The Reiver Curse

All the time we have been here in England we have been in an area has seen its fair share of turmoil. The Scots and the English were in a constant state of warfare for almost 1000 years. During that period of time there was also the problem of the border reivers. They were kind of private raiders and plunderers who moved across the area burning farms, stealing cattle and creating general mayhem,

Shelley’s family and mine seem to have roots in this area. Shelley’s family, the Salkeld’s were on what is now the English side raiding north. Hunter was on the Scottish side raiding south.

The Archbishop of Glasgow, Davin Dunbar was quite upset about the state of affairs and, insisted that a curse on the reivers be read from the pulpit in every parish.

In Carlisle there is a stone with a part of the curse engraved in it and the reiver names are carved into the floor. The sculptor was from a reiver family. Part of the curse is below.

I curse their heid and all the haris of thair heid; I curse thair face, thair ene, thair mouth, thair neise, thair tongue, thair teeth, thair crag, thair shoulderis, thair breist, thair hert, thair stomok, thair bak, thair wame, thair armes, thais leggis, thair handis, thair feit, and everilk part of thair body, frae the top of their heid to the soill of thair feet, befoir and behind, within and without. I curse thaim gangand, and I curse them rydland; I curse thaim standand, and I curse thaim sittand; I curse thaim etand, I curse thaim drinkand; I curse thaim walkand, I curse thaim sleepand; I curse thaim risand, I curse thaim lyand; I curse thaim at hame, I curse thaim fra hame; I curse thaim within the house, I curse thaim without the house; I curse thair wiffis, thair barnis, and thair servandis participand with thaim in their deides. I way thair cornys, thair catales, thair woll, thair scheip, thjair horse, thair swyne, thair geise, thair hennes, and all thair quyk gude. I wary their hallis, thair chalmeris, thair kechingis, thair stanillis, thair barnys, thair biris, thair bernyardis, thair cailyardis thair plewis, thair harrowis, and the gudis and housis that is necessair for their sustentatioun and weilfair.

It goes on for 1100 words or more. A bit excessive. Some Carlisle city aldermen think the stone has brought the city bad luck and want it removed.

Both Shelley and I think the Archbishop went a bit too far. perhaps in explains why both of us have problems with authority figures.

Our Host Ian

We stayed a couple of nights at a Carlisle B&B. Our landlord, if we can call him that, at the Marlborough House B&B in Carlisle was a bit of a character. He and I didn’t get off to a great start right off the bat, he was less than co-operative about getting access to the internet. He begrudgingly agreed to let us use the computer to log on but wouldn’t let me hook up my laptop to the system.

He owns the pub across the road from the B&B and promotes it in his own special way. “So, where are yas goin’ for supper?
I said, “We aren’t sure, perhaps across the road or…”
“Or what?” he said, “Yas can’t beat my prices, Two meals for ten pounds. Bloody good food too. Not like the crap you get at other places around here.”

So we went across the road. He was right. The food was good.

He was wondering about who would want a hot breakfast in the morning. I said the I wasn’t sure. I had been eating a light breakfast each day. He said, “Have the full English breakfast, Why not? We have eggs, smoked bacon, tomatos, mushrooms, beans and good Cumberland sausage, not like that shit sausage yas get in Canada”

Shelley asked, “Can I just part of the breakfast? Like a boiled egg and some toast?”

He told her, “Ya gets the full English breakfast, what yas don’t eat, we’ll just feed to the dog.”

Despite his curmudgeonly front he was a great guy. Basically, what you see is what you get. Drove the lot to the train station this morning and made a special trip to the bus station for Shelley and I because we were leaving later.

The B&B was good, clean, comfortable and the place was friendly. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend it. And he was right, the full English breakfast was good and Shelley made a couple of small dogs happy. The pub food was very good good and his prices are very good. One pound ninety for a shot of scotch.