Bedrule ( gd, Ruail Bheathaig) is a
hamlet
''The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark'', often shortened to ''Hamlet'' (), is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare sometime between 1599 and 1601. It is Shakespeare's longest play, with 29,551 words. Set in Denmark, the play depic ...
and civil parish in the historic county of
Roxburghshire
Roxburghshire or the County of Roxburgh ( gd, Siorrachd Rosbroig) is a historic county and registration county in the Southern Uplands of Scotland. It borders Dumfriesshire to the west, Selkirkshire and Midlothian to the north-west, and Ber ...
in the
Scottish Borders
The Scottish Borders ( sco, the Mairches, 'the Marches'; gd, Crìochan na h-Alba) is one of 32 council areas of Scotland. It borders the City of Edinburgh, Dumfries and Galloway, East Lothian, Midlothian, South Lanarkshire, West Loth ...
area of
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...
. The hamlet lies on the east side of the
Rule Water, which gave the village its name, about 4 miles west of
Jedburgh
Jedburgh (; gd, Deadard; sco, Jeddart or ) is a town and former royal burgh in the Scottish Borders and the traditional county town of the historic county of Roxburghshire, the name of which was randomly chosen for Operation Jedburgh in ...
. It lies south of the A698 between
Hawick
Hawick ( ; sco, Haaick; gd, Hamhaig) is a town in the Scottish Borders council area and historic county of Roxburghshire in the east Southern Uplands of Scotland. It is south-west of Jedburgh and south-south-east of Selkirk. It is one of ...
and Jedburgh. Other local place-names based on the river include
Hallrule
Hallrule is a hamlet on the B6357 road, in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland, on the Rule Water, near Abbotrule, Bedrule Bonchester Bridge, Denholm, Hobkirk, Ruletownhead and to the south, the Wauchope Forest.
The village's name in 1502 w ...
,
Abbotrule,
Ruletownhead and
Spittal-on-Rule
Spittal-on-Rule is a farm in the council area of Scottish Borders in Scotland. As the name suggests it is situated on the river Rule Water, and the Spittal-on-Rule bridge crosses the Rule. More specifically, it lies where Rule Water meets the ...
.
Larger settlements include
Bonchester Bridge
Bonchester Bridge ( Scots ''Binster Brig'') is a village in Roxburghshire, within the Scottish Borders area of Scotland, lying on the Rule Water, six miles away from the market town of Hawick.
History
The name of the town is said to be Roman be ...
and
Denholm
Denholm is a small village located between Jedburgh and Hawick in the Scottish Borders region of Scotland, UK. The estimated population of Denholm is 600. There is a village green in the centre. It lies in the valley of the River Teviot. Denho ...
, as well as
Hawick
Hawick ( ; sco, Haaick; gd, Hamhaig) is a town in the Scottish Borders council area and historic county of Roxburghshire in the east Southern Uplands of Scotland. It is south-west of Jedburgh and south-south-east of Selkirk. It is one of ...
and
Jedburgh
Jedburgh (; gd, Deadard; sco, Jeddart or ) is a town and former royal burgh in the Scottish Borders and the traditional county town of the historic county of Roxburghshire, the name of which was randomly chosen for Operation Jedburgh in ...
.
The Rule Water forms the western boundary of the parish, separating it from Hobkirk and Cavers. The north-west boundary is on or near the Teviot, beyond which lies Ancrum. The parish is bounded on the east and south by Jedburgh parish.
[Ordnance Gazetteer of Scotland, by, Francis Groome, 2nd Edition 1896,. Article on Bedrule]
Bedrule lies on the path of the
Borders Abbeys Way
The Borders Abbeys Way is a long-distance footpath in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland. It is a circular walkway and is in length. The theme of the footpath is the ruined Borders abbeys (established by David I of Scotland) along its way ...
, a
long-distance trail
A long-distance trail (or long-distance footpath, track, way, greenway) is a longer recreational trail mainly through rural areas used for hiking, backpacking, cycling, horse riding or cross-country skiing. They exist on all continents exc ...
.
The civil parish has a population of 185 (in 2011).
[Census of Scotland 2011, Table KS101SC – Usually Resident Population, publ. by National Records of Scotland. Web site http://www.scotlandscensus.gov.uk/ retrieved Feb 2016. See "Standard Outputs", Table KS101SC, Area type: Civil Parish 1930]
Name and etymology
The name ''Bedrule'' may be of
Brittonic origin. The first element may be ''bod'', meaning "a dwelling, a habitation", with the second being the river-name ''Rule''.
Bedrule Kirk
Bedrule Kirk, a
category B listed building, is linked with
Denholm
Denholm is a small village located between Jedburgh and Hawick in the Scottish Borders region of Scotland, UK. The estimated population of Denholm is 600. There is a village green in the centre. It lies in the valley of the River Teviot. Denho ...
and
Minto churches, and it has a memorial plaque with a link to the wartime
Enigma Project:
: IN LOVING MEMORY OF FRANCIS ANTHONY BLAIR FASSON, LIEUTENANT, G.C. R.N. – KILLED IN ACTION IN AN ENEMY SUBMARINE IN THE MEDITERRANEAN 30TH OCTOBER 1942
First Lieutenant of HMS ''Petard'',
Anthony Fasson (a native of
Lanton, Scottish Borders) died while recovering Enigma code books from a sinking German submarine.
There is another plaque in memory of Bishop
William Turnbull who, in 1451, received permission from
King James II to add the
University of Glasgow
, image = UofG Coat of Arms.png
, image_size = 150px
, caption = Coat of arms
Flag
, latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis
, motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita
, ...
to the city's cathedral.
The church was remodelled externally in 1803
and internally, by
Thomas Greenshields Leadbetter in 1914, at which time sections were also added to create a cruciform plan. The stained glass includes work by
Douglas Strachan. It lies on the southern edge of the village. The church
manse
A manse () is a clergy house inhabited by, or formerly inhabited by, a minister, usually used in the context of Presbyterian, Methodist, Baptist and other Christian traditions.
Ultimately derived from the Latin ''mansus'', "dwelling", from ...
lies a further 100m to the south-west.
Bedrule castles
Fast Castle dates from the late 12th century and no much remains of it on the west side of Rule Water.
Bedrule Castle dates from the 13th century. It was the 15th century seat of
Clan Turnbull. It stood on the west side of the river Rule, where the river forms a bow, enclosing the ground on almost three sides. Only a mound now remains to mark its site, just west of the village.
The slightly more intact remnants of a fortified tower stand on land further to the west. This is known as Fulton Tower.
Famous Residents
*
Bishop William Turnbull
*
Sir David James Hamilton Dickson RN
FRSE
Fellowship of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (FRSE) is an award granted to individuals that the Royal Society of Edinburgh, Scotland's national academy of science and letters, judged to be "eminently distinguished in their subject". This s ...
(1780–1850) naval surgeon and botanist.
Born in the manse at Bedrule the son of Rev George Dickson and spent his youth here.
See also
*
List of places in the Scottish Borders
''Map of places in the Scottish Borders compiled from this list'':See the list of places in Scotland for places in other counties.
This list of places in the Scottish Borders includes towns, villages, hamlets, castles, golf courses, historic hous ...
*
List of places in Scotland
This list of places in Scotland is a complete collection of lists of places in Scotland.
*List of burghs in Scotland
* List of census localities in Scotland
*List of islands of Scotland
** List of Shetland islands
**List of Orkney islands
**List ...
References
External links
RCAHMS entry for Bedrule ParishScottish Borders council: The Borders Abbeys WayClan Turnbull website
{{authority control
Villages in the Scottish Borders
Parishes in Roxburghshire