The two pillars referred to by the bishop as unsafe were probably the east pillars of the crossing, which are now removed, but the two west pillars still stand. They form the east end of the existing nave. Sir D. Wilson believes that, when the choir was taken down, the vault which contained the remains of the kings and queens of Scotland was built in the south-east angle of the nave, and their coffins transferred into it.
Holyrood Palace was the principal residence in Scotland of James VI. and Charles I. The latter took considerable interest in the church, and wished to restore it as the chapel royal. He had the west end re-edified, as the style of the architecture of the upper portion and the inscriptions thereon bear witness.
James VII. of Scotland (while Duke of York) lived for a considerable time in the palace, and had a wish to restore the church and make it the place of meeting of the Knights of St. Andrew. But his operations were disapproved of by the populace, and all the fittings were destroyed by the mob in 1688. The tombs of the royal family were, at the same time, desecrated, and the remains scattered over the pavement. After the middle of the eighteenth century an attempt was made to restore the nave, and the roof was covered with heavy stone flags. But the materials employed were too heavy for the old walls, and the new roof fell in 1768, drawing down with it the whole of the vaulting and clerestory. At the same time, the tombs of the kings were again pillaged, and Captain Grose describes having seen some of the remains exposed and defiled by the populace.
The nave ([Fig. 482]), which now alone survives in a ruinous state, consists of eight bays, the main piers of which are complete on the south side, but are only represented by two fragments on the north side. The vaulting of the south aisle also survives, but that of the north aisle is gone. The north wall of the aisle, however, still stands, and the east and west ends of the nave are restored. The north-west tower is still preserved, but its companion tower, which formerly stood at the south-west angle, was demolished when the palace was rebuilt in the seventeenth century. Some remains of the cloister are still observable on the south side of the nave.
The chief part of the architecture is of the first pointed period; but at the south-east angle, the doorway ([Fig. 483]), which led from the cloister into the nave, is of genuine, though late, Norman architecture. The doorway had a nook shaft on each side, the divided cushion caps of which survive. The arch is round, and contains two orders, both ornamented with varieties of zigzags. These orders are enclosed with a label, containing a double row of square facets and sinkings. Some alterations have taken place in the building adjoining the doorway. On the west side of it runs the wall of the south aisle, the roof of which rested on a ledge at some height above the doorway. Under this ledge are the windows of
Fig. 482.—Holyrood Abbey. Plan.