Linlithgow Palace was one of the principal residences of the monarchs of Scotland in the 15th and 16th centuries. The place was an ideal military base for securing the supply routes between Edinburgh Castle and Stirling Castle.
A fortification known as ‘the Peel‘ was built in the 14th century by occupying English forces under Edward I and replaced a royal manor existed on the site in the 12th century.
The construction of the English fort begun in March 1302 under the supervision of the priests Richard de Wynepol and Henry de Graundeston, and the architect Master James of St George. In 1424, the town of Linlithgow was partially destroyed in a great fire. King James I started the rebuilding of the Palace as a grand residence for Scottish royalty, as well as the Church of St Michael south of the palace. Over the following century the palace developed into a formal courtyard structure with an outer gateway and an elaborate courtyard fountain.