Auld Kirk Kineff

Kinneff is half way between Inverbervie and Catterline, Aberdeenshire. A Church was first erected on this spot in 1242. This is the church where Reverend James Grainger was minister when, in late 1651, Cromwell's forces under the command of General George Monck besieged Dunnottar Castle, six miles up the coast. By the time Dunnottar fell on 26 May 1652, it was the last place left in Scotland holding out for Charles II.

General Monck was especially keen to take Dunnottar because he knew it was where the Honours of Scotland, the Scottish Crown Jewels, had been taken for safekeeping, and their capture would be hugely symbolic. But when the castle fell, the Honours were nowhere to be found. Reverend Grainger's wife had smuggled them out of the besieged castle and the couple had buried them under the floor of Kinneff Old Church, only revealing their whereabouts after the Restoration of Charles II in 1660.

It's a shame that the original stone of the Kirk was covered in pebble dashing at some time - to protect the stone I suppose. The Kirk Bell wasn't covered and you can see it on Flickr here