Glasgow Cathedral
Photos taken in August 2011
Glasgow Cathedral
Glasgow Cathedral, also called the High Kirk of Glasgow or St Kentigern's or St Mungo's Cathedral, is today a gathering of the Church of Scotland in Glasgow.
St Mongo
The title cathedral is honorific and historic, dating from the period before the
Scottish Reformation and its status as the Roman Catholic mother church of the
Archdiocese of Glasgow and the Cathedra of the Archbishop of Glasgow. The
current congregation is part of the Church of Scotland's Presbytery of Glasgow.
Glasgow Cathedral is located north of High Street and east of Cathedral Street,
beside the Glasgow Royal Infirmary.
The Squire Screen
The history of the cathedral is linked with that of the city, and is allegedly
located where the patron saint of Glasgow, Saint Mungo, built his church. The
tomb of the saint is in the lower crypt. Walter Scott's novel Rob Roy gives an
account of the kirk.
Built before the Reformation from the late 12th century onwards and serving as
the seat of the Bishop and later the Archbishop of Glasgow, the building is a
superb example of Scottish Gothic architecture. It is also one of the few
Scottish medieval churches (and the only medieval cathedral on the Scottish
mainland) to have survived the Reformation not unroofed. On 22 April 1581, James
VI gifted the income from a number of lands to Glasgow town for its upkeep. He
traced the ownership of these lands to money left by Archbishop Gavin Dunbar as
a legacy for repairing the cathedral. The town council agreed on 27 February
1583 to take responsibility for repairing the kirk while recording they had no
obligation to do so. The church survives because of this resolution. Inside, the
rood screen is also a very rare survivor in Scottish churches.
Technically, the building is no longer a cathedral, since it has not been the
seat of a bishop since 1690. However, like other pre-Reformation cathedrals in
Scotland, it is still a place of active Christian worship, hosting a Church of
Scotland congregation. The current minister (since 15 February 2007) is the Rev
Laurence A. B. Whitley, PhD, who was previously minister at Montrose Old and St
Andrew’s Parish Church. The previous minister was the Very Rev William Morris,
who was minister from 1967 until retiring in November 2005. The building itself
is in the ownership of the Crown, is maintained by Historic Scotland, and is a
popular destination for tourists.
Text from Wikipedia
the organ
