II

Once upon a time, Queen Thenew was set adrift in a small coracle on the Firth of Forth. By God's grace, the small vessel did not get swept out to sea, but rather came to rest near Culross. There Thenew gave birth to a son.

The boy grew, and was taken under the tutelage of a holy man dubbed "St. Serf". The boy's wisdom and power were apparent even in his youth, which roused others to jealousy. Once his fellow-pupils tried to kill his pet bird, but he was able to nurse the animal back to life. Another time they put out a fire he had been set to watch, and he rekindled it by rubbing branches together.

When he had grown to manhood, Kentigern (as he was called), was visited by the Queen. She was desperate, for her husband, the King of Cadzow had set a trap for her. The king had given her a ring which she had passed on to a favored knight as a token. The king, being a jealous man, stole the ring back from the knight, then told the Queen that he wanted her to wear the ring that very evening. The King knew his Queen would fail at the request, for he himself had thrown the ring into the River Clyde.

Kentigern assured the Queen, and sent a monk to fish in the river and bring back his first catch. When the monk returned with a salmon, the good man took the ring from the fish's mouth. And Glasgow flourished ever after.

Is this a fairy tale? Or do you want to believe that this man Kentigern, whom Glaswegians call Mungo, the "Dear One", was actually the son of King Owen, and grandson of the great King Arthur who was killed in the battle of Camelon, near Falkirk, in 535? The tomb of St. Mungo is in the Lower Church of Glasgow Cathedral, where the date of his death is given as 13 January 603. The symbols of the saint have become the coat of arms of the City of Glasgow. The bird, the tree, the bell, the salmon with a golden ring, and the motto of a proud city, "Let Glasgow Flourish". The saying is longer in its more ancient form, "Let Glasgow flourish by the preaching of the Word and praising Thy Name"!

The arms, the motto, and the twelfth century tomb are living reminders of Glasgow's ancient heritage. As for the story of the fish and the ring, it may best be told with a wink and a nod, and with the lines of an old jingle that describes the seal of the city:

Here's the tree that never grew,
here's the bird that never flew,
here's the bell that never rang,
here's the fish that never swam.

If there is some degree of skepticism regarding the literal truth of the story, modern Glaswegians still find power in the symbolism. In 1990 Glasgow celebrated its designation as a "European City of Culture" (the sixth city to be granted this title, and the first in Britain). As part of the celebration, a massive exhibit called "Glasgow's Glasgow" was opened beneath the Central Railway Station. The self-directed tour begins with video images and a sound track of a grandfather telling a bed time story. The story is about the River Clyde and a salmon with a golden ring. In this telling, the salmon represents the timelessness of the river and of hope. It is not a production for the tourists, but for someone who has heard the story before, but needs to hear it again, freshly. It is a symbol of pride.

Glasgow has reason to be proud. For years the city was described as a place to avoid, but those years are over. Now buildings have been sand-blasted, those that cannot be saved structurally are being rebuilt with their nineteenth century facades preserved. What is emerging is not the industrial giant of the past, but a modern, progressive city with the elegant, Victorian face of its days of glory. In those days, the city had a second motto: "The Clyde made Glasgow, and Glasgow made the Clyde."

"Clyde-built" was a mark of quality for ships like the Queen Mary and the QE II that were built in Glasgow's ship yards. Locomotives built in Springburn were loaded onto ships in the Clyde and sent to the corners of the world. The city boasted a fine University, founded in 1451, and giants of intellect such as philosopher and economist Adam Smith. But Glasgow's real strength was its people, people with ideas like James Watt, who made steam efficient and David Dale, the "cotton king". The city had less of a class structure than some others, and provided opportunity for those who would work and who could make things work.

At the beginning of the nineteenth century, Glasgow's population was under 80,000. By 1901, it was a city of over 700,000, and a world center of heavy industry and manufacturing. This surge in growth was the result of more than birth rate. Glasgow became a haven for displaced Highlanders and people fleeing the potato famine in Ireland. With this influx, many of the problems of urban life came to the fore. This was the time when my family called Glasgow home. Some had been residents of the city for a century or more, others came from the North or from Ulster, but the common denominator was the Clyde, and the city drew its life from her. What follows is their story.

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