Photographs of St. Andrews, Scotland
By
Barbara Wynn Malatesta
I had the great fortune to attend a  School Counselor's Tour of St. Andrews University last year.  It was an experience of a lifetime, and one I will never forget!  St. Andrews is an incredibly vibrant, scenic, and historic little town/city on the North Sea, about an hour from Edinburgh and two hours from Glasgow.  It is a picturesque and medieval city rich in history, art, and culture.  When looking at the history of the Celts/Picts, the impact they made at St. Andrews cannot be understated.  The cathedral at St. Andrews has one of the oldest Pictish carvings preserved in the structure.  St. Andrews University is Scotland's first university, and the third oldest university in the UK.  The university was founded in 1413, and there has been a settlement on the site of the city from at least the 6th century A.D.  The city has played an important part in the development of Scotland, and it was a middle ages religious center of major importance.  During the Reformation, the city witnessed the often violent power struggles between religious factions, with the Protestant faith ultimately gaining ascendency.

     The university has a remarkable archive of historical documents that can be accessed by the residents and students of St. Andrews.  While I was there, I had the opportunity to view (up close) the original Papal Bull signed by Pope Benedict XIII in 1413, declaring that a university could be founded at St. Andrews.  In addition, I viewed and handled many manuscripts and documents from the 14th and 15th centuries, as well as an original copy of the King James Bible dated 1611.  I doubt I will ever have an opportunity to experience history such as this so openly and closely, and I will always be grateful to the archivist at the library.  You can view the collection of muniments going back to 1215 at Special Collections-St. Andrews

    St. Andrews is also known for it's historic golf courses, most notably the Old Course at the Royal and Ancient Golf Club, recognized the world over (except in North America) as the governing body on the rules of golf.  The R & A has continuous records dating back to its founding in 1754, and is where my favorite golfer, Tiger Woods, tends to win the British Open more often than not!  Below are some photographs from my trip to St. Andrews.

West Sands Beach, taken from Royal and Ancient Golf Club ( famous beach running scene from the movie "Chariots of Fire" was filmed here)
Cliffs at the edge of the city
Cliffs at the edge of the city
Overlooking the Royal and Ancient Golf Club and the Old Course
The Royal and Ancient Golf Club
Old Course 1st Tee and 18th Green
Swilcan Bridge 18th Fairways
17th Fairway Rough (ugh!)
Me at the Old Course...wish I had some clubs!
Harbour Pier on a Typical Scottish Weather Day
Harbour Pier
North Sea and Harbour Pier (with a few brave souls)
St. Andrews Castle
St. Andrews Castle
Castle and Sea
St. Andrews Castle Sea
Kayaker, East Sands

St. Andrews Cathedral and St. Rule's Tower

Christian worship at this spot began perhaps around 800 AD when the Celtic "Culdees" (Companions of God) established a makeshift church at the harbour entrance. This was shortly thereafter replaced with the church of St. Mary-on-the-Crag whose outline, outside the cathedral walls is still evident. It is probable that the relics of St. Andrew were kept at that site.
The Construction of the cathedral began in 1159, but it wasn't until 1318 that the cathedral was consecrated in the presence of King Robert the Bruce. It is even alleged that he rode his horse up the aisle.

The relics of St. Andrew have disappeared. There are two theories of what may have happened to them ... One is that the Culdees, not wanting to have the relics become part of the Roman church, removed them to their monastry of St. Serf on Loch Leven. The other theory is that they were discarded by the iconoclasts of the Reformation.

The reformers of the 16th century have most certainly been wrongly accused of the destruction of the cathedral. It is very likely that they did indeed tear down statuary and other religious icons, but the cathedral was ruined more by poor design which was unable to withstand the harsh North Sea winds. The gable of the South Transept was blown down by a fierce storm in 1409. An earlier fire in 1378 meant that building on the cathedral had to be almost completely restarted. Ultimately cathedral stone was used as a source of stone for local buildings.

St. Rule's Tower and Nave from East Scores at Twilight
Cathedral Remains at Twilight
The chapel was built by Bishop Kennedy to serve both the town and St. Salvator's College. During the Reformation the chapel was severely damaged, with the destruction by the protestants of anything construed as a "graven image", including Bishop Kennedy's tomb and the stained glass windows.

After a century of neglect the chapel experienced several rennovations. In the 1680's, Provost Skene restored both the chapel and the tower. In the 1760's the roof was deliberately collapsed to allow it's replacement, causing further damage to Bishop Kennedy's tomb. Rennovation continuing into the 20th century has restored the chapel to it's rightful place as a hub of the university life.
One legend says that the pulpit in the chapel originally came from Holy Trinity Church, and was used by John Knox to incite the destruction of the cathedral in 1559.


Tower at University Chapel
Entrance to University Quad
Snowman on the Quad
Castle St.
Riding on West Sands
St. Andrews from West Sands
West Sands
Rusacks Hotel, built during Victorian times is a wonderful place to stay, and overlooks the 1st Tee and 18th fairway.  I loved it and would most certainly stay there again.