Rosslyn Chapel

Rosslyn Chapel is one of the most famous chapels in the world because of the mega-bestselling novel and movie The Davinci Code. I was fortunate to get to visit this amazing site last Sept. My friends and I were staying three days in Edinburgh. We took public transportation the seven and a half miles south of the city and got off at the village of Roslin. (Yes, the spelling is different. LOL) It started out as a cloudy day which threatened rain (not uncommon for Scotland.) Then a light mist started to fall. Here are a few pics of the beautiful village.

Roslin, Scotland

I always see a lot of gorgeous flowers in Scotland

The Original Rosslyn Inn including the Grail, Grill & Restaurant

After getting off the bus at Roslin, it was a short, easy walk down to the chapel itself.

Rosslyn Chapel (officially the Collegiate Chapel of St. Matthew) was founded in 1446 by William Sinclair, the first Earl of Caithness as a place of worship, and the construction of it was started a few years after this date.

‘It came into his mind to build a house for God’s service, of most curious work, the which that it might be done with greater glory and splendour, he caused artificers to be brought from other regions and foreign kingdoms and caused daily to be abundance of all kinds of workmen present as masons, carpenters, smiths, barrowmen and quarriers…..’

Father Hay, author of A Genealogie of the Saintclaires of Rosslyn

After the Scottish Reformation in 1560, Catholic worship at the chapel was no longer happening but the Sinclair family continued in the Roman Catholic faith until the 1700s. From the 1500s until 1861 the chapel was closed to public worship. When it was opened again it became a Scottish Episcopal Church of the Anglican Communion. Services are still held there weekly.

 The chapel has been the center of theories about the Knights Templar, the Holy Grail and Freemasonry because of who had it built and the many fascinating symbols carved into the building. For this reason, of course, it was featured in the 2003 bestselling novel The Da Vinci Code and the 2006 movie. Since then, tourism to the chapel has increased by leaps and bounds. The income from the additional visitors has allowed the chapel to be conserved and improved, which it was in bad need of. For a time, it was almost in ruins.

 The chapel is still privately owned and in the St. Clair family. The current owner is Peter St Clair-Erskine, 7th Earl of Rosslyn.

 As you can see from the above picture and the rain drop on the lens, the rain came down a little harder at this point. We went inside the chapel to explore and read about the many features and beautiful details for an hour or more. Also a guide gave a sort of history lecture, teaching us all about the chapel. We were not allowed to take any photos inside, which is hard for a photo bug like me to deal with. LOL Especially since the inside is even more intricate and detailed than the outside with many symbols and hidden meanings. One of the most famous parts of the interior is the Apprentice's Pillar. You can look it up online and see how beautiful it is and also read the legend of it's creator. Carved into the architecture joining the pillar is this quote: 

Forte est vinum fortior est rex fortiores sunt mulieres super omnia vincit veritas: "Wine is strong, a king is stronger, women are stronger still, but truth conquers all" (1 Esdras, chapters 3 & 4).

After the rain diminished a bit, I went back outside for more photos of the interesting exterior.

 The building was originally intended to be cruciform in shape but it was never completed. What you see here now is only a small portion of the original architectural plan, just the top of the cross shape. The intended foundation of the rest of the building was found. I took the above photo outside and, as you can see, it appears to be only a partially completed building, as if a wall or something is missing. Unfortunately, William Sinclair died before construction of the chapel was completed and soon funds and interest in its completion waned.

If you're ever visiting Edinburgh, I hope you'll go south a few miles and visit Rosslyn Chapel. It's a special place.

I have new releases to tell you about! The most recent one is the novella which was in Captured by a Celtic Warrior, Stolen by a Highland Rogue. This is Camille and Dugald's story!

When the infamous King Richard dagger is stolen from Highland chief, Dugald MacKerrick, he will do whatever it takes to reclaim it, even abduct the wife of the aristocratic thief, but what if his beautiful French hostage isn't who he thinks she is? Deep in the rugged Scottish Highlands, Dugald discovers not only is his captive, Camille Bouchard, more than he expected, so is the passion raging between them, threatening everything he thought mattered to him. 

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VEXING THE HIGHLANDER by Terry Spear -- Saving the king's life has unforeseen consequences for one Highlander and a lady, the king's ward…

DEFENDED BY A HIGHLAND RENEGADE by Vonda Sinclair -- A bride on the run doesn't expect a kilted outlaw to come to her rescue…

TARTANS AND TRYSTS by Victoria Roberts -- This Highland warrior is about to lose the battle to a lass who's already won his heart…

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I have a couple of contests going on for print books. One is on my FaceBook page.
And the other is at Goodreads. Hope you'll enter!
Thank you!! :)
Vonda
www.vondasinclair.com