St Margaret’s Cave

Useful Information

Location:	Glen Bridge Car Park, Dunfermline, Scotland. Located in a corner of Glen Bridge Car Park, in the middle of Dunfermline town. (56.072265, -3.465007)
Open:	Easter to SEP Fri-Sun 11-16. Booking mandatory 48 h in advance. [2026]
Fee:	Cave free. Charge for car park. [2026]
Classification:	Erosional Cave Cave Church
Light:	Electric Light
Dimension:	L=3 m (cave), 50 m (tunnel and steps).
Guided tours:	self guided, Max=20.
Photography:	allowed
Accessibility:	no, long staircase
Bibliography:
Address:	St Margarets Cave, Glen Bridge Car Park, Chalmers St, Dunfermline KY12 8DF, Tel: +44-1383-602386. E-mail:
As far as we know this information was accurate when it was published (see years in brackets), but may have changed since then. Please check rates and details directly with the companies in question if you need more recent info.

History

11th century	Queen Margaret prayed in the cave.
1960s	council chiefs plan to build a car park and fill in the cave.
1993	cave reopened at the 900th anniversary of Margaret’s death.

Description

The cave is named after Queen Margaret, who used to meditate and pray in the cave in the 11th century. She was Queen of Scotland, canonised in 1250 and made patron saint of Scotland in 1673. The cave is one of Scotland’s holiest shrines.

In 1969 the council wanted to bury the cave under tons of concrete. This sparked a public outcry and the council then agreed to build a tunnel under the car park to allow access to the cave.

From a small building in the corner of the car park, 84 steps lead down to a tunnel, echoing with Gregorian chants. In the sides of the tunnel are displays giving the history of the cave which turns out to be a single chamber 10 feet long by 8 feet wide and 8 feet high. There are two raised seats on either site and a well at the far end which was once used as drinking water, now covered. To complete the illusion there is a statue of Queen Margaret.

Text by Tony Oldham (2005). With kind permission.

Saint Margaret's Cave was originally set in the wall of a valley, it was reached following a peaceful, wooded path that meandered along a stream named Tower Burn. The cave is actually a sort of shelter, an overhanging rock created by the erosion by the river. Queen Margaret was Queen of Scotland in the 11th century and this was a favorite spot of her, she came to this spot to pray. She was a deeply religious woman and known for her charitable works. The valley still exists, as well as the river, but the town filled in a 180 m long part of the valley connecting the two sides. This space was used for a parking lot named Glen Bridge, after the nearby bridge which is crossed by the Bridge Street, and there are buildings on both sides of the bridge.