BOSTON PUBLIC tlBl^RY / This is an authorized facsimile of the original book, and was produced in 197^ by microfilm- xerography by Xerox University Microfilms, Ann Arbor, Michigan, U.S.A. y CHRONICLES OF THE ARMSTRONGS EDITED BfY^ * JAMES LEWIS ARMSTRONG, M. D. • • • _ > » •• ;•. .•- THE MARION PRESS JAMAICA, QUEENSBOROUGH, NEW-YORK 1902 fi ymmmim MHut -ift =€55 2 c z u 35 >■ (E < o 8 Ml Z A — M = W = W»= I 0> = S m o z h z X I/) < «Or !>» = W = f?:b .< itDart> anti t)i0 ^on 13 Tradition of the Name. ^S'HE great and widespread Border family of Armstrongs derives its surname from the fol- lowing circumstance. An ancient king of Scotland had his horse killed under him in battle, and was immediately remounted by Fairbeorn, his armor- bearer. For this timely assistance the king amply re- warded him with lands on the Borders, and to perpetu- ate the memory of so important a service, as well as the manner in which it was performed, — **for Fairbeorn took the King by the thigh, and set him on his sad- dle," — his royal master gave him the appellation of Armstrong, and assigned to him for a crest an armed hand and arm ; in the left hand a leg and foot in armor couped at the thigh, all proper. The above is the legend of the Armstrongs of Ballycumber. The crest has been used for cen- turies by many of the Armstrong families in Ireland. (Burke.) The Tradition of the Three Swords. iN old tradition of undoubted antiquity, found among the Armstrongs about Belcoo, County Fermanagh, is as follows. "Fayborn seeing the King of Scotland in great peril and partially crippled from the fall of his horse while 14 Cijrontclej^ of t^t %xm0ttimi^0 in the fierce of the battle, worked to his rescue and, passing his left arm around the King's body under his arms, fought his way with a great Sword through the enemy to a place of safety, assisted by the King who thereupon had both arms free and was armed with a naked sword in each. For this wise and courageous act Fayborn was knighted with land and castle upon the Border and was thereafter called Sword of the Strong- arm. Therefore the Armstrongs of Belcoo carry the shield with the three arms upon it and their crest is the Sword of the Strongarm." This armorial device may be found upon many an- cient stones of the Border, and also in Ireland. It will be noticed that many of these stories end by telling of the reward the hero received. Boethius, Holinshed, and other early historians do the same. Among those names we find several estate names of Liddesdale, to- gether with the old Danish name of Merietoun, later known by the Norman name of Maingertown. (See 1 54 1, 1597.) "In that counsall tha war maid erlis all; and many surnames also les and moir Wes maid that tyme qu'hilk wes nocht of befoir." T6e Sagas of the Fairy Bear. ^^^^ORFOEUS the historian gives the Danish ver- sion of this saga at some length. The follow- ing is a short analysis of the ancient tale. "Hringo, king of Upland, had an only son, called Biorn, the most beautiful and most gallant of the nor- thern youth. At an advanced period of life, the king Cradition^ of ^ttDortJ anH ^i^ Jton 15 became enamoured of a 'witch lady,' whom he chose for his second wife. A mutual and tender affection had from infancy subsisted betwixt Biorn and Bera, the lovely daughter of an ancient warrior. But the new queen cast upon her stepson an eye of incestuous pas- sion ; to gratify which, she prevailed upon her husband, when he set out upon one of those piratical expeditions which formed the summer campaign of a Scandinavian monarch, to leave the prince at home. In the absence of Hringo, she communicated to Biorn her impure affection, and was repulsed with disdain and violence. The rage of the weird stepmother was boundless. * Hence to the woods!' she exclaimed, striking the prince with a glove of wolf-skin; * hence to the woods! subsist only on thy father's herds; live pursuing, and die pursued ! ' From this time the prince Biorn was no more seen, and the herdsmen of the king's cattle soon observed that astonishing devastation was nightly made among their flocks by a black bear of immense size and unusual ferocity. Every attempt to snare or destroy this animal was found vain ; and much was the unavail- ing regret for the absence of Biorn, whose delight had been in extirpating beasts of prey. Bera, the faithful mistress of the young prince, added her tears to the sorrow of the people. As she was indulging her melan- choly, apart from society, she was alarmed by the ap- proach of the monstrous bear, which was the dread of the whole country. Unable to escape, she waited its approach, in expectation of instant death; when, to her astonishment, the