Here we are back at the Palace of Holyrood House in Edinburgh again, inside this time. As you can see the bedroom below is the King’s Bedchamber which is hung with tapestries, has a wonderfuly ornate ceiling and Dutch delft tiles around the fireplace. Most of the rooms in this palace are fairly small by royal standards.
On the video guide Princess Anne explained that people often assume that it must be a horrible place to have to stay in, considering that there has been at least one murder there with Rizzio having been stabbed to death (I bet there were more murders than that one!) But she tells them that it has a nice homely atmosphere. I must admit that I have my doubts about the ‘bloodstain’ in the photo below, it look a wee bit too bright for something not far off 500 years old, but there’s no doubt that this is where the deed took place. If you’re interested in the history of the palace have a look here.
Sadly a lot of our photos didn’t come out well due to the dim lighting to preserve the tapestries and soft furnishings, they look blurred like the two below. Obviously you aren’t allowed to use a flash.
Below is a painting of King James VI.
I’m sure that the dining room is used when the Queen visits this palace, usually she stays here and does some entertaining and has garden parties before continuing on to her holiday home in the Highlands – Balmoral.
Some of the paintings in the Long Gallery below were damaged after the Jacobite Rebellion, presumably by Cumberland’s troops but they’ve been well patched up. Someone called these long galleries ‘treason rooms’ as they are the only spaces where people of a treasonous nature could talk without the danger of being overheard. When ‘Bonnie Prince Charlie’ took possession of this palace in 1745 he held a grand ball. I think it would have been held in this room, unless there is a ballroom which is not open to the public. There’s a secret door in the panelling!
I could have quite happily sat down to soak up the atmosphere, but I don’t think that would have gone down well with the attendants who I must mention were almost all young women and wearing wonderful kilts which looked to me to be men’s kilts, certainly they folded over on the male side anyway. Sadly I don’t have a photo of them as I don’t think that would have gone down well either.
In my only visit to Edinburgh, we didn’t make it inside of Holyroodhouse, and your photos of all of the beautiful rooms makes me wish we could have…maybe next time! I can’t wait to read the details about Rizzio….
Paula,
There’s so much to see in Edinburgh and if you’re pushed for time it’s not possible to see it all! I’ll blog a wee bit about Rizzio soon.
No way that bloodstain is real! But I am sort of glad they made the effort.
I don’t know why I didn’t make it here when I visited Edinburgh. Maybe I spent too much time at the Castle.
Constance,
Apparently people kept chipping away at the original bloodstain. Edinburgh Castle is fine but Stirling Castle is my favourite, but not so handy for tourists to visit.
The “blood stain” made me laugh! Also, the king’s bed looks really small. Seems like my own bed is bigger than that one.
Stefanie,
The bed does look small although I think the very high drapes around it don’t help. However years ago apparently people used to sleep more or less sitting up so the beds weren’t so long. Also kings often received visitors while they were sitting up in their bed, I have not heard of queens doing that!