| Dornoch Cathedral | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Dornoch Cathedral | |
  Dornoch Cathedral Location within Sutherland | |
| 57°52′52.06″N4°1′46.64″W / 57.8811278°N 4.0296222°W /57.8811278; -4.0296222 | |
| Location | Dornoch |
| Country | Scotland |
| Denomination | Church of Scotland |
| Previous denomination | Roman Catholic |
| Website | www |
| History | |
| Founded | 1224 |
| Founder(s) | Gilbert Murray |
| Dedication | St Mary andSt Gilbert |
| Architecture | |
| Heritage designation | Category A listed[1] |
| Designated | 18 March 1971 |
| Administration | |
| Presbytery | Sutherland[2] |
| Parish | Dornoch |
| Clergy | |
| Minister(s) | Revd. Susan M Brown |
.jpg)
Dornoch Cathedral is aChurch of Scotland parish church serving the smallSutherland town ofDornoch, in theScottish Highlands. As a congregation of the Church of Scotland, which isPresbyterian, the church is not the seat of a bishop but retains the name due to being, historically, the seat of theBishop of Caithness. The cathedral's churchyard is adjoined byDornoch Castle, the somewhat reconstructed remains of the medieval palace of theBishops of Caithness. It was formerly aCatholic cathedral.
The cathedral was dedicated to its founder,St. Gilbert and was built in 1224,[3] in the reign of KingAlexander II (1214–49) and the episcopate ofGilbert de Moravia (died 1245) (later Saint Gilbert of Dornoch) as the cathedral church of thediocese of Caithness (moved to Dornoch fromHalkirk). William de Moravia (later Sutherland), 1st Earl of Sutherland, was buried in the cathedral in 1248.[4]
In 1570, the cathedral was burnt down by theMackays of Strathnaver during local feuding. Full renovations were not carried out until 1835–37, by the architectWilliam Burn, funded by Elizabeth theCountess of Sutherland at a cost of £15,000[5] (equivalent to £1,720,000 in 2023).[6] Among the renovations carried out, the ruined but still largely intact aisled medievalnave was demolished and a new narrow nave without pillars built on its site. In the 17th century, Dornoch ceased to be the seat of the Bishops of Caithness due to the abolition of the episcopate in the Church of Scotland, but the name has remained due to this historical association.[7][8]
On 30 September 1866, theDuke andDuchess of Sutherland were present to welcome thePrince andPrincess of Wales, and theDuke of Edinburgh, who attended the morning service.[5]
The interior was reordered between 1924 and 1926 by Rev. Charles Donald Bentinck,[9] with the removal ofVictorian plasterwork to reveal the stonework (although the medieval church would have been plastered throughout). The site of the medieval high altar was raised and converted into a burial area for the Sutherland family, who introduced large marble memorials.
The previous minister was the Very Rev Dr James Simpson, who wasModerator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1994. As of May 2018, the minister (since 1998) was the RevSusan Brown.[10] On 9 October 2017, it was announced that she had been nominated as the nextModerator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland. She took up the position in May 2018 and served for a year.[11]
The first organ was built byEustace Ingram and given byAndrew Carnegie and installed in 1893 and opened in January 1894.[12] It was the first organ installed in the county of Sutherland. It was enlarged and hydraulic power introduced in 1909 at a cost of £200 given byAndrew Carnegie.[13] A specification of the organ can be found on theNational Pipe Organ Register.[14]
.jpg)
Partial re-roofing followed in 1616. Meanwhile, wider changes were afoot, and the church was for a short period Episcopalian following the Reformation, before subsequently becoming the Presbyterian Church for the area. It is thus no longer, literally, a cathedral, a term alien to the Presbyterian Church: but the name is retained to reflect Dornoch Cathedral's earlier history.
Cathedrals of theChurch of Scotland | |
|---|---|
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
