ON leaving the Castle Esplanade we immediately enter the Royal
Mile. This is the popular name given to the fascinating string of
historic streets which, linking the two royal residences of castle and
Holyrood Palace, was the thoroughfare of medieval Edinburgh. The Royal
Mile was where the action was! Here you would find street stalls,
taverns, royal processions, thieves, street entertainers, beggars,
public hangings, riots, the unpopular Town Guard, soldiers from the
castle, merchants, foreigners, fine town houses of the nobility, and
the law courts.
Today the Royal Mile retains its distinctive character, thanks to a
durable architectural profile and a policy of careful
conservation. The rehabilitation of many of the area's historic
buildings as residences during the past 60 years has provided a firm
foundation for a thriving modern community.
It is not difficult in the Old Town to sense an earlier age,
particularly when wandering the many narrow closes and wynds that run
at right angles from the Royal Mile. These closes, every one of which
has a tale attached to it, usually open into courtyards, characteristic
of a bygone lifestyle. Different social classes often were
neighbours in these tenement buildings, which had a common entrance
from the public street.
In the early years of the present century, a period when much of the
Old Town had deteriorated to slum property, many a destitute family
still sat by an ornate fireplace inscribed with the coat of arms of a
half-forgotten noble family.
At the very top of the Royal Mile is Castlehill, a fairly short street
in which one of the most interesting buildings is the Outlook
Tower. It is one of a number in this immediate area associated with Sir Patrick Geddes
(1854-1932)<--/A-->, a Scot who has been called the father of modern town
planning. Geddes' enlightened ideas and practical teaching,
particularly about urban living, had great influence, not only in
Scotland but far beyond these shores, including France, the Middle
East and India.
At the top of the Outlook Tower is the famous
Camera Obscura,
installed in 1853. In a dark chamber, the camera's system of revolving
lenses and mirrors projects a moving image of the surrounding city
before the audience, while the operator tells the story of the city's
historic past.
Make
a brief detour down Ramsay Lane to have a
look at the charming exterior of Ramsay Garden, a property which
Geddes developed carefully around an older core of buildings that
includes the 'Goose-pie', the octagonal home of the poet Allan Ramsay<--/A-->
(1686-1758). The commanding situation of Ramsay Garden, at the summit
of Princes Street Gardens, gives these residential flats an
incomparable view of Edinburgh.
The story of Scotch whisky is entertainingly explored at the Scotch
Whisky Heritage Centre, at 354 Castlehill. During a visit lasting
about one hour, the visitor steps back into history and sees the
development of this famous beverage through the centuries. Travelling
in an electric barrel car, the visitor makes a journey of discovery
through the social and industrial history of whisky.
At the junction of Castlehill and Johnston Terrace soars Tolbooth St
John's, a church designed by Augustus Pugin. Its tremendous yet
graceful spire will be found in most of Edinburgh's famous skylines.
The Lawnmarket, whose name is thought to indicate the recognised
centre in olden times for trading in linen, offers a good example of
the system of closes, tenemented 'lands' and courtyards that
characterise the Old Town.
The most notorious denizen of this neighbourhood was Major Thomas
Weir, who in the seventeenth century lived in the West Bow with his
sister, Grizel. Weir, though a grim-looking figure, was outwardly a
pious man, and highly thought of for his devout prayers and powerful
preaching. Wrapped in his long cloak, he would habitually lean on a
staff while delivering his sermons. There was, therefore, stunned
disbelief when he broke down and confessed to the most revolting
crimes. Grizel confessed to practising witchcraft. People swore that
the major's staff had a life of its own, carrying out his orders and
proceeding down the Lawnmarket independently of its master. After his
trial in 1670, during which the evidence was sensational, Major Weir
was convicted of sorcery and sentenced to be strangled and burnt;
Grizel was hanged in the Grassmarket. The wizard's staff was consigned
to the flames with its master but, it is said, was consumed only with
difficulty.
On the north side of the Lawnmarket is Mylne's Court. Named after its
architect, master mason to Charles II, it is among the oldest
surviving in Edinburgh and conveys the modest scale upon which life in
the Old Town was lived. Today the interiors of these buildings have
been modernised to provide residential flats for students of [Edinburgh
University].
More spacious is nearby James Court, which houses the Writers' Museum. This interesting house dates
from 1622. In the eighteenth century it was the home of Lady Stair,
the widow of the first Earl of Stair. Today it is the municipal museum
principally known for its collection of artefacts associated with
three Scottish men of letters - Sir Walter Scott<--/A-->, Robert Louis
Stevenson<--/A--> (both natives of Edinburgh) and Scotland's national
bard, Robert Burns. Burns lodged only a few yards away, in the
Lawnmarket, during one of his successful visits to the Scottish
capital - there is a commemorative plaque above street level.
Also on this side of the Lawnmarket is
Gladstone's Land, owned by the
National Trust for Scotland. Built by Thomas Gledstanes, it is well
worth visiting as a skilfully restored example of a merchant's house
of the seventeenth century. Interesting painted ceilings are one of
its features.
On the other side of the street is Riddle's Court, which dates from
the sixteenth century and is noted for the stair tower in its inner
courtyard. A pend leads to Bailie McMorran's House (sixteenth
century), the home of a leading citizen of the time. His name is best
remembered today for the manner of his death: a magistrate, he
proceeded to the Royal High School to quell a riot among the students
in 1595 and was shot dead by one of the schoolboys. So much for the
myth of superior classroom discipline in the old days.
Also on the south side of the Lawnmarket is Brodie's Close. It is
named after a respectable craftsman, Francis Brodie, but it is his
son, William, whose name and deeds everyone remembers. This is because
William Brodie, ostensibly a respectable member of the Town Council,
was discovered to be a professional burglar on a grand scale. Deacon
Brodie was unmasked as the result of an unsuccessful armed raid on the
Excise Office at Chessel's Court, off the Canongate. Brodie managed to
escape to Holland but was arrested there, brought back for trial,
convicted and hanged in public in the High Street in 1788.
The final irony was that Brodie was executed with an improved version
of the gallows which he invented. Deacon Brodie's nefarious career
made a lasting impression, shown by the fact that the largest public
house in the Lawnmarket is named after him. Robert Louis
Stevenson<--/A-->, in writing The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde,
was inspired either by Deacon Brodie's double life, or by the case of
that even more sinister character, Major Weir.
<--/A-->