SURVEY OF DEDICATIONS TO SAINTS
IN MEDIEVAL SCOTLAND
RECORD CREATION
METHODOLOGY
DATABASE CONSTRUCTION
The database developed by the Survey of Dedications to Saints in Medieval
Scotland is a relational database that allows the user to ask a variety of questions
of the information it contains by combining search criteria in different ways. This
arrangement means that the database can function as an aid to certain types of
analysis, as well as providing a straightforward mechanism for the retrieval of
data required by a user.
SCOPE
The project has recorded DEDICATIONS to saints which occurred roughly within the
borders of the late medieval kingdom of Scotland. In principle, the chronological
span is from the earliest references to the cult of a Christian saint, down to the
Protestant reformation of 1560. In practice, however, the earliest sources
surveyed so far are no earlier than the late eleventh century.
DEFINING ‘DEDICATION’
The project has adopted the widest possible definition of an act of DEDICATION to a
saint. The survey has not been confined to recording formal altar or kirk
dedications, but to all acts of commemoration and veneration of a saint. Saints’
names could be invoked in a variety of contexts and all have been treated as
examples of interest in, or knowledge of, a particular saint and their cult. So, for
example, we have recorded the use of saints’ feast days in the dating-clauses of
charters and other documents, topographical features such as hills, pools,
streams and wells where these bear a saint’s name, and the holding of fairs on a
saint’s anniversary. The full list of DEDICATION CRITERIA is on the database search
page:
webdb.ucs.ed.ac.uk/saints/index.cfm?fuseaction=home.adhocform
In some contexts, such as in the identification of a parish kirk, a saint’s name can
appear repeatedly without providing meaningful evidence for an active
engagement with the cult of the saint or individual acts of dedication. The name
of the patron of a parish kirk, for example, can appear in a variety of contexts
that carry no devotional significance. In many of these cases the project has
simply noted the first attestation of the saint’s name in relation to a kirk, but has
not necessarily provided references to every subsequent appearance of the kirk’s
name, unless it is the subject of a devotional act.
Likewise, some feast days are so heavily used for commercial and other
transactions that references cannot be used to indicate any special interest in the
saint commemorated. For the purposes of the project the following feast days
have been included in this category.
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Feast of the Annunciation (beginning of year)
Beltane (May Day or Invention of the Cross)
Pentecost
Nativity of St John the Baptist (midsummer)
Lammas (Feast of St Peter’s Chains)
Michaelmas
Martinmas
Hallowmas (Feast of All Saints)
Candlemas (Purification of the Virgin Mary)
References to these feast days have not automatically be recorded as an act of
dedication unless the record suggests a particular devotional significance.
SOURCES
The sources surveyed were chosen because they provide a rich seam of material
directly relevant to the debates we wish to address. The published primary
materials we have used include i) records generated by royal government, e.g.,
the Regesta Regum Scottorum series; the Register of the Great Seal, the
Exchequer Rolls, and the Accounts of the Lord High Treasurer; ii) records
generated by ecclesiastical institutions, e.g., the Register of Paisley Abbey, the
Register of the Bishopric of Moray, the Calendars of Scottish Supplications to
Rome; iii) records generated by landed families and burghal communities, e.g.,
the records of individual burghs published by the Scottish Burgh Record Society.
The Gift and Deposit collections in the National Archives of Scotland represent the
largest unpublished body of medieval material in Scotland, and the project’s
survey of these collections for evidence of veneration of saints will establish a
reference resource for other scholars.
Queries run on the database either in its downloaded form or through the web
interface produce results in list or map form. In order to be useful as a tool for
further research the sources underlying the presented data have to be clearly and
consistently identified and referenced.
There are therefore two principal categories of SOURCE in the database, namely,
printed and archival. The ultimate reference is therefore to either the PRINTED
WORK or ARCHIVAL COLLECTION surveyed by the project.
The PRINTED WORKS and ARCHIVAL COLLECTIONS have then been given a category for
the different types of SOURCE they represent or contain: episcopal register,
cartulary, account book, and so on. A date is applied to the PRINTED WORKS and the
ARCHIVAL COLLECTIONS, as well as to the individual SOURCES within them.
Each SOURCE is then divided into DOCUMENTS, that is, individual charters, notarial
instruments, accounts, letters, etc. A separate date is recorded (where possible)
for each separate DOCUMENT within a source. A short summary of the nature of the
document and its contents is provided.
