Linlithgow Palace is only 32 miles from Appletree Cottage and is well worth a visit.
Accessed from the Borough Hall Square in the centre of the medieval town of Linlithgow, the palace is up a narrow, cobbled street. Parking is free to visitors (subject to availability) and is just through the arched vehicle entrance.
As you enter, the magnificent church of St. Michael is on your right (see previous blog) and the palace is straight ahead.
Built in the 1400 and 1500s the Linlithgow Palace was a royal residence and playground for many Scottish kings before it accidentally caught fire in 1746.
There is a small charge for entering the palace itself, but the surrounding grounds (also known as the Peel) with magnificent views across Linlithgow Loch are free to access.
On entering the Palace, we were directed to the central courtyard surrounded by its four corner towers and magnificent fountain in the centre of it all.
The fountain dates back to the 14th century but unfortunately fell into ruin. Since the 1700s it has been intermittently restored with some of the ancient stones being copied and others re-imagined.
The effect is excellent. It must have been hugely impressive when it was painted and water gushed from the animal and human heads.
We decided to climb the northwest tower – known locally as the Queen’s Turnpike. It is said that in the tiny top room of the north west tower is where Queen Margaret Tudor, Queen of Scots, waited for James IV to return from his invasion of England - she waited in vain as he died at the battle of Flodden.
It is a long climb to the top and once there you need a head for heights but the views in all directions are rewarding.
Across from the Queen’s Turnpike tower, we could see the windows of the Great Hall above the huge original arched entrance to the courtyard.
This magnificent feasting hall, also known as the Lion’s Chamber could accommodate several hundred people. At one end is the impressively enormous three-bay fireplace.
Running high up, along one side of the Great Hall is a gallery which looks down onto the feasting area below.
Linlithgow Palace, like many other buildings managed by Historic Scotland, is currently undergoing renovation and repair However, a shortage of qualified stone masons means their output is shared between several buildings. For this reason, the temporary scaffolding remains in place but the masons are not always in attendance.
Between the four towers of Linlithgow Palace are a myriad of passages and rooms including a chapel and the room where Mary Queen of Scots was born. Dark interesting passages connect these areas and after wandering around for a bit you begin to appreciate the rabbit-warren nature of the building.
In the depths of the basement are the kitchens and the prison. The prison is a dungeon - a deep hole into which the warders had to lower buckets on ropes to supply prisoners with food.
Visitors may recognise parts of the building, as the entrance and some of the corridors of Linlithgow Palace were used in the television series Outlander, playing the part of Wentworth Prison.
After a good look around inside, we moved out to the Peel as it is known. This is the high ground on which Linlithgow Palace is built.
At the time of construction (replacing another palace) its defensive position was important. An early engraving shows the advantages of its position.
On the eastern wall are the remains of the grand entrance. A ramp ascended to a drawbridge and the huge arched doorway.
In the wall above the doorway, two notches can clearly be seen. They were designed to accommodate the timbers of the drawbridge. On either side of the doorway are alcoves where statues once stood.
Originally the entire building was covered in lime mortar and is said to have glistened like a jewel in the sunshine. Even with the lime having long disintegrated, Linlithgow Palace is a hugely interesting place to visit.
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