Elgin!

Or: The Day That Never Ended.*

For the money, Elgin is not a bad idea. In fact, if you're into really interesting, ruined cathedrals with atmosphere and history spilling out of every nook and cranny, Elgin is for you! Just make sure you know what time the train comes and goes. In fact, you might want to tattoo it somewhere on your body, just to be safe. Especially if travelling on a Sunday. Just take my word on this one.

It isn't so obvious on a modern map, but for much of recorded history Elgin was isolated from the rest of Scotland; with the Cairngorms to the south and protected by two unbridged and often uncrossable rivers, the Spey to the east and the Findhorn to the west, Elgin really is in the middle of nowhere. This is a fact you will become keenly aware of should you miss the aforementioned trains.

Historians say that Elgin "probably" existed in 1040 when King Duncan's army met and lost to the infamous macbeth at Pitgaveney, a mile north east of the modern city. It was definitely a well-established hum for humanity by the time it was Chartered as a Royal Burgh by David I in 1136. By 1230 Elgin had also acquired a Royal Castle, built on the foundations of an earlier defensive structure, possibly the one in which Duncan died of his wounds in 1040. On the royal line, Richard I stayed in Elgin Castle when he visited the city in 1296 during one of his tours of suppression. For more on the Castle, stay tuned-- but for now, let's talk a little (or rather, quite large and ruined) cathedral!

Anyways, the Cathedral is a decent walk through a residential bit of Elgin, past some large palm trees in the center of a roundabout and then, poof! giant honking ruin. The first church on the grounds dates back to the 1200s, and was a cross-shaped building much smaller than the currently visible ruins. It was enlarged later in the same century, possibly following a fire, which yeilded the main church, 280ft in length, taller than the original and with a new choir and an octagonal chapter house. After St. Andrews it was the second largest cathedral in Scotland.

Some badly judged local politics led to the burning of the Cathedral (and much of the rest of Elgin as well) in 1390, by the Wolf of Badenoch, otherwise known as Alexander Stewart, the younger son of Robert II. Bishop Alexander Bur had apparently caused him to to be excommunicated for marital infidelity, and this was his way of getting even. If you ask me, burning a church isn't the best way to get back in with the church, but whatever.

The destruction was followed up by two hundred years of off-and-on rebuilding and adding-on. More work was needed after the collapse of the central tower in 1506, and the west front and chapter house both had some work done around the same time.

Sadly, the Lantern of the North, as Elgin Cathedral is still affectionately known, was one of the many casualties of the 1560 reformation. Unfortunately, it was a blow from which the mightly old building would never recover, as the cathedral fabric soon began to suffer. The lead roofs and the cathedral bells were pulled down and in 1637 the choir roof blew down in a gale. The cathedral still saw occasional use, but it was never enough to justify any repairs. Much of the inside was robbed out, including the destruction of the rood screen for firewood, which breaks the heart if you think about it for long enough.

In the early 1800s there was finally some interest in preserving what hadn't already been lost forever. In 1807, John Shanks, "a drouthy cobbler" was appointed keeper of the cathedral and his single-handed efforts in the clearing of collapsed masonry led to the preparation of a report seeking to highlight the steps required to stabilise the ruin and improve the cathedral grounds.

Modern visitors are left imagine what the cathedral must have looked like in its day. However, there's still plenty to marvel over. Sadly, little remains of the nave, though the ruins of the inner walls are of full height where they abut the towers, showing that it was two stories high. The two transepts represent the most complete part of the first church, and they also had two stages. Nothing remains of the great central tower, but two stone figures, one of a bishop and another of a knight are now on display in the south-east corner of the nave. They originally sat in large niches high up on the western angles of the tower.

Of the cathedral church, the choir and presbytery are the most complete parts remaining. These were rebuilt in the late 1400s. The aisles and chapels flanking the choir have been altered, but the vaults that cover them are still essentially as built after 1270. The tomb of Bishop John of Winchester, lord bishop of Moray which is found here, is the most complete in the cathedral. There are some truly unusual tombstones, take your time and look closely!

Even if you arrive after the cathedral is officially closed for the day, there are pleanty of sights to be seen and photos to be gleaned by a walk around the perimeter. While I'm pretty happy with most of the pictures I took of the place, they comepletely and totally fail to capture the sheer SCALE of the place. I suppose you'll just have to see it with your own eyes! ;)

If you've still got some time to kill while in Elgin (and considering it's Elgin, you just might), take a walk over to Lady Hill Monument. There's not a whole lot left of the castle today, though Lady Hill on which it stood remains a prominent viewpoint. Since 1839 it's been the home of the 80ft high Duke of Gordon Monument with a statue of the fifth duke glowering down on Elgin. Maybe he missed his trains as well.

The base of Lady Hill is perfectly semmetrical and really quite lovely, and you could totally pull a Rocky up the steps if you really want. To the right of the undeniably phallic Gordon tower...... one will find some rocky, castley bits. Feel free to impersonate a mountain goat on some really, REALLY old castle. I certainly enjoyed it! Just remember, you've got to walk back down the hill you climb. :)

*-- If you want the FULL story on why this epic day was the "day that never ended" you'll have to find me in person, soften me up with at least three pints or two double whiskey and lemonade, and then-- and only then-- ask me about it.