1433 to 1596 - the Meldrum family at Fyvie Castle
When Sir Henry Preston died in 1433 he left two daughters who were co-heiresses, and the portion of his Estate containing Fyvie Castle and Burgh passed, by the marriage of his younger daughter, to Alexander Meldrum of the family of Meldrum of Meldrum. The estate of Fyvie then continued in possession of the Meldrums for about 163 years.
In about 1440 Alexander is said to have built the Meldrum Tower, and according to some records, probably part if not the whole of the long range of buildings connecting this with the Preston Tower, which it was designed to match. There was some evidence uncovered in the early nineteenth century of ancient foundations that appeared to be part of the other half of a square which indicated an original quadrilateral design. It seems to have been a notable structure, for contemporary writers refer to it as 'the splendid palace of Fyvie' and make the distinction between a castle (a place of defence) and a palace (a noble place of residence).
As Sir Henry Preston was said to have brought a curse to the Castle by some undefined act of sacrilege, so another curse was supposed to have been incurred by his son-in-law, Alexander Meldrum. At the bottom of the Meldrum Tower is a windowless, inaccessible chamber to which it was believed there was no means of access. It seems probable that, although ordinary dungeons existed at the Castle – in 1928 they had long ago been turned into wine cellars – this particular chamber was reserved for the victims of a more dire fate – those who were condemned to a lingering death or some drastic torture; indeed, few castles of that early date were without some such facilities for the treatment of the Laird's special enemies.
It could of course, have been merely a strong room for storing treasure or even provisions in time of danger, but whatever it was really used for, the darkness and mystery connected with it have given rise to legend – promises of untold disaster falling on anyone who tried to get into the chamber. 'The Laird of that day would surely die, and his leddy would go blind of her e'e.' Another version stated more specifically that the Laird would die in a madhouse.
In 1450 we see William Meldrum in possession of Fyvie Castle after the death of his father Alexander some time previously. Further tendering of the estate to the Crown and re-granting of the lands seems to have occurred during this time, as was normal then, and in 1502 we see James III re-granting the estate to George Meldrum, William's eldest son.
With the accession of George we come to one member of his family who did attain a considerable prominence in public life. He received charters of land from the King, and the honour of a knighthood, and he was held to be a man of importance politically. When negotiations were under way for the marriage of the infant Mary, Queen of Scots, with Edward Prince of Wales (afterwards Edward VI of England), Sir George was entrusted with the delicate mission of conducting the proceedings with Henry VIII. The so-called Treaty of Greenwich which was the outcome of this scheme, was signed in England on 1st July 1543, but is said to have been waste paper before the ink was dry. None the less, the Laird of Fyvie is stated as being sent to England in connection with the projected ratification of the treaty, while six Scottish noblemen were to be delivered to England as hostages for its fulfilment.
At home, a personal tragedy marred Sir George's life – his wife, Elizabeth Inness, had given him three sons, Alexander, William and George. The eldest seems to have been afflicted, mentally and physically, with some sort of mysterious disease, possibly epilepsy, which affected him every month. During these recurring attacks he was unable to take care of himself or his property, although in the intervals between attacks he seemed perfectly normal and intelligent too.
In one of his rational periods, on 2nd October 1511, when he was twenty, he consented to sign a document which effectively resigned his birthright and right of succession in return for an annuity of a hundred merks (an old Scottish silver coin) per annum, to his younger brother. Even though at this time he had not come of age, this document was held to be legal and binding. He was obviously intelligent enough when rational to realise that his illness would stop him being an effective Laird, and there is nothing to show if he survived long after resigning his birthright. He was apparently no longer living in 1544 when Sir George, according to precedent, tendered his lands to the Crown so they could be re-granted to his second son William, who was now heir apparent.
William himself died before 1577, and was in turn succeeded by his son George. This later George Meldrum appears to have had a troubled career, beset by debts and ever-increasing difficulties with regard to his estate. Amidst the complicated system of granting and re-granting, and yet retaining the whole, or a portion, of the estate, which seems a common characteristic of the legal procedure of that time, one result is clear. George Meldrum got himself in a lot of trouble because he had taken it upon himself to transfer Crown lands to a relative, without the consent of the Crown. However, his relative Andrew Meldrum had done everything right on his part, and accordingly remained in undisturbed possession of his newly acquired lands. Meanwhile the whole situation was further complicated by a threatened vendetta that was involved in the ownership of Fyvie.
