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Kirkcaldy, Kirk Wynd, Kirkcaldy Old Parish Church
Church (13th Century), War Memorial(S) (20th Century)
Site Name Kirkcaldy, Kirk Wynd, Kirkcaldy Old Parish Church
Classification Church (13th Century), War Memorial(S) (20th Century)
Alternative Name(s) St Brice's Church; St Brisse's Church; St Bryce's Church; St Patrick's Church; Col William Drysdale Memorial Plaque: War Memorial
Canmore ID 52957
Site Number NT29SE 7
NGR NT 28053 91702
Datum OSGB36 - NGR
Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/site/52957
First 100 images shown. See the Collections panel (below) for a link to all digital images.
- Council Fife
- Parish Kirkcaldy And Dysart
- Former Region Fife
- Former District Kirkcaldy
- Former County Fife
NT29SE 7.00 28053 91702
NT29SE 7.01 28056 91717 Churchyard
(NT 2804 9168) Church on site of St Brisse's Ch (NR)
OS 25" map, (1938)
Parish Church, Kirkcaldy: Although the church itself is modern, its W tower dates from the 16th century. It is oblong on plan, measuring externally 25 1/4' x 23 3/4'.
The church is traditionally said to have been erected at St Columba in the 6th century. It was re-dedicated by Bishop David de Bernham on 21st March 1244, and consecrated either to St Patrick or St Britius.
A H Millar 1895; J R Walker 19
Dedicated April 1245 to St Patrick.
Information from Pontificale Ecclesiae S Andreae; Information from D C Baird to OS 1956.
Church as described and in normal use.
Visited by OS (J P) 20 August 1974.
Field Visit (1 June 1928)
Parish Church, Kirkcaldy.
Although the church itself is modern, its western tower dates from the 16th century. It is oblong on plan, measuring externally 25 ¼ feet by 23 ¾ feet, and its lowest storey opened into the church through a segmental archway. The masonry is of ashlar, and shows one string-course, defining the bell-chamber. At the level of the string-course there is a central lancet-light in each wall, with a modern void beneath. The wall-head is surmounted by a parapet, borne on corbels of two members and reached by a newel-stair. Within the parapet is a later superstructure, in which hangs the bell, cast in 1553, renewed in 1707, and recast in 1916.
MURAL MONUMENT. - In the south wall of the churchyard is the mural monument of Robert White of Pourane (d. 1667) and his wife Janet Tennant (d. 1670). The husband's initials appear in the pediment of the monument. In the lower part is a large panel with an inscription in Latin, recording the burghal services of the. husband and surmounting a shield flanked by the initials of husband (Q for Quhite) and wife. The shield is parted per fess. In the upper half are the husband's arms: Within a bordure, a martlet displayed between three quatrefoils, on a chief as many quatrefoils. The lower half of the shield bears the complementary portions of the wife's blazon: Within a bordure, 3rd quarter, a boar's head erased between three crescents, and, 4th quarter, a star between three crescents. Below the shield is the motto, VIRTUTE PARTA.
RCAHMS 1933, visited 1 June 1928.
Photographic Survey (1956)
Photographic survey of building in Kirkcaldy, Fife, by the Scottish National Buildings Record in 1956.
Publication Account (1995)
The tower of St Bryce Church is probably the sole pre-Reformation remnant in the town, the oldest section of the western tower being probably of mid fifteenth-century origin (see figure 14). A church has stood on this site since at least 1244; the first known here had a David de Bernham dedication. At the head of Kirk Wynd, on a hill overlooking the High Street, its commanding position still reflects its role in the community-a focal point for the spiritual well-being of the town, near, but outwith, the centre of settlement (see pp 15-16). Although major development here is unlikely, alterations within the standing building or in the grounds of the church, for example the insertion of new services, may reveal the remains of earlier structures and possibly traces of the thirteenth-century church.
Information from ‘Historic Kirkcaldy: The Archaeological Implications of Development’ (1995).
Note (26 October 2010)
The final sunday worship at Kirkcaldy Old Kirk will take place on the 7th November 2010. The church has recently been used for worship alongside the nearby St Bryce's Church and the congregation will now move to St Bryce's, with the Old Kirk being emptied and put up for sale.
Information from RCAHMS (IA) 26 October 2010
Photographic Survey (26 October 2010)
The church was visited and recorded by RCAHMS Threatened Building Survey prior to its planned closure.
