The burial grounds, graveyards and cemeteries of Fife contain many fascinating historical tales, often with interesting superstitions attached. All walks of life are represented – from the burial place of ancient kings, queens and saints in Scotland’s ancient capital, Dunfermline, to the only known grave of a witch in Scotland, on the foreshore of the Firth of Forth. In this book local historian Charlotte Golledge takes readers on a tour through the history of Fife’s burial grounds, graveyards and cemeteries. She explores the history of the royal burials at Dunfermline Abbey and the resting place of the bishops at St Andrews Cathedral, with the graves of Old Tom Morris and Young Tom Morris nearby who designed many of Scotland’s iconic golf courses. Lesser-known locations include the secluded St Bridget’s kirkyard in Dalgety Bay where bodysnatchers would row across the River Forth to claim freshly buried bodies for the anatomist’s table, and the lovingly restored kirkyard at Tulliallan Old Kirk with its gravestones going back to the seventeenth century, many of which have been brought to the surface recently, showing the everyday trades of those interred, including nautical connections. Together, these are the tales of real people of Scotland told through their deaths and burials. This fascinating portrait of life and death in Fife over the centuries will appeal to both residents and visitors to this region of Scotland.

Charlotte Golledge is a local historian based in Fife who has written books on graveyards, cemeteries and burial sites in Scotland. She runs her own ancestry research and tour business, Celtic Heritage Connections, is a media consultant and has appeared in the Men in Kilts tv series. She also runs a website on Greyfriars Graveyard in Edinburgh.