animal fawned upon her, rolled him- self at her feet, and regarded her with eyes in which, 18 Cf^vonitUft of tfje %tm^mngff spite of the horrible transformation, she still recognized the glances of her lost lover. Bera had the courage to follow the bear to his cavern, where, during certain hours, the spell permitted him to resume his human shape. Her lover overcame her repugnance at so strange a mode of life, and she continued to inhabit the cavern of Biorn, enjoying his society during the periods of his freedom from enchantment. One day, looking sadly upon his wife, *Bera,* said the prince, •the end of my life approaches. My flesh will soon serve for the repast of my father and his courtiers. But do thou beware lest either the threats or entreaties of my diabolical stepmother induce thee to partake of the horrid banquet. So thou shalt safely bring forth three sons, who shall be the wonder of the North.' The spell now operated, and the unfortunate prince sallied from his cavern to prowl among the herds. Bera fol- lowed him, weeping, and at a distance. The clamour of the chase was now heard. It was the old king, who, returned from his piratical excursion, had collect- ed a strong force to destroy the devouring animal which ravaged his country. The poor bear defended himself gallantly, slaying many dogs, and some huntsmen. At length wearied out, he sought protection at the feet of his father. But his supplicating gestures were in vain, and the eyes of paternal affection proved more dull than those of love. Biorn died by the lance of his father, and his flesh was prepared for the royal banquet. Bera was recognized, and hurried into the queen's presence. The sorceress, as Biorn had predicted, endeavoured to prevail upon Bera to eat what was then esteemed a Crotiitiotti^ of ^itDarD anti i)t0 Jtm 17 regal dainty. Entreaties and threats being in vain, force was, by the queen's command, employed for this purpose, and Bera was compelled to swallow one morsel of the bear's flesh. A second was put into her mouth, but she had an opportunity of putting it aside. She was then dismissed to her father's house. Here, in process of time, she was delivered of three sons, two of whom were affected variously, in person and disposition, by the share their mother had been compelled to take in the feast of the king. The eldest, from his middle downwards, resembled an elk, whence he derived the name of Elgford. He proved a man of uncommon strength, but of savage manners, and adopted the pro- fession of a robber. Thorer, the second son of Bera, was handsome and well-shaped, saving that he had the foot of a dog, from which he obtained the appellation of Houndsfoot. But Bodvar, the third son, was a model of perfection in mind and body. [These names correspond to the first Liddesdale names of Elkwald, Loumaine, and Fairbairn.] He revenged upon the necromantic queen the death of his father, and became the most celebrated champion of his age." [Historia Hrolfi Krakae Haffniaey 171 5.) Saxo Grammaticus, who wrote about Siward's time, gives a more plausible but nevertheless wild enough version of this story. He mentions Beorn and Siward's names. The next version, which is told by Johannis Bromton in the Chronicon, is stated by Ridpath to have been the one recited upon the Border. "There was in Denmark a noble Earl of Blood Royal that had one only daughter who to recreate her- 18 €f)ronicIejtf of tfyt $CrmjB(tron0jtf self, walking with her maids into a wood not far from her father's house met with a Bear, which bear having put the maids into so great a fright as caused them to flee, seized upon the Damsel and then ravished her by which rape she brought forth a son that had ears like a bear who was thereupon called Beorn and succeeded in that Earldom. This Earl of the Arm Strong had a son named Siward." (Bromton.) The third version of the Fairy Bear was recited in Fermanagh. It runs as foUows. "There was in olden times a witch who hated her son who married a fay. So the wicked mother changed her son to a Bear and the only way he could get anything to eat was by killing the Deer of the forest [or Elks of the wood; that is, the Elwods], the flocks of the fields [Far bairns], and the wolves of the desert [Lou- maines]. One day he met his wife in the woods and she immediately knew him by his eyes. After that she met him frequently. At last he was killed by some Forresters. After his death his wife had three children the first was like a Wolf, the second like a deer, and the third was like a sheep (or bear) and very fair." In Denmark the White Bear was called Asa's bear and the Fairy Bear, whence comes the name Osbeorn. (Grimm.) The following is the