Holyrood Abbey was founded in the 12 century by King David I. Several stories are told as David’s reasons for building the abbey. One is that his mother Queen Margaret gifted him a piece of the holy cross on which Jesus was crucified while on her deathbed. “Holyrood” means “holy cross” in old English.The Abbey would later have a palace built next door and would see many royals throughout the years. Holyrood Abbey even survived the Protestant reformation in the 16th century, when so many earlier