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 Reformation of 1560, when it split from the Catholic Church ...
from the
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 ...
to the present day. Some listed below also currently have their own article. The location of the
parish
A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one o ...
or other post during the Moderator's year in office is also listed (in brackets).
Since 1714 the General Assembly has normally been held annually every May. Moderators-designate are nominated in the October of the previous year; a formal vote is taken at start of the General Assembly (in May), then the new Moderator takes the chair. He/she holds office for one year; his/her final act is to formally open the following year's General Assembly and preside over the formal election of a successor.
The Moderator of the current year (while serving their term as Moderator) is styled ''"The Right Reverend"'', while past Moderators are styled ''"The
Very Reverend
The Very Reverend is a Style (manner of address), style given to members of the clergy. The definite article "The" should always precede "Reverend" as "Reverend" is a style or fashion and not a title.
Catholic
In the Catholic Church, the style i ...
"''.
16th century
*1562 ''(June)'' and 1568 ''(Dec)'' John Knox (Edinburgh)
*1563 ''(Dec.)'', 1564 ''(June)'' and 1568 ''(July)'' John Willock (Superintendent of the West)
*1564 ''(Dec.),'' 1565 (''Dec.),'' 1566 (''June and Dec.)'' and 1572 ''(Aug.)''
John Erskine of Dun
John Erskine of Dun (1509–1591) was a Scottish religious reformer.
Biography
The son of Sir John Erskine, Laird of Dun, he was educated at King's College, University of Aberdeen. At the age of twenty-one Erskine was the cause — probably b ...
(Superintendent of Angus and Mearns)
*1567 ''(June)''
George Buchanan
George Buchanan ( gd, Seòras Bochanan; February 1506 – 28 September 1582) was a Scottish historian and humanist scholar. According to historian Keith Brown, Buchanan was "the most profound intellectual sixteenth century Scotland produced." ...
University of St Andrews
(Aien aristeuein)
, motto_lang = grc
, mottoeng = Ever to ExcelorEver to be the Best
, established =
, type = Public research university
Ancient university
, endowment ...
)
*1567 ''(July and Dec.),'' 1576 ''(April),'' 1578 ''(June)'' John Row ( St Johnstoun)
*1569 ''(Feb.)'', 1577 ''(Oct.)'', 1582 ''(Oct.)'', 1586 ''(May)'', 1593 ''(April)'' and 1597 ''(March)'' David Lindsay (
Leith
Leith (; gd, Lìte) is a port area in the north of the city of Edinburgh, Scotland, founded at the mouth of the Water of Leith. In 2021, it was ranked by ''Time Out'' as one of the top five neighbourhoods to live in the world.
The earliest ...
Edinburgh
Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of t ...
Robert Pont
Robert Pont (the abbreviated form of Kylpont or Kynpont) (1529–1606) was a Church of Scotland minister, judge and reformer. He was a church minister and commissioner and a Senator of the College of Justice.
His translation of the Helveti ...
Rathven
Rathven ( sco, Raffin) is an ecclesiastical parish, village and former civil parish in the historic county of Banff, now in Moray, Scotland. The civil parish was last used as a census subdivision in 2001 when the population was 12,378, The for ...
)
*1571 ''(August)''
Gilbert Garden
Gilbert Garden (also known as Gardin or Gardyn) was a 16th-century Church of Scotland minister immediately after the Reformation, who served as Moderator of the General Assembly in August 1571.
Life
He was born and/or raised in Boath near Carmy ...
King's College, Aberdeen
King's College in Old Aberdeen, Scotland, the full title of which is The University and King's College of Aberdeen (''Collegium Regium Abredonense''), is a formerly independent university founded in 1495 and now an integral part of the Universi ...
Archbishop of Glasgow
The Archbishop of Glasgow is an archiepiscopal title that takes its name after the city of Glasgow in Scotland. The position and title were abolished by the Church of Scotland in 1689; and, in the Scottish Episcopal Church, it is now part of ...
)
*1578 ''(April),'' 1582 ''(April and June),'' 1587 and 1594
Andrew Melville
Andrew Melville (1 August 1545 – 1622) was a Scottish scholar, theologian, poet and religious reformer. His fame encouraged scholars from the European continent to study at Glasgow and St. Andrews.
He was born at Baldovie, on 1 August 154 ...
Principal of the University of Glasgow
The Principal of the University of Glasgow is the working head of the University, acting as its chief executive. He is responsible for the day-to-day management of the University as well as its strategic planning and administration. The Principa ...
)
*1580 ''(July)'' James Lawson (Edinburgh)
*1588 ''(Feb.)'' and 1592
Robert Bruce
Robert I (11 July 1274 – 7 June 1329), popularly known as Robert the Bruce (Scottish Gaelic: ''Raibeart an Bruis''), was King of Scots from 1306 to his death in 1329. One of the most renowned warriors of his generation, Robert eventuall ...
Pittenweem
Pittenweem ( ) is a fishing village and civil parish in Fife, on the east coast of Scotland. At the 2001 census, it had a population of 1,747.
Etymology
The name derives from Pictish and Scottish Gaelic. "Pit-" represents Pictish ''pett'' 'pl ...
Meigle
Meigle ( gd, Mìgeil, ) is a village in Strathmore, Scotland. It lies in the council area of Perth and Kinross in the Coupar Angus and Meigle ward. It lies on the A94 road between Perth and Forfar. Other smaller settlements nearby are Balk ...
