We’ll soon be heading north to Scotland on our annual pilgrimage. The Scottish landscape and natural scenery are fabulous, but some of the little fishing villages are quaintly picturesque too. To me, born in London and resident for nearly 50 years in landlocked Derbyshire, the seaside seems like another world, so it’s always a treat whenever we go there.
The picturesque harbour at St Monans
One of the fishing villages that caught our eye during our last trip to Scotland was St Monans in the county of Fife. The village is named for the eponymous 6th century saint who came from Ireland to Scotland to spread the teachings of Christianity. At its heart is the harbour, overlooked by traditional fishermen’s cottages, some with white walls, others colourfully painted. They date predominantly from the 18th and 19th centuries, and although most have since been significantly altered, their origins are clear if you know how to read the signs.
More harbour views…seems like another world born in London and resident for nearly 50 years in landlocked Derbyshire!
Many of the cottages are roofed with distinctive red pantiles. This style, which is found widely in villages on the east coast of Scotland, originated across the North Sea in the Low Countries (the Netherlands and Belgium). The pantiles were used as ballast on trading ships returning from mainland Europe, and were then adopted as roofing materials when the ships were unloaded at St Monans.
Pantiles can be seen on several of these cottages. Note also, on some of the roofs, the “crow-stepped” gables that are believed to have been developed to break up the airflow and protect the tiles from being blown off in a gale.
To my eyes, the most striking feature of some of these cottages is the forestairs, an outdoor staircase leading to a door on the first floor. Fewer than ten examples survive today, but in the past they would have been much more common. They hark back to the heydays of the fishing industry, when living accommodation would often have been on the first floor, above a boat store, workshop and sail store on the ground floor.
The outdoor staircases (forestairs) leading to doors on the first floor are an echo of the time when the residents of these cottages were fishermen.
Although it is the historic residential buildings that give St Monans its character, the church is also worthy of comment. It dates from 1369, and was originally founded by King David II of Scotland in gratitude for his having survived a shipwreck on the coast nearby. Originally built as a small house of Dominican friars, it was restored in the early 19th century and now serves as the local parish church. When viewed from most angles the church has the sea as its background. It is widely claimed to be the nearest to the sea of any church in Scotland.
Photo credit: By Jim Bain, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=9222537
A little further outside St Monans is the last remaining windmill in Fife, a relic of the salt industry. Large scale salt production began here in the late 18th century, and the windmill was used to pump seawater into the saltpans where it would be evaporated to reveal the finished product. The industry lasted only a few decades before closing down in 1825. The remains of the saltpans are unimpressive, little more than a few grassy mounds and depressions close to the shoreline. The windmill, however, has been restored and acts as a reminder of an industry that is unknown to most people today.
The (reconstructed) windmill, and the (barely visible) humps and bumps in the grass between it and the sea, are all that remains of a salt production industry that closed down 200 years ago.
By no stretch of the imagination could St Monans be described as spectacular. But there’s lots to admire there, including glimpses of a world and a lifestyle that is a total mystery to those of us who live our lives a very long way from the sea. Definitely worth a visit, if you’re ever in that part of Scotland.
Now I'm 64 
There are some lovely former fishing villages all along the Fife coast. Gosh it has been years since I went there…
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Yes, it’s a part of Scotland that deserves to be better known.
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I remember being able to see a bit of Fife from the castle grounds in Edinburgh.
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Great views from Edinburgh castle, but only on a clear day…and there’s not so many of those in Scotland!
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Looks a beautiful place. The red tiled roofs look similar to those in Whitby.
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Interesting. I wonder if the Whitby tiles have a similar origin? It would make sense, both places being east coast ports.
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I lived on the other side of the Forth to Fife (in South Queensferry) for over 22 years, so used to love visiting the picturesque villages along this stretch of coast. It’s a very long time since I’ve been back!
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The Scottish tourist industry seems to focus primarily on the Highlands and the whisky belt, but there are lots of other gems if you know where to look,
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Indeed there are…happy looking! 🙂
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Like you, having lived in landlocked places most of my life, I love the seaside and don’t make it there nearly often enough for my taste. St. Monans looks like a lovely village with beautiful views. I wouldn’t mind being buried in a similar cemetery like the one that surrounds the church–one could do worse than having eternal seaside views.
I hope your trip to Scotland will be wonderful.
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Yes, a good place for a burial, so close to Nature and so far from urban ugliness.
Currently in the Outer Hebrides, islands off the north-west coast of Scotland. Beautiful coastal scenery, excellent variety of birdlife, red deer grazing in the garden to the rear of our accommodation, but the weather is a bit challenging!
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I hope you can enjoy your travels despite the challenging weather. Or better yet, that the weather will improve while you are in one of your favourite regions.
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I’d never heard of pantiles before, so thank you for teaching me something new.
How do people in the UK generally feel about living in structures that have existed for hundreds of years? I live in an apartment building in New York that was built in the late 1950s or early 1960s. The idea of living in a centuries-old building makes me uncomfortable. Who knows what’s under it, or in the walls, or what it may have been used for in the past?
I realize that’s a very American point of view and probably amusing to people in the UK.
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For most Brits it’s not an issue as they live in houses built since the end of WW2 (mine dates from the late 1970s), but many hanker after an older property, one with “character”. For these folk the history of the building fires the imagination, setting their home apart from those of the masses. But there are practical issues to consider with historic buildings – can they be cost-effectively heated, is there any damp or mould, are the foundations stable? It’s all a matter of personal preference – and financial resources too!
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A very beautiful place. Enjoy your trip north!
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Yes, it’s definitely underrated. Scotland is good so far, but the weather is rather challenging!
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Mary has always said she would like to visit Scotland, especially the west coast for gardens.
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Go for it!
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