River Sark
The River Sark (or Sark Watter) is a river best kent for formin pairt o the wastren mairch atween Scotland an England. Maist o its short lenth, houiver, is entirely in Scotland. It flowes intil the estuary o the River Esk juist til the sooth o Gretna.[1]
The Scots defeatit the English at the Battle o Sark in October 1448. It wis a signeeficant victory for the Scots, that had no defeatit England syne the Battle o Otterburn in 1388.[2]
The river hase been made faur kent, partial bi the Robert Burns's poem Such a Parcel of Rogues in a Nation that in the first verse says:
- Fareweel to a' our Scottish fame,
- Fareweel our ancient glory;
- Fareweel ev'n to the Scottish name,
- Sae fam'd in martial story.
- Now Sark rins over sands,
- An' rins to the ocean,
- To mark where England's stands-
- Such a parcel of rogues in a nation!"[3]
The poem's subject wis the ledged sale o Scotland in the Acts o Union 1707.[4] The maist weel kent toun on the Sark is Gretna Green, best kent for its waddin industry.[5] The A74(M) motorwey passes ower it.
The aurie aroond the Sark wis notour mossy an saundy, as muckle o the the coast o the nor'wast Erse Sea is. The smaw section atween the lawer end o the Sark an the River Esk is kent as the "Debatable Launds", an wis umwhile a haven for creeminals an briganders that wisst tae tak advantage o the waikness o the twa kintra's mairch defences.[6] The boond atween the Sark an the Esk is cried the Scot's Dyke.
Its name is no connectit wi the ship "Cutty Sark".
References
eedit- ↑ Ordnance Survey of Great Britain
- ↑ "Battle of Sark site near Gretna added to Scots battlefield list". BBC News. Retrieved 14 August 2016.
- ↑ Burns, Robert. "Such a Parcel of Rogues in a Nation". Burns Country. Archived frae the original on 16 December 2014. Retrieved 18 August 2016.
- ↑ "The Union of the Parliaments, 1707". Scotland's History. Education Scotland. Archived frae the original on 21 December 2016. Retrieved 18 August 2016.
- ↑ "Why Flee to Gretna Green?". Gretna Green. Gretna Green, Dumfries and Galloway. Archived frae the original on 27 Juin 2020. Retrieved 18 August 2016.
- ↑ "Debatable Land". University of Portsmouth. Archived frae the original on 26 Julie 2020. Retrieved 18 August 2016.