From the DOCUMENTS we have derived the ENTRIES which contain the references to
the dedication. A separate date is assigned to the ENTRY as it may differ from that
of the DOCUMENT in which it is contained. For example, a charter of confirmation
(the DOCUMENT) will be later than the charter it confirms and quotes, and from
which an ENTRY is derived. The ENTRY contains a short verbatim transcription of the
relevant passage, and a summarised translation.
From the ENTRY, the information concerning the DEDICATION is made up. Here, the
link is made between the SOURCE side of the database, and the REFERENCE side. The
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reference to the act of dedication, commemoration or veneration in the SOURCE is
linked, where possible and relevant, to a standardised SAINT, a LOCATION, and a
DEVOTEE. Again, where relevant, a FEAST DAY is entered, for example, when the
DEDICATION relates to an activity which has taken place on the feast day of a saint.
DATE OF SOURCE
Where the date of the SOURCE is specified in the text, then that date is given. For
charters of confirmation, the date of the confirmation is given for the date of the
source, but the date of the original grant being confirmed (where ascertainable)
is given for the date of the ENTRY, and is used to determine the date of DEDICATION.
For undated charters in monastic cartularies, we have made reference to the
University of Glasgow’s Syllabus of Scottish Cartularies:
http://www.arts.gla.ac.uk/scottishstudies/charters/
DATA ENTRY
In this way we have tried to reflect the complexity of the printed and manuscript
sources, by reflecting their hierarchical structure. A printed volume such as the
Exchequer Rolls (a 19th-century publication) will be composed from the different
rolls; each roll will contain sets of accounts; and each account will contain a
series of entries. In the case of a printed cartulary such as the Register of the
Bishopric of Glasgow the printed volume is compiled of a number of manuscript
volumes (such as the Red Book of Glasgow Cathedral); which contain documents
(such as charters) which contain relevant entries. A printed volume may contain
a seventeenth century copy of a James IV charter which confirms a charter of
James II which contains the entry.
SUMMARY OF
Here is an example from the database.
A charter of David II, king of Scots, printed in The Register of the Great Seal of
Scotland, A.D. 1306-1424, edited by John Maitland Thomson (Edinburgh, 1912),
p. 35.
David Dei gracia rex Scottorum omnibus, etc. Sciatis nos pro salute anime
nostre, et anime Margarete de Logy dilecte nostre, et animarum
antecessorum et successorum nostrorum, etc., Deo et Beate Marie et
Fratribus Predicatoribus de Abirden ibidem Deo seruientibus et
inperpetuum seruituris, centum solidos sterlingorum nobis ab antiquo
annuatim debitos de baronia de Banchorydeveny, infra uicecomitatum de
Abirden. Tenendos et habendos eisdem Fratribus in puram et perpetuam
elemosinam, ad sustantacionem unius capellani diuina perpetuo
celebraturi ad altare Beate Marie uel Sancti Michaelis in ecclesia dictorum
Fratrum [. . .] Apud Abirden, vicesimo die Januarii anno regni nostri
tricesimo tercio.
In the database the entry is entered as follows.
i) Bibliographical information, sources, and dates.
ii) Individual documents, pages numbers, and dates.
iii) The title of the document and a summary of its content.
iv) A verbatim entry, with summary, and details of the dedications (this includes
the names of the saints, the type of dedications, and the date of the dedications).
There are sometimes problems in defining the type of dedication. For example, in
this case, does the mention in the grant of the saint to whom the recipient
monastery is dedicated (Beate Marie) constitute veneration of that saint by the
grantor? In such cases we have decided to include this type of reference as a
‘grant in honour of a saint’, equivalent to similar clauses elsewhere which are
more explicit (e.g. ad laudem et gloriam beate Trinitatis). Other forms of
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dedication present are altar dedication (Mary and Michael), chaplainry (Mary and
Michael), and placename (Banchorydeveny/ Banchory-Devenick).
The dedications link to the reference side of the database, which contains the
reference information (see below). So, there is a link to information about the
saint, and the location of the dedication: in this case, the Dominican Friary of
Aberdeen. There is also a link to the devotee: here, King David II.
