Brechin Townscape Heritage Initiative
In 2005 TBPT were invited to undertake a character analysis of the town of Brechin in Angus in advance of the implementation of a Townscape Heritage Initiative. The town is entitled to the designation of "city" due to the presence of its Cathedral. The purpose of this study was essentially to identify which elements defined the character of Brechin and in doing so suggest ways in which it could be improved and enhanced.
Brief History
Brechin, which takes its name from the Celtic personal name Brychan, appears in the 'Pictish Chronicle' as the genitive Brechne and as Brec(h)ini in 'The Book of Deer'. It is clearly a long established settlement. The town itself, along with the surrounding area, is rich in archaeological remains from throughout history. It is impossible to be sure if was Brechin was a Pictish Capital but if not it was undoubtedly a place of considerable importance at that time.
Brechin is believed to have been a site of a Culdee settlement as far back as the seventh century. Its prominence is marked by the Round Tower, one of only two examples of this Irish import to have survived in Scotland. The other is situated at Abernethy in Perthshire but Brechin's is generally held to be far superior. Originally the tower was free standing but was absorbed into the structure of the cathedral in 1900.
The first documented reference to Brechin appears in the tenth century 'Chronicle of The Kings of Scotland'. Kenneth Mac Malcolm, (971-975) the last King of Scotland to be named in the chronicle, reportedly gave the great city to the lord, the implication being that a church dedicated to the holy trinity was founded there.
In 1165 William the Lion issued a Royal Charter, which confirmed an earlier grant by David I, allowing the Bishop and Culdee's to hold a market each Sunday. The market rights were re-enforced throughout the city's long history, by David II in 1369, Robert II in 1379, and again by James II in 1451, who also granted permission for the erection of the market cross. Brechin was to hold on to these rights up until the end of the eighteenth century but did not become a Royal Burgh until 1641.
The Culdee's were driven out of the city in the 1240s by the Norman king David but through the actions of benefactors the cathedral and bishops grew in power and wealth. In the year of 1256 Sir William of Brechin handed over control of his mills to the Cathedral. It was also Sir William whom in 1261 founded the hospital of the Maisondieu Chapel. During the late fourteenth and early fifteenth centuries the Cathedral received Royal patronage. James I granted the cathedral lands on the west side of the city for the housing of lower clerics and donated income from his lands in and around the city.
Despite the fact that the Episcopacy was to last until 1689 the constant rivalry between religious factions tended to see a weakening of ties between the bishops and the city and more and more church land passed into the hands of the city and were controlled by its magistrates.
In the spring of 1645 the Royalist troops of the Marquis of Montrose remained within the city for one week. During this time the city was plundered and burnt forcing the community to flee into the countryside. These acts would have seriously altered the appearance of the city and may suggest a date of construction for some of the town's earlier fabric such as the Merchant's House.
The Act of Union in 1707 ushered Brechin into an era of industrial expansion and prosperity. The many aspects of the linen trade were to become the main employers and Brechin itself became the biggest centre for the manufacture of linen in Scotland.
The rapid growth of the city during the eighteen hundreds required improved communications. Work began on the new Stannarchy Bridge in 1823, with a view to providing a more direct route to Dundee, and Brechin was connected to surrounding towns by rail during the 1840s.
Today Brechin has a population of around 7,500. As with a many small Scottish towns after the boom years of the 19th century the town went into decline during the later years of the 20th century. The local economy was also affected by the closure of the RAF base at Edzell. Brechin still has its railway station but the only services which depart are steam train pleasure trips during the summer months.
Brief Extracts From Visual appraisal
The Cathedral, which evolved over the centuries from the early 1100s, was hugely influential on the development of the town and was the reason for its city status. It marks the spot from which the town grew. The Cathedrals impact on the town is still significant today. The Diocese still owns land within the town and apart from the Cathedral there are a number of dominant buildings such as the Cathedral Halls. The best view of Brechin's Cathedral and the Round Tower, which is arguably one of Scotland's most important ancient buildings, is from Bishop's Close. Sensibly restored in 1900-01 the Cathedral retains much of its original early gothic fabric.
The Victorian period dramatically altered the plan of Brechin. Woods map of 1822 essentially shows a town formed on a north/south - High Street/Market Street axis, which is joined at its mid point by the road from Forfar which lies to the south west. By the first ordnance survey map of 1862 the plan had changed with the emergence of a strong east/west axis.
The rigg pattern so characteristic of Scottish towns is still evident on the High Street but has not governed the development of Brechin to the extent that it did in most other Burghs. The High Street Closes give the town a good degree of permeability and like most of these old routes are important because they give good clues to the foundations of towns. They can reveal old boundary enclosures and building lines. Liddle's Close with its low ceiling is probably the best example. They can also, because they reveal the backs of properties, demonstrate just how much property is vacant or underused, which in Brechin was surprisingly high.
The High Street rewards close examination and, at least along its top length, is arguably one of the most interesting Burgh Streets in Scotland. It falls dramatically from its junction with St David Street/Swan Street to the extent that a moving spectator is looking onto roof tops. It twists and turns gently following the contours of the landscape and, because there are no imposing features to arrest the eye, it is very easy to be drawn down the full length of the street.
The roofscape is mostly uncluttered, there are few dormers and chimney stacks have survived. Skews separate the buildings but sadly the crowsteps, which were probably once a dominant feature of the town, have all but disappeared, the exception being the Merchant's House at 68/74 and the building opposite which has good detail on its surviving skew putt. Roof coverings are mostly slate which would have replaced stone slates or in some cases thatch. The one or two tile replacements are intrusive.
Church Street, which joins the High Street beside the Town House, possesses a good mix of what might be described as vernacular houses which, because of the fall in the ground are one or two storeys higher to the rear where they look out over the Channonry. It is, in its own way, a rather classy residential street, the kind that most Scottish Burghs seem to hide away somewhere close to their centres. It has been rather crudely spoiled on the north side by the creation of a car park which reveals the brick box which is the back of the old Woolworths Store. This was always a complete frontage and should ideally be reinstated.
There is nowhere quite like Brechin. In many ways it is unique. Other small cathedral towns such as Dornoch and Dunblane did not grow much beyond their original boundaries.
The fact that during the town's period of Victorian prosperity it did not develop a planned extension in the form of a grid could also be seen as unusual. It has managed to retain a good hierarchy and scale of building most notable in the subtle manner in which the Cathedral manages to dominate the Castle and the city centre buildings.
