Richard Fawcett

This is a handsome, lavishly illustrated, full color booklet on this Scottish royal castle. The sort of thing one usually buys at the site as a remembrance, but which would have been even more useful if read before touring.

The royal family ceased to use Stirling after James VI, and in latter times it was headquarters for various groups of soldiers, and it therefore appears that the interior has not been preserved to reflect its history as a palace. It appears that only parts of it are open, although there are some recreations, of the kitchen, for example, that are reproduced here.

In lieu of this, the book contains a number of charming drawings recreating the Queen's chamber in the time of Mary of Guise, or the lavish celebrations for the birth of Prince Henry, James VI's oldest son.

The book contains numerous shots of the exterior of the building and the surrounding area, along with drawings of the probable historic views.… (mehr)

The author startes that this is for the 'general reader'; I have to say that really does require some background in ecclesiastical architecture before tackling it. Although it includes many B&W photographs and some illustrations, it also has a lot of very dense technical text descriptions. It would have been useful to have had some sort of glossary with detailed diagrams, without, it is very hard going at times, There are a couple of chapters on monastic life and their influence in the community, but it concentrates on the circumstances of building and architectural detail. It does cover a lot of ground in a slim volume, and there is a useful guide to the Orders represented and a gazetteer; a further addition which would have been welcomed would have been maps of the relative spheres of influence at various times.… (mehr)