Canongate Kirk facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Kirk of the Canongate |
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| Location | Canongate, Edinburgh |
| Country | Scotland |
| Denomination | Church of Scotland |
| History | |
| Status | Parish church |
| Architecture | |
| Functional status | Active |
| Years built | 1688–1691 |
The Kirk of the Canongate, often called Canongate Kirk, is a church in Edinburgh's Old Town, Scotland. It belongs to the Church of Scotland. This church serves the local area, known as the Canongate parish.
The parish is quite special because it includes important places like the Palace of Holyroodhouse and the Scottish Parliament. It's even the parish church for Edinburgh Castle, even though the castle is a bit separate. A famous event happened here on July 30, 2011: the wedding of Zara Phillips, who is the Queen's granddaughter, and Mike Tindall, a former England rugby captain. The late Queen Elizabeth II herself used to attend services at this church when she visited Edinburgh.
Contents
History of the Kirk
Why a New Church Was Built
After a big change in religion in Scotland called the Reformation, people in the Canongate area used Holyrood Abbey for their church services. But in 1672, the King decided he wanted to use Holyrood Abbey as a special royal chapel. So, the church members were told they needed to find a new place to worship. They used Lady Yester's Church temporarily while a new church was being built for them.
Starting the New Church
On June 28, 1687, King James VII ordered that Holyrood Abbey be turned into a Roman Catholic chapel. This meant the Church of Scotland congregation, who had been using the abbey since the Reformation, had to leave. The city council was told to give the abbey keys to the King and find a new home for the congregation. They were to use Lady Yester's Church until a new one could be built in the Canongate.
The local people asked the King to use money that had been left by a man named Thomas Moodie for building the new church. Moodie had left money in 1649 to build a church in a different area, but the money was never used and grew over time. Finally, the King agreed to use this money for the Canongate Kirk. Moodie's family symbol, his coat of arms, can still be seen on the front of the church today.
A spot was chosen on the north side of the Canongate, and James Smith was hired as the architect. The church was finished in 1691, and the congregation moved in. Building the church cost about 34,000 merks, which was a lot of money back then!
The 1700s
In 1741, a famous preacher named George Whitfield gave a sermon in the church. He came back to preach there again in 1748.
During the Jacobite risings in 1745, an army led by Charles Edward Stuart took over Edinburgh. The church was even used to hold prisoners from a battle.
By the late 1700s, the church was getting too crowded. So, in 1792, two smaller churches, called "chapels of ease," were built nearby to help. These chapels made it easier for everyone to attend services.
The 1800s
Changes and Challenges
In the 1800s, the church's special connection with the royal family began to fade. The King and Queen used to be supporters of the church, but this link stopped after the Canongate area lost its separate town status in 1856. A tradition where the Royal Almoner gave money to the poor in the church also ended.
The area around the church also changed. Many people moved to the New Town, and the main roads into Edinburgh shifted. A minister from that time, Walter Buchanan, described the area as having many challenges. By the mid-1800s, more Roman Catholic families moved into the Canongate. A minister named Andrew R. Bonar found that only a small number of families in the parish were connected to any Protestant church.
A Time of Renewal
During a big split in the Church of Scotland in 1843, most of the Canongate Kirk's minister and members stayed with the original church.
Andrew R. Bonar became the minister in 1849. He helped bring new life to the church. He introduced hymn-singing and a choir. In 1874, a pipe organ was installed, which was one of the first in the Church of Scotland. Sadly, a fire in 1863 damaged the church and likely destroyed many old church records.
When James McNair became minister in 1869, the church had about 500 members. Four years later, the number of members had doubled! Famous American preachers, Ira D. Sankey and Dwight L. Moody, even held meetings at the church in 1874.
The 1900s and 2000s
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Thomas White became minister in 1889 and served until 1936. During his time, the First World War happened, and many members of the congregation bravely joined up. Sadly, 90 of them lost their lives.
In 1937, Ronald Selby Wright became the new minister. That same year, King George VI gave the church a Christmas tree from Balmoral. This has become a lovely tradition, and the monarch has given a Christmas tree to the Canongate Kirk every year since.
Plans to renovate the church began in 1938 but were put on hold because of the Second World War. During the war, Ronald Selby Wright served as a military chaplain. Forty members of the congregation died during this war.
The church's interior renovation started in 1947. On July 17, Queen Elizabeth and Princess Margaret visited. Even though the church had always had a special royal pew, this was the first time royalty had ever visited the church. This royal connection grew stronger on June 25, 1952, when the Queen visited during her first trip to Scotland as monarch. She and other senior royals have visited the church regularly for worship since then.
The area around the Canongate Kirk has also changed a lot. From the 1950s, it was carefully redeveloped. This led to the opening of the Scottish Parliament Building in 2004, which is very close to the church. The University of Edinburgh also has a bigger presence in the area. The church has responded by opening Russell House in 1964 for student housing and Harry Younger Hall in 1967 for community use.
Building and Kirkyard
The Kirk has a unique look with a Dutch-style end gable and a small, fancy entrance. On top of the gable, there's a golden cross inside a pair of antlers. This used to be the symbol for the Canongate area. The antlers currently on the church came from a stag shot by King George VI at Balmoral in 1949.
Inside, the church has a cross shape, which is unusual for a Scottish church built after the Reformation but before the Victorian era. The inside was changed a lot in 1882, adding a pipe organ and a central pulpit. But in the early 1950s, these changes were removed, and the church was restored to its original, simpler, and brighter look. More restoration work happened in 1991. A new Frobenius pipe organ was installed in 1998 in memory of a former minister, Ronald Selby Wright. This was the 1000th organ built by the Frobenius company.
You can find a special Royal Pew and a Castle Pew in the front row of the church.
The Canongate Churchyard is a historic graveyard where many important people from Edinburgh are buried. These include the famous economist Adam Smith, the philosopher Dugald Stewart, and the poet Robert Fergusson. There's a bronze statue of Robert Fergusson outside the church gate.
What Happens Today
The Kirk has a very active church community. There's a service every Sunday morning at 10:30 AM, and a monthly evening service. The church building is also often used for concerts.
During the yearly Edinburgh Festival, the Kirk becomes a popular venue for music performances. Its nearby hall, the "Harry Younger Hall," is also used for events during the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.
The Kirk used to be the special chapel for The Royal Scots Regiment of the British Army. Now, it serves as the regimental chapel for The Royal Regiment of Scotland.
Ministers of the Kirk
The Canongate Kirk has had many well-known ministers over the years. Two of them even served as the Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, which is a very important role.
The first minister of the Kirk was Very Rev Thomas Wilkie (1645-1711), who was Moderator twice. A long family tradition started in the 1700s with three generations of ministers from the same family. Rev John Warden (Macfarlan) (1740-1788) was a minister from 1762 to 1788 and helped start the Royal Society of Edinburgh.
Rev Hugh Blair was a minister here from 1743 to 1753.
Rev Robert Walker was minister from 1784 to 1808. He worked to end the slave trade. He is famous for a painting by Henry Raeburn called The Skating Minister, which shows him skating on a loch.
The Very Reverend Dr Ronald Selby Wright, known as the "Radio Padre" for his wartime radio broadcasts, was minister from 1937 to 1977. He was also Moderator in 1972. While Dr Selby Wright was away during the war, Revd George MacLeod (who later founded the Iona Community) filled in for him.
The current minister, since 2006, is the Reverend Neil N. Gardner. He was previously a minister in Alyth and an Army Chaplain.
