Restenneth Priory is located in the heart of the old Pictish kingdom. The present ruins are thought to stand on the foundations of a Pictish stone-built church dating from 710 AD. The priory was established by Augustinian canons in the early 1100s, and became a subordinate house of Jedburgh Abbey. The church tower was a later addition during the 1400s.

Restenneth is the burial place of Prince John, the young son of Robert the Bruce. As the final resting place of his twin brother, King David II went on to provide generous support. However, by 1501 there were only two canons in residence. After the 1560 Reformation it briefly remained in use as a parish church. In 1693, ownership passed to William Hunter of Burnside, who used part of the priory as a family burial place. By the mid-18th century it had become a ruin.