, later
Bishop of Dunkeld
The Bishop of Dunkeld is the ecclesiastical head of the Diocese of Dunkeld, one of the largest and more important of Scotland's 13 medieval bishoprics, whose first recorded bishop is an early 12th-century cleric named Cormac. However, the first ...
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 ...
, later
Bishop of Aberdeen
The Bishop of Aberdeen (originally Bishop of Mortlach, in Latin Murthlacum) was the ecclesiastical head of the Diocese of Aberdeen, one of Scotland's 13 medieval bishoprics, whose first recorded bishop is an early 12th-century cleric named Nec ...
)
*1597 ''(May)''
Robert Rollock
Robert Rollock (c. 15558 or 9 February 1599) was Scottish academic and minister in the Church of Scotland, and the first regent and first principal of the University of Edinburgh. Born into a noble family, he distinguished himself during ...
Robert Wilkie
Robert Leon Wilkie Jr. (born August 2, 1962) is an American lawyer and government official who served as the United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs from 2018 to 2021, during the Trump administration. He was previously Under Secretary of De ...
David Rait
David Rait (c. 1560–1632) was a Scottish clergyman in the Church of Scotland who was minister of St Machar's Cathedral in Aberdeen and served as Moderator of the General Assembly in Aberdeen in 1605.
Life
He was from the family of Rait o ...
Moderator of Synod at Aberdeen Assembly
*1606 James Nicolson (
Meigle
Meigle ( gd, Mìgeil, ) is a village in Strathmore, Scotland. It lies in the council area of Perth and Kinross in the Coupar Angus and Meigle ward. It lies on the A94 road between Perth and Forfar. Other smaller settlements nearby are Balk ...
, later Bishop of Dunkeld) elected as "Constant Moderator" in election against Patrick Simson but the concept was dropped
*1608
James Law
James Law (ca. 1560 – 12 November 1632) was Archbishop of Glasgow. Entering the church after graduation from university, he rose to the position of Bishop of Orkney, reorganising the diocese, before rising to hold the position of Archbishop o ...
Archbishop of Glasgow
The Archbishop of Glasgow is an archiepiscopal title that takes its name after the city of Glasgow in Scotland. The position and title were abolished by the Church of Scotland in 1689; and, in the Scottish Episcopal Church, it is now part of ...
)
*1610, 1616, 1617 and 1618
John Spottiswood
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 ...
(Archbishop of Glasgow, later
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 ...
Inverkeithing
Inverkeithing ( ; gd, Inbhir Chèitinn) is a port town and parish, in Fife, Scotland, on the Firth of Forth. A town of ancient origin, Inverkeithing was given royal burgh status during the reign of Malcolm IV in the 12th century. It was an imp ...
)
*1615 James Saitonne or Seytoun (Logie Kirk) (Note- Scott has no record of this)
*1615 to 1627 John Hay ( Renfrew) as the first "constant Moderator"
No General Assembly until 1638
*1638, 1641 and 1643 Alexander Henderson (
Leuchars
Leuchars (pronounced or ; gd, Luachar "rushes") is a small town and parish near the north-east coast of Fife in Scotland.
The civil parish has a population of 5,754 (in 2011) Census of Scotland 2011, Table KS101SC – Usually Resident Popula ...
Maybole
Maybole is a town and former burgh of barony and police burgh in South Ayrshire, Scotland. It had an estimated population of in . It is situated south of Ayr and southwest of Glasgow by the Glasgow and South Western Railway. The town is bypass ...
Presbyterianism
Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...
in 1690. From 1662 to 1673 Walter Bruce of Inverkeithing was "Constant Moderator. Patrick Sympson was Constant Moderator from an unknown date to Spring 1690. Gabriel Cunningham acted as Interim Moderator in 1690 (as though there had been no gap) until Kennedie was chosen to succeed him.
*1690 Hugh Kennedie (Edinburgh: Trinity College Church)
*1692 and 1697 William Crichton (Edinburgh: Tron Church)
*1694 John Law (Edinburgh:
High Church
The term ''high church'' refers to beliefs and practices of Christian ecclesiology, liturgy, and theology that emphasize formality and resistance to modernisation. Although used in connection with various Christian traditions, the term originate ...
George Meldrum
George Meldrum (1634–1709) was a Scottish minister of the Church of Scotland who twice served as Moderator of the General Assembly, the highest position in the Scottish Church. He was one of the prominent Scottish Covenanters.
Life
He was ...
(Edinburgh: Tron Church and Professor of
Divinity
Divinity or the divine are things that are either related to, devoted to, or proceeding from a deity.divine< ...
David Williamson
David Keith Williamson AO (born 24 February 1942) is an Australian dramatist and playwright. He has also written screenplays and teleplays.
Early life
David Williamson was born in Melbourne, Victoria, on 24 February 1942, and was brought ...
(Edinburgh: St Cuthbert's) aka " Dainty Davie"
*1703
George Meldrum
George Meldrum (1634–1709) was a Scottish minister of the Church of Scotland who twice served as Moderator of the General Assembly, the highest position in the Scottish Church. He was one of the prominent Scottish Covenanters.
Life
He was ...
, (Tron, Edinburgh)
*1705, 1708, 1711 and 1715 William Carstares (Principal of the College of Edinburgh)
*1706, 1713, 1718, 1724 and 1728
William Wishart
:''See also William Wishart (disambiguation)''
William Wishart (or Wischard) (died 28 May 1279) was a 13th-century Bishop of St. Andrews. He was postulated to the see of St. Andrews (''Cell Rígmonaid'' or ''Cill Rìmhinn'') while holding the ...
