Barclay Viewforth
Edinburgh, City of Edinburgh
This church is named after Mary Barclay who left money for its building, the architect was Frederick T Pilkington and it is considered to be one of his greatest achievements.
St Margaret’s Chapel and former Convent opened in 1835 with the founding by Bishop Gillis of the first Catholic religious house in Scotland since the Reformation. The complex is now within the beautiful grounds of the Gillis Centre, containing the offices of the Archdiocese of St Andrews & Edinburgh.
The chapel, designed by James Gillespie Graham, features many items of architectural and historic interest, including stained glass windows by Pugin depicting Malcolm III, husband of St Margaret, and their sons, also kings of Scotland; an alabaster, jewelled tabernacle, and silver sanctuary lamp, both designed by Pugin; a jewelled Spanish 17th century ivory crucifix; and the Reliquary for St Crescentia, a Roman martyr, gifted by Pope Gregory XVI. Bishop Gillis himself is buried in the Chapel crypt, along with several members of Sir Walter Scott’s family.
This is a location with a rich and varied history. The original Whitehouse site was first mentioned in 1505 and passed to the Earl of Bothwell, husband of Mary Queen of Scots, after the Reformation. It was used to accommodate victims of the Plague in 1585, and in 1591 the owner, Euphame MacCalzean, was famously tried and burnt for witchcraft on Edinburgh’s Castlehill. The complex still retains elements of the earlier Whitehouse dating from 1670.