Torphichen Preceptory

PricingHalf price in your first year of English Heritage membership, then freeEH memberHalf, then freeNon-member£2

EH members: half price, then freeInfo

Half price, then free, for English Heritage members

This place is cared for by Historic Environment Scotland. First-year English Heritage members get 50% off the ticket price; members who have renewed get in free. Bring your valid membership card, and any pre-booked tickets, to ensure entry.

Pre-booking is recommended at Edinburgh Castle, Skara Brae, Stirling Castle, Blackness Castle, Urquhart Castle, Doune Castle and Maeshowe. Bookings are limited to six people per membership.
Bring the card itself: joint and family memberships admit the named holders only.
Historic Scotland does not offer reciprocal admission to National Trust properties, and a National Trust card is not accepted here.

More information

Entry

Non-member prices

Adult£2.00

Child (aged 5 to 15)£1.50

ConcessionFree

Pricing details

Paid in person on site; there is no online booking. Children under 5 free. Open on Saturday and Sunday afternoons from April to September only. English Heritage members: half price in your first membership year and free after your first renewal, on showing a valid card; bookings capped at six people per membership. Historic Scotland members free.

Paid in person on site; children under 5 free. English Heritage members: half price in your first membership year and free after your first renewal, on showing a valid card; bookings capped at six people per membership. Historic Scotland members free.

Free for concessions on Historic Scotland's price table, which does not define the concession. Historic Scotland members and Explorer Pass holders free.

ParkingNo car park

Arrive on foot, by bike or by public transport.

Parking details

Historic Scotland names no parking. The preceptory stands in the village of Torphichen, about 2.5 miles north of Bathgate, with on-street spaces on the road outside.

Driving pin: Historic Scotland's own pin on the preceptory. Historic Scotland gives journey planners only.

About

Torphichen Preceptory, in the village of Torphichen in West Lothian, was the Scottish headquarters of the Knights Hospitaller, the Order of St John of Jerusalem, founded by David I in the 1100s. In Scotland the knights managed estates and raised recruits; answering to their priory in London, they took the English side in the Wars of Independence, and William Wallace occupied Torphichen in 1298. The crossing tower and transepts of the church still stand complete and roofed, with work of the late 1100s in the blocked chancel arch and most of the rest of the 1400s, and an inscription records the preceptor who built the transepts in the 1430s. Look for the master mason's diagram of the vault etched into a wall and painted decoration high in the crossing. The parish church of 1756 adjoins it on the site of the nave. It opens on weekend afternoons from April to September, with a small charge paid in person.

ClosedPick a day for times and prices

Until 2 Apr: Closed
From 3 Apr: Weekends 13:00–17:00, last entry 16:30

Today, Saturday 24 October

Torphichen PreceptoryClosed

Opening times may change at short notice.

1 April to 30 September: Saturday and Sunday 1pm to 5pm, closed Monday to Friday; last entry 30 minutes before closing; closed 1 October to 31 March. Historic Scotland's page said 'Closed today' on 20 October 2026.

The preceptory adjoins Torphichen Kirk, the Church of Scotland parish church of 1756 built on the site of the medieval nave, which opens with it on summer weekend afternoons (Scotland's Churches Trust says from Easter) and holds a Sunday service at 11.15am. Historic Scotland publishes no facilities or access information for the preceptory; the kirk has a toilet.

Photo: The crossing tower and transept of Torphichen Preceptory with the parish kirk and its bellcote adjoining, under a blue summer sky. LordHarris, CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Torphichen_Preceptory_1.jpg. Licence: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0. Resized and cropped for display; derivatives retain the source licence.