This page was last updated on 11 August 2021 Click here to  Print this page Biography finder A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z     Index of first names St Mary's Isle Priory             St Mary's Isle Priory was a monastic house of Augustinian canons located on the Isle of Trail or St Mary's Isle in Galloway. It is alleged to have originated in an endowment of the island by King Fergus of Galloway in favour of Holyrood Abbey. Whether or not the endowment was made for this purpose, Holyrood Abbey established a daughter house there which is on record by the time of a grant by Lochlann, Lord of Galloway sometime between 1189 and 1193. A "prior of Galloway" by the name of "William" appeared alongside the Abbot of Holywood and his prior in a document preserved by St Andrews Cathedral Priory dated to 1173, and so it is possible that this William is the earliest recorded Prior of St Mary's Isle. The priory maintained its dependent relationship with Holyrood Abbey. In order to help maintain the canons and prior of the monastery, in 1323 King Robert I of Scotland granted to Holyrood Abbey a tithe of the revenues from royal pleas taken from the area between the rivers Nith and Cree. The declining health of the priory, related more generally to the declining fortunes of monasteries in Scotland in the 15th century, led James IV of Scotland to seek its reincorporation into Holyrood Abbey. This only led to a kinsman of the abbot of Holyrood becoming Prior of St Mary's Isle. In the 16th century control of the priory was secularized and held by a series of commendators. It came into the control of the Lidderdale family, and formally became part of their entirely secular lordship in 1608. The peninsula of St Mary's Isle on which the priory stood lies in the estuary of the River Dee south of Kirkcudbright. It divides the bays of Manxman's Lake and Goat Well Bay. The tidal islet of Inch lies just offshore in Manxsman's Lake. Robert Burns is said to have composed the "Selkirk Grace" whilst visiting Lord Daer at St Mary's Isle   The Prior of St Mary's Isle (later Commendator of St Mary's Isle) was the head of the Augustinian monastic community. The following is a list of Douglas priors and commendators: Prior: David Douglas, 1526 William Douglas, 1526-1528 Commendator: John Douglas, 1528-1536       Any contributions will be gratefully accepted     Errors and Omissions The Forum What's new? We are looking for your help to improve the accuracy of The Douglas Archives. If you spot errors, or omissions, then please do let us know Contributions Many articles are stubs which would benefit from re-writing. Can you help? Copyright You are not authorized to add this page or any images from this page to Ancestry.com (or its subsidiaries) or other fee-paying sites without our express permission and then, if given, only by including our copyright and a URL link to the web site.   If you have met a brick wall with your research, then posting a notice in the Douglas Archives Forum may be the answer. Or, it may help you find the answer! You may also be able to help others answer their queries. Visit the Douglas Archives Forum.   2 Minute Survey To provide feedback on the website, please take a couple of minutes to complete our survey.   We try to keep everyone up to date with new entries, via our What's New section on the home page. We also use the Community Network to keep researchers abreast of developments in the Douglas Archives. Help with costs Maintaining the three sections of the site has its costs.  Any contribution the defray them is very welcome Donate   Newsletter If you would like to receive a very occasional newsletter - Sign up!

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Last modified: Monday, 25 March 2024