Known locally as ‘the cup & saucer’.
The King’s Knot is on the grounds of the ancient King’s Park, Crown property from at least the 1100s, where Scotland’s royalty partook in jousting, hawking and hunting.
The earthworks known as the King’s and Queen’s Knots were part of the formal gardens of Stirling Castle. These were remodelled for Charles I’s ‘hamecoming’ for his Scottish coronation, which took place in 1633. It was subject to extensive restoration under orders of Queen Victoria in 1842.
It comprises an octagonal stepped mound rising to 3m high, with a rectangular parterre to the south-east. From the top of the mound there’s a spectacular view of the royal castle towering overhead, although the scale of the gardens is best appreciated from the Ladies’ Lookout in Stirling Castle itself or indeed by drone as demonstrated here.
