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Über die frühen Kirchen auf der Herbideninsel Skye
The Early Church In Skye (Part 1)
Up until now, any knowledge that we have of prehistoric Skye has been gleaned from the study of the earliest written sources, climatic changes, and archaeology with carbon dating. Today, however, giant strides in the field of human genetics, aided by advances in computer technology, are rapidly changing the study of our ancestors into an exact science. Already it is possible with a knowledge of DNA structure and computer applications to deduce that all the indigenous population of Skye stem from one particular female.
It is therefore safe to regard anyone with a Skye background and who is also Gaelic speaking (and indeed some without Gaelic) as a "cousin agam Fhein". This lady must have arrived in Skye about 6000 years ago, she and her husband representatives of the Mesolithic culture of the time. Their own immediate ancestors would have moved up the west coast over a period of several hundreds of years, although it is possible that movement northwards took place more rapidly. Their way of life was based on hunting and fishing, and their homes were built on rafts of branches by the sea or fresh water, or in caves. Then followed the Farmers and Herdsmen who stemmed from the Near East. It took some 6000 years for these Neolithic people to reach Britain, in around 3000 BC, and another 1000 years would pass before they settled in Skye. As their name implies, they were builders in stone, and examples of their chambers and round cairns can be seen throughout the island, for example Carn Liath at Kensalyre.
A secondary Neolithic culture followed, which brought the idea of the circle or at least its use for sacred or ritual purposes. The Bronze Age was ushered into Britain by the Beaker invasions of around 1800 BC, so called from the use of their characteristic pottery, bell shaped and necked beakers, later developed into a long necked type. They brought copper to Britain, which had been in use on the continent for hundreds of years. This culture probably did not reach Skye until around 1000 BC. This was the age of hill forts e.g. Dun Skudiburgh, and Dun Gerashader.
The Iron Age followed, merging into the latter years of the Bronze Age about the time of Christ, throughout the Hebrides, Caithness, Sutherland and the Orkneys. They were the builders of the Duns, Brochs, and wheelhouses, of which there are many examples throughout Skye. Throughout the Highlands, elements of the Neolithic age lasted until what became a fully developed iron age elsewhere in Britain.
With the advent of the Christian era, Skye presented a mixture of all that had gone before, in ternis of human habitation and about half a dozen different strains of people who no doubt fought each other, and later intermingled and coalesced to become the indigenous Sgiathanachs. With each phase of change came different forms of pagan religious beliefs, culminating in the well established Druid Culture of the Celts. Celtic Religion was a varied and complex series of cults, of gods and goddesses of different origins and functions. Shrines were usually in the open air or in sacred groves. Springs and holy wells had their healing divinities. At times human sacrifice was resorted to in times of crisis. The folk lore of the island abounds with evidence that many pagan rites and customs have persisted throughout the centuries. Loch Siant in Flodigarry is a well known example with its sacred well nearby, to which invalids were brought. They drank the water and then proceeded three times round it, always to the right, "deiseal", leaving various offerings, coins, threads, scraps or clothing. The loch, and the copse around it, and the fish in it, were all regarded as sacred. The elder or the rowan growing beside the croft house afforded protection. Certain plants were ascribed magical powers, and indeed healing powers, e.g. Water Cress, Fig-Wort, Ivy, Bramble, and St Johns Wort. Every aspect of their every day living was touched by magic, witches, fairies, water kelpies, and water horses. Humans were attributed supernatural powers and this belief has persisted. I remember entering a house to find the owner bemoaning the ruination of a pair of trousers, caught in a barbed wire fence just minutes previously.
"As they tore" he said, "I looked up and she was standing at her doorway watching me". Knowing the particular female I heartily agreed that she must have been involved in the mishap!
The Celtic branch of the Indo-European family tree moved from Eastern Europe and settled in France, Belgium, Switzerland, Northern Italy, the Iberian Peninsula, and the British Isles. There were also some smaller areas of settlement including the district around Ankara, which St Paul visited referring to them as "Foolish Galatians!" A sub division of the Celts took place into two groups:
- The P Celts who discarded the original Q sound. They were the earliest Celtic people to arrive in Britain, arriving in two waves. First to arrive was the Cruithnean and secondly the Cymric, the latter edging northwards, and the former who in time were pushed further north and eventually became the Picts, fighting a rearguard action against the advancing Roman armies. A similar twofold Celtic invasion took place in Ireland, but here there was no Roman intrusion.
