Original pews in the Kirk of St Nicholas in Aberdeen

The Kirk of St Nicholas is a historic church located in the city centre of

Aberdeen Aberdeen (; sco, Aiberdeen ; gd, Obar Dheathain ; la, Aberdonia) is a city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous city in the country. Aberdeen is one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas (as Aberdeen City), and ...

, Scotland. Up until the dissolution of the congregation on 31 December 2020, it was known as the ''"Kirk of St Nicholas Uniting"''. It is also known as ''"The Mither Kirk"'' (mother church) of the city. As of 1 January 2021, the building falls under the care and maintenance of the General Trustees of the Church of Scotland. The church has a dark oak interior.

History

The earliest mention of a church on the site of the present Kirk can be found in a Papal document of 1151. Given Aberdeen's proximity to the sea,

St Nicholas Saint Nicholas of Myra, ; la, Sanctus Nicolaus (traditionally 15 March 270 – 6 December 343), also known as Nicholas of Bari, was an early Christian bishop of Greeks, Greek descent from the maritime city of Myra in Asia Minor (; modern-da ...

was chosen as the patron saint of Aberdeen, as a miracle attributed to him was the rescue of some sailors in a storm. The Kirk was enlarged in the 15th century. St Nicholas and St Mary's,

Dundee Dundee (; sco, Dundee; gd, Dùn Dè or ) is Scotland's fourth-largest city and the 51st-most-populous built-up area in the United Kingdom. The mid-year population estimate for 2016 was , giving Dundee a population density of 2,478/km2 or ...

, were probably the largest parish churches in medieval

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 ...

. This work was dedicated by Bishop Elphinstone in 1498. The 500th anniversary of the dedication of the enlarged church was marked with the installation of a special stained glass window at the main entrance to the Kirk, overlooking Drum's Aisle. The church contains the Drum Aisle (the ancient burial-place of the Irvines of

Drum Castle Drum Castle is a castle near Drumoak in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. For centuries it was the seat of the chief of Clan Irvine. The place-name Drum is derived from Gaelic ''druim'', 'ridge'. The site is located approximately northeast of Banchory a ...

) and the Collison Aisle, which divide the two congregations and which formed the

transept A transept (with two semitransepts) is a transverse part of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In cruciform churches, a transept is an area set crosswise to the nave in a cruciform ("cross-shaped") building withi ...

s of the 12th-century church of St Nicholas (architectural detail survives from this period). The West Church was built between 1751 and 1755, to plans given to the burgh by

James Gibbs James Gibbs (23 December 1682 – 5 August 1754) was one of Britain's most influential architects. Born in Aberdeen, he trained as an architect in Rome, and practised mainly in England. He is an important figure whose work spanned the transi ...

, in the Italian style, on the site of the medieval

nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...

, the East in 1834 in

Gothic-revival Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...

style on the site of the

choir A choir ( ; also known as a chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which ...

. In 1874 a fire destroyed the East Church and the old central tower with its lead-clad timber spire and its fine peal of nine bells, one of which, Laurence or "Lowrie", was 4 ft (1.2 m) in diameter at the mouth, 3.5 ft (1.1 m) high and very thick. The church was rebuilt and a massive granite tower erected over the intervening aisles, a new

carillon A carillon ( , ) is a pitched percussion instrument that is played with a keyboard and consists of at least 23 cast-bronze bells. The bells are hung in fixed suspension and tuned in chromatic order so that they can be sounded harmoniou ...

of 36 bells, cast in Belgium, being installed to commemorate the Victorian

jubilee A jubilee is a particular anniversary of an event, usually denoting the 25th, 40th, 50th, 60th, and the 70th anniversary. The term is often now used to denote the celebrations associated with the reign of a monarch after a milestone number of y ...

of 1887. Because the tuning of these bells by van Aerschot was not so good, the bells were replaced in 1950 with 48 bells made by

Gillett & Johnston Gillett & Johnston was a clockmaker and bell foundry based in Croydon, England from 1844 until 1957. Between 1844 and 1950, over 14,000 tower clocks were made at the works. The company's most successful and prominent period of activity as a bel ...

