Govan Old Parish Church is a former parish church serving Govan in Glasgow from the 5th or 6th century AD until 2007. In that year, the Church of Scotland united the two Govan congregations with Linthouse and established the parish church at Govan Cross, making Govan Old redundant.[1] A decade later, Govan Old Walkway was opened, connecting both with a new riverside path.[2]
Govan Old is no longer used for regular Sunday services, but the building remains a place of worship with a daily morning service and is open to visitors in the afternoons. The church, dedicated to a Saint Constantine, occupies a Scottish Gothic Revival building of national significance (A-Listed by Historic Environment Scotland) within a churchyard designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument (Historic Environment Scotland).
The church houses an internationally-significant collection of early medieval sculpture, known as the Govan Stones. All the carved stones come from the churchyard and include the Govan Sarcophagus, four upstanding crosses with figurative and interlace decoration, five Anglo-Scandinavian hogbacks, and a wide range of recumbent burial monuments, all seemingly dating to the 9th – 11th centuries AD.
Early-medieval churchyard
It is believed that the site's earliest Christian activity began sometime in the 5th or 6th century AD. Archaeological excavations in the 1990s uncovered two early Christian burials beneath the foundations of a later church; these burials were radiocarbon-dated between the 5th and 6th centuries AD (AD 435-601 and AD 474 -601).[3]
Despite this early activity, it wasn't until the 9th and 10th centuries that Govan Old rose to prominence: indeed, there are few historical references to Govan in the interim, though there appears to be one reference included in Symeon of Durham's Historia Regum, compiled sometime in the 12th century AD. In it, Simeon records the return of the Northumbrian army from 'Ovania' after attacking Dumbarton Rock (Alt Clut) in AD 756.[4][5]
Originally, the Annals of Ulster recorded Dumbarton Rock as the centre of the Brittonic Kingdom of Alt Clud (usually pre-emptively referred to as the Kingdom of Strathclyde, but which is more accurately described as ‘the kingdom of the Rock of the Clyde’) from the 6th century AD until the later 9th century AD. In AD 870, the annals record a Viking raid on Dumbarton Rock; after this point, the kings of Clyde Rock are no longer discussed.[6][7] In 872, the Annals of Ulster instead refer to the kingdom of Ystrad Clud, better known as the Kingdom of Strathclyde,[8] which appears to mark the shift of political power from Dumbarton Rock further upstream to Govan.
It is possible that a predecessor of the 12th-century royal estate at Partick[9][10] and the now-destroyed Doomster Hill (which is thought to have functioned as a Viking-style 'thing' site or moot/meeting place, having been adapted from a possible Bronze-Age burial mound[11][12][13]) played a part in this power shift.
The size of the graveyard and the sheer amount of early medieval sculpture suggest that the church was supported by royal patronage. Because the site has been in continual use since it was first established, it is impossible to tell what the original church looked like, but it is clear that it always had Christian associations.
The majority of the current church building was constructed 1884-1888, although the site is one of the oldest places of Christian worship in Scotland. Unusually, the axis of the church was turned to orientate north-south rather than the traditional east-west orientation, but this allowed the main door to face south to the main street.
Upon construction, the congregation was closely associated with the Scoto-Catholic High Church movement within the Church of Scotland—several former ministers have been actively involved with the Scottish Church Society. Notable former ministers include the Reverend George MacLeod, later the Lord MacLeod of Fuinary, and Norman Shanks, Leader of the Iona Community from 1995 to 2002.[16]
Govan Old also has noteworthy stained glass windows. Two of the church's windows were given by Robert Malcolm Kerr; the Emmaus window in 1891, and Christ blessing the children in 1902. Both were made by Heaton, Butler and Bayne.[17][18]
The church's museum collection of early medieval Christian carvings, known as the Govan Stones, is of international significance. This was first properly recognised in December 1855 when the digging of a grave led to the rediscovery of a sarcophagus.[19]
The exciting discovery prompted scholars to illustrate and record the Govan Sarcophagus and other early medieval monuments in the churchyard. A photographic record of forty-six carved stones was commissioned and published by John Stirling Maxwell.[20] For this publication, Robert Foster of Stirling made plaster casts of each of the stones;[21] these casts were then taken to the studio of renowned photographers T & R Annan & Son and photographed in ideal lighting conditions to emphasise the carving.[22][23] These photographs were used in the J. Romilly Allen and Joseph Anderson's Early Christian Monuments of Scotland, though only thirty-nine were included in their volume;[24] however, of these thirty-nine, one stone was not recorded by Stirling Maxwell, which puts the number of probable early medieval stones from Govan at forty-seven.