- The Q Celts arrived from the continent, but bypassed Britain and landed in Ireland, eventually becoming the dominant people there. These Irish Gaels, most probably a mixture of P and Q Celts, soon began to raid the Western Coasts of Britain where it seems they had only limited success, their only lasting foothold being in the most sparsely populated area, the Western Highlands. Their incursions were no doubt resisted when they came up against their fellow Celts the Picts who had put down their roots in Strathclyde and the Eastern Highlands. It is safe to state that by the beginning of the 4th century the stage was being set for the arrival of the Irish missionaries with their gospel message.
 The Early Church In Skye (Part 2)
We have seen how the Gaelic people from Ireland, probably a mixture of P and Q Celts, began to raid the Western coasts of Britain. While these incursions appear to confirm the general impression that they were an aggressive, expansionist race, it must be appreciated that there were no national boundaries at this time, and that any land annexed was regarded as an extension of the country or province of the intruders, at the expense in most cases of the indigenous population. The Irish invaders, the original Scotic tribes, were successful throughout the Western borders of Scotland, or Alba as it was then known, as they had only a sparse population to contend with, but were repelled to a great extent throughout the rest of the country. Centuries later however they were able, through increasing influence, marriage ties, and the Christianising efforts of the Irish missionaries, to join with the Picts and form the Scotland we know today.
The poems of Ossian, probably composed in the 2nd century AD, affirm the presence of Gaelic speaking Celts at this time in Skye. Cuthullin, son of Semo and grandson of Cathaid, was the chief of the island, with his stronghold at Dunsgaich in Tarsgavaig (left). He is said to have led a force of Skyemen to the aid of the Caledonian Picts against the Roman army, who were advancing into their territory in central Scotland. The poems go on to tell how in the minority of Cormac the supreme king of Ireland, Cuthullin was chosen to lead the Irish tribes against the forces of Swaran, King of Lochlain, leaving his young wife, Bragela, at home in Dunsgaich. Cuthullin it is said never returned to Skye, having been slain in battle at the age of twenty-seven. These glimpses from the distant cultures point to Skye's involvement in this heroic age of the Gaelic speaking people, and the presence of Norse pirates along the western coasts, at a much earlier period than history otherwise suggests. The arrival of the main flow of Irish missionaries to Skye was therefore preceded by the establishment of a Gaelic community in the south end of the island, able or forced to tolerate a Pictish presence in the north end.
The Cuillins, even at this early age, divided the island into two separate communities. St Ninian built his church, Candida Casa, at Whithorn in Galloway in 397 AD, and carried the gospel to the Picts even as far as Orkney and Shetland. Skye must have been involved in this initial evangelising process, so it is safe to assume the arrival of the first Christians sometime between 400 and 450 AD. We know that Ninian visited Rome and would naturally have been greatly influenced by its doctrines. However, he received many scholarly men from Gaelic Ireland, among them Finnian of Moville, who later had as a pupil the great Columba. Thus a link was established between the British and Scoto-Irish churches.
It is difficult therefore to assume that the Pictish church, an off-shoot from the British, and the Scoto-Irish church were completely separate despite the ongoing warring which went on for centuries between the two peoples. This unlikely relationship greatly facilitates our understanding of the early church in Skye. Ninian's church in the Orkneys and Shetland, established in the early part of the 5th century, received its first attacks from Norse pirates sometime in the 6th century, and was also attacked by Aidan, king of the Dalriadans, the aforementioned Gaels who colonised the west coast of Scotland. History suggests that Pictish survivors escaped south to the east coast of Caithness and Sutherland and to the Hebrides, but this is by no means certain. What we do know is that there was a considerable Pictish settlement in the north of Skye evidenced by the finding of three of the earliest class I Pictish stones at Clachard Tote (right), Dunvegan and Fiskavaig.
