The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of St Andrews and Edinburgh, encompassing Fife, the Lothians and the Borders, traces its origins back to the See of St Andrews, which was founded before 900. It was erected into a Metropolitan See by a Bull of Sixtus IV in 1472 but lay vacant for 307 years after the Reformation and the execution of John Hamilton, 8th Archbishop, at Stirling in 1571. The Roman Catholic hierarchy was not restored in Scotland until 1878.
Today, the Archdiocese extends from East Lothian to the shores of Loch Lomond. Its Roman Catholic population is estimated at 112,600 (2000) and St. Mary's Metropolitan Cathedral in Edinburgh is its cathedral church.
