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The friary
It takes its name from the grey habits of Franciscan friars
Greyfriars takes its name from the Franciscan friary on the site, whose friars wore grey habits, dissolved in 1560. The kirkyard was founded in August 1562 to replace the kirkyard at St Giles' Cathedral. Burials have been taking place since the late 16th century.
The Covenant
The National Covenant was signed here in 1638
The Covenanting movement began with the signing of the National Covenant in Greyfriars Kirk on 28 February 1638. It was also signed in the graveyard, as a place of free legal public assembly.
A prison
In 1679 a field beside the graveyard held about 400 prisoners
After the Covenanters were defeated at Bothwell Bridge in 1679, some 1200 prisoners were brought to Edinburgh. A makeshift prison in a field south of the kirkyard held around 400 of them. The name Covenanters' Prison stuck.
Portraits
Early photographers used the kirkyard as a studio set
In the 1840s, during the early days of photography, David Octavius Hill and Robert Adamson used the kirkyard as a setting for several portraits and tableaux, such as The Artist and The Gravedigger.
Bobby
A loyal dog is said to have guarded his master's grave
The graveyard is associated with Greyfriars Bobby, the loyal dog who guarded his master's grave. Bobby's headstone at the entrance, erected by the Dog Aid Society in 1981, marks his reputed burial place. The grave of the shepherd Auld Jock, John Gray, where the dog famously slept for 14 years, lies on the eastern path.
Day 3, midday
It comes after National Museum of Scotland. Then Dean Village.
More stories from this trip idea
The words are a retelling of the Wikipedia article Greyfriars Kirkyard, and are shared under CC BY-SA 4.0. They are checked against those articles, and a fact that is not in them is left out.