A further class I stone to be seen in Raasay displays a superimposed leaf type cross, a style seldom seen, but found interestingly on what is known as Peter's stone at Whithorn. This early leaf cross originated in Ireland where one or two examples can be seen, notably the Stele of Arraglen (County Kerry), and the Stele of Reasg (Dingle Peninsula).
A similar stone but of class II is to be seen at Papil in Shetland. These crosses were added to the Pagan stones in Scotland to indicate the displacement of the Druid religion by its Christian successors, and provide indelible proof of the progression of Christianity from Ireland to Whithorn, and from there north through the length of Scotland. The class 1 stone in Raasay, of an earlier type than the Shetland Papil stone, suggests a movement of Ninian's missionaries by sea through the inner Hebrides to Orkney and Shetland.
The standing stones are the only archaeological relics the Picts have left us on the island, but a study of early Pictish history points to Skye as the seat of an important branch of their kingdom. In the Irish annals of Tighernac and Ulster, under the date of 668, note is made of the voyage of the sons of Gartnait with the Columban clergy of Skye to Ireland, and their return two years later. These entries frequently refer to events which can be dated to some years earlier. There are historical Pictish kings of the name Gartnait and this particular entry refers to one who is recorded as being active in battle in 649. Mention is also made of Cano from Skye, son of Gartnait, engaged in strife with the descendants of Aidan, the Dalriadan king, who has already been mentioned in warfare in the northern isles. It is evident that these were attempts by the Dalriadans to impose on the ruling Pictish families an overlordship which in Skye was unsuccessful, indicating a powertul Pictish presence in the island.
The date 668 of the entries in the Ulster annals are thought to have been copied from similar recordings made in Iona some years earlier and now lost, referring perhaps to the year 664, the date of the famous Synod of Whitby, when the Roman method of calculating Easter was chosen in preference to that of the Irish. We know that there was a strong Columban contingent present there to support the defeated Bishop Colman of Lindisfarne, and that following the Synod he resigned and left for Ireland, accompanied by Columban clergy who helped him build a monastery on Inisbofin (Island of the White Cow).
It is intriguing to think that his company may have included the sons of Gartnait and their followers, but of this we have no definite record. Whatever else these preceding paragraphs tell us, they outline the paradox of tribal warfare between the Gaelic speaking Q Celts and the Picts in Skye, and at the same time a gradual coalescing of both branches of the church on the island, a mirror of happenings on the Scottish mainland. The period of Irish missionary activity ranks among the very greatest in the history of Christianity, and its spread throughout Skye must surely have ushered in almost three centuries of peace and tranquility, lasting until the dreadful years of destruction wrought by the marauding Vikings at the close of the 8th century.
The Early Church In Skye (Part 3)
Skye, by the end of the 6th century, as we have seen, was an island divided, with a mainly Gaelic presence in the South end consisting of the original Celtic stock from Ireland, and an influx of the ambitious Dalriadan Gaels, while in the North the Picts had become the predominant force.
The original settlers, the Mesolithic, Neolithic and Bronze Age peoples must, to a great extent, have succumbed to the aggression of the two powerful incomers, although we can yet recognise physical characteristics typical of Iberian stock. As mentioned, the earliest missionaries to the island from St Ninian's school arrived about the middle of the 5th century, and through the following century the forerunners of what was to become an invasion of Irish/Dalriadan Christians took place.
It is unlikely that there was any organised mission prior to the arrival of Columba about 565. We are told that Columba arrived in Iona with twelve companions, and spent a few years there consolidating his position, before embarking on what was his specific remit, the conversion of the Northern Picts. He had spent some twenty years establishing monasteries throughout Ireland. His mentor Finnian of Clonard, whose school numbered 3,000 students, chose Columba as the most suitable man for this daunting task. Columba was of Gaelic stock but also had Pictish blood in his veins. He was fostered by Cruithnechan, an Irish Pict. He was of royal blood and it was common at this time among the ruling class to place a child in fosterage with a friend of suitable rank, a custom followed for many centuries throughout the Highlands. There is a local tradition in Sleat that Columba first landed in Skye at Kilmore, and there is every reason to believe this is what actually happened, although the purpose of his visit was to seek to convert the Picts in the North. It is most likely that he sailed from Ardnamurchan (Artdaib Muirchol of Adomnan). We know that there was a chapel there and that Columba baptised an infant there, Lugucencalad (Lugucai-and Caladh "of the ferry").
