Lasswade Old Parish Church Lasswade, Midlothian, Scotland, UK
Scheduled Monument Statement of Significance
© Crown Copyright text courtesy of Historic Environment Scotland, reprinted under the Open Government License.
The monument is of national importance as a fine example of a medieval church dating from the 13th century which has undergone a variety of modifications up to, and beyond, its disuse for parish worship. The structure offers the potential to examine the development of the church, and archaeological excavation and analysis may reveal more of the history of this complex and important parish church, thus contributing to our understanding of ecclesiastical and architectural development.
Scheduled Monument Description
© Crown Copyright text courtesy of Historic Environment Scotland, reprinted under the Open Government License.
The monumnent consists of the remains of the former parish church of Lasswade, dedicated to St Edwin and built in the 13th century.
The church has been rebuilt on several occasions, but still retains original architectural features. The church was a single rectangular chamber, 6.2m by 18m externally, and orientated E-W. Two side aisles were added in the 17th century, and appear to post-date a tower at the W end. The latter collapsed in 1866. A chancel may have been
added at the E end at some date, but this is obscured by later building work.
Most of the S and W walls are reduced to foundations, while the E and N walls are partly incorporated in a series of burial enclosures. The best-preserved portions are the NE aisle, now a mausoleum, and the added 17th century mausoleum, which lies to the W of the N aisle, built for the poet William Drummond of Hawthornden (d. 1649).
The latter is rubble built but incorporates a round-headed doorway and a medieval finial cross. Two further mausolea, of Victorian date, lie to the E of the remains of the nave, and may obscure an earlier chancel. A number of fine gravestones, of 17th-19th century date, lie near to, and within, the ruins of the church and its attendant mausolea.
The area to be scheduled is approximately rectangular, 40m E-W by 25m N-S, to incorporate the church and mausolea. It is bounded on the N and S by gravel paths, which are not themselves included in the scheduling. The area is marked in red on the accompanying map.
Scheduled Monument References
© Crown Copyright text courtesy of Historic Environment Scotland, reprinted under the Open Government License.
RCAHMS records the monument as NT 36 NW 24.