Sweetheart Abbey, 8 miles south of Dumfries, near to the Nith in south-west Scotland, was a Cistercian monastery, founded in 1275 by Lady Devorgilla, daughter of Alan, Lord of Galloway, in memory of her husband John de Balliol. His embalmed heart, in a casket of ivory and silver, was buried alongside her when she died - giving the monastery its name. The depradations suffered by the Abbey in subsequent periods, have caused both the graves to be lost. The abbey was founded as a daughter house to the Abbey in Dundrennan, so is sometimes also known as New Abbey, which name is given to the picturesque village which stands next to the ruins today. |