Few small islands off the western coast of Scotland can be more visited than the idyllic Isle of Iona. It has very strong links with the Christian church and that alone makes it a magnet for thousands of visitors each year. For hundreds of years it has been the isolated home of a magnificent abbey. This is also a royal burial place of note. For centuries Scottish kings were laid to rest there. It also the final resting place of several other European kings.
The Island Was a Base From Ancient Times
Remnants of habitation have proved that the island has been in use since earliest times. Worked flint remnants, a Bronze Age burial cairn and an Iron Age fort all indicate occupation in the past. Iona continued to be used as a base for several centuries by the native tribes of Hebridean seaboard. It was the coming of a self exiled monk to Iona that really put this tiny Heridean island on the map. That monk later became a revered saint and Iona became a burial island for the nobility.
The Name of That Saint Was Columba
In the middle of the 6th century Scots from Ireland were colonising Dalriata on Scotland's west coast. In 563 an Irish monk and his followers landed on a lonely beach in southern Iona. That man was Colm Cille who was to become better known as St Columba. When Columba was studying in Ireland he is said to have copied a sacred religious manuscript without permission. That escapade eventually led to a deadly battle and Columba's voluntary exile from his native Ireland.
Columba Builds a Religious Community on the Island
Columba built his base on that small island off the southern tip of the Isle of Mull. The bays where he is said to have have landed are still a place of pilgrimage to this day. Follow the road west to the simple golf course and then southwards by a lochan to a bouldery beach with several large cairns. These cairns are said to have been built by pilgrims to the island. This is an excellent place to see the famous Iona marble and a disused marble quarry sits just to the east.
The Saint Spreads Christianity
From his base at Iona Columba spread his word of god throughout the western highlands and islands. He and his followers fanned out through the area making many converts to Christianity. It is said that Columba saw the Loch Ness Monster on his way north to the Picts in Inverness. Whether that old legend is true is open to question. Columba certainly met King Brude of the Picts and is said to have converted the king to Christianity.
Iona Became a Resting Place for Royalty
Iona was a place of miracles in Columba's time and in later ages was a place of royal burial. Many Scottish Kings were interred there as were several other kings. For a time the vikings drove the monks away with their bloodthirsty raids. Iona recovered and a magnificent stone abbey replaced Columba's more simple structure. Today the island is still a religious retreat and is now the home of the Iona Community. They work for peace and social justice through the power of Jesus Christ.
Dave McFadzean - Based in southwest Scotland I have been a freelance travel writer and photographer for nearly two decades. Building up a strong market for ...
