Greyfriars Covenanters' Prison

The Greyfriars Covenanters' Prison is a sunken, walled-off section of the Greyfriars Kirkyard, enclosed by high stone barriers and heavy iron gates. In sixteen seventy-nine, twelve hundred men who fought against King Charles the Second were held here in the open air for five months. They slept on the bare ground with no shelter, surviving on meager rations of bread and water. Many died from exposure or malnutrition before the few remaining captives were eventually released or sent to the colonies.