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St Magnus' church, burial ground and hospital is a multi-functional medieval ecclesiastical site in Caithness, Scotland, protected as a scheduled monument by Historic Environment Scotland. The complex comprised a church, adjacent burial ground and hospital facility, reflecting the religious and charitable provision typical of medieval Scottish burghs and important centres. The site rests upon Middle Old Red Sandstone bedrock of Middle Devonian age, composed of conglomerate, sandstone, siltstone and mudstone, geology that would have influenced both construction methods and the stability of burials within the ground.
The hospital function indicates this was a significant settlement with sufficient resources to maintain charitable facilities for the sick or poor, a role often undertaken by the Church in medieval Scotland. The presence of both church and burial ground demonstrates the spiritual centre of the community, whilst the hospital speaks to its administrative importance and wealth. The three elements together form a rare surviving archaeological record of integrated religious and welfare provision in the far north.
St Magnus' church,burial ground and hospital is a scheduled monument protected by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM5413. View the official record →
St Magnus' church, burial ground and hospital is a multi-functional medieval ecclesiastical site in Caithness, Scotland, protected as a scheduled monument by Historic Environment Scotland. It is designated a Scheduled Ancient Monument by Historic Environment Scotland under reference SM5413.
St Magnus' church,burial ground and hospital is a Scheduled Ancient Monument, legally protected by Historic Environment Scotland — the body responsible for designating and safeguarding heritage sites in Scotland. The official designation reference is SM5413.
Several scheduled monuments lie within 10 km, including Ballone,broch 360m NE of,Spittal (2.1 km), Knockglass,broch E of (2.3 km), Cnoc Donn, broch 600m ESE of Dale Farm, Halkirk (2.4 km).
This page is just one thread. A full Aubrey report pulls together 14 strands of St Magnus' church,burial ground and hospital's history, each drawn from the record and mapped to the exact spot:
Every location is different. Not every section appears for every place, only what the historical record actually holds turns up in a report.
St Magnus' church,burial ground and hospital stands on Middle Old Red Sandstone (Undifferentiated), bedrock that formed in the Middle Devonian. The rock here is conglomerate, sandstone, siltstone and mudstone.