Category: Scotland

Kilts and All Manner of Things!

2/17/2014

As we get ready to close out our Scotland series, here are some of our observations on shopping in Edinburgh.

You definitely can have a blast enjoying the fabulous upscale and high fashion shopping in the “New Town” section of Edinburgh where all the department stores and expensive boutiques are located.

But, we loved wandering into all the shops along the Royal Mile, the narrow closes and the winding streets of the “Old Town”. It became a quest to find souvenirs that were truly made in Scotland and not India or China, but we were up for the challenge!

One stop everyone should make is into one of the “Kilt-Makers” shops. Be sure to go into one of the small authentic shops, not a “tourist” shop.

We stopped by The Celtic Craft Center where the owner of the tiny shop spent quite some time talking with Jim about kilts and showed us how the pleats were made and even looked up Jim’s obscure ancestral tartan pattern for us. It can be quite expensive to order a full kilt outfit (I never knew there were so many elements!) so Jim and I took a flyer with his contact information with a view to ordering some time later.

My personal favorite was our stop at the Tartan Weaving Mill and Exhibition on the Royal Mile. The structure was constructed originally as the Castlehill Resevoir in 1849 to supply water to the New Town. Now it houses a very interesting tourist attraction.

The huge space is divided into several floors lining the huge warehouse space, with a large open area in the center where you can watch weavers create their complex tartan patterns on huge weaving looms.

Life-size vignettes are posed doing different jobs related to weaving.

Piles of tartan line the room and are stacked on tables. You really get a sense of the hundreds of patterns that have designed and evolved throughout Scottish history. Needless to say, the shopping is a lot of fun! Their goods range from expensive true Scottish woven clothing, to tourist nick-knacks, so there is something for everyone. I found some beautiful jewelry pieces, locally made from fossilized heather, so I picked up a variety as gifts.

Naturally, we also had to stop by several Whisky Shops to find a bottle of famous Scotch Whisky.

Shopping is definitely part of the Scottish experience so be sure to build in time for that age-old pastime, souvenir hunting!

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Scottish National Gallery: Our Rainy Day Delight!

2/10/2014

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Need a place to spend some of your precious tourist time on a rainy winter day in Edinburgh? We did! And we suggest the Scottish National Gallery! It’s beautiful and warm and dry and for an art lover like myself, a delight rain or shine. It houses one of the best collections of Scottish and international art in the world! Below are a few photos to help lure you inside this amazing museum!

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Edinburgh - A City Full of Noble Statuary!

2/6/2014

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While looking through my photos of Edinburgh, I realized that the city is populated with some very noble statuary.... and a lot a fake Scotsmen! I hung out with a few!

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Just Being Big Kids at the National Museum of Scotland

2/3/2014

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I remember the words of our taxi driver as he dropped us off at the National Museum of Scotland……..You’ll need all day in there! We puzzled for a moment thinking surely he was exaggerating and entered the Museum, only to be swept up a few minutes later, into one of the most, fascinating and entertaining experiences we have ever had!

This photo of National Museum of Scotland is courtesy of TripAdvisor

The National Museum with its rooms full of wonders featuring the Natural World, World Cultures, Science and Technology, Art & Design, and of course the Fabulous History of Scotland drew us in.

We gazed in wonder at amazing technological inventions, beautiful ancient artifacts, mummies and dance costumes, strange and terrible looking weapons and gigantic prehistoric animal skeletons; just a few among many treasures the museum holds, and we did our best to see each and every one of them!

This museum is “must-see” for anyone visiting Edinburgh, whether you have kids or not! Its loads of fun, incredibly interesting and a great break from the ABC tour (Another Bloody Castle!)

Follow along the photo-journey below and see a few of our favorite museum exhibits! It Starts with three that really caught our interest. Dolly the Cloned Sheep, a cool Atom Smasher and a Robot that can spell your name in blocks!

Science & Technology

Dolly The Sheep Clone Atom Smasher

A Robot that can spell my name!

The Natural World

World Cultures

Scotland

If you only have time for one of the galleries at the National Museum of Scotland, we recommend that you visit the gallery that chronicles the story of Scotland from its geological beginnings through Celtic origins and Roman occupation, all the way to the present day. It takes you through the Scotland's famous royal years and its religious wars, the agricultural era and the Industrial Revolution including Scottish weaving methods. You will view archeological finds, artifacts from ancient and historic Scotland and beautiful cultural objects. This gallery will really give you the historic background that always makes a trip more rich and meaningful.