In the 1960s, Ralegh Radford saw the stones as a means to understand Govan's early significance and made close comparisons between the carved stones from Govan and those found at Inchinnan,[25] which, along with other monuments in the region, are described as belonging to a ‘Govan School’ of carving.[26][27]
Today, thirty monuments are currently on display inside the church, and a single recumbent monument of medieval date remains in the graveyard. Sixteen of the stones that were not brought into the church were thought to have been buried or removed after the demolition of the Harland & Wolff factory building in 1973,[28] but a recent community archaeology dig identified the location of at least three of the lost stones.[29]
Of the thirty-one monuments on display at Govan Old, there is one sarcophagus, two cross-shafts, two upright cross-slabs, five hogbacks, and twenty-one recumbent cross-slabs.[30]
The Govan hogbacks
Govan Old and the Govan Stones museum are open daily between April 1 and October 31 from 1pm-4pm (visitors can contact the museum to arrange tours in the off season). Admission to the museum is free, although there is the option for visitors to make donations, and a small gift shop inside including books and local handicrafts which raises money for the upkeep of the property and its collections.
Amalgamation
Following arbitration, the Church of Scotland's Presbytery of Glasgow decided upon a union of the three local Church of Scotland congregations in the Govan area. Govan Old (along with the charges of Linthouse St Kenneth and New Govan) was terminated on 28 October 2007, becoming part of Govan and Linthouse parish and congregation.
After 2007, the future of the Govan Old Parish Church was uncertain. In 2008, an Options Appraisal study was undertaken by Govan Workspace Ltd, who then took the lead in applying for funding to redisplay the sculpture.[1] The funding was secured in 2011, allowing the redisplay to be completed by Northlight Heritage/York Archaeological Trust in 2013.[31] Govan Old's future was secured when the Govan Heritage Trust obtained a grant from the Scottish Government in 2016.[32] The Trust aims to develop the church into a self-sustaining community-run cultural, museum and business complex, but requires further financial support to bring to fruition.[33]
The church is located near Govan Station on the Glasgow Subway. Its main entrance is next to the Govan War Memorial, which is to the immediate west of the Pearce Institute on the Govan Road.
In March 2019, ′Stones and Bones′ community archaeologists with a schoolboy named Mark McGettigan revealed long-lost medieval stone carvings. The stones were assumed to have been demolished by chance when the neighbouring Harland & Wolff shipyard plaring shed was demolished in the 1970s.[29]
“This the most exciting discovery we have had at Govan in the last 20 years. The Govan Stones are a collection of international importance and these recovered stones reinforce the case for regarding Govan as a major early medieval centre of power", said Professor Stephen Driscoll.[34]
David Orr (1960–1980), whose efforts led to the establishment of the Govan Housing Association.[36]
Tom Davidson Kelly (1989-2002) established the Friends of Govan Old and brought attention to the early medieval sculpture at Govan by persuading scholars to consider the collection at a conference in 1992.[37]
Moyna McGlynn (2008-2016) maintained the building after its closure and supported the old congregation, allowing time for a community-based trust to assume responsibility for the site.
The Picts were a group of peoples in what is now Scotland north of the Firth of Forth, in the Early Middle Ages. Where they lived and details of their culture can be gleaned from early medieval texts and Pictish stones. The name Picti appears in written records as an exonym from the late third century AD. They are assumed to have been descendants of the Caledonii and other northern Iron Age tribes. Their territory is referred to as "Pictland" by modern historians. Initially made up of several chiefdoms, it came to be dominated by the Pictish kingdom of Fortriu from the seventh century. During this Verturian hegemony, Picti was adopted as an endonym. This lasted around 160 years until the Pictish kingdom merged with that of Dál Riata to form the Kingdom of Alba, ruled by the House of Alpin. The concept of "Pictish kingship" continued for a few decades until it was abandoned during the reign of Caustantín mac Áeda.
The River Clyde is a river that flows into the Firth of Clyde, in the west of Scotland. It is the ninth-longest river in the United Kingdom, and the third longest in Scotland after the River Tay and the River Spey. It runs through the city of Glasgow. The River Clyde estuary has an upper tidal limit located at the tidal weir next to Glasgow Green.
