Wedderburn book; a history of the Wedderburns in ... - waughfamily.ca

and
HOBKIIT, VICAU OF DUNDEE. n
matter of the book' ni;ikes it clfiir that it was wiitten by achurchnian, and bv one faniiliur Pan I.
with popular literature. It contains a list of tiie names of popular sonL's, anion-:; which ^^^P- '•
are seven, of which adaptations, possibly by Kobert, arc i^iwcn in the Gm/e and God/ie
Ballates. Further the circuinstances related in the Complmjnt, of invasion and subjection
by "our auld eneuiies" the English, can only relate to Dundee and its nci-libonrliood. If
the certainty that the book is by a Dundee pen, together with the fact thit it ap[)eaM us
"Vedderburn's" in the Harleinn Catalogue, do not absolutely decide the question of its
authorship in favour of Kobert W'edderbuni, they, at any rate, make it clear that in the
absence of direct evidence to the contrary, we may fairly attribute the work to him-
I proceed to deal with the private life of the Vicar of Dundee, and with his
descendants, down to e.\tinetion of his male line, in about 1(542.
He was born about 1503-10. He was educated at S. Andrew's I'niverhitv, where ho
matriculated in ir>26 and took his degree of bachelor 1529 and of Licentiate 15;!0
(S.A.R. 9). The first mention of him in the Dundee Records is dated 10 Mav 152S
(D.P.B 27), when "Robert W'edderburn binds himself quickly to receive iu>titutiou or
collation to the chaplainry of S. Katluirine vacant by the death of Sir Robert Ltnv, and
as soon as possible to accept the order of presbyter and abide continually in the" daily
service of the church of Dundee.' He does not appear to have beeiicver admitted
burgess of Dundee.-' From about 1 5.30 down to about 1540 he seems to have lived in I'.-iris,
and with the laird of Calder in West Lothian to wliom he was chamberlain in .\l.u-ch I5t0
(R A.D. 14). and also to have visited the east countries. Caldcrwood .-^lys that he obt.-iineil
the vicarage of Dundee on the death of his uncle, John Harry, and remained with the 1-iird
of Calder after entering into the vicaraire. This can hardly be accur.-itc as John Barry
was still Vicar in Nov. 1550, so that AVedderbuin cannot have succeeded him till 1551,
and it is certainl v in that year (5 Nov.) that he is first called Vicar iu the Dundee Records
(D.B.R. 31).^
There is an interesting charter by him soon after, dated 10 March 1551 52 (D.C. 23\
by -which, after reciting that his hou.se had been destroyed in the war " between ns anil
our old enemies the English," he undertakes to repair it, and feus the same to John [,ovell,
reserving to himself and his succe.«sore in office one chamber l.S ft. lung, 17 ft. wide,
and 10 ft. high, to be \ised as "the Vicar of Dundie's chamber in all time coming.'^ The
charter has the consent of the Bishop of Brechin and Abbot of Lindores, and is signed
and sealed by the Vicar. A facsimile of his signature will be found o]i[Kisite p. l'J2of
vol. ii. The seal shows the family arms, a chevron between three ciuciuefuils or rose.s.
-•
Dr. Murray in his rejiriiit of The Cnmplaynt for the Emiij Ewilith Text f^nrieti) arcuo.i Bciintt Itnlicrl
'We\v fii.ui
Calderwood that he lived much in West Lothian with the Laird nf Odder, while, apart fi-iMii thi».
Dot only is the speech of Dundee aud S. Andrew's, his birthjilace and Ids univerMtv. lO'ire
southern than iir,rthern, but the language of the DiuiHee Burgh liecurds of his liino p.h..HH a ni.irkisl
affin-'ty to tliat of The Complai/nl. Finally, while Dr. Murray r.\|.laiiis the i.rcv.il.-nce c.l Kr.-n.U
words in the bonk to Scotch habit, it must not be overlooked that liol»-rt WeiKk-rbuni was lung
resident in Paris.
* This is uot the jilace to disprove at length the other suggested authorships. Dr. (ienrge Ma< kenzie,
never very accurate, claimed it for Sir James biglLs, who died, however, in l.'.'Jl. I'r. I,'-\diMi
{Prelim. Dissert) advanced in 300 pages of print another claim on iK-lialf nf .Sir P.ivid l.in.l^.iv
of the Mount, but ingenuously adds that he "scarcely expects his remarks tu pn«hK-e ••riviciiim."
It is noteworthy that in the excellent account of Sii- David Lind-ay. by .Sberilf .\Iiick.iy, in lb
not called Vicar, and he may thus have been ajipointed between then and i N"V. J!r Madura
thinks that he probably owed his appointment to the recent publicatinu of 7Vie L'"ni}