Dillon

This highly ornamented church is not medieval.
In fact, it’s not even 150 years old.

Instead, it’s what happens when a 19th century wealthy Scotsman needed to build a church for his elderly mother and he happened to be a history enthusiast too.

Walter Douglas Campbell was the 8th child of Archibald Campbell and a member of the wealthy Campbell family.

When his mother Caroline was 60, she found it difficult to travel by carriage the long distance to the nearest church and so she asked him to build her a closer church. In 1881, he began construction and he let his love for history guide the project.

St Conan’s Kirk, as it’s called, includes a Norman doorway, Celtic designs, Gothic flying buttresses and even a Saxon tower. The Kirk also contains a chapel featuring an alabaster effigy of Robert the Bruce. The project’s plans passed to Walter’s sister Helen after his death and it was finished in 1929.

St Conan’s Kirk is a short drive from Kilchurn Castle along Loch Awe and definitely worth a stop when visiting the area.

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