Dornoch Cathedral

Dornoch Cathedral was founded in 1224 by Gilbert de Moravia, the bishop later venerated as Saint Gilbert of Dornoch, during the reign of Alexander II. It became the cathedral of the Diocese of Caithness, whose centre had been moved from Halkirk, and remained the bishop’s seat until the Church of Scotland abolished the episcopate in the seventeenth century. Dedicated jointly to St Mary and St Gilbert, the medieval building rose with an aisled nave carried on stone pillars. In 1570 it was burnt down during a feud with the Mackays of Strathnaver, and much of the fabric stood damaged for generations afterwards. Between 1835 and 1837 Elizabeth, Countess of Sutherland funded a thorough restoration by the architect William Burn, at a cost of around £15,000. A further reordering in 1924 to 1926 stripped away Victorian plasterwork to reveal the older stonework beneath. The cathedral holds the graves of its founder, of William de Moravia, first Earl of Sutherland, who died in 1248, and of the first Duke of Sutherland. In 1866 the Prince and Princess of Wales attended a service here. Today it continues in use as a Church of Scotland parish church in the small Sutherland town of Dornoch.