Moniaive

Scotland > South of Scotland > Dumfriesshire > Moniaive

Moniaive lies in beautiful countryside at the point where three glens meet approximately 15 miles north of Dumfries and eight miles to the west of Thornhill. A village with a strong community spirit and long history. Moniaive is from the Gaelic monadh-abh 'Hill of Streams'.
In the 17th century, Moniaive, and surrounding district became the refuge to some notable covenanters. The "Killing Times" saw several covenanters pay for their religion with their lives. The martyrs of Ingleston were betrayed and shot without trial and young William Smith was gunned down in a field between Dunreggan and Gaups Mill. The firebrand preacher James Renwick was only 23 when he perished on an Edinburgh scaffold. Born in Moniaive, he was the last covenanter of note to be executed
James Paterson was a founder member of "The Glasgow Boys", settled in Moniaive in 1884 and painted the rivers, burns, hills and nearby Solway Firth. One of his best known paintings "The Last Turning" is taken from a Moniaive scene. (can be viewed at the Kelvingrove Art Gallery & Museum, Glasgow).