Eaglesham
Encyclopedia
Eaglesham , is a village and parish set in the west central Lowlands
of Scotland - population 3,127 (2001). Today it is chiefly a dormitory town for commuters to nearby Glasgow. The village is distinctive in being based around a large triangular green. Eaglesham is situated about 10 miles (16 km) south of Glasgow to the southeast of Newton Mearns
, south of Busby
and Clarkston
, and southwest of East Kilbride
.
The ancient seat of the Earls of Eglinton
; in the 17th century Eaglesham was a small market town; the present village was founded in 1769 by Alexander Montgomerie, 10th Earl of Eglinton; it had at one time handloom weaving and a cotton-mill. Many of its buildings are grade 'B' or 'C' listed but, as a whole, the village is 'A' listed. Eaglesham was designated Scotland's first outstanding conservation area in 1960. It is probable that there has been a place of worship here since the fifth or sixth centuries.
The village is an example of an early Scottish planned village.
, the first High Steward of Scotland
and founder of the House of Stuart
, by King David I. During the 1160s Fitz-Alan distributed his lands amongst his Anglo-Saxon supporters and the lands of Egglisham were granted to Robert de Montgomerie, fifth son of Roger de Montgomerie. Roger de Montgomerie accompanied William Duke of Normandy to England and supported him at the Battle of Hastings in 1066, for which he was later awarded the Earldom of Shrewsbury, Arundel and Chichester. Robert de Montgomerie was witness to the endowment charter of Paisley by Walter Fitz-Alan in the late 12th century. In 1361, Sir John de Montgomerie of Eaglesham and Eastwood married Elizabeth, daughter of Sir Hugh de Eglinton of that Ilk and niece of King Robert II
. Sir John obtained the baronies of Eglinton and Ardrossan upon Sir Hugh's death in 1374. Afterwards the Montgomeries made Eglinton Estate
their chief residence.
In 1388, Sir John de Montgomerie captured Henry, Lord Percy at the Battle of Otterburn. It is traditionally believed that Sir John accepted a ransom for his prisoner who killed the 2nd Earl of Douglas and built Polnoon Castle
with the ransom money on a small hillock on what appears to be an earlier motte. Polnoon castle was refurbished for occupation in 1617 but was ruined by 1676.
Situated in the Orry, is the motte
or Motte Hill, a flat-topped mound likely to be a site of the first wooden castle of the Montgomeries in the 12th century.
Alexander, 8th Earl of Eglinton obtained an Act of Parliament in 1672 for an annual fair and weekly market in the "toun of Eagleshame". By the time the New Statistical Account for Scotland was published in 1845 the weekly market had long been discontinued and a flower show was held in place of fairs. The fair was revived in 1961 and in recent years is held bi-annually in May or June and traditionally opens with a procession parading through the village.
Eaglesham flourished during the age of agricultural and industrial improvements. Surgeons, shopkeepers and traders such as coopers; grocers; wrights; smiths; boot and shoe-makers; tailors and dress-makers, inn-keepers and vintners supplied the needs and demands of the increasing population. Churches met the religious needs of the inhabitants. Schools provided education and carriers transported goods to and from the markets at Glasgow and Paisley.
Handloom weaving became the main industry until the establishment of a water powered cotton spinning mill in the village in 1791. The Orry mill at its peak employed around 200 people with the machinery at one time driven by a 45 foot diameter cast iron water wheel. The mill burned down and was rebuilt several times before being destroyed by fire in 1876 and was never rebuilt. Without work many of the mill workers drifted away and their homes lay empty. The population of the village dropped from 2,428 in the mid-nineteenth century to 1,075 at the end of the century.
After seven centuries of ownership, the Montgomery family's finances floundered and Eaglesham Estate was put on the market in 1835. The Estate was finally sold for £217,000 in 1844 to Allan Gilmour, Sr and James Gilmour
. Shortly afterwards the estate was divided into two parts roughly by value, in proportion to the money each contributed. The larger part was Eaglesham Estate which was run by Allan and the smaller, Polnoon Estate, run by James.
