Holy Trinity Church, Spynie was until 1735 the

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the Church (building), church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in com ...

of Spynie,

Moray Moray ( ; or ) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland. It lies in the north-east of the country, with a coastline on the Moray Firth, and borders the council areas of Aberdeenshire and Highland. Its council is based in Elgin, the area' ...

in north-east

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

, and served as the

cathedral A cathedral is a church (building), church that contains the of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, Annual conferences within Methodism, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually s ...

of the Diocese of Moray between 1207 and 1224. No trace of the church can now be seen, but its graveyard remains near Spynie Palace, and its site is occupied by two burial vaults, with a cross marking the location of the church's eastern end. The graveyard is the burial place of former British Prime Minister

Ramsay MacDonald James Ramsay MacDonald (; 12 October 18669 November 1937) was a British statesman and politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. The first two of his governments belonged to the Labour Party (UK), Labour Party, where he led ...

History

The church at Spynie dates back to the 12th century, and possibly earlier. The early Bishops of Moray had no fixed cathedral, moving between the churches of Spynie, Birnie and Kinneddar. Between 1172 and 1174 King

William the Lion William the Lion (), sometimes styled William I (; ) and also known by the nickname ; e.g. Annals of Ulster, s.a. 1214.6; Annals of Loch Cé, s.a. 1213.10. ( 1142 – 4 December 1214), reigned as King of Alba from 1165 to 1214. His almost 49 ...

agreed with Bishop Simon de Tosny to grant all of his teinds from the Diocese of Moray "to the church of the Holy Trinity of the bishopric of Moray and to Lord Simon, Bishop of Moray". Bishop Simon reached a similar agreement with

Freskin Freskin (died before 1171) was a Flemish nobleman who settled in Scotland during the reign of King David I, becoming the progenitor of the Murray and Sutherland families, and possibly others. Origins Freskin was said to have come to the Lowla ...

of Duffus Castle regarding the woods and mosses of Spynie and Findrassie, and Simon's agreement with the King was confirmed by his successor Richard de Lincoln in 1187 and 1199. Bishop Richard, however, adopted Kinneddar as his cathedral, and began to provide the see with a constitution. Cathedral churches of Moray

The cathedral of the see of Moray was moved from Kinneddar to Spynie by Bishop Richard's successor

Bricius de Douglas Bricius (sometimes anglicized as Brice, died 1222) was prior of Lesmahagow and afterward bishop of Moray (Gaelic ''epscop Muireb''; Latin ''episcopus Moraviensis''). In this period, the name ''Bricius'' is more often a Latinization of the Ga ...

as part of a radical reorganisation of the diocese. A

papal bull A papal bull is a type of public decree, letters patent, or charter issued by the pope of the Catholic Church. It is named after the leaden Seal (emblem), seal (''bulla (seal), bulla'') traditionally appended to authenticate it. History Papal ...

was issued by

Pope Innocent III Pope Innocent III (; born Lotario dei Conti di Segni; 22 February 1161 – 16 July 1216) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 8 January 1198 until his death on 16 July 1216. Pope Innocent was one of the most power ...

in 1207 confirming Spynie as the seat of the cathedral and explaining that this decision had been taken on the advice of the "chapter and other wise laymen" on the basis that Spynie was conveniently placed for administering the diocese, but also not in a dangerously exposed location. A new constitution was introduced based on that of

Lincoln Cathedral Lincoln Cathedral, also called Lincoln Minster, and formally the Cathedral Church of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Lincoln, is a Church of England cathedral in Lincoln, England, Lincoln, England. It is the seat of the bishop of Lincoln and is the Mo ...

that established a small chapter of eight canons, including a dean, a

precentor A precentor is a person who helps facilitate worship. The details vary depending on the religion, denomination, and era in question. The Latin derivation is ''præcentor'', from cantor, meaning "the one who sings before" (or alternatively, "first ...

, a

treasurer A treasurer is a person responsible for the financial operations of a government, business, or other organization. Government The treasury of a country is the department responsible for the country's economy, finance and revenue. The treasure ...

, a

chancellor Chancellor () is a title of various official positions in the governments of many countries. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the (lattice work screens) of a basilica (court hall), which separa ...

and an

archdeacon An archdeacon is a senior clergy position in the Church of the East, Chaldean Catholic Church, Syriac Orthodox Church, Anglican Communion, St Thomas Christians, Eastern Orthodox Church, Eastern Orthodox churches and some other Christian denomina ...

. It is not known how much progress had been made on building Bishop Bricius' cathedral at Spynie by the time of his death in 1222. On 19 July 1224, however, Bricius' successor Andreas de Moravia moved the seat of the diocese to the south to

Elgin Elgin may refer to: Places Canada * Elgin County, Ontario * Elgin Settlement, a 19th-century community for freed slaves located in present-day North Buxton and South Buxton, Ontario * Elgin, a village in Rideau Lakes, Ontario * Elgin, Manit ...

, citing Spynie's exposure to the dangers of war, its isolation and the problems of supplying it with the needs of divine worship. The endowment for the fabric of the church at Spynie was also transferred to Elgin, but Spynie remained the parish church and a

prebend A prebendary is a member of the Catholic or Anglican clergy, a form of canon with a role in the administration of a cathedral or collegiate church. When attending services, prebendaries sit in particular seats, usually at the back of the choir ...

of Elgin cathedral, and nearby Spynie Palace remained the principal residence of the Bishop. The seat of the parish of Spynie was moved to New Spynie in 1745, with the new church being built in 1736 partly with stones taken from the old one. The last remaining part of the old church was a gothic gable which fell in 1850. The foundations were traced in 1924 and found to indicate a small church building of by , with the structure apart from the eastern gable being built largely of clay in a simple style.

References

Bibliography

* Butler, Dugald (2007). ''Scottish Cathedrals and Abbeys''. BiblioLife. . * * * {{authority control Buildings and structures completed in 1207 Churches completed in the 1200s 13th-century church buildings in Scotland Listed cathedrals in Scotland Medieval cathedrals in Scotland Roman Catholic cathedrals in Scotland Churches in Moray 1207 establishments in Scotland Former cathedrals in Scotland