Terwinney version of the Fay- bairn. "The first Armstrong married a dark eyed fay with a wealth of rich black hair, she was called a prin- / cess. Until that time our ancestors had blue eyes and fair hair and they were therefore called such names as Fair Johnnie and Fair Billie but after that we had Black Cratittionjer of ^f^itoarb atOi W ^on 19 Armstrongs and White Armstrongs." This tradition was also applied to the first Armstrong born in Ireland, (see 1650,) but it was recited until recently upon the Border and was applied to the house of Whithaugh. T^e Tradition of the Sword, the Arm, and the Tree. ^"^^HE great Border ancestor of the Armstrongs '^'^ was a duke of Northumberland, his emblem a sword, one of his distinguishing achieve- ments, famous in history, that of encountering his enemy with a tree which he grasped by the trunk." This legend is strongly indicated by the carvings in Eskdale and Liddesdale, and also by the monuments at Agahvea, Fermanagh. It is called the Terwinney ver- sion. The Tradition of the Arm and the Tree. [ERE is the tradition as it was known by Boc- thius and recorded by Holinshed in The Chron- icles of Great Britain. "Malcolm hastening after Macbeth, came the night before the battell unto Birnane wod, and when his armie had rested a while there to refresh them, he commanded euerie man to get a bough of some tree or other of that wod in his hand, as big as he might beare, and to march forth therewith in such wise, that on the next morning they might come closelie and without sight in this manner within view of his enemies. On the morrow when Makbeth beheld them coming in this sort, he first marvelled what the matter ment, but in the end re- 20 ttoarti anti f^iit Mn 31 saga of the Fairy Bear is at the bottom of the early names and heraldry of the Armstrongs, as also of cer- tain other Scottish and English Border families. Certain shields of the Elliots, called also Elwods, Elyards, and Elwalds, of the Alfords who came from near Croyland to the Border, of Loumanes, of the Liddals, of the Armstrongs, and other Border families undoubtedly pictured this tradition. Now these Liddesdale fam- ilies were called after their shields, and so were the Forresters and others. The legend of the Fairy Bear is found first in the Edda, then in old Danish (Tor- feus' History of Hrolfe Kraka)^ and in the South Ger- man (Die Missgeburt). It has travelled through many centuries; it was undoubtedly known in the eleventh century, and applied to the barbaric ancestor of Siward. This legend was carried from Denmark to Northum- berland, and from the Border to Fermanagh. Its seem- ing coarseness would, in these times, naturally keep it out of print and from the refined and moral, but it was known by some of those descending from the Borderers in' Fermanagh. I heard the Irish version when a child from the Johnstons, about Irvinestown, Fermanagh, who came over from the old estate. I also heard an- other version from an intelligent farmer and distant relative from near Irvinestown. This story is referred to upon the old stone door in Agahvea. The devices of the Littles gave the sheep or bear holding the **suord," the crescent, and mullet, and in addition other distinctions according to the generation (not house) represented. If we may rely upon this lore, and it is well substantiated, (see for example, History of 32 €f^xonit\cti of tte ^mijs^trongier Liddesdale^ p. 103 and 178,) the origin of the Arm- strongs is also indicated by these shields and devices. In the Nether Kirk churchyard at Kirktown on the Ewes water were two monuments, one of the Littles of Meikledale, the other of the Armstrongs of Sorbie, both the same size and both having peculiar carvings upon them. These two stones give us the mythological history of the Armstrongs as follows: The sheep or bear for "Fairbairn" (Fair or Far meant also sheep in Anglo- Danish and O. E.); the sword for "Suord"; the thick arm for *'of the Armstrong," ancestor of; the mullet and crescent for "third generation or house, and second son," ancestor of Little; the cross moline and crescent for "eighth generation and second son," who was Simon. The second shield, as has been already explained, stands for the "third house or generation and second son," starting from Fairbairn Siward and indicating the first of Liddesdale, i. e., the first lord of Mangerton. €ratiiti(mj$ of 4>itDarti anti i)M ^on 33 The "arm and hand grasping the tree" illustrates the achievement of Siward at Birnam Wood, and iden- tifies him. This fay-bairn was the great hero ancestor; all the genuine old Armstrong shields start from him. Several other Border families too assumed the mullet and crescent