Sir George MacKenzie Picture of Coffen

Sir George Mackenzie of Rosehaugh, better known as 'Bluidy Mackenzie', died on the 8th of May, 1691.

Sir George MacKenzie of Rosehaugh was seemingly a contradictory sort of a guy. On the one hand, he was praised by some for his “cultivated and learned” literary and legal skills. On the other hand, he was reviled – still is – by many for his persecution of the Covenanters. MacKenzie looms large in the history of the Covenanters and the years known in Scotland as 'the Killing Times'. If you're a Jacobite, without understanding why as in “I just love yon Bonnie Prince Charlie” you might want to think twice about Charlie's ancestors and the impact they had on Scotland in the 17th Century. Aye, he served well the heirs of Jamie Saxt; Charles II & II and his brother James VII & II, for both of whom MacKenzie's royalist disposition emerged; delivered with a vengeance.

As Lord Advocate or King's Advocate in Scotland, MacKenzie was largely responsible for persecuting the inhuman policies of successive Stuart Kings against the Covenanters. Perhaps those policies should only and ever be seen in the light of the times, but certainly, by modern, western standards, MacKenzie must be held accountable for the deaths of something like 18,000 Covenanters. If around today, he'd be on trial at the International Court of Human Rights in The Hague for crimes against humanity, except, he had the law on his side.

Those crimes took place during the nine years that MacKenzie was Lord Advocate, when there was hardly a prosecution in which he was not involved. Under MacKenzie, torture was routinely employed, in attempts to extract confessions from the accused or, in the case of witnesses, to implicate 'conspirators'. MacKenzie also had a penchant for bending the rules and soliciting perjury in pursuit of his prejudice. According to 'Men of the Covenant' by A. Smellie, MacKenzie had a violent temper and a vicious tongue that cowed defendants and even some judges. However, MacKenzie didn't have it all his own way and there are many tales of fervently religious Covenanters, simple folk and gentry alike, who resisted his bullying, albeit many perished, despite their stoic forbearance.

Brian J. Orr, who has written about the Covenanters at length, suggests that it is probable that MacKenzie's epithet stemmed from the belief and legal tenet that a murdered person's body would bleed if touched by the murderer, because McKenzie had used that belief in a court case and secured a conviction. Orr might be right, but MacKenzie, like John Graham of Claverhouse (Bonnie Dundee to the Jacobites, mind) certainly earned his 'Bluidy' title for his persecution of the Covenanters.

George Mackenzie was born in Dundee, in 1636, and was educated at that city's grammar school, before entering King's College at the University of Aberdeen, in 1650. Afterward, Mackenzie went to St. Andrews, from where he graduated at the age of sixteen. He then spent three years studying civil law at the University of Bourges, in France. MacKenzie returned to Scotland and was called to the bar, being elected to the Faculty of Advocates as they say, in 1659. According to the on-line 1911 Encyclopedia, immediately after the Restoration, MacKenzie, who had by then become a distinguished lawyer, was appointed a 'justice-depute' and he and his colleagues were ordained by the parliament in 1661 “to repair, once in the week at least, to Musselburgh and Dalkeith, and to try and judge such persons as are there or thereabouts delate of witchcraft.”

Also in 1661, MacKenzie acted as counsel for Archibald Campbell, 1st Marquess (Marquis) of Argyle (Argyll). Now that affair only adds to the contradictory nature of the man as MacKenzie was then a defender of the Presbyterians, hence his role on behalf of Campbell. At that time, according to Brian Orr, MacKenzie professed “to be a sanctuary to such as are afflicted and to pull the innocent from the claws of his accuser.” Later on, he might have said, “I am a persecutor of the afflicted and seek to draw the innocent into the claws of death.” He was knighted around that time, before he was elected the Member of Parliament for the County of Ross. One more thing for which you might want to give MacKenzie credit is that, in 1669, during his early years as an MP, he opposed Lauderdale's move for a Union of the Kingdoms. That momentous event was destined to happen thirty-eight years later.

MacKenzie was appointed Lord Advocate in 1677, when he also then became a member the Privy Council of Scotland, in the aftermath of the Pentland Rising. His predecessor was Sir John Nisbet of Dirleton, who set MacKenzie a good example in mistreating Covenanters. Nisbet was the man who proposed that delinquents from the Rising who had not yet been brought to justice, should be tried in their absence, with no defense and liable to the death sentence. MacKenzie took a bit of time to come round to that way of thinking, but when he did, he went for it in a big way.

At the dethronement of James II and the 'Glorious Revolution', MacKenzie was, unsurprisingly, one of a minority of five against the forfeiture of the crown, but the new King, William of Orange, wasn't a vindictive kind of guy. MacKenzie was allowed to retire in peace to Oxford, where he was admitted as a student by a grace passed in 1690. MacKenzie was allowed to spend the rest of his days in Oxford, pursuing a prosecution of a different sort, that of his literary ambitions. One of his last acts before leaving Edinburgh in 1689, had been to pronounce, on the 15th of March, in his capacity as Dean of the Faculty of Advocates, the inaugural oration at the foundation of the Advocates' Library, which much later, in 1925, became the National Library of Scotland.
Sir George Mackenzie of Rosehaugh died in Westminster on the 8th of May, 1691, and he was buried in Greyfriars Kirkyard in Edinburgh, not too far from many of the Covenanters whose execution he ordered.
People Buried inside the tomb,
1669 13th Aug Elizabeth Dickson Wife,
1669 23rd May John Son,
1689  7th April Alexander Writer,
1689 28th Dec Daniel Violer a child,
1689  2nd May Hugh servent to Laird of Lie,
1690 28th May Colin Tailor a child,
1691 26th June George K A,
1692 21st March Mr Coling Advocate,
1693 1st May John Writer warrant,
1696 12th Oct Kenneth Shergan a child,
1696 26th July Dame Anne Lady Bute,
1699 12th April Mr Rorie a child warrant died of fever,
1700 23rd Nov Hector Soldier last person we can find to be put inside his tomb it was then closed up we think never to be used again.

