Coupar Angus Abbey was a Cistercian monastery near

Coupar Angus Coupar Angus (; Gaelic: ''Cùbar Aonghais'') is a town in Perth and Kinross, Scotland, south of Blairgowrie. The name Coupar Angus serves to differentiate the town from Cupar, Fife. The town was traditionally on the border between Angus and P ...

, in central

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 ...

, on the boundary between Angus and

Gowrie Gowrie ( gd, Gobharaidh) is a region in central Scotland and one of the original provinces of the Kingdom of Alba. It covered the eastern part of what became Perthshire. It was located to the immediate east of Atholl, and originally included t ...

. It was founded on the old royal manor of Coupar in 1161 x 1162 with the patronage of

Máel Coluim IV Malcolm IV ( mga, Máel Coluim mac Eanric, label=Medieval Gaelic; gd, Maol Chaluim mac Eanraig), nicknamed Virgo, "the Maiden" (between 23 April and 24 May 11419 December 1165) was King of Scotland from 1153 until his death. He was the eldest ...

("Malcolm IV"),

King of Scots The monarch of Scotland was the head of state of the Kingdom of Scotland. According to tradition, the first King of Scots was Kenneth I MacAlpin (), who founded the state in 843. Historically, the Kingdom of Scotland is thought to have grown ...

, by Cistercian monks from

Melrose Abbey St Mary's Abbey, Melrose is a partly ruined monastery of the Cistercian order in Melrose, Roxburghshire, in the Scottish Borders. It was founded in 1136 by Cistercian monks at the request of King David I of Scotland and was the chief house of th ...

. It became an abbey of medium to large size and wealth and enjoyed more than four centuries of monastic life. In 1559 the abbey was entrusted by Abbot Donald Campbell to his friend

Katherine Campbell, Countess of Crawford Katherine Campbell, Countess of Crawford born Katherine Campbell ( – 1578) was a Kingdom of Scotland, Scottish noblewoman. She married twice and controlled a substantial inheritance. Life Her parents were Muriel (born Calde) and Sir John Campb ...

. The abbey was turned into a secular lordship for James Elphinstone, by

parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. Th ...

in 1606 and by

royal charter A royal charter is a formal grant issued by a monarch under royal prerogative as letters patent. Historically, they have been used to promulgate public laws, the most famous example being the English Magna Carta (great charter) of 1215, but s ...

in 1607. Today, there are almost no remains of the abbey, much of it being burned by the Protestant reformers. A collection of its charters has survived. There are some remnants of a gatehouse, and some fine fragmentary stonework from the Abbey (notably a number of tombs) are preserved in the parish church, which stands on or near the site of the medieval building. Other fragments are built into walls throughout the modern town. The original layout of the abbey remains conjectural; a drawing of 1820 held in the National Library of Scotland allegedly showing the plan has been found to be incorrect. In the 19th century women found the

Ley tunnel Mysterious tunnels or " secret passages" are a common element of the local folklore tradition in Europe. Such tunnels are said to physically link prominent places such as country houses, castles, churches, ancient monuments and other, often me ...

of Coupar Angus Abbey near the entrance to the churchyard. One went in and was never seen again, however in 1982 a local mason found the entrance again and went in some distance before finding a cave-in. It is said that the tunnel ran a further two and a half miles to a

souterrain ''Souterrain'' (from French ''sous terrain'', meaning "under ground") is a name given by archaeologists to a type of underground structure associated mainly with the European Atlantic Iron Age. These structures appear to have been brought north ...

at Pitcur. Both the Abbey gatehouse and the Abbey precincts are separately designated as

scheduled monuments In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a nationally important archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorised change. The various pieces of legislation that legally protect heritage assets from damage and d ...

Notes

Bibliography

* Cowan, Ian B. & Easson, David E., ''Medieval Religious Houses: Scotland With an Appendix on the Houses in the Isle of Man'', Second Edition, (London, 1976), pp. 73–4 * Easson, D.E., ''Charters of the Abbey of Coupar Angus'', 2 vols., Publications of the Scottish History Society. 3rd series ; v. 40-41, (Edinburgh, 1947) * Watt, D.E.R. & Shead, N.F. (eds.), ''The Heads of Religious Houses in Scotland from the 12th to the 16th Centuries'', The Scottish Records Society, New Series, Volume 24, (Edinburgh, 2001), pp. 43–7 {{Coord, 56, 33, N, 3, 16, W, display=title, region:GB_type:landmark_source:dewiki Buildings and structures in Perth and Kinross Cistercian monasteries in Scotland History of Perth and Kinross Religion in Perth and Kinross 1162 establishments in Scotland Religious organizations established in the 1160s 1606 disestablishments Christian monasteries established in the 12th century Scheduled Ancient Monuments in Perth and Kinross Former Christian monasteries in Scotland Coupar Angus

See also

Notes

Bibliography