And don't forget to take a coffee break. The cafe overlooks the Grand Gallery!

Be sure to add the National Museum of Scotland to your travel itinerary. Its a fun time!

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Delving Into the Most Famous Historic Close in Edinburgh

1/31/2014

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Photos of Real Mary King's Close, Edinburgh

This photo of Real Mary King's Close is courtesy of TripAdvisor

I find it so interesting that many of Scotland’s best historical tales involve strong women and families who preserver alone against their world.

Such a tale is the story of Mary King, the “daughter” (some dispute that she was his daughter) of Alexander King, who was advocate for Mary Queen of Scots. Mary was born near the end of the 16th century. She earned enough money to afford a decent lifestyle by sewing garments and selling fine cloths from a shop or stall on the High Street. Mary was also a Burgess in her day, which meant she had voting rights in the city, which was very uncommon in those days.

Since Mary’s husband died after only 13 years of marriage, leaving her with four children, she moved into one of the several tenement properties owned by Alexander King, in what we now know as “Mary King’s Close” where she worked hard as a business-woman to support her family in an incredibly challenging environment.

The evolution of the “close” where Mary lived is an interesting story. As the town of Edinburgh grew from the 16th century, the “spine” of Edinburgh ran from Edinburgh Castle on its high craggy hill down to Holyrood Palace and Abbey following the ridge of the hill. This street is now called the “Royal Mile”. Along this spine, narrow alleys called “closes” projected outward like the bones of a fish. These alleys were named for the businesses and prominent people who owned property on these narrow streets.

From the beginning of their existence, these closes housed craftsmen, merchants and professionals along with laborers and the lower and middle classes. It’s interesting that this variety of people all lived together, but the secret to housing this overcrowded population, was the tall multi-story tenement style buildings, (some up to 15 floors!) that towered over the closes. The wealthier families lived on the upper floors and the less fortunate lived down near the steep stone street.

I’m sure you can imagine these poorer people dogging the contents of chamber pots as each night, floors above them, people emptied the pots with the call of “gardy-loo!”, which comes from the French garde L'eau which means 'watch out for the water’.

The narrow alleys on the side of the spine that Mary Kings Close occupies sloped down to a lake, which was really just a cesspool of excrement because the town depended upon rain to wash their waste down to the "lake". One small slip on the narrow lane could send you sliding down the lane and into the disgusting water.

This photo of Real Mary King's Close is courtesy of TripAdvisor

As you can imagine, these overcrowded, filthy conditions contributed greatly to the tragic outbreak of the plague, when it arrived from Europe.

Historical legend says that in a desperate measure to reduce contamination over 300 plague victims were quarantined, probably to die, when Mary King’s Close was bricked up until the plague had passed, giving the alley the nickname “street of sorrows”.

We do know that during plagues, people would have to hang a white rag outside their door if they had the plague and that food would be left outside for them. Those “Physicians” who actually tried to help people, would dress completely in leather and wear masks with long beaks stuffed with herbs to try to protect themselves against the plague.

This photo of Real Mary King's Close is courtesy of TripAdvisor

Naturally, the wealthier people in Edinburgh got tired of living in cramped conditions and during the Enlightenment in the late 18th century; they decided to build a “New Town” where they could live in spacious splendor far away from the cramped smells of the “Old Town”.

While beautiful new Georgian structures were being built in New Town, the Old Town was also being modernized. Many of the closes were built over during the renovations of the Old Town.

At Mary King’s Close, the tenants were evicted and the lower floors of the buildings were used as the foundation for The Royal Exchange, built in 1753 which actually spanned and covered over the close. With the close sealed, for the next 250 years the floors below remained largely unchanged, like a historic vault waiting for tourists to find it.

This photo of Real Mary King's Close is courtesy of TripAdvisor

This is the point in the history of the close where Jim and I appeared, ready to take our tour of the famous street. Upon entering Mary King’s Close, you are greeted by actors dressed in period clothes, representing characters who actually lived in the close when it was occupied.

Our tour leader was the “Spanish Envoy” and he escorted us through a fun and interesting experience down into the bowels of the old close, through what would have been a warren of homes, workrooms, shops. We even visited the remains of what is proposed to be the home of “Annie”, one of the plagues youngest victims. People leave dolls and toys in her honor.

