Monreith ( ; ) is a small seaside village in the Machars, in the historical county of

Wigtownshire Wigtownshire or the County of Wigtown (, ) is one of the Counties of Scotland, historic counties of Scotland, covering an area in the south-west of the country. Until 1975, Wigtownshire was an counties of Scotland, administrative county used for ...

, Scotland. A ruined church near Monreith is called "Kirkmaiden-in-Fernis" and was dedicated to St Medan. The chancel was rebuilt as a mausoleum for the Maxwell family of nearby Monreith House and in which is buried Sir Herbert Maxwell. Within the graveyard is the last resting place of Captain François Thurot, a French privateer captain who lost his life in a sea battle off the Mull of Galloway

Above the church on the cliff is the memorial to Gavin Maxwell the naturalist, and author of Ring of Bright Water, an otter, sculpted in bronze by Penny Wheatley in 1978. On visits back to the family seat of Monreith House, Maxwell would exercise his tame otter Mijbil on the beach below

The area around Monreith is also rich in prehistoric remains. Barsalloch Fort lies on the A747 west of Monreith between Monreith and Port William. It is the remains of an

Iron Age The Iron Age () is the final epoch of the three historical Metal Ages, after the Chalcolithic and Bronze Age. It has also been considered as the final age of the three-age division starting with prehistory (before recorded history) and progre ...

promontory fort overlooking Monreith Bay. It is thought that the fort was associated with the Novantae people.

References

https://canmore.org.uk/site/62660/kirkmaiden-old-church-and-churchyard
Villages in Dumfries and Galloway {{DumfriesGalloway-geo-stub

See also

References