Strathclyde was a Brittonic kingdom in northern Britain during the Middle Ages. It comprised parts of what is now southern Scotland and North West England, a region the Welsh tribes referred to as Yr Hen Ogledd. At its greatest extent in the 10th century, it stretched from Loch Lomond to the River Eamont at Penrith. Strathclyde seems to have been annexed by the Gaelic-speaking Kingdom of Alba in the 11th century, becoming part of the emerging Kingdom of Scotland.
Kentigern, known as Mungo, was a missionary in the Brittonic Kingdom of Strathclyde in the late sixth century, and the founder and patron saint of the city of Glasgow.
Govan is a district, parish, and former burgh now part of southwest Glasgow, Scotland. It is situated 2+1⁄2 miles west of Glasgow city centre, on the south bank of the River Clyde, opposite the mouth of the River Kelvin and the district of Partick. Historically it was part of the County of Lanark.
Hogbacks are stone carved Anglo-Scandinavian sculptures from 10th- to 12th-century northern England and south-west Scotland. Singular hogbacks were found in Ireland and Wales. Hogbacks fell out of fashion by the beginning of the 11th century. Their function is generally accepted as grave markers. Similar later grave markers have been found in Scandinavia. In Cornwall similar stones are known as coped stones.
This article deals with the history of the city of Glasgow, Scotland.
Linthouse is a neighbourhood in the city of Glasgow, Scotland. It is situated directly south of the River Clyde and lies immediately west of Govan, with other adjacent areas including Shieldhall and the Southern General Hospital to the west, and Drumoyne to the south. Although it is currently located within the Govan ward of Glasgow City Council, it was in fact a distinct area separate from Govan until 1901 when it willfully became part of the Burgh of Govan in turn both areas were annexed to Glasgow in 1912.
Dyfnwal was King of Strathclyde. Although his parentage is unknown, he was probably a member of the Cumbrian dynasty that is recorded to have ruled the Kingdom of Strathclyde immediately before him. Dyfnwal is attested by only one source, a mediaeval chronicle that places his death between the years 908 and 915.
Alexander Stephen and Sons Limited, often referred to simply as Alex Stephens or just Stephens, was a Scottish shipbuilding company based in Linthouse, Glasgow, on the River Clyde and, initially, on the east coast of Scotland.
The Saint Andrews Sarcophagus is a Pictish monument dating from the second half of the 8th century. The sarcophagus was recovered beginning in 1833 during excavations by St Andrew's Cathedral in Scotland, and in 1922 the surviving components were reunited. The sarcophagus is on display at the Cathedral museum in St Andrews, close to the site of its discovery.
Constantine was reputedly the son and successor of King Riderch Hael of Alt Clut, the Brittonic kingdom later known as Strathclyde. He appears only in the Life of St. Kentigern by Jocelyn of Furness, which regards him as a cleric, thus connecting him with the several obscure saints named Constantine venerated throughout Britain.
St Peter's Church is in the village of Heysham, Lancashire, England. It is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade I listed building. It is an active Anglican parish church in the deanery of Lancaster, the archdeaconry of Lancaster and the diocese of Blackburn.
This article deals with the history of the Partick area of Glasgow in Scotland.
Barochan Cross is an ancient Scottish Celtic Christian cross whose construction has been dated to the early Middle Ages, between the 8th and the 11th century. It was originally located on the northside of Barochan burn, about 2 km north of Houston in Renfrewshire, then moved to a position nearby on top of Corslie Hill in 1790. It remained there for the next 187 years, in an exposed position that caused significant damage to the cross. In 1977, it was taken to Stenhouse Conservation Centre in Edinburgh for preservation. Once repaired it was decided it couldn't return to its exposed position, that resulted in the 1981 decision to move it to Paisley Abbey to protect it from the elements. Barochan Cross is one of three Christian crosses remaining from the ancient Kingdom of Strathclyde.
Govandale Park was a football ground in the burgh of Govan, Scotland. It was the home ground of Linthouse F.C. between 1894 and their disbandment in 1900.
The Govan Stones is an internationally-important museum collection of early-medieval carved stones displayed at Govan Old Parish Church in Glasgow, Scotland.
White Inch was an island lying in the estuarine waters of the River Clyde close to Glasgow in the Parish of Govan, Lanarkshire, Scotland. Due to the deliberate disposal of dredged material from the Clyde, it became physically part of the northern, Lanarkshire side, of the river bank from the 1830s and is now entirely built over. The name lives on in the Whiteinch district of Glasgow, street names, etc., and probably relates to white colored sand deposits.
