“The Metropolis of the Kingdom of Darkness”

Showcasing 1000 years of St Andrews remarkable history, these informative tours explore the historic quarters and include forgotten historical details that will not be found elsewhere. 

For its size, St Andrews has one of the most extraordinary and chequered histories, the merciful, the barbaric, the spiritual and the fanatical. This unique quarter of Scotland has seen it all in abundance. 

Spanning 5 decades of research by your guide and author Richard Falconer, learn about the unusual, the surprising, the intriguing and the forgotten on this insightful and educational guided walking tour around the historic sites of this ancient and unique city.

Over a number of centuries St Andrews was the seat of the Catholic Church in Scotland. Known as the ‘Rome of Scotland’ this was the homage of Kings, Queens, Princes, Princesses and millions of pilgrims over the centuries coming mostly from Europe to see the relics of St Andrew.

In 1559 however the Reformation changed the course of St Andrews and Scotland forever. St Andrews Cathedral was sacked and the Catholic Church overthrown. Stripped of papal power and glory, both pilgrim and merchant stopped coming. What little remained would become known to future generations as the “Metropolis of the Kingdom of Darkness”.

Forgotten and wasted, it wasn’t until the mid-nineteenth century, following centuries of neglect that St Andrews then rose from the dung hills of disease and decay to emerge as a revitalised destination for a new breed of pilgrim, comprising the golfer, the academic and the explorer.

Welcome to St Andrews!