Sir Robert Montgomerie
Sir Robert Montgomerie (the 7th Laird and 1st Baronet, who died in 1651) is indeed the local legend famous for sleeping in his coffin, but the reasons and the specific details around his life are even stranger than the general “penance” story usually told.
Here are a few more obscure details about him:
1. The “Come Down, Robin” Incident
Sir Robert inherited a blood feud. His father (the 6th Laird) and older brother had been killed by Patrick Maxwell of Newark (Newark Castle in Port Glasgow). By the codes of the time, Sir Robert was honour-bound to kill Maxwell in revenge.
The story goes that Sir Robert infiltrated Newark Castle one day, intending to assassinate Maxwell. However, he was discovered hiding in a dark corner of the turret. Instead of drawing his sword, Maxwell—who was arguably tired of the bloodshed—reputedly looked at the cowering assassin and said calmly:
“Come down, Robin, out o’ that corner! Come down, man, to me, who did you so good a turn as to make you young Laird and auld Laird o’ Skelmorlie in one day.”
Maxwell was grimly joking that by killing Robert’s father and brother, he had promoted Robert to the title instantly. Shockingly, this ice-breaker worked; the two men reconciled and became close friends, effectively ending that branch of the feud.
2. The Tragedy of the “Colm Fair”
While he is famous for his piety, his religious obsession was likely triggered by a very specific, violent trauma. His beloved wife, Dame Margaret Douglas, didn’t just die of illness; she was killed in a public accident.
She was attending the Colm Fair (a massive annual market held in Largs) when she was kicked in the chest by a horse. The sudden, violent nature of her death is often cited as the catalyst for Sir Robert’s descent into the morbid obsession with mortality that led him to build the Skelmorlie Aisle.
3. The Inscription on the Coffin
You may know he slept in the coffin, but the inscription he had engraved on it is a philosophical riddle. It helps explain his mindset. It translates from Latin roughly as: “I was dead before myself; I anticipated my proper funeral; alone, of all mortals, following the example of Caesar.”
This refers to Charles V (Holy Roman Emperor), who famously staged his own funeral to hear his own mass. Robert was comparing himself to an Emperor, suggesting a strange mix of humility and ego.
4. The Warlock of Largs
There is an obscure piece of folklore that claims Sir Robert’s nightly vigils in the Aisle annoyed the local forces of darkness.
Legend has it that a local warlock (male witch) attempted to raise the Devil to destroy Sir Robert while he was praying in his coffin. The story says the warlock performed rituals outside the aisle, but Sir Robert’s piety was so intense that it formed a shield, and the Devil was unable to enter the holy ground to get him.