Dunnett Related Places to Visit
in Scotland

North

Falkland Palace

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The favourite palace of Mary de Guise and the site of Lymond's meeting with her when she tries to disband St. Mary's in Disorderly Knights. Visitors can walk round the apartments which include paintings of many royal family members including James V and Mary, and the chapel which features stained glass representations of Mary Q of S and Darnley. The palace has a very french feels to it and the attractive gardens are a delight when the spring blossoms are on the trees and summer flowers are in bloom. A building at the bottom of the garden houses one of the few remaining Real Tennis courts - the game that O'Liam Roe plays against King Henry at the French court in Queens' Play.
The village of Falkland has retained it's country feel and there are many old buildings. The inn where Lymond and Adam Blacklock meet Cormac O'Connor is still serving the same purpose today.

Loch Leven

The island in the centre of the loch was one of the places where Mary Q of S was imprisoned after her army was defeated.

Culross Village and Palace

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A delightfully preserved village which was an important centre in medieval times. Most of the visible building are 17th century although some of them incorporate older elements. Much of the town is now owned by the National Trust for Scotland and will continue to be preserved.
The distinctive palace with its yellow ochre lime-washed walls is almost contemporary with the Lymond Chronicles, having been started between 1597 and 1611 as a mansion for George Bruce - a merchant who made his fortune in commerce, coal mining and salt production. It is of particular importance as you can see the original panelling and painted decoration on the walls and ceilings and get a real feel for what it was like to live in those times. It also has a restored medieval garden.

Stirling

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Always a strategic town because of its command of the vital crossing of the River Forth it was effectively the key to control of Scotland. The 15th century Stirling Old Bridge still stands - it was a replacement for the previous wooden structures. The most prominent part of the town - now in fact a city - is the high castle which looks remarkably like its counterpart in Edinburgh and was a favourite of the Stuarts. In recent years it has undergone extensive restoration aimed at returning it to its renaissance glory and is now a major tourist attraction.
It is said that you can see seven battle sites from the castle walls - the most famous being the battles of Stirling Bridge and Bannockburn. Since the Mel Gibson film Braveheart the area has become much more popular than was once the case, as visitors flock to the nearby Wallace monument - a 220 ft tower built in 1869 where you can see Wallace's two-handed broadsword.
There are still substantial sections remaining of Stirling's old town wall which was built in 1547, and there is a circular walk - the Back Walk constructed in the 18th century - which takes you past much of it. Other attractions include Argyle's Lodgings - a renaissance mansion built around 1630 - and the Church of the Holy Rude which contains a rare medieval open timber roof and was the site of James VI coronation.
The Dunnett connection is of course that Stirling was the scene of the papingo shoot and Lymond's meeting with Christian Stewart in the gypsy fortune-teller's tent in Game of Kings , while the restored Grand Hall of the castle was the perfect setting for the dinner during the Edinburgh 2000 Gathering.

Dunottar Castle

A magnificent ruined castle where Richard was staying when news came in of the shipwreck of the Edward Bonaventure in Ringed Castle. The Scottish Crown Jewels were sent here during the English Civil War when Cromwell swore to melt them down. The castle was beseiged but they were smuggled out and buried under a church until the restoration made it safe to return them to Edinburgh. Dunottar is also connected to Mel Gibson as it was the site for his filming of Hamlet.

Dunkeld

Nestling in the southern sections of the Highlands, where the hills are starting to rise into mountains, the lovely village of Dunkeld, along with it's next-door neighbour of Birnham, is reached from the main A9 Inverness road via a much photographed bridge over the River Tay built by Thomas Telford and regarded as one of his masterpieces. The ancient Cathedral sits behind the village square in a mature garden of trees and rhododendrons that slopes down to the river. Dunkeld was the base for Crinan in King Hereafter.

Pitsligo Bay

The bay where Richard Chancellor's ship, the Edward Bonaventure, was wrecked after the voyage from Russia. Situated a few miles west of Fraserburgh it also contains the village of Pennan which was one of the two sites for the village featured in the well known film Local Hero.

Cortachy

The castle sits on the land in Angus which belonged to Anselm Adorne.
Not open to the public

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