Kinghorn Castle

Kinghorn stands on the north shore of the Firth of Forth in Fife, a small seaside town with two beaches and a fishing port. It lies on the A921 road and the Fife Coastal Path, linked by railway to Edinburgh and Aberdeen. The town once had a royal castle overlooking the Forth, where King Alexander III died in 1286. Pettycur Bay marks the spot where his horse fell, ending his reign and sparking the Wars of Scottish Independence. Nearby, the parish church was granted to Holyrood Abbey in the 12th century and rebuilt in the 18th. The town’s history includes visits from Scottish courts in the 11th to 13th centuries. French troops landed here in 1560 during the Scottish Reformation, fighting local lords at Pettycur Bay. A later castle, Glamis Tower, was rebuilt in 1543 but besieged and lost in 1546. The Earl of Kinghorne was created in 1606, recognising the town’s royal importance. A freshwater loch above the town once powered flax mills, and the railway viaduct of 1846 split the old settlement in two. Visitors find a quiet town with a mix of old and modern buildings. The parish church has a tower added in 1895, and the war memorial was sculpted by Alexander Carrick. The 1823 parish school now serves as a library with an octagonal vestibule. The Black Rock ‘5’ Race draws runners each year, while the lifeboat station remains one of Scotland’s busiest. The town’s narrow streets and sheltered bay offer a glimpse of Fife’s coastal charm.