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

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'THE GUDK AND GODMK lULLATK.S." 15
one of the many feuds, common to his time, his native burgh, ?.nd, it must be aildod, to Part I.
his race, for to him also we must probably refer an entry in the llcgistcr of the I'rivy
Caap. I.
Seal,
recording a respite granted 3 April 1529 to John Wedderbuni for the slaughter of .lohn
Thomsoun (R.l'.S. 3).i There is a passage in the Chronicles of LimhZi i,f l'itsci>nie,
which may refer to him or to his brother Robert. Writing about 1050-Go I'itscottie tells
us of a John W'edderburn, Vicar of Dundee in 1-')L'S-1"X Hero theie is eertainlv some
en-or, as not Joint, but his brother Robert was vicar of Dundee, and in I.j28-2U the vicar
was their uncle Mr. John Barry. I'robably tlie surname is correctly given, and it is one
of the two brothci-s and not their uncle, then no longer young, who is meant. If the error
is in the Christiaii name, the honour should be given to Robert, but if it is in assigning
the vicarage to John, it is probably he who bliot for Scotland on the occasion in question
This is wliat Pitscottie says :
"In this year (15-28--J9) came an ambassador out of England, Lord William Howard,
with a bishop with him and many other gentlemen, to the number of three score horse'
which wer all able men and waled men for all kinds of games .and jjastime, shooting]
louping, running, wrestling, and casting of the stane : but they were well saired ere thJy
past out of Scotland, and ib.at by their own ]irovocation ; but ever thev tint ; till, at last
the Queen of Scotland, the King's mother, favoured the Englishmen because she' was the
King of England's sister; and therefore she took an enterprise of archery upon the
Englishmen's hands, contrary her son the King, and any six in Scotland than he would
wale, either gentlemen or yeomen, that the Englishmen should shoot against them either
at pricks, revers, or buts, as the Scots pleased. The King, hearing this of his mother was
content, and gart her pawned a Innidred crowns and a tun of wine upon the lumli.shmcn'a
hands ; and he incontinently laid down as much for the Scottish men. The Held and
ground was chosen in St. Andrews, and three landed men and three yeomen chosen to
shoot against the Englishmen, to wit, David Wemyss of that ilk, l)avid"Arunt of that ilk
and Mr. John \\'edderburn. Vicar of Dundee. The yeoman, John Thouison in Lcitli,
Stephen Talrnner, with a piper called Alexander Baillie. Tliej- shot verv near, and warred
the Englishmen of the enterprise, and wan the hundred crowns and th'.' tun of wine •
which made the King very merry that his men wan the victory "
There is an entry in the Lord's Treasnier's accounts for l-">.iS-."9 which certainiv refers
to John Wedderburn. It records the receipt of 40s. for ''the escheat of the goods of
Mr. John Wedderburn convicted of heresy in favour of his brother Henry Wedderburn,"
and there is added an order to one John Paterson to jiass to Dundee and search the l'ihxIs
of " Maister Johne Wedderburne " theie.- It is possible that at some time John Wodderbjiru
lived in Leith,'* and acquired property there, as it may be to him and jiis brother
Gilbert that two entries (D.B.R. 49,52) in which a bond by "(Jilbcrt Weost j). 2.'t).^
It does not appear what part of England he chose as his jilace of exile, nor wh.-it
career he followed when there. Although a priest, he may not, as a reformer, liavc
considered that an obstacle to secular pursuits, and he had, no doubt, his liv(Iih.>»l to
make. It is possible that a John Wedderburn, complainer in a jproeeedinu' before the
English «ourts, in 1547-51, is identical with him (S P. V), but this is quite sin'cidative.
Nor does it appear whether, in disregard of his priesthood, he ever mairied, or, les-s in
accordance with his calling, than with the fashion of the time, left any issue. If lie did. they
would seem to have remained in England, and not to have retunicd North, a-s neitiier in
the voluminous records of ])undee nor in the Public Records of Scotland do wo tind any
mention of any such descendants.
'
The S. Audrew's Universitv Register nnmes two other John Wechlerhurin n« iii;Uricul.