Our History

Scone is a place that breathes history like nowhere else in Scotland.

The Romans camped here in the 2nd century. From the 5th century onwards, it was the capital of a Pictish kingdom. In the 6th century, the Culdees, a group of early Christian holy men, established a cell at Scone and it was here, on the Hill of Credulity, that Pictish King Nectan converted to Christianity in 710.

The Hill of Credulity became known as the Moot Hill and it was to here that Kenneth MacAlpin, the first King of Scotland, brought the Stone of Destiny, or Stone of Scone, in 843. 

The Stone of Scone was believed to have been Jacob's pillow when he saw the angels of Bethel. It had been brought to the Scottish holy island of Iona by St Columba in the 6th century. In bringing it to Scone, Kenneth MacAlpin signalled the unification of the kingdoms of the Picts and the Scots under one crown.

For the next 500 years, all Scottish kings were crowned on the Stone until it was seized by King Edward I of England in 1296 and taken to Westminster Abbey where it was placed beneath the Cornation Chair on which the monarchs of England were crowned.

Despite this, Scottish monarchs continued to be crowned at Scone right up to 1651 when Charles II's coronation was the last to take place here.

Scotland's Parliament also met at Scone between 1210 and 1452 and, at this time, there was an important abbey and a flourishing village on what are now the grounds of the Palace.  



Both the village and the original abbey, which housed the Stone of Scone, no longer exist and Moot Hill is now crowned by a small Presbyterian chapel that was built around 1804. A replica of the Stone of Scone sits upon the hill, marking the site of the original.

The present-day Scone Palace dates from the early 19th century and is built in the Gothic style, although it's design echoes the original abbey building. It took nine years to build and is regarded as one of Britain's most outstanding Georgian Gothic houses.



William Atkinson, its architect, was also responsible for much of the interior design including the magnificent state rooms that house breathtaking collections of art, antiques, furniture and porcelain.

A visit to Scone is a visit to Scotland's history. Many visitors are moved by the atmosphere and it is impossible to resist its colourful past.