The town of Mid-Calder is situated in the western part of the County of
Mid-Lothian.
The church was begun in the sixteenth century by Master Peter
Sandilands, Rector of Mid-Calder, a younger son of the sixth Knight of
Calder. Having raised the walls of the vestry or revestry and laid the
foundations of the choir, and being then an old man, he provided the
money for the entire completion of the church, including the nave,
tower, &c., and paid a sum over to Sir James Sandilands of Calder (his
nephew) and his son John, who bound themselves to complete the structure
according to a bond engrossed in the public records. This bond is to the
following effect:--[117]
After the usual preliminaries and having acknowledged the receipt
of the sum of “xvj hundrethe merkis gude and vsuale money of the
realme,” they undertake “to big and compleit the revestrie of the
paroche kirk of Caldor with ane walter tabill at the heich that it
is now vnder the thak inlikwise with ane wthir walter tabill abone
the thak on the est gauill of the queir weill pendit in half round
to the said queir vnder the said tabill inlikeuise weill thekit
with thak stane And sall rais abone the said tabill in the est
gauill of the queir and abone the turneqres and the tabill thairof
tua lichtis als fair as thai may be had efferand to the heicht of
the queir And abone the walter tabill abone the thak of the
revestre and thre penis thairof to ryse cunteranis of buttreis
vpoune the said eist gauill thre penis thairof And the remanent of
the said queir to be endit of the lenthe and widenes as it is
foundit and in heicht fra the sollis of the said queir duris to the
vuer pairt of the walter tabill vnder the thak thairof xxxij futtis
And the south thre lychtis in the sydevall of the said queir betuix
the foure buttreis to ryse as thai are foundit als heich as thai
may be had in the pend of the said queir efferand to the heich
foirsaid And the saidis buttereis tobe compleit endit as thai ar
now foundit And the north turneqres in the west pairt of the north
sydevall thairof tobe tane avay And the said north vall to ryse xvj
futtis of heicht as it is foundit rouch werk with corbell and
walter tabill on the vther pairt thairof for ane closter and fra
thine vp effeirand to the heicht of the said queir aislar werk And
the said queir tobe compleitlie pendit with croce brace and rinruif
conforme to Sanct Anthonis Yle in Sanct Gelis Kirk And at the west
end of the said queir forgane the south west buttreis to rais ane
substantious wall of rouch werk sevin fut of breid fra ilk sydewall
with ane brace to be raisit tharein als heych as it may be had to
serue the west gavil of the queir with hewin oggeruris And abone
the said brace in the forsaid west gavill sulyeis tobe laid and ane
stepil tobe raisit tharepoun viij futis of breid and lenth or vj
futis braid and xij futis lenth within the sidwallis of the said
stepill quhilk sidwallis salbe of vj futis of heich abone the queir
thak at all partys with lychtis at all partis for the sound of the
bellis in the said stepill to be persit for the orlage hand and
bell in place maist gagand and convenient tharto And in the northe
angell betuix the foresaid wall vnder the grete brace and northe
wall of the kirk syd to rais ane commodious turngreis to serue the
rud loft of the said kirk and stepill foresaid als esaly as it may
be had Item to big ane kirk on the west pair(t) of the said queir
nixt the said brace contenand in lenthe iiijxx of futis and xxviij
futis braid within the wallis respectiue of rouche werk And the
wallis thairof to be foure futis thik and xxvj futis heych fra the
sole of the durris to the vuir part of the watter tabill of syd
wallis with foure buttreis one ilk syd of the said kirk eslar werk
efferand to the queir and four lycht to be biggit in the southsyd
wall of the said kirk of x futis of wydnes and als heych as thai
may be had squair lintalit efferand to the said heicht And in the
southe wall of the said kirk betuix the twa buttreis to be biggit
ane honest dur with ane plain proche with sege stabill on ilk syd
thikyt with thak stane and ane honest dur in the west gavill of the
said kirk with ane lycht abone the samen in myd gavill xij futis of
breid rysand of heich in poyntcast als heich as it may be had
efferand to the heycht of the gavill with sufficient mygallis in
all the lychtis of the said kirk and queir with plane substantious
cornettis of stane or irne quhilk salbe thocht maist gainand in the
lychtis raisit of poyntcast And to put in ilk lycht of the wyndois
grete lokartis of irne for binding of glas thareto And inlikuiss to
put grete crukis in the said kirk durrys as efferis And the said
haill kirk to be pendyt and weill thekyt with thak stane and the
watter tabill of the sidwallis of the said kirk and queir to be
larg of sulye betuix buttreis and buttereis and in ane caisment
hevin for leid to be lad thairin to schout the watter by the
wyndowis of the said kirk and queir to the angellis next the
buttreis And ilk buttere of the foirsaid kirk and queir to haif ane
honeste fiall And the alter of the queir tobe biggit of aislar werk
and the haill queir tobe weill pathit with greis befoir the said
alter and vther wayis as efferis with tua halie wattir fattis weill
hewin to the said kirk and queir And the foirsaidis kirk and queir
to be biggit and completit in maner foirsaid That is to say the
said queir within the space of thre yeris nixt efter the dait herof
And the said kirk within the space of vthair thre yeris nixt and
immediatlie thairefter.” Following on this, John Sandilands,
already mentioned, binds himself to give a “Charter and
infeftment,” securing to the chaplain the sum “of xx merkis money”
annually.
