Today was my lucky day—not only were we at Greyfriars Kirk when its doors were open but the Magdalene Chapel was open, too! For the first time in the at least 20 times I’ve checked over the last 3 visits to Scotland.
The Magdalen Chapel is located in the Cowgate in Edinburgh. The 16th century chapel is virtually hidden in Edinburgh's Old Town, just to the west beneath George IV Bridge. The Chapel included a hospital or almshouse which looked after the poor and sick. The hospital and chapel stood at the corner of the Cowgate and Candlemaker Row. Only the chapel now survives.
Most of the information here is taken from several websites on the chapel. The Chapel was built between 1541 and 1544 by Janet Rynd, widow of Michael MacQueen (died 1537), who had left money for this purpose. The building was to be the new chapel for the Incorporation of Hammermen who had worshipped in a small aisle at St. Giles kirk since the late 1400s and was to include accommodation for a chaplain and also an almshouse for seven Bedesmen (poor men) “who should continually pour forth prayers to Almighty God.” In particular they were to pray for the soul of Mary Queen of Scots. Michael MacQueen’s purpose in this foundation is interesting in light of the subject history of the Chapel. The Foundation Charter of 1547 says “that when the said Michael was greatly troubled with an heavy Disease, and oppressed with Age, yet mindful of Eternal Life, he esteemed it ane good Way to obtain Eternal Life, to erect some Christian Work, for ever to remain and endure.” (Ironically, one of the reasons for the existence of the Scottish Reformation Society –the chapel’s present owners--is to warn people against the false Roman Catholic teaching of Salvation by Works.)
The Royal Arms of Scotland and the Arms of the Queen Regent, Mary of Guise, can be seen in the middle window in the south wall of the chapel. The four roundels of stained glass also contain the arms of MacQueen and of MacQueen and Rynd together. The stained glass in this window is the only pre-Reformation stained glass in Scotland which is still intact.
The Chapel and almshouse were prosperous for a while, but after the Reformation of 1560 the patrons, who were the Hammermen (men who worked with metal), ran into trouble. Their chaplain adhered to the Church of Rome and in his place they appointed a Protestant minister. The chaplain, however, brought a successful action against them for the salary, and he continued to draw this until his death in 1567. Meanwhile the Foundation Charter stated that, in the event of the Hammermen failing to observe its terms, the trust and the property were to revert to the descendants or relations of Janet Rynd. The Charter specified in great detail the form of Roman Catholic worship that was to take place in the Chapel and prohibited the Hammermen from doing anything against the interests of ‘the Holy See’ (i.e. the Church of Rome). These terms were now illegal to fulfil, and the relations of Janet Rynd were well aware of this and made as much trouble as they could. The tenants, likewise, saw no particular need to pay their rent, knowing that the Hammermen would be unable to enforce their right in law. It was only because of the considerable wealth of the Hammermen that they were able to weather this storm.
Immediately prior to the Reformation the Chapel was being used for academic lectures arranged by the Queen Regent, Mary of Guise. John Knox’s colleague John Craig preached in the Chapel several times in 1560-1 (in Latin, because he had been abroad so long that his English was rusty) and the Chapel was possibly used for the first General Assembly of the Church of Scotland in December 1560. It was certainly used for the Assembly of April 1578 at which Andrew Melville was Moderator and at which the Second Book of Discipline was discussed. About 1615 the lay-out of the Chapel was altered, and the present semi-circular wooden platform at the east end was installed. The tower and spire were added about 1620 and the bell, made by the Dutch bell-founder Michael Burgerhuys from Middleburg, dates from 1632.
In Covenanting times the Chapel was used for conventicles on a number of occasions (1674, 1676, 1679), and the bodies of several of the martyrs (Marquis of Argyle 1661, Hew Mackail 1666, John Dick 1684) were taken there after execution to be dressed in their grave-clothes. The table on which the bodies were placed is still to be seen in the Chapel, as is a sword said to have belonged to the Covenanter Captain John Paton. At the Glorious Revolution of 1689 the heads and hands of martyred Covenanters, which had been exhibited on the ports of Edinburgh by their executioners, were gathered together at the Chapel prior to interment in Greyfriars. Many Covenanters were hanged or burned at the stake for their beliefs.
After the Revolution, the Chapel was used as a place of worship by Episcopalians, and in the eighteenth century a Baptist congregation met there for a number of years. Part of the Chapel, or a building adjoining, was used as a printing press in the mid-eighteenth century. The Chapel continued in the possession of the Hammermen until 1857 when it was sold to the newly-formed Protestant Institute for Scotland. The plan was to use it as a base for outreach among Roman Catholics in the Cowgate.
In 1992/93 a major restoration programme was undertaken and the Chapel became the headquarters of the Scottish Reformation Society. The Honorary Curator of the Chapel is Rev A Sinclair Horne (former Secretary and Lecturer of the Scottish Reformation Society). He was the one who greeted us today and told me the history of the chapel. He was very proud of the fact that even though it was a Roman Castholic church for a short time, the chapel has been mainly a non-denominational one. Although actually, as Rev. Horne said, a many denominational one.
