Scots Kirk, Lausanne

Last updated

Scots Kirk Lausanne
Scottish Church Lausanne
Église écossaise de Lausanne
Eglise ecossaise - Scots Kirk Lausanne.jpg
The Scots Kirk, seen from the south-west, 2013
Scots Kirk, Lausanne
LocationLausanne
CountrySwitzerland
Denomination Presbyterian
Website https://www.scotskirklausanne.ch
History
Founded1876 (1876)
Founder(s)Rev. Amalric-Frédéric Buscarlet
Dedication St Andrew
Architecture
Architect(s) E.-E. Viollet-le-Duc, Jules Verrey
Style Neogothic
Years built1876-1877

The Scots Kirk, Lausanne, is a Protestant, presbyterian church situated in Lausanne, avenue de Rumine 24. It is part of the Church of Scotland's Presbytery of Europe and one of two congregations of the Church of Scotland in Switzerland, the other being the Scots Kirk in Geneva. Sunday services are in English.

Contents

History

In Lausanne, the very first attempts to form a Presbyterian congregation go back to 1866, but they failed after two years. Amalric-Frédéric Buscarlet, pastor in Naples, was staying temporarily in Montreux, where he worked as a chaplain during the tourist season. In 1874, Mrs Williamina Davidson invited him to come to Lausanne, to take some weekday services. Accepting the offer, he rapidly built up a small congregation, which soon asked the Continental Committee of the Free Church of Scotland to finance a permanent clerical post. Buscarlet was named the first minister of the Scottish Church in Lausanne in 1876.

The first services were held in the Musée industriel, rue Chaucrau, or in the chapel of the Église libre des Terreaux, but very quickly Buscarlet gathered the necessary funds for the construction of a dedicated building. He engaged one of the most celebrated French architects of the period, Eugène-Emmanuel Viollet-le-Duc (who was then working on the restoration of Lausanne Cathedral), to draw up plans for a new church. The construction was entrusted to Jules Verrey, a local architect who erected a number of other religious buildings, particularly for the Free Church of Vaud. The new church was formally dedicated to the glory of God on April 12, 1877, although it had still not been completely finished. The Rev. Buscarlet remained in post until 1907.

Constructed between 1876 and 1877, the church was completed in 1879 by the addition of a small vestry on the south-eastern side of the building. Originally known as Trinity Presbyterian Church, it was renamed St Andrew’s Church, probably in 1933 following a property transfer from the United Free Church of Scotland to the Church of Scotland. The church was restored in 1953 and again in 1981–1982, then under the direction of Marcel D. Mueller, an architect of Belgian origin, and a member of the congregation.

The building is of interest for its asymmetric architectural shape and its finely crafted timbered roof, both inspired by rural English and Scottish churches. In addition, its interior layout and furnishings are original: the pews, the raised central pulpit (reached by two converging staircases), the Communion table and the celebrants’ seats were realised according to the designs of Viollet-le-Duc.

In 1974, the building was registered in the Heritage Inventory (recensement architectural du Canton de Vaud), and in 1995 it was made a category B listed building under federal protection (Protection des Biens Culturels en cas de conflit armé). [1]

Stained glass windows. East wall: 1971, by Bernard Viglino, Chavornay. North wall: 1981, by Jean Prahin, Rivaz.

Organ: 1974, built by E. Armagni and J.-F. Mingot, Lausanne. The instrument was paid for by a member of the congregation, Ian Reddihough, who also designed and stitched the four large tapestries (1967-1975) adorning the walls of the church.

St Andrew’s House, the church hall, was built between 1958 and 1962 after the plans of the architect Mueller.

Ministers of the Scots Kirk Lausanne

Sources

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eugène Viollet-le-Duc</span> French architect and author

Eugène Emmanuel Viollet-le-Duc was a French architect and author, famous for his restoration of the most prominent medieval landmarks in France. His major restoration projects included Notre-Dame de Paris, the Basilica of Saint Denis, Mont Saint-Michel, Sainte-Chapelle, the medieval walls of the city of Carcassonne, and Roquetaillade castle in the Bordeaux region.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Church of Scotland</span> National church of Scotland

The Church of Scotland is the national church in Scotland.

The United Presbyterian Church (1847–1900) was a Scottish Presbyterian denomination. It was formed in 1847 by the union of the United Secession Church and the Relief Church, and in 1900 merged with the Free Church of Scotland to form the United Free Church of Scotland, which in turn united with the Church of Scotland in 1929. For most of its existence the United Presbyterian Church was the third largest Presbyterian Church in Scotland, and stood on the liberal wing of Scots Presbyterianism. The Church's name was often abbreviated to the initials U.P.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chillon Castle</span> Castle in Veytaux, Switzerland

