J M Corner / Wikimedia / Public Domain

Parishioners in Marnoch, Strathbogie, stage the first protest walk-out in the "Ten Years' Conflict" that culminated in the Disruption of 1843 and founding of the Free Church of Scotland. They were objecting to the "intrusion" (imposition) of a new minister against the wishes of the congregation.
1843

Disruption of 1843

The Disruption of 1843 is a landmark event in Scottish religious history. It was a schism within the Church of Scotland, primarily due to disagreements over the civil government’s role in church matters, particularly issues related to patronage, where local landowners had the right to appoint ministers, often against the wishes of the congregation.

Almost a third of the clergy and congregations of the established Church of Scotland left to form the Free Church of Scotland. Those who left believed in the spiritual independence of the Church and its freedom from state interference.

The Disruption significantly impacted the religious landscape of Scotland, leading to decades of division and animosity, but also to a revitalized missionary and evangelical spirit within the newly formed Free Church.

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