as charges for their shield ; some heralds say- that they bore such distinction to mark their cadency from elder branches. In old Border times many of the moss-trooping families were proud of their connection with the Liddesdale folk, and a few assumed charges sug- gested by the shield of our own ancestors, such as the oak branch, leaf or mullet, and crescent. Some of the Johnstones, Hendersons, and Irvings had symbols of the Armstrongs upon their escutcheons. There is an inter- esting illustration given of two shields upon page 182 of the History of Liddesdale by R. B. Armstrong. These shields are in Castleton churchyard, and to the memory of "Mary Forrester, spouse to John Henderson in Millsteads who died 29th of April, 1728." The first has a deer and three hunting-horns upon it, the second has ** upon a bend, between a mullet and crescent, three piles." These points or triangles signify chiefs, and also occur several times upon the remarkable slab for- merly at Gillside, which presented a complete pedigree of the House of Maingertoun. Other parts of the legend will be found upon the ordinaries of the Liddals of Tynedale, which are charged with bears* heads, and probably upon the bear stones of Cumberland. In Tynedale we find ancient stone references to the legend in the crest of the Hiltons of Hilltown, which gives a man's head with a pair of long pointed ears and, grow- 3 34i €\^twitk0 of ti^e SCrm^trong^ ing backward from his body, a pair of elk-horns. If the lower extremities of this changeling had been de- picted we would find them to have represented a sheep. This is not, as has been conjectured, a representation of Moses, who is said to have had horns rising from his head. In mythology Moses had both horns and ears upon his head; but the carving in Tynedale gives only the long pointed ears growing from the side of the head, and the horns depicted are elk-horns and attached to the body of the man, clearly illustrating the Norse ver- sion of the old legend of Biorn and his fairy children. Upon an ancient stone, presumably an Armstrong monument, in Cambo, Tynedale, we find a sword, and a warrior rising from an animal resembling a bear. Buried under the church at Newcastle-upon-Tyne was found carved upon a broken tombstone a hand and sword, and the tree with two roots; the arm was upon that part of the stone which had been broken off at the wrist and lost. After that which has been previously stated it is not necessary for me to explain the meaning of these oldest stones, but it appears to me that the former refers to Beorn and his son Siward. The sword is of the same pattern as found at Ettleton and upon the Milnholm Cross. The shield of the Liddals of Tynedale, which is charged with three bears' heads, is also significant, for when added to that of the Littles of the Ewes-water, it again illustrates the bear legend of which Siward's birth, as related in the Brompton Chronicles, is a part. There are also stones at Shafto- crags in Tynedale, and many which have sunk out of sight up the Raltonburn in Liddesdale, as well as those Cratiition^ of jC^itDarti anti Ijijtf ^on 39 mentioned in a former letter, all of which arc heraldic illustrations of the old legends of Fairbairn Siward of the Strong Arm. This legend not only gave the Arm- strongs material for their heraldic devices, but also other families, some of w^hich have long since died out. It is singular that the most prominent and near neigh- bors to our old estate of Terwinney, in Fermanagh, arc the very ones of vv^hom we have been writing, i. e., the Hendersons, Fosters, Elliots, Irvings, Alfoords, Littles, and others. At Agahvea, near Brookboro, the burial place of these Border families, there are many shields, and we may point out with warrantable assurance the sculptured coat-of-arms that decorates the tomb of Christie's Will's immediate descendants, whose names may still be faintly discerned. The house of Whithaugh, the most ancient in char- acter of our Border ancestors, evidently maintained the spirit of the old Anglo-Danish blood longer than the more orderly house of Maingertoun. It appears as though they never were Christians, for they held fast to the old names and customs, carried off priests, burnt down churches, and openly avowed the country, Liddesdale, was their own and they would serve neither the King of Scotland nor King Harry of Eng- land, but would rule as their fathers did. Lord Hamil- ton, in his story ** Outlaws of the Marches," intimates the existence of an old tradition to the effect that one of the ancestors of Simon the Larde married a gypsy fey, and that was why they, the Whithaughs, had lucken brows and dark hair. I do not