Over the past 150 years, there have been multiple attempts to demolish the Old Town icon, which dates back to the 17th century, to improve traffic flow at the busy Royal Mile-South Bridge junction.
Despite the church having had a regular active congregation well into the last century, calls were being made to raze the historic “encumbrance” as far back as the 1880s.
However, it would be the advent of the motorcar that would truly place the Tron under threat.
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In 1934, a motion was put forth to the Streets and Buildings Committee at Edinburgh Town Council to consider the widening of the roadway at the corner of the High Street and South Bridge, which had long been branded a “bottleneck” for traffic.
“What about a Happy New Year,” quipped one commentator during an early meeting, to which Councillor Crawford, who was in favour of the plan, responded that locals could just as easily usher in the new year in an open space.
Fortunately for the Tron Kirk, public opposition to the proposal was fiercer than the likes of Councillor Crawford had bargained for.
One former Edinburgh resident wrote to The Scotsman to vent their disgust at the possibility of razing the then 300-year-old ecclesiastical landmark.
They commented: “I am horrified to find the demolition of the Tron Kirk discussed. I scarcely know how to express my horror and amazement.
“The reasons given for such a proposal seem to me utterly futile. First, the church is described as ugly; it is not. Then it is said to get in the way of traffic, but surely it actually serves to control and divert the traffic and a large open space at that point would be far more dangerous than the present state of things.
“At that rate why not clear St Giles’, which certainly sticks out into the roadway? Why preserve anything? Have we no sentiment, no feeling, no respect for antiquity?”
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The outbreak of the Second World War put a halt on any plans to clear the Tron Kirk, but the reprieve would prove only temporary.
In April 1950, Edinburgh Town Council once again discussed plans to widen South Bridge by demolishing the historic church.
The planning committee decided that if the then vacant role of minister at the Tron Kirk could not be filled, then they would proceed with effecting “improvements” to the area.
After street widening had been completed, a garden would be set out on the remainder of the site.
Predictably, there were once again a number of voices against the Tron Kirk proposals.
One of the most vocal was Betty D. Walls, a long-time congregation member, who wrote in The Scotsman: “I might be accused of being sentimental in my attitude. It is difficult not to be sentimental about old Edinburgh, but I make my plea against the removal of this well-known landmark on patriotic and aesthetic grounds.
“There are buildings which deface our beautiful city, but the Tron is surely not one of them,a nd the view down the High Street will lose a great deal of its charm if the Tron steeple no longer provides a background to the crown of St Giles’.”
Ultimately, the supporters of the Tron Kirk would prove victorious, and, in 1953, the iconic church was acquired by the town council and saved from demolition.
But while the almost 400-year-old landmark is no longer under immediate threat of destruction, its future remains somewhat shaky for a building of its vintage.
Funding issues and a failure to find a sustainable long-term use for the derelict Tron Kirk have seen the building remain on the ‘at risk’ register for a number of years.
A glimmer of hope arrived in May 2021, when it was announced that the Scottish Historic Buildings Trust (SHBT) were to take over the historic 17th century Royal Mile church on a 125-year lease in order to set out a future vision for the building.
As things stand, however, a long-term plan for the Tron Kirk has yet to be outlined.
Demolition may not be imminent, but it might be a while before we hear the bells ring in jubilation again at the Tron Kirk.
