Torphichen Preceptory West Lothian, Village, History, Date, Knights Hospitaller Scottish historic architecture
Torphichen Preceptory
13th century building near Bathgate, West Lothian, central Scotland, UK.
post updated 8 April 2025
Location: In Torphichen village, near Bathgate, West Lothian, Scotland, United Kingdom
Torpichen Preceptory History
The tower and transepts of a church built by the Knights Hospitaller of the Order of St John of Jerusalem in the 13th century, much altered.
Photo taken on 20 August 2005:
West Lothian historic building photo : JThomas / Torphichen Preceptory
Torphichen Preceptory Scotland
The Tower, Transepts and Chancel remain from the original Preceptory. The building was presented to the The Hospitaller Knights of St John by Kind David I.
Torphichen Preceptory was the Order of St. John of Jerusalem’s main base from the early 12th century until the mid-16th century.
The original HQ of the Knights Hospitaller of the Order of St John of Jerusalem in Scotland, kite aerial photograph taken on 4 October 2009, at 12:42:
West Lothian building photo : Dr John Wells, CC BY 3.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
This headquarters was used to raise funds and ‘soldiers’ for the Crusades but also acted as a sanctuary. The Preceptory was rebuilt in 1756 occupying the site of the original Nave and with domestic buildings located off a traditional cloistered courtyard to the north of the Preceptory.
Torpichen Preceptory Opening Times
Summer Sat (11am to 5pm) & Sun + Bank Hols (2pm to 5pm): please check with owners, correct at the time of writing.
This is a historic small village located north of Bathgate in West Lothian, Scotland. The village is approximately 18 miles (29 km) west of Edinburgh, 7 miles (11 km) south-east of Falkirk and 4 miles (6.4 km) south-west of Linlithgow.
The village had a population of 570 in the (2011 Census) and a population of 710 in 2016. The placename may be Gaelic in origin, e.g., “Tóir Féichín” (the boundary/sanctuary of St Féichín), Tor Fithichean (Hill of the Ravens), or partly from Brythonic “tre fychan” (little town) or small hill.
Historic Scottish Buildings close by to Torpichen Preceptory
Linlithgow Palace – this palace was one of the principal residences of the monarchs of Scotland in the 15th and 16th centuries.
Historic Scottish Buildings
Lennoxlove House
Lennoxlove House photo © Adrian Welch
Crichton Castle
Crichton Castle photo © Adrian Welch
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