Lady Yester's Kirk facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Lady Yester's Kirk
55°56′54.6″N 3°11′6.5″W / 55.948500°N 3.185139°W / 55.948500; -3.185139
Location	Edinburgh
Country	Scotland
Denomination	Church of Scotland
History
Founded	1647
Founder(s)	Margaret, Lady Yester
Architecture
Functional status	Closed
Architect(s)	William Sibbald
Style	Jacobean
Groundbreaking	1803
Completed	1805
Closed	1938
Administration
Presbytery	Edinburgh
Synod	Lothian

Lady Yester's Kirk was an important church in Edinburgh, Scotland. It was built in 1647 and served the people in the Old Town area. The church was named after Margaret, Lady Yester, who helped pay for it.

The church was used for worship until 1938. At that time, its congregation joined with another church called Greyfriars Kirk. The building was then sold to the University of Edinburgh. Today, the university uses it as the main office for its Estates Department, which manages its buildings and land.

The current church building was finished in 1805. It was designed by William Sibbald in a style called Jacobean. This style copied some features of the first church building, which stood nearby. The first church also had a special burial place for Lady Yester. A beautiful stone plaque that was once above her grave is now kept at Greyfriars Kirk.

History of Lady Yester's Kirk

How the Church Started

The stone that once marked Lady Yester's burial spot, now at Greyfriars Kirk.

The church got its name from Margaret, Lady Hay of Yester. She was a kind woman who donated money to build the church in 1647. She gave 10,000 merks (an old type of coin) for the church building. She also gave another 5,000 merks to pay the minister. When the city council needed more money for the building, she promised to pay 1,000 merks every year to support the minister.

For a short time, between 1662 and 1691, the church was not used for regular services. During this period, Oliver Cromwell's soldiers used the church as a place to stay and damaged it. Later, the church was used by French Protestants who had to leave their homes. It was also used by the congregation from Holyrood Abbey for a few years.

In 1691, Lady Yester's church started holding regular services again. It became the main church for the nearby University of Edinburgh. Professors and students would often go there for worship.

Changes in the 1700s and 1800s

Mungo Watson, a well-known church official at Lady Yester's around 1800.

In 1764, some members left Lady Yester's church. They started a new church nearby because they disagreed with how the city council chose the new minister, John Drysdale. This was a big event in Edinburgh's church history.

Around 1803, people worried that the church building was not safe. It was inspected and found to be in bad condition. So, a new church was built right next to the old one. The new building opened on December 8, 1805. There were rumors that the builder used old materials to save money. This seemed true when the new church needed a new roof just 20 years later, in 1825.

Despite these issues, Lady Yester's was one of the most popular churches in Edinburgh during the early 1800s. It even started a Sabbath school for children, though it didn't last long at first. Many important people, like the famous doctor John Abercrombie, attended the church.

The church in the 1820s.

The Final Years of the Church

In 1843, a big event called the Disruption of 1843 happened in the Church of Scotland. Many ministers and congregations left the main church. However, most people at Lady Yester's church stayed.

The church continued to be important for the community. It started a school for children and several groups for women and missionaries. A minister named John Caird was very popular. He attracted many students from the university, and people needed tickets to get into his sermons!

As Edinburgh grew and changed, new streets were built, and many people moved out of the Old Town. This meant fewer people lived near Lady Yester's church, and its congregation became smaller.

The church's First World War memorial.

After the First World War, the church had a memorial plaque to remember the 29 men from its parish who died in the war.

In 1929, the two main branches of the Church of Scotland joined together. This meant there were too many churches in the Old Town. So, on July 3, 1938, Lady Yester's congregation officially joined with Greyfriars Kirk. The church building was then sold to the city council, who gave it to the University of Edinburgh. Today, it is still used by the university's Estates Department.

Ministers of Lady Yester's Kirk

Lady Yester's Kirk usually had one minister, unlike some other large churches in Edinburgh that had two. The city council often appointed young ministers to Lady Yester's. Many of these ministers later became very famous.

