Greyfriars Kirkyard

Greyfriars Kirkyard lies at the southern edge of Edinburgh’s Old Town, beside George Heriot’s School. The graveyard surrounds Greyfriars Kirk, a church built after the nearby Franciscan friary was dissolved in 1560. Burials have taken place here since the late 16th century, and many notable Edinburgh residents lie within its walls. The site is managed by the City of Edinburgh Council and a charitable trust, and its monuments are protected as a category A listed building. The kirkyard played a key part in Scotland’s Covenanting movement. In 1638, the National Covenant was signed in Greyfriars Kirk, marking a turning point in religious history. After the Battle of Bothwell Brig in 1679, around 1,200 Covenanters were held in a field south of the churchyard, later enclosed as the “Covenanters’ Prison.” The area became a vaulted burial ground in the 18th century, and David Octavius Hill and Robert Adamson used the kirkyard as a setting for early photographs in the 1840s. Visitors find a landscape of enclosed burial lairs, ironwork mortsafes and striking mural monuments. The Martyr’s Monument honours executed Covenanters, while the Italianate tomb of Sir George Mackenzie stands near the old walls. Greyfriars Bobby’s headstone marks the loyal dog’s reputed resting place, and Auld Jock’s grave lies along the eastern path. The sealed Covenanters’ Prison can be visited by special arrangement, offering a quiet space among the city’s oldest stones.