Dunkeld Cathedral

Last updated

Dunkeld Cathedral
Dunkeld Cathedral.jpg
Dunkeld Cathedral
Location Dunkeld, Perth and Kinross
Country Scotland
Denomination Church of Scotland
Previous denomination Roman Catholic
History
Founded1260
Dedication St Columba
Associated people Crínán of Dunkeld
Architecture
Heritage designation Scheduled monument
Designated10 October 1994 [1]
Administration
Presbytery Dunkeld and Meigle
Diocese Diocese of Dunkeld (historic)

Dunkeld Cathedral is a Church of Scotland place of worship which stands on the north bank of the River Tay in Dunkeld, Perth and Kinross, Scotland. Built in square-stone style of predominantly grey sandstone, the cathedral proper began in 1260 and completed in 1501. [2] It stands on the site of the former Culdee Monastery of Dunkeld, stones from which can be seen as an irregular reddish streak in the eastern gable.

Contents

It is not formally a 'cathedral', as the Church of Scotland nowadays has neither cathedrals nor bishops, but it is one of a number of similar former cathedrals which has continued to carry the name.

History

Because of the long construction period, the cathedral shows mixed architecture. Gothic and Norman elements are intermingled throughout the structure. Although partly in ruins, the cathedral is in regular use today and is open to the public.

Relics of Saint Columba, including his bones, were said to have been kept at Dunkeld until the Reformation, at which time they were removed to Ireland. Some believe there are still undiscovered Columban relics buried within the cathedral grounds.

The original monastery at Dunkeld dated from the sixth or early seventh century, founded after an expedition of Saint Columba to the Land of Alba. It was at first a simple collection of wattle huts. [2] During the ninth century Causantín mac Fergusa constructed a more substantial cathedral of reddish sandstone and declared Dunkeld to hold the Primacy (centre) of the faith in Alba.

For reasons not completely understood, the Celtic bell believed to have been used at the monastery is not preserved in the cathedral. Instead, it was used in the Little Dunkeld Church, the parish church of the district of Minor or Lesser Dunkeld. Possibly this was because the later canons regarded Culdeeism as heresy and refused relics or saints of that discipline. [3]

In the 17th century, the Bishopric of Dunkeld became an appendage of the Crown and subsequently descended to the Earls of Fife. Dunkeld Cathedral is today a Crown property, through Historic Environment Scotland, and a scheduled monument. [1]

In 1689 the Battle of Dunkeld was fought around the cathedral between the Jacobite Highland clans loyal to James II and VII – deposed in the Glorious Revolution the previous year – and a government force supporting William III and II, with the latter winning the day. [4]

Parish

Dunkeld Cathedral is still used as the town's Church of Scotland parish church, with services every Sunday (although the congregation uses the smaller "Little Dunkeld" Church during winter months.) The current minister (since 2001) is the Reverend R. Fraser Penny.

The small Chapter House Museum offers a collection of relics from monastic and medieval times, and local history exhibits.

Burials

Tomb of Alexander Stewart, Earl of Buchan, c. 1420 WolfatDunkeld.jpg
Tomb of Alexander Stewart, Earl of Buchan, c. 1420

Alexander Stewart, Earl of Buchan, known as "the Wolf of Badenoch", was buried in the cathedral following his death in 1394, where his tomb, surmounted by his armoured effigy, can still be seen. [5]

Other noteworthy burials include:

See also

Related Research Articles

The Culdees were members of ascetic Christian monastic and eremitical communities of Ireland, Scotland, Wales and England in the Middle Ages. Appearing first in Ireland and then in Scotland, subsequently attached to cathedral or collegiate churches; they lived in monastic fashion though not taking monastic vows.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alexander Stewart, Earl of Buchan</span> Earl of Buchan

Alexander Stewart, Earl of Buchan, called the Wolf of Badenoch, was the third surviving son of King Robert II of Scotland by his first wife Elizabeth Mure. Alexander married the widowed Euphemia I, Countess of Ross, but they had no children. He did have a large family by his longtime mistress, Mairead inghean Eachainn.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Inchcolm</span>

Inchcolm is an island in the Firth of Forth in Scotland. It was repeatedly attacked by English raiders during the Wars of Scottish Independence, and was fortified during both World Wars to defend nearby Edinburgh. Inchcolm now attracts visitors to its former Augustine Abbey.

