FIFE |
| Aberdour Castle |
Off A921, 7 miles east of Dunfermline |
The powerful Douglases owned this castle from 1342. It
began as a tower house in the 13th and 14th centuries and additions were subsequently
made. The castle was abandoned by the Douglases in 1725 but it still continued in use. The
gardens are some of the earliest castle gardens in Scotland and overlook Aberdour
harbour. |
| Culross |
Off B9037, 9 miles west of Dumfermline |
Culross is the most complete surviving examples of a
Scottish burgh of the 18th and 19th centuries. In the 6th century Culcross became a
religious centre and it is the birthplace of St Mungo the patron saint of Glasgow. The
ruins of a chapel dedicated to Mungo can still be seen. The later prosperity of Culross
came when George Bruce developed a way of mining for coal and salt. Bruce's house, Culross
Palace is an outstanding example of a rich merchant's home. |
| Dunfermline Abbey |
In centre of Dumfermline |
This 12 century abbey was founded by Davis I as a
Benedictine monastery. It became one of Scotland's most magnificent establishments when it
replaced Iona as the royal burial place. The nave remained in use throughout the centuries
as a parish church. The rest of the abbey fell into decay and much of it is now occupied
by the new parish church built in the 1820s. |
| Earlshall Castle |
Off A919, 6 miles north-west of St Andrews |
This castle survives very much as it was when Sir
William Bruce built it in 1546 and entertained Mary, Queen of Scots. The castle's glory is
the Long Gallery, more than 50ft in length, with a ceiling intricately painted with the
Seven Virtues and other themes. The panelled rooms contain fine furniture and
porcelain,
and one of the world's largest collections of Scottish armour. |
| Falkland Palace |
Off A912, in High Street |
Below the Lomond Hills, this royal domain was a
favourite residence of Mary, Queen of Scots who spend a lot of her time between 1561 and
1565 there. There was a castle on the site before the palace but when it passed to James
II in 1437 he began the palace and made Falkland a royal burgh. James V embelished the
building in superb Gothic style, adding the magnificent twin-towered gatehouse. |
| Hill of Tarvit |
On A916, 2 miles south of Cupar |
Frederick Sharp, a wealthy jute manufacturer, bought
the mansion house at Hill of Tarvit in 1904 to house his art collections. The building had
begun in 1696 with Sharp having the house remodelled and enlarged. The result is an
elegant mansion set among hillside gardens. The house contains some fine French furniture
and a number of Dutch masters. |
| Inchcolm Abbey |
On Inchcolm Island in the
Firth of Forth |
The best preserved group
of monastic buildings in Scotland, founded around 1123, and including a
13th century octagonal chapter house. |
| Kellie Castle |
Off B9171, 3 miles north-west of Pittenweem |
This magnificent example of 14th to 17th century
Scottish Lowland architecture was restored by the Lorimers when they bought it in 1948.
Within the castle there is superb plasterwork in most rooms, and the Withdrawing Room has
64 wall panels painted of the reign of Charles II. The kitchen is equipped as it was in
the early 1930s, the last great age of country house entertaining. |
| Kirkcaldy Museum and Art Gallery |
By railway centre in town centre |
This museum has a section on local industries including
how Kirkcaldy became the ‘linoleum centre of the world’. The museum also covers
the geology, natural history, prehistory and history of Kirkcaldy district. There is a
display devoted to Adam smith, the political economist and the art gallery has a fine
collection of Scottish and English 18th and 19th century paintings. |
| St Andrews |
St Andrews |
Almost 1000 years of proud Scottish history have made
St Andrews a hallowed place of religious belief, academic learning and a sportsman’s
paradise. It has the oldest university in Scotland, the dramatic ruins of a 12th century
cathedral and of a 13th century castle and the worlds oldest and most famous golf course,
the Old course. |
| St Andrews Castle |
In St Andrews on the A91 |
The ruins of the castle of
the Archbishops of St Andrews, dating in part from the 13th century.
Notable features include a 'bottle-dungeon' and mine and counter-mine
tunnelled during the siege that followed the murder of Cardinal Beaton in
1546. The siege works are the finest of their kind in Europe. |
| St Andrews Cathedral and St Rule's Tower |
In St Andrews on the A91 |
The remains of the largest cathedral in
Scotland, and of the associated domestic ranges of the priory. The
precinct walls are particularly well preserved. The Cathedral Museum
houses an outstanding collection of Early Christian and medieval monuments
and other relics found on the site. St Rule's Tower is part of the first
church of the Augustinian canons, built in the early 12th century. |