We were finally led out to the narrow, very steep, street, which is now closed over and dark, where we gazed up at the towering tenements, laundry hanaging across the narrow space between the buildings, and imagined we might hear echoes of “garde loo!” from back in the day. The tour is filled with history, fun anecdote and ghostly stories and we loved it!

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Rosslyn Chapel: A Sculptural Gem & Knights Templar Mystery

1/16/2014

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Rosslyn Chapel....... a tiny exquisite gem, full of secret symbolism, never completed, often threatened in its almost 560 year existence, legendary refuge for the Knights Templar, and a tribute to the vision of Sir William St. Clair, the 3rd and last Prince of Orkney.

When William St. Clair accompanied his cousin William the Conquerer to England, and fought at the Battle of Hastings in 1066, the family joined the many Anglo-Norman generations that would eventually find their way up into Scotland in search of land, power and fortune.

Many generations and almost 400 years later, another Sir William St. Clair endowed the “Collegiate Chapel of St. Mathew” in 1446. It took approximately 40 years to build the section of the chapel you see today as Rosslyn Chapel and it is only a portion of the original design. The initial plans for the Collegiate Chapel of St. Mathew were grand indeed.

The building was to be large and cruciform in shape, with a tower at its center. These “Collegiate Chapels” were built throughout Scotland for over a century, from the reign of James I through the reign of James IV (approximately 1406 - 1513) and they were meant to be secular foundations promoting the spread of intellectual and spiritual knowledge.

The more power and wealth a family had, the more elaborate these structures would be. Sadly, Sir William St. Clair's vision died when he was buried in the unfinished chapel in 1484.

Fortunately for us, the portion of the chapel he built is a wonder of spiritual and religious iconography and whimsical Gothic sculpture all wrapped in intricate delicate stonework decoration.

The delicate sculpture, which survived the Scottish Reformation, local vandals and even use by the soldiers of Oliver Cromwell as a stable miraculously survived.

After years of abuse, the chapel was rescued and much enhanced when the chapel was restored and the jewel colored, stained-glass windows were added by romantic 19th century architects!

The Baptistery along with the organ loft above, were also part of the 19th century restoration.

More stained-glass windows were added to the Baptistery in the 20th century to commemorate St. Clair family military service other beloved family members.

Ever since the book “The Da Vinci Code”, one can’t help but find the legends connecting the Knights Templar, with Rossilyn Chapel mysterious and intriguing.

It is true that Katherine St. Clair was married to the Grand Master Hughes de Payen and that several Templars fled to Scotland to escape persecution at the beginning of the 14th century.

It is also known that another William St. Clair was a Knight Templar who died in Spain in 1330 trying to bring the heart of Robert the Bruce to the Holy Land. These are facts. The rest is fun speculation for the rest of us!

Photographs are not allowed inside Rosslyn Chapel, but I hope you enjoyed these exterior photos of this little jewel of a chapel.

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Holyrood Abbey: A Graceful & Evocative Ruin

1/13/2014

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Holyrood Abbey sits at the far end of the "Royal Mile" and the opposite end of the long road from Edinburgh Castle. Fortunately for royals who had to make the long carriage ride to Holyrood, there was a guest house waiting there also, because for centuries, Holyrood Abbey was the place of worship for Scotland's monarchy.

Legend tells of the miraculous event that saved the life of King David I and the beautiful abbey he built in honor of the event.

As the story goes…… The King was hunting in the royal forest of Drumsheugh when he was thrown from his horse in front of a great white “hart” (stag) and he was speared in the thigh by the antlers of the great beast.

Suddenly, as he fought with the stag, a crucifix or “holy rood” miraculously appeared either in the King’s hands or between the stag’s antlers, startling it and saving the king’s life. In thanks to God, in 1128, King David endowed the “monastery of the Holy Rood” to serve the Augustinian community and built the abbey close to the spot of his deliverance.

This original structure is long gone and only the east processional doorway into the cloister survives from the first church. The church was lavishly rebuilt between 1195 and 1230 and the Parliament of Scotland was held inside.

Even the famous Robert the Bruce held his parliament at the abbey in 1326.