A remarkable event during World War II was the landing of Rudolf Hess
at Eaglesham on 10 May 1941. Shortly after 11 p.m. a Messerschmitt aircraft crashed at Bonnyton Farm with an airman bailing out and landing at Floors Farm. David McLean, a local ploughman, ran out of his cottage at the rear of Floors Farm after hearing an aeroplane crashing and saw a parachutist coming down. McLean assisted the slightly injured airman back to his cottage. The airman, a German officer, identified himself as Captain Albert Horn. Horn was arrested and subsequently taken to the 3 Battalion Home Guard Headquarters at Busby then briefly Giffnock Police Station before being transferred to Maryhill Barracks in Glasgow and other locations before finally being to transported to P.O.W. Reception Station, Abergavenny, South Wales where he remained for the duration of the hostilities. Horn turned out be Deputy Reichsfuhrer, Rudolph Hess. Hess apparently claimed that he had flown to Britain with a message for the Duke of Hamilton in an attempt to persuade the British government to restore peace but in poor light mistook his intended destination of Dungavel House near Strathaven as Eaglesham House. Hess was tried as a war criminal at Nuremburg where an International Military Tribunal found him guilty on two counts of 'concerted plan or conspiracy' and 'crimes against peace'. He spent the rest of his life imprisoned in Spandau Prison
, Berlin.
operate a state-of-the-art Hi-Fi
production plant on the site of the former Eaglesham House. Clubs and societies include Eaglesham Amateurs football
team, Eaglesham Bowling Club and Walton Angling Club.
The Eagles pool team currently play in the East Kilbride pool league. The opening of the Glasgow Southern Orbital Road in 2005 generated considerable environmental benefits by reducing through traffic and creating a cleaner, safer environment for the local community.
beside the Linn Burn (NS5751) in the Orry is likely to have been site of the first wooden castle of the Montgomeries in the 12th century and recorded as being in Eaglesham prior to the construction of Polnoon Castle
nearby. The motte or Motte Hill was a flat-topped mound with a probable broad defensive ditch situated on the north-west bank of the Linn Burn. The south-east side was truncated in the late 18th century by the building of the Orry Mill, resulting in the removal of at least a third of the site. It was used by the local community as a site for meetings and festivals.
Central Lowlands
The Central Lowlands or Midland Valley is a geologically defined area of relatively low-lying land in southern Scotland. It consists of a rift valley between the Highland Boundary Fault to the north and the Southern Uplands Fault to the south...
of Scotland - population 3,127 (2001). Today it is chiefly a dormitory town for commuters to nearby Glasgow. The village is distinctive in being based around a large triangular green. Eaglesham is situated about 10 miles (16 km) south of Glasgow to the southeast of Newton Mearns
Newton Mearns
Newton Mearns is a suburban town in East Renfrewshire, Scotland. It lies southwest of Glasgow City Centre on the main road to Ayrshire, above sea level. It has a population of approximately 22,637.The town is part of the Greater Glasgow conurbation...
, south of Busby
Busby, East Renfrewshire
Busby is a village in East Renfrewshire, Scotland. Busby's close proximity to Glasgow effectively makes it a suburb of the city, though remains administratively separate. It lies on the White Cart Water south of Glasgow City Centre.-History:...
and Clarkston
Clarkston, East Renfrewshire
Clarkston is a small town in East Renfrewshire, Scotland. Although it is administratively outside nearby Glasgow, Clarkston is geographically an outer suburb of the city and part of the Greater Glasgow conurbation....
, and southwest of East Kilbride
East Kilbride
East Kilbride is a large suburban town in the South Lanarkshire council area, in the West Central Lowlands of Scotland. Designated as Scotland's first new town in 1947, it forms part of the Greater Glasgow conurbation...
.
The ancient seat of the Earls of Eglinton
Earl of Eglinton
Earl of Eglinton is a title in the Peerage of Scotland.Some authorities spell the title: Earl of Eglintoun In 1859 the thirteenth Earl of Eglinton, Archibald Montgomerie, was also created Earl of Winton in the Peerage of the United Kingdom, which gave him an automatic seat in the House of Lords,...
; in the 17th century Eaglesham was a small market town; the present village was founded in 1769 by Alexander Montgomerie, 10th Earl of Eglinton; it had at one time handloom weaving and a cotton-mill. Many of its buildings are grade 'B' or 'C' listed but, as a whole, the village is 'A' listed. Eaglesham was designated Scotland's first outstanding conservation area in 1960. It is probable that there has been a place of worship here since the fifth or sixth centuries.
The village is an example of an early Scottish planned village.