The charter is dated ‘vicesimo die Januarii anno regni nostri tricesimo tercio’, that
is the 20th day of January in the 33rd year of the king’s reign (that is, 1362). All
dates are entered according to Old Style dating, so this is really 1363 in the new
system (see further, below). In this charter, David II grants ‘to God and to
Blessed Mary and the Friars Preachers of Aberdeen’. Provision is made for a
chaplain at the altar of Blessed Mary or Saint Michael. So we have the foundation
of a chaplainry in 1362, at altars which appear already to have been in existence.
So when we enter a date for the dedication of the altars, we have to say that the
dedication occurred before 20 January 1362.
There is also a facility to enter degree of confidence, to denote the level of
certainty (or uncertainty) when we assign a saint or a location. In this case the
grant is made for provision of a chaplain either to the altar of St Mary or to the
altar of St Michael, so when entering these dedications, we record a degree of
confidence of 50%.
SAINTS
Each saint is provided with a short biographical account.
NAME OF SAINT COMMEMORATED
A saint's name is given both as it appears in the documents and in a standardised
form. In the case of placenames which might incorporate a saint's name, the
placename is given verbatim from the original document.
A commonly accepted modern English version of the saint’s name is given as the
STANDARD NAME of the saint. For a variety of reasons it is not always possible to
identify the specific saint commemorated in an act of devotion (for example
where there are several saints of the same or similar name that may have been
conflated over time). Where the saint's standard name is marked with an asterisk
this indicates that the problems of individual attribution are particularly acute,
and that the standard name should be regarded as an 'umbrella' designation
gathering together references that do not necessarily all refer to a single saint. In
the searchable database the standard name is linked to the various forms under
which the name appears in the sources.
RELIABILITY OF IDENTIFICATION OF SAINT
There is a facility to denote confidence of identification: this applies in cases such
as references simply to ‘St Thomas’ or ‘St John’, where the saints could be St
Thomas the Apostle or St Thomas of Canterbury, and St John the Evangelist or St
John the Baptist, respectively.
‘TYPE’ OF SAINT
In general we have tried to follow the designation of saints found in Scottish
liturgical calendars, which generally accord with Roman practice (see Alexander
Penrose Forbes, Kalendars of Scottish Saints (Edinburgh, 1872)). A few
categories have been added, such as apocryphal saints (St Joachim and St Anne,
for example, whose sanctity is derived from their relation to biblical saints, but
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who are found only in apocryphal texts) and Divine attributes (such as the Grace
of God). The ‘Major Type’ is the principal designation of the saint in the calendars,
and the ‘Minor Type’ the secondary. For example, St Kentigern is ‘Bishop and
Confessor’, so ‘Major Type’ is ‘Bishop’ and ‘Minor Type’ is ‘Confessor’, while St
Francis of Assisi is simply designated ‘Confessor’, so his ‘Major Type’ is
‘Confessor’.
Major Type
Abbot/Abbess
Angels and Archangels
Apocryphal (e.g. St Joachim or St Anne)
Apostle
Biblical
Biblical
Biblical
Bishop
Bishop
Bishop
Confessor
Confessor
Doctor
Doctor
Evangelist
General
God or Divine Attributes (e.g. Grace of God)
King/Queen
King
Martyr
Matron
Matron
Pope
Pope
Pope
Priest
Relics
Virgin
Virgin
Minor Type
Old Testament saints
Other New Testament saints
Confessor
Doctor
Martyr
Monk
Martyr
Martyr
Martyr
Doctor
Martyr
Martyr
Non-martyr
ETHNICITY OF SAINT
The designation of a saint’s ethnicity has been restricted to saints of Insular or
North Sea provenance, and has been categorised in the following way.
Early medieval period
 Anglo-Saxon
 Northumbrian (distinguished from other Anglo-Saxon saints as a subcategory)
 Brittonic (i.e. North British, Welsh, Cornish, Breton)
 Gaelic (i.e. from Dalriada, mainland Ireland, Mann)
 Norse
 Pictish
Eleventh century on
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English
Scottish
Irish
GENERAL FLORUIT
Where the dates of a saint’s biological life are no known, a general floruit is given
in the following terms.
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Biblical
Early Christian [to 450]
Early medieval [pre 1000]
Century
GENDER OF SAINT
Where it is certain, the saint’s gender is specified so that searches may be made
according to that criterion. There are some cases of early medieval Insular saints
where the gender is not ascertainable from the name alone.
