Palace of Holyroodhouse

Palace of Holyroodhouse and the Jacobites

During the September and October of 1745, Charles Edward Stuart held court at the Palace of Holyroodhouse for a whole 5 weeks during the Jacobite Rising. Upon his arrival at the palace of his Stuart ancestors, he was preceded by the veteran Jacobite Robert Hepburn of Keith with a drawn sword and cheered on by great crowds of supporters. As the King’s rooms were somewhat unkempt at this point, he chose to occupy the Duke of Hamilton’s apartments instead. 

Bonnie Prince Charlie used the Great Gallery as his Audience Chambers during the day, and it was transformed each evening for extravagant balls and receptions. A visit today will afford you the opportunity to visit this exact room and try to imagine what it would have been like, lit by hundreds of candles and full of the sounds of music back in the 18th century. You can also see the Ante-Chamber where the young Prince dined in public, and also the chamber containing a sumptuous bed where he may have slept.

Bonnie Prince Charlie left Holyroodhouse in October 1745. The following year, government troops were billeted in the palace after the battle of Falkirk, when they damaged the royal portraits in the gallery, and the Duke of Cumberland stayed here on his way to the battle of Culloden.