| Bishop's Palace, Kirkwall |
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The Bishop's Palace, Kirkwall was built at the same time as the adjacent St Magnus Cathedral in the centre of Kirkwall , Orkney , Scotland , was being constructed, and housed the cathedral's first Bishop , William The Old of the Norwegian Catholic Church who took his authority from the Archbishop of Nidaros ( Trondheim ). The Ruined structure now looks like a small Castle . Originally it is thought to have been like a typical Royal Norwegian Palace, with a large rectangular hall above store rooms and a Tower House as the Bishop's private residence. King Haakon IV Of Norway , overwintering after the Battle Of Largs , died here in 1263 , marking the end of Norse rule over the Outer Hebrides . The neglected palace had fallen into ruins by 1320 . In 1468 Orkney was returned to Scotland, and in 1526 the palace came briefly into the possession of William, Lord Sinclair , before he was ordered to return it to the Bishop Of Orkney . When King James V Of Scotland visited Kirkwall in 1540 he garrisoned his troops in the Palace and in Kirkwall Castle . Soon afterwards' extensive restoration was begun by Bishop Robert Reid , the last and greatest of Orkney's Medieval Bishops who also founded the University Of Edinburgh . Reid added a round tower, the Moosie Toor. Ownership passed to Robert Stewart , 1st Earl Of Orkney , in 1568 , then to his son Patrick Stewart, 2nd Earl Of Orkney who planned to incorporate it into his Earl's Palace, Kirkwall , but debts forced him to return it to Bishop James Law. Earl Patrick's son Robert seized both palaces in 1614 , and a Siege followed, though it is not known if this caused damage to the structures, both of which are now ruins. EXTERNAL LINKS |
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