Crínán of Dunkeld, also called Crinan the Thane, was the hereditary abbot of the monastery of Dunkeld, and perhaps the Mormaer of Atholl. Crínán was progenitor of the House of Dunkeld, the dynasty which would rule the Kingdom of Scotland until the later 13th century. He was the son-in-law of one king, and the father of another.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elgin Cathedral</span> A historic ruin in Elgin, Moray, north-east Scotland

Elgin Cathedral is a historic ruin in Elgin, Moray, north-east Scotland. The cathedral, dedicated to the Holy Trinity, was established in 1224 on land granted by King Alexander II outside the burgh of Elgin and close to the River Lossie. It replaced the cathedral at Spynie, 3 kilometres (2 mi) to the north, which was served by a small chapter of eight clerics. By 1226, the new and developing cathedral was staffed with 18 canons increasing to 23 by 1242. A damaging fire in 1270 resulted in a significantly enlarged building. It remained unaffected by the Wars of Scottish Independence, but again suffered extensive fire damage in 1390 when attacked by Robert III's brother Alexander Stewart, Earl of Buchan, also known as the Wolf of Badenoch. In 1402 the cathedral precinct again suffered an incendiary attack by the followers of the Lord of the Isles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Andrews Cathedral</span> Church in Fife , Scotland

The Cathedral of St Andrew is a ruined cathedral in St Andrews, Fife, Scotland. It was built in 1158 and became the centre of the Medieval Catholic Church in Scotland as the seat of the Archdiocese of St Andrews and the Bishops and Archbishops of St Andrews. It fell into disuse and ruin after Catholic mass was outlawed during the 16th-century Scottish Reformation. It is currently a monument in the custody of Historic Environment Scotland. The ruins indicate that the building was approximately 119 m (390 ft) long, and is the largest church to have been built in Scotland.

Ethelred was the son of King Malcolm III of Scotland and his wife Margaret of Wessex, the third oldest of the latter and the probable sixth oldest of the former. He took his name, almost certainly, from Margaret's great-grandfather Æthelred the Unready. He became the lay abbot of Dunkeld.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dunkeld</span> Town in Perth and Kinross, Scotland

Dunkeld is a town in Perth and Kinross, Scotland. The location of a historic cathedral, it lies on the north bank of the River Tay, opposite Birnam. Dunkeld lies close to the geological Highland Boundary Fault, and is frequently described as the "Gateway to the Highlands" due to its position on the main road and rail lines north. Dunkeld has a railway station, Dunkeld & Birnam, on the Highland Main Line, and is about 25 kilometres north of Perth on what is now the A9 road. The main road formerly ran through the town, however following modernisation of this road it now passes to the west of Dunkeld.

Christianity in Medieval Scotland includes all aspects of Christianity in the modern borders of Scotland in the Middle Ages. Christianity was probably introduced to what is now Lowland Scotland by Roman soldiers stationed in the north of the province of Britannia. After the collapse of Roman authority in the fifth century, Christianity is presumed to have survived among the British enclaves in the south of what is now Scotland, but retreated as the pagan Anglo-Saxons advanced. Scotland was largely converted by Irish missions associated with figures such as St Columba, from the fifth to the seventh centuries. These missions founded monastic institutions and collegiate churches that served large areas. Scholars have identified a distinctive form of Celtic Christianity, in which abbots were more significant than bishops, attitudes to clerical celibacy were more relaxed and there were significant differences in practice with Roman Christianity, particularly the form of tonsure and the method of calculating Easter, although most of these issues had been resolved by the mid-seventh century. After the reconversion of Scandinavian Scotland in the tenth century, Christianity under papal authority was the dominant religion of the kingdom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Diocese of Dunkeld</span> Historical diocese of Scotland (c. 9th century-1689)

The Diocese of Dunkeld was one of the 13 historical dioceses of Scotland preceding the abolition of Episcopacy in 1689.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Deer Abbey</span> Ruins in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, UK

Deer Abbey was a Cistercian monastery in Buchan, Scotland. It was founded by 1219 under the patronage William Comyn, jure uxoris Earl of Buchan, who is also buried there.

