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Dunfermline Palace is a ruined former Scottish
royal Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Royal, Iowa, a ...
palace A palace is a grand residence, especially a royal residence, or the home of a head of state or some other high-ranking dignitary, such as a bishop or archbishop. The word is derived from the Latin name palātium, for Palatine Hill in Rome which ...
and important tourist attraction in
Dunfermline Dunfermline (; sco, Dunfaurlin, gd, Dùn Phàrlain) is a city, parish and former Royal Burgh, in Fife, Scotland, on high ground from the northern shore of the Firth of Forth. The city currently has an estimated population of 58,508. Acco ...
,
Fife Fife (, ; gd, Fìobha, ; sco, Fife) is a council area, historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland. It is situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries with Perth and Kinross ...
, Scotland. It is currently, along with other buildings of the adjacent
Dunfermline Abbey Dunfermline Abbey is a Church of Scotland Parish Church in Dunfermline, Fife, Scotland. The church occupies the site of the ancient chancel and transepts of a large medieval Benedictine abbey, which was sacked in 1560 during the Scottish Reforma ...
, under the care of
Historic Environment Scotland Historic Environment Scotland (HES) ( gd, Àrainneachd Eachdraidheil Alba) is an executive non-departmental public body responsible for investigating, caring for and promoting Scotland's historic environment. HES was formed in 2015 from the mer ...
as a
scheduled monument In the United Kingdom, a scheduled monument is a nationally important archaeological site or historic building, given protection against unauthorised change. The various pieces of legislation that legally protect heritage assets from damage and ...
.


Origins

Dunfermline was a favourite residence of many
Scottish monarchs The monarch of Scotland was the head of state of the Kingdom of Scotland. According to tradition, the first King of Scots was Kenneth I MacAlpin (), who founded the state in 843. Historically, the Kingdom of Scotland is thought to have grown ...
. Documented history of royal residence there begins in the 11th century with Malcolm III who made it his capital. His seat was the nearby Malcolm's Tower, a few hundred yards to the west of the later palace. In the medieval period David II and
James I of Scotland James I (late July 139421 February 1437) was King of Scots from 1406 until his assassination in 1437. The youngest of three sons, he was born in Dunfermline Abbey to King Robert III and Annabella Drummond. His older brother David, Duke of ...
were both born at Dunfermline. Dunfermline Palace is attached to the historic
Dunfermline Abbey Dunfermline Abbey is a Church of Scotland Parish Church in Dunfermline, Fife, Scotland. The church occupies the site of the ancient chancel and transepts of a large medieval Benedictine abbey, which was sacked in 1560 during the Scottish Reforma ...
, occupying a site between the abbey and deep gorge to the south. It is connected to the former monastic residential quarters of the abbey via a gatehouse above a pend (or ''yett''), one of Dunfermline's medieval gates. The building therefore occupies what was originally the guest house of the abbey. There are few records of building the palace and converting monastic buildings to royal use. Timber was bought for the royal lodgings in 1429. The existing remains largely reflect the form in which the building was remodelled by
James IV James IV (17 March 1473 – 9 September 1513) was King of Scotland from 11 June 1488 until his death at the Battle of Flodden in 1513. He inherited the throne at the age of fifteen on the death of his father, James III, at the Battle of Sauch ...
around 1500 from the monastic Guest House. James IV came to the palaces and gave tips to masons and craftmen in 1507. The building was restored and remodelled later in the century, and William Schaw worked on the building in 1590 preparing it for
Anne of Denmark Anne of Denmark (; 12 December 1574 – 2 March 1619) was the wife of King James VI and I; as such, she was Queen of Scotland from their marriage on 20 August 1589 and Queen of England and Ireland from the union of the Scottish and Eng ...
. An account for glazing the palace in 1654 and a description by
John Macky John Macky (died 1726) was a Scottish spy. He was the first person to inform the British authorities of James II's intended invasion of England in 1692 after the former king had fled from France to England. In October 1693 he was made inspector o ...
are important sources for the lost buildings.


