Liberton Kirk is a long-established church occupying a prominent position on Kirkgate at the top of Liberton Brae in S Edinburgh, 3 miles (5 km) south southeast of the city centre. Opened in 1816, the present building is the work of James Gillespie Graham (1776 - 1855), built in the Gothic style on the foundations of a previous church which had proven too small for an increasing population. There is some evidence that a Celtic chapel existed here as early as the 9th C., although it is certain that King David I granted permission for a chapel at Liberton in 1143. Liberton Kirk is rectangular in plan, with a three-stage square tower at the western end, which has a corbelled-out parapet at its top. Inside the pulpit is centred on the long northern wall, with oak pews and a substantial wooden gallery wrapped around three sides. The church is surrounded by a large churchyard, which contains some fine 18th C. monuments, and benefits from modernised halls on the opposite side of Kirkgate.
