On 22 June 1679, the fields beside Bothwell Bridge became the scene of one of Scotland’s most important religious battles. Thousands of Covenanters gathered to resist royal control over the Scottish Church—but they were poorly organised and divided in leadership. Government troops crossed the narrow bridge after fierce fighting and quickly overwhelmed the defenders. Many […]
Final photo in this series sent in by Alistair Hastings. This is 1963, in what is believed to be 22nd June on the Anniversary of the Battle of Bothwell Bridge. Can anybody tell me more about these events? Who organised them? Lodges?
Incredibly, this photo was taken at Bothwell Bridge by early photographer John McGhie, in 1877. At a time when photography was still emerging as a new technology, the amazing detail available in this image is breathtaking. A real snapshot in time. The Blantyre riverbank of the Clyde is in the foreground where the figures are. […]
Here’s a story which you may not have heard of. In 1885, local people witnessed a spectacular and curious phenomenon, not seen since…. when the River Clyde was visibly on fire near Bothwell Bridge. Yes, you heard that right. The newspapers of Tuesday 14th July 1885 reported this rare and strange event as follows: “The […]
Pictured in this previously unseen photo sometime between 1903 and 1910 is the Covenanter’s Memorial at Bothwell Bridge. It opened to the public in 1903 and of course commemorates the Battle of Bothwell Bridge back in 1679. The photographer is Blantyre man David Ritchie and you can see how new the memorial looks. Dwelling on […]
I have to admit being quite shocked by this next story, hearing something that I didn’t previously quite fully appreciate. I perhaps naively thought that workers, especially miners who were so used to working in the dark depths, would look forward to the Glasgow Fair holiday, which started out as a long weekend. A time […]
This previously unseen photo is amongst a collection of photos kindly given to me by Alex Bowie. Taken by a distant relative David Ritchie, it’s the first time this has appeared online and is believed to have been taken shortly after the Battle of Bothwell Bridge Memorial opened in 1903. Though just over the Parish […]