Rosslyn Chapel, Roslin

Rosslyn Chapel stands on a small hill above Roslin Glen in Midlothian, Scotland. Built in the 15th century by William Sinclair, 1st Earl of Caithness, it was meant to be a collegiate church with priests and choristers singing plainsong and polyphony. After the Scottish Reformation in 1560, Catholic worship ended and the chapel fell into ruin. Queen Victoria visited in 1842 and called for its preservation, leading to restoration in 1862. The chapel suffered a bombing in 1914 as part of the suffragette campaign, damaging its interior. Today it remains privately owned by the Earl of Rosslyn. The chapel is famous for its intricate carvings, which have inspired many theories over centuries. Some writers link it to the Knights Templar and the Holy Grail, a claim popularised by Dan Brown’s novel *The Da Vinci Code*. Historians dismiss these ideas as unfounded, but the chapel’s fame endures. A major conservation project between 1997 and 2013 repaired its roof, stonework and stained glass. Three skeletons were found during the work, and a new visitor centre opened in 2011. The chapel attracts tens of thousands of visitors each year. Inside, the chapel has a single nave with fourteen pillars forming pointed arches. The east end holds three named pillars: the Master Pillar, the Journeyman Pillar and the famous Apprentice Pillar. The Apprentice Pillar is carved with a legend about a master mason and his apprentice. Above it runs an inscription in Latin about the strength of wine, kings, women and truth. The Lower Chapel, or crypt, lies beneath the main floor. The stonework is considered among Scotland’s finest, though the original cruciform plan was never completed.