History


James IV

James IV and his wife
Margaret Tudor Margaret Tudor (28 November 1489 – 18 October 1541) was Queen of Scotland from 1503 until 1513 by marriage to King James IV. She then served as regent of Scotland during her son's minority, and successfully fought to extend her regency. Ma ...
frequently stayed at the palace. In November 1504 Margaret Tudor was in residence when two people were suspected of having plague. James IV was away in the north of Scotland. The queen left for Edinburgh with her household servants , including African women known as the "More lasses", who went first to Inverkeithing. This was a false alarm.
James V James V (10 April 1512 – 14 December 1542) was King of Scotland from 9 September 1513 until his death in 1542. He was crowned on 21 September 1513 at the age of seventeen months. James was the son of King James IV and Margaret Tudor, and du ...
(1512–1542) and his second wife
Mary of Guise Mary of Guise (french: Marie de Guise; 22 November 1515 – 11 June 1560), also called Mary of Lorraine, was a French noblewoman of the House of Guise, a cadet branch of the House of Lorraine and one of the most powerful families in France. Sh ...
also used the palace. On 14 June 1562 after dinner at Dunfermline,
Mary, Queen of Scots Mary, Queen of Scots (8 December 1542 – 8 February 1587), also known as Mary Stuart or Mary I of Scotland, was Queen of Scotland from 14 December 1542 until her forced abdication in 1567. The only surviving legitimate child of James V of S ...
, produced a gold ring set with a heart shaped diamond and declared she would send it to
Queen Elizabeth Queen Elizabeth, Queen Elisabeth or Elizabeth the Queen may refer to: Queens regnant * Elizabeth I (1533–1603; ), Queen of England and Ireland * Elizabeth II (1926–2022; ), Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms * Queen ...
with some verses she had written herself in Italian. At this time a meeting of the two queens was discussed.