The Scolding Brank.

The Scolding Brank was used in most part by the church. But it could also be used by anyone who deemed that a person has spoken out of turn.

After 1649 and the Kirk party had gained more power they deemed anyone who spoke out, against them or God would have to wear one.

They also deemed that if a women spoke down to, or before given permission to by a man, should have to wear one. It could also be used if you told one too many lies about someone.

The Brank is made of iron and fits over a person's head, it has a tongue depressor. Which stops the person from speaking. The whole Brank, or just the tongue part could be heated up. This in turn would scolded the person.

The person could be made to wear one while being chained to the church walls just outside the gate, or the main door into the church. In some cases if you look closely at a church you will see the marks of the chain. In others you can still find the chain on the outside of the church.

You would be chained to the wall for the full services of the day. You would be given no food or water while you were chained to the wall. You were a nobody in the eyes of those that passed you bye. You broke the will of God so shall you be punished by him. Anyone could do almost anything the liked to you while you were chained there. In most case it was human, or animal waste that was thrown at you. Mostly by kids but adults would also join in.

At the end of the service for the day. The charge would be read out, so those leaving the church could have their say about what you had done. 

Only after every one had left would you be let free, and the Brank and chain would be removed. This was so you confessed to your sin. Then you would set free to go back home, or back onto the streets to live. 

Not Just Ghosts Haunt Edinburgh and Scotland

NOT JUST GHOST HAUNT EDINBURGH,

Not Only Ghost walk the streets of Edinburgh, West Linton, Penicuik and the Pentlandhills,
Between 1930 and 1997 there have been sightings of a large cat in the areas around Edinburgh this has been seen by a few people and also there have been reports of sheep being killed around the area the cat has been seen to date it seems the cat has left humans alone. Below we list the sightings and what they saw plus reports if any made to police or the SSPCA.
1930 West Side of Pentland hills: sheep attacked however no one sees the cat or what caused the attacks to the sheep paw prints are found         beside some of the sheep and blood trail leads off up in to the hills.
1979 Rosslyn: near to where the Rosslyn Chaple is a witness saw what he thought to be a puma sitting on the path about 6 feet in front of him   the witness says it sat for a few minutes then jumped over some ferns and made it's way up a small hill where it stopped to                                       look back at him he said it was golden brown with a black bar running across it's nose at 6 feet or less the witness must have got                            a clear view so he would have known what he saw.
1982 Penicuik: an animal of the same type and colour was seen as that in 1979, this was seen by witnesses walking along the disused railway       track when the witnesses were out for a walk with there children, the witnesses described the cat as being the size of a lion and                              having a long tail it appeared to be haunting in the field next to the track. The cat did not seem to worry about it being watched                                 from the path and after a few minutes disappeared further up the field and out of sight from the group.
1982 Penicuik: about a month after the above incident the cat was seen again this time by a farmer out working on his farm, he said the cat          was out to stock his sheep and seemed to be hunting them. He said he moved his tractor towards the cat, which he said had dark  fur and a tail 3 feet long. When it heard the sound of the tractor the cat run off towards the hills at the back of his field. This was reported to the police and they with the help of the SSPCA did a search of the nearby land but nothing was found at that time.
1982 Penicuik:a few days after the farmer had seen the cat a monk from the nearby abby saw a cat like the one everyone else had seen near the  abby, he knew of the farm cat and he phoned the police again this time they thought they new they had a big cat on the loose as sheep had been killed that weekend at a farm a few miles from West Linton by a large cat.
1986 West Linton: on the road between West Linton and Penicuik a mother and daughter were traveling towards West Linton when they saw a    large cat sitting in the road watching the car come towards it before jumping a gate and running off over a field.
1989 Pentlandhills Ninemile burn: a group of walkers were out following the Ninemile burn route when they saw a large cat walking towards a      field of sheep. they lost sight of it as it jumped a wall in to the field of sheep.
1997 unkown road: witness saw a large cat lying by the road, she thought the cat might be unwell and reported it to police and SSPCA.
1997 West Linton: reports of large paw prints being found outside of a farm by the farmer.
1997 report by the SSPCA in the papers: We have had many sightings of a large cat in the Mid Lothian area and Pentland hills however we can    confirm that no cat has been found. Large parts of the area are desolate and who knows what might live up there.
Large cats have not just been seen around the area of Mid Lothian but also in West Lothian could this be the same cat as they are known to haunt wide areas of land for food, but with sheep,cows and horses all living outside on the Hills and in fields why would it need to travel with food right at hand?. Why since the last report in 1997 has the cat not been seen since. There is still reports of sheep killing the last one in 2011 at a farm just short of Edinburgh Airport but that was said to be a fox although some say the bite mark was to large for a fox to make. Another report of a cat in Edinburgh was in January 2011 when foot prints of a large cat were found in a garden in Newhaven. So what is out there? what is hunting sheep and where has it gone?.