Scotland

Stored: Scotland

Country: Scotland
Historic:	No
Existence:	–
Continent:	Europe
Region:	Northern Europe
Historical Region:
Area:	77933 km²
Population:	5500000
Catholic Population:	700000
Catholic Percentage:	12.7%
Catholicism Status:	Minority religion; largest after Church of Scotland
Official Languages:	English, Scottish Gaelic, Scots
Capital:	Edinburgh
Catholicism Introduced:	4th century AD
Ecclesiastical Provinces:	2
Dioceses:	8
Patron Saints:	Saint Andrew, Saint Margaret of Scotland, Saint Columba
Predecessor States:
Successor States:

Scotland is a nation in Northern Europe forming the northern third of the island of Great Britain, covering 77,933 square kilometres and bordered by England to the south and surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, North Sea, and Irish Sea. As of 2025, it has an estimated population of 5.5 million, with official languages including English, Scottish Gaelic, and Scots; its capital is Edinburgh and largest city Glasgow. Scotland’s economy blends renewable energy, whisky production, tourism, and financial services, while its culture features Highland games, ceilidhs, and tartan traditions.

The Catholic Church has shaped Scottish identity for over 1,500 years. Introduced in the 4th century AD by Roman soldiers and consolidated in the 6th–7th centuries through Irish missionaries such as Saint Columba, Catholicism remained the established faith until the Protestant Reformation of 1560. Suppressed for centuries, it revived in the 19th century with Irish immigration and was formally re-established in 1878. Today approximately 700,000 Scots (12.7 %) identify as Catholic, making it the second-largest Christian denomination after the Church of Scotland. Patron saints include Saint Andrew (feast 30 November), whose X-shaped cross forms the Saltire flag, Saint Margaret of Scotland (queen and reformer, canonised 1250), and Saint Columba (missionary to the Picts).

Catholic heritage is visible in pilgrimage routes to St Andrews Cathedral (once housing Andrew’s relics), the national Marian shrine at Carfin Grotto, and historic sites such as Pluscarden Abbey. The Church operates 450 parishes, numerous schools, and charities, contributing to education and social justice in line with Catholic Social Teaching.

Geography

Scotland occupies the northern 77,933 km² of Great Britain, with a rugged coastline of 9,900 km, mountainous Highlands, fertile Lowlands, and over 790 islands including the Hebrides, Orkney, and Shetland. Its temperate oceanic climate brings frequent rain supporting lochs (e.g., Loch Ness, Loch Lomond) and glens. Major cities include Edinburgh (capital), Glasgow, Aberdeen, and Dundee.

Catholic communities thrive along ancient pilgrimage paths such as the Way of St Andrews, linking Glasgow, Edinburgh, and St Andrews. Highland geography once sheltered clandestine Masses during penal times; today island dioceses serve remote Catholic populations in Barra and South Uist.

History

Christianity reached Roman Scotland in the 4th century; Saint Ninian (c. 360–432) evangelised the southern Picts from Whithorn. Irish monks led by Saint Columba founded Iona Abbey in 563, converting northern Picts. By the 11th century Queen Saint Margaret reformed the Celtic Church toward Roman practice.

Medieval Scotland boasted 13 dioceses under two archbishops (St Andrews, Glasgow). The 1560 Reformation Parliament abolished papal authority; iconoclasm destroyed abbeys. Catholicism survived underground in the Highlands and among nobles. Penal laws (1560–1829) banned Mass; priests trained abroad at Scots Colleges in Rome, Paris, and Douai.

Catholic Emancipation (1829) and 19th-century Irish immigration swelled numbers. Pope Leo XIII restored the hierarchy in 1878. The 20th century saw ecumenical progress; post-Vatican II the Church engaged social issues.

Demographics

Scotland’s 5.5 million residents are ethnically 84 % Scottish, 8 % other British, 4 % Polish, and growing Asian communities. The 2022 census recorded 13.3 % Catholic (c. 700,000), concentrated in West Central Scotland (Glasgow, Lanarkshire) and Highland islands. Weekly Mass attendance is c. 150,000.

Catholic church

The Catholic Church in Scotland belongs to the universal Church under the Pope, coordinated locally by the Bishops’ Conference of Scotland. It comprises two ecclesiastical provinces with eight dioceses and c. 450 parishes.

Structure

• Province of St Andrews & Edinburgh (metropolitan: Archdiocese of St Andrews & Edinburgh, Edinburgh)
  • Diocese of Aberdeen (Aberdeen)
  • Diocese of Argyll and the Isles (Oban)
  • Diocese of Dunkeld (Dundee)
  • Diocese of Galloway (Ayr)

• Province of Glasgow (metropolitan: Archdiocese of Glasgow)
  • Diocese of Motherwell (Motherwell)
  • Diocese of Paisley (Paisley)

The Military Ordinariate serves Catholic armed-forces personnel.

Saints

Birthplace

Parameter received: Scotland

Scotland
SaintName SaintBirthPlace Saint Cuthbert of Lindisfarne Near Dunbar, Northumbria (modern-day East Lothian, Scotland) Saint David I of Scotland Scotland Saint Magnus of Orkney Orkney Islands, Kingdom of Norway (now Scotland) Saint Patrick Roman Britain (likely near present-day Carlisle, England or Scotland) Saint Serapion of Algiers England (possibly Scotland), Kingdom of England

Death place

Parameter received: Scotland

Scotland
SaintName DeathPlace Saint Columba of Iona Iona, Argyll and Bute, Scotland Saint Magnus of Orkney Egilsay Island, Orkney Islands, Kingdom of Norway (now Scotland) Saint Margaret of Scotland Edinburgh Castle, Kingdom of Scotland

Notable locations

Parameter received: Scotland

Scotland
SaintName NotableAddress1 Saint Columba of Iona Iona Abbey, PA76 6SJ, Isle of Iona, Argyll and Bute, Scotland Saint Cuthbert of Lindisfarne Melrose Abbey, Northumbria (modern-day Scottish Borders, Scotland) Saint David I of Scotland Edinburgh, Scotland

Parameter received: Scotland

Scotland
SaintName NotableAddress2 Saint David I of Scotland Dunfermline, Scotland

Parameter received: Scotland

Scotland
SaintName NotableAddress3 Saint David I of Scotland Melrose, Scotland Saint Margaret of Scotland St Margaret of Scotland Church, 400 Addison Road, Washington, DC 20018, USA

Parameter received: Scotland

Scotland
No saints found with Notable Address 4 matching Scotland.

Parameter received: Scotland

Scotland
No saints found with Notable Address 5 matching Scotland.

Introduction of Catholicism

Evidence suggests Christianity arrived with Roman legions in the 2nd–4th centuries; Saint Ninian established Candida