The original guest-house for the abbey, eventually (probably by 1329) became a royal residence. Between 1498 and 1501, James IV constructed the royal Palace of Holyrood, adjacent to the abbey cloister. It is strangely crowded right up to the abbey wall. Over centuries, the palace was expanded to become the impressive royal residence you see today.

For generations, Holyrood Abbey was the site of royal coronations, weddings, christenings and funerals, including, the coronation of James II in 1437, Margaret Tudor in 1504, Mary of Guise in 1540, Anne of Denmark in 1590, and
Charles I in 1633.

The abbey is a graceful example of medieval architecture, and transitions in style from Romanesque to Gothic. The oldest part of what remains of the abbey is the north wall, built before 1200 and characterized by narrow pointy towers and tall single-lancet windows.

The west front was built next with solid square towers and screened windows.

The nave interior was the final element, built around 1230 with arcades, delicate stone tracery on the windows and stone capitals with elaborately carved foliage. This interior is said to be inspired by England's Lincoln Cathedral.

During the War of the Rough Wooing, the invading English armies inflicted structural damage on Holyrood Abbey in 1544 and 1547. The bells were removed, and the contents of the abbey were plundered. A decade later, in 1559, during the Scottish Reformation, the abbey suffered further damage when a mob destroyed the altars and looted the rest of the church

Eventually, the damaged choir and transepts were pulled down and the remaining structure was converted for Protestant use. In 1633, the nave was extensively restored for the coronation of Charles I.

The abbey housed royal tombs until they were desecrated in 1688 during the overthrow of King James II of England (James VII of Scotland). After that the royal tombs were removed and relocated.

The church continued to be used by both Protestants and Catholics until 1768, when the vaulted stone roof fell in during a rainstorm. The abbey was left to fall into ruin from that point on.

Hollyrood Abbey’s skeleton is romantic and poetic, creating a space where as you wander through its graceful remains, you can’t help but feel a little sad at its lonely interior, wide open to the wintery sky and populated only by brief secular visits from tourists like me.

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Craigmillar Castle: A Refuge for Mary Queen of Scots

1/8/2014

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Can you ever have too many castles? Not according to Mary Queen of Scots! When Mary needed to get out of town, she certainly had boatload of castles and palaces to choose from!

Fortunately for us, we followed in her horse’s hoof-steps and found our way to Craigmillar Castle, former home of the Barons Craigmillar, the Preston and Gilmour families, and in 1563 and 1566, the place Mary Queen of Scots chose for at least two rural retreats.

If the walls of this ancient rambling ruin could talk, they would have some pretty exciting tales to tell! That is why, while not restored, but beautifully preserved, this turned out to be one of our favorite castles!

Craigmillar started life as a countryside medieval era tower-house sometime between the late 14th and late 15th century. The Preston family were first granted land in the area by King David II in 1342. Archeologists have not been able to confirm any specific date so far, but it is believed the tower-house was in place by 1425. Over the next 350 years, subsequent owners added on additional sections creating a maze of rooms, spiral staircases and connecting halls.

What fun Jim and I had exploring this castle with all its nooks and crannies. Yes, we are just big kids sometimes!

Outer Courtyard Gate

Inner Courtyard Gate (above & below)

Inner Courtyard (above & below)

The Tower-house is located at the heart of the castle compound and was truly a defensive fortress, almost 56 feet tall (17 meters), with thick walls, crossbow slits and later pistol holes. It has a defensive main entrance doorway located behind the tower on the cliff-side which would have been protected by a deep chasm. The castle entrance could only be reached by a wooden bridge. The bridge was removed and the chasm filled in when the curtain-wall was built (probably around 1453).

Of course, the spiral staircases corkscrew in a clockwise direction, constructed to give the “right-handed” defenders the advantage!

The Preston coat of arms hangs over the original tower doorway and a slit is located right next to the door where visitors would have presented their credentials (or been attacked?). As you can imagine, during those times security made the difference between life and death.

The Interior of the tower would have contained an entrance hall, cellars and basement on the ground-floor. The Laird's Hall with a kitchen to serve it and the principal bedchamber were on the first floor, and family chambers on the top two floors.

