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Abbeys, Churches and Cathedrals of Scotland

Whithorn in Galloway is regarded as the site of the earliest stone church in Scotland, though the island of Iona, where an abbey still stands today, is also regarded as ‘The Cradle of Christianity’ in Scotland. A number of early churches and monuments survive across Scotland, including round towers at Abernethy and Brechin, and the famous 12th-century St Margaret’s Chapel in Edinburgh Castle.

There are also substantial parts of other churches and religious buildings of very early date, such as the 12th-century Romanesque parts of Leuchars Church or the equally ancient tower at the ruined Restenneth Priory near Forfar.

Being in important towns or cities and thus better-known are important Pre-Reformation churches such as Glasgow Cathedral, The High Kirk of St Giles in Edinburgh, the Church of the Holy Rude in Stirling and the especially impressive St Magnus Cathedral in Kirkwall.

The Reformation in Scotland had great implications for Scotland’s churches and abbeys, with much damage wrought on fixtures and decorations. The four great Border abbeys were all reduced to various states of ruin. Scotland’s best preserved abbey is Inchcolm, its island position helping in its preservation. Likewise, the story of cathedrals such as at St Andrews (once the largest in Scotland) and Elgin ‘The Lantern of the North’ is one that ends with their use as a source of ready-dressed stone for local buildings. However, others, such as Dunkeld and Dunblane, have been at least restored in part to serve today as parish churches, while other religious centres, such as Rosslyn Chapel, continue to fascinate visitors.