In the year 1135AD, Earl Magnus Erlendsson of Orkney was canonised.

Around the same time Saint Magnus' revered remains were taken from their resting place at Christchurch in Birsay, where they had lain for 20 years, and moved east. Their destination was the unassuming little Church of St Olaf in a small village by the sea named Kirkjuvagr - a town later to become known as Kirkwall.

Some years later the saint's relics were moved again - this time to be interred in a massive stone cathedral that had been raised in his honour.

The story of the founding of St Magnus Cathedral is well documented within the pages of the Orkneyinga Saga. In a tale of political intrigue and dirty deeds, the saga tells us that the cathedral was built upon the instructions of Earl Rognvald Kolsson, who had been advised, by his father Kol, to:

However, Rognvald's intentions in building the cathedral were not completely honourable. Born Kali Kolsson, the son of Kol and Gunhild - the niece of Saint Magnus, Kali changed his name to Rognvald after Rognvald Brusison.

Seeking to claim his great-uncle's half-share of Orkney, Rognvald soon began looking eagerly to the earldom.

In 1129 Rognvald's chance finally came - he was handed the earldom by the Norwegian King Sigurd the Crusader. At this time he did nothing about claiming his share of the earldom, leaving it for some time until it was ratified by King Harald, Sigurd's successor.

Rognvald assembled a fleet and set sail for Orkney with the intention of overthrowing the existing Earl of Orkney, Paul.

After battling severe weather, Rognvald and his men landed in the islands but were met with fierce resistance.

Not surprisingly Paul had no intention of giving up his earldom without a fight.

It was then that Rognvald's father, Kol, had an idea. Rather than wage all-out war he suggested that Rognvald should try and secure the earldom by other, less direct, means.

Kol instructed Rognvald to announce to the people of Orkney that once he became Earl of Orkney he would raise the finest church the North had ever seen. This church was to be in memory of his saintly uncle Magnus, a man whom the islanders venerated above all.

While Rognvald was capturing the hearts of the people of Orkney, behind the scenes he had Earl Paul kidnapped and spirited out of Orkney. The dispossessed Paul was later murdered in Caithness.

However, despite the underhand tactics, Rognvald was good to his word.

With the Earldom in Rognvald's hands, work on the cathedral began. Under the direction of the wily Kol the building work commenced in 1137.

The ambitious project was to be built on a prime site by the shore - which at that time came up as far as the current Kirk Green. However, funds were low and Rognvald's grandiose construction scheme soon ran short of money. Kol stepped in again, this time advising his son to restore the rights of tenure to Orkney's "ødallers" in return for a cash payment.

Rognvald agreed, the scheme was a success and construction continued.

Unfortunately Earl Rognvald never saw his cathedral reach a state that was anywhere near completion. In 1158 he was murdered by a rebellious chieftain from the Scottish Mainland. Rognvald's bones were returned to Kirkwall where they were eventually placed within the cathedral he had founded.

Rognvald was canonised in 1192 but some doubts exist as to the validity of his Sainthood because no existing records seem to confirm it. However, Saint Rognvald's relics were discovered in the eighteenth century, set into the stone pillar opposite the pillar that, in 1917, would eventually reveal Saint Magnus' holy remains.

Built from alternating bands of local red and yellow sandstone, the cathedral of Saint Magnus gradually grew and with it the village at its feet. Upon its completion three centuries or so after the first foundation stone was laid, it towered over Kirkwall - by now a thriving town.

The cathedral has been justifiably described as "one of the finest and best preserved medieval cathedrals in Scotland" and it is not difficult to see why.

Even now, over 860 years after the initial building work began, St Magnus Cathedral still dominates the Kirkwall skyline. A familiar and comforting sight to Kirkwallians around the world.