Dunkeld Lectern
Encyclopedia
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Lectern
A lectern is a reading desk with a slanted top, usually placed on a stand or affixed to some other form of support, on which documents or books are placed as support for reading aloud, as in a scripture reading, lecture, or sermon...
which was one of the most prized possessions of St Stephen's Church
St. Stephen's Church, St. Albans
St Stephen's Church in St Albans, England, is a parish church in the Church of England.-Background:It is, based upon the writing of Matthew Paris, believed to have been originally founded in AD948 by Abbot Ulsinus of St Albans...
, St Albans
St Albans
St Albans is a city in southern Hertfordshire, England, around north of central London, which forms the main urban area of the City and District of St Albans. It is a historic market town, and is now a sought-after dormitory town within the London commuter belt...
. The 150 kg brass reading desk stood approximately 1.6 metres high and took the form of a large eagle
Eagle
Eagles are members of the bird family Accipitridae, and belong to several genera which are not necessarily closely related to each other. Most of the more than 60 species occur in Eurasia and Africa. Outside this area, just two species can be found in the United States and Canada, nine more in...
with outspread wings with the bird perched on an orb supported by a turned shaft. Engraved on the orb was a Latin inscription - Georgius Creichton Episcopus Dunkeldensis. George Crichton
George Crichton
George Crichton served as the Bishop of Dunkeld until his death on 24 January in 1543 or 1544.He served as Keeper of the Privy Seal of Scotland from 1526....
(or "Creichton") was abbot at Holyrood Abbey
Holyrood Abbey
Holyrood Abbey is a ruined abbey of the Canons Regular in Edinburgh, Scotland. The abbey was founded in 1128 by King David I of Scotland. During the 15th century, the abbey guesthouse was developed into a royal residence, and after the Scottish Reformation the Palace of Holyroodhouse was expanded...
in 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...
from 1515 to 1522, and it is believed that he was presented the lectern to the Abbey on being made Bishop of Dunkeld
Bishop of Dunkeld
The Bishop of Dunkeld is the ecclesiastical head of the Diocese of Dunkeld, one of the largest and more important of Scotland's 13 medieval bishoprics, whose first recorded bishop is an early 12th century cleric named Cormac...
by Pope Alexander VI
Pope Alexander VI
Pope Alexander VI , born Roderic Llançol i Borja was Pope from 1492 until his death on 18 August 1503. He is one of the most controversial of the Renaissance popes, and his Italianized surname—Borgia—became a byword for the debased standards of the Papacy of that era, most notoriously the Banquet...
, but was subsequently plundered by the English invaders, subsequently lost (and recovered) in the English Civil War
English Civil War
The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
before being stolen by a group of Scottish nationalists. On both occasions the lectern was hidden in a grave
Grave (burial)
A grave is a location where a dead body is buried. Graves are usually located in special areas set aside for the purpose of burial, such as graveyards or cemeteries....
. It remains the subject of dispute.
History
In the autumn of 1543 ScotlandScotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
and England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
signed two agreements which are often referred to as "The Treaties of Greenwich". The first guaranteed peace between the two countries for a fixed period of time and the second affirmed that an arranged marriage
Arranged marriage
An arranged marriage is a practice in which someone other than the couple getting married makes the selection of the persons to be wed, meanwhile curtailing or avoiding the process of courtship. Such marriages had deep roots in royal and aristocratic families around the world...
would take place between Prince Edward of England
Edward VI of England
Edward VI was the King of England and Ireland from 28 January 1547 until his death. He was crowned on 20 February at the age of nine. The son of Henry VIII and Jane Seymour, Edward was the third monarch of the Tudor dynasty and England's first monarch who was raised as a Protestant...
, the son of Henry VIII
Henry VIII of England
Henry VIII was King of England from 21 April 1509 until his death. He was Lord, and later King, of Ireland, as well as continuing the nominal claim by the English monarchs to the Kingdom of France...
, and Mary, Queen of Scots, soon after her tenth birthday.
