An affluent district of W Central Aberdeen, Queen's Cross is centred on a five-way roundabout that connects Albyn Place, Fountainhall Road, St. Swithin Street, Queen's Road and Carden Place, which has a bronze statue of Queen Victoria at its centre, dating from 1893. The Queen faces west along Queen's Road towards her residence at Balmoral Castle, apparently welcoming people to the city. The statue was moved here from its original site on Union Street in the city centre. The form of Queen's Cross owes much to the work of the Aberdeen Land Association in the later 19th C., which bought large tracts of land and divided these into plots, giving rise to carefully planned terraces of silver granite villas. Two fine churches are located here; Rubislaw Church and Queen's Cross Church. The former dates from 1875, while the latter was built as a Free Church in 1881, very much intended to outshine its neighbour, with a grand and unusual tower. Continuing the competition, Rubislaw Church was also to gain an ornate Gothic tower. Rubislaw Church Centre is a community facility which lies nearby, built in 1971 and upgraded in 1999.
