LINLITHGOW PALACE
"Of all the palaces so fair
Built for the royal dwelling,
In Scotland, far beyond compare,
Linlithgow is excelling."
[Illustration: The Fountain in the Quadrangle of Linlithgow Palace.]
So wrote Sir Walter Scott, an opinion which can be endorsed to-day,
enough of the palace remaining, ruined though it is, to show what a
stately and dignified structure it was in its days of greatness. The
palace, standing on some rising ground jutting into a beautiful lake,
is square in construction, having towers at the corners. The original
entrance was on the eastern side, through a gateway which was
protected by a drawbridge. Inside this gateway is a mutilated statue,
thought to represent Pope Julius II., who gave James IV. his sword,
still to be seen among the regalia in Edinburgh Castle. A ruined
fountain stands in the centre of the courtyard, which once resounded
with all the gaiety of the Stuart Court. The western side, containing
the room where Queen Mary was born, is the oldest, while the northern
side is the most recent, being rebuilt by James VI.
Apparently there was a castle or royal manor-house at Linlithgow from
the time of David I., who granted the skins of the rams, sheep, and
lambs, who died there, to his foundation abbey of Holyrood.
When Edward I. was holding sway over Scotland, he spent a considerable
time at Linlithgow, turning it into a real fortress. Builders, masons,
and carpenters were ordered from England, who threw up stockades,
enclosing the parish church within the walls. It remained in English
hands until 1314, when it was taken by a familiar strategy. A farmer,
named Binnock, who was in the custom of bringing hay to the garrison,
determined to capture the castle, one of the last to submit to the
conquering Scots. One morning he drove up as usual to the castle gate,
stopping his cart immediately under the portcullis, which was raised
to admit him. Cutting the yoke which fastened his horses, so that the
cart could not be shifted nor the portcullis lowered, Binnock sprang
upon the unsuspecting porter and killed him. The hay in the cart
covered some armed men who leapt out, being joined by others concealed
near the gateway. The garrison was completely surprised, and were
all put to the sword. Binnock was rewarded by a grant of land. Bruce
destroyed the castle, following his usual policy, but it must have
been rebuilt some time during the reign of his son.
The palace which now remains is entirely a Stuart building, the older
castle and part of the church having been burnt down the year that
James I. returned to his native country after his long captivity.
Great rebuilding took place in his reign, and, indeed, he is
considered the main builder, the later monarchs only adding to and
adorning portions of his scheme. It was in this new palace that Henry
VI. of England, with Margaret of Anjou, and Edward Prince of Wales,
stayed when the triumph of the Yorkists had driven them from England.
James IV., under whom Scotland enjoyed a rare interval of prosperity,
delighted in his beautiful palace of Linlithgow, where he indulged in
all the manly sports of the time. Like his contemporary, Henry VIII.,
he revelled in tournaments, to which he invited all the lords to come
and tilt with him, making of Linlithgow another Hampton Court, where
great merry-making took place. Under his wise rule, Scotland was
at peace and prosperous, the Court maintained a higher level
of refinement and luxury, and science and art were encouraged.
Unfortunately, James's chivalrous and rash temperament led him into
war with England and the disaster at Flodden Field. Before starting on
the expedition, a council was held at Linlithgow, after which the King
attended evensong in the church. According to the story described by
eye-witnesses, a strange man, dressed in a blue robe belted with a
linen strap, with reddish hair hanging to his shoulders, pushed his
way up to where the King was kneeling. Addressing him with slight
reverence, the man warned the King against proceeding to battle,
saying, "Sir King, my mother has sent me to you desiring you not to
pass at this time where thou art purposed," saying it would bring
disaster and shame, also warning him against visiting any woman on his
journey. While the lords and everyone round were astonished and amazed
at this apparition, the man suddenly disappeared "like a blink of the
sun." In spite of the fact that the superstition of the time credited
the man with being St. John appearing upon earth, the King persisted
in his undertaking to meet his death upon the battlefield, and to
plunge Scotland into mourning for the flower of the land. Doubtless
the man was an imposter, got up for the part, by those who wanted to
dissuade the King.
A little room in the south-west corner of the palace is pointed out
as Queen Margaret's Bower, being said to be the room from which the
King's English bride watched for the messengers bringing her news of
her husband's fate.
When James V. became of age he also loved the palace, building the
stately hall known as the Parliament Hall. He brought his French wife,
Mary of Guise, there, who said she had never seen a more princely
residence. His only child, Mary Queen of Scots, was born in the
palace, but he never saw her, for he was at Falkland Palace when
the news of her birth was brought to him, dying of grief after the
shameful defeat at Solway Moss.
The infant Queen was declared by some to be extremely delicate, but
Sir Ralph Sadler, the English Ambassador in Scotland, gave quite a
different account. The Queen-Dowager took him into the room where her
baby was lying, and showed him how healthy she was. He writes to Queen
Elizabeth: "I assure Your Majesty it is as goodly a child as I have
seen of her age, and as like to live, with the grace of God."
[Illustration: LINLITHGOW PALACE.
THE BIRTHPLACE OF MARY, QUEEN OF SCOTS.
Though from very early times a royal manor-house, the existing
building is purely the work of the Stuart Kings.]
After the thrones were united, the palace, like so many others in
Scotland, became neglected, but it received its final ruin in 1746,
when General Hawley's soldiers quartered in the palace. They had
been defeated at Falkirk by the Jacobites, and were retreating. In
spite of remonstrances to the General, the soldiers were allowed to
make great fires in the palace, which were so carelessly watched
that the building caught fire, leaving it the ruin which it is
to-day.