Beheading Stone
The old execution stone of Stirling, under an iron cage on Mote Hill, with two cannons and a view of Stirling Bridge.
The Beheading Stone sits on Mote Hill, the northern tip of Gowan Hill below Stirling Castle, a rough block of stone set on a round stone plinth and shut inside an iron cage.
This was medieval Stirling's place of execution, and the old name of the knoll, the Heiding Hill, says as much. Its most famous victim was Murdoch, Duke of Albany, beheaded for treason in the 1420s with his sons on the orders of the king, newly home from years of captivity in England.
The hill itself is older still: Mote Hill sits on a Celtic hillfort, burned around AD 200. Beside the stone stand two old cannons, put here by the council in 1904, and from the top there is a view across the whole of central Scotland, down to Stirling Bridge and over to the Wallace Monument. It is a short, uphill walk from the castle along the Back Walk.
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A short, uphill walk on the Back Walk from Stirling Castle, then across Ballengeich Road onto Gowan Hill.
- Open
- Any time; free.
- Walk
- Along the Back Walk from the castle.
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Stirling BagpipesA bagpipe maker's workshop and shop on Broad Street, making Highland pipes and smallpipes by hand, with antique sets for sale.Under a mile 2 min by road
Darnley Coffee HouseA coffee house in an old stone building on Bow Street, below the castle, known for its soups and a ghost story.Under a mile 2 min by road
Stirling CastleOne of Scotland’s largest and most significant, Stirling Castle overlooks its namesake city.Under a mile 2 min by road
The PortcullisAn inn by the castle esplanade in a school building of 1787, with a traditional lounge bar, a walled beer garden and rooms.Under a mile 3 min by road
MintA mint-green café on cobbled Baker Street in Stirling's Old Town, known for crêpes, waffles and cakes.Under a mile 3 min by road
Cambuskenneth AbbeyThe ruined abbey by the Forth below Stirling, with a bell tower of the 1200s and the grave of James III.2 miles 8 min by road
Places to stay near the stone, and when each is next free.
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What we have written about it and more in Stirling.
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