Dunfermline
Sights | Transport | Eating and Sleeping
Phone code: +44 (0)1383 Population: 52,000
Dunfermline's Rich History
A mere 5 km inland, just off the M90, the town of Dunfermline is steeped in history. It was once the capital of Scotland, from the 11th century to the Union of Crowns in 1603, and its great abbey and royal palace still dominate the skyline.
Until the late 19th century, Dunfermline was one of Scotland's most important linen producers and a major coal-mining centre. Those traditional industries have long since gone but the town still thrives economically and has grown considerably in size.
In the 11th century, Malcolm Canmore, King of Scotland, offered hospitality in his tower in Dunfermline to the English heir to the throne, Edgar Atheling and his family, on their flight from William the Conqueror and the Norman Conquest. Edgar's sister, Princess Margaret, a devout Catholic and later 'Saint Margaret', married the King in 1067, and was largely responsible for introducing the religious ideas of the Catholic Church into Scotland. Horrified by the lax ways of the Celtic Church, she began to build a new church which was founded in 1072.