Linlithgow Palace stands on a low hill above a small inland loch. The name Linlithgow means ‘the loch in the damp hollow’.

The site was first occupied as far back as Roman times 2,000 years ago. There has been a royal residence here since at least the reign of David I (1124–53). He also founded the town that grew up around the royal residence.

James I ordered work on a palace to begin in 1424, following a fire that severely damaged the earlier residence. The elegant, new ‘pleasure palace’ became a welcome rest stop for royals on the busy road between Edinburgh Castle and Stirling Castle.

But the palace fell quickly into decline when James VI moved the royal court to London in 1603, following his coronation as James I of England.The palace’s north quarter, which probably housed the queen’s apartment where Mary was born, fell to the ground in 1607. It was rebuilt around 1620, on the orders of James VI. Linlithgow Palace’s fountain flowed with wine to welcome Bonnie Prince Charlie in 1745. The end came in 1746, when a great fire swept through the palace.

The scale of the building is demonstrated by the 28-m- long Great Hall where monarchs would host extravagant banquets  in the 15th and 16th centuries, with its huge fireplace and windows. 

The surrounding parkland are the loch itself provide a habitat for grebes, ducks and swans, and make this a pleasant place to visit.