Principal of the University of Glasgow
The Principal of the University of Glasgow is the working head of the University, acting as its chief executive. He is responsible for the day-to-day management of the University as well as its strategic planning and administration. The Principa ...
)
*1709 John Currie ( Haddington)
*1710, 1714, 1717, 1722 and 1726 William Mitchell (Edinburgh: High Church)- the first Second Charge to become Moderator
*1712, 1716, 1720, 1727 and 1730 William Hamilton (Professor of Divinity, later Principal of the University of Edinburgh)
*1719 James Grierson (Second Charge in Edinburgh: Trinity College Church)
*1721 Thomas Black (St John's Church, Perth)
*1723 and 1731 James Smith (Cramond; later Principal of the University of Edinburgh)
*1725 and 1729 James Alston (
Dirleton
Dirleton is a village and civil parish in East Lothian, Scotland approximately east of Edinburgh on the A198. It contains . Dirleton lies between North Berwick (east), Gullane (west), Fenton Barns (south) and the Yellowcraigs nature reserve ...
John Adams
John Adams (October 30, 1735 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, attorney, diplomat, writer, and Founding Father who served as the second president of the United States from 1797 to 1801. Before his presidency, he was a leader of t ...
William Wishart
:''See also William Wishart (disambiguation)''
William Wishart (or Wischard) (died 28 May 1279) was a 13th-century Bishop of St. Andrews. He was postulated to the see of St. Andrews (''Cell Rígmonaid'' or ''Cill Rìmhinn'') while holding the ...
(Principal (Secundus) of the
University of Edinburgh
The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...
King's College, Aberdeen
King's College in Old Aberdeen, Scotland, the full title of which is The University and King's College of Aberdeen (''Collegium Regium Abredonense''), is a formerly independent university founded in 1495 and now an integral part of the Universi ...
George Wishart
George Wishart (also Wisehart; c. 15131 March 1546) was a Scottish Protestant Reformer and one of the early Protestant martyrs burned at the stake as a heretic.
George Wishart was the son of James and brother of Sir John of Pitarrow, ...
(Edinburgh: Tron Church)
*1749, 1752 and 1756 Patrick Cumin (Edinburgh: Old Church, also Professor of Church History)
*1750 Robert Patoun (Renfrew)
*1751 James Mackie (St Ninians, Stirling)
*1753 Alexander Webster (Edinburgh: Tolbooth)
*1754 and 1760 Robert Hamilton (Professor of Divinity, Edinburgh) and minister of Old
Greyfriars Kirk
Greyfriars Kirk ( gd, Eaglais nam Manach Liath) is a parish church of the Church of Scotland, located in the Old Town of Edinburgh, Scotland. It is surrounded by Greyfriars Kirkyard.
Greyfriars traces its origin to the south-west parish of Edin ...
*1755
George Reid
Sir George Houston Reid, (25 February 1845 – 12 September 1918) was an Australian politician who led the Reid Government as the fourth Prime Minister of Australia from 1904 to 1905, having previously been Premier of New South Wales fr ...
(St Quivox)
*1757 William Leechman (Professor of Divinity, later Principal of the University of Glasgow)
*1758 Thomas Turnbull (Borthwick)
*1760
George Kay
George Kay (21 September 1891 – 18 April 1954) was an English football player and manager of Luton Town, Southampton and Liverpool.
The highlight of his playing career was when he captained West Ham United in the first FA Cup final to be play ...
Marischal College, Aberdeen
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- ...
Cramond
Cramond Village (; gd, Cathair Amain) is a village and suburb in the north-west of Edinburgh, Scotland, at the mouth of the River Almond where it enters the Firth of Forth.
The Cramond area has evidence of Mesolithic, Bronze Age and Roman ac ...
Alexander Carlyle
Alexander Carlyle MA DD FRSE (26 January 172228 August 1805) was a Scottish church leader, and autobiographer. He served as Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1770/71.
Life
He was born on 26 January 1722 in the m ...
(
Inveresk
Inveresk (Gaelic: ''Inbhir Easg'') is a village in East Lothian, Scotland situated to the south of Musselburgh. It has been designated a conservation area since 1969. It is situated on slightly elevated ground on the north bank of a loop o ...
Forfar
Forfar ( sco, Farfar, gd, Baile Fharfair) is the county town of Angus, Scotland and the administrative centre for Angus Council, with a new multi-million pound office complex located on the outskirts of the town. As of 2021, the town has a pop ...
Ayr
Ayr (; sco, Ayr; gd, Inbhir Àir, "Mouth of the River Ayr") is a town situated on the southwest coast of Scotland. It is the administrative centre of the South Ayrshire Subdivisions of Scotland, council area and the historic Shires of Scotlan ...
Prestonpans
Prestonpans ( gd, Baile an t-Sagairt, Scots language, Scots: ''The Pans'') is a small mining town, situated approximately eight miles east of Edinburgh, Scotland, in the Council area of East Lothian. The population as of is. It is near the si ...
Robert Liston
Robert Liston (28 October 1794 – 7 December 1847) was a British surgeon. Liston was noted for his speed and skill in an era prior to anaesthetics, when speed made a difference in terms of pain and survival. He was the first Professor of Cl ...