Entrance Hall

Cellars

The Laird's Hall (above & below)

The Laird's Hall Kitchen Later turned into part of the Principal Bedroom (above & below)

The Principal Bedchamber - Possibly Queen Mary's Room (below)

Family Chambers

But the impressive tower-house architecture is just the beginning. Even as you explore the extensive castle compound, you should keep in mind the moments of monumental (and humble) history that played out in the rooms. In 1480, John Stewart, Earl of Mar who was brother of King James III was held prisoner at Craigmillar, accused of practicing witchcraft against the King. He was eventually moved to another location, where he was murdered by knife.

But the most compelling story is the one about Mary Queen of Scots…….

Back from France and happily surrounded by loyal supporters, one of which was Sir Simon Preston IV (Baron Craigmillar), who had been part of her court in France, the queen was invited (or most likely invited herself!) to spend time at Craigmillar Castle.

Mary’s first stay at Craigmillar included relaxing and pleasurable court activities typical to entertaining the Monarch and her retinue. The Preston family would have had lots of space and amenities to house the queen and her court. Some say she stayed in the tower (hence her "room" there), but many think she might have stayed in the East Range (Grange).

The East Range, was built in the 15th century and had been attached to the Tower-House to add more space to the laird’s apartments and additional private chambers, and a gallery. Today the roof is long gone, but you can walk through the basement storerooms, bake-house, and even a prison. A long gallery would have provided a place for the owner and guests to walk in bad weather. The great hall on the West side of the tower may have been built by this time as well.

East Range (above & below)

Bakehouse & Storerooms (above & Below)

Main Entrance to East Range - Prison Entrance Lower Left Opening (also below)

Commoners Prison (above & below)

The atmosphere at Craigmillar would have been quite different a few years later, during Mary's second three-week visit. The castle was used as a place of solace and peace to a depressed queen. By then, the politics and loyalties had begun to change and unbeknownst to the queen a royal intrigue was being hatched just a few rooms away.

During this unhappy time in her turbulent and tragic life, she reportedly spent days in her rooms at Craigmillar, deep in despair over the murder of her beloved secretary Rizzio, her disastrous marriage to Lord Darnley, and precarious royal position.

Even more disastrous for Mary; during this time, her host, Simon Preston IV (Baron Craigmillar) was plotting to murder her husband Lord Darnley. The Plot was called the “Craigmillar Bond”, and was launched a few months later. Lord Darnley was blown up in his own house and his strangled body was found blown across the yard.

With Queen Mary’s fortunes falling, the long friendship between Sir Simon Preston and the queen ended. In fact, Sir Preston, as Lord Provost of Edinburgh, took the queen under guard and delivered her to the island stronghold of Lochleven for imprisonment.

Portrait of Mary, Queen of Scots, and her husband Lord Darnley

Photo above courtesy of Wikipedia Commons http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Mary_Stuart_James_Darnley.jpg

By the next generation, the Preston family had faded from the city’s political scene so the castle and the Barony were quietly sold to the Gilmore family in 1660.

Sir John Gilmour was a lawyer and loyal supporter of Charles II when the king was restored in 1661. For his loyalty, Sir John was made the President of the Court of Sessions. In order to create a residence worthy of his status, he began a grand restoration on what was the old 15th century hall, and built a fine two-story house known now as the West Range (or Grange).

We walked through what must have been three impressive rooms in those days. The large hall would have had a decorative painted wooden ceiling and large windows with views. Unfortunately, the wooden ceiling is gone and the windows are all filled in with stone now.

The Great Hall

Beyond the great hall, there was a small withdrawing room. At one time it would have been timber paneled. The upper floor of the West Range is gone now, but there would have been four private rooms with beautiful views.

The Withdrawing Room (above & below)

The kitchen at the other end of the hall had a huge fireplace with graceful lines.

Kitchen (above & below)

Naturally, since these great families entertained nobles and royalty, they had to have a great wines ready to pour. Underneath the withdrawing room was the wine cellar which of course we had to check out. No wine in there!

Wine Cellar

The Gilmour family lived in Craigmillar Castle until the middle of the 18th century when they finally moved to the more “modern” Inch House and left the beautiful ancient castle to fall eventually into a romantic ruin.

The West Grange Exterior

The views from the tower-house turret walk of this beautiful ruin are incredible. We were able to look across the rolling green fields surrounding the castle and could even see Edinburgh castle far in the distance. We also had a perfect view down into the skeletons of the two castle wings and the large courtyard enclosed by its curtain-wall. I could easily image Queen Mary and her retinue “taking the air” and walking through the courtyard. We could also see the small round dovecote anchoring one corner of the long wall.

