Greyfriars churchyard is the place where the National Covenant was first signed, on the 28th of February 1638. Eight years later, Alexander Henderson, was buried there.

Following the Covenanters’ defeat at the Battle of Bothwell Bridge in 1679, over a thousand prisoners were kept in terrible conditions in the Kirkyard over the winter months.

Those who died were buried in the part of the graveyard normally kept for criminals. Today, the spot is marked by a monument in memory of the Covenanters.