Mortlach Parish Church facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Mortlach Parish Church |
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Mortlach Parish Church, viewed from the south
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| 57°26′20″N 3°07′41″W / 57.43889°N 3.12806°W | |
| Location | Mortlach, near Dufftown |
| Country | Scotland |
| Denomination | Church of Scotland |
| Previous denomination | Roman Catholic (prior to the Scottish Reformation) |
| Architecture | |
| Functional status | Active |
| Heritage designation | Category A listed building |
Mortlach Parish Church is an old church in Scotland, near the village of Dufftown. It belongs to the Church of Scotland. This place has been important for Christians for a very long time. Some people believe that Saint Moluag started a religious group here around the year 566.
A special Pictish stone was found here. It's from between the 600s and 800s. You can still see it in the church's burial ground today. For a while, in the 1000s and 1100s, there was even a bishopric (where a bishop lives) at Mortlach. Later, this moved to Aberdeen during the time of King David I.
The church you see today has parts from a building that was here in the 1200s. It has been changed and updated many times over the centuries, most recently in 1931. The church, its burial ground, and a small watch house are all very important. They are protected as a Category A listed building, which means they are of national importance.
Contents
What the Church Looks Like
Mortlach Parish Church is shaped like a 'T'. Most of what you see now was built in the 1800s and 1900s. But it still has many parts from the Middle Ages and later. The main part of the church, called the nave, is rectangular. It runs from east to west. A newer section, called an aisle, sticks out from the north side.
The church walls are covered in a rough plaster called harling. This is except for the end of the north aisle, which shows its stone. The details around windows and doors are made of smooth, cut stone.
Outside Features
On the south side, there's a central section that sticks out a bit. It has three narrow, tall windows. Above them, in the pointed part of the roof, is a window shaped like a four-leaf clover.
The east end of the church looks most like it did in the Middle Ages. It has three tall, narrow stained-glass windows. Two are near the ground, and the middle one goes up into the roof's point. The west end also has an original window from the Middle Ages.
The two main doors are at each end of the north aisle. Between them is a large window with three parts. There's also a staircase on the north side. This leads up to the galleries inside the church. On top of the north aisle's roof is a small, eight-sided bell tower.
Inside the Church
The north aisle holds old gravestones from the 1500s and 1600s. These include stones for Alexander Leslie and Alexander Duff. You can also see a large stone decoration with a sundial on it. People think this was once on top of one of the church's pointed roofs.
At the east end of the main part of the church is a raised area called the chancel. Here you'll find a marble font (for baptisms). There's also a wooden pulpit (where the minister speaks) and a communion table. These were added in the 1930s. Wooden pews, also from the 1930s, fill the nave and north aisle.
There are galleries (balconies) in the north aisle and at the west end of the nave. The one in the nave has a large pipe organ.
The Watch House
A small, many-sided building called the watch house is also part of the church's protected status. It has a pointed window. This building is currently in poor condition. It has cracks in its walls and some missing roof tiles. Because of this, it was added to the Buildings at Risk Register for Scotland in 2008.
The Burial Ground
The church's burial ground is also protected. It's still used today and has been made bigger over time. It's an uneven shape and has stone walls with pointed metal railings. You can find gravestones here from the 1600s, 1700s, 1800s, and 1900s. Some of these are Commonwealth war graves for soldiers from the First and Second World Wars.
In the burial ground, you'll also find a special Pictish stone called the Battle Stone. It has a Celtic cross carved on it. There are also carvings of different animals and monsters. This stone is thought to be from between the 600s and 800s. People traditionally believe it remembers a battle, but we can't be sure.
Church History
The land where Mortlach Parish Church stands has a very old connection to Christianity. It's believed that Saint Moluag started a monastery here around 566. King Malcolm II is thought to have made a church bigger here in 1010. He did this to thank God for winning a battle.
King Malcolm II is also believed to have started a bishopric (a bishop's area) at Mortlach. Most experts agree that at least three bishops lived here before 1140. The bishopric later moved to Aberdeen when David I was king.
The oldest parts of the church building we see today are from the 1200s. Over the centuries, the church was changed and added to many times. It went from a medieval style to a Georgian style. Then it became Gothic revival, and finally, it returned to a simpler medieval look.
The north aisle was first added in 1826. It was made larger in 1876 by Alexander Marshall Mackenzie. The part that sticks out on the south wall, which once held the organ and pulpit, is also from this time. During these changes, the old windows in the east end were uncovered again. They had been hidden during earlier repairs. The church's medieval features were fixed up even more in 1930–1931 by A. Marshall Mackenzie & Son. At this time, the main part of the church was largely changed. The organ moved to the gallery at the west end. The pulpit and communion table moved to the raised area at the east end.
Mortlach Parish Church, along with its watch house and burial grounds, was first protected as a Category B listed building in 1972. Its importance was recognized even more in 1987 when it became a Category A listed building.
Current Use of the Church
Mortlach Parish Church is still an active place of worship today. It is part of the Church of Scotland. The current minister is Rev Eduard Enslin.
