ROYAL fans would be forgiven for assuming that the late Queen's official Scottish residence was her beloved Balmoral.
But in fact, this title officially belonged to the lesser-visited, imposing Palace of Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh.
Her Majesty would only stay at the property for one week a year while hosting its annual garden party.
Having been inherited by King Charles, it's not yet known whether he'll be a more regular visitor.
Despite her fleeting trips, it's said the Queen had a great deal of sentimentality for the palace, and her coffin travelled there on its final journey to her resting place in Windsor.
Holyroodhouse has a rich and bloody history, which some say still haunts it to this day.
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Here we take a look inside the impressive 289-room property, which has hosted some of the world's most influential figures.
Classic design
The Gothic palace has belonged to the Royal Family for over 500 years and is their official residence in Scotland.
It was built by James IV between 1501 and 1505 next to the ruins of Holyrood Abbey.
While the sprawling home – which sits on 10 acres of land – is partly open to the public, the spacious upper floor is reserved for the Royals' private apartments.
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14The King's Bedchamber is the largest room, and is where the most important guests have had the pleasure of visiting.
Its ceiling is elaborately decorated and there's a magnificent four-poster bed dating back to the 17th century.
The royal dining room has a neo-classical design with several portraits of Charles Edward and Henry, Cardinal York, who as princes, were exiled.
The Morning Drawing room is one of the most impressive rooms in the palace and offers incredible views of the garden.
Like the King's Bedchamber, this room's ceiling is extravagantly designed, featuring cherubs holding the initials of Charles II.
The late Queen Elizabeth's coffin was placed in the Throne Room when it arrived at Holyroodhouse in September.
In 2020, the Royals offered fans a glimpse inside Holyroodhouse, sharing photos to Instagram of rarely seen rooms including Queen Mary's bed chamber and supper room.
When the palace was first built, the gardens hosted tournaments, hunting and even archery, and had exotic animals such as lions, tigers, and bears.
Today it is far less dramatic and is used to host official royal events throughout the year, including the annual Garden Party with up to 8,000 guests.
Now it is cared for by an expert team of landscapers and is open to members of the public all year round.
In recent decades the palace has been the setting of a number of significant royal events.
Queen Elizabeth II's granddaughter Zara Tindall and her husband Mike took a number of pictures at the palace following their 2011 wedding.
The year prior, the Queen hosted then-Pope Benedict XVI there, and were pictured walking to the Morning Drawing Room.
The photos showed a glimpse of the Great Staircase, which has tapestries on the wall dating back to the 16th century.
Other notable guests to the palace include Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon and Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau, who all had audiences with the Queen there.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle attended a reception at the palace, where they were serenaded by members of Impact Art in Scotland.
The Princess of Wales also travelled to Holyroodhouse to meetfive-year-old cancer patient Mila Sneddon and her family.
The little girl featured in an image from Kate's Hold Still photography project, seen kissing her dad through a window while shielding during her chemotherapy treatment.
Although the Royal Family never spend Christmas at Holyroodhouse, it still gets a festive makeover; a 10ft tree is installed and decorated with miniature crowns.
Dark past
Like many royal residences, Holyrood Palace is steeped in history.
The only Scottish queen, Mary, Queen of Scots lived there from 1561 to 1567 and experienced a number of unfortunate events.
Her Italian secretary David Rizzio was brutally stabbed over 50 times by Lord Ruthven as he desperately tried to hold on to the Queen's skirt for protection in 1566.
Mary's husband at the time, Lord Darnley, was said to be jealous of her close friendship with Rizzio and plotted to have him killed.
As the Queen was having dinner with Rizzio and close friends, Lord Ruthven, who had a friendship with Darnley, barged in and accused the secretary of plotting against the Queen.
A heavily pregnant and distressed Mary, who tried to protect Rizzio, was held at gunpoint while Ruthven launched his vicious attack.
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To date, many people believe Rizzio's ghost still haunts the Palace of Holyroodhouse.
Mary had a tragic reign as monarch – she was eventually put on trial by her cousin Elizabeth I for high treason and executed publicly in 1587.
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