Greyfriars Kirk
Encyclopedia
Greyfriars Kirk, today Greyfriars Tolbooth & Highland Kirk, is a parish
kirk
(church) of the Church of Scotland
in central Edinburgh
, Scotland
. The kirk stands on the site of a pre-Reformation
establishment of the Franciscan
order, the "Grey Friars".
It is one of the oldest surviving buildings built outside the Old Town
of Edinburgh, having been begun in 1602 and completed circa 1620. It sits to the south of the Grassmarket
, adjacent to the rear of George Heriot's School
, itself founded in 1628. For many years, Greyfriars Kirk was divided into two places of worship — Old Greyfriars (erected 1614) and New Greyfriars (erected 1718).
s. In 1638 the National Covenant was presented and signed in front of the pulpit
. In 1679, some 1,200 Covenanters were imprisoned in the Kirkyard pending trial.
In 1845 a fire destroyed the furnishings and the roof. In the mid 19th century, the Rev. Robert Lee, then minister of Old Greyfriars, led a movement to change the worship, introducing the first post-Reformation stained glass windows
in a Presbyterian church in Scotland, and also one of the first organs. He received considerable criticism at the time, but most of his proposals were subsequently widely accepted in the Church of Scotland.
The two congregations united in 1929 and the historic church building was subsequently extensively restored. The interior dividing wall between the two former separate sanctuaries was removed as part of these renovations, completed in 1938. When they were completed the vault containing the family of Lauder of that Ilk found itself located in the kitchen rather than within part of the church proper.
Given the depopulation of Edinburgh's Old Town in the early part of the 20th century, many neighbouring church buildings were closed and their congregations united with Greyfriars, including the New North Church and Lady Yester's Church. In 1979 the congregation united with the former Highland Tolbooth St John's Church on the Royal Mile
(now The Hub
, the headquarters of the Edinburgh International Festival
society).
Four ministers and one elder of Greyfriars Kirk have been Moderators of the General Assembly
:
and in Scottish Gaelic
. This is the only Church of Scotland congregation in the east of Scotland with regular services in Gaelic. The current minister (since 2003) is the Reverend Dr Richard Frazer.
Greyfriars Tolbooth & Highland Kirk is part of a Local Ecumenical Partnership (LEP) with St Columba's-by-the-Castle
(Scottish Episcopal Church
) and Augustine United Church
(United Reformed Church
).
surrounding the church, Greyfriars Kirkyard
, is in the hands of a separate trust. Numerous well known people are buried in this graveyard including Lord Monboddo
and his daughter Eliza. For many, the graveyard is associated with Greyfriars Bobby
, the loyal dog who guarded his master's grave.
The kirkyard is reputedly haunted by the restless spirit of the infamous "Bloody" George Mackenzie
, which is said to cause bruising and minor cuts and grazes on those who come into contact with it.
Parish
A parish is a territorial unit historically under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of one parish priest, who might be assisted in his pastoral duties by a curate or curates - also priests but not the parish priest - from a more or less central parish church with its associated organization...
kirk
Kirk
Kirk can mean "church" in general or the Church of Scotland in particular. Many place names and personal names are also derived from it.-Basic meaning and etymology:...
(church) of the 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....
in central 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...
, Scotland
Scotland
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...
. The kirk stands on the site of a pre-Reformation
Scottish Reformation
The Scottish Reformation was Scotland's formal break with the Papacy in 1560, and the events surrounding this. It was part of the wider European Protestant Reformation; and in Scotland's case culminated ecclesiastically in the re-establishment of the church along Reformed lines, and politically in...
establishment of the Franciscan
Franciscan
Most Franciscans are members of Roman Catholic religious orders founded by Saint Francis of Assisi. Besides Roman Catholic communities, there are also Old Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran, ecumenical and Non-denominational Franciscan communities....
order, the "Grey Friars".
