Scotland is a link page to any abbey, priory, friary or other religious house in Scotland.-Abbreviations and Key:-Aberdeen:-Aberdeenshire:-Angus:-Argyll & Bute:-Dumfries and Galloway:...
  
  

External links

• Crossraguel Abbey - at Undiscovered Scotland
• Crossraguel Abbey - at Mysterious Britain
• Crossraguel Abbey - Photos at the Maybole town home page
• Crossraguel Abbey - at Baltersan Castle website
• Pictures of Crossraguel Abbey