The remains of the Orphir Round Church (or Round Kirk), also St Nicholas's Church, are located in Orphir Parish on the Mainland, Orkney, Scotland. It has been part of a scheduled monument since 2014. [1]
The remains of the Orphir Round Church (or Round Kirk), also St Nicholas's Church, are located in Orphir Parish on the Mainland, Orkney, Scotland. It has been part of a scheduled monument since 2014. [1]
The church, dedicated to Saint Nicholas, consisted of a barrel-vaulted apse on the eastern side of its 6-metre-wide (20 ft) circular nave. It consisted of a circular nave about six metres in diameter and a semicircular apse with a central window. The walls are one metre thick. [1]
It is thought to have been built by jarl (earl) Haakon Paulsson (Earl of Orkney from 1103 to 1123) as penance for murdering his cousin and co-ruler Magnus Erlendsson (later Saint Magnus) in the late 11th or early 12th century. According to the Orkneyinga saga, earl Haakon took sole power in 1117 after the killing of Magnus, and the round kirk was later rededicated to St Magnus. The saga refers to a "large drinking-hall" with a "magnificent church" nearby. The remains of the drinking hall, known as the 'Earl's Bu', can still be seen, as well as an 11th-century Norse horizontal watermill. [2]
It is the oldest surviving round church in Scotland; the only other round medieval church in Scotland is found at Roxburgh near the English border. [2] [3] The building's design was inspired by the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem and the circular churches became a popular design with returning crusaders attempting to copy the famous structure. [4]
Almost the whole church survived until 1757, when most of it was demolished to provide stone for the new parish kirk, which has also now been demolished. [5] Only the apse and a small segment of the round kirk's nave wall now survive. The site is now in the care of Historic Environment Scotland and is open to the public. [2] The remains are protected as a scheduled monument. [6]
Geophysical surveys have proved to not be very effective in investigating the remains of the church but excavations have been more effective in understanding the history and development of the church. [7]
The Orkneyinga saga is a narrative of the history of the Orkney and Shetland islands and their relationship with other local polities, particularly Norway and Scotland. The saga has "no parallel in the social and literary record of Scotland" and is "the only medieval chronicle to have Orkney as the central place of action". The main focus of the work is the line of jarls who ruled the Earldom of Orkney, which constituted the Norðreyjar or Northern Isles of Orkney and Shetland and there are frequent references to both archipelagoes throughout.
Saint Magnus Erlendsson, Earl of Orkney, sometimes known as Magnus the Martyr, was Earl of Orkney from 1106 to about 1117.
Earl of Orkney, historically Jarl of Orkney, is a title of nobility encompassing the archipelagoes of Orkney and Shetland, which comprise the Northern Isles of Scotland. Originally founded by Norse invaders, the status of the rulers of the Northern Isles as Norwegian vassals was formalised in 1195. Although the Old Norse term jarl is etymologically related to "earl", and the jarls were succeeded by earls in the late 15th century, a Norwegian jarl is not the same thing. In the Norse context the distinction between jarls and kings did not become significant until the late 11th century and the early jarls would therefore have had considerable independence of action until that time. The position of Jarl of Orkney was eventually the most senior rank in medieval Norway except for the king himself.
The Brough of Birsay is an uninhabited tidal island off the north-west coast of The Mainland of Orkney, Scotland, in the parish of Birsay. It is located around 13 miles north of Stromness and features the remains of Pictish and Norse settlements as well as a modern lighthouse.
Eday is one of the islands of Orkney, which are located to the north of the Scottish mainland. One of the North Isles, Eday is about 24 kilometres from the Orkney Mainland. With an area of 27 km2 (10 sq mi), it is the ninth-largest island of the archipelago. The bedrock of the island is Old Red Sandstone, which is exposed along the sea-cliffs.
St Magnus Cathedral dominates the skyline of Kirkwall, the main town of Orkney, a group of islands off the north coast of mainland Scotland. It is the oldest cathedral in Scotland, and the most northerly cathedral in the United Kingdom, a fine example of Romanesque architecture built for the bishops of Orkney when the islands were ruled by the Norse Earls of Orkney. It is owned not by the church, but by the burgh of Kirkwall as a result of an act of King James III of Scotland following Orkney's annexation by the Scottish Crown in 1468.
The Earldom of Orkney was a Norse territory ruled by the earls of Orkney from the ninth century until 1472. It was founded during the Viking Age by Viking raiders and settlers from Scandinavia. In the ninth and tenth centuries it covered the Northern Isles (Norðreyjar) of Orkney and Shetland, as well as Caithness and Sutherland on the mainland. It was a dependent territory of the Kingdom of Norway until 1472, when it was absorbed into the Kingdom of Scotland. Originally, the title of Jarl or Earl of Orkney was heritable.
The Bishop's Palace, Kirkwall is a 12th-century palace built at the same time as the adjacent St Magnus Cathedral in the centre of Kirkwall, Orkney, Scotland. It housed the cathedral's first bishop, William the Old of the Norwegian Catholic Church who took his authority from the Archbishop of Nidaros (Trondheim). The ruined structure now looks like a small castle.
Haakon Paulsson was a Norwegian jarl who ruled the earldom of Orkney together with his cousin Magnus Erlendsson from 1105 to 1123. Their lives and times are recounted in the Orkneyinga saga, which was first written down in the early 13th century by an unknown Icelandic author.
Houton is a settlement 5 miles (8.0 km) southeast of Stromness on the island of Mainland, Orkney, Scotland. The settlement is within the parish of Orphir, and is situated on a minor road off the A964.
Orphir is a parish and settlement on Mainland, Orkney, Scotland.
Rendall is a parish on Mainland, Orkney, Scotland. It is in the north west of the island and lies east of the parishes of Birsay and Evie and north east of Harray. The island of Gairsay is also in the parish.
St Magnus Church is a ruined medieval round-tower church located on the island of Egilsay, in Orkney, Scotland. The site is recognized as the place of execution of Saint Magnus Erlendsson, Earl of Orkney, in the 12th century. The roofless structure dates back to the 12th century, and has been described by Historic Environment Scotland (HES) as second only to St Magnus Cathedral, Kirkwall, as a surviving Norse church in Scotland.
The Lady Kirk at Pierowall is a ruined 17th-century church on the island of Westray, in Orkney, Scotland. The church was built in 1674, on the foundations of the 13th-century church. Two 17th-century grave-slabs, in excellent condition, are set into the interior wall of the chancel and are now protected by glass screens. The graves display fine lettering and 17th-century images of mortality, engraved in high relief. Historic Environment Scotland established the site as a scheduled monument in 2014.
Westside Church,, is a ruined 12th century church located on the island of Westray in Orkney, Scotland. Archaeological excavations at the site suggest that the church is related to a nearby late Norse settlement. Historic Environment Scotland established the site, which includes the church and surrounding cemetery, as a scheduled monument in 1921.
Helga Moddansdóttir was the mistress of Haakon Paulsson who was Earl of Orkney from 1105 to 1123.
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.
St. Mary's Chapel is a ruined 12th century chapel found on the island of Wyre, in Orkney, Scotland. It is thought to have been built by a Norse chieftain, Kolbeinn hrúga or his son, Bjarni Kolbeinsson, Bishop of Orkney. The now roofless Romanesque style building was originally constructed of local rubble and lime mortar. During the late 19th century, the building was restored. Historic Environment Scotland established the site, which includes the church and walled burial ground, as a scheduled monument in 1929.