Site type CHAPEL, DOVECOT, PALACE
Canmore ID 29787
Site Number NO20NE 3.00
NGR NO 25345 07454
Council FIFE
Parish FALKLAND
Former Region FIFE
Former District NORTH EAST FIFE
Former County FIFE

Canmore Mapping
View this site on a map

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Treasured Places - HLF funded

Construction of the Renaissance palace at Falkland began in the early 16th century, replacing an earlier castle confiscated by the crown in 1437. During the reigns of James IV and V it was used as a hunting lodge. The palace is built around three sides of a courtyard with the construction of a wall completing the square. Only the foundations of the N side and the ruins of the E side remain, but the S range survives, having been extensively restored in the 19th century.

Information from RCAHMS (SC) 3 August 2007
Gifford, J 1988

An image of this site has been nominated as one of Scotland's favourite archive images. For more information about the project visit http://www.treasuredplaces.org.uk

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Archaeological Notes

NO20NE 3.00 25345 07454

NO20NE 3.01 NO 2536 0744 Pictish Symbol Stones (NO20NW 13)
NO20NE 3.02 NO 25384 07645 Royal Stables and Tennis Court
NO20NE 3.03 NO 25344 07438 Tyndall Bruce Statue

see also:

NO20NE 119 NO 25178 07500 Private Bridge (Between Palace and Falkland House)

(NO 2535 0745) Palace (NR) (Remains of)
OS 6" map (1938)

Falkland Palace occupies the site of a steading at least as old as the 15th century.
It was a quadrangular structure, with buildings on the north, south and east sides. The west side was closed by a wall against or close to which was erected a 'lodging', since removed. Only the foundations of the north side remain and of the south and east sides the east side is in ruins.
Construction was begun about 1530, to replace the older castle (NO20NE 18), and was completed in 1541, incorporating earlier work (Macgibbon and Ross (1887) date the south front, architecturally, to the late 15th century: existing fabric was incorporated in the construction of this side in 1537). The eastern range was 'a new work' in 1516 but was virtually rebuilt in 1537. By 1685 the palace was partly ruinous but it was extensively restored in the 19th century.
RCAHMS 1933

As described above. The east range is being extensively restored.
Visited by OS (WDJ) 21 March 1967

Two cut-down symbol stones found on Westfield Farm are now exhibited in Falkland Palace Museum. For information on the symbol stones, see NO20NW 13.

Falkland Palace developed from a pre-existing castle which may have its roots in the 12th or 13th century. Two towers of the castle had been adversely affected by root action, and steps were needed to halt this process. Vegetation has now been removed from both towers, and one, the keep or well tower, has been further investigated vath the aid of NTS Conservation Volunteers. The tower was found to have been dismantled and entirely restored by Lord Bute during his excavations at Falkland in the 1890s; a well head, perhaps of 17th or 18th-century design, was also introduced. Lord Bute reused stonework from adjacent medieval buildings to make up a level surface which will now be consolidated and used in the visitor interpretation of the castle. The second, smaller tower is due to be investigated in 1995.
Sponsor: NTS.
R Turner 1994

NO 253 074 Four exploratory trenches were excavated by Scotia Archaeology Limited at first floor level within the E range of the palace to determine the age of the deposits that overlay the vaulted cellars below. All such materials, comprising concrete, bricks, felt/bitumen and ashy waste had been deposited during the Marquis of Bute's renovations in the late 19th century or when the concrete floor was laid in the 1930s and 1960s.
Sponsor: National Trust for Scotland.
H Smith 1995.

NO 2538 0747 A watching brief was kept by Scotia Archaeology Ltd during the excavation of several drainage trenches within and outside a range of cellars beyond the E range of the palace. At the N end of the range, two sections of the original 16th-century drain system were uncovered; a third drain, to the immediate N of the cross-house, was a late 19th-century rebuild. The load-bearing walls of the E range, the cellars and the cross-house were set on bedrock.
Although exploratory trenching had already established that the concrete covering the floor of the hall in the E range was of 20th-century date (Smith 1995), its removal was also monitored during this programme.
Sponsor: National Trust for Scotland
J Terry 1996

NO 253 074 Scotia Archaeology Ltd kept a watching brief during the excavation of trenches for a new drainage system along the N (courtyard) side of the S range of the palace. The excavation revealed a complex of existing drains including a stone-lined channel stretching 35m along the length of the range. This channel was 0.3m wide and varied in depth from 0.25m near the angle with the E range to 0.45m at its W end. The channel, together with an overlying U-shaped open drain, is thought to be of 19th-century origin.
Sponsor: National Trust for Scotland
J Terry 1997

