« Back to Lothians & Borders listings

Melrose Abbey (HS)

Melrose

Probably the most famous ruin in Scotland, this Cistercian abbey was founded by David I around 1136. It was repeatedly ravaged by the English, most viciously by Richard II in 1385, and during the ‘War of the Rough Wooing' in 1545. The surviving early 15th century ruins are of an elegance unsurpassed in Scotland.At one time Melrose was the most prosperous abbey in Scotland. Well endowed, it grew rich trading wool and hides to Flanders.The abbey is famed as the resting place of the heart of Robert the Bruce. In 1329 the dying king asked James Douglas, in fulfilment of an old vow, to take his heart to the Holy Land. Douglas never reached the Holy Land – he was killed fighting the Moors in Spain – and Bruce's heart returned to Scotland. The casket containing his heart was buried at Melrose. It was exhumed in 1996 and reburied in a specially designed new lead casket.Audio guide, exhibition, shop and picnic area.