It is one of the oldest surviving buildings built outside the Old Town
Old Town, Edinburgh
The Old Town of Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland, is the medieval part of the city. Together with the 18th-century New Town, it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It has preserved its medieval plan and many Reformation-era buildings....
of Edinburgh, having been begun in 1602 and completed circa 1620. It sits to the south of the Grassmarket
Grassmarket
The Grassmarket is an historic market square in the Old Town of Edinburgh, Scotland.In relation to the rest of the city the area is a hollow, well below surrounding ground levels.-Location:...
, adjacent to the rear of George Heriot's School
George Heriot's School
George Heriot's School is an independent primary and secondary school on Lauriston Place in the Old Town of Edinburgh, Scotland, with around 1600 pupils, 155 teaching staff and 80 non-teaching staff. It was established in 1628 as George Heriot's Hospital, by bequest of the royal goldsmith George...
, itself founded in 1628. For many years, Greyfriars Kirk was divided into two places of worship — Old Greyfriars (erected 1614) and New Greyfriars (erected 1718).
History
Greyfriars Kirk has an important place in the history of the Scottish CovenanterCovenanter
The Covenanters were a Scottish Presbyterian movement that played an important part in the history of Scotland, and to a lesser extent in that of England and Ireland, during the 17th century...
s. In 1638 the National Covenant was presented and signed in front of the pulpit
Pulpit
Pulpit is a speakers' stand in a church. In many Christian churches, there are two speakers' stands at the front of the church. Typically, the one on the left is called the pulpit...
. In 1679, some 1,200 Covenanters were imprisoned in the Kirkyard pending trial.
In 1845 a fire destroyed the furnishings and the roof. In the mid 19th century, the Rev. Robert Lee, then minister of Old Greyfriars, led a movement to change the worship, introducing the first post-Reformation stained glass windows
Stained Glass Windows
Stained Glass Windows was an early broadcast television program, broadcast on early Sunday evenings on the ABC network. The program was a religious broadcast, hosted by the Reverend Everett Parker....
in a Presbyterian church in Scotland, and also one of the first organs. He received considerable criticism at the time, but most of his proposals were subsequently widely accepted in the Church of Scotland.
The two congregations united in 1929 and the historic church building was subsequently extensively restored. The interior dividing wall between the two former separate sanctuaries was removed as part of these renovations, completed in 1938. When they were completed the vault containing the family of Lauder of that Ilk found itself located in the kitchen rather than within part of the church proper.
Given the depopulation of Edinburgh's Old Town in the early part of the 20th century, many neighbouring church buildings were closed and their congregations united with Greyfriars, including the New North Church and Lady Yester's Church. In 1979 the congregation united with the former Highland Tolbooth St John's Church on the Royal Mile
Royal Mile
The Royal Mile is a succession of streets which form the main thoroughfare of the Old Town of the city of Edinburgh in Scotland.As the name suggests, the Royal Mile is approximately one Scots mile long, and runs between two foci of history in Scotland, from Edinburgh Castle at the top of the Castle...
(now The Hub
The Hub (Edinburgh)
The Hub, at the top of Edinburgh's Royal Mile, is the home of the Edinburgh International Festival, and a central source of information on all the Edinburgh Festivals. Its gothic spire - the highest point in central Edinburgh - towers over the surrounding buildings, including the adjacent castle...
, the headquarters of the Edinburgh International Festival
Edinburgh International Festival
The Edinburgh International Festival is a festival of performing arts that takes place in the city of Edinburgh, Scotland, over three weeks from around the middle of August. By invitation from the Festival Director, the International Festival brings top class performers of music , theatre, opera...
society).
Four ministers and one elder of Greyfriars Kirk have been Moderators of the General Assembly
Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland
The Moderator of the General Assembly of Church of Scotland is a Minister, Elder or Deacon of the Church of Scotland chosen to "moderate" the annual General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, which is held for a week in Edinburgh every May....
:
- George Kay, 1759
- William RobertsonWilliam Robertson (historian)William Robertson FRSE FSA was a Scottish historian, minister of religion, and Principal of the University of Edinburgh...
, 1763 - Robert HenryRobert HenryRobert Henry was a Scottish historian.Born into a farming family at St. Ninians, Stirlingshire, Henry was educated at Stirling High School and the University of Edinburgh. After teaching at Annan, he entered the Church of Scotland, becoming minister at New Greyfriars in Edinburgh in 1768...
