Remain of Saint Margaret set to return to Dunfermline.

A BONE relic of St Margaret, 11th century queen of Scotland, is to be returned to Dunfermline after an absence of more than 400 years.

The saint’s remains were removed from a shrine at Dunfermline Abbey in 1560 to save them from mobs destroying and desecrating churches and tombs at the time of the Reformation.

After a journey around Europe which saw much of the remains lost over the centuries, the major relic left, a shoulder bone, is to be presented to St Margaret’s RC Church by Cardinal Keith O’Brien on Sunday, the saint’s feast day.

For the past 145 years, the custodians of the holy relic have been nuns at the St Margaret’s Convent in Edinburgh.

During the 500 years she was buried in Dunfermline, the saint’s shrine became a place of pilgrimage and King Robert the Bruce donated gifts to ensure that a wax candle burned there “constantly and forever”.

Her death bed wish was that she should be laid to rest in her beloved Dunfermline, where she and King Malcolm Canmore brought up their family and ruled the country.

The deeply religious queen was well known for her charitable works and help for the poor.

St Margaret’s parish priest, Father David Barr, said, “After many centuries and adventures our saint and queen is coming home.”

After being removed from the abbey by monks for safe-keeping, the remains were taken to Craigluscar and then to Edinburgh and remained there for two centuries.

They were then taken to Flanders along with the remains of her husband.

They were given over to King Phillip II of Spain, who had a collection of relics, but his palace became victim of an anti-church insurrection during the Peninsular War and many of these remains were desecrated and scattered.

Bishop James Gillis went to Rome in 1862 seeking permission to return the remains of St Margaret from Spain to Scotland.

Father Barr said, “He then obtained permission from the King and Queen of Spain to search the Escurial Palace for the relics.

“His efforts were successful and in 1863 he returned from Spain with the relic of St Margaret which has been identified as part of the shoulder bone.

“For 145 years now the Ursuline Sisters have been custodians of this precious relic.

“I received notice that due to age and lack of numbers the Ursulines were going to close St Margaret’s Convent this year and so I wrote to His Eminence Cardinal O’Brien.

“The cardinal, in consultation with the Ursuline Sisters, has graciously agreed to my request and the major relic of St Margaret will be presented on Sunday to two members of our parish to bring the relic to our church here in Dunfermline.”

Meanwhile, the memory of St Margaret will also be celebrated with a medieval festival and a programme of free events on Sunday organised by the Dunfermline city-centre chaplaincy.

The day commences with a seven-mile ‘Abbot Walk’ between Culross and Dunfermline abbeys.

Heritage guides will be conducting tours from the Mercat Cross in High Street starting at 2pm and 3pm.

St Margaret’s Cave, where she spent much of her time in prayer, will be open and there will be a performance of Benedictine chants at the Abbey.

Local historian George Robertson will give an illustrated talk on St Margaret at the City Chambers at 2.30pm.

And children from three local schools will be at Abbot House in Maygate, giving a demonstration of the clothes of that era while teaching medieval games.

Dunfermline still remains a place of pilgrimage and devout Catholic Cherie Blair visited St Margaret’s Cave with her son Leo in 2003.

When she and her husband Tony, then Prime Minister, met the Pope at the Vatican they presented him with a statue of St Margaret.  Dunfermline Press