In a city as old as Edinburgh, one question which arises with relative regularity is which building, precisely, is the city's oldest? Luckily for us, there is a specific answer to that!

Found within the complex of buildings that make up Edinburgh Castle, St Margaret's Chapel is considered to be the oldest surviving building in the city which still retains something of its original function.

​Many churches in particular have been repurposed over the years, and St Margaret's Chapel hasn't always served as a site of religious worship, but the building today still offers the same experience that it was built to provide nearly 900 years ago.

It may not seem especially interesting from the outside, but this small but perfectly formed structure has survived fire, war, revolution, Reformation, military occupation and a rapid rise in tourism over the last couple of decades - and still it stands!

The building was built originally on the instruction of David I of Scotland, who was also responsible for establishing Holyrood Abbey at the eastern end of the medieval city. It is approximately 15 feet (4.5m) wide by about 30 feet (9m) long and is built right at the summit of the castle rock, at the highest point of the castle - what must have been considered an estimable location for communing with God! ​

Over its history there have been various additions, restorations and improvements to the chapel structure, but the earliest part of its construction is considered to date back to around the late 1120s. Queen Margaret had been married to Malcolm III (known as 'Canmore' or 'Bighead') and died at Edinburgh castle in 1093.

​She had previously established the ferry service over the waters of the Firth of Forth, to the north of Edinburgh, for the central purpose of improving access to St Andrews for religious pilgrims, and the two towns established on the banks of the water where the crossing was made are still named North Queensferry and South Queensferry. In 1250 Margaret was canonised, and having been Queen Margaret of Scotland became St Margaret of Scotland.

Hence the chapel that David originally created in honour of his mother would have been Queen Margaret's Chapel, only a century or more later becoming dedicated to her as saint.

In 1314, during Robert the Bruce's 'scorched earth' policy of removing all fortresses and structures which might have been used by the English army as places of shelter or embattlement, he ordered all the buildings of Edinburgh Castle to be demolished, with the exception of St Margaret's Chapel. Later, on his deathbed in 1329, Bruce ordered the restoration of the chapel, with a provision of 40 Scots pounds being set aside for this purpose.

One notable occupant of the chapel, in the sixteenth century, was Mary of Guise, the mother of Mary, Queen of Scots. While Mary was overseas in France, her mother remained in Scotland, and stayed at Edinburgh Castle to hold the fortress on her daughter's behalf. In May 1560, after several months of declining health, Mary died. Her body was embalmed and laid in a lead coffin inside St Margaret's Chapel for several months (partly due to the English holding the port of Leith under siege) until she could finally be transported to France for burial in March 1561. 

The University of Edinburgh has campus buildings across the Old Town and beyond, designed by a whole host of notable architects who have left the imprint of their style and vision on the city. And the university's first dedicated campus building to be built was Old College, which remains an iconic structure in the heart of the city. 

Although the university was founded by James VI in the sixteenth century, Old College was built just over two hundred later, intended as a visible symbol of the university's status as a centre of academia and learning at the tail end of the period known as the Scottish Enlightenment. Land was secured adjacent to South Bridge (thanks in part to the political manoeuvring of Henry Dundas) and the plans for the building were drawn up by Robert Adam, who had also given the New Town its high status stylings, as seen on Charlotte Square (and, indeed, South Bridge itself).

The land on which the college was built originally lay partly beyond the city boundary itself, and had previously been occupied by a medieval church and hospital called St Mary-in-the-Fields (ie. not in-the-city), commonly known as Kirk o'Field, adjacent to which was the house in which Henry Darnley, the second husband of Mary, Queen of Scots, was staying on the night of his murder in 1567. It can only be a coincidence that the university, established by James VI, had its first custom-built college space on the same site where his father had died...

Robert Adam drew up the plans for Old College, which had only been partly constructed when Adam died in 1792. Funding for the college project ran short, and the building work stopped until early twenty years later. At that time, Adam's uncompleted plans were passed to another architect, William Henry Playfair, who made modifications to the project in order to get the work completed, and the building - called New College - was finished in 1827. 

Playfair's changes to the design of the college had been intended to reduce the cost. Whereas Adam had intended the building to form two square quadrangles - a kind of figre-of-eight shape - Playfair took out the central range of the buidling to leave a single rectangle of space at the heart of the building. He also removed the ostentatious dome which Adam had planned for the east entrance to the building, and imposed his style on the internal spaces of the college.

Although Old College remains actively used by the University of Edinburgh, housing their law school along with various academic office functions, there is a publicly accessible area which shows Playfair's classical internal space, which is the Talbot Rice gallery. This free-entry art gallery is worth visiting to see Old College from the inside.

