Project topics and materials
Get Complete Project Material File(s) Now! »
French influence on Scottish architecture :
As a matter of fact, the architecture of Scottish abbeys, churches and castles bears strong resemblances to the French art. Indeed, as D.Cruickshank puts it « in Scotland, still an independant nation until the Act of Union of 1707, the Auld Alliance meant strongly French architectural charactristics in castle building which, owing to unstable political conditions, were still functionally necessary »26. A great deal of Scottish architecture suggests France rather than England, just as the overwhelming use of stone and other non-English features, such as the « common stair » for example. Scots masons liked the roundness of Romanesque, with its eltic overtones so they welcomed the florid French « flamboyant » style. They used to put in a rounded arch rather than a pointed one, a semi-circular apse rather than a flat-ended one. They preferred a tall, many-sided chevet from the Ile de France to a chancel from southern England and instead of Tudor « perpendicular » they adopted the expressive buttresses and elaborate traceries and flèches of French « flamboyance ». These influences trace back to the Norman period when they came to Scotland and built castles and churches. The spiral characteritics of the French castle was already well-known in Scotland : the round towers were flanked by cone-shaped roof. This example can be seen at Pinkie or Glamis Catle (Illustration 2).
The Scottish houses were made of mud, wood and stones, from three to twelve storeys as we could see in Edinburgh, for example, between the Castle and Holyrood Palace. Then, the French style prevailed, with turrets, sheer gables, dormer windows and mouldings. The best examples of influence are Melrose and Rosslyn, as far as abbeys and churches are concerned, and Stirling and Falkland, as regards castles.
Galloway :
But Galloway can be seen as the first example of direct association between France and Scotland. Indeed, in the fourth century, St Ninian, the first Scottish bishop, built a stone cathedral of « candida casa » or « white house » at Whithorn, in Wigtonshire. He constructed this cathedral with the help of Gallic stone-masons from the Valley of the Loire27. The original walls have been unearthed recently and are really daubed white. In Galloway still, we can also see the shield-shaped castle of Caelaverock, built « com uns escus estoit de taille », according to the author of the popular Gallic poem « Le Siège de Karlaverock »28.
Dirleton Castle :
East of Edinburgh is Dirleton Castle (Illustration 3), whose design was probably influenced by the reconstruction drawing by Eugénie Viollet-Le-Duc, of the Norman Château de Coucy. The oldest part of this castle dates to the thirteenth century and it was abandonned by the end of the seventeenth century. It was begun in around 1240 by John de Vaux, from a Norman family originated in Rouen and settled in England following the Norman conquest of 1066. He also built Tarbet Castle on the island of Fidra. The castle was heavily damaged during the wars of Scottish independence. Repaired by the Halyburton family in the fourteenh century, it was acquired by the Ruthvens in 1505.
Bothwell Castle :
South-east of Glasgow, above a bent in the river Clyde, stands Bothwell castle (Illustration 4). It was built by Walter of Moray in the latter half of the 1200s. The original design was never completed because of many sieges and invasions. What we can see today is the work of the Earls of Douglas in the years around 1400. Its great donjon or tower is well-known. Dt W.Douglas Simpson, librarian of King’s College at the university of Aberdeen has described it as « the grandest piece of secular architecture the Middle Ages has bequeathed to us in Scotland ».
In the fourteenth century, Joanna Morray and her husband Archibald « the Grim », third Earl of Black Douglas rebuilt Bothwell. The hall and the chapel still stand and are impressive examples of later medieval castle architecture. Both Dirleton and Bothwell betray similarities to Coucy-Le-Château, built by Enguerrand de Coucy, father of the thirteeth century Scottish queen Marie de Coucy29.
Melrose Abbey :
As regards churches and abbeys, Melrose (Illustration 5) has been one of the emblems of French architectural influence since the fourteenth century, after the deposition of Richard II. From then on, English models were abandoned and the abbey turned to France. It was despoiled and rebuilt frequently, thanks to the benefactions of the Bruces and Stewarts and the skill of successive generations of French masons or French-trained master-builders. It was founded in 1136 by Cistercian monks at the request of Richard I, King of Scotland. The eastern wing was completed in 1146 and the other parts of the building were built in the following fifty years. It took the shape of St John’s cross, a Gothic architectural style. It is famous for its stone carvings, such as saints, dragons, gargoyles and plants.
