The Military Heritage of Kirkintilloch, East Dunbartonshire

Often we get blinded by the dearth of battlefields and historic sites around us, but often neglect the more normal, but nevertheless significant heritage surrounding our local area. Dotted in the right in the middle of the town I currently live, Peel Park is more than the Victorian green space we are so used to. Undulating in a curve around the North West peripheries of this site, there is what at first appears to be a naturally occurring ditch, even under some interpretation, a possible 18^th century haw-haw. In actual fact this forms the Roman mile castle on the Antonine Wall, according to Nennius, known as Caerpentaloch, its obvious advantage over the surrounding country formed from the presence of a underlying volcanic drumlin. Substantial finds, from sarcophagi, bath house material, ballista bolts and sling shot show this to be a significant site, as confirmed by continuous excavation between 1914-53, covering a base area of 1.4ha, aligned East to West, extending into the present Tesco’s car park.

Recutting of the Antonine Wall and the extent of the Roman Fort

In the North East section of this fort, there is a clear rise in the ground, in the form of a Norman motte. The mound measures30mx17m and is said to have held a stone keep, that has since been robbed out. However the lack of space required for the production of foundation trenches, coupled with the forts proximity to Glasgow and Cumbernauld, argues the point that this was merely a grey hag, or minor fortlet manned by a sharpened stockade and palisade, the presence of an early curving hornwork to the East reinforcing this. This is further reinforced by looking at the livery and maintenance associated with manorial rights, as a knights retainder, maintaining 27 knights and 19 crossbowmen The town, formed as a burghal fort in 1211 by William Comyn (providing the name Comyn Castle), was one of the first forts to be captured by Edward I after Dunbar on 10^th June 1296. An English garrison under Sir Phillip Moubray, one of the captors of Wallace and governor of Stirling Castle was emplaced.

                                                                        Kirkintilloch Motte

                             The summit, presenting not a lot of space to erect a proper stone building

By the summer of 1306 Bruce had been crowned king and was finding ways of legitimising his claim. Part of this was to firstly take the Scottish home counties and form a barrier against further incursion. Barely having time to be reinforced by 20 archers from Linlithgow, a force under Bishop Robert Wishart of Glasgow invested the fortress. With a lack of siege engines Wishart requisitioned timbers meant for the building of Glasgow cathedral for use in siege engines, although what their nature actually was we cannot tell. What we do know is that this would require a siege camp to be created, requiring flat, dry land for alignment and ease of use of trebuchet, perrier and mangonel, within easy reach of the castle walls. As the immediate fields surrounding the road at the base of the hill are flat, but wetland, it can only be deduced that Wishart had already taken the outer bailey of the town, likely running in parallel to the motte down Kirkintilloch High Street (reinforced by the lower reaches being named Cowgate). Alternatively two crossings of the Clyde possibly suggest likely sites for approximate positions, although their distance from the motte would suggest that counterweight and traction siege engines were constructed, rather than small manpowered ones.

Kirkintilloch High Street, marking the likely alignment and spread of the bailey. The half of the town over the Forth-Clyde canal likely represents the annexing of the burghal form post 1400.

Possible position of siege camp, although the fact that it is wetland means it is unlikely

Whatever the case, the siege was not to be a success and it would not be until a follow up attempt under Sir John Comyn , during the 1314 siege of Stirling that Kirkintilloch fort was to fall. It was subsequently slighted, like so many fortifications under Robert I (the Bruce) to prevent their falling into English hands.

This was not to be an end to Kirkintilloch’s military history. On 3^rd January 1746, the Jacobite Army, having reached Derby and turning back in the direction of Falkirk. A straggler was shot and a couple of pot shots were made at Charles Edward Stuart from one of the barns surrounding The Auld Kirk Conventicle. On hearing of this, Charles wanted to burn the town. Only on the better judgement of his Quarter-Master General, Colonel Sullivan and a substantial payment from the towns people, did Charles spare the town.

The Old Kirk Coventicle, site of an attempted ambush on “Bonnie Prince Charlie” Stuart’s Jacobite Army

Bibliography

Brown, C. (2008) Scottish Battlefields: 500 Battles that Shaped Scottish History Tempus Publishing, Stroud

Cornell, D. (2009) Bannockburn: The Triumph of Robert the Bruce Yale University Press, London

RCAHMS, Canmore: Kirkintilloch http://canmore.rcahms.gov.uk/en/site/45204/details/kirkintilloch/ DOI: 25/01/2016 17:12

Watson, F. (1998) Under the Hammer: Edward I and Scotland 1287-1307 Tuckwell Press, East Linton

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