Sixty years after Playfair's vision for New/Old College was complete, the university had sufficient funds to be able to reinstate the kind of grand dome that Robert Adam had intended for the building. Designed by Sir Robert Rowand Anderson, who had also built the nearby McEwan Hall for the university's students to graduate in. The stonework of the dome is noticably differen in colour and texture even today, indicating that it was added to the building later than the bulk of the construction. 

Anderson's dome was topped by the figure which makes the Old College dome most easily recognised on Edinburgh's skyline today: popularly known as the Golden Boy, sculpted by John Hutchison, the statue represents the figure of Youth holding the torch of Enlightenment - the two principles for which the university was founded. 

Students who attended classes in Old College included Charles Darwin, in the 1820s, and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle in the 1870s.

In 1923, the Robert Lorimer-designed memorial to university figures who lost their lives in the First World War (with similar losses from World War Two added later) was installed, creating a public memorial at the west end of the central quadrangle which today forms a patch of grass on which students can be found relaxing during the early summer months. 

In the middle of the nineteenth century the University of Edinburgh commissioned William Playfair to design a new purpose-built college space, which was built at the top of the Mound - this building took on the mantle of New College, and the building which had once been New College became​ Old College.

There's a matryoshka doll quality to some of Edinburgh's historic buildings, with spaces to be discovered within other spaces, and history found within other historical features. Old College of the University of Edinburgh is one such building, being worth visiting by itself (and featuring on a number of my Edinburgh walking tours) but also boasting one of the city's great art galleries within its walls.

The Talbot Rice Gallery, named for the university's professor of fine art between 1934 and 1972, occupies the upper levels of the quad building, designed originally by Robert Adam and William Henry Playfair. It's a free entry gallery hosting contemporary exhibitions of paintings and sculpture, and offering a glimpse of the interior style of Old College itself. 

Located in what was previously an exhibition hall within Old College, the Talbot Rice Gallery opened in 1975. It offers a classical space under a vaulted ceiling supported by Playfair's Grecian ionic columns, as well as a 'white box' contemporary-feeling exhibition space, and feels a million miles from the busy city streets just a few metres away outside.

Both spaces have a lower and upper viewing area, creating a tremendous sense of space and light, with skylights allowing natural light to flood the spaces as needed. 

Accessing the upper levels of the classical space also allows visitors to appreciate the style and decoration of the space, with ornate plasterwork on the arches and architraves and cast iron balustrades in typical 19th-century designs. 

William Playfair's Greek-influenced interior spaces contrast with the order and symmetry of the classical exterior of the building, which was Robert Adam's vision when he designed the original structure at the end of the 18th century. Taken together the inside and outside offer visions of two contrasting architectural styles, not just from different designers but from different centuries - and visiting the Talbot Rice Gallery is one way of visitors being able to appreciate those contrasts and differences.

The gallery is open to the public year round, although dates of exhibitions may mean it is closed for installation on occasion, so do check their website for details before planning a visit. Special events and public lectures from visiting artists and critics bring an added dimension to the gallery's stated goal of "exploring how the University of Edinburgh can contribute to contemporary art production today and into the future".

Discover more of Edinburgh's art galleries and museums, as well as some of its hidden historic spaces, on my private walking tours. 

With Edinburgh being a city steeped in banking - the New Town was the first place in the world where people advertised themselves as accountants, paid to manage other people's money - it's perhaps no surprise to find a museum within the headquarters of a global bank!

The Museum on the Mound is perhaps a slightly coy name for what is essentially a history of banking and finance. It resides in the lower storey of the Bank of Scotland building at the top of the Mound, on what is actually named Bank Street. As with the majority of Edinburgh's museums and galleries, entry is free - and although it's a relatively small attraction it is crammed with fascinating and intriguing information about the cash we carry in our pockets. 

The Bank of Scotland was established (by an Englishman) in 1695, a year after the Bank of England was established (by a Scotsman). A year later it became the first commercial bank in Europe to release banknotes into general circulation, promising to pay the bearers of the paper notes 'on demand' the cash equivalent of the value they represented. Since the 17th century the bank has evolved and is now part of the Lloyds banking group, and part of the Museum on the Mound charts the growth and change of the bank and its functions over the last three hundred years. 

From issuing early banknotes to the modern technology which allowed cash to be taken out from ATMs, banking and finance has been an industry which has grown and changed as society has developed. 

And just as our relationship with money has changed, so issues like forgery, fraud and theft have been problems that the bank has had to find solutions to across the years. You can even try your hand at safe cracking! Solve the riddles and spin the wheel of a specially designed safe - succeed and getting it open and you can 'steal' a golden voucher which can be exchanged for a reward at the museum's giftshop.