Origin of the name
There have been several suggestions as to the meaning of the name Eaglesham but the most likely explanation is that Eaglesham means kirkton or church town derived from the Gaelic word eaglais meaning church and the Saxon ham meaning hamlet or village.The Mediæval period
The parish of Egglisham formed part of the district of Mearns and together with other lands were bestowed to Fitz-AlanWalter Fitzalan
Walter fitz Alan was the 1st hereditary High Steward of Scotland , and described as "a Norman by culture and by blood a Breton"...
, the first High Steward of Scotland
High Steward of Scotland
The title of High Steward or Great Steward was given in the 12th century to Walter Fitzalan, whose descendants became the House of Stewart. In 1371, the last High Steward inherited the throne, and thereafter the title of High Steward of Scotland has been held as a subsidiary title to that of Duke...
and founder of the House of Stuart
House of Stuart
The House of Stuart is a European royal house. Founded by Robert II of Scotland, the Stewarts first became monarchs of the Kingdom of Scotland during the late 14th century, and subsequently held the position of the Kings of Great Britain and Ireland...
, by King David I. During the 1160s Fitz-Alan distributed his lands amongst his Anglo-Saxon supporters and the lands of Egglisham were granted to Robert de Montgomerie, fifth son of Roger de Montgomerie. Roger de Montgomerie accompanied William Duke of Normandy to England and supported him at the Battle of Hastings in 1066, for which he was later awarded the Earldom of Shrewsbury, Arundel and Chichester. Robert de Montgomerie was witness to the endowment charter of Paisley by Walter Fitz-Alan in the late 12th century. In 1361, Sir John de Montgomerie of Eaglesham and Eastwood married Elizabeth, daughter of Sir Hugh de Eglinton of that Ilk and niece of King Robert II
Robert II of Scotland
Robert II became King of Scots in 1371 as the first monarch of the House of Stewart. He was the son of Walter Stewart, hereditary High Steward of Scotland and of Marjorie Bruce, daughter of Robert I and of his first wife Isabella of Mar...
. Sir John obtained the baronies of Eglinton and Ardrossan upon Sir Hugh's death in 1374. Afterwards the Montgomeries made Eglinton Estate
Eglinton Castle
Eglinton Castle was a large Gothic castellated mansion in Kilwinning, North Ayrshire, Scotland.-The castle :The ancient seat of the Earls of Eglinton, it is located just south of the town of Kilwinning...
their chief residence.
In 1388, Sir John de Montgomerie captured Henry, Lord Percy at the Battle of Otterburn. It is traditionally believed that Sir John accepted a ransom for his prisoner who killed the 2nd Earl of Douglas and built Polnoon Castle
Polnoon Castle
Polnoon Castle was a 14th century fortification located on a motte beside the Polnoon Water in the Parish of Eaglesham, East Renfrewshire, Scotland.-The Montgomerys of Eaglesham:...
with the ransom money on a small hillock on what appears to be an earlier motte. Polnoon castle was refurbished for occupation in 1617 but was ruined by 1676.
Situated in the Orry, is the motte
Motte
Motte may be:*Motte-and-bailey, a type of construction used in castles*Isaac Motte, an 18th century American statesman*La Motte , various places with this name-See also:* Mote * Mott...
or Motte Hill, a flat-topped mound likely to be a site of the first wooden castle of the Montgomeries in the 12th century.
Seventeenth Century
Following a period of peace and relative stability in Scotland during the reign of King James VI, religion continued to be a major issue. The Covenanter movement resulted from an attempt by King Charles I to impose a new prayer book and regulations on the Scottish Church. The population of Renfrewshire was predominantly in favour of the National Covenant and Alexander, 6th Earl of Eglinton signed the covenant. Covenanters faced steep fines or even the threat of execution for expressing their faith and held their religious services in secret. A memorial to Covenanters Robert Lockhart and Gabriel Thomson who were shot by Highlandmen and Dragoons for their adherence to the Solemn League and Covenant as they returned from a conventicle in May 1685, stands in the kirkyard of Eaglesham Parish Church.Alexander, 8th Earl of Eglinton obtained an Act of Parliament in 1672 for an annual fair and weekly market in the "toun of Eagleshame". By the time the New Statistical Account for Scotland was published in 1845 the weekly market had long been discontinued and a flower show was held in place of fairs. The fair was revived in 1961 and in recent years is held bi-annually in May or June and traditionally opens with a procession parading through the village.
Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries
Until the 18th century, Scotland's villages were little more than settlements loosely organised around fermtouns. In 1769 Alexander, 10th Earl of Eglinton, began the work of developing the old kirktoun of Eaglesham into a planned village. However it was his successor, Archibald, 11th Earl of Eglinton, who largely saw Alexander's plans through to completion. The Earl planned his new village with two ranges of houses built around the Orry, an area of common land (Orry is from the Scots word, aurie meaning area), interspersed with trees and divided in the centre by the Eaglesham Burn. Tacks were offered on 900 year leases on condition that a house was built on a tack within five years. Tenants were allowed to use the Linn Burn for washing and the green for bleaching. As a result of agricultural improvements, displaced workers became tradesmen or weavers in the village.Eaglesham flourished during the age of agricultural and industrial improvements. Surgeons, shopkeepers and traders such as coopers; grocers; wrights; smiths; boot and shoe-makers; tailors and dress-makers, inn-keepers and vintners supplied the needs and demands of the increasing population. Churches met the religious needs of the inhabitants. Schools provided education and carriers transported goods to and from the markets at Glasgow and Paisley.
Handloom weaving became the main industry until the establishment of a water powered cotton spinning mill in the village in 1791. The Orry mill at its peak employed around 200 people with the machinery at one time driven by a 45 foot diameter cast iron water wheel. The mill burned down and was rebuilt several times before being destroyed by fire in 1876 and was never rebuilt. Without work many of the mill workers drifted away and their homes lay empty. The population of the village dropped from 2,428 in the mid-nineteenth century to 1,075 at the end of the century.
After seven centuries of ownership, the Montgomery family's finances floundered and Eaglesham Estate was put on the market in 1835. The Estate was finally sold for £217,000 in 1844 to Allan Gilmour, Sr and James Gilmour
James Gilmour
James Gilmour was a Scottish Protestant Christian missionary in China and Mongolia. He served with the London Missionary Society.-Early life:...
. Shortly afterwards the estate was divided into two parts roughly by value, in proportion to the money each contributed. The larger part was Eaglesham Estate which was run by Allan and the smaller, Polnoon Estate, run by James.
Twentieth Century
By the early 20th century, The Eaglesham Estates were heavily burdened and together with the considerable debts left by Allan Gilmour were advertised for sale in the late 1920s. Angus Gilmour transferred the Common Area of the village of Eaglesham in 1929 to the Parish Council at his death. By the late 1930s many of the houses lay either or were in a state of disrepair. A letter-writing campaign was started and by the 1950s a world-wide appeal was launched for funds towards Eaglesham’s conservation. Such was the success of the campaign, that the village was designated Scotland's first outstanding conservation area on 12 August 1960.A remarkable event during World War II was the landing of Rudolf Hess
Rudolf Hess
Rudolf Walter Richard Hess was a prominent Nazi politician who was Adolf Hitler's deputy in the Nazi Party during the 1930s and early 1940s...
at Eaglesham on 10 May 1941. Shortly after 11 p.m. a Messerschmitt aircraft crashed at Bonnyton Farm with an airman bailing out and landing at Floors Farm. David McLean, a local ploughman, ran out of his cottage at the rear of Floors Farm after hearing an aeroplane crashing and saw a parachutist coming down. McLean assisted the slightly injured airman back to his cottage. The airman, a German officer, identified himself as Captain Albert Horn. Horn was arrested and subsequently taken to the 3 Battalion Home Guard Headquarters at Busby then briefly Giffnock Police Station before being transferred to Maryhill Barracks in Glasgow and other locations before finally being to transported to P.O.W. Reception Station, Abergavenny, South Wales where he remained for the duration of the hostilities. Horn turned out be Deputy Reichsfuhrer, Rudolph Hess. Hess apparently claimed that he had flown to Britain with a message for the Duke of Hamilton in an attempt to persuade the British government to restore peace but in poor light mistook his intended destination of Dungavel House near Strathaven as Eaglesham House. Hess was tried as a war criminal at Nuremburg where an International Military Tribunal found him guilty on two counts of 'concerted plan or conspiracy' and 'crimes against peace'. He spent the rest of his life imprisoned in Spandau Prison
Spandau Prison
Spandau Prison was a prison situated in the borough of Spandau in western Berlin, constructed in 1876 and demolished in 1987 after the death of its last prisoner, Rudolf Hess, to prevent it from becoming a neo-Nazi shrine. The prison was near, though not part of, the Renaissance-era Spandau Citadel...
