With a magnificent elevated site, the castle towers over the city of Stirling and it remains in great condition after seeing many sieges throughout history.  The castle originally dates from around the time of King Alexander in the 12th Century.

It has a violent history having been laid siege to no less than 16 times, the last being 1651 when it was seiged by Monck’s Roundheads.  It was taken over by the English in 1174 as part of a deal to realise the then captive William the Lion.  It was then retaken by William Wallace during the wars of independence in 1297 during the battle of Stirling bridge. 

It was taken back by the English in 1304 and remained as one of the last Scottish strongholds in English hands until 1314.  This was when Robert the Bruce was successful in bringing independence back to Scotland and the castle was eventually handed back to Scotland. Robert the Bruce destroyed most of the castle so as to render it useless to potential invaders but it was rebuilt and retaken in 1333 until 1342.

The castle has also been notable for the monarchs that have been crowned here with both James V and Mary Queen of Scots crowned in the Chapel Royal.

Today most of the castle dates from the 16th centaury and it was used as an army base for many years which saw it fall into bad shape.  The army only left in 1964 and since then it has been beautifully restored into a popular tourist attraction for future generations to enjoy.