The ecclesiastical architecture of Scotland from the earliest Christian times to the seventeenth century; vol. 2/3MacGibbon, David
History
The ecclesiastical architecture of Scotland from the earliest Christian times to the seventeenth century; vol. 2/3
MacGibbon, David
Church architecture -- Scotland
Towards the beginning of the sixteenth century, several of the guilds
had chapels assigned to them, for which they contributed to the church
funds. St. Eloi’s Chapel was given to the hammermen, and the “blue
blanket,” the flag to which the trades rallied, was kept there. Other
chapels and altars were set apart for the other corporations and trades,
and maintained by them. Many individuals famous in Scottish history were
buried in St. Giles’. Amongst these was Napier, the inventor of
logarithms, who died in 1617. His tomb is now inserted in the exterior
of the north wall of the choir, having been removed there, in 1829, from
the south side of the church. There still exist the remains of an arched
tomb recessed in the interior of the north wall of the choir, nearly
opposite the above, but no clue can be found to the name of the person
buried there. The Regent Murray, who was assassinated at Linlithgow in
1569, was buried in the south aisle. His monument was destroyed, but the
brass plate containing the inscription written in his honour by George
Buchanan was fortunately rescued, and has again been inserted in a new
monument erected in the Murray aisle (Fig. 855). The scattered members
of the body of the great Montrose were collected and buried in the
Chepman aisle in the south part of St. Giles’ in 1661, but all trace of
his remains has now been lost, and no monument till recently marked his
grave.
The Norman doorway on the north side of the church, which had been
carefully preserved for upwards of five centuries, and had survived all
the above alterations and reconstructions, was taken down and removed in
1798, probably, as Sir D. Wilson suggests, “for no better reason than to
evade the cost of its repair.”
The disturbances of the Reformation broke out in Edinburgh at an early
date, and the Church of St. Giles was one of the first to suffer. In
1556 several of the images were stolen from the church, and next year
that of St. Giles was carried off by the mob, and first drowned in the
North Loch, and then burned. His arm bone, regarded as so precious one
hundred years before, is supposed to have been thrown out into the
adjoining churchyard. The church was pillaged and the altars and images
cast down. The valuables, however, were taken possession of by the
authorities and sold, and the proceeds spent in the repair of the
[Illustration: Plan through Parapet.
Plan through Pinnacle, looking down.
FIG. 852.--St. Giles’ Collegiate Church. Plans of Crown.]
[Illustration: FIG. 853.--St. Giles’ Collegiate Church. Section through
Crown.]
[Illustration: FIG. 854.--St. Giles’ Collegiate Church. Crown Steeple.]
[Illustration: FIG 855.--St. Giles’ Collegiate Church. Monument of
Regent Murray.]
structure. In 1560 St. Giles’ again became the parish church, with John
Knox for its minister.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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