Bickering Bush

The Bickering bush (NS41863635) thorn grew near Caprington on the lands of Monksholm or Maxholm, Riccarton, East Ayrshire, Scotland. The old farm house at Maxholm sat in hollow on the old Caprington Castle estate and to the north and west its fields bordered the River Irvine. The thorn was located, as recorded on the OS map, near to the confluence of the Kilmarnock Water and the River Irvine, downstream of the Simon's Burn's (aka Maxholm Burn) confluence on the south bank of the river. Legend has it that in around the year 1292 Sir William Wallace was involved in an incident in which he killed two or three out of five English soldiers who were attempting to take his catch of fish and the 'Bickering Bush' thorn marked the spot.