Holyrood Palace is where the kings and queens of Scotland lived and ruled. (of course, the fortified castle just a quick horse gallop up the road gave them protection and provided a second living space).
Even today, the Queen lives in Holyrood Palace for about one month each year, during the summer.
First the site of a monastery, royalty soon began building a beautiful, grand palace. It is a symmetrical building with the towers you see here behind David, repeated on the right side. However, this side is the oldest and up close you can see that the stone is rougher than its mate on the right.
Here in the courtyard, we took a lot of photos because, sadly they would not allow photos inside.Once you enter through the first gate, you come to the inner courtyard. From here you can see the structure of the buildings. For those who took Art History, you will be interested to see that the columns on each level change to match the progression of architectural styles for columns.
We were able to go through about 12 rooms. About half are still used when the Queen comes to stay and for other official meetings and ceremonies. The reason for no photos is that the rooms are filled with priceless and extremely old and delicate items. There are massive (I mean whole-room size) tapestries hanging in each room that were woven in the 1500's and 1600's. And chairs and sofas that were upholstered in the 1700's. They still were in great condition and had bright and vibrant colors. Can you imagine, having a sofa last that long and still be in good condition!? The bed of Mary Queen of Scots was the only thing behind protective glass because it is in such delicate condition that it needs preservation.
And speaking of Mary....there is a famous incident that occurred in this palace and visitors are able to stand on the very spot. Rizzio, her secretary (and therefore the most powerful man in the court), was eating with Mary and her maids in a room off her bedchamber. A group of rival lords burst in, grabbed Rizzio, dragged him into her bedchamber and stabbed him 57 times. It is said that he tried to cling to Mary's skirts but one Lord held a pistol on her so that she could not interfere. We stood on the spot where they left his body! Exciting, huh? After we finished touring inside we were able to visit the ruins of the Abbey attached to the palace. Its roof is missing and some of the walls are crumbling, but it has a mysterious beauty that we found hard to leave.
Next we strolled through the royal garden that runs behind the palace. Even though it is autumn, we found some beautiful vistas.
By now, none of you will be surprised to know that with all this walking and touring, it was time for a break and some refreshment. We stopped in the Queen's Cafe and had...
YUM! Yes, Carrie, let's find a recipe!Refreshed, we entered the palace gallery. They had a great photo exhibition there. Back to a bit of history... in the first decade of the 1900's two explorers set out to conquer Antarctica for Britain and the crown. Many of you know the story of Admiral Scott and his ill-fated journey. Some may also know about Shackleford. Scott reached the pole but died trying to return. Shackleford's boat became locked in wintry ice and was eventually crushed in the ice currents. So while his crew made it off the boat, they didn't cross Antarctica (their mission). They didn't make it to the pole, they did survive. Both teams had photographers with them and many of the images survived.
The collections were on view and there was a very good audio guide that gave details about their journeys and their photos.
It was a great day and we really enjoyed the close up views of the palace. After traveling now to other cities in the area, I will have to say that Edinburgh truly holds some of the most beautiful sites. Even their doorways are beautiful!
We hope you are having a wonderful day. Til tomorrow.
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