( Aberdour) (last to be elected without DD)
*1788 Archibald Davidson (Principal of the University of Glasgow)
*1789 George Hill Professor of Divinity, St Andrews University)
*1790 John Walker (Professor of Natural History, Edinburgh)
*1791 Robert Small (Dundee, St Mary's), Mathematician and Astronomer
*1792 Andrew Hunter (Professor of Divinity, University of Edinburgh])
*1793 Thomas Hardy (Minister), Thomas Hardy (Professor of Church History, University of Edinburgh)
*1794 Robert Arnot (Professor of Divinity, University of St Andrews)
*1795 James Meek ( Cambuslang), Historian and Meteorologist
*1796 William Greenfield (Edinburgh: High Church, also Professor of Rhetoric at the University of Edinburgh)
*1797 John Adamson (St Andrews) Professor of Civil History in the
United College, St Andrews
The United College of St Salvator and St Leonard (commonly referred to as United College) is one of the two statutory colleges of the University of St Andrews in St Andrews, Scotland. It was founded in 1747 by the merging of St Salvators College ...
*1798 William Taylor (Glasgow: High, also Principal of the
University of Glasgow
, image = UofG Coat of Arms.png
, image_size = 150px
, caption = Coat of arms
Flag
, latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis
, motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita
, ...
)
*1799
William Moodie
William Moodie or Mudie FRSE (1759–1812) was a Scottish Minister who served as Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1799. He was also a philologist, and Professor of Hebrew (and Oriental Languages) at Edinburgh Unive ...
(Edinburgh: St Andrew's, also Professor of Hebrew at the University of Edinburgh)
*1800 George Baird (Principal, University of Edinburgh)
Kilwinning
Kilwinning (, sco, Kilwinnin; gd, Cill D’Fhinnein) is a town in North Ayrshire, Scotland. It is on the River Garnock, north of Irvine, about southwest of Glasgow. It is known as "The Crossroads of Ayrshire". Kilwinning was also a Civil Pa ...
)
*1802 James Finlayson (Edinburgh: High Church, also Professor of Logic at the University of Edinburgh)
*1803 Gilbert Gerard (Professor of Divinity, University of Aberdeen)
*1804 John Inglis (Greyfriars Kirk, Edinburgh)
*1805 George Hamilton (Gladsmuir) Following William McQuhae's rejection of the role
*1806 William Taylor (St Enoch's, Glasgow)
*1807
James Sherriffs
James Sherriffs or Shirreffs (1752–1830) was a Scottish minister who served as Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1807.
Life
He was born in Aberdeen in 1752 the son of David Sherriffs. He was educated locally then ...
Hugh Meiklejohn
Hugh Meiklejohn (12 June 1765 – 11 June 1831) was a Scottish minister who served as Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1810.
Life
He was born on 12 June 1765, the only son of Mary Cree, daughter of Hugh Cree, of Sa ...
(Abercorn, also Professor of Church History at the University of Edinburgh)
*1811 Alexander Ranken (St David's (Ramshorn) Church, Glasgow)
*1812 William MacMorine (Caerlaverock) instead of Robert Dickson of
South Leith Parish Church
South Leith Parish Church, originally the Kirk of Our Lady, St Mary, is a congregation of the Church of Scotland. It is the principal church and congregation in Leith, in Edinburgh. Its kirkyard is the burial place for John Home (author of ''Do ...
who declined Moderatorship
*1813 Andrew Brown (Edinburgh: Old Church, also Professor of Rhetoric at the University of Edinburgh)
*1814 David RitchieFRSE (Edinburgh: St Andrew's, also Professor of Logic at the University of Edinburgh)
*1815 Lewis Gordon (Drainie)
*1816 John Cook (of Kilmany then Professor of Hebrew, then Biblical Criticism at St Andrews)
*1817 Gavin Gibb (Glasgow: St Andrew's, also Professor of Hebrew, University of Glasgow)
*1818 John Campbell (Tolbooth parish, Edinburgh)
*1819 and 1843 Duncan Macfarlan (Drymen, later Principal of the University of Glasgow)
*1820 Thomas MacKnightFRSE (Edinburgh: Old Church)
*1821 Duncan Mearns (Professor of Divinity, Aberdeen)
*1822
David Lamont
Colin David Lamont (born 24 August 1953) is an Australian politician and was a member of the second Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly, elected to the multi-member single constituency Assembly for the Labor Party in 1992. Lamont ...
Robert Haldane
Robert Haldane (28 February 1764 – 12 December 1842) was a religious writer and Scottish theologian. Author of ''Commentaire sur l'Épître aux Romains, On the Inspiration of Scripture'' and ''Exposition of the Epistle to the Romans.''
Early ...
Kirkpatrick-Juxta
Kirkpatrick-Juxta is a parish in Dumfries and Galloway on the A701, between Biggar, South Lanarkshire, Biggar, Moffat and Lockerbie. The parish straddles the main road A74 (M). It is primarily a rural parish. One source describes its name as meani ...
Whitekirk
Whitekirk is a small settlement in East Lothian, Scotland. Together with the nearby settlement of Tyninghame, it gives its name to the parish of Whitekirk and Tyninghame.
Whitekirk
Whitekirk is from North Berwick, from Dunbar and east of ...
)
*1832
Thomas Chalmers
Thomas Chalmers (17 March 178031 May 1847), was a Scottish minister, professor of theology, political economist, and a leader of both the Church of Scotland and of the Free Church of Scotland. He has been called "Scotland's greatest nine ...