Clement was a 13th-century Dominican friar who was the first member of the Dominican Order in Britain and Ireland to become a bishop. In 1233, he was selected to lead the ailing diocese of Dunblane in Scotland, and faced a struggle to bring the bishopric of Dunblane to financial viability. This involved many negotiations with the powerful religious institutions and secular authorities which had acquired control of the revenue that would normally have been the entitlement of Clement's bishopric. The negotiations proved difficult, forcing Clement to visit the papal court in Rome. While not achieving all of his aims, Clement succeeded in saving the bishopric from relocation to Inchaffray Abbey. He also regained enough revenue to begin work on the new Dunblane Cathedral.

The Diocese of Moray was one of the most important of the medieval dioceses of the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland. Its territory was in central northern Scotland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alexander Bur</span> Scottish cleric

Alexander Bur was a 14th-century Scottish cleric. It is highly possible that Bur came from somewhere in or around Aberdeenshire, although that is not certain and is only based on the knowledge that Aberdeenshire is where other people bearing his surname come from in this period. He entered the service of King David II of Scotland sometime after 1343, perhaps as a member of David's exiled court at Château Gaillard. Although Alexander by this point in time already held prebends in both the bishopric of Aberdeen and the bishopric of Dunkeld, on that date King David petitioned Pope Clement VI for another canonry in the bishopric of Moray. Alexander had become a royal clerk and had obtained a Licentiate in Canon Law by 1350. By the latter date, upon the death of Adam Penny, Archdeacon of Moray, Alexander himself became Archdeacon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Albin of Brechin</span> Prelate of the Kingdom of Scotland

Albin was a 13th-century prelate of the Kingdom of Scotland. A university graduate, Albin is known for his ecclesiastical career in the diocese of Brechin, centred on Angus in east-central Scotland.

William Reeves was an Irish antiquarian and the Church of Ireland Bishop of Down, Connor and Dromore from 1886 until his death. He was the last private keeper of the Book of Armagh and at the time of his death was President of the Royal Irish Academy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kinneddar</span> Castle in Scotland, United Kingdom

Kinneddar is a small settlement on the outskirts of Lossiemouth in Moray, Scotland, near the main entrance to RAF Lossiemouth. Long predating the modern town of Lossiemouth, Kinneddar was a major monastic centre for the Pictish kingdom of Fortriu from the 6th or 7th centuries, and the source of the important collection of Pictish stones called the Drainie Carved Stones. The Kirk of Kinneddar was the cathedral of the Diocese of Moray between 1187 and 1208, and remained an important centre of diocesan administration and residence of the Bishop of Moray through the 13th and 14th centuries.

Brechin Monastery was a Culdee religious house located in the county of Angus in Scotland. It was founded during the reign of Kenneth II (971–995). No trace of the building remains today.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tomb of the Wolf of Badenoch</span>

The Tomb of the Wolf of Badenoch consists of a 15th-century tomb effigy and altar tomb, both of which are carved from marble. It is located in Dunkeld Cathedral, Perthshire, Scotland, and was built for Alexander Stewart, Earl of Buchan, who is buried underneath.

References

  1. 1 2 Historic Environment Scotland. "Dunkeld Cathedral (SM90119)" . Retrieved 15 February 2019.
  2. 1 2 "Dunkeld Cathedral". Gazetteer for Scotland. Retrieved 16 December 2018.
  3. Anderson, Joseph (14 January 1889). "Notice of a Celtic Bell of Bronze from Little Dunkeld". Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland. 23: 120. Retrieved 6 April 2020.
  4. "The Battle of Dunkeld". Dunkeld Cathedral. Retrieved 6 April 2020.
  5. 1 2 Norman, A. "The Effigy of Alexander Stewart, Earl of Buchan and Lord of Badenoch (?1343 - ?1405)". Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, volume 92, 1961. pp. 104–113

56°33′54″N3°35′23″W / 56.56500°N 3.58972°W / 56.56500; -3.58972