| Where: | Dunfermline, Fife at St Margaret's Cave and Dunfermline Abbey with Angelus at St Margaret's Cave, Prayers at the Abbey and Procession from Glen Gates on Bridge Street to St Margaret's Memorial Church for Mass |
| When: | Sunday near 10th June |
| Time: | From 12 noon-4pm with Angelus at 12, Prayers at 1pm, Procession at 2pm, Mass at 3pm |
Saint Margaret of Scotland was the Queen of Malcolm III; she’s known as the Patroness or Pearl of Scotland, and is the only female Scottish saint. Born into the English Anglo-Saxon royal family, the House of Wessex, in circa 1045, she influenced her husband to reform the church in Scotland, established the religious house at Dunfermline, performed numerous charitable works and established a boat service over the Fourth of Forth to assist pilgrims (the settlements she founded are still named North and South Queensferry in her honour). St Margaret’s Cave is where she withdrew to pray privately, and now visitors may descend steps into the hillside from a small building in the Glen Bridge carpark to the little cavern with a statue of the saint at prayer. Margaret was buried at Dunfermline in 1093. In recognition of her important role, charitable works and piety, she was canonised in 1250 and her feast day is celebrated on 10th June each year; Pilgrimages began in the same year , when Margaret’s sacred remains were translated to their new resting place in the Abbey Church at Dunfermline. Today, the Pilgrimage begins with the Angelus at St Margaret’s Cave and continues with Prayers at her tomb at the Abbey and a procession to the St Margaret Memorial church, followed by Mass with the Archbishop and priests of the Diocese. The procession includes dignitaries, clergy and pupils from the local schools as well as the Saint’s relics ( a shoulder bone housed in an elaborate reliquary which normally resides in the Memorial Church, and is processed under a protective pallium) and is led by a pipe band.
Helpful Hints
In 2026 it was on Sunday 14th June- 2027 date is yet to be confirmed but likely to be 13th. It’s usually on a Sunday near the 10th. The starting point for the Procession is at Glen Gates near the Seven Kings pub, and the route is along the High Street.
Click here for the Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/EdinburghRCdiocese
and here for the event listing: https://archedinburgh.org/event-guide-st-margaret-pilgrimage-dunfermline/?fbclid=IwY2xjawSKjWRleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETA1QzN2eWZUdGJZNWI2UUdYc3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHvw5Vf2YWmBIJGlEXZXnwrg2ZH3gPdrxR6co4ZIia8Va7XFgDCq4iTvaii2Z_aem_gIp_3dAMZUh1de4wMO56pA
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