Our last stop before leaving was the small chapel dedicated to St. Thomas of Canterbury and built for personal use by the family. It is roofless and closed off with iron grills, but you can peer through the window openings at the interior stone graves.

Strangely, even though the castle is not restored, you get a real feel for the centuries of familes who lived and worked in the castle, which for me indicates what a special place it really is. Be sure to visit it!

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Exploring a Scottish Royal Dynasty at Stirling Castle

1/5/2014

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Stirling Castle is the setting for a wonderful interpretation of Scottish royal life during the Renaissance and tells the amazing story of the Castle and the Royal Stuart dynasty through its architecture, art and cultural history museums. This castle is history filled and an exciting place (especially for children!) to learn about this fascinating period in Scotland’s history.

As you approach Stirling Castle you can feel how similar the hilltop positioning is to the great castle at Edinburgh. After an initial steep climb from town, the land slopes gently upward on the approach while steep rocky slopes and cliffs protect the other three sides of the fortress. I can only assume that this was the preferred situation for a royal castle during centuries of turbulence that defined Scottish history.

Perched on the high cliffs called Castle Rock, a fortress has dominated the countryside below since the 12th century, towering over the Forth valley to the south and east, the wild Highlands to the north and the lands rolling outward toward west. As the perfect location for a stronghold, the earliest long lost fortifications probably date back more than 3000 years.

The Outer Defenses which stand protective, solid and gray, at the front of the castle compound, were built in 1708 after the Stuart dynasty had been succeeded by the rule of other royal families. These fortifications were built to reinforce Stirling Castle against the Jacobite Resistance in 1708. Ironically and sadly, the fighters these walls were built to repel, wanted to restore the Stuarts to the Scottish (and English) throne.

But the royal history of Scotland is filled with famous battles beginning long before the last battlements were built. One of the most well-known of these battles was the fight at Stirling Bridge in 1297 where during the Wars of Independence, the legendary Scots freedom fighter William Wallace, defeated forces of the English King Edward I. Many of us know about this historic battle from the movie “Braveheart” with Mel Gibson.

William Wallace Monument (above and below)

While not as famous in the minds of popular culture, the Battle of Bannockburn is actually known as the greatest battle in Scottish history. The armies of Edward II of England and King Robert (the Bruce) met on the boggy plain two miles south of Stirling Castle in June of 1314 where Robert the Bruce, King of the Scots defeated Edward II, King of England.

The wars and disputes over centuries, often damaged the castle so it was constantly being repaired and rebuilt. What you now see as you enter through the Outer Defenses and Foreworks and into the enclosed courtyard is a lesson in Scottish royal architecture.

Since the earliest structures would have been made from wood (with the exception of a no longer standing, stone chapel), the oldest parts of the castle that can still be viewed are the Old North Gate (built in the 1300’s) and the Terraces (some probably from the 1400’s).

The Foreworks, the Old Royal Lodgings (called the King’s Old Building), and the Great Hall with huge kitchens under it, were installed by King James IV in the early 1500’s.

King James IV was a popular and successful king. He embraced the early Renaissance ideas and art that were beginning to spread through Europe and eclipse the medieval style. He wanted to place himself in the same league as the French and English kings, Louis XII and Henry VIII so he began an extensive building program at Stirling Castle to create a magnificent setting for his royal court.

Anyone approaching the castle in the 1500’s would have seen tall, graceful, French influenced round towers topped with cones and crenellated walls where defenders could patrol. At each end was a square tower where the constable or other security officials would have resided. Only one tower remains fully intact. The current stunted gate-house is no longer tall and cone-topped, but you can still see the impressive and graceful beauty this façade would have presented.

As we walked into the courtyard of the royal castle we were thrilled to find beautiful stonework, designed in a romantic mix of Medieval and Renaissance styles. The best thing about traveling way off season is that you are virtually and wonderfully alone in what during summer would be a tourist-packed attraction, so it was easy to be mentally transported to the days when the Stuart royal family built and lived in the castle.

The Great Hall is strongly medieval in character, with crenellations, a stepped gable, and checkerboard corbels and the hall would have been painted in what was considered the "Royal" gold color as it is today. It was built to provide an impressive setting for state events.

