GLAMMIS, a parish, in the county of Forfar; containing,
with the villages of Arnyfoul, Charleston, Drumglay,
Grasshouses of Thornton, Milton, Newton, and
Thornton, 2167 inhabitants, of whom 556 are in the
village of Glammis, 52 miles (N.) from Edinburgh. This
place, the name of which is of uncertain derivation, is
identified with the murder of Malcolm II., which, according
to some writers, is said to have occurred in the
castle of Glammis, at that time a royal residence, and,
according to others, to have happened in a skirmish
with his assailants in the immediate vicinity, in which
he was mortally wounded. The castle and the lands
belonging to it were granted by Robert II. to Sir John
Lj'on, ancestor of the Strathmore family; upon whom,
also, he conferred his second daughter in marriage, and
the barony of Kinghorn. On the conviction of Lady
Glammis, who was executed in 1537, for an alleged conspiracy
against the life of James V., the castle was forfeited
to the crown, and again became a royal residence;
but on a subsequent discovery of her innocence, the
honours and the estate were restored to her son. Lord
Glammis, whose descendant, the Earl of Strathmore, is
the present proprietor. The parish, which lies in the
southern portion of the vale of Strathmore, is situated
near the base of the Grampian hills, and is about ten
miles in length, varying from one mile to five miles in
breadth, and comprising an area of 15,000 acres, of which
8000 are arable, 4500 meadow and pasture, 1600 woodland
and plantations,and the remainder roads and waste.
Towards the north the surface is generally level, w'ith an
elevation of about 260 feet above the sea; towards the
south it rises by gentle undulations to the Sidlaw hills,
which are from 1000 to 1500 feet in height. The principal
river is the Dean, which, issuing from Loch Forfar,
at the north-eastern extremity of the parish, flows in a
western direction, receiving in its course the BaUandarg
burn, the Kerbet water, and the Glammis burn, and
falling into the river Isla. Loch Forfar, the western extremity
of which is within the parish, was formerly 200
acres in extent, but has been reduced to nearly one-half
by draining. There are several springs in the parish,
some of which are slightly chalybeate.
Though much diversified, the soil is generally fertile:
on the north side of the river Dean it is a light loam,
alternated with gravel and sand, and in the hollows are
some tracts of moss; on the south side is a deep brown
loam of great richness, with other kinds. The system
of agriculture is advanced, and the lands have been improved
by large quantities of marl, procured by the
draining of the lake. The cattle, of which great numbers
are reared in the pastures, were chiefly of the native
Angus breed, but this has been giving way of late years
to the short-horned: they are sent by the Dundee
steamers to the London market, where they obtain a
high price. The annual value of real property in the
parish is £7801. The plantations, which are extensive,
consist of larch, spruce, and Scotch firs, ash, elm, oak,
and birch; they are under careful management, and in
a thriving state. In this parish the chief substrata are
of the old red sandstone formation, whinstone, and trap;
and near the Sidlaw hills are some beds of slate, which
have been extensively worked: the sandstone is quarried
for building, and the whinstone for the roads. A kind
of grit is found, of which mill-stones are made for exportation;
and there are veins of lead-ore, of which
those near the village were formerly wrought. Glammis
Castle, the seat of the Earl of Strathmore, is a venerable
and very ancient structure, consisting of two quadrangular
ranges of great strength, crowned with turrets
and lofty towers, the principal of which, 100 feet in
height, constitutes the central portion of the mansion.
The buildings were repaired, and partly modernised,
under the superintendence of Inigo Jones; and other
restorations and additions have been subsequently made.
In front of the mansion is a massive pedestal, on which
are four lions rampant of gigantic size, each holding a
dial, facing one of the cardinal points. The mansion
contains a splendid collection of paintings, an extensive
assortment of ancient armour, and a valuable museum of
natural curiosities and antiques. The park in which it
is situated abounds with ornamental timber, and with
stately avenues of ancient growth leading to the castle,
one of which is more than a mile in length.
The village of Glammis is nearly in the centre of the
parish, on the great road from Aberdeen to Edinburgh.
A public library, containing about 700 volumes, is supported
by subscription; and a handsome building, containing
two spacious halls, has been erected by the
friendly societies of masons and gardeners. The manufacture
of brown linen, chiefly Osnaburghs and sheetings,
is carried on to a considerable extent, for which purpose
a mill for spinning flax was erected on the Glammis
burn in 1806; the machinery is driven by a water-wheel
of twenty-four horse power. The yarn spun at this mill
is woven, in several of the villages in the parish, into
brown linen, of which about 4000 pieces are annually
made for the Dundee market; and 7500 pieces are
woven by private individuals in different parts of the
parish, in addition to what is made from the yarn spun
at the mill. A circulating library, containing 300
volumes, has been opened for the use of the persons employed
by the mill-owner. The railway from Forfar to
Perth intersects the parish; and facility of communication
is also maintained by the roads from Aberdeen to
Edinburgh and from Kirriemuir to Dundee, which intersect
each other in the village, and by good roads in
various other directions through the parish. Fairs for
cattle and sheep are held five times a year; the older in
May and November, and those of more recent date in
April, July, and October.
For ECCLESIASTICAL purposcs the parish is within the
bounds of the presbytery of Forfar, synod of Angus and
Mearns. The minister's stipend is £25.5. 15., with a
man.se, and a glebe valued at £16. 10. per annum; patron,
the Earl of Strathmore. Glammis church, erected
in 1793, is a neat plain structure with a spire, and contains
950 sittings. The parochial school is attended by
about seventy children; the master has a salary of £34,
with a house, an allowance of £1. 2. in lieu of garden,
and fees averaging £'25 per annum. There were three
ancient castles; one at Cossins, the property of the
Strathmore family; one in the glen of Ogilvie, and one
in the glen of Denoon; but they have all been totally
destroyed. Within a short distance of the church is an
obelisk of rude design, raised to commemorate the
murder of Malcolm: on one side are sculptured the
figures of two men, above which are a lion and a centaur;
and on the other are several sorts of fishes, supposed to
have allusion to the loch of Forfar, in which the assassins
were drowned while making their retreat from the
castle. In a wood not far from the village of Thornton
is a large cairn, on which is also an obelisk, similar to
the former, and named King Malcolm's Gravestone.
Near Cossins is a third obelisk, called St. Orland's Stone,
on one side of which is a cross JJeuri, and on the other
the figures of four men on horseback, in full speed, one
of whom is trampling under his horse's feet a wild boar;
and near the base of the obelisk is the figure of a dragon.
This place gives the title of Baron Glammis to the Earl
of Strathmore, that dignity having been conferred on
Patrick Lyon in 1445.