Saint
Andrew is the patron saint of Scotland. His image, along with the 'saltire' (or
diagonal cross) associated with him, has been used for political and religious
purposes from early medieval times until the present. According to the Gospels,
Andrew was a fisherman from Galilee and the first disciple of Christ. He is believed
to have been martyred by crucifixion in Patras (now part of Greece) on 30 November
in the year AD 60. His remains were apparently removed to Constantinople about
AD 357, but after Constantinople was sacked during the Fourth Crusade in 1204,
the relics at Constantinople were taken to the cathedral of Amalfi in Italy.
Meanwhile the monastery of Kilrymont (later St Andrews) in Fife claimed to
have three fingers of the saint's right hand, a part of one of his arms, one kneecap,
and one of his teeth. It is possible that these were brought to Fife (which was
at that time part of the kingdom of the Picts) from the neighbouring kingdom of
Northumberland, where veneration of St Andrew was particularly strong. St Andrews
became a popular pilgrimage destination after miracles were attributed to the
saint. | | 
Cast of the seal of the Guardians of Scotland (NAS reference RH17/1/17)
|
Another
explanation for the relics became current by the 12th century. In this version
the bishop of Patras (Saint Regulus) removed the relics about AD345, sailed beyond
the Mediterranean and was shipwrecked at Kilrymont, where he founded a church.
Coincidentally Saint Andrew appeared in a vision to the Pictish king (Hungus or
Angus), who was about to fight a major battle against the Saxon king (Athelstan),
and promised the Picts victory. The grateful king welcomed Regulus and the relics
and endowed the fledgling church with the lands around the bay where the saint
had landed. The main problem with this story is that the kings mentioned reigned
in the 8th or 9th centuries, not the 4th.
The Regulus legend was publicised
by Scottish kings, nobles and churchmen from the 12th century onwards for political
reasons. Scottish independence had come under threat from England since the late
11th century, and the Scottish Church was contesting a claim to primacy by the
archbishop of York. In the medieval world precedence was important. By promoting
the story of Saint Andrew's choice of Scotland in the 4th century, the Scots acquired
a top-rank patron saint, a separate identity from England, and a date for the
supposed foundation of the Scottish Church, predating the conversion of England
and Ireland to Christianity by several centuries.
In
the Wars of Independence, fought by Scotland in the 13th and 14th centuries, the
Scots used the story as part of the diplomatic battle to persuade the papacy to
recognise Scotland as an independent kingdom. Pope Boniface, in a papal bull of
1299, demanded that Edward I of England end the war against Scotland, and reminded
Edward how Scotland "was converted, and won to the unity of the Christian
faith, by the venerable relics of the blessed Apostle Andrew, with a great outpouring
of the divine power".
It should come as no surprise therefore that
reference is made to St Andrew in the most famous claim to Scottish self-determination
and what is probably our greatest documentary treasure: the letter of the Barons
of Scotland to Pope John XXII, dated April 1320, popularly known as the Declaration
of Arbroath. The Declaration of Arbroath is written in Latin, but the English
translation of the paragraph in question reads:
"The high qualities and
deserts of these people, were they not otherwise manifest, gain glory enough from
this: that the King of kings and Lord of lords, our Lord Jesus Christ, after his
Passion and Resurrection, called them, even though settled in the uttermost parts
of the earth, almost the first to His most holy faith. Nor would He have them
confirmed in that faith by merely anyone but by the first of His Apostles - by
calling, though second or third rank - the most gentle Saint Andrew, the Blessed
Peter's brother, and desired him to keep them under his protection as their patron
for ever."
The image of Saint Andrew thereafter came to symbolise
Scotland and another 12th century legend - that the saint was crucified on a 'crux
decussata' (an X-shaped cross) - provided a simpler symbol. The Scottish heraldic
term for such a cross is a 'saltire', from the old French word 'saultoir', meaning
a type of stirrup. | | 
Declaration
of Arbroath (NAS reference SP13/7).
Read more about the Declaration of Arbroath. |
It was used on seals in Scotland from about 1180 onwards, sometimes along with the lion rampant, which was the heraldic symbol of the Scottish crown. In 1286, when Scotland was ruled by the Guardians of Scotland in the absence of a king, the saint was depicted on the Guardians' seal, used to authenticate their legal documents and communications to the rest of Europe. The seal included the inscription: "Andrea Scotis dux esto compatriotis" (Andrew be leader of the compatriot Scots). The images below show examples of two documents with the St Andrew and lion rampant seals.
Order by Edward I for payment of 2s. a day to Master Alan de Dunfres, Chancellor of Scotland, and his clerk, 4 Jul 1292 (NAS reference RH5/55) and warrant from the Guardians to the Chamberlain of Scotland to pay Master Thomas de Carnoto, late Chancellor, a quarter's salary, 18 Aug 1291 (NAS reference RH5/101). The second of these is sealed with the lion rampant seal on the front and with the St Andrew seal on the reverse.
Details from the documents mentioned above, showing the lion rampant seal (RH5/101) and St Andrew (RH5/55).
|
You
are in: NAS> About us> News and features>Saint Andrew
Print
this page
E-mail
this page 
Previous
page 