[Illustration: FIG. 1199.--Mid-Calder Church. Plan.]
The actual building (Fig. 1199) consists of a choir with tripartite apse
having a sacristy or vestry to the east, and it has been carried out, so
far as completed, very much in terms of the foregoing bond.
The vestry, which projects from the east end of the choir, seems to have
been erected before the bond was executed, and the foundations of the
choir seem to have been laid at that time. The remainder of the choir
was apparently carried out afterwards, but the nave, which was carefully
specified in the bond, was never erected.
The vestry contains two stories, the lower one being a burial vault,
which is “pendit” or vaulted, while the upper floor forms the vestry.
The
[Illustration: FIG. 1200.--Mid-Calder Church. View from South-East.]
[Illustration: FIG. 1201.--Mid-Calder Church. View from North-East.]
small stair leading to both floors is placed in the north-east angle of
the apse. The east wall of the choir (Fig. 1200) is raised above the
roof of the vestry, and is provided with a traceried window to the east;
but there is no window in the north-east side of the apse, which is
occupied by the wheel stair (Fig. 1201). The buttresses are erected as
required by the
[Illustration: FIG. 1202.--Mid-Calder Church. Pinnacles on Sacristy.]
bond, and the three south windows are introduced between them. The north
wall is carried up with rough masonry, and without any windows or
openings, and has the water table and corbels prescribed as suitable for
the roof of a cloister walk along that side (see Fig. 1201). The choir
roof has been intended to be vaulted and the lower courses of the
springing are built, but the vault was never completed. The springings
show that the vault was intended to be groined. It is specified to have
a “cross brace and rinruif,” like a chapel in St. Giles’ Church, but the
meaning of these terms is not definite.
At the west end of the choir a very thick wall is built on each side,
with a pointed arch between (described as a brace) to support the
belfry,
[Illustration: FIG. 1203.--Mid-Calder Church. Terminations of Labels.]
which is minutely specified. The latter, however, was not executed till
recently. The lower part, however, above the roof was built, and the
modern belfry has been carried up upon it. In the north pier is a
“turngreis” or wheel stair described as leading to the rood loft, but
in reality it now leads to the family gallery and to the lower part of
the belfry (see Fig. 1201). A proposed nave is also minutely described.
It was to be 80 feet in length and 28 feet in width, to have four
buttresses on each side of ashlar work, and four windows in the south
wall, 10 feet
[Illustration: FIG. 1204. Mid-Calder Church. Arms on Corbels supporting
Rood Loft.]
wide, and square lintels. Also an “honest dur,” and a porch on the south
side with stone seats and stone roof, and another “honest dur” in the
west gable, with a large window over it. The windows were to be glazed
and the roof provided with gargoyles.
The altar was to be built with ashlar, and the floor paved and steps
placed before the altar. The above instructions have, so far as the
structure is executed, been carefully complied with, and the edifice
presents a favourable example of the work of the early part of the
sixteenth century. Ornament has not been spared, and is specially
exhibited in the heraldic carving on the shields, with which the weather
mouldings terminate. These shields generally contain the arms of the
Sandilands family and their connections the Douglases, of which several
examples are given below.
[Illustration: FIG. 1205.--Mid-Calder Church. Woodcarving.]
The following is a short notice of the arms on the different parts of
the building. On the angles of the projecting sacristy (the lower story
of which contained the family burial vault) there are two pinnacles,
with very late crocketing, and finials (Fig. 1202). The south pinnacle
contains the Sandilands arms and the initials of J. Sandilands, and
other lettering,
[Illustration: FIG. 1206.--Mid-Calder Church. Middle Bay in Choir.]
much decayed. The north pinnacle exhibits the Sandilands arms quartered
with Douglas, and having two angels as supporters, the arms surmounted
by a helmet, with a lion’s head for crest.