DUMBARTON CASTLE.

Waikato Times, Volume 102, Issue 17220, 1 October 1927, Page 21 (Supplement)

DUMBARTON CASTLE.

AN ANCIENT FORTRESS I * OF THE BRITOWS. Rising up boldly from the flat alluvial plain which terminates in the peninsula beween the Clyde and the Leven, where the estuarine waters of the fluviatile. Clutha broaden out into the appearance of a lagoon, the Rock of Dumbarton, on which the castle is situated, makes a very picturesque and striking feature of the riparian scenery, writes “Kosmos” in the “Weekly Scotsman.”

The rock is bifurcated, being cleft, about halfway up, into two peaks, of unequal height, divided by a gaping cleavage, as if some mighty axe forged by Vulcan and wielded by one of the gods, had descended upon it and split it in twain. The western peak is the higher and more pointed. It enjoys the highly-suggestive and historic appellation of Wallace’s Seat, presumably from the connection of the castle with the hero-martyr of Scottish independence, for here he was held a prisoner by the Sheriff of the Lennox and Governor of' Dumbarton Castle, Sir John Stewart of Ruskie, more familiarly known as Sir John Menteith, ere being taken as a captive to London.

From this summit magnificent views of tie surrounding country may be obtained in favourable weather. To the north the eye takes in the town of Dumbarton, the varied scenery and .sights of the'Vale of Leven, 'and- the islet-studded, argent waters of Loch Lomond* majestically framed on this side of the massive bulks of Ben Lomond and his mountain train.

To the east ranges the long, rich, in-dustriallv-busy valley of the Clyde, with its smoke-stacks sending up into the heavens the black-wreathed incense-clouds from the altars of toil to the great god Business. On a very clear, day one may, perchance, catch a glimpse, in the far distance, of the misty forms in the direction of Tintock (or Tinto) Tap. Turning our gaze to the south and south-west we view the expanding lagoonlike waters of the busy Clyde, backed by the finely-swelling hills of Renfrewshire, with busy towns at their base. Towards the west and north-west the sight is entranced by the fine, promontorial scenery of sylvan Roseneath, the lacustrine expanse of the Gareloch, the purple hills of Cowal, and the sinuous contours of the mountains, forming the “Duke of Argyll’s Bowling Green.” Gibraltar of the Clyde. Like the castle-rocks of Edinburgh and Stirling, the insular massives of the Bass Rock, and Ailsa Craig, and the bold, isolated, historic bulk of Abbey Craig, near Stirling, Dumbarton Castle rock is one of those trappean basaltic, erupted hills, not infrequent in Scotland, which 'seem, to have been designed by Nature as sites for strongholds, As a fortified place, of one kind or another, this miniature Gibraltar of the' Clyde and Leven has an ancient lineage. On the wings of imagination we fly back fifteen or sixteen centuries. Steamboats, reeking smoke stacks busy industrial towns and villages, . all disappear from our view. Hark! What is that pulsating sound? It is the measured tread of stranger-war-riors—the legionaries of Antonius Pius, or his predecessors, marchiqg between the stations of the Roman Wall, which stretched its length from the estuary of Clota (Clyde) to that of Bodotrki (Forth). To theodosia they come for its castrum is a fortified Roman po^-.

'Hie scene is changed in some respects. Those agile warriors on ths: rock are not Romans, and where Theodosia once was, 'there is a British township, hearing the name of Alcluvd, the capital of the Biitons of Strathclyde and Cumbria. By the Caledonians of the north and west it is called Dunbreatuinn —the fortified hill of the Britons—and so, through various mutations, it has come down to us as Dunbarton and Dumbarton. .Full oft has t]ne tide of war surged round this rugg/d rock. In 756 the allied Piets and Northumbrians captured iL and, in 870, it fell before 'the assault of those hold and brave marauders, the Vikings. One of the Royal Castles. Since early times it has been the principal Scottish fortress on the western coast, and, as such, has been held for the Crown as one of the royal castles. When Maldwin was granted the earldom of Lennox by Alexander 11., Dumbarton Castle and the lands, port, and fisheries of Murroch, were excluded, and were reserved for the Crown. During the Bruce yersus Baliol competition for the Scottish throne, it, like other Scottish fortresses, was handed over to Edward 1., and, on Baliol being selected, was transferred to him in 1292. Four years later it was again in Edward’s hands, its governor being Alexander de Ledes. For the same monarch it was held, from 1305 to 1309, by Sir John Menteith, the captor and betrayer of Sir William Wallace to his inveterate enemies.

As already stated, Wallace w r as held a prisoner here ere being sent to London to undergo a mock trial and a cruel doom. The castle changed hands several times after the death of Robert the Bruce. In 1425, James Stewart, a son of the Regent Albany, descended upon the town and castlo of Dumbarton, consigning the former to fire and sword, and successfully assaulting the latter, the governor, Sir John Stewart, the King’s uncle, who defended it gallantly with 32 soldiers, being done to death.

Days of Siege.

