Aquhorthies College facts for kids
Aquhorthies College (also known as Aquhorthies House) was a special school in Scotland where young men trained to become Roman Catholic priests. It was located near the towns of Blairdaff and Inverurie in Aberdeenshire. From 1799 to 1829, it was the only Catholic seminary (a school for training priests) in eastern Scotland. Today, the building is a private home. It is considered a very important historic building and is close to the ancient Easter Aquhorthies stone circle.
History of Aquhorthies College
Before Aquhorthies, priests in eastern Scotland were trained at a place called Scalan College. This college was used from 1717 to 1799. However, Scalan was very small and could only fit about six students and one priest. As more young men wanted to become priests, a bigger and easier-to-reach location was needed.
In 1799, a church leader named Bishop George Hay decided to move the college from Scalan to Aquhorthies. Bishop Hay himself passed away at the college on October 15, 1811.
Aquhorthies College continued its work until 1829. At that time, it joined with another Catholic seminary in Lismore. Both schools then closed, and their students moved to a much larger school called Blairs College. Blairs College kept training priests until 1986. The old records from Aquhorthies College were later moved to the University of Aberdeen in 1956.
See also
- Roman Catholicism in Scotland
