Blackness Castle

When planning my trip to Scotland, I have no idea what I put on there to stop and see Blackness Castle. It certainly isn't one of the more popular or bigger castles in Scotland. The only thing I can think of is that it happened to be on the way to our various other destinations. That being said, I am still glad that we made the stop.









*Because it was an early morning, we arrived there just as it opened. Which meant we had the castle to ourselves for a little while before people arrived. Getting to wander through a castle without any other tourists is great. I fully recommend it.
 
Blackness castle is often called "the ship that never sailed." From an arial view, the castle is actually shaped like a ship. Pretty interesting huh. Sadly, I did not get a helicopter ride to see this castle. So I don't have an arial picture I can show you. That's what google and Wikipedia is for.



It's located on the south shore of the Firth of Forth, in the tiny village of Blackness. The castle was built in 1440. It was considered to be one of the most advanced artillery fortifications of it's time in Scotland during the 16th century.



The castle served as a prison,  a minor garrison, an ammunition depot, and a royal fortress through it's years of existence. Obviously the castle has fallen through many different hands throughout history. Instead of listing out that potentially boring history of events, I'll leave that to your Wikipedia skills. In the meantime, we wandered and had fun taking pictures. Though I must say it was a windy and cold day to be wandering along the water.

 

One Day in Edinburgh Scotland

Edinburgh Scotland was the first stop on my trip to Scotland. Unfortunately, I only had one day in this booming city. It certainly was not enough time, but I was able to see some of the mail highlights. This quaint little street view is that of the little B&B I stayed in, about a 2 miles from one of the major attractions. It was kind of a nightmare to find, but the staff was friendly, the room was cozy, and I'd stay here again.
The first stop on our busy day was Holyrood Palace. This is the official home of the British monarch, who resides here the month of June every summer. For a summer home, it was quite lovely. Of course the ground were beautiful, and the palace well kept. As it turns out, the famous Mary Queen of Scots lived here for some time as well.

Before entering into the palace, we came across Queen Mary's Bath House, protruding over the sidewalk. We were not able to go inside, but such a random, historic item had to be photographed.


Once we reached the entry to the palace, we of course did more picture taken. No photos are allowed on the inside of course, and the photo's probably wouldn't have turned out very well anyway. Those old buildings never have the best lighting.

 Attached to the palace is Holyrood Abbey. This beautiful place was sadly destroyed in a fire long ago. But the ruins are still quite lovely to wander through, with some great photo opportunities. I need to learn how to become a professional photographer.



       

After seeing the abbey, we had to explore the beautiful 10 acre grounds. Every summer, the Queen has an annual garden party here. Lovely.

Because we had gotten to this palace right when it opened, we were lucky enough to enjoy the bulk of tourists. If you can ever be the first at a sight, do it. It was wonderful to wander through without the hordes of people helping you to develop claustrophobia.

From here, walked along the Royal Mile up the endless incline through the major touristy area of the city. There were lovely shops, pubs and random things to see along the way. We even passed through St. Giles Cathedral along the way. I might have snuck a quick picture of their beautiful stained glass windows too. I've traveled to a few old churches throughout Europe, and seen my share of stained glass windows. I'd have to say that those in Scotland are by far the most beautiful I've ever seen.

From there, we proceeded to the top of the mile for the show stopper. Edinburgh Castle. This place is always crowded. I'm glad we were here AFTER the busy touristy season. It was still crowded, and very cold. The wind up here easily cuts through all your layers of clothing.

Turns out, this castle is a military fortress, as opposed to a royal residence. The Castle has 3 separate gates, and different levels to protect in times of siege and battle. This castle is also considered to have been the most attacked castle in Europe, having been sieged at least 26 times. It is still used for military operations and offices today.

 

Of course, you can't forget to take a quick peak at the conditions for the prisoners of war. This was day one in Scotland.