And if you've ever wondered what a million pounds in cash looks like, there's a cool £1,000,000 on display in a glass case! (No truth to the rumour that it is the Bank of Scotland's last million pounds, which they're very keen to show off....!) Sadly the notes have been invalidated, so even if you could find a way of sneaking them off the premises, they wouldn't be worth very much if you tried to spend them.... 

The displays are well laid out with plenty of interesting detail to explore. See a facsimile of the story that was printed in the local newspaper following the murder in Edinburgh's Old Town of William Begbie in 1806, along with the original cape worn in the iconic Scottish Widows insurance adverts. From the plates used for printing banknotes - then and now - to the emblems of the different iterations of the bank and its subsidiaries, there's all manner of historical artefacts on display.

The Bank of Scotland building itself is David Bryce's renovation of the original structure, dating from the late 1860s. It is an impressive sandstone edifice, offering views from the museum space across towards the New Town of Edinburgh, and topped with a statue of the goddess Fame, sculpted by John Rhind.

​It's an iconic building, and perfectly placed to act as a major landmark of Edinburgh's city centre. The Museum on the Mound is accessed by an entrance directly from the Mound on the western side of the building.

All-in-all you'll discover there's much more to your money than you might have realised...​​

Another entry in this occasional series, highlighting some of Edinburgh's amazing museums and galleries, all with FREE entry and worth checking out during your visit! See also The Museum of Edinburgh and the National Museum of Scotland.

The Writers' Museum can be found on Lady Stair's Close, a narrow lane leading off the Royal Mile at Lawnmarket, just a short stroll from Edinburgh Castle.

With such a wealth of literary history to celebrate - Edinburgh became the world's first UNESCO City of Literature in 2005 - this compact museum focuses on three of the most significant literary figures associated with the city: Sir Walter Scott, Robert Louis Stevenson, and Robert Burns.

Inside the museum are collections celebrating the life and work of the three writers often thought of as the holy trinity of Scottish literature.

​Sir Walter Scott was the father of the historical novel, as well as being a major influence on the way Scotland was perceived and represented in the early 19th century. Today much of the traditional imagery used to promote Scotland is based on Scott's writing.

​One of the most poignant pieces in the Scott exhibition space is the small wooden rocking horse which belonged to Scott when he was child, living on George Square in the Old Town. Having suffered from polio, Scott's legs were at slightly different heights, and on the rocking horse the stirrups for his feet are at different levels to compensate for this minor disability. 

At the top of the building is one of the original hand presses used for printing books, and it is believed the press on display here was the one on which Scott's Heart of Midlothian was originally printed. Scott became the most widely read British author of the 19th century, with books like Rob Roy and Ivanhoe selling in their thousands to readers all around the globe.

In the centre of the building is a double-height atrium space with a balustraded walk with its wooden decorations, plaster work, and original fire place giving a sense of the style of the original property.

Lady Stair, who lived in the building at one time, was also associated with a local legend relating to her husband and a strange dream that she had. The story was adapted by Walter Scott into his short story, My Aunt Margaret's Mirror. It's rather nice that Lady Stair herself helped inspire the writing of one of the authors who is celebrated in her former home today!

Also in this large open area is a contemporary tapestry weaving which represents all three of the writers, although Scott is most prominent because the piece was created in 1971 to mark the 200th anniversary of his birth.

In the room celebrating Robert Louis Stevenson you can find a large wooden cabinet, which is one of only a handful of pieces of furniture surviving today that is known to have been made by the master craftsman William Brodie. Brodie had his offices and workshop just a short walk from Lady Stair's Close, and is best regarded today as one of the original inspirations behind the creation of Stevenson's character(s) of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. 

Edinburgh also influenced characters and settings found in many of Stevenson's other works, including Treasure Island and ​Kidnapped. 

Stevenson ended his life living on an island in Samoa in the western Pacific Ocean ,and the exhibition at the Writers' Museum includes several artefacts and objects relating to this later stage of his life. 

All in all the museum is a small but intriguing venue that provides a fascinating glimpse of the life and times of some of Edinburgh's literary heroes. 

Entry to the museum is free - check the museum's website for updated opening times and details of restricted access. 

If you're visiting the Writers' Museum it's also worth checking out the stones along the lane on which it is located. Known as Makar's Court, after the Scots' word for a poet or a bard, the paving stones feature a variety of quotes from Scottish writers and poets, celebrating the country and the city in which they lived.

​You can also see a Celtic cross monument celebrating the First World War poets Wilfred Owen and Siegfried Sassoon, who have links to Edinburgh, at the former Craiglockhart military hospital where they were treated for shellshock.

To explore literary Edinburgh in more detail, contact me to arrange a customised walking tour of the city!

In the first of a new collection of blogs highlighting Edinburgh's amazing art galleries and museums, I'm introducing you to a museum dedicated to all things Edinburgh - it's the Museum of Edinburgh!

This amazing building on the Canongate in the Old Town is easily overlooked. Many visitors will see the outside of the building (or the lane behind it, which has some Outlander connections) without actually taking time to explore the museum itself. 

Formerly known as the Huntly House Museum, the building which houses the exhibition dates back to the late 16th century, and was known locally as 'the speaking house' because of the panels of Latin text on the front of the building. As well as its exhibition features, the museum provides a fascinating glimpse into what these historic buildings were like on the inside, offering a chance to imagine what life would have been like for people who lived in them. 

Entering through a small courtyard to the left of the building on the Royal Mile, you access the first of the museum's rooms via a narrow wooden staircase. (In common with many Edinburgh attractions, and the city itself, accessibility can be problematic....) The first wood panelled room introduces a few key features of the city, including one of the original sedan chairs which formed Edinburgh's first taxi service in the late 7th century.  

​Nearby is an original copy of the National Covenant, signed in the 1630s as a statement against interference by the monarchy in the religious operations of the Church of Scotland. 

The collection of objects on display is quite remarkable, and all of them have direct connection to Edinburgh and its inhabitants. The diversity of the exhibits is itself a reason to go exploring the museum!

In cases in the next room you can find a strange assortment of pieces which all belonged for former occupants of the city, including a spectacles case which once belonged to Protestant reformer John Knox (his spectacles are long gone), a golf ball belonging to Robert Louis Stevenson, and a wicker basket made by Adam Smith's mother!

Look out also for a piece of the tree which held the rope by which witches were 'ducked' in the Nor' Loch to assess their guilt or innocence, some sections of the old city water pipes, and what could be the original bore stone which held the flag of James IV as he assembled his troops ahead of the Battle of Flodden, in 1513...

As you explore the museum you'll move between several original buildings, and many features of the original structures survive intact, from the original windows and doorways, to primitive security features, and from fireplaces to roof beams. I often wonder what the people who lived in these properties over the last five hundred years would make of visitors strolling through today!

Special collections of artefacts are linked to Field Marshall Sir Douglas Haig, who was born on Charlotte Square in Edinburgh's New Town and became a major military leader of British troops in the First World War, and Edinburgh's extensive glass and pottery factories which operated in the Canongate area into the twentieth century.

You'll also find objects which are intrinsically linked to Edinburgh's history, including the original New Town plans drawn up by James Craig in the 1760s, and the collar, bowl and licence provided for Greyfriars Bobby by the lord provost of the city, William Chambers, in the 1860s. 

The museum as a whole is charming and intriguing, and gives a rare opportunity to find out not just the facts about Edinburgh's history, but to see some of its historic Old Town buildings up-close and from the inside. Despite the museum being fairly small you could easily spend an hour or more browsing the exhibits, and I guarantee you'll find something to intrigue, surprise or amuse you!

The Museum of Edinburgh is well worth taking the time to explore during your visit, and like all the publicly owned museums and galleries in the city, entry is free! Check the city council's website for updated opening times, and details of any special exhibitions or events.

Explore Edinburgh's history in more detail with my customised city walking tours!

Edinburgh is full of historic properties and buildings that have seen their fair share of history. In terms of its heritage status, Edinburgh has more buildings listed for their historical value than any other city in the UK (apart from London).

​This occasional blog series highlights specific buildings and explores their historic associations - previously I've featured Moray House and Prestonfield House, and in this article I'll be looking at Acheson House, located just off Edinburgh's historic Royal Mile.
​
Acheson House was built in 1633, as evidenced by the date carved above what was the original main entrance to the building. Today internal renovations have divided up some of the interior space, and this doorway today gives emergency access into the Museum of Edinburgh, housed primarily in an adjacent building.

The building was originally constructed as a home for Archibald Acheson. In 1627 Acheson had been appointed Secretary of State for Scotland in the court of Charles I, and so was a major figure in the royal court as well as in his native Scotland. Acheson's second wife was Margaret Hamilton, and the couple's initials appear on the pediments over the windows on the upper floor.

Scotland and England had only been united under one monarch for barely thirty years at the time when Acheson House was built, and wouldn't be united politically for another seventy years - so it's curious to note the emblem of the thistle and the rose carved into the window pediments. These national emblems of both Scotland and England would suggest the building's owner boasted unionist sympathies.

​However, a fleur-de-lys emblem over a third window may suggest a sense of respect for the 'Auld Alliance', signed between Scotland and France in 1292, making a common enemy of England...

Thanks to the emblem above its door, it was known locally as 'the cock and trumpet'....! It is thought that Acheson House may have been a favoured haunt of young Robert Louis Stevenson.

In 1775, an enterprising son of a church minister compiled and published An Impartial List of the Ladies of Pleasure in Edinburgh, detailing some of the women who could be found in the city's brothels, and the particular services (or character) they offered to their paying guests.

​James Tytler (who is alleged to be the otherwise pseudonymous author of the book) would later help compile the second edition of the Encyclopaedia Britannica, a decidedly more wholesome publication!

​Acheson House was also at one time occupied by Edinburgh's Incorporation of Bakers, and the names of the adjacent lanes - Bakehouse Close and Sugarhouse Close - are a reminder that this area at one time was a relatively industrial part of the city.

As with many of Edinburgh's Old Town buildings in the nineteenth century, Acheson House fell into disrepair, and may have been demolished altogether if it hadn't been for the pioneering vision of the Marquess of Bute, one of the figures who led efforts to restore and preserve many of the city's historic buildings. 

In 1939 the building was acquired by the Canongate Kirk, who installed the minister of the church in the property as his official manse. Rev. Ronald Selby-Wright spent forty years ministering to the community in the Canongate area, and lived at Acheson House during the early years of his tenure.

In his autobiography, Another Home, Selby-Wright describes one evening hearing footsteps crossing the wooden floor of Acheson House, opening the heavy wooden door, and passing out across the courtyard and into Bakehouse Close. When he went to investigate, to see who had been leaving the property, he found the front door firmly bolted closed, and no evidence of anyone having been in the hallway. 

He experienced this same phenomenon several times during his occupation of the building, and a colleague who stayed in the property described a similar experience - footsteps, the door opening and closing, but then discovering the door firmly locked...

From 1951 to the early 1990s Acheson House was a craft centre, hosting a variety of Scottish craftsmen and women, before the building fell into disuse and lay empty for twenty years. Again it seemed as though the building might fall victim to neglect and disuse until a major renovation was funded in 2011.

Acheson House once again had occupants! Today the building remains the offices of Edinburgh World Heritage, the charitable body who work alongside UNESCO to help preserve and protect the city's historic structures. Still occupied after nearly 400 years, Acheson House has survived some of the most disruptive, damaging and difficult periods of Edinburgh's history, and today stands as a monument to the value of preserving the city's built heritage. 

On 8 November 1736, Scotland's first theatre formally opened, on Carrubber's Close in Edinburgh's Old Town. It had been established by the poet and librarian Allan Ramsay, at what he described as "great expense", for the purpose of staging entertainments and performances for a local audience.

The life of the theatre was shortlived, as by the following year the venue on Carrubber's Close had closed, forced out of business as a result of campaigning and opposition from religious leaders in the city.

​For a long time, the performing arts were closely linked with issues of vice and depravity, had sinful associations with excess and debauchery, and attracted a dubious clientele. Many influential figures decried the harmful, degenerate influence that theatres had on their communities, and it's no surprise that Ramsay's venture was forced out of business so speedily.

Of course, the closure of the theatre on Carrubber's Close wasn't the end of the performing arts in Edinburgh, and today the city boasts the world's largest arts festival every summer - and at a time when many arts venues and artists are experiencing the devastating effects of the pandemic lockdown, here's my celebration of some of Edinburgh other important theatres, past and present.

OLD PLAYHOUSE CLOSE
A decade after Allan Ramsay's theatre closed, another playhouse was established in Edinburgh's Old Town, just a short way further down the Royal Mile. ​Crucially, this venue was outside of Edinburgh at the time, in a town called Canongate which lay just beyond the original city walls.

​Home was a church minister at the time, and the outcry at his association with the dreaded performing arts forced his resignation from the church. 

Douglas was restaged in London in 1757, where it was well received by a non-domestic audience, and was followed with several other classical-themed plays. Home later became an MP for Edinburgh, and died in 1808. The theatre on Playhouse Close closed in 1769.

THEATRE ROYAL
Another long-gone theatre in Edinburgh was the Theatre Royal, which stood on a square named Shakespeare Square, between 1769 and 1859. Shakespeare Square was at the east end of Princes Street in the New Town, near the junction with North Bridge, where the former General Post Office building stands today.

The foundation stone for the theatre was laid by Prince Albert, Queen Victoria's prince consort in 1861, on the same day he laid the foundation stone for what is today the National Museum of Scotland, on Chambers Street.

When the venue closed after 90 years, the title of Theatre Royal was then passed to a second building, previously known as the Queen's Theatre and Operetta House, on nearby Broughton Street.

This theatre was immediately adjacent to St Mary's Cathedral, where the John Lewis department store stands today, and seemed curiously vulnerable to fire - it was destroyed by fire and rebuilt no fewer than three times, before being demolished after catching fire for the last time in 1946. 

ROYAL LYCEUM THEATRE
One of the most popular local theatres in the city is the Royal Lyceum, which opened in 1883. A classic proscenium arch theatre, the auditorium here is one of the most beautiful of all the theatres across Scotland. The theatre has a permanent creative company dedicated to producing live theatre created in Edinburgh, attracting actors, designers and directors from all around the world.

Casts here have included performers like Sam Heughan (Outlander), David Tennant (Doctor Who) and Brian Cox (the original Hannibal Lektor in Manhunter), and designers including Olivier and Tony-award winning Bunny Christie.
 
The Lyceum is especially renowned for its work attracting younger audiences, including an annual Christmas show and its year-round Youth Theatre program.

KING'S THEATRE
Another classic proscenium arch theatre, the foundation of the red sandstone building of the King's Theatre was laid in 1906 by Andrew Carnegie, at one time the richest man in America. 

The King's was part of the traditional music hall circuit of the early- to mid-twentieth century. This was a key part of the theatre tradition in the UK, where comedians, singers, dancers and novelty acts would travel the country performing at venues. Scottish comedians like Rikki Fulton, Stanley Baxter, and Jimmy Logan all starred at the King's theatre in their careers. 

More recently, the King's has become one of the city's receiving houses, hosting touring productions for a week at a time throughout the year. A major renovation in 2013 saw improved access to what had become a challenging building for audiences to get into, and further development is planned for the near future. 

A beautiful mural on the decorative ceiling rose was painted by the artist and playwright John Byrne. 

EDINBURGH FESTIVAL THEATRE
The Festival Theatre is the second largest auditorium in the city, and the longest established theatre site, having had a venue on it since 1830. ​The former Empire Theatre was later turned into a cinema and bingo hall, before returning to use as a theatre in 1994.

In 1911 the Empire Theatre was the site of a devastating stage fire which broke out during a performance by a magician named the Great Lafayette, during which 11 people were killed - including the magician himself, his illusion body double, and a lion featured in his act.

In the aftermath of this fire, a new UK law was introduced which required a fire curtain to be installed in all theatres, and which was required to be proven to be functional at every performance. This resulted in the practice of raising and lowering a fire curtain or safety curtain during every live theatre performance to this day.

Today the Festival Theatre is a venue for large scale touring productions, including international ballet and opera companies, and West End musicals during their UK tours.

TRAVERSE THEATRE
The Traverse is one of the city's most important creative spaces, being dedicated to new writing. Originally established in 1963 by a group of people including John Calder - who was Samuel Beckett's publisher in the UK - and Richard Demarco, who remains an important and active artist and writer in Edinburgh.

The original theatre space was located on a lane off the Lawnmarket before moving to a more formal location in the Grassmarket, until it moved to the modern development from which it still operates today in 1992.
​ 
The Traverse become a major hub during the annual Edinburgh Festival Fringe, and is well regarded as a venue that nurtures and develops the work of new Scottish writers.

EDINBURGH PLAYHOUSE
The Edinburgh Playhouse is the largest theatre venue in the UK by number of seats, with room for just over 3,000 audience members at every performance. 

The building opened in 1929 as a cinema, and today operates as a receiving house for large scale touring productions of West End musicals, international opera and ballet companies, and stand-up comedy.

Explore more of Edinburgh's theatres and arts venues with my private city walking tours!

Robert Stodart Lorimer was born in Edinburgh on 4 November 1864.

His name isn't as well known as some of the architects like Robert Adam or William Playfair, but Lorimer was active across the UK and further afield during the early twentieth century, and found a reliable supply of work after the First World War as a designer of graves, monuments and war memorials. He also worked extensively in domestic settings, creating not the grand public buildings of better known architects, but contributing to his clients' domestic experience instead.

He was a notoriously frugal figure who never had more than four people working in his architecture practice, and resented having to buy coal to heat the offices during the winter months. He could also be a difficult man to work with, and lost several commissions because of his lack of tact or his  insistence on features and elements that his clients didn't like.

One of his chief draughtsmen once commented that Lorimer was "terrible with clients", and remembered that during one argument with a client was heard to say, "'This house will be remembered because I designed it, not because you paid for it"...!

But some of Lorimer's greatest works were public buildings and features in Edinburgh. Here are some highlights. 

THISTLE CHAPEL, ST GILES' CATHEDRAL
​Lorimer produced several memorials and commemorative features in St Giles' Cathedral, but his most significant early contribution to the church building was the Thistle Chapel, designed in 1909.

​This octagonal feature on the south-east corner of the building is filled with incredibly ornate decoration, with every surface covered in carved wooden panels with the crests of major Scottish figures around the space. It is in the Thistle Chapel that the Queen awards the chivalric title of Order of the Thistle, a historic royal honour dating back to the seventeenth century.

It's a small space, and not always open to the public (which is why I don't have photos of it!) but is worth visiting if you can get access during a visit - it is in the Thistle Chapel that you'll find the famous carving of an angel playing bagpipes! See if you can spot it amongst all the other decorations and carvings.

WALLACE AND BRUCE MONUMENTS, EDINBURGH CASTLE
The gatehouse of Edinburgh Castle was (only) built in the 1870s, but modifications were made in 1929 by Lorimer, for this grand entranceway to accommodate two statues of two of Scotland's historic heroes.

King Robert the Bruce and William Wallace stand on either side of the drawbridge entrance into the castle, cast by the sculptor Alexander Carrick. 

But it's inside the castle itself that Lorimer's greatest work is visited by thousands of visitors a year...

Scottish National War Memorial, Edinburgh Castle
Designed and planned in the aftermath of World War One, Lorimer's building honouring the Scottish soldiers who lost their lives during that war was opened in 1927 and today honours all those Scots who have lost their lives in conflict since 1914. ​

​Lorimer utilised a part of an existing barracks block on the site at the top of Edinburgh Castle for his plans, which today are a quiet and peaceful place of reverence and respect.

​Rolls of the names of the dead are kept in books for visitors to trace family and loved ones, and even in the middle of the summer when the castle is at its busiest, the Scottish National War Memorial remains a place of remembrance.

WAR MEMORIALS
A number of other war memorial from Lorimer can be found in the city. Look for the memorial inside Old College, part of the University of Edinburgh, along with the memorial outside the City Chambers on the Royal Mile.

KING'S BUILDINGS
Another of the University of Edinburgh campuses is King's Buildings, a collection of science and technology departments a little way from the city centre. Lorimer's architectural firm, which he ran with John Fraser Matthew, was responsible for several of the buildings on the site, including the building which originally housed the university's zoology department

Lorimer died in 1929, so it's likely that the bulk of the zoology building from 1928 was designed and overseen by Matthew, but it's an intriguing structure that always catches my eye on my frequent trips past it to do my weekly supermarket shop...

The building features reliefs of a variety of animals, a fun and creative addition to what could otherwise have been a very sombre and imposing 1920s structure!

Here's an aardvark, but you might also see crocodiles, an elephant, a kangaroo and many more cast in the building's stone...

With the Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic set to become the defining global event of 2020, it is perhaps an apposite time to reflect on previous times when illness and death stalked the streets of Edinburgh. 

Between the fourteenth century and the seventeenth century the city was struck by bubonic plague - the Black Death as it became known - at frighteningly regular intervals. On most occasions the disease was eradicated in the city within a matter of months, but there was one period of over 16 years when the illness became endemic and circulated within the community pretty constantly.

And beyond the plague, other illnesses such as smallpox, typhus and tuberculosis circulated fairly freely before the age of effective medical intervention. But here are ten instances of Edinburgh dealing with a pretty persistent pestilence...

1349
The first recorded instance of plague to affect Edinburgh occurred nearly 700 years ago, having spread around the globe via the shipping and trade routes which had begun to link what had previously been disparate continents and countries. Nations bordering the Mediterranean Sea had recorded a wave of deaths occurring very rapidly - often within two or three days after infection - and a year later such deaths were being recorded in Edinburgh itself. 

It is thought that around two-thirds of the city's population (of around 10,00 people) died in this first round of illness.

1361
A second wave of plague hits Edinburgh, this time killing around one-third of the population - and unlike the first infection, this time it is predominantly wealthier and higher status figures who are affected, perhaps because of their direct connection to infected imported goods and people bringing the disease into the country from overseas (not yet recognised as the route of transmission).

Throughout the fourteenth century, it's thought the plague killed approximately 20% of the population.

1420
​A wet summer and autumn is blamed for the illness, with the prevailing medical view about a balance of 'humours' in the human body - each of them being affected by environmental factors such as excessive heat or damp - still not recognising the presence of physical transmitters of the infection through viruses.

1498 - 1514
The longest period in which plague was rampant through Edinburgh, occasioning Edinburgh's city council to take actions to try to guard against infection, recognising the spread of disease in communities outside of the city and seeking to limit contact between those infected communities and Edinburgh itself.

A series of laws and city ordnances are put in place, including:

Teams of cleansers were employed by the city to clean and decontaminate properties where infection had been detected, using smoke and harsh chemicals. These people were housed separately from the rest of the community at the convent on St Mary Street, and paid as little as sixpence a day.

1529 - 1530
New cases of the plague saw even stronger measures taken to protect the city of Edinburgh.

​The Burgh Muir, an extent of common land to the south of the Old Town (where Bruntsfield and Morningside are today) was designated as a kind of quarantine zone, and wooden huts were built to accommodate infected victims who would be taken out of the city and kept apart to prevent the spread of infection. Mass burials of plague victims also took place in this area, at a significant distance from the city centre.

During this time there are several recorded instances of punishments being meted out to residents of the city who had contravened the plague laws. One woman, Isobell Cattall, was both branded and banished from the city for not reporting that her daughter had been sick with the plague.

​Patrick Gowanlock and his servant, Janet Cowan, were punished for harbouring outsiders in his property, with Gowanlock being banished from the city and Cowan branded on both cheeks for 'conniving' in the crime. An unnamed man was hanged for attending church whilst his wife was dying with the plague, and a woman named Katryne Heriot was drowned for bringing stolen goods into the city, and thereby bringing plague into the town.

1574
After nearly a quarter of a century without incident, plague arrived back in Edinburgh, and the Burgh Muir was once again commissioned as a quarantine zone. The man in charge of looking after the patients dispatched here to die painful deaths was named John Forrest, and the terms of his contract stipulated that if any of the infected people released into his care should be deemed to have spread the disease to others, Forrest would be executed for dereliction of duty.

Thankfully this episode only lasted a year, and by 1575 the city was again disease-free. 

1585
A decade later, John Forrest was back in the Burgh Muir with more patients, and the area of infection was fenced off from the rest of the common moorland to prevent the mixing of infected and uninfected communities. 

Beggars were forcibly removed from the city and people were instructed to isolate in their households if infection was suspected. A register was kept of such households, and food and drink was provided for them to prevent them needing to leave their homes. Anyone returning from the Burgh Muir was to remain in their homes for 15 days, on pain of death for anyone found breaking the rules.

​At least two people were executed for contravening the regulations.

1597
Another outbreak of the plague, arriving through the port of Leith from London, saw people being confined to their homes again, with 16 pence per person provided for those who were constrained from working. 

So many people died during this outbreak - which lasted only four months - that Edinburgh's cemeteries were quickly at capacity, and a regulation was passed banning burials in coffins (which took up extra space in the grave).

1602 - 1607
Plague circulated intermittently through this period, with the Burgh Muir being utilised once again as a quarantine and burial zone. 

1644 - 1645
The last, and worst, period of plague affecting Edinburgh came at the height of the English Civil War, and nearly three hundred years after the first recorded wave of infections. At this time the population of Edinburgh was approximately 30,000 people, with as many as 50% of them dying of plague.

​This was the first time any dedicated medical and surgical support was provided to the city - prior to this treatment had focused on isolation and decontamination of property and materials after a death had occurred.

The medical treatment administered at this time was almost worse than the illness itself. The bubonic boils which formed on a victim within a day or so of becoming infected would be lanced with a red-hot instrument, allowing the filthy pus to be released, with the wound then cauterised to seal the flesh of the patient.

Generally patients would die anyway. 

The doctor appointed to treat plague victims in Edinburgh in 1645 was a man named George Rae. He would go from house to house administering the treatment of lancing and cauterising the boils, and wore a heavy mask filled with sweet smelling herbs as a way of trying to avoid some of the stench of burned and poisoned flesh. He had been promised a hefty salary for his work (and his risk) treating patients, and it seems that the city authorities at that time anticipated that Rae would himself become infected with plague and die, since it transpired that they had no intention of paying the promised fee. 

In the decade after the last incidence of plague in Edinburgh, Rae battled the council to get the money he had been promised, but is believed to have eventually died without receiving his dues.

One notable victim of the plague from this period was John Livingston, an apothecary or chemist who worked to treat those diagnosed with plague, and whose home had been built in 1639 at the edge of the Burgh Muir area where many plague victims were sent. He died in 1645, having contracted plague from the people he was treating.

He was buried in a tomb on his property which stands to this day and can be visited just off Chamberlain Road in Bruntsfield.

What is interesting about these events as we read them with a modern eye is the similarity in the attitudes to treatment, protection and prevention of the spread of disease. Social distancing, isolation, 10pm curfews and the closure of businesses are all features of the modern approach to tackling Covid-19, and whilst the comparisons with the plague aren't all entirely accurate (or appropriate) the similarities in our attitudes from those of 400 years ago are curious!

Explore more of Edinburgh's history with death and disease on my private city walking tours!