Tuesday, September 10, 2019, Edinburgh, Scotland

Edinburgh, Scotland

Edinburgh has been Scotland's capital since the 15th century, despite the Union of the Crowns moved it to London in 1603. There is no capital like Edinburgh, with its gorgeous setting on green rocky hillocks and splendid views of the sea. The mighty Edinburgh Castle, home of the Scottish Crown Jewels and countless medieval treasures, overlooks the city from Castle Rock; and the Royal Mile unfurls Edinburgh's architectural gems in all their finery, from the Canongate to St Giles's Cathedral to the Palace of Holyroodhouse, the Scottish residence of British royalty. The Crown had a palace outside Edinburgh, too, on the Royal Yacht Britannia, an easy drive form the city.

Edinburgh is the capital of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian is located in Lothian on the Firth of Forth's southern shore.

Recognized as the capital of Scotland since at least the 15th century, Edinburgh is the seat of the Scottish Government, the Scottish Parliament and the supreme courts of Scotland. The city's Palace of Holyroodhouse is the official residence of the monarch in Scotland. The city has long been a center of education, particularly in the fields of medicine, Scots law, literature, philosophy, the sciences, and engineering. It is the second largest financial center in the United Kingdom (after London) and the city's historical and cultural attractions have made it the United Kingdom's second most popular tourist destination attracting 1.75 million visits from overseas in 2016.

Edinburgh is Scotland's second most populous city and the seventh most populous in the United Kingdom. The official population estimates are 488,050 (2016) for the Locality of Edinburgh (Edinburgh pre 1975 regionalization plus Currie and Balerno), 518,500 (2018) for the City of Edinburgh, and 1,339,380 (2014) for the city region. Edinburgh lies at the heart of the Edinburgh and South East Scotland city region comprising East Lothian, Edinburgh, Fife, Midlothian, Scottish Borders, and West Lothian.

The city is the annual venue of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland. It is home to national institutions such as the National Museum of Scotland, the National Library of Scotland, and the Scottish National Gallery. The University of Edinburgh, founded in 1582 and now one of four in the city, is placed 20th in the QS World University Rankings for 2020. The city is also famous for the Edinburgh International Festival and the Fringe, the latter being the world's largest annual international arts festival. Historic sites in Edinburgh include Edinburgh Castle, the Palace of Holyroodhouse, the churches of St. Giles, Greyfriars, and the Canongate, and the extensive Georgian New Town built in the 18th/19th centuries. Edinburgh's Old Town and New Town together are listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site, which has been managed by Edinburgh World Heritage since 1999.

For more information: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edinburgh

Edinburgh Highlights We saw highlights of Scotland’s capital city on this included tour, from gracious architecture to a storied castle. Our journey began in the historic district of Newhaven, once a thriving fishing village and center for shipbuilding, as we drove toward the heart of the historic city of Edinburgh. On our panoramic tour, we saw the 18th-century New Town with its delightful neoclassical and Georgian period architecture. From a high point, we viewed the dramatic skyline punctuated with church spires and dominated by Edinburgh Castle set on its craggy volcanic rock. We drove through the center of the bustling city and down part of the famous Royal Mile to view the 17th-century Palace of Holyroodhouse. Photo stops were made en route as traffic permits. Following our tour, we enjoyed some free time for shopping and independent exploration in central Edinburgh before returning to our ship.

Scott Monument (lost his head?)

Oh, his head is on after all!

Edinburgh Waverley Railway Station (background - also known simply as Waverly) is the principal station serving Edinburgh, the capital city of Scotland. It is the second busiest station in Scotland, after Glasgow Central. It is the northern terminus of the East Coast Main Line, 393 miles 13 chains (632.7 km) from London King's Cross, although some trains operated by London North Eastern Railway continue to other Scottish destinations beyond Edinburgh.

More info: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edinburgh_Waverley_railway_station

The Museum of Edinburgh, formerly known as Huntly House Museum, is a museum in Edinburgh, Scotland, housing a collection relating to the town's origins, history and legends. Exhibits include an original copy of the National Covenant signed at Greyfriars Kirk in 1638 and a reconstruction of Field Marshal Earl Haig's headquarters on the Western Front during the Great War, the latter exhibiting items bequeathed to the Museum.

Situated in the late 16th-century Huntly House on the Canongate, the museum is maintained by the City of Edinburgh Council.

Edinburgh is monument poor! We lost track of the ID of most on our excursion.

