A Scottish Presbyterian congregation was first established in London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

 during the reign of King James I of England and VI of Scots, following the Union of the Crowns in 1603. Some of his Scottish courtiers worshipped in a chapel near the old Whitehall Palace at the diplomatic site as “Scotland Yard

Scotland Yard

Scotland Yard is a metonym for the headquarters of the Metropolitan Police Service of London, UK. It derives from the location of the original Metropolitan Police headquarters at 4 Whitehall Place, which had a rear entrance on a street called Great Scotland Yard. The Scotland Yard entrance became...

” and later provided the original headquarters of London’s Metropolitan Police

Metropolitan police

Metropolitan Police is a generic title for the municipal police force for a major metropolitan area, and it may be part of the official title of the force...

.

More tangible records date from 1711, when Crown Court Church was established near Covent Garden. The church was extensively rebuilt in 1909, but remained on the same site. The exterior of the church is scarcely visible as it shares walls with neighbouring buildings, whilst the interior retains a 17th century feel (despite the early 20th century rebuilding work.) The church is named after a small courtyard adjacent to its location, but is also known as the "Kirk of the Crown of Scotland".

Crown Court Church is the older of the two Church of Scotland

Church of Scotland

The Church of Scotland, known informally by its Scots language name, the Kirk, is a Presbyterian church, decisively shaped by the Scottish Reformation....

 congregations in London, the other being St Columba's

St Columba's Church, London

St Columba's Church is one of the two London congregations of the Church of Scotland. The church building is located in Pont Street, Knightsbridge, near Harrod's department store....

 in Pont Street, Knightsbridge. The church entrance is difficult to find, but is located in Russell Street, off Covent Garden

Covent Garden

Covent Garden is a district in London on the eastern fringes of the West End, between St. Martin's Lane and Drury Lane. It is associated with the former fruit and vegetable market in the central square, now a popular shopping and tourist site, and the Royal Opera House, which is also known as...

, next to the Fortune Theatre

Fortune Theatre

The Fortune Theatre is a 432 seat West End theatre in Russell Street, near Covent Garden, in the City of Westminster, built in 1922-4 by Ernest Schaufelberg for impresario Laurence Cowen. The façade is principally bush hammered concrete, with brick piers supporting the roof...

 and opposite the Theatre Royal

Theatre Royal, Drury Lane

The Theatre Royal, Drury Lane is a West End theatre in Covent Garden, in the City of Westminster, a borough of London. The building faces Catherine Street and backs onto Drury Lane. The building standing today is the most recent in a line of four theatres at the same location dating back to 1663,...

.

The Reverend Philip Majcher (formerly a Chaplain in the British Army) was inducted as the new minister on 18 December 2007. The previous minister, the Reverend Sigrid Marten, moved to London Road Church, Edinburgh

Edinburgh

Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...

.

See also

• St Columba's Church, London
  St Columba's Church, London
  St Columba's Church is one of the two London congregations of the Church of Scotland. The church building is located in Pont Street, Knightsbridge, near Harrod's department store....
  
  
• St. Paul's, Covent Garden (the local Church of England parish church)
• List of Church of Scotland parishes
• List of churches in London
• Nordic churches in London
  Nordic churches in London
  There are several long-established Nordic churches in London. All seek to provide Lutheran Christian worship and pastoral care to their respective national communities in their own languages...
  
  

External links

• Crown Court Church
• Church of Scotland
• Mystery Worshipper Report at the Ship of Fools website
  Ship of Fools (website)
  Ship of Fools is a UK-based Christian website. It was first launched as a magazine in 1977. The magazine folded in 1983 and was resurrected as a website on April Fool's Day, 1998. Subtitled "the magazine of Christian unrest", Ship of Fools pokes fun and asks critical questions about the Christian...