Author: Stewart Wilson, known as the Tweed Valley Blogger
I have been fortunate to have brought several groups of people to visit The Great Tapestry of Scotland and two things always happen – without fail. Firstly, they fall in love with it. Secondly, I am able to connect at least one panel, and often more, with something we’ve already seen or already talked about during our tour of The Scottish Borders. One of the many genius aspects of the Great Tapestry of Scotland is that it aims to tell the story of all of Scotland – not just the cities, the great battles or high-profile figures. So our region, now the proud host of this wonderful artwork, is woven through it wonderfully.
In this blog, I want to link some of my favourite panels with the people and places in The Scottish Borders which inspired them, and might just inspire you to visit for a walk yourself.
3 Walks in the Scottish Borders featured on The Tapestry
Panel 13 – Cuthbert and the Gospels
Saint Cuthbert’s story is often told as a Northern English one, but the truth is his roots reach deep into what we now call the Scottish Borders. He, like many of our Borders ancestors was a Northumbrian. Long before he became a beloved saint Cuthbert was a young man from the Lammermuir Hills, where its believed he looked after sheep on the moors. He first entered into monastic life at Old Melrose, a cradle of early Christian life and one of the most atmospheric places in the region.
This was the site of a 7th‑century monastery, established by Aidan of Lindisfarne as a place of learning and prayer long before the great abbeys of Kelso, Melrose, Dryburgh and Jedburgh.
The Great Tapestry of Scotland captures this beautifully in Panel 13, where Cuthbert is shown with the illuminated gospels that form some of the treasures of so called dark ages.
Walk #1: Old Melrose Estate
To take your appreciation for the simple life of Cuthbert further I recommend a gentle walk around the Old Melrose estate. It’s peaceful, waymarked paths through woodland and riverside, with glimpses across the Tweed that feel unchanged since Cuthbert’s day. There’s a stillness here that brings to mind the very beginning of civilised life in The Borders. Oh, and a tea room too – definitely civilisation!
Discover our Galashiels Weekend itinerary for more inspiration.
Panel 22 – The Border Abbeys
Panel 22, “The Border Abbeys,” captures that moment when the four great medieval abbeys were at their height. These were centres of learning, agriculture, craftsmanship and spiritual life, woven deeply into the identity of the region. On top of all that, they were symbols of Kingly power and Scots dominion over this land which had once been Northumbria.
Melrose, Dryburgh, Kelso and Jedburgh were not isolated monuments. They were part of a living network, helping to form a proto-industrial landscape in The Borders, with wool in particular heading down the River Tweed and on to markets in Europe and England. Add to this the development of two early Scots Burghs in Berwick and Roxburgh and it’s clear that the small area now called The Scottish Borders was a buzzing hub of Medieval life. Sadly, despite their position as symbols of power, these abbeys were also targets and all four suffered greatly in Anglo Scottish conflict over the centuries, with various rebuilding periods before the double shock of the 16th century “Rough Wooing” and Protestant Reformation signalling the end of their main lifespan.
To truly understand these abbeys, I encourage people to experience them the way the monks once did – on foot!
Walk #2: The Borders Abbeys Way
The Borders Abbeys Way offers two especially rewarding sections for anyone wanting to follow in those footsteps, and these would make for a super weekend of walking. The stretch between Melrose and Kelso, passing through the tranquil grounds of Dryburgh Abbey, is a long day but arriving at these great houses slowly helps reveal how they are anchored in the landscape, and gives you the sense of pilgrimage many must have felt. You move from the red sandstone, gothic majesty of Melrose to the riverside serenity of Dryburgh, before arriving at Kelso’s vast, muscular, Romanesque remains. Each of the abbeys has its own character and story.
From Kelso to Jedburgh, the route changes again, following the River Teviot into rolling farmland and quiet lanes before delivering you to the soaring nave of Jedburgh Abbey, which even now surely one of the most impressive monastic structures in Scotland.
Panel 22 celebrates the abbeys at their peak. Walking the Borders Abbeys Way allows you to see them as they are now, ruined and weathered but still showing much of the power and majesty of their origins.
Panel 52 – Philiphaugh 1645
The 17th century civil wars which ravaged Britain and Ireland can feel like a tangle of shifting loyalties, rival parliaments and clashing armies, and indeed that’s exactly what they were. In Panel 52, “Philiphaugh 1645,” the Great Tapestry of Scotland brings us to one of the most dramatic and decisive moments in that long conflict. It was here, just outside Selkirk, that the brilliant James Graham, Marquess of Montrose, saw his astonishing run of victories come to a sudden and brutal end.
Montrose had swept through Scotland with a speed and daring that earned him admiration even, grudgingly I suspect, from his enemies. A series of brutal victories in the King’s name had elevated him to near mythical status, with the campaigning year before Philiphaugh becoming known as “the year of miracles.” But on this misty September morning, Montrose’s luck finally run out. His forces were surprised and overwhelmed, and the great Royalist commander was forced into a retreat across the Minchmoor Road, fleeing over the high ground towards Traquair and the Peeblesshire hills. It must have been a desperate journey of danger and humiliation, a stark contrast to the triumphs that had made him a legend.
Selkirk remembers Montrose, with a small panel on a house in the town centre marking where he stayed on the eve of the battle. Installed by the town’s Merchant Company, it describes him as “a candidate for immortality”, a line that captures his brilliance and the tragedy of what followed. I don’t believe the man who fled after Philiphaugh was ever quite the same. His forceful personality and brilliance remained, but the fire had dimmed a bit. Five years later, his final campaign ended in betrayal, capture and a grim execution in Edinburgh. Yet in the years that followed, Montrose was reappraised, his reputation restored and his strong convictions celebrated. His magnificent memorial in St Giles’ Cathedral, which was installed at the prompting of Queen Victoria, suggesting that he did, in the end, perhaps achieve that immortality.
Walks #3: Follow the Thread to Selkirk
A visit to the Waterwheel Café at Philiphaugh Estate makes a perfect place to reflect on the story. It’s a gentle spot beside the Ettrick Water, not far from where the battle unfolded, and you can walk the battlefield itself, with interpretation boards to guide you. Just along the road lies the Bowhill Estate, home to Newark Castle, which witnessed one of the darker episodes of the aftermath, where Covenanters murdered Royalist supporters, including women and children. A shocking reminder of the awful, sickening cost of civil war – and the last major battle fought on Borders soil.
Feeling inspired to stay for the weekend to explore the Scottish Borders? Our new 2-Day Ticket is made for you.
For more ideas…
Our ‘Follow the Thread’ blogs are really just a snapshot of the wonderful days out you can have in the Scottish Borders. For more ideas of things to see and do in Galashiels and the Scottish Borders, visit Scotland Starts Here or Galashiels Heartland of the Borders.
If you’ve uncovered a fascinating local story or day out that connects to the panels of The Great Tapestry of Scotland and would add to our wider storytelling, we’d love to hear from you at tapestry@liveborders.org.uk.
The Tapestry tells our story. The Borderlands let you step inside it…
Meet the Author!
Stewart Wilson, known as the Tweed Valley Blogger, is a Borders based tour guide and blogger rooted in the landscape and culture of the Scottish Borders. Through private tours, walking experiences and digital storytelling, he helps visitors connect to the region’s landscapes and history in his own relaxed, fun style. Stewart’s tours are rated 5 stars and have twice won him a Tripadvisor Travellers Choice Award.
Find out more about him and his tours at tweedvalleyblogger.com.