Chillon Castle is an island castle located on Lake Geneva, south of Veytaux in the canton of Vaud. It is situated at the eastern end of the lake, on the narrow shore between Montreux and Villeneuve, which gives access to the Alpine valley of the Rhône. Chillon is amongst the most visited medieval castles in Switzerland and Europe. Successively occupied by the House of Savoy, then by the Bernese from 1536 until 1798, it now belongs to the State of Vaud and is classified as a Swiss Cultural Property of National Significance. The Fort de Chillon, its modern counterpart, is hidden in the steep side of the mountain.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Knox Presbyterian Church (Toronto)</span> Church in Toronto, Ontario

Knox Presbyterian Church is a Presbyterian church in downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

The Free Church of Scotland is an evangelical, Calvinist denomination in Scotland. It was historically part of the original Free Church of Scotland that remained outside the union with the United Presbyterian Church of Scotland in 1900. Now, it remains a distinct Presbyterian denomination in Scotland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Canongate Kirk</span> Church in Edinburgh, Scotland

The Kirk of the Canongate, or Canongate Kirk, serves the Parish of Canongate in Edinburgh's Old Town, in Scotland. It is a congregation of the Church of Scotland. The parish includes the Palace of Holyroodhouse and the Scottish Parliament. It is also the parish church of Edinburgh Castle, even though the castle is detached from the rest of the parish. The wedding of Zara Phillips, the Queen's granddaughter, and former England rugby captain Mike Tindall took place at the church on 30 July 2011. The late Queen Elizabeth II used to attend services in the church on some of her frequent visits to Edinburgh.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wellington Church</span> Church in Glasgow, Scotland

Wellington Church is a congregation and parish church of the Church of Scotland, serving part of the Hillhead area of Glasgow, Scotland. The building is located on University Avenue, Glasgow, opposite the University of Glasgow.

The International Presbytery covers the Church of Scotland's congregations in continental Europe, Sri Lanka and the Caribbean. Until 2016 it was called the Presbytery of Europe. In October 2014 it was agreed to move towards changing the name to the International Presbytery.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Scots Kirk, Paris</span> Church in Paris, France

The Scots Kirk Paris is a Presbyterian Protestant church situated in Paris, in rue Bayard near the Champs-Elysées in the 8th arrondissement. It is the only congregation of the Church of Scotland in France, part of the International Presbytery.

John Burnet was a Scottish architect who lived and practised in Glasgow. He was born the son of militia officer and trained initially as a carpenter, before becoming a Clerk of Works. He rose to prominence in the mid-1850s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">First Presbyterian Church (Chattanooga, Tennessee)</span> Historic church in Tennessee, United States

The First Presbyterian Church in Chattanooga, Tennessee, located at 554 McCallie Avenue, is a historic, downtown congregation of the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA) and the first Christian congregation founded in Chattanooga.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Andrew's Scots Church, Malta</span> Church in Valletta, Malta

St. Andrew's Scots Church, sometimes known as the Church of Scotland, is a 19th-century church in Valletta, Malta. The church was built to the neo-gothic design of Maltese architect Giuseppe Bonavia. It is still an active church today, as a joint congregation of the Church of Scotland, as part of the Presbytery of Europe, and the British Methodist Church South-East District.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Andrew's Presbyterian Church, Colombo</span> Church in Colombo, Sri Lanka

St. Andrew's Scots Kirk, is located at 73 Galle Road, Colombo. The church was founded in the late 19th century, and prospered during the colonial and post-colonial periods. It was the centre for the Scottish community in Colombo.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Andrew's Garrison Church, Aldershot</span>

St Andrew's Garrison Church, situated at Queens Avenue, Aldershot, Hampshire in southern England is a large army church designed in the late 1920s by the prominent Scottish architect Sir Robert Lorimer (1864–1929).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Baillieston St Andrew's Church</span> Church in Glasgow, Scotland

Baillieston St Andrew's Church is a congregation of the Church of Scotland, a member of the Presbyterian Church. The church building is located on the corner of Bredisholm Road and Muirhead Road, Baillieston, Glasgow, Scotland. The church today serves the town of Baillieston.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Benjamin Bucknall</span> English architect

Benjamin Bucknall was an English architect of the Gothic Revival in South West England and South Wales, and then of neo-Moorish architecture in Algeria. His most noted works include the uncompleted Woodchester Mansion in Gloucestershire, England and his restoration of the Villa Montfeld in El Biar, Algiers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lausanne Cathedral</span> Cathedral in Lausanne, Switzerland

The Cathedral of Notre Dame of Lausanne is a church located in the city of Lausanne, in the canton of Vaud in Switzerland. It is a Roman Catholic Church confiscated by the Evangelical Reformed Church of the Canton of Vaud.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Amalric-Frédéric Buscarlet</span>

Amalric-Frédéric Buscarlet worked in turn in Italy, Switzerland and France as a minister of the Church of Scotland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David Johnston (minister)</span> Historic Scottish religious minister

David Johnstone (1734–1824) was a Church of Scotland minister who served almost 60 years as minister of North Leith Parish Church. He was Chaplain in Ordinary to King George IV in Scotland.

References

  1. Recensement architectural du canton de Vaud, fiche RUMI24 Archived 3 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine .

46°31′00″N6°38′26″E / 46.51670°N 6.64044°E / 46.51670; 6.64044