It seems that while George Meldrum was away in France, his brother William (to whom Fyvie was already mortgaged) had a serious fracas with his neighbour, the Laird of Towie-Barclay. In 1586 Walter Barclay, Laird of Towie, attacked Fyvie for some reason, and was slain by the infuriated retainers of William Meldrum. The quarrel continued and three years later Patrick Barclay, Walter's son, was so badly wounded in a fight with the Meldrums in the streets of Edinburgh that he nearly died. Matters threatened to become even more serious, and when George Meldrum returned from France he appears to have done his utmost to restore peace and avert the protracted retaliation brewing on both sides. As usual in such cases, blood-money or compensation was offered to the victim's next-of-kin, and George Meldrum negotiated an acceptable agreement whereby Patrick Barclay was given certain lands on the estate, and further conditions cautiously laid down for securing Patrick's possession of this property, because the lands of Fyvie were greatly mortgaged.
Poor Andrew Meldrum – Fyvie seems to have been a sorry acquisition – as early as April 1593 he was already 'at the horn', at the instigation of Patrick Barclay, for the non-payment of £10,000 contained in a bond made to the deceased Walter Barclay of Towie (maybe the original bone of contention between the two families). To be 'put to the horn' meant being summoned to pay within a certain time under pain of imprisonment, and came from the ancient formality of blowing a horn to announce the enforcement of civil decrees. Besides the public disgrace involved, being distrained upon for so heavy a debt seems to have been Andrew's undoing.
George, who was nominally still Laird of Fyvie, was in an even worse plight than his relative Andrew. He could not redeem the lands which he had forfeited to the Crown through giving them to Andrew without Royal permission, yet the liabilities of these lands remained his, without the income to meet them. Debts multiplied on the heavily mortgaged estate, and finally another kinsman, with whose family the Meldrums had intermarried, came to the rescue. This was Alexander Seton, who with his mother, Lady Seton, offered to purchase the estate.
But the ownership of the mortgaged estate of Fyvie was far too complicated a matter to be settled this easily. Apart from the King, who had the suzerainty, numerous others had a pecuniary claim on its many acres. Even after all the agreements, contracts and payments had been made to sort the matter out, the estate of Fyvie still could not be legally sold or transferred without the direct sanction of the King. This was given under the Great Seal on July 26th, 1596, and so ended the Meldrum's 163 years ownership of Fyvie, and possession passed to the Seton family.
In about 1440 Alexander is said to have built the Meldrum Tower, and according to some records, probably part if not the whole of the long range of buildings connecting this with the Preston Tower, which it was designed to match. There was some evidence uncovered in the early nineteenth century of ancient foundations that appeared to be part of the other half of a square which indicated an original quadrilateral design. It seems to have been a notable structure, for contemporary writers refer to it as 'the splendid palace of Fyvie' and make the distinction between a castle (a place of defence) and a palace (a noble place of residence).
As Sir Henry Preston was said to have brought a curse to the Castle by some undefined act of sacrilege, so another curse was supposed to have been incurred by his son-in-law, Alexander Meldrum. At the bottom of the Meldrum Tower is a windowless, inaccessible chamber to which it was believed there was no means of access. It seems probable that, although ordinary dungeons existed at the Castle – in 1928 they had long ago been turned into wine cellars – this particular chamber was reserved for the victims of a more dire fate – those who were condemned to a lingering death or some drastic torture; indeed, few castles of that early date were without some such facilities for the treatment of the Laird's special enemies.
It could of course, have been merely a strong room for storing treasure or even provisions in time of danger, but whatever it was really used for, the darkness and mystery connected with it have given rise to legend – promises of untold disaster falling on anyone who tried to get into the chamber. 'The Laird of that day would surely die, and his leddy would go blind of her e'e.' Another version stated more specifically that the Laird would die in a madhouse.
In 1450 we see William Meldrum in possession of Fyvie Castle after the death of his father Alexander some time previously. Further tendering of the estate to the Crown and re-granting of the lands seems to have occurred during this time, as was normal then, and in 1502 we see James III re-granting the estate to George Meldrum, William's eldest son.
