Dairsie Old Church, formerly St Mary's Church, is the former parish church of

Dairsie Dairsie, or Osnaburgh, is a village and parish in north-east Fife, Scotland. It is south-southwest of Leuchars Junction, and east-northeast of Cupar on the A91 Stirling to St Andrews road. The village grew out of two smaller settlements (calle ...

, in north-east

Fife Fife (, ; gd, Fìobha, ; sco, Fife) is a council area, historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland. It is situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries with Perth and Kinross (i ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

. It is located around south of Dairsie village. The present church was built in 1621, and is an unusual example of post-

Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...

Gothic architecture Gothic architecture (or pointed architecture) is an architectural style that was prevalent in Europe from the late 12th to the 16th century, during the High and Late Middle Ages, surviving into the 17th and 18th centuries in some areas. It e ...

in Scotland. It is no longer in use as a church, and is protected as a Category A

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...

History

A church at Dairsie is recorded in 1183. In 1300 the church was granted to the Convent of St Andrews; it may have been rebuilt at this time. In 1621, the present church was built by

John Spottiswoode John Spottiswoode (Spottiswood, Spotiswood, Spotiswoode or Spotswood) (1565 – 26 November 1639) was an Archbishop of St Andrews, Primate of All Scotland, Lord Chancellor, and historian of Scotland. Life He was born in 1565 at Greenbank in ...

(1565–1639),

Archbishop of St Andrews The Bishop of St. Andrews ( gd, Easbaig Chill Rìmhinn, sco, Beeshop o Saunt Andras) was the ecclesiastical head of the Diocese of St Andrews in the Catholic Church and then, from 14 August 1472, as Archbishop of St Andrews ( gd, Àrd-easbaig ...

, who had recently bought the adjacent

Dairsie Castle Dairsie Castle is a restored tower house located south of Dairsie in north-east Fife, Scotland. The castle overlooks the River Eden. History The first castle built here was the property of the bishops of St Andrews, and may have been constru ...

. The Spottiswoode family crest, with John Spottiswoode's initials, is carved over the west door. In the late 18th century the original flat roof was replaced with the present piend ( hipped) roof. A major refit was carried out in 1835–1837, including works to the interior, although most of this has since been removed. Ecclesiastical use of the church ceased in 1966, the congregation now using the former Free Church in Dairsie village.

References

{{reflist

External links

Excerpts From The 1861 Parochial Directory Of Fife And Kinross: Parish Of Dairsie
Fife Family History Society Churches in Fife Category A listed buildings in Fife Listed churches in Scotland Religious buildings and structures completed in 1621 1621 establishments in Scotland