The story of Sweetheart Abbey, south of Dumfries and close to the River Nith, is a divisive one, for it will either warm your heart or make you shudder, and in that sense the ensuing story is a character litmus test. I didn’t know this prior to my visit. What I knew was that after visiting Crossraguel Abbey, Dundrennan Abbey, and Glenluce Abbey, my abbey hunting in Dumfries & Galloway would come to an end here at Sweetheart Abbey, perhaps the region’s most famous example.

First of all, Sweetheart Abbey is one of a pair of amazing sites about 20-minutes drive south of Dumfries near the Solway Coast. Caerlaverock Castle completes the pair…