St Magnus Church, Egilsay facts for kids
St Magnus's Church is an old, ruined church found on the island of Egilsay in Orkney, Scotland. This special place is known as where Saint Magnus Erlendsson was killed in the 1100s. The church itself, which no longer has a roof, was built around the same time. Experts at Historic Environment Scotland say it's one of the most important old Norse churches left in Scotland, second only to St Magnus Cathedral in Kirkwall.
What Does St Magnus's Church Look Like?
St Magnus's Church is located near the northwest coast of Egilsay island. Egilsay is part of a group of three islands called Rousay, Egilsay, and Wyre. These are also known as the Inner Northern Isles.
The church was built in a style called Romanesque. This means it has thick walls and rounded arches over its windows and doors. The church has a rectangular main room called a nave. At the east end, there's a smaller section called a chancel. At the west end, there's a tall, round tower.
You can walk from the tower into the main nave of the church. The altar, where services were held, was in the chancel. The chancel originally had an upper floor. Both the nave and the chancel once had steep, stone roofs. These roofs were removed by the year 1847.
The round tower is currently about 15 meters (49 feet) tall. But when it was first built, it was likely around 20 meters (66 feet) tall. It would have had four or five stories. The tower gets narrower towards the top. It looks similar to other round church towers found in places like northern Germany, countries near the North Sea, and Ireland. There is also a graveyard all around the church.
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Historic Scotland looks after this site as a scheduled ancient monument. This means it's a very important historical place. You can reach Egilsay by taking a ferry from Tingwall on the Orkney Mainland.
The Story of St Magnus's Church
The old storybook called the Orkneyinga saga tells us what happened around the year 1116. Magnus Erlendsson, Earl of Orkney, went to Egilsay island. He wanted to settle an argument with his rival, Earl Haakon.
St Magnus spent the night on the island, perhaps in a church. The next day, Haakon captured Magnus and had him killed. In 1136, Bishop William of Orkney declared Magnus a saint. He became known as Saint Magnus.
People believe that the church we see today was built soon after this event. It was built on the spot where Magnus was thought to have been killed. There might have been an older church here before Magnus was murdered. The church that stands today is the last remaining round-towered church in the Northern Isles.
