Marsh-Mel-O's Adventures: UK Roadtrip

29th September

A trip to Edinburgh would not be complete without a trip to Edinburgh Castle, so this morning off we set up the Royal Mile to walk around the castle. Getting premium parking right by the gate thanks to Nanny's Disability Pass, we would have been first in the door... except that we were 30 minutes early. So instead we went for a walk down the Royal Mile, into all the little, but very expensive souvenir shops and took in the local sights.

The Royal Mile

Walking up to the Castle

After 9am we returned back to Edinburgh Castle and bought our tickets. Heading into the castle we decided not to get audio guides and just walk around ourselves. Heading inside the castle through the castle gates we found ourselves upon the Argyle Battery where there was a sign for the next guided tour... in less than 5 minutes. Timing that perfectly we decided we could wait the whole 4 minutes!

The Argyle Battery

The View from the Argyle Battery

Archaeologists have established human occupation of the Castle Rock where Edinburgh Castle sits today, since at least the Iron Age (2nd century AD), although the nature of the early settlement is unclear. There has been a royal castle on the rock since at least the reign of David I in the 12th century, and the site continued to be a royal residence until 1633. From the 15th century the castle's residential role declined, and by the 17th century it was principally used as military barracks with a large garrison. As one of the most important strongholds in the Kingdom of Scotland, Edinburgh Castle was involved in many historical conflicts from the Wars of Scottish Independence in the 14th century to the Jacobite Rising of 1745. Research undertaken in 2014 identified 26 sieges in its 1100-year-old history, giving it a claim to having been "the most besieged place in Great Britain and one of the most attacked in the world".

We joined our tour guide at the Argyle Battery, from here the tour lead us past the One O'clock Gun, the Governor's House, the New Barracks, through Foog's Gate (Fun fact: no one knows why it is called that!), past St Margaret's Chapel and the Forewall and Half-moon Battery before we entered the main square and the highest part of the castle. In the main square was the Scottish National War Memoriam, the Great Hall, the Royal Palace (including the room where Mary Queen of Scots gave birth to King James I) and the Honours of Scotland: the Scottish Crown Jewels.

The Main Hall

St Margaret's Chapel

After we had visited just about every room in the castle and read just about every sign (mum was not impressed with me on that!) we headed back down the hill out of the castle. Continuing along the Royal Mile and down some of the other main streets to do some more shopping!

We did a general drive through Edinburgh visiting the sites and taking in the scenery. We visited the Scott Monument, which is the largest monument to a writer in the world. It commemorates Sir Walter Scott. Then we drove past Saint Andrew's House and the Princess Suites.

The Scott Monument

We tried to visit the Nelson Monument and the National Monument, however couldn't access the lane up as it was blocked off. Instead we admired them from the base of the hill.

Finally we stopped off at the Palace of Holyroodhouse and the Scottish Parliament. I have to say Scottish Parliament stands out with its modern type building compared to the older surroundings!