|
|
|
|
IntroductionGovan stands on the south bank of the Clyde, opposite its confluence with the River Kelvin at a point where the Clyde is still tidal. Before dredging in the eighteenth century the river was easily fordable here, and it is likely to have been an important river crossing from earliest times. The earliest mention of Govan seems to be Symeon of Durham''s account of a battle in 756 at Ouania between the Picts and the Northumbrians, who fell out following a joint assault on Dumbarton. Dumbarton, 20 kilometres downstream, was the political centre of the British kingdom of the Clyde. Several 7th-century British kings are explicitly identified as kings of Al Clud, ''Clyde Rock''. The fortifications of Dumbarton, 'fort of the Britons', occupies the rock, a twin-peaked volcanic plug that towers 74 metres above the north bank of the river. After its destruction in 870, following a four-month long siege by Dublin Vikings, Dumbarton drops out of the historical record until the thirteenth century. The centre of power seems to have shifted upstream to Govan. The meaning of the name "Govan" is disputed, but may derive from the Brittonic gwo- /go-, ''small'' and ban, ''hill'' presumably a reference to the now demolished Doomster hill. The Doomster hill was approximately 45 metres in diameter and about 5 metres high. Although it has now disappeared, an eighteenth century engraving reveals that it was a flat-topped mound, with a wide step halfway up, towering over contemporary cottages. Excavations have located its massive quarry ditch, some 8 metres wide. Although there is no contemporary evidence, antiquarian tradition and the name itself suggest that the mound was a site where justice was performed, a court hill or law hill. An alternative view, that the Doomster Hill was the earthen base (motte) of a timber castle, has little to recommend it. A motte cannot account for the prominent step. Moreover there is no historical tradition of a castle at Govan. Close to the Doomster Hill was the church of St Constantine, dedicated to a saint who died in 576, perhaps a guide to its foundation date. The church site may originally have been a peninsula or perhaps even one of the many islands that used to lie in the river between Renfrew and Glasgow. Not only was the medieval parish extremely large (about 10 kilometres by 6 kilometres), but, exceptionally, it spanned the river. On the north bank of the Clyde, the parish included the royal estate of Partick, where a palace is believed to have stood on a site by the River Kelvin (now occupied by a scrap metal yard). Ancient features have been identified in the heart of Govan which confirm it was a major religious and political centre during the Early Middle Ages. Although there are no contemporary texts which can document that Govan was a royal centre, there is a substantial body of archaeological evidence which points in that direction. Excavations in and around the churchyard have yielded a series of radiocarbon dates which range between 450–850 and include early Christian burials from the 5th or 6th centuries. Traces of what was probably a timber church overlay these early burials and this cemetery was originally enclosed with a bank and ditch, which has been replaced by a stone wall on the same alignment. It has long been recognised that Govan was special because the parish church of St Constantine holds a remarkable collection of early medieval sculpture, the third largest in Scotland. Forty-seven pieces of early medieval sculpture are known, which includes four monumental crosses, five hogback stones, and twenty-one (plus sixteen now lost) recumbent slabs decorated with interlace crosses and a unique monolithic sarcophagus. The number and scale of the monumental crosses is indicative of a major church, even if three now survive as shafts only. The fourth cross is a sturdy slab, known as the ''sun stone'' because of its prominent snake-boss swastika, which may have been shaped from a prehistoric standing stone. The hogback stones are the largest known examples of a type of house-shaped gravestone that appeared throughout the areas of Norse settlement in northern England and southern Scotland. The collection of cross-inscribed grave slabs is the largest in Scotland. Although they share various stylistic traits, each cross is unique. The sarcophagus too is covered with interlace decoration interspersed with figurative panels, the most prominent of which is a hunting scene featuring a mounted warrior. This horseman, and those that appear on two other crosses, along with the prevalence of interlace have invited a general comparison with Pictish sculpture. Although the quality of the carving is amongst the finest known from Strathclyde, it does not approach the artistic heights of Pictish work. The collection can only be dated by art historical comparisons, but is generally believed to run from the late ninth to the end of eleventh centuries. The abundance of sculpture and the presence of the Doomster hill and a nearby royal palace suggests that Govan was the pre-eminent political centre on the River Clyde in the centuries following the demise of Dumbarton and the rise of Glasgow Cathedral (established some time around 1114 - 1118). The character of the sculpture and the form of the court hill both indicate Norse influence and it is not unreasonable to suppose that there was a significant Scandinavian presence in the court. Further reading:
Alcock, L. & Alcock, E.A., ''Reconnaissance Excavations on Early Historic Fortifications
and other royal sites in Scotland 1974-84: 5:Excavations at Alt Clut, Clyde Rock,
Strathclyde, 1974-1975'', Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries Scotland 120
(1990) 95-145.
Search for more stories and pictures of Govan at www.TheGlasgowStory.com: |
|
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