New Govan Parish Church, presently named Govan & Linthouse Parish Church, is a 19th-century church building located in the Govan area of Glasgow, Scotland. It is one of three church buildings of the Parish of Govan & Linthouse, however, it is considered as the main Parish church.
St Boniface's Church, Papa Westray is a historic church and graveyard located on the island of Papa Westray in Orkney, Scotland. The site of the church dates back to the Iron Age and was possibly used later as a Christian monastery. The present church was built in the 12th century and was remodeled in 1710. A 12th-century Norse hogback gravestone lies to the east of the church. Two Pictish cross-slabs were uncovered in the graveyard in the 20th century, and were later moved to museums. Historic Environment Scotland established the site as a scheduled monument in 1959.
References
1 2 Driscoll, Stephen (2016). "Reading Govan Old: interpretative challenges and aspirations"(PDF). In Hunter, Fraser; Sheridan, Alison (eds.). Ancient Lives: Object, People and Place in Early Scotland, Essays for David V Clarke on his 70th Birthday. Sidestone Press. pp.79–80.
↑ Breeze, Andrew (1999). "Simeon of Durham's annal for 756 and Govan, Scotland". Nomina. 22: 133–137.
↑ Forsyth, Katherine (2000). "Evidence of a lost Pictish source in the Historia Regum Anglorum of Symeon of Durham". In Taylor, Simon (ed.). Kings, Clerics and Chronicles in Scotland, 500-1297. Four Courts Press. pp.19–34. ISBN9781851825165.
↑ Clancy, Thomas (2006). "Constantine, St. (of Govan)". In Koch, John (ed.). Celtic Culture: A Historical Encyclopedia. ABC-Clio. p.1818.
↑ Clancy, Thomas (2006). "Constantine, St. (of Govan)". In Koch, John (ed.). Celtic Culture: A Historical Encyclopedia. ABC-Clio. p.1819.
↑ Macquarrie, Alan (1994). "The historical context of the Govan stones". In Ritchie, Anna (ed.). Govan and its early medieval sculpture. Alan Sutton publishing limited. p.29. ISBN9780750907170.
↑ Crawford, Barbara (2005). The Govan Hogbacks and the Multi-Cultural Society of Tenth-Century Scotland. Glasgow: Friends of Govan Old. ISBN0-9545321-3-9.
↑ Davidson Kelly, T.A. (1994). "The Govan collection in the context of local history". In Ritche, Anna (ed.). Govan and its early medieval sculpture. Alan Sutton Publishing Limited. pp.1–3. ISBN9780750907170.
↑ Driscoll, Stephen (2016). "Reading Govan Old: interpretative challenges and aspirations"(PDF). In Hunter, Fraser; Sheridan, Alison (eds.). Ancient Lives: Object, People and Place in Early Scotland, Essays for David V Clarke on his 70th Birthday. Sidestone Press. p.76.
↑ Allen, J. Romilly; Anderson, Joseph (1903). The Early Christian Monuments of Scotland. Balgavies, Angus: 1993 reprint: The Pinkfoot Press.
↑ Radford, C.A.R. (1967). "The Early Christian Monuments at Govan and Inchinnan". Transactions of the Glasgow Archaeological Society. 15 (4): 173–188.
↑ Driscoll, S T; O'Grady, O; Forsyth, K S (2005). "The Govan School revisited: searching for meaning in the early medieval sculpture of Strathclyde". In Foster, S; Cross, M (eds.). Able Minds and Practised Hands. Historic Scotland. pp.135–158.
↑ Macquarrie, Alan (2006). Crosses and Upright Monuments in Strathclyde: Typology, Dating, and Purpose. Glasgow: Friends of Govan Old. ISBN0-9545321-4-7.
↑ Davidson Kelly, T.A. (1994). "The Govan collection in the context of local history". In Ritchie, Anna (ed.). Govan and its early medieval sculpture. Alan Sutton Publishing Limited. p.6. ISBN9780750907170.
↑ Driscoll, Stephen (2016). "Reading Govan Old: interpretative challenges and aspirations"(PDF). In Hunter, Fraser; Sheridan, Alison (eds.). Ancient Lives: Object, People and Place in Early Scotland, Essays for David V Clarke on his 70th Birthday. Sidestone Press. p.85.
↑ Driscoll, Stephen (2016). "Reading Govan Old: interpretative challenges and aspirations"(PDF). In Hunter, Fraser; Sheridan, Alison (eds.). Ancient Lives: Object, People and Place in Early Scotland, Essays for David V Clarke on his 70th Birthday. Sidestone Press. p.79.
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