Canisbay Parish Church is a

Church of Scotland The Church of Scotland ( sco, The Kirk o Scotland; gd, Eaglais na h-Alba) is the national church in Scotland. The Church of Scotland was principally shaped by John Knox, in the Scottish Reformation, Reformation of 1560, when it split from t ...

church in

Canisbay Canisbay is a rural hamlet located about southwest of Huna and southwest of John o' Groats in Caithness, Scottish Highlands, and is in the Scottish council area of Highland. It lies on the A836 coast road, which bypasses the hamlet to the n ...

, Scotland, that dates back to the early 1600s and is the most northernly church on mainland Britain. It is a

Category A listed This is a list of Category A listed buildings in Scotland, which are among the listed buildings of the United Kingdom. For a fuller list, see the pages linked on List of listed buildings in Scotland. Key The organization of the lists in th ...

building. It is surrounded by a large cemetery, which is split into two sections, the new and old. It features a square bell tower, nave and a porch. The porch was added in 1891, when the other extensions and work was completed to the church building. The church was rebuilt in the 17th century, and ancient remains were discovered after a wall collapsed in the cemetery. Jan De Groot, the man who founded John o' Groats, is buried in Canisbay cemetery; his tombstone sits in the church building and is a popular tourist attraction when the building is open for visitors every summer. The book ''Lest We Forget: The Parish of Canisbay'' (1996) is a "miscellany of memories written by parishioners and friends so that future generations can know what made Canisbay a very special place". Between 1959 and 2001

Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother Elizabeth Angela Marguerite Bowes-Lyon (4 August 1900 – 30 March 2002) was Queen of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 to 6 February 1952 as the wife of King George VI. She was the l ...

was a regular worshipper at the church during her periods of residence, usually in late summer each year, at the nearby

Castle of Mey The Castle of Mey (also known for a time as Barrogill Castle) is located in Caithness, on the north coast of Scotland, about west of John o' Groats. In fine weather there are views from the castle north to the Orkney Islands. History The lands ...

, which she owned.

References

External links

Parish website
Category A listed buildings in Highland (council area) Churches in Highland (council area) Buildings and structures in Caithness {{Scotland-church-stub