Some of its later stonework was supervised by a French mason, John Morow or Moreau, in the late fourteenth century. He was well-known at the time in Scotland and worked at the cathedrals of St Andrews (Illustration 6) and Glasgow, Paisley Abbey and the church of Lincluden. His inscription was twice inserted into the west wall of the south transept and on one of the stairs, it can be read « Be halde to ye hende ». This sentence became the motto of the town30. We can find his tomb in the abbey, with those of Alexander II and the wizard Michael Scott. His epitaph states that he was « born in Parysse certainlie, and had in kepying al masoun work at Sant Andruys, ye hye kirk of Glasgu, Melros and Pasley, of Nyddisdale and Galway »31. Melrose was, at the apex of its wealth and fame, a miracle of French « flamboyant » architecture transplanted from the Oise to the Tweed. It remains the most French-looking ecclesiastical structure in the north. The lilies of France still decorate the roof groining in a ruined side-chapel. It remained for a long time the training ground for architects and sculptors under Abbot Hunter, Lord High Treasurer to James II of the Fiery Face and Scots Ambassador at the Court of Charles VII of France. A hundred years later, the powerful Cardinal de Guise, brother-in-law of James V and uncle of Mary Queen of Scots, was last titular Abbot of Melrose.
The university of Paris :
As regards the university of Paris, we know that it has always been a famous one, ever since the twelfth century. Well-known Scotts studied in Paris. We can mention Hector Boece, the historian and first Pincipal of King’s College in Aberdeen, who later taught in Paris. James Liddell, who brought the art of printing from France, was Regent at Paris university. He published a student’s text book which inspired the setting up of the first Scottish printing press by Messrs. Andrew Myllar and William Chepman, who learnt their craft in France. He was named Proctor of the « German Nation » in 1484. Scotsmen were four times elected to represent this nation in the latter half of the fifteenth century, such as John de Irlandia in 1461 and Chaplain and Rector in 1476. Richard Muirhead had a similar career : he graduated as master of arts and bachelor of theology and became later Rector and Proctor there. He served as Clerk Register and Royal Secretary to James IV. Several sources and registers show evidence of foreign students in Paris. Were they numerous and where did they come from ? As Hubert Fenwick puts it, in the six years between 1494 and 1501, for instance, as many as one hundred and sixty « Ecossais » are listed as having graduated on the banks of the Seine.43 The Acta Rectoria for example, show proof of the presence of numerous students from all France and Europe, including Scotland. They are registers in which each university Rector listed the names and dioceses of origin of all the graduates who swore the statutory oath of allegiance to the university.
Table of contents :
Acknowledgements
Introduction
I/ The commercial bonds between the two countries :
I-1/ The trades and regions concerned
I-1-1/ Scotland’s imports : exotic luxuries
I-1-1-1/ Wine, vinegar and oil
I-1-1-2/ Fruit and textiles
I-1-2/ Scotland’s imports : raw materials and arms
I-1-2-1/ Grain
I-1-2-2/ Woad
I-1-2-3/ Arms
I-1-2-4/ Salt
I-1-3/ Scotland’s exports
I-1-3-1/ Fish
I-1-3-2/ Skins, wool and cloth
I-2/ Transport and travel
I-2-1/ The length of the journeys
I-2-2/ Scottish ports and European destinations
I-2-3/Vessels and people
I-3/ The consequences for Scotland
I-3-1/ Food habits
I-3-2/ Furniture
I-3-3/ The economy
I-3-4/ The laws
II/ The cultural and intellectual influences :
II-1/ The French influences on Scottish architecture
II-1-1/ Origins and particularities
II-1-2/ Galloway
II-1-3/ Dirleton Castle
II-1-4/ Bothwell Castle
II-1-5/ Melrose Abbey
II-1-6/ Tombs and altars
II-1-7/ Rosslyn
II-1-8/ St Salvator’s College
II-1-9/ Stirling Castle
II-1-10/ Falkland Palace
II-1-11/ Famous French masons
II-1-12/ Holyrood Palace
II-2/ The success of French universities
II-2-1/ Their organisation
II-2-2/ The students
II-2-3/ The university of Paris
II-2-4/ Bourges
II-2-5/ Orléans
II-2-6/ Louvain
II-2-7/ The French model
II-2-8/ The Scots College
II-3/ Literature and arts
II-3-1/ Literature
II-3-2/ Music and dance
II-3-3/ Painting
III/ The consequences for the Scottish people :
III-1/ The Scottish language
III-1-1/ The French language in Scotland
III-1-2/ The French words and expressions
III-1-3/ French words in cooking
III-1-4/ Scottish influence
III-2/ Immigrants and emigrants
III-2-1/ The French soldiers in Scotland
III-2-2/ Scottish emigrants in France
III-2-2-1/ Soldiers
III-2-2-2/ Writers and artists
III-2-2-3/ Merchants, sailors and fishermen
III-2-2-4/ Craftsmen and labourers
III-2-2-5/ The clergy
III-3/ The relationships between the two peoples
III-3-1/ The profits for each people
III-3-2/ The French soldiers’ behaviour
III-3-3/ How were the emigrant Scots considered ?
Conclusion
Bibliography
