Around 1496, Sir Alexander McCulloch of Myretoun (the “Cutlar”) sacked Dunskey and Archibald castles, along with Uchtred McDowell of Garthland. The Cutlar may have been avenging the murder of Dionysius Hamilton, likely a kinsman through the Cutlar’s grandmother, Elizabeth Hamilton. Let’s look at the events that may have led to the sacking of Dunskey, and the violence that ensued.
The first recorded owner of Ardwell was Archibald McCulloch of Ardwell who was granted the land by his brother, Norman McCulloch of Myretoun around the turn of the 15th century.
However, after Archibald, it appears that Ardwell reverted to Norman’s son, Eliseus. (Archibald may not have been survived by male heirs).
By 1478, Eliseus McCulloch of Myretoun was dead. Eliseus appears to have been succeeded by sons Alexander and Andrew, who each claimed Myretoun. Alexander must have thwarted Andrew’s possession of Myretoun by invoking some contractual condition. Andrew protested by breaking a plate over the property. A year later, clean title was still not accomplished because brothers Alexander and Andrew were each listed as owners of Myretoun and Ardwell in 1479.
Around this time, in 1478, Andrew McCulloch robbed Eliseus’ widow, Elizabeth Hamilton. If Elizabeth was his mother, he certainly was a bad-behaving son.
It was likely that around 1478, Eliseus’ daughter married a cousin, Henry McCulloch. Henry may have been the son of Thomas McCulloch of Kilstay. (Thomas, in turn, likely received Kilstay as tocher from Uchtred McDowell of Garthland – the father of the Cutlar’s accomplice in sacking Dunskey).
Henry likely received the Killasser estate out of Ardwell by marrying a daughter of Eliseus. (Henry named a son Finlay, perhaps for his brother-in-law, Finlay McCulloch of Torhouse).
Could Andrew have succeeded to Ardwell (less the Killasser estate) as a consolation prize for his claim on Myretoun? This might explain the bad blood the follows.
Ultimately, Alexander held possession of Myretoun. In 1483, Alexander McCulloch of Myretoun contested the marriage of Archibald McCulloch of Ardwell to a Mure woman. Archibald had not gotten the approval of Alexander or his father, Eliseus. (The Mures were known allies of the Kennedys of Cassilis, the McCulloch’s archrival).
In the 1483 marital dispute, Alexander was described as Archibald’s lord. We don’t know if Archibald was Alexander’s nephew (son of Andrew), or perhaps a grandson of the first Archibald McCulloch of Ardwell. If Archibald was the grandson of the prior Archibald McCulloch of Ardwell, it is not clear how that family reclaimed possession of the estate which seemed to have reverted to Alexander and Andrew.
In 1497, Archibald McCulloch of Ardwell was murdered by Patrick McCulloch, in league with William Murray and George Tait. In 1499, following the murder of Archibald McCulloch, Alexander McCulloch of Myretoun was ordered to pay Archibald’s widow, Ephame Carlisle for the use of some of the Ardwell lands. This may have been a remission payment for involvement in the murder of Archibald. Perhaps Patrick was Alexander’s son. It seems likely that the slaughter of Archibald was related to the sacking of Ardwell and Dunskey, and possibly the prior Myretoun land dispute.
In 1498, Andrew and James McCulloch, along with Patrick and Andrew Muirhead, paid remission for the slaughter of Dyonisius Hamilton. We might surmise that Andrew and James were close kin of Archibald McCulloch of Ardwell. (Perhaps Andrew was named for his grandfather). The slaughter of Hamilton, likely a close cousin of Alexander Mcculloch of Myretoun, likely prompted the sacking of Dunskey and Ardwell.
29 August 1496 “Anent the complaynt made be Wilzeam Adaire of Kilhelt and Archibald Makculloch of Ardwell apoun Schir Alexander McCulloch of Mertoune, knicht Owchtre McDowell of Gerthloy (Uchtred McDowell of Garthland) and thare complicis, that quhair thai war dylatit of art and part of the slauchter of umquhile DYONYSE of Hammyltoun, quilkis was slane on Mydsummer evin that last was, in the toune of Wigtoun, thai bean innocent thareof, and was redy al tymes to underly our soverane Lordis lawis tharefore as was allegiit, quharefore the persons forsaid with thare complicis assegit the place of DUNSKAY pertenyng to the sade Wilzeam Adair and rasit fyre and byrnt the sammyn and skaithit the said Wilzeam in househald geire tharethrou, extending to the soume of xl li., throw the quhilk fyre rasing thai birnt ane box pertenyng to Elyse McCulloch quhilk thai had in keping and in it j li. and the skaith of the birnyng of the sade Wilzeam house extending to xx li., and als that thai tuke and spulzeit fra the sade Wilzeam foure horses with a part of barkit hydis, as was rychtsa allegiit, and als fra the sade Archbald McCulloch and his pure folkis insicht gudis of househald to the availe of xxx li., togidder with ix of ky and oxin, xviij of schepe, xvj horses and meris, tane be the sade Schir Alexander and his complicis as was inlikewise allegiit.”
One has to wonder what was in Elise’s box? Could this have been a charter box? Is it possible that Dionysius Hamilton was in possession of the McCulloch charter box, safeguarding it from Archibald McCulloch of Ardwell? If so, perhaps all the resulting murders and burned castles related back to the title dispute between brothers Alexander and Andrew.
Whatever the cause, the violence did not end here. Nine years later, Patrick McCulloch would die at the hands of Patrick Dunbar of Kilconquhar (who paid remission in 1507). Although the murder occured in Wigtown, Dunbar was from Lothian. So, it seems unlikely that this murder was related to the dispute with McCulloch of Ardwell. However, it seems likely that The McCullochs of Myretourn pointed the finger at Andrew and James McCulloch of Ardwell – the killers of Dionysius Hamilton. Still years later they were wanted men.
In 1513, George MacKenzie paid remission for seeking Andrew McCulloch of Ardwell to murder him. Andrew was also abused by Thomas Blair.
If Patrick was Cutlar’s son, he did not survive his father. The McCulloch of Myretoun male line died out with the deaths of the Cutlar and Symon McCulloch. Brothers Alexander and Symon attempted to keep Myretoun in McCulloch hands – but away from the McCullochs of Ardwell. First, the Cutlar attempted to marry his daughter off to a cousin in the Cardoness line. That marriage would have violated the laws of consanguinity, and the would-be husband fell at Flodden. Instead, Symon arranged the marriage of his daughter to Henry McCulloch of Killasser around 1532.
Thereafter relations improved among the McCulloch branches, although Golfreid and Gothray McCulloch of Ardwell tended to have a litigious streak. When Henry McCulloch’s grandson, William McCulloch of Myretoun, migrated to Ireland, William’s daughter married John McCulloch of Ardwell, then purchased Myretoun from Margaret McKie, relict (surviving sister-in-law) of Dr. John McCulloch of Myretoun (also from the Killasser line) in 1635.
Like an inspector solving a murder mystery, this cold case may come down to two very tangible items: a broken plate, and a box. I believe Eliseus box contained the charter and contracts relating to title to Myretoun. The sacking of Dunskey and Ardwell, and the death of Dionysius Hamilton by James and Andrew McCulloch and the killing of Archibald McCulloch by Patrick McCulloch all pertain to that box – and Andrew McCulloch angrily breaking a dish on the Myretoun estate.
Image: By Dunskey Castle by The Carlisle Kid, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=113499079