Aberdeen St Machar Cathedral, Aberdeenshire
In 2019, we awarded St Machar’s Cathedral a £40,000 grant to enable roof repairs at this great medieval building. The cathedral was also awarded a £10,000 for winning our ‘Friends Vote Award’ in 2020.
Historic Scottish Churches is the latest offering in Denis Dunstone’s series of superb books, which make use of charming watercolours to tell the stories of medieval churches. Featuring a foreword by National Churches Trust Vice President Lord Wallace of Tankerness, Historic Scottish Churches gives readers an illustrated insight into some of Scotland’s most significant medieval buildings.
Starting with A Church Near You in 2023, Denis Dunstone’s series of church history books have been a great success, raising awareness of the UK’s extraordinary stock of medieval buildings. Historic Scottish Churches once again highlights so much of what people love about these churches, this time looking at Scotland.
A series of successes
A long-time lover of historic churches, Denis Dunstone began painting local parish churches during the first Covid-19 lockdown in 2020.
“Sitting on a camp stool sketching in country churchyards was a great escape,” shares Denis.
“I have always had a sketch book in my pocket. You notice more than from just clicking a camera.”
After studiously producing 50 watercolours of churches in the local Essex countryside, Denis compiled a book of them and donated 400 copies of it to local churches to sell.
“My intention was to encourage people to look again at their local church; they were probably well aware of it but had never taken the trouble to examine it and understand it,” continues Denis.
This success naturally led to a volume covering all of England – A Church Near You – which was first published in 2023, featuring a foreword from author and editor Simon Jenkins. Following that, A Church Near You in Wales was released, this time with a foreword from Rowan Williams, the former Archbishop of Canterbury.
The books quickly captured the imagination of many readers, thanks to colourful illustrations and accessible descriptions of the fascinating history on show at the medieval churches covered.
In his own words, Denis wanted to “increase awareness of the treasures that stand, often unappreciated and even unnoticed, all over the country. To encourage people to look at a church and ask questions about it.”
Medieval churches in Scotland
Although Historic Scottish Churches follows the format of its predecessors, guiding readers through medieval churches with watercolour illustrations, the context of these buildings is different in Scotland.
“Compared with England and Wales, Scotland has far fewer medieval churches surviving,” explains Denis.
“Medieval churches had suffered terribly from wars and – significantly – from the nature of the Reformation in Scotland. As a result, there are many fewer even than in Wales. Those still wholly or partially standing need respect.”
Although small in number, Scotland’s medieval churches are a hugely significant part of the nation’s landscape, both as beautiful features and as the physical record of a turbulent past.
Scottish churches face huge challenge
“Historic Scottish churches have had a hard history and those which remain call for care and attention,” reads the blurb.
This is no understatement, as the situation is precarious for many places of worship across the nation. The Church of Scotland is actively planning the closure of as many as 40% of its buildings. Many of these churches have stood as part of the local landscape for generations.
But support is limited. The UK Government recently announced that it would only be renewing the Listed Places of Worship Grants Scheme for one year, and with a reduced budget. We’ve already heard from churches in Scotland how much this will impact their ability to carry out urgent repairs to their buildings.
As well as giving out grants and providing free online training and support for churches in Scotland, the National Churches Trust continues to raise awareness with MSPs and MPs about churches to ensure that the value of them is fully understood. But there can be no doubt that medieval churches in Scotland need greater support to survive.
In Historic Scottish Churches, Denis Dunstone aims to address this issue, raising awareness of these magnificent buildings, and their priceless heritage. By buying this important book, you will also be raising money to help the National Churches Trust to keep churches open and in good repair.