Queen Victoria in younger, slimmer days.

James Clerk Maxwell

James Clerk Maxwell (13 June 1831 – 5 November 1879) was a Scottish scientist in the field of mathematical physics. His most notable achievement was to formulate the classical theory of electromagnetic radiation, bringing together for the first time electricity, magnetism, and light as different manifestations of the same phenomenon. Maxwell's equations for electromagnetism have been called the "second great unification in physics" after the first one realized by Isaac Newton.

With the publication of "A Dynamical Theory of the Electromagnetic Field" in 1865, Maxwell demonstrated that electric and magnetic fields travel through space as waves moving at the speed of light. He proposed that light is an undulation in the same medium that is the cause of electric and magnetic phenomena. The unification of light and electrical phenomena led his prediction of the existence of radio waves. Maxwell is also regarded as a founder of the modern field of electrical engineering.

He helped develop the Maxwell–Boltzmann distribution, a statistical means of describing aspects of the kinetic theory of gases. He is also known for presenting the first durable colour photograph in 1861 and for his foundational work on analysing the rigidity of rod-and-joint frameworks (trusses) like those in many bridges.

His discoveries helped usher in the era of modern physics, laying the foundation for such fields as special relativity and quantum mechanics. Many physicists regard Maxwell as the 19th-century scientist having the greatest influence on 20th-century physics. His contributions to the science are considered by many to be of the same magnitude as those of Isaac Newton and Albert Einstein. In the millennium poll—a survey of the 100 most prominent physicists—Maxwell was voted the third greatest physicist of all time, behind only Newton and Einstein. On the centenary of Maxwell's birthday, Einstein described Maxwell's work as the "most profound and the most fruitful that physics has experienced since the time of Newton." Einstein, when he visited the University of Cambridge in 1922, was told by his host that he had done great things because he stood on Newton's shoulders; Einstein replied: "No I don't. I stand on the shoulders of Maxwell."

Thomas Chalmers (17 March 1780 – 31 May 1847), was a Scottish minister, professor of theology, political economist, and a leader of both the Church of Scotland and of the Free Church of Scotland. He has been called "Scotland's greatest nineteenth-century churchman."

He served as Vice-president of the Royal Society of Edinburgh from 1835–42.

The New Zealand town of Port Chalmers was named after Chalmers. A bust of Chalmers is on display in the Hall of Heroes of the National Wallace Monument in Stirling. The Thomas Chalmers Centre in Kirkliston is named after him.

Age 11 Chalmers attended the University of St Andrews studying mathematics. In January 1799 he was licensed as a preacher of the gospel by the St Andrews presbytery. In May 1803, after attending further courses of lectures at the University of Edinburgh, and acting as assistant to the professor of mathematics at St Andrews, he was ordained as minister of Kilmany, about 9 miles from the university town, where he continued to lecture. Kilmany was a small and predominantly agricultural parish, with a population under 800 in 1811.

More information: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Chalmers

Larry could NOT notice this Porsche!

Far more modern that London taxis.

Edinburgh Castle.

Edinburgh Castle is a historic fortress which dominates the skyline of the city of Edinburgh, Scotland from its position on the Castle Rock. Archaeologists have established human occupation of the rock 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 at times 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. Its importance as a part of Scotland's national heritage was recognized increasingly from the early 19th century onward, and various restoration programs have been carried out over the past century and a half. 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 1,100-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."

Few of the present buildings pre-date the Lang Siege of the 16th century, when the medieval defenses were largely destroyed by artillery bombardment. The most notable exceptions are St Margaret's Chapel from the early 12th century, which is regarded as the oldest building in Edinburgh, the Royal Palace and the early-16th-century Great Hall, although the interiors have been much altered from the mid-Victorian period onward. The castle also houses the Scottish regalia, known as the Honors of Scotland and is the site of the Scottish National War Memorial and the National War Museum of Scotland. The British Army is still responsible for some parts of the castle, although its presence is now largely ceremonial and administrative. Some of the castle buildings house regimental museums which contribute to its presentation as a tourist attraction.

The castle, in the care of Historic Environment Scotland, is Scotland's most-visited paid tourist attraction, with over 2.1 million visitors in 2018 and over 70 percent of leisure visitors to Edinburgh visiting the castle. As the backdrop to the Edinburgh Military Tattoo during the annual Edinburgh Festival the castle has become a recognizable symbol of Edinburgh and of Scotland.