A Brief (ish)  Clan History

Jardines are mentioned in Holinshed Chronicles as being present at the Battle of Hastings, 1066; so it is said at the beginning of the family tree. On further research it is probable that, as followers of the Bruce family, they arrived in Britain from Normandy about 1100. As the Norsemen (Vikings) had been granted lands in northern France in 911, the present day Normandy, (Norsemen being shortened to Norman) the Jardines would appear to have been of Viking descent rather than Celtic.

 

The name Jardine appears in various versions; Giardino, Gardin, Jardin, Jerdin. A Humphrey del Giardino held lands in Cambridgeshire in the early 12th century, however some of the family followed the Bruces north. David 1 of Scotland gave the lands of Annandale, Dumfriesshire to Robert the Bruce the 2nd, for the service of 10 knights one of whom seems to have been a Jardine…

 

The lands of Applegarth were acquired by the family who built a Motte and Bailey castle, the Motte (mound) can still be seen in the garden of the present day manse. A wood and wattle Church was also built there and it is recorded that Edward 1 of England stayed for 3 days at Applegarth in 1300 and gave an offering to the Church. The Jardines supported Edward and fought for him at the Battle of Falkirk, 1297, against William Wallace. However later they supported King Robert the Bruce.

 

From the 14th Century until the union of the crowns in 1603, the Borders were a very unsettled and dangerous place. Apart from the frequent raids over the Border, there were English and Scottish armies raiding and devastating the land. In 1345, King David II awarded Sir William Jardine, 1st Knight of Applegarth a Barony and land in Lanarkshire. This would have been a safer place for his family and followers although they still had a presence in Annandale and are recorded raiding into England. In 1460, Sir John Jardine married the daughter of Lord Somerville and built Spedlins Tower in Dumfriesshire across the river from Applegarth, a suitable residence for his wife and children. They lost the lands in Lanark in the 1600s.

 

The Jardines prospered as a Border Family, the Chiefs often had a presence at Court and their following grew. At a muster of men in 1541 the Jardines had 200 men, more than the Douglases, Johnstones, Maxwells and Armstrongs (other Border families). Border raids and wars continued, a particularly bad time was during the “Rough Wooing” when Henry VIII sent an army to capture the young Mary, Queen of Scots. Annandale was devastated. From 1570 to 1603, feuds raged mainly between the Johnstones and the Maxwells, the Jardines supported the Maxwells for the most part, probably when it suited them! At that time, Sir Alexander was appointed Master of His Majesty’s Ordinance, a relatively important post. He and his wife made improvements to Spedlins making it more like a gentleman’s residence, as with the Union of the Crowns in 1603 a more peaceful time ensued and the need for a fortified tower lessened.

 

Sir Alexander Jardine, 12th Knight of Applegirth, was created a Baronet of Nova Scotia in 1672. This was the period of the Covenanting wars in the south west of Scotland, a rising by Presbyterians against the King and his imposition of Bishops and the Episcopal Church. To escape persecution many fled to Northern Ireland where the Protestant religion was encouraged.

 

The infamous story about the ghost occurred in the 1660s. Porteous, the miller, was imprisoned in the Spedlins’ dungeon and starved to death. He cursed the family and in spite of a Bible being chained in a window slit his cries and the clanking of the chains disturbed the Keep. In 1704, a beautiful house was built on the other side of the river (ghosts apparently not being able to cross water). This was the first Jardine Hall which burnt down in 1814 to be replaced by a mansion in the Palladian style.

 

During the 1700s, Jardines continued to hold office in the county and at Court. However, they were staunch Hanoverians and did not take part in the Jacobite Risings. The village of Applegarth had at least 100 cottars living there, most of whom would have taken the name of Jardine. At this time, landlords were improving their lands and enclosing fields so cottars would be encouraged to move away either to work in the mill towns, Galashiels, Hawick etc. or even emigrate. By the 1800s, most of the lands owned by the Chief were set up as small tenanted farms. Sir Alexander Jardine, 17th knight, was responsible for improving the farms and the steadings and looking after the needs of his tenants.

 

Sir William Jardine, 7th Baronet and 18th Knight, succeeded his father in 1821. He had studied Medicine, Anatomy and Natural History at Edinburgh University and became an eminent naturalist, corresponding with other famous naturalists , including Darwin, world wide. His greatest work was editing 40 volumes of the “Naturalists Library”, a series of reasonably priced books so that all could have access to natural history. The first book was about humming birds, one of which had been named after him. Edward Lear was one of the illustrators, as well as Sir William’s daughter who was married to the naturalist Hugh Strickland. His collection of specimens, which were sent to him from all over the world, was displayed at Jardine Hall.

 

During the 1800s, there seems to have been many families emigrating all over the world. Sir William’s brother John emigrated to Australia and was appointed Police Commissioner in Rockhampton. He was asked to establish a new settlement at Cape York. His two sons made an epic overland journey driving cattle north for the new settlement. One of the rivers they crossed is still named Jardine River and near it is Jardine National Park. Another Jardine emigrated to Canada, where he established a lumber business which led on to ship building at Richibucto.

 

Sir Alexander, 8th Baronet, inherited in 1874. To make money, he tried to develop Corncockle Quarry and connect it to the main railway. This involved bridging the Annan and by the time this was finished the need for the red sandstone had diminished. He had got himself into too much debt because of the project and was forced to sell Jardine Hall and the estate in 1888. The family rented various houses in Dumfriesshire but the contact with the estate of Applegarth, theirs since the 1200s, was lost.

 

There were many famous Jardines from the 18th century onwards. Several Jardines took part in the Scottish Enlightenment. A Jardine was with Sir Walter Scot when the Honours of Scotland (Crown Jewels) were discovered in Edinburgh Castle. A Jardine was Engineer to the Edinburgh Water Company bringing water to the city. Another famous son founded Jardine Matheson and Company in Hong Kong and helped the British Government establish their Far East Policy. More recently there was a famous cricketer and several footballers. So the Jardine motto “Cave Adsum”. Watch out, I am about, still rings true.