, it is now one of the largest carillons in the British Isles. The building includes two sanctuaries under one roof (though only one is now used). Following considerable decay, the old nave collapsed in approximately 1742. A rebuilt church – known as the West Kirk – was built in 1755, by

. This is still used for regular worship. The other section – the East Kirk – though it was still complete and retained a wooden medieval roof similar to that which survives at King's College Chapel],

Old Aberdeen Old Aberdeen is part of the city of Aberdeen in Scotland. Old Aberdeen was originally a separate burgh, which was erected into a burgh of barony on 26 December 1489. It was incorporated into adjacent Aberdeen by Act of Parliament in 1891. It ret ...

, was rebuilt in 1837, by

Archibald Simpson Archibald Simpson (4 May 1790 – 23 March 1847) was a Scottish architect, who along with his rival John Smith, is regarded as having fashioned the character of Aberdeen as "The Granite City".Simpson, William Douglas, (1947) ''The Archibald S ...

, and had to be again rebuilt following a fire in 1874. Extensive renovation and archeological work is currently taking place in the East Kirk. The foundations of earlier phases of the kirk, many medieval burials, and large numbers of architectural fragments are among the rich finds from this important site. Despite the many alterations to the fabric of the Kirk over the year's, St Nicholas retains a larger number of medieval effigies than any other Scottish parish church, though none of these are in their original positions. The Vault or Chapel of Our Lady of Pity survives under the east end of the Kirk. It has been refaced externally, but retains its medieval vaults within. A number of pieces of late medieval and 17th century woodwork are preserved in this vault. The former Kirk of St Nicholas Parish is now incorporated into the Parish of St Mark's, also under the ministry of Interim Minister, The Revd Ian Murray.

Churchyard

The graveyard surrounds the church on three sides: north, south and west. It is extremely crowded on the west and south sides. It has a high proportion of table stones. It does not follow the standard Scottish pattern of stones generally facing east. Close to the church on its south side a number of ground slabs now form part of paving, and are also used for car parking, a feature generally unseen in Scotland. Monuments date from the mid 17th century. The boundary onto Union Street was rebuilt as a very formal Georgian colonnade in the 19th century.

Notable burials

Alexander Anderson (Lord Provost of Aberdeen) Alexander Anderson of Blelack (1802–1887) was a Scottish advocate and politician who served as Lord Provost of Aberdeen from 1859 to 1866. Life He was born in Strichen manse on 10 June 1802, the son of Rev Alexander Anderson, and his wif ...

Sir John Anderson John Anderson, 1st Viscount Waverley, (8 July 1882 – 4 January 1958) was a Scottish civil servant and politician who is best known for his service in the War Cabinet during the Second World War, for which he was nicknamed the "Home Front Pr ...

John Henry Anderson John Henry Anderson (1814–1874) was a Scottish professional magician. Anderson is credited with helping bring the art of magic from street performances into theatres and presenting magic performances to entertain and delight the audience. C ...

Wizard of the North * Rev Dr Thomas Blackwell, principal of

Marischal College Marischal College ( ) is a large granite building on Broad Street in the centre of Aberdeen in north-east Scotland, and since 2011 has acted as the headquarters of Aberdeen City Council. However, the building was constructed for and is on long- ...

*Sir

Thomas Blaikie Sir Thomas Blaikie of Kingseat (11 February 1802 – 25 September 1861) was a Scottish businessman who twice served as Lord Provost of Aberdeen, from 1839 to 1847 and 1853 to 1856. Life Born in Aberdeen, he was the son of John Blaikie (1756 ...

*Rev Prof

William Laurence Brown William Laurence Brown (7 January 175511 May 1830) was a Scottish minister. Life Brown was born in Utrecht in the Netherlands. His father, William Brown, was minister of the English church there, but was then appointed professor of ecclesiasti ...

(inside kirk) * John Burnett of Elrick * Rev Andrew Cant *

William Cruden William Cruden (1726–1785) was a Scottish minister and author. Life He was the son of Alexander Cruden, beadle at Pitsligo. He graduated M.A. at Marischal College, Aberdeen in 1743. Cruden became minister of Logie-Pert, Craigo, near Montro ...

, twice provost of Aberdeen * John Cruickshank (mathematician) * William Cruickshank, twice Provost *

George Davidson of Pettens George Davidson of Pettens (c. 1593–1663) was a 17th-century Scottish landowner, merchant and philanthropist. Life Little is known of his early life but he is thought to be descended from the Davidsons of Cairnbrogie. He was a burgess in A ...

