IMAGES TAKEN NEAR TO
Chapel Street, KEITH, AB55 5AY

This is Keith's Roman Catholic church. It was built in 1831-2, and the design is said to be based on the church of Santa Maria degli Angeli in Rome. Inside the church is a painting, "The Incredulity of St Thomas" by François Dubois, gifted by King Charles X of France.

A well-appointed park with play equipment.

The south elevation, from Cuthil Park. It looks as if this image isn't straight, but that's a optical illusion because the outer wall is built on a gentle slope.

The side of the church viewed from the park.

When originally built, the church had no dome. This was added in 1916 to a design by Charles Ménart, who also extended the church and remodelled the interior. The copper dome has been refurbished more than once, most recently in 2012. See Image

These are the windows in the north wall of the church. The central one is a memorial window erected after the First World War. On the left is Our Lady of Aberdeen and on the right St Andrew, patron saint of Scotland. These two windows are the work of Dom Ninian Sloane of Pluscarden Abbey, and were created in the 1970s.

These are the windows in the south wall of the church. The central one shows Christ the Good Shepherd, and was erected in the early 20th century. Those to left and right are the work of Dom Ninian Sloane of Pluscarden Abbey, and were created in the 1970s. On the left depicts St Margaret of Scotland, and on the right the Blessed John Ogilvie, a native of Keith, who has since been canonised as St John Ogilvie.

The interior is very plain for a Roman Catholic church. It was remodelled in 1916 by Charles Ménart, who also added the dome. Note the painting Image] above the altar.

When Father Walter Lovi sought donations towards the building of Image], one of those to whom he applied was King Charles X of France. The king had once passed through Keith while exiled at Holyrood after the French revolution, and had been lustily cheered by the citizens, so he not only gave a generous donation, but also commissioned François Dubois to paint an altarpiece as a gift for the new church. The subject is 'The Incredulity of St Thomas', a topic already famously painted in 1602-1603 by Caravaggio. The work was completed in 1828, shortly before Charles X was deposed in 1830, and the painting was lost. However the indefatigable Father Lovi travelled again to Paris, discovered the painting in the Louvre, and brought it to Keith in time for the opening of the church. The back of the painting bears a stamp of Charles X's monogram, and a brass plate on the front reads, "Carolus X, Rex Gallorum Christianissimus dona dedit AD 1828" ("Charles X, most Christian King of the French, made this gift AD 1828"). The painting is highly regarded as a very fine work of art.

Dome refurbishment.