Dunfermline Abbey
The Kingdoms Pride And Joy
Dunfermline is home to some amazing historical sites, but none can quite compare to the beauty and intrigue of Dunfermline Abbey. It has stood tall, towering over the centre of Dunfermline for over 900 years now and people have traveled from all over the world to see it in all it's glory. But this particular Abbey is very special to Scotland for many different reasons.
It was first founded in 1070 by St Margaret as a priory where she married her husband, Malcolm III (Malcolm Canmore). Now, the street Dunfermline Abbey rests on is called Canmore Street after the first to reign over the land the Abbey is situated. Margaret invited a small community of Benedictine monks to live on the land which lead to the first Benedictine house in the whole of Scotland. It was later turned into an Abbey in 1128 by Margaret and Malcolm's son, David I of Scotland. This was when the church was built to a much grander scale which is still considered today as one of the finest examples of Romanesque architecture in Scotland.
Now, it is world famous for being the resting place to a significant amount of Scottish heros, the most remembered being Robert the Bruce.
West enterance to Dunfermline Abbey
Robert the Bruce was buried at Dunfermline Abbey way back in 1329 after financing the rebuilding of the Abbey after it was badly burned in a fire during the War of Independence where Edward I ( more infamously known as The Hammer of the Scots) used the Abbey as his headquarter. Although his heart was believed to be found in a casket buried in Melrose in the Scottish Borders, his bones were buried at the Abbey along with the heart once it was discovered. However, in 1998, the heart was taken once again to Melrose to be put to rest as a letter left by Robert the Bruce said it was his dying wish that it was buried there. His daughter, Matilda of Scotland, was buried at Dunfermline Abbey along with her father's body in 1353.
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Robert the Bruce's original tomb was discovered in 1818 during the construction of the New Abbey Church of Dunfermline which was designed, and later dedicated, to William Burn of Edinburgh. When the tomb was discovered, his remains were carefully relaid within the new church. Burn then revised the design of the top parapet of the new church to say "KING ROBERT THE BRUCE" which can now be seen from all over Dunfermline. The legacy of this important Scottish figure remains a huge part of Scotland's history and is celebrated by Dunfermline Abbey.
"KING ROBERT THE BRUCE" around top of Dunfermline Abbey
The Abbey also went through a lot of changes after Protestant reformation in 1560, when it was stripped of its Catholic furnishes and the Act of Annexation later gave all control of the Abbey to the Crown. King James VI, who was reining at this time, gave the Abbey to his Queen, Anna of Denmark, as a gift and the church was discharged. It became the royal couples place of residence until 1603, when James VI and Anna of Denmark moved to London and left Dunfermline Abbey in despair.
Even hundreds of years since the first foundations of this church were put in place, the Abbey is still used by the public for worship purposes. Every Sunday, they continue to use the building for Sunday School as well as being used for choir practices, girl-guiding classes and its very popular Watch night Service on Christmas Eve every year. It has become an extremely admired tourist attraction, inviting people from other countries to learn more about Dunfermline's rich history and is destined to stand, towering over Dunfermline for hundreds more years to come and to continue to teach people about Dunfermline's significance to Scottish history.