Dornoch Cathedral

Adapted from the booklet by the late Ian Ross-Harper

Bishop Gilbert started work on the cathedral at his own expense in 1224. He began in the centre of the building with the four great pillars, or piers, built in the Transitional style. As the piers began to rise Bishop Gilbert would have commenced work on the chancel, the transepts and, eventually, the tower.

The tower and the transepts were completed before, or soon after, St. Gilbert’s death in 1245. We know that the first service was held in the cathedral in 1239 so the building, except for the nave, must have been virtually complete by then. Gilbert built the cathedral with his own money and it is likely that when he died the money died with him. It could well have taken another two hundred years to raise the funds needed to build the nave and finish the project.In the fullness of time Gilbert was canonised and became the last Scottish Saint to appear in the Calendar of Saints.

Troubled Times

In 1567 the cathedral was burnt by marauding clansmen, but a much more serious incident occurred in 1570 after the young, teenaged Earl of Sutherland was rescued from the clutches of his enemy, the Earl of Caithness, by the men of Dornoch. The Earl was furious and sent a large force of men to sack the burgh; they desecrated the tomb of St Gilbert and burnt the cathedral so thoroughly that the entire roof fell in and the building was left as a blackened ruin. The cathedral remained roofless for fifty years and it was the beginning of a long deterioration. The nave was abandoned and left to moulder. A partition wall was erected and, for the following two hundred years, the cathedral continued to be used without its nave.
In 1655 Dornoch was occupied by Royalist troops, and it is likely that horses were stabled in the cathedral. Colonel Lilburne reported to Cromwell that as the Royalists retreated, they laid waste to the area; this is said to have included a third burning of the building.
Eventually, in 1714-15, the cathedral was repaired and re-roofed for the second time, after having been roofless for thirty five years. A new steeple was erected in the years 1728-32.
A third disaster occurred during the rebellion of 1745-46 when Dornoch was occupied first by the King’s army and then by the Jacobites. Much damage was done to the principal buildings of the burgh and once more, it is said, men and horses were stabled in the cathedral.

Make do and Mend

The 18th Century, in particular, when Dornoch was so impoverished, was marked by a series of last-minute efforts which succeeded in keeping the building standing, albeit in a very poor condition. Nonetheless, that success is a tribute to the staunch faith of the heritors and the people of Dornoch. We cannot know how much longer they could have kept things going, but help was at hand.

The Rebuilding

The Countess of Sutherland had married the richest man in Europe, who was created Duke of Sutherland in 1833. Shortly after his death the Duchess-Countess agreed to rebuild the cathedral. Work, involving every part of the building, began in 1835 and finished in 1837.
The chancel was relatively unscathed except for work on the upper gable. The nave was completely rebuilt, the outside in rough ashlar and the inside in rubble. The ancient aisles were ignored and the new nave was built along the line of the old pillared walls. Each wall was given four windows.

Over the years the Duchess-Countess has attracted a great deal of criticism for various well-documented reasons, but the people of Dornoch are grateful to her for rebuilding the cathedral so thoroughly that, still today, we are able to worship in a very attractive, sound and well-designed building.

In 1893 an organ was built across the entrance to the north transept. In 1908 Andrew Carnegie paid to have it reconditioned and moved to its present position. Many years later, in 1979, it was completely rebuilt by his daughter, Margaret Miller, and its console was moved into the chancel.

Rainbows of Colour

The stained glass windows are one of the principal glories of the cathedral. The north wall of the chancel is graced by three windows to the memory of Andrew Carnegie. Four particularly colourful and attractive windows in the chancel gable wall are in memory of Cromartie, 4th Duke of Sutherland. The south wall of the chancel is noteworthy for the superb window which commemorates the coming of St Gilbert. This window, which was paid for by visitors and townspeople, was dedicated in 1989 in the presence of Prince Charles. Next to it there is a striking window in memory of Duchess Millicent, wife of the 4th Duke.

There are three fine windows in the south transept gable. Two of them commemorate members of the Sutherland family and the other is in memory of Pamela Lovell. In the south porch, in memory of James Campbell, there are two delightful windows depicting the flora and fauna of the area. The remaining windows in the church commemorate prominent citizens or local families. The most recent window, in memory of Miss Elizabeth Mackay, our first woman elder, celebrates the Work of Women in the Church.

The Cathedral Today

1976 saw the arrival of Rev James Simpson. In 1994-95 Rev Simpson and the cathedral congregation received the highest honour the church can bestow when he was chosen as Moderator of the General Assembly. Now the congregation is enjoying the ministry of Rev Susan Brown, one of the first women in Scotland to take charge of a cathedral.
The people of Dornoch are rightly proud of their ancient and beautiful cathedral with its turbulent and colourful history; and they are very conscious of the responsibility they have to preserve that heritage and hand it on in good order to succeeding generations.