Robert Dyce Prof Robert Dyce FRSE (1798–1869) was a Scottish surgeon and Professor of Midwifery at Aberdeen University. Life He was born in Aberdeen on 30 November 1798 the son of Dr William Dyce of Fonthill and Cuttlehill (1770–1835) and his wife Marg ...

William Dyce William Dyce (; 19 September 1806 in Aberdeen14 February 1864) was a Scottish painter, who played a part in the formation of public art education in the United Kingdom, and the South Kensington Schools system. Dyce was associated with the Pre-R ...

memorialised on his parents' grave * Alexander Dingwall Fordyce *

John Gibb (engineer) John Gibb (1776–1850) was a Scottish civil engineer and contractor whose work included the construction of harbours, bridges, roads, lighthouses, and railways in the United Kingdom, primarily in Scotland. He was a close associate of Thomas Tel ...

George Russell Gowans George may refer to: People * George (given name) * George (surname) * George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George * George Washington, First President of the United States * George W. Bush, 43rd Presiden ...

RSW artist *Rev Dr

William Guild William Guild (1586–1657) was a Scottish minister, academic and theological writer. Life He was the second son of Marjorie (born Donaldson) and Matthew Guild, a wealthy armourer and hammerman of Aberdeen, and Deacon of the Guild of Hammerm ...

* Gavin Hadden, four times Lord Provost * Prof Robert Hamilton *

James Jopp James Jopp (1722–1794) was a Scottish merchant who served as Provost of Aberdeen for five non-consecutive periods. His meeting with Dr Johnson was recorded in James Boswell's diary. Life He was born in Insch north-west of Aberdeen, on 15 ...

five times

Provost of Aberdeen The Lord Provost of Aberdeen is the convener of the Aberdeen City local authority in Scotland. They are elected by the city council and serve not only as the chair of that body, but as a figurehead for the entire city. They are equivalent in m ...

James Melvin Dr James Melvin LLD (1795–1853) was a 19th-century Scottish scholar of Latin. He gathered a huge library and was the foremost Latin scholar of his day in Scotland. Life He was born on 21 April 1795 in Aberdeen to poor parents. He was educat ...

Latin scholar *

Andrew Moir (anatomist) Andrew Moir (1806–1844) was a 19th-century Scottish anatomist linked to the body-snatching scandal which swept Scotland in the late 18th and early 19th century. Unlike his Edinburgh equivalent, Dr Robert Knox, Moir was said to have active ...

*James Mowat of Logie (d.1662) *Cpt

William Penny Captain William Penny (1809–1892) was a Scottish shipmaster, whaler and Arctic explorer. He undertook the first maritime search for the ships of Sir John Franklin. In 1840, Penny established the first whaling station in the Cumberland Sound a ...

Arctic explorer *William Rickart *

George Skene George Skene may refer to: * George Skene (physician) (1741–1803), Scottish physician * George Skene (politician) (1749-1825), Scottish army officer and politician * Provost Skene Sir George Skene of Fintray (1619–1708) was a Scottish m ...

, Provost of Aberdeen *

John Smith (architect) John Smith (1781 – 22 July 1852) was a Scottish architect. His career started in 1805 and he was appointed as the official city architect of Aberdeen in 1807, the first person to hold this post. Together with Archibald Simpson, he contri ...

*Gavin Turreff, author * Alexander Walker (d.1711) Provost 1697/8 *

John Webster John Webster (c. 1580 – c. 1632) was an English Jacobean dramatist best known for his tragedies '' The White Devil'' and ''The Duchess of Malfi'', which are often seen as masterpieces of the early 17th-century English stage. His life and car ...

Lord Provost 1856 to 1859 and MP for Aberdeen

Other memorials

* Plaque to Rev

Alexander Hetherwick Alexander Hetherwick CBE (1860–1939) was a Scottish minister remembered as a missionary in Africa. Based in Blantyre, Nyasaland he wrote extensively on local languages and also was a competent map-maker. W. P. Livingstone described him as a "Prin ...

* Plaque to Very Rev

Mitford Mitchell James Robert Mitford Mitchell (1843–1914) was a Scottish minister. He served as Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1907. He was Chaplain in Ordinary in Scotland to both Queen Victoria and King Edward VII. Life He ...

minister from 1878 to 1895 and

Moderator of the General Assembly The moderator of the General Assembly is the chairperson of a General Assembly, the highest court of a Presbyterian or Reformed church. Kirk sessions and presbyteries may also style the chairperson as moderator. The Oxford Dictionary states th ...

References

External links