FIFE FAMILY HISTORY SOCIETY
EVENING TALK TUESDAY 11th MAY 1999
MR. ALEX DARWOOD
(Some Famous Fife Personalities)
We present below some photographs taken at
tonight's talk, we hope this may give members who are unable to
attend our talks, a chance to view the proceedings of the society
.
FFHS Chairman Andrew Campbell, opened the evening's proceedings
by welcoming Mr.Darwood. Mr. Darwood began his talk in a
light-hearted way by introducing us to his 'boredom' checker, his
wife was sitting in the front row, ready with any signals should he,
as he put it 'ramble on too much'. Needless to say, his wife remained
silent throughout the evening, as his lecture, like his previous
lectures to the society, was quite enthralling.
Mr.Darwood explained that he had had a problem
knowing which Fife personalities he should actually talk about, as he
proudly stated, that Fife had a higher proportion of famous men and
women than any other county in the UK.
The members were given an insight into the lives of
5 famous Fifers, with Mr.Darwood beginning with The Rev. Dr. Thomas
Chalmers, who was born in the house that Mr.Darwood resides in
to-day.
With the kind assistance of
Mrs. Fay Will, our Minute
Secretary, the following is a short biography of the 5 personalities,
on whom Mr.Darwood gave us his talk.
The Rev. Dr. Thomas Chalmers
Thomas Chalmers was born at Anstruther on the 17th
March 1780, he gained notoriety by leading what was known as the
'disruption' of the Church of Scotland in 1843 in Edinburgh. His
revolt was sparked by his feeling of injustice at the idea that local
parishioners had no say in the appointment of ministers. This
'disruption' led to a breakaway from the Church of Scotland, and the
beginning of The Free Church of Scotland. At the time it was
considered a dramatic and drastic step to take, as all the ministers
who took part along with Thomas Chalmers in this desertion stood to
lose their dwellings as they were of course living in C.o S. Parish
Manses. Thomas Chalmers grounding in theology included his
appointment to the parish church at Kilmany, such was his great
success in this post, he was invited to preach at the Tron in
Glasgow. He then went on to occupy the chair of Moral Philosophy at
St.Andrews, before taking up a similar post in Edinburgh. After the
'disruption' in 1843, he became principal and Professor of Theology
to the Seceding church. Rev. Dr. Thomas Chalmers died in 1847.
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Lady Anne Lindsay
Lady Anne Lindsay was born in 1750, the daughter of
James, Earl of Balcarres. She wrote the popular ballad 'Auld Robin
Gray' when she was 21 years old, though the fact that she wrote it,
only became known some time later.
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Captain George Moodie
Captain Moodie was the skipper of the famous Tea
Clipper 'Cutty Sark', which is now permanently in dry dock at
Greenwich, London. On Captain Moodie's retirement, he resided at The
Anchorage, Methil Brae, which is just along the road from where
Methil Library is found today. Captain Moodie later became resident
in McDuff house, in Auchtermuchty, where he died aged 94 in 1923. Mr.
Ken Cassells from New Zealand is a descendant of Captain Moodie. For
more details on the life of Captain George Moodie, please see FFHS
Journal Vol.10 No. 3 pages 54-58.
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Rev. Andrew Melville
Rev. Melville, minister of Anstruther, like many
ministers of his time was considered the 'man to see' any time
parishioners were concerned or in need of advice. Such an ocassion of
concern occurred in the year 1588. This was at the time of the great
Spanish Armada and their attempted invasion of England. The
inhabitants of the town were alarmed early one morning when a Spanish
ship was sighted just off Cellardyke harbour, and in a state of fear,
the parishioners approached the minister, as he would 'ken whit tae
dae'. Rev. Melville met with the captain of the Spanish ship and
determined ,that far from being a threat to the inhabitants of
Anstruther, the ship had limped into the harbour in a battered state,
and the crew were in urgent need of food and medical attention. The
good people of Anstruther having been given this report from
Rev.Melville, but not without some trepidation rallied around and saw
to the needs of the ship's crew. This act of compassion and charity
was not forgotten by the Captain of the ship when on his return to
Spain, he discovered that a ships crew from Cellardyke were being
held in a Spanish prison and were in grave danger of being executed.
The Spanish Captain pleaded with the King of Spain on behalf of the
Cellardyke crew, and they were released from their torment and
allowed to sail home to their families in Cellardyke.
-------------------------------------------
King Charles I
King Charles I was born in Dunfermline in 1600, he
was second in line to the thrones of England and Scotland, however
the untimely death of his elder brother aged 16, he became heir
apparent. Although his coronation took place in Westminster Abbey,
his patriotism of his native land brought him to Holyrood for a
belated 'Scottish' coronation in 1633. This coronation was carried
out with the full regalia and necessitated the transportation of his
court, along with the crown jewels, and a wealth of Gold and Silver.
Rather than subject this wealth to the long overland journey by
coaches, it was decided it should be transported back to England by
ship, the ship chosen was the 'Blessing of Burntisland' . On it's
journey crossing the Firth of Forth, the ship was caught in a storm
and sunk with the loss of all it's contents.
Investigations recently have taken place by several
teams of divers, around the spot where the ship is thought to have
sunk. These investigations have revealed what is thought to be the
remains of the 'Blessing of Burntisland', and it is hoped that very
soon the recovery of the 'King's treasure ship' will be concluded.
Leading the team of Investigators is Alex Kilgour, a Kirkcaldy
businessman.
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At the conclusion of Mr.Darwood's talk, members were
invited to ask questions, which Mr. Darwood answered with great
enthusiasm. FFHS member Mr. Archie Lumsden offered on behalf of the
society our appreciation and thanks to Mr. Darwood, for a most
enjoyable evening.
Photographs of the evening
MR. Alex Darwood
FFHS Chairman Andrew Campbell Opening the Meeting
FFHS members in attendance
Archie Lumsden(memb.230), Hugh Hoffman(memb.455) in
discussion with Betty Pryde(membership Secretary)