Message #17522

[Bianca]

When Was Govan Church Founded?




It is accepted amongst most historians and archaeologists that Govan's foundation cannot be dated as early as the 5th or 6th century. This is despite the fact that several Scottish medieval chronicles mention the setting up of a church at Govan by St. Constantine in the 6th century.

There is also evidence from Irish sources that agree with this but there is no hard and fast historical documentation of anything in Scotland at this time. Even the existence of St Kentigern, better known as St Mungo, is difficult to establish. However stories do not come from nowhere even if, like much history itself, they can be interpreted as little more than propaganda.

The Govan sarcophagus has been suggested as being that of St Constantine himself, in which he was interred after his body was brought back from Kintyre. However if one accepts the possibility of Govan having been founded in the 6th century and thus around the time when the historical Arthur is thought to have lived, could the sarcophagus have been created then?