Red and white book of Menzies

142 THE "RED &> WHITE" BOOK OF MENZIES. [a.d. 1503-1504.
Castle, and himself unconditionally. Record authority is said to have been
discovered by Dugal Gregory, which proves that King James in person proceeded
with a strong force to Kinloch-Rannoch to punish the raider and the squatting
caterans who had been his men in the Weem raid. Neil, however, although much
of a madman, was sane enough to understand that it was impossible ' to hold
Garth Castle — strong as it was considered to be before the days of gunpowder — ■
against King James at the head of the feudal array of such an army. He,
therefore, forced his captive to sign a general remission of claims for damages,
&c, and then released him. In the civil action which was subsequently raised by
Sir Robert Menzies, Neil Stewart put in his extorted remission as his reply, but
the Lords of Council set it aside. His portion of the barony of Fortingall was
therefore burdened with a total sum of damages and expenses for his burning
and destroying of the castle and lands of Sir Robert the Menzies. Stewart's
barony might have redeemed itself, but under Neil's mismanagement it never
did redeem itself. It is rather surprising that such a strong repressor of wrong-
doers as King James IV. was should have allowed Neil Stewart to escape with
life and liberty ; but it is thought that his father-in-law, the Earl of Athole, who
was grand-uncle of the king, had to strain his influence to the uttermost to save
Neil from the gallows. Neil, however, found a friend in the Earl of Huntly, who
helped to satisfy the claims of Sir Robert the Menzies. Neil is said to have
resigned his part of the barony of Fortingall into the hands of the Earl of Huntly
in 1 509, and became that nobleman's tenant and vassal ever afterwards. — Book of
Garth, p. 177.
Sir Robert the Menzies procured a decree from the Lords of Council against
Neil Stewart of Garth, on the 16th March 1504. This document is most valuable,
as it gives a list of the contents of Menzies' baronial Castle of Menzies, which
may be taken as a most interesting specimen of a Highland baronial castle at the
end of the fifteenth and beginning of the sixteenth centuries. It certainly is
the most valuable of the kind we have extant, and throws much light on the arms,
armour, artillery, clothing, cooking, and other utensils in the castle of the
chief of such a clan. We here give the decree, which is still retained in the
Charter Room of Castle Menzies, and illustrates the contents or furnishing of a
Highland castle in 1500: —
" Extract decreet by the Lords of Council in favour of Robert Menzies of
that Ilk, Knight, against Neil Stewart of Forthirgill ' for the wrangivis distructioun
and downecastin of his mansioun place and fortilice of the Weme, and for the
birning and destructioun of divers insicht guids and other guids,' committed by
Stewart in the year 1503. Dated Edinburgh, 16th March 1504.
In the valuation of the articles stolen or destroyed there are enumerated the
following : — " 200 lib. for the destruction of the house ; 30 lib. for the ' beddin of