Rosslyn Chapel was established as a family church and a number of family members have been laid to rest in the grounds. A plan, available in the ‘history hut’ on the south side of the Chapel, will help to identify individual graves.
The most prominent memorial is to Francis Robert St Clair-Erskine, the fourth Earl of Rosslyn (1833-1890). He was instrumental in instigating restoration work inside the Chapel and was buried, at his request, in the Chapel grounds. He was an accomplished poet and published several volumes of his works. The following inscription, taken from his volume of sonnets, is inscribed on the monument –
Safe, safe at last from doubt, from storm, from strife
Moored in the depths of Christ’s unfathomed grave
With spirits of just, with dear ones lost
And found again, this strange ineffable life
Is Life Eternal; Death here has no place
And they are welcome best who suffered most.
We enter Life but through the gates of Death.