We do not know if Columba visited Skye before proceeding to Inverness to meet King Brude the High King of the Picts. It seems certain that among other things he went to seek the permission of the king to establish a centre in Skye and perhaps other places for his missionary activities. Some commentators are of the opinion that it was Brude who granted him possession of Iona while the Annals of Tighernach have it that Conaill King of the Dalriadan Scots made the gift. From the outcome of the visit we can safely assume that Columba was indeed given a cordial reception, and that his mission was successful. His requests would be very modest, and with regard to Skye it seems certain that he sought permission to establish a monastic settlement on the island in the loch at Kilmuir which was the largest fresh water loch in Skye until drained in the 19th century after many unsuccessful attempts. In land under the jurisdiction of the Dalriadan Kings the pattern of distribution was a tribal one, each tribe or tuath comprised a group of families under a local righ or kinglet and groups of tuaths owed allegiance to a king of higher rank. Into this system the monastic community slotted with a central monastery receiving its land from the king.
There were no churches as we know them today. It is not certain if the Pictish land distribution was the same but Columba evidently introduced the same monastic system which had stood him in good stead in lreland. Loch An Eilein was an ideal situation, with fresh water, good land, and a scattered population much as we have today. From this monastery many small chapels and even tiny cells were built and gradually the profound superstitions of Paganism gave way to the light of Christianity. The loch in Kilmuir was one and one eighth miles long until finally drained in 1824. The island was some three acres in extent and its whole surface is covered with stones, the remains of the monastic cells which surrounded the small church buildings.
On the western shore of the loch are traces of some buildings and above, overlooking the sea, is Carn Liath - an ancient burial ground. On the north side of the "island" there is a circular enclosure some 16 yards in its greatest diameter, and containing the foundations of three cells, probably of beehive type. The walls were up to nine feet thick. This is probably the tower referred to by Pennant during his visit to Skye in the 18th century. There is a rectangular enclosure to the north of the tower which may be of more recent date. To the south are two small buildings while farther still to the south west there are the remains of a small church with cemented stones and of more recent time, probably dating to the thirteenth century. Tradition, possibly connected with this church, mentions Gillegorm, leader of the Logan family in Easter Ross. He was killed in a feud with the Frasers and his widow gave birth to a deformed son called Crotair MacGillegorm who entered the Celtic Church in which by this time priests were allowed to marry. He was educated by the monks of Beauly Priory and founded a church in Kilmuir and in Glenelg. He fathered a son named Gille Fhinnein, probably the progenitor of the Clan MacLennan.
MacKenzie's history of the Clan MacLeod states that Norman (Tormod), 2nd Chief of that clan married a Fingula MacCrotan who may well have been a granddaughter of Crotair MacGillegorm. By the thirteenth century the Church had become decadent mainly because the successor to the abbot in the monastery had of necessity to be a relation of the incumbent irrespective of piety. Inevitably worldly abbots came along intent on increasing their wealth through the acquisition of land, and no doubt the powerful warrior tribes of the time sought to increase their influence by whatever means possible.
The influence of the Roman Church increased from the time of Queen Margaret and her son David the First, and Benedictine and Augustinian monks were placed within the various monasteries from lona northwards. In this way the MacLeods and MacDonalds endeavoured to lay claim to the more fertile lands while at the same time they strove to receive Royal Charters to consolidate their claims, leading to the disastrous Government policy of granting charters to more than one chief at the same time.
The Early Church In Skye (Part 4)
The ruins on the "island" in the "loch" at Kilmuir were described by a 19th century archaeologist as the finest example of an original Celtic monastic settlement on the British mainland. Had the loch not been drained in the early part of the 18th century the buildings would certainly have been much better preserved than they are today. Some of the older residents of Kilmuir recall the ruins standing over ten feet high where now, some seventy years on, little remains but outlines of the original structures.
