Church Overview

The foundation stone of this handsome Gothic church, built of Rubislaw and Kemnay granite and designed by English architect Richard Curran, was laid in 1899 and it opened for worship in October 1901. Its unusual interior design is due to the fact that it is a former collegiate chapel, sitting, as it did next door to Blairs College, a seminary for boys and young men training for the Roman Catholic priesthood, that operated from 1829-1986. Blairs Museum, housing the collection of the Scottish Catholic Heritage Collections Trust, opened in part of the College following its closure.

No expense was spared on the building, funded entirely by the Rt Rev Monsignor James Lennon of Liverpool, who was thanked for his munificence by Pope Leo XIII. Its carved altar, depicting Da Vinci’s Last Supper in the centre with two figures “in the attitude of adoration” on either side, was created by the noted Dublin firm of Pearse & Sons from marbles quarried in Cararra, Wexford and Namibia, as well as onyx from Mexico. The carved marble Stations of the Cross were designed by the celebrated firm of Mayer & Co of Munich and a pipe organ costing £600 by Ernest Henry Lawton of Aberdeen wasinstalled.

The church’s walls originally had painted decoration, but in 1910-11 Belgian architect Charles Jean Ménart refurbished its interior, lining the chancel and sacristy with marble and installing the magnificent reredos and baldacchino in carved wood, with its figures of the Scottish patron saints, Andrew and Margaret. The also church possesses a fine collection of stained glass windows, depicting saints from Scotland and elsewhere and scenes from the life of Christ. These were mostly gifted by clergy associated with the College and are mainly the work of Mayer & Co of Munich and Earley and Co of Dublin.

The exquisite marble panelling was taken down, cleaned and restored in 1984 and further considerable repairs of the church were undertaken between 2001-03. In the summer of 2022, the local Roman Catholic archdiocese announced that the building would was set to close due to the unaffordable repair costs and the contents of the Blairs Museum would be moved elsewhere. No further public updates have been given about the building, the church’s website has been discontinued and it remains closed.

In December 2025, the Friends of Blairs Chapel, received charitable status from OSCR with the stated aim of “preserving, conserving and promoting Blairs College Chapel as a site of historic and architectural significance.”

Currently Closed

Disclaimer

The information about churches in Scotland’s Churches Scheme has been provided by the congregations or taken from the Historic Scotland list and published sources, in particular, the Buildings of Scotland volumes and the RIAS Illustrated Architectural Guides. To contact this specific church please complete the Contact this Church form above. The information is not authoritative; please contact Scotland’s Churches Trust to let us know of any errors or omissions.