The great hall was heated by five great fireplaces and spiral staircases connected to a trumpeters’ gallery and a minstrels gallery. A grand dais for the king and queen occupied the end of the hall and was framed by bay windows.

In order to conveniently serve the great state events as well as feed the large number of palace servants and residents, huge kitchens were built in the vaulted undercroft below the hall. These are really fun to visit because life-size kitchen tableaux have been installed to recreate the busy activities of the kitchen during those times.

The Old Royal Lodging, also called the King’s Old Building, dates back to 1496. From this part of the castle, the King would have been able to view across Flanders Moss towards Loch Lomond. It was originally used as bachelor lodgings until the King married Margaret Tudor in 1503. At that time, space was allotted for the queen as well.

By the 1600’s, the royal family had stopped using the rooms and the building was used as quarters for military families.

Today, you won’t see any of these rooms because the building now houses the Regimental Museum of the Argyll and Southerland Highlanders. But don’t be disappointed, because this museum is really interesting! It displays the history of the regiment, including weapons, regalia, and spectacular regimental presentation silver, and battle dioramas to help understand it all.

Embodying the strict regularity and symmetry of the Renaissance, the palace of King James V is one of the earliest and most innovative Renaissance structures in Britain. The palace is designed using Renaissance architectural and mathematical rules. The facade is sculptural, alternating between large windows and life-sized statues while still appearing strong and fortress-like.

The statues themselves reflect knowledge of European Renaissance art and literature while having a uniquely Scottish interpretation and were meant to portray the king as a powerful, learned and just monarch.

The east and north statuary were intended to impress courtiers and ambassadors entering the courtyard to visit the king. King James V himself looks down from the corner of the palace. He is accompanied by the Classical gods Saturn and Venus which would have been understood during that time by anyone who was educated, as a reference to the king’s legitimate right to reign. He would have been stating that his royal lineage stemmed from an ancient dynasty. It also subtly refers to a new golden age of peace and plenty during his reign.

This design was created as part of the king’s desire to set himself and the royal family above and apart from the nobles in an effort to emulate the great royal families of England and France.

The interior of the Royal Palace is where you are presented with an well researched interpretation of what the décor and furnishings would have been like when James V and Mary of Guise live in the residence. The ceiling paintings, wall friezes, coats of arms and tapestries have all been extensively studied in order to accurately represent how the palace would have most likely been decorated.

James V died early on in the palace decoration and may have never enjoyed them, so his rooms are left mostly empty, but the rooms of Queen Mary of Guise, who lived on in the palace as regent to her young daughter Mary Queen of Scots, are full of sumptuous tapestries and furnishings.

Helpful living-history guides in full costume are available in each room to answer any questions and inform you in “historical-character speak” about how life would have been for both servants and royals at the palace. It is loads of fun to talk with them!

After a lengthy protective stay in France, the young Queen Mary returned to Scotland to marry. When she gave birth to James VI, she returned to Stirling Castle to protect her new royal baby.

Interestingly, the palace has been used as a royal “Nursery” since the 14th century, protecting the royal infants with its fortress walls and high cliffs. Since James IV, the nursery resided in the Princes Tower. The Princes Tower was originally part of the original Forework and was incorporated into the south side of the palace. You can walk outside the tower to a small elevated courtyard to get an up-close look at the sculptural grotesques decorating that side of the palace.

If you want to get a really in-depth look at the courtiers, take a few minutes to visit the “Stirling Heads” gallery. These round portraits would have decorated the ceiling of the palace and portray the royal lineage and the most important courtiers these portraits reinforced the dynastic right to rule. Brightly painted replicas have been made of many of the original portraits.

Our last stop at Stirling Castle was the Chapel Royal which was built in 1594 by James VI, for the baptism of his son Prince Henry. It is said that the ceiling would have been covered with gold and walls painted with religious scenes related to baptism. The colorful chapel friezes you see today were from a later 1628 renovation and were restored in 1930.

Deep in the vaulted tunnels below the palace are several interpretive centers where kids can explore castle culture with exhibitions featuring musicians, painters, tailors, carvers and even the court jesters.

Stirling Castle has been wonderfully interpreted for 21st century visitors and provides a glimpse into the fascinating history of what would have been the glittering courts of James IV, James V, Mary Queen of Scots and James VI.