St Conan’s Kirk

St Conan’s Kirk stands in the village of Loch Awe in Argyll and Bute, a small stone church built in an eclectic mix of styles from ancient Roman to Norman. The nave and chancel are linked by a granite chancel arch supported on rough-hewn piers from nearby Ben Cruachan. A tower and spire rise above the transepts, which form the Sacred Cross. Inside, heavy oak beams came from wooden battleships broken up in the 19th century. The church contains a fragment said to be from Robert the Bruce and an ancient window reused from South Leith Parish Church. Walter Douglas Campbell designed the kirk and its nearby family mansion for his mother, sister and himself. Work began in 1881 and continued until his death in 1914, with his sister Helen completing the project by 1927. The building was consecrated in 1930 and later voted one of Scotland’s top ten buildings of the last century. Three chapels sit within the kirk: Bruce Chapel holds a carved effigy of Robert the Bruce, St Bride’s Chapel features an effigy of Walter Douglas Campbell, and St Conval’s Chapel is dedicated to the 4th Lord Blythswood. Visitors find a nave and chancel with canopied stalls, a small organ and metal gates made by Thomas Hadden. The Bruce Chapel displays its alabaster effigy beneath the reused ancient window. Outside, rough granite boulders mark the entrance, and the surrounding village includes Innis Chonain House and the House of Letterawe. A short walk away stands St Conan’s Tower, offering views over Loch Awe.