NO 2535 0745 This work is the continuation of a project started in 1994, investigating the remains of Falkland Castle. Excavation of the remains of the western D-shaped tower was undertaken, the purpose being to remove the disturbed material attributable to investigations carried out at the site by Lord Bute, late last century. Excavations revealed that most of the existing walling is of drystone construction, with two small patches of lime-mortared wall being the only remnants of the original building. Landscaping for the gardens has removed any trace of previous archaeological surfaces, with thin topsoil overlying degraded sandstone bedrock.
The site was filled in after excavation to a lower level, to allow later consolidation and interpretation of the remains.
Sponsor: National Trust for Scotland
D Hind 1998

NO 254 076 An archaeological watch was kept on the installation of earthing rods for the upgraded lightning conductors at Falkland Palace in June 2002.
The excavations were minimal in nature, and only the topsoil was disturbed. Two trenches within a cultivated bed on the W side of the castle yielded late 19th- to early 20th-century earthenware. No other finds or features were recorded.
Archive to be deposited in Fife SMR and the NMRS.
Sponsor: NTS.
D Hind 2002

c NO 253 074 A watching brief was conducted in February 2005 during the excavation of five small holes to receive new signposts. The holes had a maximum depth of 0.6m and were 0.4m square. Trench 1 lay to the S of the entrance, trench 2 lay to the NW corner of the palace, trench 3 lay further to the N, and the remaining two trenches lay within the present garden area to the E and W respectively. Only trenches 1-3 contained anything of archaeological interest, in the form of a substantial rubble deposit.
Archive to be deposited in NMRS.
Sponsor: NTS.
G Ewart 2005

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Architectural Notes

NO20NE 3.00 25345 07454

INFORMATION TAKEN FROM THE ARCHITECTURE CATALOGUE:

ARCHITECT: Thomas Bonnar - painted ceilings - 'David Scott' and Priest's Rooms 1895
John Kinross - restoration
Robert Weir Schultz - Domestic Chapel and Corridor restoration
William Frame - restoration for Lord Bute
Mr Edwards (Alexr Edward) 1699 'Draught of the Low Palace at Falkland'
John Merlioun 1537, Nicholas Roy, Moses Martin, mason, William Turnbull, Andrews Matheson, William Thome, Andrew Wright - Chapel Block, 1501-12
Thomas French, James Black - Gothic S Front 1538-9.
John Brownhill, Henry Bawte, 1539-41.
Peter Flemishman - statuary on S front.

OWNER: National Trust for Scotland

NMRS Print Room
Falkland Palace
5 exterior views (2 of them filed in Bo/Ro, Ferniehirst)
Close view of the chapel screen
W Schomberg Scott Photograph Collection
Acc No 1997/39

NMRS Plans
I G Linsday Collection, W/239

REFERENCE:

SCOTS MAGAZINE, November 1807, 1 engraving.

SCOTTISH RECORD OFFICE:

Railing and gate for Falkland Palace. Estimates are to be obtained from Paterson, Iron Founder, Leith for undertaking the work in cast iron and from Wilson, Smith, The Mint, for them in wrought iron.

Letters: William Waddel to John Bruce
January 12 and 24 1822 GD152/218/5/Bundle 20/1 and 2.

Repair and conversion of a circular tower in the Palace Garden into a Pigeon House. Estimate ?85.
Letter: John Swinton, Architect, to William Waddel.
26 April 1822 GD152/218/5/Bundle 20/9

Repair work at Falkland Palace. Receipts for work, materials and carriage. Account for ?759.11.5 from John Swinton, Contractor. (51)
1824 GD/152/217/5/Bundle 16/1-51

Proposal by John Swinton that the House at Falkland Palace formerly occupied by the Clergyman should be made habitable at a small expense for a Tenant 'supposing him to be a Gentleman or a retired Officer, with the seven Acres in the Garden!

John Bruce wishes to know if this work is included in Swinton's estimate.
Letter: John Bruce to William Waddel.
9 May 1825 GD/152/218/5/Bundle 22/7

'Proposed repairs to the Tower over the Gateway of Falkland Palace. I would suggest for Mr Swinton's consideration ... The Tower over the Gateway to be made as like the other as practicable and the Windows which are to be stopped up to be marked and painted as Windows to preserve the ancient external appearance.'
Letter: John Bruce to William Waddel.
9 May 1825 GD/152/218/5/Bundle 22/7

