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Lauderdale Aisle, St Mary's Church

St Mary’s Church, Haddington
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Admire the monumental effigies of James VI’s lord chancellor and his wife in a great medieval church.

Built in the mid‑1400s, the Lauderdale Aisle was originally the sacristy of St Mary’s — a room where a priest prepared for services and stored vestments and other religious items.

After the Reformation of 1560, the Maitland family of Lethington took over the space and used it as their burial place.

John, 2nd Lord Maitland and Lord Chancellor to King James VI, was buried here with his wife in 1624. Their impressive marble effigies still remain today and are among the best‑preserved memorials from the 1600s in Scotland.

A stone church with gothic-style architecture stands at the end of a path running through a graveyard, with headstones on both sides and trees surrounding the area under a cloudy sky.
A large, ornate stone tomb monument inside a church, featuring four carved effigies lying side by side beneath arched canopies. Above them, an elaborate crest with heraldic figures and decorative carvings fills the upper section. Inscribed panels surround the effigies, and a wrought‑iron chandelier hangs in the foreground. Stone walls, wooden benches, and a large information board complete the surrounding space.
A carved stone panel depicting a stylized medieval helmet with plumes and tassels, shown in low relief against a rectangular background of marbled stone.

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