Stirling Castle has long been a favoured residence of the Scottish monarchs, and was developed as a Renaissance palace during the reigns of the later Stewart kings.

The Church of the Holy Rude, adjacent to the castle, became similarly associated with the Scottish monarchy, hosting royal baptisms and coronations.

Adam Bothwell, Bishop of Orkney performed the ceremony, and John Knox preached a sermon.

[2] It has been suggested that, in the Siege of Stirling Castle in 1651 by General Monk, during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms, the church and churchyard suffered damage from musket shots, which is still visible.

[4] In 2023 the church announced a partnership with Stirling District Tourism Ltd, with the aim of promoting the site as a tourist destination.

It is about 200 feet long, but is sadly marred internally by a wall which screens off the western part of the building.

King James IV lived much at Stirling, and it was he who set up one of its most notable foundations, that of the Collegiate Church of the Chapel Royal.

In the part of this parish that lies on the left bank of the Forth stand the ruins of St Mary's Augustinian Abbey of Cambuskenneth.

In the Rood Kirk, on the 29th of July 1567, King James VI was crowned, having then attained the age of 13 months.

[6] The church contains many fine stained glass windows, mainly from the late 19th century, including examples by Ballantine & Co., Adam & Small, and Cottier & Co.

The old graveyard contains a unique stone with a carved depiction of body-snatching, marking the theft of Mary Stevenson (1767–1822) by James McNab, the local gravedigger who had buried her two days earlier, on 16 November 1822, aided by a friend, Daniel Mitchell.