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The first church
at the top of the hill in Inveresk was
constructed in the sixth century by the Picts.
According
to Stirling in Inveresk Parish Lore
from Pagan Times, 1894,
"Most
probably the first church erected at
Inveresk would be of wattle and mud,
thatched, possibly with heather."
"That
the building demolished in 1803
immediately followed the first
church raised, the materials of
which it consisted, and the design,
appear to suggest. Ample concurrent
testimony establishes the fact that
it was mainly constructed of
materials of the Roman fort which
lay conveniently at hand, while its
central and earliest part was of a
style clearly antecedent to
Romanesque." |
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Adam
Colt about 1625
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The earliest part of the building at
Inveresk House was built as a manse for Adam Colt,
Church of Scotland Minister, from 1597,
but little of this remains.
In Stirling's book called Inveresk Parish
Lore from Pagan Times, 1894, Adam Colt was
often brought into close contact and
frequent conflict with the reigning
sovereign in times of difficulty and
danger. He was descended from a clan in
Perthshire named Colpach as early as ninth
century. Adam Colt came to the position of
third Presbyterian minister at St.
Michael's Church with many
connections. In 1586 when only
24-years-old, he became a regent at
Edinburgh University, but was called to
Ministry of Inveresk in 1597. Upon
his arrival he already owned hundreds of
acres in the area. Adam Colt was not long
at Inveresk before he was brought into a
conference with James heir (future king)
to discuss the matter of Presbyterianism
versus the Episcopal Church. King
James VI of Scotland became friends with
Adam Colt even visited him at Inveresk
house as a result. This may have
saved him from harm as others in the
Presbyterian church were punished in 1607.
Reverend Oliver Colt (elder son of Adam)
became the second of many owners of the
House when he was made the Minister of St.
Michael's Church. He made alterations to
the House including the replacement of a
corkscrew stair by the present entrance
hall and staircase. Numerous other remodels have
been made to the House.
Oliver
Cromwell came to Scotland in 1650 as
part of the Civil War. Cromwell joined the
anti-king Parliamentarians against the
pro-king Loyalists. Oliver Colt fled to
Dundee and claimed the protection of James
Graham, 5th Earl of Montrose.
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Cromwell made Inveresk House his headquarters
for about two months while his troops were
camped in Musselburgh. The kitchen, which
was then the library, was his war room.
Neighbouring houses were destroyed, but Inveresk
House remained intact. At Dunbar on September 4,
1650 Cromwell's
11,000 man army routed a Scottish army twice its
size.
| A Roman passage was
discovered in 1789 beneath the house,
apparently part of a passage leading from
the interior of a fort at Inveresk to the
Roman settlement below. In the
passage the remains of a cavalier in full
armour with what appeared to have been a
keg of gun powder was found. It has been
speculated the cavalier was George Colt,
younger brother of Oliver Colt, who
vanished from history. |
| Note: We will take the
guests around the house if they are
interested and show them where
Cromwell wrote his dispatches. |
The Duke and Duchess of York dined at Inveresk
House when the Duke held Court at Holyrood as
Commissioner for King Charles II.
Bonnie Prince
Charlie supposedly visited Inveresk House in
1745 prior to the Battle of Prestonpans.
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