Leslies in Aberdeenshire Part 8:  Before the Civil War

The lands of the Abbey of Lindores were secularized by King James and the sale of the lands created many new lairdships. One of these was the lands of Badifurrow, with the Leslies of Kincraigie of Tough becoming the first lairds of Badifurrow.  (Note: Tough is an area near Alford.)

According to the author, Patrick Leslie of Kincraigie called “Bonnie Patrick” was laird of Badifurrow  before 1610. He pledged the land as a marriage provision for his second son, John on his wedding with Margorie Strachan, daughter of the laid of Tipperty. George Leslie of Kincraigie was the eldest son of “Bonnie Patrick” continued possession of the property until 1643. In 1655 the younger of Badifurrow, the estate was impoverished and sold to William Crichie. This was not uncommon in these time, neglect of the management and extravagant spending described as “ruined fortunes” led many estates to be sold.

John Leslie was the second Baron of Wardes and got lands from King James IV. John had a son, Alexander, who had a son William. William Leslie, eldest son of Alexander, was Falconer to the King James VI. William’s second son, known as George Leslie of Crichie had a son Dr. John Leslie, Bishop of Clogher and Raphoe in Ireland. This Dr. John Leslie is the ancestor of the Leslies of Glaslough, Ireland. The book has a substantial account of the Leslies of Wardes on pages 220 – 222.

There is a passage worthy of quoting concerning the Leslies of Warthill.

“Warthill is one of the properties that took a new place in the Garioch, in the period now treated of. The estate came unto the family through the marriage of William, second son of John Leslie, second Baron of Wardes, with Janet Cruickshank, daughter of John, the son of Adam Cruickshank of Tillymorgan, whose family had been tenants of Tillymorgan, under the Abbots of Lindores, and were proprietors after the Eeformation down to Covenanting times. In 1482, Adam Cruickshank had bought half of the Templar lands of Warthill, from Alexander Glaster of Glack; and that purchase became the dowry of his grand-daughter, Janet, and gave the title of William Leslie of Warthill to her husband. William Leslie acquired afterwards the other half from the heirs of a former wadsetter, Tullidaff, the representative of William Tullidaff who fell at Harlaw. The mural tablet erected in the kirk of Rayne, opposite the grave of the first seven lairds of Warthill, gave the ages of the second, third, and fourth, at the remarkable number of 90, 80, and 105.” Page 223

When Scotland began accepting the Solemn League and Covenant, Aberdeen and much of the area refused to accept it. The Civil War began and there was plundering in the Garioch. Some local ministers found themselves in prison. At that time the Leslies, Leiths, Urquharts, Setons,  Abercrombys, and Gordons were Papists. The book goes on to describe the status of the Balquhain Leslies at this time.

“The successive heads of the Balquhain family were mostly abroad during the Civil “War. John Leslie, the twelfth baron, was a Protestant, and served, from 1639 to 1647, in the Scottish army under Field-Marshal Leslie, the leader of the Covenanting army, and subserviently of that sent into England in support of Charles II. Balquhain went abroad afterwards, and took service in Russia, and died during the invasion of Poland in 1655. His uncle William, also a Protestant, succeeded him. He had been a faithful servant to King Charles I., both in the Council and in the field ; and after the slaughter of his Sovereign he left the country and lived in Holland. He resigned the estates to his brother “Walter, a soldier of the Roman Catholic League under the Emperor of Austria. “Walter passed his Garioch heritage to his brother Alexander ; who appears, in the Inverurie documents as Alexander Leslie of Tullos, living quietly at the House of Tullos, at the foot of Benachie, a real, or apparent Protestant, but needing to be enjoined, by the watchful Presbytery, to ” keep his parish kirk of Oyne “.” Page 250.