St Gregory's Church, Preshome

St Gregory’s Church stands in the quiet village of Preshome, a few miles from Buckie in Moray. It is a Roman Catholic building, protected as a category A listed structure. Erected in 1788, it was the first openly built Catholic church in Scotland after the Reformation of 1560. Before then, Catholics met only in private homes or hidden chapels. Nearby Tynet’s St Ninian’s, built in 1755, looked like a cottage to avoid notice. The church’s Italian Baroque façade makes a bold statement of Catholic pride. Its pedimented gable carries classical urn finials and the Latin date DEO 1788. Father John Reid is credited with the design, with later work by Peter Paul Pugin. Inside, the reredos holds a painting of St Gregory by Caracci, donated by the Earl of Findlater. Visitors find an elegant exterior framing a single rectangular nave. The interior keeps its simple plan yet feels grand. The Caracci painting above the altar catches the eye. Outside, the church sits among fields and low stone dykes, a calm place to stand and look.