, Berlin.
The village today
Eaglesham Heritage Trail opened on 3 September 2011, a project of Eaglesham & Waterfoot Community Development Trust. The Trail consist of 10 interpretation Panels located throughout the village, explaining the history of the area from the 11th century to the present day. The Trail was opened by the Earl & Countess of Eglinton, ancestors of the founder of the planned village. The Funding from this project was given by ERC LEADER and Lottery Awards For All. The village today is served by a primary school, churches and library and a number of local services such as garages, shops, gallery, restaurant and tearooms, B&Bs and the historic Eglinton Arms Hotel and Swan Inn. Linn ProductsLinn Products
Linn Products is a Scottish company, based in Glasgow, that manufactures hi-fi audio equipment, home theatre, and multi-room integrated audio systems...
operate a state-of-the-art Hi-Fi
High fidelity
High fidelity—or hi-fi—reproduction is a term used by home stereo listeners and home audio enthusiasts to refer to high-quality reproduction of sound or images, to distinguish it from the poorer quality sound produced by inexpensive audio equipment...
production plant on the site of the former Eaglesham House. Clubs and societies include Eaglesham Amateurs football
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
team, Eaglesham Bowling Club and Walton Angling Club.
The Eagles pool team currently play in the East Kilbride pool league. The opening of the Glasgow Southern Orbital Road in 2005 generated considerable environmental benefits by reducing through traffic and creating a cleaner, safer environment for the local community.
Places of interest
Eaglesham Parish Church
It is probable that there has been a place of worship here since the fifth or sixth centuries. The present church was designed by Robert McLachlane and completed in 1790. The church was originally a small octagonal building and later extended. A memorial to Covenanters Robert Lockhart and Gabriel Thomson who were shot by Highlandmen and Dragoons under the command of Archibald MacAulay, laird of Ardincaple for their adherence to the Solemn League and Covenant as they returned from a coventicle on 1 May 1685, stands in the kirkyard.St Bridget's Church
St Bridget's was built in 1858 to make a local place of worship for Catholic villagers. Many were from the Irish potato famine. The church has a huge canvas of the Deposition of Christ from the Cross by de Surne.Polnoon Lodge
Polnoon Lodge, a prominent building in Gilmour Street, was originally built as a hunting lodge in the early 18th century by Alexander, ninth Earl of Eglinton after Polnoon Castle was abandoned. The original house was built in 1733, the present B-Listed house however dates to the later 18th century. Following the sale of the Eaglesham Estate in 1844 to Allan and James Gilmour, the lodge was used as the Polnoon Estate office for a short period of time before being let. By the 1920s the lodge operated as a temperance hotel and later on as a boarding house. An annexe was used a meeting room for local groups and societies. The lodge lay empty by the 1960s and was renovated by Renfrew County Council as housing for the elderly. The restoration work won a Civic Trust Award in 1971. One of the houses in Cheapside Street is a minitature of the lodge and was once occupied by the Eaglesham Estate factor.Montgomery Street
Montgomery Street was once known as South Street and commemorates the Montgomeries, the Earls of Eglinton and later Earls of Winton who owned Eaglesham Estate for seven centuries.Polnoon Street
Polnoon Street was once known as North Street and borrows its name from Polnoon Estate. Sir John de Montgomerie built a castle at Polnoon with the poind money that he received for the release of Lord Percy following the Battle of Otterburn.Motte Hill
A motteMotte
Motte may be:*Motte-and-bailey, a type of construction used in castles*Isaac Motte, an 18th century American statesman*La Motte , various places with this name-See also:* Mote * Mott...
beside the Linn Burn (NS5751) in the Orry is likely to have been site of the first wooden castle of the Montgomeries in the 12th century and recorded as being in Eaglesham prior to the construction of Polnoon Castle
Polnoon Castle
Polnoon Castle was a 14th century fortification located on a motte beside the Polnoon Water in the Parish of Eaglesham, East Renfrewshire, Scotland.-The Montgomerys of Eaglesham:...
nearby. The motte or Motte Hill was a flat-topped mound with a probable broad defensive ditch situated on the north-west bank of the Linn Burn. The south-east side was truncated in the late 18th century by the building of the Orry Mill, resulting in the removal of at least a third of the site. It was used by the local community as a site for meetings and festivals.