The story of the present church stems from the acquisition of the lands of Corstorphine by Adam Forrester from William More of Abercorn in 1347.

     Adam Forrester, a very successful and influential burgess of Edinburgh, was twice provost of that city and held several other public offices. The Exchequer Rolls of the period list his many monetary rewards for the skillful exercise of his duties, including that of "Custumar' which made him responsible for levying customs dues; in recognition of his public service he was knighted in later life.

     He possessed other properties and estates including Nether Liberton, Whitburn and Niddry but after acquiring Corstorphine he built a castle and settled there.

     Sir Adam amassed a large part of his fortune by trading with England and it is noteworthy to find in the Rotuli Scotiae that a license was granted to him to bring grain into Scotland without payment of duty.

     After he established himself in Corstorphine, Sir Adam sought and obtained permission of the Abbot and Chapter of Holyrood to build a votive chapel next to the then existing church of St. Mary and to provide funds for the maintenance of three Chaplains. It is not known for how long this old church of St. Mary had been in existence and the earliest reference to it is in a Charter of 1128, when it was attached by King David I to the then newly founded Abby of Holyrood.

      Sir Adam died in 1405 shortly after completion of his chapel in which he would have been buried and although its site has not been positively identified, it would certainly have been within the precincts of the present church, probably in the area of the nave joining the south transept.

     Following Sir Adam's death, his widow, Margaret, greatly increased the endowments of the chapel by providing funds for supporting two additional chaplains and two choir boys. His elder son, Sir John, who succeeded Sir Adam in most of his state appointments, set about the physical enlargement of the chapel to accommodate the bigger establishment and founded, in 1429, the Collegiate Church of St John the Baptist. Confirmation of his foundation was ultimately granted in 1444 by Pope Eugenius and is commemorated in the presented chancel by a memorial tablet to the first provost, Nicholas Bannatyne, who guided the development of the Collegiate church until 1473. So the two churches functioned side by side—normal parish worship taking place in the old church of St Mary, while the obligations of rendering the daily divine office and stipulated masses were fulfilled in the Collegiate church according to its constitution.

     There were many Collegiate churches created in Scotland around this time. The term 'collegiate' signified a constitution whereby a dean or provost presided over a 'college' or 'chapter' of priests who usually held the adjacent parishes or charges. These clergy lived in their own manses and had their own laid-down duties regarding the carrying out of the stated daily services.

     After the Reformation the College was dissolved and in 1593 parish worship was transferred from the old church of St Mary to the Collegiate building. In the year 1650-51 the building suffered from the occupation by Cromwell's troops for almost twelve months and although that was only one of several such incidents in earlier, turbulent times, the defacement of the effigies and memorials is likely to have taken place then.

     Although many alterations and additions have taken place over the centuries, much of the original medieval building remains. The tower, the south transept or baptistry, the chancel and the sacristy or vestry have survived relatively unscathed. The entrance porch was probably added about 1646 and may have been built from some of the remnants of the old parish church of St Mary, which was demolished at that time. The nave is largely a reconstruction and the north transept which was added in 1646, was enlarged in 1828, when a massive extension and alteration took place by doubling the width of the nave by the area north of the three arches. The demand for seating at that time necessitated the construction of a gallery which transversed from the north to the south part of the central area. The chancel was used as a vestibule and the main door was opened out under the east window. The architect commissioned for this work was William Burn. In 1905 a 'restoration' of the building to, as near as possible, its former medieval appearance, took place by re-opening the chancel, removing the gallery and stairways and closing the entrance under the east window. The architect engaged to be in charge was George Henderson.

(Information taken from Corstorphine Old Parish Church A Short History and Guide by S.H. Jackson, Third Edition September 1993)

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