, 1774 - James Ogilivie, 1918
- Alison ElliotAlison ElliotAlison Elliot OBE is the Associate Director of the Centre for Theology and Public Issues at the University of Edinburgh, Scotland. In 2004 she became the first woman ever to be elected Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland...
, 2004
The kirk today
The post-1979 united congregation continues to use Greyfriars Kirk, with Sunday services in EnglishEnglish language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
and in Scottish Gaelic
Scottish Gaelic language
Scottish Gaelic is a Celtic language native to Scotland. A member of the Goidelic branch of the Celtic languages, Scottish Gaelic, like Modern Irish and Manx, developed out of Middle Irish, and thus descends ultimately from Primitive Irish....
. This is the only Church of Scotland congregation in the east of Scotland with regular services in Gaelic. The current minister (since 2003) is the Reverend Dr Richard Frazer.
Greyfriars Tolbooth & Highland Kirk is part of a Local Ecumenical Partnership (LEP) with St Columba's-by-the-Castle
St Columba's-by-the-Castle
St Columba's-by-the-Castle is a congregation of the Scottish Episcopal Church in central Edinburgh, Scotland. The church is located close to Edinburgh Castle, on the south slope of Castle Hill, and is protected as a category B listed building....
(Scottish Episcopal Church
Scottish Episcopal Church
The Scottish Episcopal Church is a Christian church in Scotland, consisting of seven dioceses. Since the 17th century, it has had an identity distinct from the presbyterian Church of Scotland....
) and Augustine United Church
Augustine United Church
Augustine United Church in Edinburgh, Scotland is part of the United Reformed Church and is part of a local ecumenical partnership with St Columba's-by-the-Castle and Greyfriars Tolbooth and Highland Kirk ....
(United Reformed Church
United Reformed Church
The United Reformed Church is a Christian church in the United Kingdom. It has approximately 68,000 members in 1,500 congregations with some 700 ministers.-Origins and history:...
).
Greyfriars Kirkyard
The graveyardGraveyard
A graveyard is any place set aside for long-term burial of the dead, with or without monuments such as headstones...
surrounding the church, Greyfriars Kirkyard
Greyfriars Kirkyard
Greyfriars Kirkyard is the graveyard surrounding Greyfriars Kirk in Edinburgh, Scotland. It is located at the southern edge of the Old Town, adjacent to George Heriot's School. Burials have been taking place since the late 16th century, and a number of notable Edinburgh residents are interred at...
, is in the hands of a separate trust. Numerous well known people are buried in this graveyard including Lord Monboddo
James Burnett, Lord Monboddo
James Burnett, Lord Monboddo was a Scottish judge, scholar of linguistic evolution, philosopher and deist. He is most famous today as a founder of modern comparative historical linguistics . In 1767 he became a judge in the Court of Session. As such, Burnett adopted an honorary title based on his...
and his daughter Eliza. For many, the graveyard is associated with Greyfriars Bobby
Greyfriars Bobby
Greyfriars Bobby was a Skye Terrier who became known in 19th-century Edinburgh for spending 14 years guarding the grave of his owner, John Gray , until he died himself on 14 January 1872...
, the loyal dog who guarded his master's grave.
The kirkyard is reputedly haunted by the restless spirit of the infamous "Bloody" George Mackenzie
George Mackenzie (lawyer)
Sir George Mackenzie of Rosehaugh, Knt. , known as Bluidy Mackenzie, was a Scottish lawyer, Lord Advocate, and legal writer.- Origins :...
, which is said to cause bruising and minor cuts and grazes on those who come into contact with it.
See also
- List of Church of Scotland parishes
- List of Moderators of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland
- Gaelic-speaking congregations in the Church of ScotlandGaelic-speaking congregations in the Church of ScotlandA few Church of Scotland congregations, mainly in the Western Isles, have regular Sunday services in Gaelic. There are Gaelic-speaking congregations of other denominations too, mainly in the Western Isles...
External links
- Greyfriars Tolbooth & Highland Kirk - official site
- Church of Scotland