know whence he obtained it; perhaps it is fiction; but that strain of 30 Cbrotticlejtf of t^t SCrmiertrongjtf tradition is found running all through the history of the family. In fact, this was one of the causes that the Terwinney Armstrongs gave for the names Fair Johnnie and Black John, the Black Armstrongs and the White Armstrongs. Upon the Border the name of Fairbairn was used in a generic sense and denoted changeling or fairy-child. One would have a difficult task to-day finding this name used in any other way than as a sur- name. But the name was given to certain mythical characters of Northumberland such as Fabyn Flye, and a real character called Hobbie Elliot of Castleton, who lived about fifty years ago. It may have originally meant sheep-boy or far-barn (Danish, Anglo-Danish, and Old Lowland English). It may have meant simply a blonde child, but it stood for Fairy Bear. This is the meaning Kingsley gave it, and it is the name im- plied by the legends. It could have been and probably was used, as far as concerned the legendary hero, to de- scribe all of these physical semblances. They were just the personalities the Bear legend attributed to him. The ballad "Willie's Ladye" is also interesting in this connection. It is one of the oldest of the Liddesdale songs and probably an Armstrong ballad, as are several others of the Border not accredited to them. (See In- troduction to ballads of "Kinmont Will" and "Willie's Ladye" in Child's Ballads of England and Scotland.) But to return to the Whithaughs. As before men- tioned, the oldest symbols of the Armstrongs that we know of, and which are still used, were the sword, the arm, and the tree. We find these upon stones evidently erected before 1320. I refer to the Milnholm Cross CraHtttottj^ of ^itDard and I)i^ ^on 37 and the oldest monuments of Ettleton. Over the door of the present residence of Whithaugh is the keystone of the entrance to the old castle, and upon it is the fol- lowing device: BlgetULANClTrRMST - ~ - xowq Date of re- building. Of the inscrip- tion only the letters Si could be discerned. Berserk shield = Bear-skin. 3 tcoms = Bimani Wood. Sword = of Siwtrd. The character of this shield does not belong to the period of 1559, at which time Whithaugh was rebuilt, but, although carved at that time, is probably a re- production of one of a very old form of armorial bear- ings. At first glance the shield appears to contain a chevronnel couped, but upon close inspection of this supposed ordinary we find that the peculiar shape of its sinister end is not accidental. Upon the old stone door of the vault at Agahvea we find among other Border pic- tures this same symbol, only held just at the end by the hand of a patron saint. I believe this peculiar termina- tion to represent the handle, it may be to a wood rule or glazier's stick, whereby the worker grasped the in- strument. Indeed, just such insignia were used by the 38 Cf]ironiclcj( of tf)e ^Crmieitrongjtf ancient guilds of Newcastlc-upon-Tync. It would be interesting to know whether St. Waltheorf, Siward's younger son, was the patron saint of the house of Whithaugh. The religious wave which became very strong upon the Border towards the end of the sixteenth century discouraged the preservation of the older heathen tra- ditions and devices. There is much material evidence of this. Had it not been for the singing dairy-maids and farm-hands, as well as the most untamed remnants of the Liddesdale folk, — such as Ringen's Tam and Christie's Will, — it is doubtful whether we would have had any of the riding songs to enjoy to-day. The Maingertoun shield of 1583 is a tame modification of the one of Whithaugh of 1559. The marring of the Milnholm Cross, which formerly showed certain suspicious and mysterious hieroglyphics upon its face and were cut away, is quite demonstrative of the regard the Liddes- dale folk of the eighteenth century had for these relics. Walter Scott of Castleton hailed the departure of the fairies and bogles with evident satisfaction. Perhaps it was discovered that the old symbols and traditions em- bodied a germ of the national idolatry of the ancient Danes. My own grandfather thought there was some- thing unholy in perpetuating the history of those times, as even to-day the people of Fermanagh do, who tell such stories slyly. It is interesting to note the names of localities round about Maingertoun. Such names as Langlands, Lang- holm, Mer(ton) (see Boece), ( Canon )bie, were evident- ly of Danish origin. Tarras stood for Thor, Tinnis CraDittottj^ of ^itoarti anti I)i^ ^on 39 for Diens or Woden, Wcdoshelis became Woodhouselec of ballad renown, a stronghold of the Armstrongs. Lid- desdale