Queen's Staircase

Sixty-six steps carved directly into solid limestone define the Queen's Staircase. Enslaved laborers cut these stairs between seventeen ninety-three and seventeen ninety-four to create a direct route from the fort above to the town below. The passage honors Queen Victoria, who reigned during the abolition of slavery in the British Empire. Water once flowed through a channel alongside the path, but today, lush ferns and vines cling to the high stone walls, towering over anyone who climbs toward the heights of Fincastle.