TULLIBODY BRIDGE. 



At the period of the Eeformation in Scotland, when 

 the French troops under Mary of Guise were flying 

 westward through Fife and Clackmannan on the arrival 

 of the English fleet in the Forth, William Kirkaldy of 

 Grange, to impede their progress, destroyed the eastern 

 arch of Tullibody bridge. 



The French, under General D'Oysel, never at a loss in 

 an emergency, unroofed the church at Tullibody for the 

 purpose of repairing the bridge. To use the words of 

 John Knox : " Ye French, expert enough in sic feats, 

 tuke downe ye roofe of a paroch kirk, and made ane 

 brig over ye water called Devon, and sae they escapet 

 and gaed to Stirling, and thereafter to Leath."* 



For a long time nothing was done to repair the 

 church, after the French had unroofed it. The ancient 

 walls fell to decay, and became covered with wild weeds. 

 The body of the church was used as a burial-place. The 

 place might have gone to utter ruin but for the Aber- 

 cromby family, who own the estate of Tullibody. They 



* John Knox adds "As ye Frenohe spullyed ye cuntry in their 

 returning, ane captane or soldiour, we cannot tell, but he had a reid 

 clocke and a gilt murrion, entered upon a pure woman, that dwelt in 

 ye Quhytsyid, and began to spoille. Ye pure woman offer-it unto him 

 sic breid as sche had redy prepairit, but he, in no ways tharewith 

 content, wold have ye meil and a littill salt beef, quhilk ye pure 

 woman had to sustein hir own lyif, and ye lyves of hir pure childrein ; 

 nowther could teirs nor pitifull words mitigate ye merciles man, bot 

 he wold have quhatsoevir he micht cary. The pure woman perceaving 

 him so bent, and that he stoupit down in hir tub for the taking furth of 

 sick stuff as was within it, first coupit up his heilles, so that his heid 

 went down, and thairafter be hirsetf, or if ony uther companie came to 

 helpf, hir, but there he enc/it his unhape fyif." 



