The lovely city of Stirling... and other Dundee, United Kingdom Off The Beaten Path Tips

The lovely city of Stirling and its castle.This castle is built on rocky crag and is one of the finest examples of Renaissance architecture in Scotland. According to legend King Arthur won the original castle from the Saxons but there is no evidence of a castle before 1124. Today’s castle dates from the 15th and 16th centuries. And was last defended in 1746 (against the Jacobites). Seven battlefields can be seen from the castle and Stirling held a key position in Scotland’s struggles for independence. The 67 metre high Wallace monument can also be seen from the castle. This monument at Abbey Craig recalls William Wallace’s defeat of the English at Stirling Bridge in 1297, fore shadowing the victory by Bruce in 1314. The Great Hall, the James IV Gatehouse, the Chapel Royal (remodelled by James VI) and the artillery fortifications of the 16th to 18th centuries are all of outstanding interest. The Great Hall has been restored recently and is now how it would have looked like about 1500. There is a good café for a welcome cup of coffee after all that history.
Location: On Castle wynd Stirling. There is parking for castle visitors on the castle esplanade.
More Info: Tel: 01786 450000 Open April – September 9.30 – 6 pm daily Open October - March 9.30 – 5 pm daily Closed 25,26 December and 1-3 January

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The site of the battle of Bannockburn. It is not far from the lovely city of Stirling. There is an audio-visual show which explains the the battle and its background and a good display area. You can even try some chainmail armoury on if you like... be warned it is HEAVY!!
The Battle of Bannockburn was one of the defininf moments in Scottish history. It was then that, in 1314, That King Robert the Bruce routed the English forces of King Edward II to win the much longed- for freedom of the Scots.
The Heritage centre lies close to the Borestone which was Bruce's command post for the battle. It is right on the English armies path to what was their target - Stirling castle and you get a good view of the castle in the distance.
getting there:
Off M80/M9 at junction 9, on A872 2 miles south of Stirling.
bus from Stirling bus station.

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Dunfermline ('the forified tower on the winding stream') is more than a thousand years old. It was part of the kingdom of the Picts, and one of the early settlements of the Celtic or Culdee Church. It was also a favourite stronghold of the the warrior King Malcolm Canmore.
When King Malcolm married the saintly Queen margaret in 1070 the little settlement gained international status. Under the Queen's influence the new European monastic Order of St Benedict was established and a Priory was established.
When the Queen died her pious son King David built a great Bendictine Abbey on the site of the little church she had had built. In 1250 Margaret was proclaimed a saint, and Dunfermline became a pilgrimage centre of Europe.
The tomb of Robert the Bruce is here. NO the head in my photo is not Koos after our holiday because of bad food in Scotland.... it is the plaster cast of the skull of King Robert the Bruce and it can be found in Dunfermline Abbey Church. Research has shown that the king probably had leprosy.

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The Abbot's House Dunfermline, it was the administrative headquarters of the first and richest Benedictine Abbey in Scotland.
In its time the house has been an Abbots house, a Laird's mansion, an iron foundry and an art school. it survuved a great fire in 1624, it forged armour for the fighters in the army of Robert the Bruce. The house has a long and wonderful history and that is shown in exhibitions.
open 262 days of the year.
Dunfermline is easily reached via the M90 and within an hours travel from Edinburgh, Glasgow, Perth, St. Andrews, and Dundee.

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The Andrew Carnegie Birthplace Museum.
The millionaire benefactor Andrew Carnegie was born in Dunfermline in 1835.
In this cottage in the shadow of Dunfermline Abbey and close to the lovely Pittencrieff Park is this small but wonderfully interesting museum which tells the rags-to-riches story of the cities famous son.
The family were weavers and immigrated to the States.
The musuem shows how Andrew worked his way up in life. From bobbin boy, telegragh operator and railroad developer to Steel King of America. the empire he forged in the steel furnaces of Pittsburgh was sold in 1901 for $400 million and he retired the richest man in the world.

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As a child Andrew Carnegie was barred from entering this beautiful park. So when he was rich he bought the grounds and threw open the park to the cities 'toiling masses.' It is a lovely picnic to wander through and I remember my grandmother 'stealing' little bit is of plants and rooting them for her garden. The park is a lovely quiet place to wander through or to sit and relax.

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Dunfermline Palace is next to Dunfermline Abbey Church and it is next to a gorge. When King Malcolm and Queen Margaret married in Dunfermline Abbey church she fell so much in love with the place that she decided to start a Benedictine order there. During her life the order was a small community but after 1128 her son David turned it into an Abbey. The heart of this abbey was the church, which later became the Royal Palace. Queen Margaret was buried at Dunfermline and her son wanted a fitting tribute to her.
In 1303 during the Wars of Independence English troops of King Edward I destroyed the abbeys domestic buildings but did not damage the Abbey church. This could be because of the link between Queen Margaret (now a saint) and the Benedictine Order of Canterbury.
The palace was rebuilt in 1500 by James IV and was the favourite residence of several kings and queens of Scotland. The last monarch to occupy the palace was Charles II – he stayed at Dunfermline before the Battle of Pitreavie in 1650. Soon afterwards the palace was abandoned. The roof was removed in 1708 and today all that is left is the south wall and the kitchen.

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Crail and the little fishing villages of the East Neuk of Fife are well worth visiting.

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Glamis Castle - the childhood hone of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother is beautiful.
This is the childhood home of Elizabeth, The Queen Mother at Glamis near Forfar. The wonderful and fairytale like castle with the long drive up to it was once (in the 11th century) a hunting lodge. It was extensively recontraucted in the 17th century. Many of the rooms are open to the public but it is still a family home and in use as such. Duncans Hall is the oldest room in the castle and is said to be the setting for Shakespeare's setting for the king's murder in his play Macbeth. Some of the gardens are open to the public and the Italian garden is wonderful

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Phone: 01307 840393
Website: www.glamis-castle.co.uk

I just love standing stones and the feeling of mystery they inspire. The standing stones of Aberlemno are wonderful. There are some in the church yard and some a little way along the road.
Aberlemno is a little village, which is famous for its large standing stones, which date from the 7th and 8th centuries. The stones are in the church yard and there are more along the B9134 road (the Brechin - Forfar road) During the spring –autumn the stones are open and can be seen but in the winter they are covered by wooden boxes to prevent frost damage.
The best known Pictish stone is the Serpent stone which shows a serpent symbol on the top. It is thought that this stone was re-used by the Picts and is actually a much earlier megalith.

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