(Professor of Divinity, University of Edinburgh)
*1833 John Stirling (
Craigie, South Ayrshire
Craigie is a small village and parish of in the old district of Kyle, now South Ayrshire, south of Kilmarnock, Scotland. This is mainly a farming district, lacking in woodland, with a low population density, and only one village. In the 19 ...
)
*1834
Patrick MacFarlan
Patrick MacFarlan (4 April 1781 – 13 November 1849) was a Scottish minister who served as Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1834 and as Moderator of the General Assembly of the Free Church of Scotland in 1845. ...
William Aird Thomson
William Aird Thomson (1773-17 March 1863) was a Scottish minister and antiquarian who served as Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1835.
Life
He was born on 28 January 1773 in the manse at Sanquhar the son of Rev Dr ...
(Perth)
*1836
Norman Macleod (The Highlanders' Friend)
Norman MacLeod, known in Gaelic as ''Caraid nan Gàidheal'' ("friend of the Gael"), was a Church of Scotland minister, poet, and writer. He was Chaplain to Queen Victoria and Dean of the Chapel Royal in Scotland.
Life
He was the son of the Rev ...
William Muir
Sir William Muir (27 April 1819 – 11 July 1905) was a Scottish Orientalist, and colonial administrator, Principal of the University of Edinburgh and Lieutenant Governor of the North-West Provinces of British India.
Life
He was born at Gl ...
Henry Duncan Henry Duncan may refer to:
* Henry Duncan (minister) (1774–1846), Scottish minister, geologist and social reformer; founder of the savings bank movement
* Henry Duncan (naval officer, born 1735) (1735–1814), Naval captain and Deputy Comptroller ...
(Ruthwell)
*1840
Angus Makellar
Angus Makellar (1780–1859) was a Scottish minister of the Church of Scotland who served as Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1840. Leaving in the Disruption of 1843 he also served as Moderator of the General Asse ...
The " Disruption" in the Church of Scotland took place in 1843, with approximately one-third of the ministers leaving to form the Free Church of Scotland. The Moderator in this critical year was Duncan Macfarlan (High Church of Glasgow)
*1844
John Lee John Lee may refer to:
Academia
* John Lee (astronomer) (1783–1866), president of the Royal Astronomical Society
* John Lee (university principal) (1779–1859), University of Edinburgh principal
* John Lee (pathologist) (born 1961), English ...
Killearn
Killearn (Scottish Gaelic: ''Cill Fhearann'', from orig. ''Ceann Fhearann'', "Head/End of (the) Land/Territory" – until the 15th century when ''Ceann'' was replaced by ''Cill''; denoting the presence of a house of worship) – is a smal ...
Boharm
Boharm is a rural parish in the Speyside area of north Scotland, midway between Aberlour and Fochabers, and north of Dufftown. It lies on minor roads to either side of the A95. The main settlements in the parish are Maggieknockater and Mulben. ...
Linlithgow
Linlithgow (; gd, Gleann Iucha, sco, Lithgae) is a town in West Lothian, Scotland. It was historically West Lothian's county town, reflected in the county's historical name of Linlithgowshire. An ancient town, it lies in the Central Belt on a ...
Matthew Leishman
Matthew Leishman (27 April 1794 – 8 August 1874) was a Scottish minister. He served as minister of Govan Old Parish Church for 53 years, during which he served as Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1858.
Life
He wa ...
(
Govan
Govan ( ; Cumbric?: ''Gwovan'?''; Scots: ''Gouan''; Scottish Gaelic: ''Baile a' Ghobhainn'') is a district, parish, and former burgh now part of south-west City of Glasgow, Scotland. It is situated west of Glasgow city centre, on the south ba ...
Kells, Dumfries and Galloway
Kells parish, in the Kirkcudbrightshire, Stewartry of Kirkcudbright, is located 14 miles (N. W. by N.) from Castle Douglas, Castle-Douglas, and 19 miles (N. by W.) from Kirkcudbright. It contains, with the burgh of New Galloway, 1121 inhabitant ...
Inveraray
Inveraray ( or ; gd, Inbhir Aora meaning "mouth of the Aray") is a town in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It is on the western shore of Loch Fyne, near its head, and on the A83 road. It is a former royal burgh, the traditional county town of Arg ...
James Craik
James Craik (; 17276 February 1814) was Physician General (precursor of the Surgeon General) of the United States Army, as well as George Washington's personal physician and close friend.
Biography Education and emigration to America
Born on ...
University of Aberdeen
, mottoeng = The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom
, established =
, type = Public research universityAncient university
, endowment = £58.4 million (2021)
, budget ...
)
*1865
James Macfarlane
James MacFarlane (17 July 1866 – 11 December 1942) was a New Zealand cricketer. He played first-class cricket for Canterbury and Otago between the 1887–88 and 1895–96 seasons.FRSE (Duddingston, near Edinburgh)
*1866 John Cook (Haddington)
*1867 Thomas Jackson CrawfordFRSE, (Professor of Divinity, University of Edinburgh)
*1868 James Strachan Barty (Bendochy)
*1869 Norman MacLeod (Glasgow: The Barony)
*1870 George Ritchie (
Jedburgh
Jedburgh (; gd, Deadard; sco, Jeddart or ) is a town and former royal burgh in the Scottish Borders and the traditional county town of the historic county of Roxburghshire, the name of which was randomly chosen for Operation Jedburgh in s ...
