 Prior to the founding of Arbroath Abbey, the church of Arbirlot belonged to the diocese of St Andrews and the bishops held lands lying to the east of the Elliot Water.Bishop Roger de Beaumont granted the church to the new Abbey around the time of its foundation, but retained the lands in Arbirlot for the diocese.The parish suffered from the effects of the First War of Scottish Independence in the late 13th and early 14th centuries as evidenced by the relief granted to the vicar of Arbirlot in March 1323 who was then twenty years in arrears in paying the two merks due annually to the Abbot of Arbroath Abbey.