Magdalene Chapel is important for several reasons. Firstly it was the last Roman Catholic chapel to be built in Edinburgh before the Reformation. Secondly, following the Reformation, it became the cradle of Presbyterianism, holding the first assembly of the new Church of Scotland on the 20th December, 1560 including, amongst the 42 assembled, John Knox (c.1513-72). Thirdly, it includes the only examples of Pre-Reformation stained-glass remaining in their original location. The steeple was not completed until 1628, and the bell, cast in Flanders, is dated 1632, however the Victorian street facade effectively hides the age of the core. Inside, two walls are almost entirely covered with panels—or brods, as Rev. Horne told me was the Scottish word for boards) recording bequests which had been made to support the work of the Chapel.
In 1957, a committee was formed to restore the chapel, which involved the Cockburn Association, the University of Edinburgh (who owned the adjacent building through which the Chapel was entered), the Incorporation of Hammermen (who owned the chapel until 1857) and the Protestant Institute of Scotland (who were the owners at the time).
A major restoration was undertaken in 1992-93 at a cost of £305,000 and is now the headquarters of the Scottish Reformation Society, which was formed in 1851. It now receives around 6000 visitors annually (2001), which surprised me seeing as how it is open so infrequently. I was very impressed with Rev. Horne’s knowledge about the history of the chapel and impressed with the chapel itself. It was MUCH smaller than I imagined, basically no bigger than someone’s large living room. The altar was on a raised platform with the brods that recorded gifts to the Chapel behind it and the heavily decorated Deacon of the Hammermen’s chair in front. The stained glass was very pretty as was the crest. There was also a copy of the Covenant on the wall.
We didn’t see the painted square panel of the west wall dated 1624 with a raised crowned hammer and inscription: “LORD BLES THE HAMMERMEN PATRONS OF THIS HOSPITAL.” Neither did I see the tomb slab of Janet Rynd—I was so cautious not to be interfering with the meeting Rev. Horne was having with a visitor that I am afraid I was in a bit of a hurry.
And just to show how much the Catholic Church is resented in some parts of Scotland, here is an article from The Newsletter:
LORD Bannside yesterday branded the first papal state visit to Britain as "nonsense". The Rev Dr Ian Paisley was in Edinburgh’s Old Town to lead around 60 people in a peaceful protest against the four-day visit. The demonstrators held a church service in the Magdalene Chapel in Cowgate, the 16th century location of the first meeting of Scottish Protestant church leaders, led by reformer John Knox.
Yesterday, members of the Free Presbyterian Church unfurled a banner outside, which called for remembrance of the Protestant reformation and asserted that there was only one mediator between God and man – “The man Christ Jesus”. The group did not attempt to get close to the papal procession, which was some 15 minutes’ walk away.
Around 50 members of the public stopped to hear them preach as they distributed booklets outlining their doctrinal opposition to the visit. Lord Bannside said: “I don’t want his (the pope’s) blessing and I will be keeping as far away as I can. “Why? Because the whole thing is nonsense.”
Lord Bannside addressed followers on the corner of Grassmarket and Cowgate, the location of the martydom of a number of Scottish Protestants. He told onlookers: “We’re here today on very solemn and serious matters. “I’ve just seen the statement that has been issued by the Roman Catholic Church about this visit and we are told that if we go to this mass [at Bellahouston] here today then we will have a shortened purgatory and our sins will be forgiven – 25 and you’ll get out of purgatory quicker. “Now there’s no such a place as purgatory, so that’s a farce from the very beginning. “Secondly, no man can forgive sins but God only.” He added: “I believe in gospel without money and without price.”
Lord Bannside later defended his decision to hold a protest. He told reporters: “I believe in freedom. I wouldn’t be muzzled by anybody. I believe there has to be civil and religious liberty and there should be full debate on these things. “I resent the fact that this state visit to Scotland was never discussed in the House of Commons. It was never dealt with within a democratic way.” He said he was “not inciting people to attack anyone – but [to] attack those views that we feel are not truthful, are not accurate and only deceive people”.
Free Presbyterian moderator, Rev Dr Ron Johnston, said the protestors were “elated” at how much publicity their message had attracted, with at least 50 media outlets turning up. “We had been told we would have difficulty in getting to the Magdalene Chapel for our protest but the streets of Edinburgh were virtually deserted,” he added. DUP MLA Ian McCrea, son of MP William McCrea, put his reaction to the visit on his Facebook website: “20 to see the Pope in Glasgow?” he asked. “I wouldn’t give 20p.”
We briefly visited Greyfrairs Kirk, but only because we failed to notice the sign saying it was closed for maintenance. I got several pictures, though, before we were “thrown out.”
Then we went back over to the museum to do the ground floor with its exhibits of Early Man. Saw many fossils and the progression of clothing and jewelry from earliest times. Found out that Staffa is a tiny remnant of one of many lava flows. Fingal’s Cave has been eroded into a lava flow, which shrank and cracked into columns during cooling. Ray was hungry and tired, so we returned to the apartment for lunch and a nap for him. On the way, I noticed what looks like a brand new plaque that has been installed on the corner of Drummond and Nicolson Streets—Writer’s Corner. It tells us that J. K. Rowling wrote some of the early chapters of Harry Potter in the rooms here on the first floor—that’s the 2nd floor to Americans and this is at the Spoon Bistro which used to be Buffet King.
Pictures from top: painted screen, brods, and chair in Magdalene Chapel; fragment of the original painted ceiling showing stars and thistles in Magdalene Chapel; crest in Magdalene Chapel; the 4 roundels of stained glass in Magdalene Chapel; Greyfriars Kirk, where Sir Walter Scott attended church—and slept through services—when he was a child.