FEAST DAY(S)
The feast days for a saint are given according to their occurrence in the Scottish
liturgical calendars, or as specified in our sources, if different.
SYMBOLIC ATTRIBUTES
Where relevant, the symbols which are used to represent the saint or which
accompany the saint in iconography are given.
SPECIALIST INTERCESSION OR ASSOCIATION
Where relevant, the special association of a saint is given, e.g. Crusader, Plague,
Lepers.
DEVOTEE
DEVOTEES are categorised according to identity, gender, and social type.
IDENTITY OF DEVOTEE
DEVOTEES are identified by family name and Christian name, both of which are
searchable. In some cases, where there is a collective DEVOTEE, such as the
monastic community of a religious house or the burgesses of a burgh, the placename is given as a family name, e.g. ‘Melrose’ – monastic community, or
‘Aberdeen – Burgh Court’. In the case of female devotees whose maiden name is
not specified, the husband’s name is given in square brackets. For those devotees
where no family name is given, the Christian name only has been recorded.
GENDER OF DEVOTEE
One may search for DEVOTEES by gender.
SOCIAL TYPE OF DEVOTEE
The devotees are searchable by social type, which is often explicitly denoted in
the source. These types include,
 King/Queen
 Nobleman/woman
 Knight
 Burgess
 Townsfolk
 Peasants
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Secular cleric
Bishop
Abbot
Priest
Chaplain
Monk/Monastic community (identifying order)
Friar/Friary (identifying order)
LOCATION
Where the act of dedication is related to a particular place, it is linked to a
LOCATION in the database.
The LOCATION is identified by place-name (e.g. Edinburgh); it can be further
qualified (e.g. St Giles); and given a category (e.g. collegiate church). Churches
are categorised as cathedral, parish church, other church, chapel, collegiate
church, abbey (and order), priory (and order), friary (and order), nunnery (and
order), hospital (and order).
If ascertainable, the Ordnance Survey Grid Reference is given, which then links it
to the map on the web interface.
Location within county is according to Scottish counties of 1890–1975. The
parishes are those which appear in Ian B. Cowan, The Parishes of Medieval
Scotland, Scottish Record Society Series, 93 (Edinburgh, 1967).
The location of a site within an earldom has only been included where the sources
specify it.
DATES
Our documents bear dates in the Old Style. The Old Style of dating persisted in
Britain until 1752. Under this system, the year began on 25 March (the feast of
the Annunciation – the conception of Jesus). So, for example, 20 March 1342 Old
Style would be rendered as 20 March 1343 New Style.
The problem of the discrepancy between Old Style and New Style may be
illustrated in the dating of kings’ reigns. For example, King David II died on 22
February 1370 Old Style, but 1371 New Style, so his reign is conventionally dated
7 June 1329–22 February 1371.
All dates have been entered in Old Style, so users should bear this in mind when
searching the database.
SEARCHING BY DATES
It is possible to search for dedications by the following dating criteria.
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exact date: day/month/year
exact year
between two exact dates
between two years
by decade
by century
by a king’s reign
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SEARHES AND THEIR INTERPRETATION
If, for example, one were to perform a search under the criterion of the
dedication type, ‘image’, this would turn up 163 results. Now, these results do not
refer to 163 images, or to 163 different saints. One physical object may have
depicted the images of several saints, and this can be referred to in multiple
entries. For example, two silver-gilt crowns for Christ and Our Lady, presumably
statues, are referred to in five different inventories of the jewels and ornaments
of Aberdeen cathedral. This produces 10 of our hits.
Multiple results such as this can be useful, as they provide additional information
about changes over time. For example, the two silver-gilt crowns for Christ and
Our Lady are first mentioned in an inventory of 1436; here they are described as,
‘with stones’. In the inventory of 12 March 1464, there is new information, for ‘6
pieces have been broken from the crowns and are kept in a bag’. By 1 March
1496, the description tells us that ‘2 pieces are broken, one larger, one smaller,
with 2 stones kept in a bag in custody of the treasurer’. By 1518, the bag with
the broken pieces seems to have gone astray, and by 1549, the ‘precious stone’
of the 1518 description is described as, ‘some glass stones as it appears’.
Similarly, as with the example of the charter of David II, described above, one
might have six dedications all referring to the same entry: grant in honour of
saint, altar dedication (x2), chaplainry (x2), and placename.
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