The writer and traveller Pennant who visited Skye in 1772 wrote, "Beneath the house of Monkstadt was the lake of St. Columba, now drained, once noted for a monastery of great antiquity. The ruins evince its age being built of great stones without mortar. The cells and several rooms are still very distinguishable. The chapel is of later date, and built with mortar as are all the other chapels in Skye and in little islands along its shores. These chapels were served by the monks." Donald MacQueen, Minister of Kilmuir over two centuries ago wrote, "The missionaries from Icolumkill (lona) to the Western Isles, and neighbouring continent were very numerous. There are remains of about thirty places of worship in this, and the two neighbouring parishes (Snizort and Portree) besides monasteries."
Records of the period 600-800 AD no longer exist so that now we have to rely on scant archaeological remains, and the surviving names of tiny monastic cells dotted in profusion throughout the island. In the future professional archaeological investigation will enhance our knowledge. However the evangelising strategy of the missions are known, so that we can build a plausible picture of what took place. The monastery on the island, like its counterparts elsewhere, was a centre for education and agriculture, as well as a focus of Christianity. Leaders in the community were attracted to the "new" rcligion anxious to learn more about it. News of its "miracles" and "mysteries" no doubt filled them with awe, and they readily responded to the monasteries' requests for land to establish outlying cells.
Martin Martin, a native of Skye writing in the 17th century, mentions a chapel dedicated to Columba on the island of Trodday and also on Fladda Chuain off the north coast of Skye. In the latter chapel the monk O'Gorman is buried. To the south of Monkstadt we find Kilbride, and to the north Kilvaxter, and nearby the location of the present graveyard for the parish Kilmhoire from which the township derives its name. The name suggests a date around the 13th century when the influence of the Roman church, stemming from lona was being actively promoted. This may have been the site of an earlier Celtic establishment. The Church on the island formed by the River Snizort dedicated to St. Columba may originally have been a pagan Pictish centre, but by the time of his arrival may have converted to a Pictish Christian establishment. Over the early centuries of the 2nd Millenium it gained importance as the Kilmuir monastery declined and by the 14th century was referred to as the Metropolitan Church of the Isles.
At Kildonan near Edinbane, down by the shore stands a small chapel ruin called after Donnan whose monastic base was in the Island of Eigg where in 617 AD he and 50 of his muinntir were slain. Eigg was occupied by Picts at this time, so it is likely that the perpetrators of this crime were early Viking pirates, forerunners of the Norse hordes who descended on the western Isles towards the close of the 8th century.
The Early Church In Skye (Part 5)
Moluag, the patron saint of Argyll as already mentioned, established a significant centre on the Isle of Raasay at Kilmaluag in Clachan. The original church was 46 feet in length, and surrounding it were eight standing crosses representing the evangelists at the four cardinal points of the compass with the more modest crosses of the four great prophets of the old covenant, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel and Daniel at the diagonals and in addition the central cross previously mentioned representing Christ.
An offshoot of the Raasay monastery is to be found at Kilmaluag in Duntulm. In the burying ground at this place are the remains of a chapel, some 40 feet long. Close by is a well, Tobar Heibert. Moluag was of Irish/Pictish stock which could explain why he was so successful in spreading the gospel in Raasay and securing a foothold in North Skye, both Pictish centres. There was once a chapel dedicated to St Nicolas (Santa Claus) in Flodigarry, and on Eilean Altairaig which forms a breakwater to Staffin Bay stood a small chapel dedicated to St. Tieros. In the hamlet of Breachry there was at one time a church and graveyard Cill Catriona of which no vestige remains. The stones of the church were used in building houses nearby and on their removal a baptismal font was discovered. Another cell or Caibeal stood only 200 yards away called Caibeal Sine while half a mile away lies the ruins of Cill Eoghain at Culnacnoc.
William MacKenzie in his interesting book Skye Iochdar Trotternish mentions an age old custom of naming graveyards after the first internment. There is however a strong tradition in Kilmuir that at one time there was a nunnery by the north aspect of loch Calum Chille, possibly again a 13th century establishment of the Benedictine order, so that Culnacnoc may have held an offshoot of nuns, explaining the female designations of the two graveyards mentioned.
