i26 KOTES ON COLDINGHAM 



by Pope Eugenius in 1444 to John OUe, Prior of Coldingham, 

 the motive for granting the licence bein^f that the Pope 

 moved by his — that is, John Olle's — devout petition, and as 

 he says he is a priest of gentle birth, grants him leave to 

 have a portable altar." 



We learn from the Coldingham Session Eecords that in 

 July 1696, and for many years afterwards, the preaching 

 tent at the Communion was set up "within the old church 

 walls," and even as late as the end of the 18th century the 

 foundations of the nave, as far nearly as the gate of the 

 churchyard, could be traced. Complaints, however, are of 

 frequent occurrence by the heritors, of people stealing stones 

 from the old ruins. In May 1773, for instance, "John 

 Bogue, mason in Coldingham, John Crawford, and others, 

 took down and demolished the aisle, commonly called 'The 

 Pit,' and which was designed by the heritors as a proper 

 place for holding a hearse ; and John Swanston, tenant in 

 law, John Tuck, fewar in Coldingham, and others, carried 

 off the stones for their private purposes. It was ordered 

 that they be prosecuted by the heritors, and that it be 

 advertised that no person shall deface or carry away stones, 

 rubbish, or any other materials from the old walls of the 

 church and abbey." 



"The meeting the same day inspected the marches of the 

 church area from the back of the minister's garden dyke to 

 where it joins the large arch on the south side of the old 

 pit — they see that there is an encroachment on the church 

 area by the tenant of the garden east of the church, belonging 

 to Mr Home of Wedderburn, and ordered that Mr Home be 

 written to that the dyke be taken down, and rebuilt on the 

 old foundations, and failing this, or refusal, that the tenant 

 shall be prosecuted." 



Notwithstanding the efforts of the heritors to put an end 

 to these spoliations, they seem to have gone on for many 

 years, some of the worst of the depredators being, in 1776, 

 characterised by the heritors as " notorious offenders." 



There are many names of places in and around Coldingham 

 given in the Riding of Coldingham Common of date 1561, 

 in old family documents, and in the lists of visitations made 

 by the Rev. Mr D^sart in the 17th century which have 