At the beginning of 1544 the relationship between England and Scotland began to worsen as it had done so many times before. The Scots reneged on the treaties which drove Henry VIII into a fury. His response was swift and brutal. He directed the commander-in-chief of the English army, the Earl of Hertford to "...put all to fyre and sworde, burne Edinborough town...[so it] may remayn forever a perpetuel memory of the vengeance of God...for their [the Scots] faulsehode and disloyailtye...over throwe the castle, sack Holyrod house".
In May 1544, the English army arrived by boat to destroy Edinburgh
Burning of Edinburgh (1544)
The Burning of Edinburgh in 1544 by an English sea-borne army was the first major action of the war of the Rough Wooing. A Scottish army observed the landing on 3 May 1544 but did not engage with the English force. The Provost of Edinburgh was compelled to allow the English to sack Leith and...
. The army landed near the port of Leith
Leith
-South Leith v. North Leith:Up until the late 16th century Leith , comprised two separate towns on either side of the river....
from whence it marched on 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...
. The invaders pillaged and laid waste the town, and the surrounding areas and villages, excepting only the castle. They destroyed Holyrood Abbey
Holyrood Abbey
Holyrood Abbey is a ruined abbey of the Canons Regular in Edinburgh, Scotland. The abbey was founded in 1128 by King David I of Scotland. During the 15th century, the abbey guesthouse was developed into a royal residence, and after the Scottish Reformation the Palace of Holyroodhouse was expanded...
and carried off much of its property as plunder. Henry hoped his aggression would force the Scots to accept the marriage treaty.
The Earl of Hertford was accompanied to Edinburgh by Sir Richard Lee
Richard Lee (engineer)
Sir Richard Lee was a military engineer in the service of Henry VIII of England, Edward VI and Elizabeth I. He was a commander of Henry VIII of England| and appointed surveyor of the King's works.-Surveyor of Calais:...
who was a military engineer - a destroyer and builder of fortifications. His services to the English crown for his work in Scotland (and elsewhere) was formally recognised in 1544 when he was knighted and appointed Surveyor of the King's Works. He was granted the ground covered by St Albans monastery (but not the church which was bought by the townspeople), Sopwell Priory
Sopwell Priory
Sopwell Priory was built c. 1140 in Hertfordshire, England by the Benedictine abbot of St Albans Abbey, Geoffrey de Gorham...
, and the rectorship of St Stephen's church
St. Stephen's Church, St. Albans
St Stephen's Church in St Albans, England, is a parish church in the Church of England.-Background:It is, based upon the writing of Matthew Paris, believed to have been originally founded in AD948 by Abbot Ulsinus of St Albans...
.
This fact, when taken with circumstantial evidence, suggests it was probably at this time the Holyrood Abbey lectern found its way into this Hertfordshire church, with the other Scottish plunder of Sir Richard Lee.
English Civil War
In 1642 the English Civil WarEnglish Civil War
The English Civil War was a series of armed conflicts and political machinations between Parliamentarians and Royalists...
began and St Albans became a Parliamentarian stronghold. Parliament passed new laws which authorised the destruction of religious images and articles. In response many religious items and artefacts were hidden by Anglican clergy from their Puritan prosecutors. In August 1643 more draconian measures were introduced and continuity of the St Stephen's parish registers is broken perhaps hinting at the turbulent nature of those times.
It was during this period of national upheaval that the lectern disappeared. Who removed it and exactly why remains a mystery to this day. Over 100 years were to pass before the lectern came to light once more.
In 1748 the Montagu family tomb in the chancel of St Stephen's church was opened up for an internment and the lectern was found lying in the grave. It was retrieved and brought back into the use.
Scottish requests for return
Since the eighteenth century Scottish academics, clergy and Scottish patriots have sought the return of the lectern. A review of the history of the lectern in the newspaper The Scottish Guardian dated 2 May 1879, finished with a plea for readers to find a way to "...secure the lectern for our new Cathedral in Edinburgh. Who will take up the matter?"In November 1879 an approach from the Lord Provost of Edinburgh was rebuffed by the vicar of St Stephen's, the Rev Marcus R. Southwell. In December of that year he wrote to the Lord Provost, sent his best wishes and expressed the "utmost repugnance to parting with the Crichton lectern." The Dean of the Order of the Thistle
Order of the Thistle
The Most Ancient and Most Noble Order of the Thistle is an order of chivalry associated with Scotland. The current version of the Order was founded in 1687 by King James VII of Scotland who asserted that he was reviving an earlier Order...
and Chapel Royal fared no better in 1914. Nor did further approaches made by Edinburgh corporation in 1931 and 1936.