)
*1871
Robert Horne Stevenson
Robert Horne Stevenson (27 October 1812 – 15 November 1886) was a Scottish minister who served as Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1871/2.
Life
Stevenson was born on 27 October 1812 at Netherinch, Campsie, son o ...
(Edinburgh: St George's)
*1872 Robert Jamieson (Glasgow: St Paul's)
*1873
Robert Gillan
Robert Gillan (1787-1879) was a Church of Scotland minister who served as Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1873.
Biography
Gillan was born at Hawick, Roxburghshire. His father, the Rev. Robert Gillan, son of another m ...
(Inchinnan)
*1874
Samuel Trail
Samuel Trail (1806–1887) was a Scottish minister who served as Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1874.
Life
He was born in the parish of Udny on 31 May 1806, the son of John T. Trail, a farmer.
He studied divinity ...
John Tulloch
__NOTOC__
John Tulloch (1 June 1823 – 13 February 1886) was a Scottish theologian.
Life
Tulloch was born at Dron, south of Bridge of Earn, Perthshire, and educated at Perth Grammar School.https://archive.org/stream/fastiecclesiaesc00scot/f ...
(Principal, St Mary's College, St Andrews)
*1879 James Crystal (
Cathcart
Cathcart ( sco, Kithcart, gd, Coille Chart) is an are ...
)
*1882 William Milligan (Professor of Biblical Criticism, Aberdeen)
*1883
John Rankine
John Rankine (born Douglas Rankine Mason; 26 September 1918 – 8 August 2013) was a British science fiction author, who wrote books as John Rankine and Douglas R. Mason. Rankine was born in Hawarden, Flintshire, Wales and first attended Ch ...
(
Sorn Vehicle Excise Duty (VED; also known as "vehicle tax", "car tax", and more controversially as "road tax", and formerly as a "tax disc") is an annual tax that is levied as an excise duty and which must be paid for most types of powered vehicles which ...
)
*1884 Peter MacKenzie (Urquhart in Presbytery of
Dingwall
Dingwall ( sco, Dingwal, gd, Inbhir Pheofharain ) is a town and a royal burgh in the Highland council area of Scotland. It has a population of 5,491. It was an east-coast harbour that now lies inland. Dingwall Castle was once the biggest cas ...
)
*1885
Alexander Ferrier Mitchell
Alexander Ferrier Mitchell (1822 – 1899) was a Scottish ecclesiastical historian and Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1885.
Life
He was born at Brechin on 10 September 1822, son of David Mitchell, convener of local ...
(Professor of Church History, St Andrews)
*1886 John Cunningham (Principal, St Mary's College, University of St Andrews)
*1887 George Hutchison (
Banchory
Banchory (, sco, Banchry, gd, Beannchar) is a burgh or town in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It is about west of Aberdeen, near where the Feugh River meets the River Dee.
Prehistory and archaeology
In 2009, a farmer discovered a short cist bu ...
Paton James Gloag
Paton James Gloag (1823–1906) was a Scottish minister and theological author. He was Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1889.
Life
Born in Perth on 17 May 1823, he was the eldest son of William Gloag (died 1856), ...
Robert Flint
Robert Flint LLD DD (14 March 1838 – 1910) was a Scottish theologian and philosopher who wrote also on sociology.
Life
Flint was born at Greenburn, Sibbaldbie near Applegarth in Dumfriesshire on 14 March 1838, the son of Grace Johnston (' ...
Earlston
Earlston ( sco, Yerlston; gd, Dùn Airchill) is a civil parish and market town in the county of Berwickshire, within the Scottish Borders. It is on the River Leader in Lauderdale, Scotland.
Early history
Earlston was originally called ''Arc ...
)
*1898
Thomas Leishman
Thomas Leishman (7 May 1825 – 13 July 1904) was a Scottish minister and liturgical scholar.
Life
Born into a clerical family at his father's manse on 7 May 1825, he was the eldest son, in a family of 13 children, of Matthew Leishman, D.D., mini ...
James Curdie Russell
James Curdie Russell (1830-1925) was a Scottish minister. He served as Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1902.
Life
He was born in 1830.
He was minister of Campbeltown from 1854 and remained there for most of his l ...
Mouswald
Mouswald is a rural village slightly east of Dumfries in south-west Scotland. It lies on the B724 south of the A75. The site views southward over the Solway Firth.
History
A Scandinavian settlement began here in the 9th century and the name Mous ...
)
*1904
John McMurtrie
John McMurtrie (born 1969) is a British music photographer. He makes portraits of musicians, usually in the heavy rock arena. He has shot covers for ''Metal Hammer'' magazine and '' Total Guitar'' magazine and also contributes to ''Rolling Stone' ...
Fyvie
Fyvie is a village in the Formartine area of Aberdeenshire, Scotland.
Geography
Fyvie lies alongside the River Ythan and is on the A947 road.
Architecture
What in 1990, at least, was a Clydesdale Bank was built in 1866 by James Matthews. The ...
Pollokshields
Pollokshields ( gd, Buthan Phollaig, Scots: ''Powkshiels'') is an area in the Southside of Glasgow, Scotland. Its modern boundaries are largely man-made, being formed by the M77 motorway to the west and northwest with the open land of Pollok ...
Pearson McAdam Muir
Pearson McAdam Muir (1846–1924) was the minister of Glasgow Cathedral and Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1910. He served as Grand Chaplain of the Grand Lodge of Freemasons of Scotland. He was Chaplain in Ordinar ...
