St.Clements Church, Harris

Glorious weather and we did a 'Grand Tour' of The Isle of Lewis and The Isle of Harris. Despite the obvious, it is really only one island, the division between them being the range of hills which stretches across the southern end of the island. The terrain in Harris is considerably different from Lewis. Harris has many more hills and lochs with the west side containing some stunning beaches.

Right at the very southern tip is the church of St. Clements, which was built from about 1520 by Alexander MacLeod of Dunvegan, Skye and Harris. It is generally thought to be the grandest medieval building anywhere in the Western Isles.

The Church is believed to have been built on the site of an older church of unknown origin and date. It fell into disuse after the Reformation in 1560, though the churchyard remained the preferred site for MacLeod burials. The church was extensively repaired and given a new roof by Captain Alexander MacLeod of Berneray in 1784, but it burned down almost immediately, leading to further rebuilding and restoration in 1787.

By 1840 St Clement's had again fallen into disrepair, and the Countess of Dunmore arranged for it to be repaired in 1873: this is commemorated in a stone plaque over the door in the nave. In 1913 the harling was removed from the outside of the walls, and the tower, which had been struck by lightning in 1907, was partly rebuilt. Today the church is in the care of Historic Scotland.

Our day was one of a tour in unending sunshine, beautiful beaches, long winding roads and some very friendly folk along the way.

If you want to see the stunning beaches, hills and some other photos, head over to my Flikr set.