'Proposed repairs to the Chapel of Falkland Palace. 'I would suggest for Mr Swinton's consideration ... the windows in the Chapel may be Casement Glass not large panes and the middle Window to be plastered up and the outside made in imitation of a Window as five windows will be quite sufficient and have Iron Bars without and Wire Work to defend them ... The floor of the Chapel may be made sufficiently strong to protect the Dwelling House below ... The Cupola of the Pulpit may be preserved till I see what can be done with it.'
Letter: John Bruce to William Waddel.
9 May 1825 GD/152/218/5/Bundle 22/7

Proposed repairs [to Chapel, Gateway and House] at Falkland Palace. John Bruce agrees that Mr Waddel should 'settle with Swinton , and let it be done forthwith; as it can be better done now, when Swinton is there than afterwards.'
Letter: John Bruce to William Waddel.
16 May 1825 GD/152/218/5/Bundle 22/9

Proposed repairs to the Chapel at Falkland Palace. 'Had any remains of the Antiquities in the interior of the chapel, been preserved, it would have been worthwhile to put Glass windows in all the 3 but this not being the Case, the external appearance only is worth attention. It was surely to preserve the house below as habitable thar Swinton recommended the Chapel to have a new floor and the only chance we have of making anything of the Palace is to make what was the Minister's house habitable for a tenant. Letter John Bruce to William Waddel.
13 June 1825 GD218/5/Bundle 22/17

Proposed addition to Falkland Palace and restoration of garden and terraces. 'It would be much the cheapest and most convenient thing you could do - to say nothing of the taste and character and popularity of it.'
Letter: C R Cockerell [1788-1863], Architect to O Tyndall Bruce.
25 March 1828 GD152/53/1/Bundle 16/1

Proposal to restore Falkland Palace rather than build a house on a new site. 'There may be something strained and difficult in realising my scheme but were I King of Falkland I feel that I should make a great effort to do so ...' Letter: C R Cockerell [1788-1863], Architect to O Tyndall Bruce.
12 January 1831 GD152/53/1/Bundle 16/2

Falkland Palace. Print of an engraving used as a heading for account from R Burton, General Merchant, Falkland.
Valentine Sc. Dundee 1839. GD152/53/3/Bundle 18/4

Report on the condition of the flooring over the Great Hall of Falkland Palace. 'Many of the joists are quite rotten at the ends where they should be resting in the wall, so that the floor and ceiling consisting of an immense mass of heavy oak joisting and panelling appears to be almost entirely supported by a few strappings let fall from the struts of the roof and nailed to the decayed joists ...'.
Letters: William Howden, Factor, to A hamilton Bruce.
January 1882 GD152/217/4/Bundle 10/12


MISCELLANEOUS: From the 'Proceedings of Tempera Painting'. Vol. XLIII - 1 pamphlet

Notes and Activities

1890

DESIGN

Notes Designs drawn up by Thomas Bonnar.

Further details

1925	MEASURED SURVEY

Further details

1 January 1930 to 31 December 1939

PHOTOGRAPHIC SURVEY

Further details

1933	FIELD VISIT

Notes Falkland Palace occupies the site of a steading at least as old as the 15th century.
It was a quadrangular structure, with buildings on the north, south and east sides. The west side was closed by a wall against or close to which was erected a 'lodging', since removed. Only the foundations of the north side remain and of the south and east sides the east side is in ruins. Construction was begun about 1530, to replace the older castle (NO20NE 18), and was completed in 1541, incorporating earlier work (Macgibbon and Ross (1887) date the south front, architecturally, to the late 15th century: existing fabric was incorporated in the construction of this side in 1537). The eastern range was 'a new work' in 1516 but was virtually rebuilt in 1537. By 1685 the palace was partly ruinous but it was extensively restored in the 19th century.
RCAHMS 1933

Further details

13 September 1949

FIELD VISIT

Further details

24 April 1951

FIELD VISIT

Further details

13 May 1953

FIELD VISIT

Further details

1955 to 1980

MODIFICATION

Notes Alterations and additions carried out by Schomberg Scott, between c.1955-1980.

Further details

1960	FIELD VISIT

Further details

1960 to 1970

PHOTOGRAPHIC RECORD

Further details

21 March 1967

FIELD VISIT

Notes The east range is being extensively restored.

Further details

1985	AERIAL PHOTOGRAPHY

Project 1985 RCAHMS Aerial Survey

Further details

1985	PHOTOGRAPHIC SURVEY

Notes Photographs taken for the Inventory of Designed Gardens and Landscapes.

