This year marks the 900th anniversary of the founding of St Giles’ Cathedral, the High Kirk of Edinburgh. This leading Presbyterian church, an unofficial and bishop-free cathedral, is now a major tourist attraction in Edinburgh and the heart of a thriving local community. Here we take a look at its fascinating past.
EARLY HISTORY
Believed to have been founded by David I of Scotland in 1124, when Catholicism was Scotland’s default religion, St Giles’ was established as a kirk (or church) within an existing parish, that of St Cuthbert’s Church, thought to be the oldest Christian site in the city.
