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The Spital is a high neck of land lying between Old and New
Aberdeen. The Medieval St Peter’s Hospital gave the
Spital Road
and adjacent hills their names.
Spital,
ran from
Mounthooly to Old Aberdeen. This
was a shelter for infirm brethren of the priesthood, established
by Bishop Matthew Kyninmond (1170-99) on the east side of the
Spital. This name is a shortening of hospital. It was dedicated
to St Peter, the chief of the apostles, and it was intended to
be for the weal of the soul of King William the Lion, his
ancestors and successors, and of the soul of the Bishop himself
and his ancestors and successors. It was an article of the
faith of the old Church of Scotland that the souls of the dead
were benefited by the prayers of the living.
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