Further details

1994	OBSERVATION

Notes Falkland Palace developed from a pre-existing castle which may have its roots in the 12th or 13th century. Two towers of the castle had been adversely affected by root action, and steps were needed to halt this process. Vegetation has now been removed from both towers, and one, the keep or well tower, has been further investigated vath the aid of NTS Conservation Volunteers. The tower was found to have been dismantled and entirely restored by Lord Bute during his excavations at Falkland in the 1890s; a well head, perhaps of 17th or 18th-century design, was also introduced. Lord Bute reused stonework from adjacent medieval buildings to make up a level surface which will now be consolidated and used in the visitor interpretation of the castle. The second, smaller tower is due to be investigated in 1995.

Further details

1995	EXCAVATION

Notes NO 253 074 Four exploratory trenches were excavated by Scotia Archaeology Limited at first floor level within the E range of the palace to determine the age of the deposits that overlay the vaulted cellars below. All such materials, comprising concrete, bricks, felt/bitumen and ashy waste had been deposited during the Marquis of Bute's renovations in the late 19th century or when the concrete floor was laid in the 1930s and 1960s.

Further details

1996	WATCHING BRIEF

Notes NO 2538 0747 A watching brief was kept by Scotia Archaeology Ltd during the excavation of several drainage trenches within and outside a range of cellars beyond the E range of the palace. At the N end of the range, two sections of the original 16th-century drain system were uncovered; a third drain, to the immediate N of the cross-house, was a late 19th-century rebuild. The load-bearing walls of the E range, the cellars and the cross-house were set on bedrock.
Although exploratory trenching had already established that the concrete covering the floor of the hall in the E range was of 20th-century date (Smith 1995), its removal was also monitored during this programme.

Further details

1996	PHOTOGRAPHIC SURVEY

Further details

1997	WATCHING BRIEF

Notes NO 253 074 Scotia Archaeology Ltd kept a watching brief during the excavation of trenches for a new drainage system along the N (courtyard) side of the S range of the palace. The excavation revealed a complex of existing drains including a stone-lined channel stretching 35m along the length of the range. This channel was 0.3m wide and varied in depth from 0.25m near the angle with the E range to 0.45m at its W end. The channel, together with an overlying U-shaped open drain, is thought to be of 19th-century origin.

Further details

1998	EXCAVATION

Notes NO 2535 0745 This work is the continuation of a project started in 1994, investigating the remains of Falkland Castle. Excavation of the remains of the western D-shaped tower was undertaken, the purpose being to remove the disturbed material attributable to investigations carried out at the site by Lord Bute, late last century. Excavations revealed that most of the existing walling is of drystone construction, with two small patches of lime-mortared wall being the only remnants of the original building. Landscaping for the gardens has removed any trace of previous archaeological surfaces, with thin topsoil overlying degraded sandstone bedrock.
The site was filled in after excavation to a lower level, to allow later consolidation and interpretation of the remains.

Further details

1 June 2002 to 30 June 2002

WATCHING BRIEF

Notes NO 254 076 An archaeological watch was kept on the installation of earthing rods for the upgraded lightning conductors at Falkland Palace in June 2002.
The excavations were minimal in nature, and only the topsoil was disturbed. Two trenches within a cultivated bed on the W side of the castle yielded late 19th- to early 20th-century earthenware. No other finds or features were recorded.
Archive to be deposited in Fife SMR and the NMRS.

Further details

1 February 2005 to 28 February 2005

WATCHING BRIEF

Notes c NO 253 074 A watching brief was conducted in February 2005 during the excavation of five small holes to receive new signposts. The holes had a maximum depth of 0.6m and were 0.4m square. Trench 1 lay to the S of the entrance, trench 2 lay to the NW corner of the palace, trench 3 lay further to the N, and the remaining two trenches lay within the present garden area to the E and W respectively. Only trenches 1-3 contained anything of archaeological interest, in the form of a substantial rubble deposit.
Archive to be deposited in NMRS.
Sponsor: NTS.

Further details

28 July 2006

AERIAL PHOTOGRAPHY

Project 2006 RCAHMS Aerial Survey

Notes Relatively short flight across Fife, producing some new material, but with large areas completely blank.

Further details

Books and References

Anon (1838) Guide pittoresque du voyageur en Ecosse: orne de 120 vues, representant les principaux edifices, les curiosites naturelles, les chateaux reamrquables, et tous les lieux cites par Walter Scott..., In French Paris
Page(s): p97 1 engraving Held at RCAHMS D.20.GUI.R

Bentley-Cranch, D (1986) 'An early sixteenth-century French architectural source for the Palace of Falkland', Rev Scot Culture, vol.2
Page(s): 85-96

Billings, R W (1845-52) The baronial and ecclesiastical antiquities of Scotland, 4v Edinburgh
Page(s): 2 engravings Held at RCAHMS D.2

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