The Bay of Uig, it is said, had at least three chapels surrounding it, one near the present Free Church, Cill Chonain, another by the Conan River, almost completely swept away by the great flood of last century and one or two on the Idrigill side of the village.
Portree Bay was anciently known as St. Columba's loch, and a small island towards Penifiler, with chapel ruins commemorates his name. Kiltaraglen - the old name of Portree, now located to the north of the town bears the name of Talorgan, a Culdee. They were an offshoot of the Irish Church, determined to sort out the excesses of the old church as it became more wealthy and worldly. Their principles were threefold, asceticism, puritanism and stricter monasticism. They seem to have performed the duties of secular canons arriving in Scotland about the year 800 AD About the year 673 AD Maolrubha arrived in Applecross, or Appercrossan as it was then known, a purely Pictish name. Here he established a centre for his missionary work. In Skye he concentrated his evangelic activity on the south end, and even to this day his name is revered in Strath as the man who brought the tidings of salvation to the people there.
At Ashaig Maol Ruaidh he founded his first church on the island, the foundations of which were discovered some years ago while a grave was being prepared. As in the north end the policy of placing chapels in the centres of population was continued. Pabay as the name implies has a burying ground, foundations of a chapel 20 feet in length and the ground-work of a small building called the "Alter".
Scalpay has the remains of Tempull Frangaig, externally 26 feet long and with a narrow pillar 4 feet in height bearing an incised Latin Cross on its last face. There are two temples, one at Liveras in Broadford, and one at Borreraig near Torrin, and like Frangaig's probably belonging to a later age. The temple of Borreraig was dedicated to St. Congan and is still referred to as Tempull Chaoin. Congan it will be remembered was one of the two Irish/Pictish companions of Columba on his mission to the stronghold of King Brude at Inverness.
At Kilbride on the east side of Loch Slapin stand traces of a burying ground, and chapel, a rude pillar 8 feet in height, and St. Annats well.
At Kilmaree on the west side of the loch there is a burial ground but no trace of the church which was dedicated to Maolrubha. Kilbride with its central situation and good land was at one time regarded as the "parish church" of Strath, and it is not clear why it should have been deserted for the rocky hillock of Cill à Chro. The site of this church is however one of great beauty and peace where only the occasional passing car breaks the silence. Here there is an overwhelming awareness of the passing of many generations all their lives completed, with their actions, interactions, all their emotions, joys, sadnesses, laughter and tears stilled - till the day breaks. One comes away with a stark realisation of the brevity of life and its inevitable mortality. There is evidence that Cill a Chro was initially a Druidic centre. Two very ancient symbol stones standing together in the graveyard have been removed. They possibly represent an age when sun and fire were the main forces of worship and should be returned without delay to their previous siting, and placed under glass.
A church commemorating Maolrubha stood at Kilmoray Loch Eynort, and one commemorating St. Congan was sited in Glendale.
At Kilmuir at the head of Loch Dunvegan there is a ruined church dedicated to Maolrubha, apparently ancient, though to what age it belongs is uncertain as parts of the original features and fabric have been altered and rebuilt. Evidence that Maolrubha extended his mission into Trottemish is shown by the presence of his name on the ancient chapel at Sartle. We know that one of his muinntir was called Martin who probably founded the church of Kilmartin in Staffin and could have given his name to the well known family of Martin in this part of Trotternish.
By the shores of Ardmore Bay are the ruins of Trumpan Church, or Kilconan Church as it was once known. The name Trumpan is said to be from its resemblance to timpan, a form of harp. Today it is famous as the burial ground of Lady Grange. Apart from Kilmore and Isle Ornsay Sleat has little in the way of association with the early church. One can only surmise that the advances of the Celtic missionaries were somehow resisted, possibly because of their Pictish associations. During the last few years of the 8th century an abrupt end to some two hundred years of relative peace on the island was drawn with the sudden attacks of the marauding Vikings. A darkness fell over the western isles with the church bearing the brunt of the violence. Many lives were lost and all records were destroyed, making it impossible to establish an accurate record of events. The repeated devastation of lona is mentioned in the Irish Annals but for centres further afield such as Skye a total silence descended.
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