After the Scottish Reformation of 1560, Queen Mary gave the grounds of the former Franciscan monastery to the Edinburgh town council to serve as a cemetery. The building of the new church started in 1602 and continued until 1620. In this church, the National Covenant of Scotland was presented and signed. Although this place got vast importance in the history of the Scottish people, and although many famous people are buried here – the undoubted celebrity of this site is the dog, Bobby. In the 19th century. Bobby guarded his owner's grave for 14 years. Finally, he became a symbol of loyalty and got buried just in front of the cemetery entrance. An actual-size statue of Bobby is located across the road. The cemetery is a quiet and lovely place to walk in. You are walking in the middle of the city, and all you hear are birds, the tweets of the birds. Some Graves are covered with massive iron barriers. It's a prominent reminder of Edinburgh's history of stealing bodies and selling them to the School of Anatomy (They had to ban the body trade by law). I was inquisitive about the kirk, but it's open only at 10:30, and I had some other places to explore. So it will have to was for my next visit to the town.

Bobby Greyfriars

Greyfriars Kirkyard