In 1481 the billowing sails of Edward IV.’s fleet appeared in the Clyde, and the English laid siege to the old fortress; but that stout old sea-dog, Sir Andrew Wood, of Largo, successfully resisted the invaders’ efforts to capture it. Following upon the defeat and death of James 111. at Sauchieburn, the new Government granted the Earldom of Lennox and the governorship of Dumbarton Castle to John btewart, Lord Darnley, with remainder to his son Matthew; but the following year, 1489, the new earl, was in arms against his young Sovereign, James IV., with the result that the castle underwent an unsuccessful siege by the Earl of Argyle. Lennox’s partial success only served to draw upon him more determined efforts on the part of the King and his officers of State, lie was defeated, in a night surprise, at Tillymoss (or Tullimoss), near the Lake of Menteith, and after a vigorous siege, of six weeks’ duration, Dumbarton Castle, stoutly defended by bis four sons und their retainers, fell to the royal forces. Notwithstanding all this, the Earl managed to obtain a full pardon for himself, his sons, and followers.

In Queen Mary’s Days,

During the troubled minority of James V.’s reign, the surge of war again swept round Dumbarton’s rock and castle. On a tempestuous night in 1514 John, Earl of Lennox (son of Earl Matthew, who fell, gallantly fighting, on Flodden’s fatal field), along with the Earl of Glencairn, and their followers, broke open the lower gate and seized the castle. In 1516 the Regent Albany imprisoned Lennox in order to force him to surrender this key of the West.

Matthew, a son of John, who was the next Earl of Lennox, obtained, in 1531, a 19 years’ tenure of the castle and its revenues. He secretly espoused the cause of Henry VIII., and favoured bis designs to marry the young Queen Mary to Edward, Henry’s son. Henry's design was the cause of her being sent, when only five years old, to the cloistered shelter of Inchmahome Priory in the Lake of Menteith. Alter the Scottish reverso at Pinkie, the was taken to Dumbarton Castle, whence she voyaged to France, an event which \v"as fraught with great consequences in her chequered career. Once more Mary visited the castle during a royal progress into the shire of Argyle in 1563; and it is said that it .was for this ancient stronghold she was making when her army was brought to battle by the forces of the Earl of Murray, at Langside, on the 13th May 1568. Daring Capture, _jjust about three years after that con-

I ton .Castle was effected by anti-Marian . partisans of the Earl of Lennox, the father of the murdered Darmey, Mary« second husband. We may bo allowed to recite the story in semi-detail.'* The Earl of Lennox had been appointed Regent after the murder of the Regent Murray. lie determined that Dumbarton Castle should bo wrested from the j,pro-Marian Governor, Lord Fleming. Whth this purpose- in view, on a dark moonless night, m May, foil, Captain Crawford of Jordanhill, set out from Glasgow, after sunset, accompanied by a former member of Dumbarton Castle s ' garrison, named Robertson, and a com pany of soldiers, who were to form a part of tim attacking force. Midnight saw this party arrive at Dum Wick, about a mile from the Castle, where they were joined bv Cunningham, Laird of Drurnwimssel, Captain Hume, and a hundred soldiers. Here the perilous nature of the projected enterprise was explained to the small force, and ropes and ladders served out. Thus equipped they advanced as swiftly, silently, and cautiously as possible to their destination, where they found the prevailing conditions favourable, for while the upper part of the rock had on its night cap of thick fog, its lower; extremity was clear. The scaling ladders went set in position, their grappling irons holding on to crevices in the rock, and they mounted quickly. Then, what was that? A grating, rattling noise. The men-weighted ladder had lost its hold and slipped down with tell-tale noise. They listened -with bated breath ; but all was still above. Again the ladders were fixed in position and the hazardous ascent recommenced. The advance party soon reached a projecting ledge, where an asli tree had struck root. Speedily they wound ropes round its branches and hauled up the ladders and their comrades. Unexpected Obstacle. By this time day was breaking, and, as yet, they had only made half the as cent. Once more the ladders were positioned, and they began to mount; but now a totally unexpected impediment occurred. While mounting a ladder one of the soldiers had an epileptic seizure, and those behind him could neither pass him nor loosen his vice-like grasp. Crawford’s ready mind solved the riddle. The epileptic was quickly bound with ropes to the ladder, the men below him dismounted, the ladder was turned, and the party remounted. They , were now at the foot of the wall guarding the fortress. The footing was precarious, but the hooks of the ladders were soon gripping the copestones of the wall. Crawford’s ensign, Alexandei Ramsay, and two soldiers were up and over in a short time. They were ob served by the sentinel, whom they slew. Three of the castle guard now set upon them, but they held them at bay till Crawford and his company arrived am turned the tables upon the defenders. The heavily-weigtited scaling ladders caused the wall to break down, and through the breach thus made the attack ing party rushed. The garrison, slumbering in fancied security, scarcely made any resistance Lord Fleming, the Governor, made a peril ous descent and escaped by fishing boa! to Argyleshire. ” Among the prisoners was Hamilton, Bishop of St. Andrew’s, who was soon afterwards tried and con demned for alleged complicity in the murders of Darnley, Mary’s husband, and of the Regent Murray. He was hanged and quartered, as w r as the barbarous custom of the time. A Perpetual Memorial. During the civil war in the reign of Charles I, the fortress changed hands on several occasions, and it was occupied bv tire Commonwealth troops during the Cromwellian invasion. At the Union of the Parliaments of England and Scotland the Articles of Union provided that the four Scottish fortresses Edinburgh Castle, Stirling Castle, Dumbarton Castle, and Blackness Castle (Linlithgowshire)— should be kept up in perpetuity. The castle was visited by Queen Victoria and Prince Albert in 1847. For long the great two-handed sword, called Wallace's sword, now in the Wallace Monumental Tower on Abbey Craig, was in the armoury of the fortress. It has been stated that the true Sottish thistle is to be found growing on certain parts of Dumbarton rock.