Thomas Nicol
Thomas Nicol (1846–1916) was Professor of Biblical Criticism at the University of Aberdeen. He served as Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1914.
Life
He was born in Edinburgh on 21 October 1846, possibly the son ...
(Professor of Biblical Criticism, Aberdeen)
*1915 David Paul (Edinburgh: Robertson Memorial Church)
*1916 John Brown (Glasgow: Bellahouston)
*1917 James Cooper (Professor of Church History, Glasgow)
*1918 James Nicoll Ogilvie (Edinburgh: New Greyfriars')
*1919 William Paterson Paterson (University of Edinburgh)
*1920
Thomas Martin Thomas or Tom Martin may refer to:
Born 16th century
*Thomas Martin (politician, died 1583) (1530–1583), MP for Dorchester
* Thomas Martin (lawyer) (1521–1593), MP for Ludgershall, Saltash and Hindon
Born 17th century
*Thomas Martin of Pa ...
(Peebles)
*1921
James A. McClymont
James Alexander McClymont CBE VD (1848–1927) was a Scottish minister who served as Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1921.
Life
He was Principal Chaplain to the Royal Army Chaplains' Department in the First World W ...
CBE (Convener of the Committee on Chaplains to H. M. Forces)
*1922 John Smith (Glasgow:
Partick
Partick ( sco, Pairtick, Scottish Gaelic: ''Partaig'') is an area of Glasgow on the north bank of the River Clyde, just across from Govan. To the west lies Whiteinch, to the east Yorkhill and Kelvingrove Park (across the River Kelvin), and ...
)
*1923
George Milligan George Milligan may refer to:
* George Milligan (physician) (?-1799), American surgeon
*George Milligan (moderator) (1860–1934), Scottish minister of the Church of Scotland
* George Milligan (politician) (born 1934), American politician in the ...
(
University of Glasgow
, image = UofG Coat of Arms.png
, image_size = 150px
, caption = Coat of arms
Flag
, latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis
, motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita
, ...
United Free Church of Scotland
The United Free Church of Scotland (UF Church; gd, An Eaglais Shaor Aonaichte, sco, The Unitit Free Kirk o Scotland) is a Scottish Presbyterian denomination formed in 1900 by the union of the United Presbyterian Church of Scotland (or UP) and ...
Glasgow Cathedral
Glasgow Cathedral ( gd, Cathair-eaglais Ghlaschu) is a parish church of the Church of Scotland in Glasgow, Scotland. It is the oldest cathedral in mainland Scotland and the oldest building in Glasgow. The cathedral was the seat of the Archbisho ...
New College, Edinburgh
New College is a historic building at the University of Edinburgh which houses the university's School of Divinity. It is one of the largest and most renowned centres for studies in Theology and Religious Studies in the United Kingdom. Students ...
Kingussie
Kingussie ( ; gd, Ceann a' Ghiùthsaich ) is a small town in the Badenoch and Strathspey ward of the Highland council area of Scotland. Counties of Scotland, Historically in Inverness-shire, it lies beside the A9 road (Great Britain), A9 road, ...
James Rae Forgan
James Rae Forgan (1876-1966) was a Scottish minister who served as Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1940.
Life
He was born in Perth on 25 December 1876.
In 1898 he began studying divinity at the University of Edinbu ...
Evie, Orkney
Evie (pronounced ) is a parish and village on Mainland, Orkney, Scotland. The parish is located in the north-west of the Mainland, between Birsay and Rendall, forming the coastline opposite the isle of Rousay.
History
Within the parish are a n ...
Hugh Watt
Hugh Watt (19 March 1912 – 4 February 1980) was a New Zealand politician who was a Labour member of Parliament and the acting prime minister of New Zealand between 31 August and 6 September 1974, following the death of Prime Minister Norm ...
(University of Edinburgh)
*1951 William White Anderson MC (Edinburgh: St Cuthbert's)
*1952
George Johnstone Jeffrey
George Johnstone Jeffrey was a Scottish minister who served as Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1952.
Life
From 1920 to 1928 he was minister of the New Laigh Kirk (West High Kirk) in Kilmarnock.
In 1938 he was mi ...
Ernest David Jarvis
Ernest David Jarvis (1888-1964) was a Scottish minister of Wellington Church in Glasgow from 1929 to 1958 who served as Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1954.
Life
He studied divinity at St Andrews University.
He la ...
Iona Community
The Iona Community, founded in 1938 by George MacLeod, is an ecumenical Christian community of men and women from different walks of life and different traditions within Christianity.
It and its publishing house, Wild Goose Publications, are hea ...
Thomas Moffat Murchison
Thomas Moffat Murchison (1907-1984) was a Church of Scotland Minister (Christianity), minister and Scottish Gaelic scholar.
Early life
He was born 27 July 1907, in Glasgow and brought up on the family croft in Skye. He was educated at Kylerhea Pr ...
Presbytery of Glasgow
The Presbytery of Glasgow is one of the 46 Presbyteries of the 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 ...
David Steel
David Martin Scott Steel, Baron Steel of Aikwood, (born 31 March 1938) is a British politician. Elected as Member of Parliament for Roxburgh, Selkirk, and Peebles, followed by Tweeddale, Ettrick, and Lauderdale, he served as the final leade ...
William Bryce Johnston
William Bryce Johnston, (16 September 1921 – 22 May 2005) was a Church of Scotland Minister (Christianity), minister, most notably Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland from 1980 until 1981.
