When I was 17 and visiting Scotland for the first time, I’d never seen an actual castle. As I rode a train into Edinburgh, capital of Scotland, I looked out of the window before and up the hills to Edinburgh Castle.
The sight pulled the breath out of me. There before me was a real fortress — weathered by the centuries. This wasn’t some Disney re-creation. This structure housed real men and women and saw the deaths of hundreds over the centuries.
Historians say there’s been some sort of structure on the top of Castle Rock for almost 2,000 years, and a castle stood high over Edinburgh since the reign of Kind David I in the 1100s. Though it’s been attacked, sieged, destroyed and rebuilt, some original remnants remain. The St. Margaret’s Chapel inside the castle’s walls is original constructions and the oldest building in Scotland (originating in the 12th Century).
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The castle still serves as a Crown Residence when Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II pays an official visit to Scotland. The Royal Scots Guards and other active military unites are still HQ’d at the castle.
If you cab it or hoof it up Castle Rock, the castle is open daily for tours. Once inside the walls, Edinburgh Castle offers spectacular views of its host city, the sea and the surrounding countryside. We’re serving up some fresh images of Edinburgh Castle and its views below:
