Interesting facts about Edinburgh castle, its history and modern life.

1. EDINBURGH CASTLE
From ancient times till nowadays
By Natalia Mironova, Moscow

2. History of Edinburgh
• Edinburgh boasts a rich and intriguing history which can be uncovered as you explore the city. Atmospheric cobbled
streets, wonderful architecture, old closes and wide avenues allow you to imagine yourself transported back in time.
• Scotland’s capital grew around its Old Town until the late 18th century and this area of the city still has a distinct character
from the iconic castle at the top of the Royal Mile to the Grassmarket below, where public hangings formerly took place. The
Nor Loch acted as a natural defence for the city at this time before it was drained and converted into the beautiful Princes
Street Gardens in later years.
• During the Victorian era, Edinburgh earned itself a nickname as ‘Auld Reekie’ due to the smoke from the steam engines and
the pollution of the industrial revolution.
• After 1583, the city was also a hub for educational and professional development since the world-famous university was
founded. The University of Edinburgh still stands today as a symbol of the knowledge and intellectual talent to be found in
the city. Many new ventures occurred including the founding of the Bank of Scotland in 1695, marking Edinburgh as a
financial capital by the end of the 20th century.
• 1707 saw the Act of Union, which joined Scotland and England together politically, and moved power from Edinburgh's old
parliament to London's Westminster. Tenements were an identifying feature of the city by the late 18th century, when the
population was expanding rapidly to around 35,000. The rich lived on the desirable upper and middle floors of these
buildings while the poor were relegated to the lower levels.
• Living conditions were not good at this time and many wealthy residents moved to London. Eventually a competition to
design a new part of the city was put in place to try to attract the wealthy back to Edinburgh. James Craig won this contest
and his ideas and influences are still visible in the grid pattern of the streets of the Georgian New Town.
• King George IV visited Edinburgh in 1822 and by then it was Europe’s most influential financial city outside of London with
neoclassical architecture giving it a name as the Athens of the North.
• Today, Edinburgh combines both modernity and tradition. Modern architecture such as the Scottish Parliament sits
alongside wonderful baroque buildings including the Palace of Holyroodhouse. Each community is individual, giving you a
unique sense of the past and present as you explore.

3. ORIGINS OF THE CASTLE
•
Around 340 million BC
The castle rock is created by
volcanic activity.
• Around 900 BC
First archaeological
evidence for human
settlement on the castle.
• Around AD 600
First historical reference to
Din Eidyn - a fortress on
the rock.

4. ORIGINS OF THE CASTLE
• AD 638
Angles capture Din Eidyn and
rename it Edinburgh.
• 1093
St Margaret of Scotland dies
in the ‘Castle of
Maidens’, Edinburgh
• Around 1130
David I builds a formidable
royal castle on the rock. It
includes a chapel dedicated to
his mother Queen
Margaret, which still stands.

5. WARS OF INDEPENDENCE
•
1296
Edward I of England invades
Scotland, capturing the castle after a
three-day siege.
• 1314
The Scots, under Robert the
Bruce, recapture the castle.
• 1334
The English retake the castle.
• 1341
The Scots take it back again.
• 1356
David II orders the rebuilding of the
castle. David’s Tower is named after
him.
• 1371
David II dies in the castle.

6. A SEAT OF ROYAL POWER
• 1457
The giant cannon Mons
Meg arrives in the
castle, a gift to James II.
• 1511
James IV builds the
Great Hall.

7. A SEAT OF ROYAL POWER
•
1494 to 1540
The Sceptre and the Sword of
State are presented to James IV by
successive popes. The Honours of
Scotland are completed when the
Crown is made in its present form
for James V.
1566
Mary Queen of Scots gives birth in
the castle to her only child, the
future King James VI of Scotland
and I of England.
1571 to 1573
The ‘Lang Siege’, which ends in
the destruction of David’s Tower.

8. A SEAT OF ROYAL POWER
•
1574 to 1578
The castle is rebuilt. The Half-
Moon Battery and Portcullis
Gate are added to reinforce its
defences.
1615 to 1617
The Royal Palace is extensively
renovated for James VI’s visit
to his birthplace for his 50th
anniversary as king of Scots.
1633
Charles I is the last monarch to
sleep in the castle, on the night
before his coronation as King
of Scotland.

9. ROYALTY UNDER THREAT
•
1650
Having overthrown and
executed Charles I, Oliver
Cromwell invades
Scotland and captures the
castle.
• 1651 to 1660
The Honours of Scotland
(Crown, Sword and
Sceptre) are buried near
Stonehaven, Kincardines
hire, to save them from
Cromwell

11. The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo
• The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo is the most spectacular show
in the world, enjoyed by an international television audience of 100
million. There is, however, no substitute for being there in person
as part of the 217,000-strong audience over its three-week season
on the Esplanade of Edinburgh Castle who don't simply watch the
show but become a part of it.
• In the glowering twilight, Edinburgh Castle
slumbers, resting, waiting for nightfall and for the footlights that
will transform it into a dazzling stage set for the world's most
spectacular show. Down Castlehill, along the Lawnmarket, around
the cathedral church of St Giles, through the closes of the Royal
Mile and the narrow streets whose setts ring with history, people
gather in the dusk of a late summer evening.
• Turning their faces to the great castle rock, where ancient clans first
settled the area, which was to become the capital of Scotland and
where now stands Edinburgh's mighty fortress, they join a crowd
that will soon be an audience, rapt with enthusiasm for the unique
spectacle that is the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo.
• Climbing the final rise towards the Castle Esplanade, walking
companionably together, eight and ten abreast, eager old hands
who come every year but never lose the thrill of a Tattoo ahead, and
new folk, many on holiday from other proud nations a world
away, who are about to witness the show they will never forget...

12. The Edinburgh Military Tattoo

13. Top Secret Drum Corps
Pipes

14. Massed Pipes & Drums
The Mounted Band of the Blues and Royals

15. • http://www.edinburghcastle.gov.uk
• http://www.edinburgh.org
• http://www.edintattoo.co.uk
• http://youtu.be/iMmn00iXf38