Journey Through Scotland: Highlights from the Reformation in Scotland Tour
As many of our readers know, Jeannie Stolee, office manager for the presbyteries, was recently out of the office. Jeannie traveled to Scotland on ‘Reformation in Scotland’ guided tour. She would like to thank the presbyteries for the opportunity to take such a wonderful trip! Jeannie found the history was so incredibly interesting and would like to share a few highlights. Jeannie writes:
1. Edinburgh Castle, which was involved in many historical conflicts. The castle was largely destroyed by artillery bombardment, with one exception being St. Margaret’s Chapel, which is regarded as the oldest building in Edinburgh. James VI, who authorized the King James Bible, was born here.
2. Giles Cathedral was founded in 1124 by King David I and has been a working church for almost 900 years. John Knox was minister here following the Scottish Reformation. I had my picture taken with John Knox’s statue. Queen Elizabeth II laid in state here.
3. John Knox House, where the Reformer resided while in Scotland.
4. Palace of Holyrood House, where John Knox confronted Mary, Queen of the Scots. Queen Elizabeth II also laid in state here. This is the residence of King Charles III and the Royal Family when they are in Edinburgh. We were able to walk through Mary, Queen of Scots’ bedchamber, supper room, where Mary was dining in 1566 when she witnessed the murder of her private secretary, David Rizzio, and outer chamber, where she received visitors. The devout Roman Catholic Queen enjoyed many debates with John Knox. On display is the Darnley Jewel, one of the finest treasures in the Royal Collection. Unfortunately, pictures are not allowed inside the palace.
5. Dunfermline Abbey and Palace, where St. Margaret and Robert the Bruce are buried. There is a beautiful Tifffany stained-glass window donated by Andrew Carnegie.
6. Andrew’s Cathedral and castle where John Knox and other reformers were held prisoner. The University of St. Andrews is where Prince William and Kate Middleton met. We also saw the spot where Patrick Hamilton was burned at stake. The students at St. Andrews believe it’s bad luck if you step on his initials that are embedded in the sidewalk; we were all very careful to not do that!
7. John’s Kirk (church) in Perth, where John Knox preached in May 1559, and fanned the flames of the Reformation.
8. Church of Holy Rude in Stirling, where John Knox preached for three hours after the coronation of James VI of Scots, who also became James I of England. He was coronated when he was just 13 months old and was the first Protestant king of Scotland. Holy Rude means Holy Cross.
9. Boat cruise on beautiful Loch Lomand (loch means lake).
10. Isle of Iona, the resting place of Scottish kings. Located here is the Iona Abbey, which was founded by St. Columba in 563, and the Augustinian Abbey, which is one of the best-preserved medieval nunneries in Britain. It took two ferry rides (the ferries are a wee [my new favorite word] bit bigger than Okoboji’s Queen II and are large enough to hold cars and buses in their belly) and an hour bus ride on the narrowest road I have ever seen. Our bus driver impressed us many times with his driving and parking abilities.
11. Inveraray Castle, in which the family of the 12th Duke of Argyll resides. The castle is expensive to maintain, and they allow tours of certain rooms to help defray expenses. The room that impressed me the most was the China Turret, which is a turret that contains eight glass cases each filled with an entire setting of beautiful china. The 2012 Downton Abbey Christmas episode was filmed here.
12. We were supposed to get to tour the Glasgow Cathedral, but it was closed for an event.
This was the trip of a lifetime with so many memories of all the historical places visited and new friends made with the other 14 people on the tour, including Rikki and Peter Sorensen. Rikki was the pastor at First Presbyterian Church in Carroll and they now reside in San Antonio, Texas.

Jeannie with Rikki and Peter Sorensen
God bless and thanks for reading!
~Jeannie Stolee
Thank you for these beautiful pictures and explanations! It must have been a wonderful experience.