South Leith Parish Church, Edinburgh

South Leith Parish Church stands in Leith, a district of Edinburgh. It began as a Roman Catholic chapel dedicated to St Mary in 1483 and became the parish kirk after the Reformation. The present building is mainly a reconstruction of the nave from the 19th century, though parts of the old walls remain. The kirkyard holds graves of notable figures like John Home and Robert Forbes. The church’s history includes sieges, religious changes and repairs after damage. The church is worth visiting for its layered past and the stories it holds. It was used as a refuge during the Rough Wooing and later as a prison by English forces. Mary of Guise worshipped here and her coat of arms still marks the entrance. The building also served as an ammunition store during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms. Its reconstruction in the 1840s by Thomas Hamilton created the hammerbeam nave roof and a new square tower. Inside, the church has a hammerbeam roof said to be modelled on St Isaac’s in St Petersburg. The west window was moved to St Conan’s Kirk, but the lower walls and arcade remain from earlier centuries. The kirkyard offers quiet places to reflect, with graves of literary and historical figures. The church’s interior and exterior reflect its long and varied history.