He was Executive Committee ...
Andrew McLellan
Andrew Rankin Cowie McLellan is a minister in the Church of Scotland. He was Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Prisons for Scotland from 2002 to 2009.
He was educated at Kilmarnock Academy, Madras College (St Andrews), the University of St Andrews ...
Glasgow
Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...
:
Castlemilk
Castlemilk ( gd, Caisteal Mheilc) is a district of Glasgow, Scotland. It lies to the far south of the city centre, adjacent to the Croftfoot and Simshill residential areas within the city to the north-west, the town of Rutherglen - neighbourho ...
Principal Clerk to the General Assembly
The Church of Scotland maintains a presbyterian polity and is thus governed by a hierarchy of bodies known as church courts. Each of these courts has a moderator and a clerk.
Moderators
The moderator presides over the meeting of the court, much as ...
)
*2003
Iain Torrance
Iain Richard Torrance, (born 13 January 1949) is a retired Church of Scotland minister, theologian and academic. He is Pro-Chancellor of the University of Aberdeen, Honorary Professor of Early Christian Doctrine and Ethics at the University o ...
Session Clerk
A session (from the Latin word ''sessio'', which means "to sit", as in sitting to deliberate or talk about something; sometimes called ''consistory'' or ''church board'') is a body of elected elders governing each local church within presbyteria ...
at Edinburgh: Greyfriars Tolbooth & Highland Kirk, Associate Secretary of the Centre for Theology & Public Issues at the University of Edinburgh, first woman to be Moderator and first non-minister to be Moderator since the 16th century)
*2005
David Lacy
David William Lacy DL (born 26 April 1952) is a minister of the Church of Scotland. He was the Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 2005-6.
Background and Career
Lacy was born in Inverness on 26 April 1952, attended Abe ...
Bo'ness
Borrowstounness (commonly known as Bo'ness ( )) is a town and former burgh and seaport on the south bank of the Firth of Forth in the Central Lowlands of Scotland. Historically part of the county of West Lothian, it is a place within the Fal ...
: St Andrew's)
*2013 E. Lorna Hood OBE (Renfrew: North)
*2014 John Chalmers (Principal Clerk to the General Assembly) ''( Angus Morrison (Orwell and Portmoak) was initially nominated but withdrew on health grounds)''
*2015 Angus Morrison (Orwell and Portmoak)
*2016
Russell Barr
Russell Barr (born 15 October 1953) is a minister of the Church of Scotland, who was nominated in late 2015 to be the next Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland.
Early life and education
Barr was born on 15 October 1953 in ...
DMin (Edinburgh: Cramond)
*2017 Derek Browning (Edinburgh: Morningside)
*2018 Susan M. Brown (Dornoch Cathedral)
*2019 Colin Sinclair (Edinburgh: Palmerston Place)
*2020 W.
Martin Fair
W. Martin Fair (born 1964) is a minister of the Church of Scotland and was Moderator of its General Assembly from May 2020– May 2021. He has also served as the minister at St Andrews Parish Church in Arbroath, Angus since 1992.
Early life a ...
(Arbroath: St Andrew's)
*2021
Jim Wallace, Baron Wallace of Tankerness
James Robert Wallace, Baron Wallace of Tankerness, (born 25 August 1954) is a Scottish politician serving as a Liberal Democrat life peer in the British House of Lords since 2007 and Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland ...
PC QC FRSE (Elder at
St. Magnus Cathedral, Kirkwall
St Magnus Cathedral dominates the skyline of Kirkwall, the main town of Orkney Islands, Orkney, a group of islands off the north coast of mainland Scotland. It is the most northerly cathedral in the United Kingdom, a fine example of Romanesque ar ...
)
*2022 Iain Greenshields (Dunfermline: St Margaret's)Church of Scotland news release, 25 October 2021 https://www.churchofscotland.org.uk/news-and-events/news/2021/articles/rev-iain-greenshields-is-the-moderator-designate-of-the-general-assembly-2022-23
Moderators who were later Moderators of the Free Church
*
Thomas Chalmers
Thomas Chalmers (17 March 178031 May 1847), was a Scottish minister, professor of theology, political economist, and a leader of both the Church of Scotland and of the Free Church of Scotland. He has been called "Scotland's greatest nine ...
(1832) - Moderator of Free Church in 1843
*
Patrick MacFarlan
Patrick MacFarlan (4 April 1781 – 13 November 1849) was a Scottish minister who served as Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1834 and as Moderator of the General Assembly of the Free Church of Scotland in 1845. ...
(1834) - Moderator of Free Church in 1845
*
Angus Makellar
Angus Makellar (1780–1859) was a Scottish minister of the Church of Scotland who served as Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in 1840. Leaving in the Disruption of 1843 he also served as Moderator of the General Asse ...
(1840) - Moderator of the Free Church in 1852
See also
*
Lord High Commissioner to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland
The Lord High Commissioner to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland is the Scottish monarch's personal representative to the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland (the Kirk), reflecting the Church's role as the national church of ...
References
Sources
*Church of Scotland Yearbook 1908 edition, 1933 edition, 1966 edition and 2003-04 edition . The 1908 yearbook entries (1560-1908) were compiled by the late Rev Dr Robert W. Weir.
www.churchofscotland.org.uk
{{Moderators of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland since reunification
Moderators of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland
List of Moderators of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland is a complete list of Moderators of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland from the Reformation to the present day. Some listed below also currently have their own artic ...
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...