Anne of Denmark

James VI James is a common English language surname and given name: *James (name), the typically masculine first name James * James (surname), various people with the last name James James or James City may also refer to: People * King James (disambiguat ...
stayed at Dunfermline Palace in June 1585 to avoid the plague which raged in Edinburgh. He had a proclamation made to regulate the prices of food, drink, and lodgings for his courtiers in Dunfermline town. In 1589 the palace was given as a wedding present by the king to his bride
Anne of Denmark Anne of Denmark (; 12 December 1574 – 2 March 1619) was the wife of King James VI and I; as such, she was Queen of Scotland from their marriage on 20 August 1589 and Queen of England and Ireland from the union of the Scottish and Eng ...
. She gave birth to three of their children in the Palace; Elizabeth (1596), She would sometimes travel between Edinburgh and Dunfermline by boat, taking meals at
South Queensferry Queensferry, also called South Queensferry or simply "The Ferry", is a town to the west of Edinburgh, Scotland. Traditionally a royal burgh of West Lothian, it is administered by the City of Edinburgh council area. It lies ten miles to the n ...
. She improved the palace during the decade.
Charles Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English and French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''*karilaz'' (in Latin alphabet), whose meaning was " ...
(1600) and
Robert The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of ''Hrōþ, Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory ...
(1602), attended by her German physician, Martin Schöner, and Margaret Douchall, the wife of Jerome Bowie. The royal nursery at Dunfermline was managed by Margaret Stewart, Mistress of Ochiltree. Isobel Colt was one the nurses. It is said that a local gentlewoman, Margaret MacBeth, widow of Henry Durie of Craigluscar, provided the queen with herbal remedies and attended the royal births. Anne of Denmark was given the lands formerly belonging to Dunfermline Abbey, and was known in charters of abbey lands as the "Lady of Dunfermline". In February 1596, Alexander Seton, Lord Urquhart, was appointed as her Bailie and Keeper and Constable of the palace. The palace staff included the keeper John Gibb, the chamberlains of the estates David Seton of Parbroath, William Schaw, and Henry Wardlaw of Pitreavie, the gardener John Lowrie, the plumber James Coupar, who fixed the lead roofs, and Thomas Walwood, foreman of the coal pits. She was entertained by an English musician
John Norlie John Norlie (floruit 1599–1607) was an English musician at the Scottish royal court. Little is known of Norlie's background, training, or early career. He played the lute and the viol at the Scottish court, as the Hudson brothers had done. He ...
and her fool
Tom Durie Tom Durie, Duri, Dury or Derry (fl. 1600–1620) was a Scottish fool or entertainer to Anne of Denmark. Career Tom Durie appears on record at the Scottish court in May 1603, when he was bought clothes to accompany Anne of Denmark on her journey ...
. Later, a story circulated that Tom Durie had stumbled on the queen holding a secret
Mass Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a physical body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different ele ...
at the palace. Anne of Denmark completed a new building at the Palace in 1600, and known as the "Queen's House", or "Queen Anna of Denmark's House" or the "Queen's Jointure House". It was demolished in 1797. The new work was cruciform in plan. It was a tall building with a driveway known as a "pend" running through its basement level, replacing an earlier gateway. This feature can be compared with the Queen's House at
Greenwich Greenwich ( , ,) is a town in south-east London, England, within the ceremonial county of Greater London. It is situated east-southeast of Charing Cross. Greenwich is notable for its maritime history and for giving its name to the Greenwich ...
which was also built over a roadway. A Latin inscription (now lost) recorded that the "gateway and temple-like superstructure" was reconstructed for Anne. Near the west front of the Abbey there were houses for the senior officers of her estates. There was a tennis court in the old Abbey cloister. In November 1601 Anne prepared a lodging for her daughter Princess Elizabeth, but the princess remained at
Linlithgow Palace The ruins of Linlithgow Palace are located in the town of Linlithgow, West Lothian, Scotland, west of Edinburgh. The palace was one of the principal residences of the monarchs of Kingdom of Scotland, Scotland in the 15th and 16th ce ...
on the king's orders. There was a steep stairwell outside Anne of Denmark's bed chamber, and in March 1602 the English courtier
Roger Aston Sir Roger Aston (died 23 May 1612) of Cranford, Middlesex, was an English courtier and favourite of James VI of Scotland. Biography Aston was the illegitimate son of Thomas Aston (died 1553). Scottish sources spell his name variously as "Ascheto ...
fell down it and was unconscious for three hours. At this time there was a plague scare in Edinburgh, and the
Privy Council A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a state, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the mo ...
was anxious that the contagion should not reach the "ordinary place of residence of the Queen, his highness' dearest spouse, and of their majesties' bairns". Ferry crossings to and from Dunfermline were suspended, except for royal councillors and household servants with a clean bill of health.


Prince Charles at Dunfermline

After the
Union of Crowns The Union of the Crowns ( gd, Aonadh nan Crùintean; sco, Union o the Crouns) was the accession of James VI of Scotland to the throne of the Kingdom of England as James I and the practical unification of some functions (such as overseas dip ...
in 1603, the removal of the Scottish court to
London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
meant that the building came to be rarely visited by a monarch. Prince Charles, who was a sickly child, stayed at Dunfermline for a year. His guardians were Alexander Seton and his wife Grissal Leslie. Jean Drummond, later Countess of Roxburghe, looked after him and an older woman, Marion Hepburn, was in charge of rocking his cradle. The Prince was slow to learn to walk and was provided with an oak stool with wheels to train him. An English courtier, Robert Carey, came to Dunfermline and stayed with Alexander Seton, and wrote that Prince Charles was "a very weak child". Dr Henry Atkins wrote from Dunfermline in July 1604 to Anna of Denmark, saying that Prince Charles could now walk the length of the "great chamber" or "longest chamber" several times daily without a stick, "like a gallant soldier all alone". Atkins added that Charles, walking without a staff, was "not so bold as
Ajax Ajax may refer to: Greek mythology and tragedy * Ajax the Great, a Greek mythological hero, son of King Telamon and Periboea * Ajax the Lesser, a Greek mythological hero, son of Oileus, the king of Locris * ''Ajax'' (play), by the ancient Gree ...
but as wary as Ulysses". Alexander Seton and his wife Grizel Leslie brought Prince Charles to England in September 1604, and he was lodged at
Oatlands Palace Oatlands Palace is a former Tudor and Stuart royal palace which took the place of the former manor of the village of Oatlands near Weybridge, Surrey. Little remains of the original building, so excavations of the palace took place in 1964 to ...
. Robert Carey and his wife Elizabeth were appointed to look after him. Some of the Prince's old servants from Dumfermline went to England and were given pensions, including Marion Hepburn, the seamstress Joan Drummond, the laundress Agnes Fortune, the chamber door keeper
George Kirke George Kirke (died 1675) was a Scottish-born courtier and Member of Parliament for Clitheroe. He was a son of George Kirke, a servant of James VI of Scotland. George Kirke senior was keeper of the chamber door to Prince Charles in Scotland at Dun ...
, and the cook John Lyle. Ten tapestries from the royal tapestry collection were still at Dunfermline Palace in 1616, left from the time the infant Prince Charles resided at the Palace. In 1618 John Taylor, the Water Poet, lodged for a night at the house of the keeper since 1584, John Gibb, which was presumably a part of the palace. Taylor described the site, "the Queenes Palace, a delicate and princely mansion, withall I saw the ruins of an ancient and stately built Abbey, with fair gardens, orchards, meadows, belonging to the Palace." When Anne of Denmark died in 1619 ownership of the palace and her lands in Scotland passed to Prince Charles. A new great seal of the lordship was made and the "new great house" built by his mother was repaired. The town was devastated by a fire on 25 May 1624 and Prince Charles sent £500 sterling in aid.


