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Places to Visit around StirlingThe Royal Palace at Stirling Castle
The Palace at Stirling Castle allows visitors to step into the astonishing richness of royal life in the 1500s. James V’s Palace at Stirling is one of the finest and best-preserved Renaissance buildings in Great Britain. Following a major programme of research and re-presentation, it can now be seen by visitors much as it may have looked on completion around 1545. The decoration of the Palace’s six main rooms is overwhelmingly colourful, rich and elaborate. James and his French wife Mary of Guise aimed to present themselves as wealthy, learned and sophisticated. The decorative style belongs to the Renaissance – a great flowering in arts, literature and philosophy that revolutionised Europe in the 1400s and 1500s. Bright colours, expensive fabrics and ornate patterns were essential elements. In 1538, James was preparing to marry his second French wife. To mark the arrival of his bride, James commissioned a new Palace in Stirling Castle. It was intended to be as fine as any princely residence she would have known in the richer kingdom of France.
The Palace was designed to display James V’s wealth, learning and sophistication, as well as asserting his right to rule. Its elaborate decorative scheme, inside and out, was inspired by the European Renaissance. It draws on ideas from the Classical world, employing elaborate symbols and motifs to broadcast messages of power and prosperity, wisdom and justice. Interiors and exteriors would have been painted in bright colours, with plentiful gilding The Palace comprises Royal Lodgings for the king and queen. Each apartment has three spacious rooms – in ascending order of privacy: an Outer Hall‚ an Inner Hall and a Bedchamber. Access to these rooms was restricted according to the importance of the visitor and the royal privilege extended to them. The king’s and queen’s suites are on the same floor, arranged around a courtyard known as the Lion’s Den. These rooms were used for a variety of purposes, including taking meals, greeting important visitors, dancing and entertainments, royal audiences and meetings about affairs of state. But the bedchambers were rarely used for sleeping. The king and queen slept in small private chambers known as closets. The Royal Lodgings have now been returned to something approaching their former glory. A major programme of research and re-presentation, lasting 10 years and costing £12 million, was completed in summer 2011. Visitors can now glimpse life in one of the great royal residences of Scotland’s kings and queens. The decorative scheme is amazingly elaborate and colourful. It includes hand-woven tapestries, superb, hand-made furniture and painted replicas of the famous Stirling Heads – carved portraits in oak that once adorned the ceiling of James V’s magnificent Palace. There's more than ever to see and do at Stirling Castle Opening times and admission pricesOpen all year, seven days a week.
1 April - 30 September
1 October - 31 March Adult (16-59) £13.00 Last ticket sold 45 minutes before closing (regimental museum closes 45 mins before castle).
Car parking £2.00 for a maximum of 4 hours
toilets The Stirling Castle admission ticket also gives access to Argyll’s Lodging (access by guided tour only – enquire at Stirling Castle on 01786 450 000). Stirling Castle will be closed on Christmas Day and Boxing day. Open from 11am to 5pm on January 1st and as normal from January 2nd.
Stirling Castle All information in this article was provided by Historic Scotland. | |||
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