Beauly Priory
Planted at the north end of Beauly's broad market square, this roofless red-stone church is one of the most atmospheric medieval ruins in the Scottish Highlands. Founded in 1230 by austere Valliscaulian monks from Val-des-Choux in Burgundy, it stands today as a hauntingly beautiful open-air monument that costs nothing to enter.
A Monastery Born of French Monks
The Valliscaulian order established only three priories in all of Scotland — Beauly, Ardchattan near Oban, and Pluscarden near Elgin — making this a genuinely rare survivor. The monks lived under strict vows of poverty, fished the River Beauly, and had virtually no contact with the outside world for over 300 years until the Reformation of 1560 swept them away.
Local legend insists that Mary, Queen of Scots visited in 1564 and cried in French 'C'est un beau lieu' — 'what a beautiful place' — gifting the village its very name. Whether the story is fact or fancy, the priory's worn sandstone walls and soaring window arches make the sentiment entirely believable.
What to See on the Ground
Walk the grounds freely and discover remnants of monastic architecture: arched windows, stone benches, and fragments of cloister spaces. Information panels help reconstruct how the community once lived and worshipped within these walls.
The surrounding graveyard holds burial stones and tombs of local townspeople, some over 200 years old, and shelters an ancient elm tree believed to be one of the oldest in Europe — a living relic as remarkable as the stonework itself.
Beauly Priory on video
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