Tour Edinburgh Castle Scotland

Edinburgh Castle, rising above precipices of volcanic rock, the fortress of Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland stands out for miles around and closer up, is an unparalleled sight when viewed from Princes Street. Anyone coming to Edinburgh is almost compelled to go up to the castle perched on its rock. The rock became a stronghold of the kings of Scots more than 900 years ago when Lothian was annexed to Scotland. It also became a major royal residence: Margaret, queen of Malcolm III, and later canonised as St Margaret, died here in 1093. When Edward I of England invaded and occupied Scotland in 1296 the importance of Edinburgh Castle made it a prime target, and the first famous siege was followed by many more.

After the Wars of Independence the castle's value to Scotland grew until the reigns of James III and James IV, from 1460 until James IV was killed on the battlefield of Flodden in 1513, when it reached its zenith. Still a royal palace in regular use, the castle was the first place of strength in the country, a meeting place of the Parliament of Scotland, the home of the national archives, the treasury and the royal arsenal.

Because of the prestige of the castle and its security, Mary Queen of Scots stayed there in 1566, rather than in the much more comfortable Holyrood, to bear the child who was to become James VI of Scotland as well as James I of England. But after James went to London in 1603 the castle gradually became a purely military base, a change that took about 150 years. Old buildings were altered and new ones raised for the
redcoats, while the defences were improved in response to threats that only ended with the Jacobite rising of 1745-6.

The oldest building visible today is the little 12th century church, now called St Margaret's Chapel, created by David I in memory of his mother. It is the earliest of a series of vivid glimpses of past power and glory. Tour Edinburgh Castle on the Best Scottish Tours.

Edinburgh Castle is one of Scotland's most awe inspiring and striking landmarks. A site of human habitation since the 9th century BC, it has a rich and varied history and has been a crucial strategic military site for thousands of years. Tales of Edinburgh Castle is a salute to the ancient tradition of storytelling, painting a vivid picture of the castle in bygone times, and the rich and varied characters to whom it owes its notoriety. Tales of Edinburgh Castle (Luath Storyteller).