[KELSO (Benedictine)]
1126, Founded by David I., and colonised by Benedictine monks from Selkirk (a Tironensian abbey founded by David I. seven years previously)—The church suffers by fire during the wars between Bruce and Baliol—1523, The Lady chapel, the abbot’s house, and the dormitory demolished by Lord Dacre—1545, Stormed by the English under Lord Hertford, Sir G. Bowes, etc.—1547, Attacked by Protector Somerset—1560, Monks expelled by a body of fanatical Presbyterians—1649, The transept roofed in—1771, No longer used as place of worship.
“Bosomed in woods where mighty rivers run,
Kelso’s fair vale expands before the sun;
Its rising downs in vernal beauty swell
And fringed with hazel woods, with flowery dell,
Green spangled plains to dimpling lawns succeed,
And Tempe rises on the banks of Tweed:
Blue o’er the river Kelso’s shadow lies
And copse-clad aisles amid the waters rise.”
Standing on the bridge of five arches which spans the Tweed at Kelso, a magnificent view can be gained of this picturesque town on the northern bank, with
the ruins of its abbey beautifully situated in a well-wooded valley; also of the fast decaying walls of Roxburgh castle on the south bank, once the stronghold of that old town and demolished in 1460; of Fleurs Palace; the heights of Eildon and Mellerstain, and the confluence of the Tweed and Teviot. Kelso has risen in importance since the destruction of its neighbouring town, and has frequently suffered from pillage and fire during the English invasions. In 1715, the Pretender was proclaimed as King James VIII. by the forces assembled here.