was anciently called Ledesdale, and meant the Dale of Ledes or the Valley of Song; in "Willie's Ladye" it is called the "Land o* Ledes," and an old Low- land proverb says "ilka land has its ain lede." The word lede is the same as the German lied; in Germany there are a number of Liederthals and Liedahls. The name is found also in Norway, Sweden, and Denmark, as are many other names of places near Maingertoun, including those already mentioned. The names of animals are very noticeable in Liddesdale. Burnmouth was Baer- mouth or Bear's-mouth. A little further up this burn we find Whisgills or Oursegills, or Bear's-gill. Lou- mane, or Wolf's-paw, a neighboring name found in his- tory previous to 1300, exists to-day perhaps as the Mains. Powis or Paugh Ourse was Bear's-paw. Chien- gill meant Dog-gill. Main-ger-toun meant Hand- weapon-town. This was the Norman abbreviation of the crest of the "arm and hand holding a sword," sometimes represented by the "hand holding a spear." The word "manus," or hand, figures in almost every motto of the Armstrongs. The former crest was an illustration not only of the name Siward of the Strong- Arm, but also of the act suggested by the name of Siward, which in English is Victory-protect. The old- est motto and the latter crest illustrate Siward's death, who, when told that his death was drawing near, donned his armour, waited for the enemy as beseemed a warrior, in an erect position as though for a battle, and died with upraised arm clutching his spear, Invic- 4iO €f^vimiclt0 of tf)e %ttn0txcn2ff tus maneo. It was these stories that fired the Arm- strongs of old to such deeds of daring. Quite likely our first ancestors of Liddesdale were acquainted with the stories of the Edda; many of their actions, their ballads, names, and customs, impress us with this belief. The name Siward meant the same as the Norse Sig- mund, the hero of the Volsung, whose son was called in the Niebelungenlied the Swift Sword, and he was also called The Strong. Sivret of the Niebelungenlied was the Sigurd, son of Sigmund, of the Edda. In the Eddaic account of Sigmund's ancestors the sword, bear, and oak-tree hold prominent places, and there are special sagas devoted to each of these favorite subjects. Sigmund was transformed into a wolf, Biorn into a bear. Many of the verses of Johnnie Armstrong's Death are constructed upon a much older style, and remind us of the poetry first introduced in the eleventh century from Denmark into Germany. It is recorded in history that the bookmen who performed the baptismal ceremony in their periodical journeys through Liddesdale discour- aged the continuance of the old heroic names and sub- stituted instead similar ones of the saints. We find in the early Chronicles of the Armstrongs such namds as Wat (Waltheorf), Rolland, Lancelot, lone, Edmund, Ekke, and later such names as Walter, Ninian, Patrick, Hubert, Robert, John, Edward, Thomas, Martin. Why the name Siward should have disappeared from the Border is hard to tell, except for the reason that it was ranked among those names that were heathen and not countenanced later by the Christian Church. (See William of Malmesbury.) 'XTRACT from a letter to Edwin E. Arm- strong, Esq., from James L. Armstrong, Au- gust 30, 1898. The hero of the old Armstrong legends was certainly called The Strong, both upon the Border and in Fer- managh and by some of the first settlers of North Caro- lina and Pennsylvania, and this was the name given to Siward, earl of Northumberland, by the peasants of Tynedale, the first home of the Armstrongs. Indeed, according to old written tradition in my possession, John of Gilnockie himself was called The Strang. The region just south of Maingertoun in the early part of the present century was rich in old stories, some of which recounted the exploits of Siward. In one part of North- umberland — if I remember rightly it is also in Tyne- dale — there was a large split rock said to have been broken apart by the sword of The Strong. The crest of the Armstrongs, the "arm and hand holding a sword," is quite old. It does not seem to be the conventional one of English heraldry, but is made up from the separate symbols of the sword and later the arm found alone upon many of the old monu- ments. For an example I refer you to my last letter, in which is given the description of one of the oldest of the Armstrong monuments, the one mentioned as hav- ing been found in New Castle, Tynedale. Upon this stone the hand and sword are apart and not upon a shield. The legend of the Three Arms is also interesting in this connection. It is from a good source, but trans- mitted orally. I do not think any of the Fermanagh 42