With the accession of George we come to one member of his family who did attain a considerable prominence in public life. He received charters of land from the King, and the honour of a knighthood, and he was held to be a man of importance politically. When negotiations were under way for the marriage of the infant Mary, Queen of Scots, with Edward Prince of Wales (afterwards Edward VI of England), Sir George was entrusted with the delicate mission of conducting the proceedings with Henry VIII. The so-called Treaty of Greenwich which was the outcome of this scheme, was signed in England on 1st July 1543, but is said to have been waste paper before the ink was dry. None the less, the Laird of Fyvie is stated as being sent to England in connection with the projected ratification of the treaty, while six Scottish noblemen were to be delivered to England as hostages for its fulfilment.
At home, a personal tragedy marred Sir George's life – his wife, Elizabeth Inness, had given him three sons, Alexander, William and George. The eldest seems to have been afflicted, mentally and physically, with some sort of mysterious disease, possibly epilepsy, which affected him every month. During these recurring attacks he was unable to take care of himself or his property, although in the intervals between attacks he seemed perfectly normal and intelligent too.
In one of his rational periods, on 2nd October 1511, when he was twenty, he consented to sign a document which effectively resigned his birthright and right of succession in return for an annuity of a hundred merks (an old Scottish silver coin) per annum, to his younger brother. Even though at this time he had not come of age, this document was held to be legal and binding. He was obviously intelligent enough when rational to realise that his illness would stop him being an effective Laird, and there is nothing to show if he survived long after resigning his birthright. He was apparently no longer living in 1544 when Sir George, according to precedent, tendered his lands to the Crown so they could be re-granted to his second son William, who was now heir apparent.
William himself died before 1577, and was in turn succeeded by his son George. This later George Meldrum appears to have had a troubled career, beset by debts and ever-increasing difficulties with regard to his estate. Amidst the complicated system of granting and re-granting, and yet retaining the whole, or a portion, of the estate, which seems a common characteristic of the legal procedure of that time, one result is clear. George Meldrum got himself in a lot of trouble because he had taken it upon himself to transfer Crown lands to a relative, without the consent of the Crown. However, his relative Andrew Meldrum had done everything right on his part, and accordingly remained in undisturbed possession of his newly acquired lands. Meanwhile the whole situation was further complicated by a threatened vendetta that was involved in the ownership of Fyvie.
It seems that while George Meldrum was away in France, his brother William (to whom Fyvie was already mortgaged) had a serious fracas with his neighbour, the Laird of Towie-Barclay. In 1586 Walter Barclay, Laird of Towie, attacked Fyvie for some reason, and was slain by the infuriated retainers of William Meldrum. The quarrel continued and three years later Patrick Barclay, Walter's son, was so badly wounded in a fight with the Meldrums in the streets of Edinburgh that he nearly died. Matters threatened to become even more serious, and when George Meldrum returned from France he appears to have done his utmost to restore peace and avert the protracted retaliation brewing on both sides. As usual in such cases, blood-money or compensation was offered to the victim's next-of-kin, and George Meldrum negotiated an acceptable agreement whereby Patrick Barclay was given certain lands on the estate, and further conditions cautiously laid down for securing Patrick's possession of this property, because the lands of Fyvie were greatly mortgaged.
Poor Andrew Meldrum – Fyvie seems to have been a sorry acquisition – as early as April 1593 he was already 'at the horn', at the instigation of Patrick Barclay, for the non-payment of £10,000 contained in a bond made to the deceased Walter Barclay of Towie (maybe the original bone of contention between the two families). To be 'put to the horn' meant being summoned to pay within a certain time under pain of imprisonment, and came from the ancient formality of blowing a horn to announce the enforcement of civil decrees. Besides the public disgrace involved, being distrained upon for so heavy a debt seems to have been Andrew's undoing.
George, who was nominally still Laird of Fyvie, was in an even worse plight than his relative Andrew. He could not redeem the lands which he had forfeited to the Crown through giving them to Andrew without Royal permission, yet the liabilities of these lands remained his, without the income to meet them. Debts multiplied on the heavily mortgaged estate, and finally another kinsman, with whose family the Meldrums had intermarried, came to the rescue. This was Alexander Seton, who with his mother, Lady Seton, offered to purchase the estate.
But the ownership of the mortgaged estate of Fyvie was far too complicated a matter to be settled this easily. Apart from the King, who had the suzerainty, numerous others had a pecuniary claim on its many acres. Even after all the agreements, contracts and payments had been made to sort the matter out, the estate of Fyvie still could not be legally sold or transferred without the direct sanction of the King. This was given under the Great Seal on July 26th, 1596, and so ended the Meldrum's 163 years ownership of Fyvie, and possession passed to the Seton family.