St. Nicholas Church is a large, cruciform town church set on Place Dalton at the heart of the lower town which clusters below the walls of the citadel. Due to the destruction of the French Revolution, WWI and WWII it is the most significant surviving medieval building in the town.
The church is first mentioned in 1208 as a foundation of the Abbey of Notre-Dame within the citadel, a relationship which existed into the 16th century. About this time, the silting up of one of the channels caused the centre of the town to move southwards, and St Nicholas took over from St Peter as the main town church.
The vaulted roofs in the nave and transepts were installed in the 17th century, but their weight caused the walls to crack, and as part of the rebuilding the nave was widened and lengthened, a response to the doubling in population of the lower town that century.
All the glass was destroyed during the liberation, and has so far been replaced in the lower stories with some splendid 1980s abstract designs.
References:The Broch of Clickimin is a large and well preserved, though somewhat restored broch near Lerwick. Originally built on an island in Clickimin Loch (now increased in size by silting and drainage), it was approached by a stone causeway. The water-level in the loch was reduced in 1874, leaving the broch high and dry. The broch is situated within a walled enclosure and, unusually for brochs, features a large 'blockhouse' between the opening in the enclosure and the broch itself. Another unusual feature is a stone slab featuring sculptured footprints, located in the causeway which approached the site. Situated across the loch is the Clickimin Leisure Centre.