Attempted theft
One day in 1972 the lectern was found lying in pieces halfway down the nave of the church. Intruders were disturbed in the course of their nefarious activities, but did not leave empty handed, taking with them three small lions from the base which supported the lectern.Return
In 1982 the lectern returned to Scotland for the first time in over 400 years. Permission was given by the Church of EnglandChurch of England
The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England and the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. The church considers itself within the tradition of Western Christianity and dates its formal establishment principally to the mission to England by St...
for the lectern to appear in Angels, Nobles and Unicorns - an exhibition of mediaeval Scottish art at the National Museum of Antiquities of Scotland in Edinburgh. Its appearance at the exhibition caused a great deal of upset and letters to the press demanded that it should remain in Scotland but when the exhibition ended the Dunkeld lectern was returned to St Stephen's church.
In the past 150 years or so, the clergy and academics have not succeeded in resolving the issue to the satisfaction of some of the Scots people. In November 1984 a group of individuals broke into the church and removed the lectern. The Scottish group "Siol nan Gaidheal
Siol nan Gaidheal
-Name:The name, properly spelled Sìol nan Gàidheal is Scottish Gaelic for Seed of the Gaels. The term sìol has numerous meanings, most commonly translated as "breed, brood, lineage, progeny, seed"....
" (Seed of the Gael) contacted the press and reported they had the lectern. They provided a 'hostage' photograph and wrote '...This piece of our heritage is here to stay...patriotic Scots have asked for the eagle to be returned...to its rightful home. English arrogance won the day...all requests were refused.'
In the 15 years since the lectern disappeared the rights and wrongs of the matter have been debated on television and in the press many times. Representatives of the established churches of Scotland and England met on many occasions and invested much effort and time to resolve the matter. Dialogue between all parties was nurtured and helped by the activities of Inverness Press and Journal reporter Mr John Vass. He worked closely with the vicar Revd John Pragnell, Mr David Maxwell, Convenor of the Church of Scotland's Artistic Committee, and Mr David Caldwell of the Royal Museum of Scotland to get the lectern returned for permanent display in Scotland.
Criminal endeavour prevails
Over the years Mr Vass received a number of anonymous communications from those who held the lectern. The "kidnappers" laid down two conditions before the Dunkeld lectern would be released. These were that it was to stay in Scotland, and that no action would be taken to find and prosecute those responsible. St Stephen's parish made an offer that should the lectern be forthcoming, the parish would see that it was returned to Scotland.In recognition of this promise, St Margaret's church, Barnhill, Dundee offered St Stephen's church a Victorian eagle lectern to replace the one removed in 1984. This Victorian lectern was a replica of the Dunkeld one. The "Siol nan Gaidheal" failed to respond positively. The Church of Scotland decided to proceed and present St Stephen's with the Barnhill lectern before the Revd J. Pragnell moved to his new parish. The St Stephen's vicar had been pivotal in the efforts to bring about a satisfactory conclusion of this matter since he arrived in the parish in 1991.
Current whereabouts
In 1999 the Dunkeld Lectern mysteriously turned up in an Edinburgh arts centre after being missing for 15 years. It is believed that it had been hidden in a Highland grave for the intervening period. It has since been moved to the National Museums of ScotlandNational Museums of Scotland
National Museums Scotland is the organization that runs several national museums of Scotland. It is one of the country's National Collections, and holds internationally important collections of natural sciences, decorative arts, world cultures, science and technology, and Scottish history and...
and is presently on a 3 year loan. A permanent loan agreement is being negotiated between the National Museums of Scotland and the church of St Stephen's, still the legal owner of the Dunkeld Lectern.