In 1689 after the abdication of James VII/II, the Reformed Church in Scotland divided over the issue of the Stuart Succession. Two churches came into being: the Presbyterian Church established by King William, and the Episcopal Church which remained loyal to the Stuart cause. One consequence was that St Giles' Cathedral, Edinburgh as it then was, came under the Established Church's ministry, and the Episcopal Diocese was left without a Cathedral. For a time the Episcopal residue of that congregation worshipped in an old woollen mill in Carrubber's Close, near the site of the present Old St Paul's Church. This was used as a Pro-Cathedral until the early 19th century, when this function was served by the Church of St Paul in York Pace.
When the Episcopal Church was released from the restrictions of the Penal Laws in 1792, people began to dream of having a purpose-built Cathedral. A site at the foot of the Mound was contemplated. But it was only in the middle of the 19th century that William Walker's unmarried daughters, Barbara and Mary, proposed to bequeath their Drumsheugh Estates to fund the building of a Cathedral on the East Coates site. A Trust Deed was drawn up which came into effect in 1870 on the decease of Mary, the last surviving sister. The Trustees were to include the Lord Provost of Edinburgh, The Treasurer of the Bank of Scotland, the Depute Keeper of the Signet and other civil and legal luminaries.
The Walker Trustees decided to hold an architectural competition and in 1872 all Edinburgh was entertained by the drawings of the six schemes submitted under pseudonyms and put on public exhibition. Under some controversy, Sir George Gilbert Scott won the competition but was asked to add two additional towers.
The foundation stone was laid on 21 May 1874 by the Duke of Buccleuch and Queensberry, whose family had been so generous and loyal to Scottish Episcopacy over the previous hundred years. Inside the stone was placed a bottle with green mountings containing a copy of the Trust Deed, the Edinburgh Post Office Directory, Oliver and Boyd's Almanc, newspapers and coins. In preparation for the opening of the Cathedral a congregation had been formed to worship in a temporary iron church erected on the site now occupied by the Song School. Beginning on 26 May 1876, it was ministered to by the Dean, James Montgomery, and two chaplains, and grew rapidly. The Nave of the Cathedral was opened on 25th January 1879 and from that day, daily services have been held in the Cathedral.
In the first twenty years of its existence the Cathedral had started up no fewer than six congregations in addition tom gathering its own adherents. Many of those churches still thrive. In addition the cathedral devoted time and energy to furthering the missionary cause at home and abroad. Early on the Cathedral assisted in the formation of an Industrial dwelling Company. Its purpose was to make available dwellings for labourers at reasonable rents and with good sanitary conditions. During the First World War there was much activity in the cathedral and its Missions on behalf of those who were serving in the Forces. A number of clergy became Chaplains to the Forces and the Revd Pierce Egan died in the Middle East to grief of all. After the war there was anxiety about the state of religion in the country. A great missionary campaign was launched in 1923, and in 1924 a Scottish Church Congress was founded with the Provost as its Chairman. Its policy was to be positive, persuasive and progressive and its aim to win the whole country for Christ. The effect of the Second World War on the life of the cathedral was disruptive rather than destructive. Bombs fell by nearby Gorgie. The "blacked-out" cathedral enabled services and meetings to continue. After the War, the Cathedral has focussed on the active concern for the disadvantaged at home and abroad and for ecological matters with many groups and individuals such as Amnesty International.
