My 2022 Humongous UK Adventure: 6/18 St. Magnus Cathedral in Kirkwall, Orkney

Saturday, June 18, 2022

6/18 St. Magnus Cathedral in Kirkwall, Orkney

It is important to know that the Orkney Islands were Viking settlements and then part of Norway until until fairly recently in history. They became part of Scotland because in 1469, King James III of Scotland married Margaret who was the daughter of Christian I of Norway. He was not able to pay the dowry he had promised for the wedding of his daughter, so gave the islands of Orkney and Shetland to Scotland.

And in fact, many of the residents of the island consider themselves Scandinavian instead of Scottish. They mostly did not celebrate the queens recent jubilee and have their own flag, like this:

Interestingly, this flag is VERY similar to the current Norwegian flag and the Danish flag. The differences are that the Norwegian flag has white where the yellow is on this flag and navy blue where the brighter blue is. The Danish flag has white where the yellow and blue are on the Orkney flag.

And this is the flag of Scotland:

This comparison shows you how the Orcadians think of themselves.

St Magnus is an imposing building that dominates the city of Kirkwall, which is the largest on the islands and its capital. The cathedral was founded in 1137 by the Viking, Earl Rognvald to honor his uncle, St, Magnus, though it has undergone expansion and restorations since then. All in all, it is very impressive from the outside and the inside.

The style of this church was very different from any I have seen before. For one thing, there were three or four levels of open arches along the top, which look as if people could watch services from there. It was also very long and narrow, indicating the time it was built.