Palace of Holyroodhouse

Facing the Parliament stands the Palace of Holyroodhouse, the official residence of the British monarch in Scotland. It began as a guesthouse of Holyrood Abbey, founded in 1128 by King David I — legend says he was inspired by a vision of a cross, or "rood," between the antlers of a stag that attacked him while hunting. The palace's most dramatic resident was Mary, Queen of Scots, who lived here from 1561 to 1567. In her private apartments in 1566, her jealous husband Lord Darnley and his conspirators dragged her Italian secretary, David Riccio, from her supper table and stabbed him 56 times — one of the most infamous murders in Scottish history. Behind the palace lie the romantic ruins of the abbey itself, roofless since the 18th century, and the peaceful royal gardens. When the King is not in residence, the state apartments and Mary's chambers are open to visitors. Follow the road on around the palace to the southeast. A couple of minutes away the park gate opens, and the landscape changes completely.