Detailed review by tb240904
tb240904
Douglas, United Kingdom97%
Old St Bride's Church is an old church in Douglas. Douglas is a small community in South Lanarkshire, near my home town of Lanark. Most recently it has been associated heavily with mining, as there were a number of coal deposits in the area, amongst other minerals. In the past, however, Douglas has always been an important settlement in the area. One of Scotland's most famous families from history, the Douglases (including the Red and Black Douglases) take their name from the village. St Bride's Church was, in fact, also the mausoleum of the Black Douglases. In the 16th century, Mary Queen of Scots stayed in the village and gifted them the clock which adorns the top of St Bride's and is believed to be the oldest working clock in Scotland.
I quite enjoyed my trip to St Bride's. Unfortunately, you can only access the inside of the church by prior arrangement, but I took a nice walk through the grounds. Most of the graves are centuries old but I remember seeing a few from the late 1800s and early 1900s. I'm from the area but I didn't recognise any of the names. The graveyard has not been maintained that well over the years but it doesn't seem that any graves have been destroyed. The church itself has been reasonably well kept but is partially in ruins. The clock tower is rather impressive and is a later addition but blends in well with the rest of the building. As I mentioned above, the clock still works (but on my last visit, I noted that it wasn't telling the right time - about 20 minutes ahead).
I'm hopeful I'll get to go inside the church this summer, but visiting the grounds forms a decent part of a day out in Douglas. I recommend visiting in the summer at the weekend because the Douglas Heritage Museum, which is right next to the church, will be open and they will be able to tell you all about the history of the church.
Old St Bride's Church9
Ratings
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Accessibility
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"Must See"-Factor
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Budget Friendliness
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Ambiance
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Architecture
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Accessibility (80%)
St Bride's is within easy reach of the local bus routes and car parking in the village. The footpaths are uneven and somewhat narrow but most will be able to get round them.
"Must See"-Factor (100%)
St Bride's is one of the oldest surviving churches in the country with the oldest working clock in Scotland. It formed an important part of the history of not just the region but the country. I would definitely recommend giving it a visit. Douglas itself is a great village to visit for anyone with an interest in history but because it's so far out of the way - half an hour from the nearest town (Lanark), which is itself a rural market town - that not many people visit it. St Bride's is owned by Historic Scotland, but they don't really market it very well.
Budget Friendliness (100%)
It's free to get into the grounds and, if you're lucky enough to arrange a visit to inside the church that's free as well. In fact, all of the major attractions in Douglas are free so if you're thinking of visiting the village you're guaranteed a varied day out for absolutely nothing :D.
Ambiance (100%)
Many people don't like walking through graveyards but I've never cared. The ambiance is somewhat sombre but I was there on a beautiful Spring morning and it was just beautiful with the sun splitting the trees. The church itself is striking in the morning sunshine.
Architecture (90%)
The building is a great example of a British church. It's architecture is similar to that of most of the churches on the island built prior to the 20th century. I deducted 10% because its partially ruined but regardless its a great example of British architecture.