Charles I and Charles II

In February 1633 Lord Traquair, the treasurer-depute, inspected
Linlithgow Palace The ruins of Linlithgow Palace are located in the town of Linlithgow, West Lothian, Scotland, west of Edinburgh. The palace was one of the principal residences of the monarchs of Kingdom of Scotland, Scotland in the 15th and 16th ce ...
, Dunfermline Palace, and
Stirling Castle Stirling Castle, located in Stirling, is one of the largest and most important castles in Scotland, both historically and architecturally. The castle sits atop Castle Hill, an intrusive crag, which forms part of the Stirling Sill geological ...
to estimate for repairs in advance of a royal visit. Charles I returned to Scotland in 1633 for his
coronation A coronation is the act of placement or bestowal of a crown upon a monarch's head. The term also generally refers not only to the physical crowning but to the whole ceremony wherein the act of crowning occurs, along with the presentation of o ...
but only made a brief visit to his place of birth. The last monarch to occupy the palace was Charles II who stayed at Dunfermline in 1650 just before the Battle of Pitreavie.
Anne Halkett Anne Halkett (née Murray) (c. 1623 – 1699), also known as Lady Halkett, was a religious writer and autobiographer. Early life Halkett's father Thomas Murray was tutor to King James I's children. He later became Provost of Eton College. H ...
described meeting him there. Soon afterwards, during the Cromwellian occupation of Scotland, the building was abandoned and by 1708 it had been unroofed. Bishop Pococke was shown the site of the "skaipell" or tennis court in 1760, between the monastic refectory and the abbey tower. The "Queen's House" of 1600 was demolished in 1797. Drawings and engraved views shows battlements and stair towers with conical roofs.Andrea Thomas, ''Glory and Honour: The Renaissance in Scotland'' (Birlinn: Edinburgh, 2013), pp. 35-6. All that remains of the palace today is the kitchen, its cellars, and the impressive south wall with a commanding prospect over the
Firth of Forth The Firth of Forth () is the estuary, or firth, of several Scottish rivers including the River Forth. It meets the North Sea with Fife on the north coast and Lothian on the south. Name ''Firth'' is a cognate of ''fjord'', a Norse word meani ...
to the south.


References


External links


Historic Environment Scotland: Dunfermline Palace and Abbey
{{Palaces in Scotland 15th-century establishments in Scotland Houses completed in the 15th century Listed palaces in Scotland Royal residences in Scotland Category A listed buildings in Fife Scheduled Ancient Monuments in Fife Ruins in Fife Historic Environment Scotland properties Historic house museums in Fife Scottish parliamentary locations and buildings Palaces in Fife African presence at the Scottish royal court Anne of Denmark Buildings and structures in Dunfermline