Stirling is awesome, it was the site of William Wallace’s greatest triumph, has a nice castle and even looks nice in the rain. Anyway light-heartedness aside Stirling really is a lovely place to live in or visit and here is our quick guide as written by a Scot!
Stirling – William Wallace Country
Stirling Castle
Image: cornfield/Shutterstock.com
Stirling was one of the regular haunts of William Wallace. Arguably the thing the town is best known for to the rest of the world: at the foot of the Wallace Monument stands his statue carved and donated by a local artist. The only downside is that this statue bears a striking resemblance to the Mel Gibson… one of the most borderline-hated actors in the country.
Back to the Wallace: the Battle of Stirling Bridge is one of the most famed in the wars of Independence. As the English army crossed the bridge, the Scots met them head-on. As the English moved backwards the Scot’s second force appeared on their flanks, pushing the men forward. The Scots won because of the crushed men on the bridge. Some jumped into the water and were drowned by the weight of their armour. It is said that the leader of the English forces was flayed alive. We live in different times… mercifully.
Image: Catuncia/Shutterstock.com
A Little More History
Stirling was a market town, now it’s a student town. It is the border to the Highlands. To go any farther north is to delve into wilderness territory. There is an ancient tale of a wolf howling and waking up the sentries of Stirling and saving the city from Vikings. Now they have the symbol of the wolf as their official town badge. They once found bones in Stirling that dated from 2000 BC. Yep. We’ll give you a minute to let that sink in.
Stirling Castle shows no Roman artefacts even although it is known that the Romans were in this area. It is the resting place of the early kings of Scotland. Stirling had a strategic part to play in every single Scottish uprising – simply because every eastern highlander in any given war had to pass through it to go south… Stirling, in short, is one of our most important towns. If you have a free five minutes you should definitely spend them reading about the history of this crazy little town.
So if you were passing through Stirling and you needed to kill some time – what are the top sights to see? Stirling has some great attractions. Let’s take a closer look!
Things to do in Stirling
There are loads of things to do in this historically harsh town. Some of our favourite Stirling attractions include the following.
Stirling Castle
Yes, yes, we know. You want interesting things to do and the Castle comes up first on every single attraction list you have looked at. Alas: it is on there for a reason. Do you know how many times Stirling town fell but the folk in the castle were fine? While Stirling was burning the Stirling nobles were up there eating popcorn. You should go visit and find out why.
The Wallace Monument
Yep! We went there with the Castle in first place, why wouldn’t we be cheesy enough to put the monument in second place?
The Wallace Monument is the School Field Trip of every high school child in central Scotland. It will be cold, wet, and dreich unless you go in high summer. It’s not that much of a climb but you do need to hike a little to see the statue. The one at the top of the hill is a much more accurate representation of what Wallace actually looked like.
Of course, if you can’t be bothered with the hike his countenance is also carved into the face of a Lanark church that is much easier to get to.
The Old Town Jail
Stirling is also home to an old jailhouse that was one of the grimmest, nastiest places to end up in Scottish history. If you went to Stirling jail you probably got worked to death building a harbour for some rich person on the coast or helped make a railway line across country in minus temperatures. Nowadays the jail is a designated national monument with tours, interactive educational experiences, and performances to make the experience more engaging. It’s a little bit terrifying. Be sure to take the children.
Church of the Holy Rude
No not rude… rude like Holy-rood. We don’t know why they split this one up. This fifteenth-century kirk (or church) still has real stained glass preserved in the windows. Weirdly, Holyrood/rude means Holycross, so it probably makes more sense that they split up the name in this case.
The church is right next to the castle, making it notable throughout history. It has been the crowning place of a Scottish king, seen the abdication of a Scottish queen, and was once host to John Knox. That’s a lot of attention for one wee kirk. It does explain why nobody has tanned the windows in yet, though. Nobody wants to get executed by the royal guard for throwing some pebbles.
Other Notable Stirling Sights
Stirling is packed full of things to see and do. If you are spending any longer than an afternoon, be sure to check out the following!
- Doune Castle – just outside of town a little way, this is the only Scottish Castle that made it into Game of Thrones. You would think there would be a host of them but the taxes were too high and they chose to film in Iceland, instead.
- Loch Lomond – Loch Lomond is literally 35 minutes outside of Glasgow and nobody knows! Go fishing, boating, eat a lovely meal in a hotel with a view, book a log cabin, and play water sports – its Loch-friggin’-Lomond man! Just do it!
- The Bannockburn Experience – Trip Advisor reviewers seem to love this educational tour of the battlefield and associated museums. You should check it out.
…and that’s without even touching things to do in Stirling with kids. That’s a whole other list all on its own.
Got Five Minutes?
If you still find yourself at a loose end then check out some of our other five minute guides. We have all your news, sport, and entertainment designed to kill some time and make you smile. There’s no reason not to check it out really. It’s all only a click away.
