Stirling

Stirling commands a crossing of the River Forth between the Highlands and the Lowlands. Its castle rises on a steep volcanic rock above the burgh, a fortress and royal residence at the heart of Scottish history. Battles at Stirling Bridge and nearby Bannockburn made the district famous in the Wars of Independence. Under the Stewart kings the castle became a magnificent Renaissance residence. James V built a new royal palace there around 1540, and the young Mary, Queen of Scots, spent part of her childhood within its walls. In 1746 Jacobite forces occupied Stirling and besieged its government-held castle, but withdrew to the Highlands without taking it.