Three ministers from Lady Yester's Kirk also became the principal of the University of Edinburgh. These were John Gowdie, William Robertson, and John Lee. One minister, John Hyndman, was even the leader of the entire Church of Scotland in 1761. Another minister, Thomas Randall, was the grandfather of Randall Davidson, who became the archbishop of Canterbury in England.

Here is a list of the ministers who served Lady Yester's Kirk:

The Church Buildings

The First Church Building

Lady Yester's Kirk, Edinburgh, on James Gordon of Rothiemay's 1647 map.

We don't know much about what the very first church looked like. Old maps from 1647 and 1742 show it as a large building shaped like a cross. It had a big, round window with fancy stone patterns. The new church building copied this window design.

Lady Yester had a special section added to the first church to be her burial place. It's believed her remains were not moved when the old church was taken down. The church ceiling was made of wood and was painted with a picture of the Last Judgement. The church could hold 817 people.

The first church was surrounded by a large churchyard. Part of this churchyard was used as a burial ground for patients from the nearby Royal Infirmary.

The Second Church Building

The second church building was constructed between 1803 and 1805. It was designed by William Sibbald. The building's style is similar to the Canongate Kirk and looks like buildings from the 1640s.

The front of the church is made of smooth stone. It has a special "Dutch gable" shape with three sections and small spires on the corners. Each section on the ground floor has a round-topped door. Above these doors are round windows. The middle window has stone patterns that copy the original church's window.

The architect also planned two small buildings on either side of the church, facing Infirmary Street. These were originally shops. In 1825, when the roof was replaced, the church walls were made 8 feet (2.4 meters) taller. A stone plaque with a cherub's head is still on the east wall. A church hall was later built next to the church. An organ was installed in 1888 and updated in 1924.

Lady Yester's Kirk has been a Category B listed building since 1974. This means it's an important historical building that needs to be protected.

Special Features and Items

Lady Yester's memorial tablet, now in the Lady Yester's Aisle of Greyfriars Kirk.

In the first church, a stone plaque was placed over Lady Yester's grave. When the second church was built, this plaque was moved. After the church closed, it was moved again to Greyfriars Kirk. This special area in Greyfriars Kirk is now called the Lady Yester's Aisle.

The plaque is very old and has a Renaissance style. It has a skull and crossbones at the bottom and a family crest at the top. The crest shows a sun and a banner with the family motto: "LUX VENIT AB ALTO," which means "light comes from on high." The plaque also has an hourglass, wings, and corn, with the mottoes "MORS PATET HORA LATET" ("death is sure, the hour is hid") and "SPES ALTERA VITÆ" ("hope of another life").

The plaque also has a poem about Lady Yester:

ITS NEIDLES TO ERECT A MARBLE TOMBE
THE DAYLIE BREAD THAT FOR THE HUNGRY WOMBE
AND BREAD OF LYF THY BOUNTY HATH PROVYDED
FOR HUNGRIE SOULES ALL TYMES TO BE DIVYDED
WORLD LASTING MONIMENTIS SHALL REARE
THAT SHAL ENDURE TIL CHRIST HIMSELF APPEARE
POS'D WAS THY LYF PREPAR'D THY HAPPIE END
NOTHING IN EITHER WAS WITHOUT COMMEND
LET IT BE THE CAIR OF AL THAT LIVE THERE EFTER
TO LIVE & DIE LIKE MARGARET LADY YESTER
WHO DIED 15 MARCH 1647 HER AGE 75

In the Lady Yester's Aisle at Greyfriars Kirk, you can also find Lady Yester's eagle lectern. This is a stand for holding books, carved from a single piece of oak wood. The church's brass memorial plaque for the First World War is also on the wall there.

The church also had four special cups used for communion. They were given to the church in 1708 by the minister, Mr. Thomas Wilkie. It also had two collection basins, one given by a bookseller in 1703 and another in 1711.