Saint Margaret of Scotland () was an
English princess of the
House of Wessex, the sister of
Edgar Ætheling. Margaret and her family fled to
Scotland following the
Norman conquest of England of 1066. Around 1070 Margaret married
Malcolm III of Scotland. She was a pious woman, and among many charitable works she established a ferry across the
Firth of Forth for pilgrims travelling to
Dunfermline Abbey. According to the
Life of Saint Margaret, attributed to
Turgot of Durham, she died at
Edinburgh Castle in 1093, just days after receiving the news of her husband's death in battle. In 1250 she was
canonised by
Pope Innocent IV.
Founding of the chapel It was originally thought that St Margaret herself worshipped in this small
chapel, but the style of the architecture indicates that it was built during the reign of
David I, her fourth son, who ruled from 1124–1153. The chapel formed part of a larger building, located to the north, which contained the castle's royal lodgings. On the night of 14 March 1314 the castle was captured by
Robert the Bruce. He destroyed all the buildings in the castle, except for the little chapel. On his death bed in 1329, Bruce spoke of the story of Queen Margaret and issued orders for the chapel's repair, with some forty
pounds Scots being put aside for that purpose. For many years afterwards the building was known as the "Royal Chapel in the Castle". There is a fairly frequent record of services held in the chapel, though another and larger chapel was also in use within the castle.
Disuse and restoration The chapel fell into disuse at the
Protestant Reformation, and was used as a gunpowder store from the 16th century. By 1845 the chapel formed a store room at the western end of the 18th century garrison chapel, when the antiquarian
Sir Daniel Wilson realised the significance of the chapel and publicised the building. The garrison chapel was demolished and St Margaret's Chapel restored in 1851–1852 with the support of
Queen Victoria. The barrel-vault over the nave was added at this time, in keeping with the architectural style of the earlier fabric. Baptisms and weddings are held at the chapel. ==Architecture==