St John's Episcopal Church Edinburgh by Diane M Watters

St John's Episcopal Church Edinburgh by Diane M Watters

Positioned at the westernmost entrance to Edinburgh's Princes Street, St John's Episcopal Church enjoys the enviable picturesque backdrop of the castle and Old Town. Despite later additions, it stands today much as it was when first designed almost 200 years ago - a celebrated architectural monument and place of worship in the heart of Scotland's capital.

This richly illustrated book examines the history and architectural development of St John's Church from the early 19th century to the present day. Its revived Gothic interior was unprecedented in Scotland in 1818, and it was the first of the new Gothic towers and spires that helped create the famous 19th century 'Romantic Edinburgh' cityscape.

Author Diane Watters examines the ever-shifting architectural debates which impacted on St John's innovative design, and re-evaluates its significance and legacy. In addition, she considers the broader Scottish religious and cultural impact of the new church building, and its continuing central role in the Christian life of Edinburgh's New Town.

A"At either end of Princes Street are two famous buildings, one a great hotel, the other an elegant and lively church - bookends to one of the world's best-known thoroughfaresThis charming book tells a fascinating story of the architectural and aesthetic ideas behind a landmark building. Those who regularly walk past St John's or those who encounter it on a visit to Edinburgh will be both entertained and informed by this lovely architectural and historical essay.A"Alexander McCall Smith

Diane Watters is a Buildings Investigator at RCAHMS and the author of previous works Little Houses: The National Trust for Scotland's Improvement Scheme for Small Historic Homes, and Cardross Seminary. She co-edited (with Miles Glendinning) Home Builders: Mactaggart & Mickel and the Scottish Housebuilding Industry and has written and compiled two architecture maps of Edinburgh and Glasgow as part of an ongoing series which aims to identify significant buildings in Scotland's cities and towns.