Edinburgh Castle (Great Britain, Scotland)

Edinburgh Castle

“There, watching high the least alarms,
Thy rough, rude fortress gleams afar,
Like some bold vet’ran, gray in arms,
And mark’d with many a seamy scar:
The pond’rous wall and massy bar,
Grim-rising o’er the rugged rock,
Have oft withstood assailing war,
And oft repell’d th’ invader’s shock.”

Address to Edinburgh
by Robert Burns

The Castle of Edinburgh – is a fortress located on the Castle Rock in the center of the capital of Scotland – Edinburgh. The fortress was used by different armed forces since 900 B. C. and only recently was transferred out of administration of the Defense Ministry of Great Britain. The Castle is located on top of the Royal Mile, the main street of the old city which leads down to the Holyrood House. The Castle is open for public visitation and is the main landmark of Scotland for tourists. As early as since the XII century the Castle was Royal residence of Scottish kings and was involved in a big number of conflicts between England and Scotland.

The history of the Castle’s appearance as well as that of the city of Edinburgh is so hazy and covered with mystery that it always genders disputes between archeologists. Some suppose that mention of the first settlements can be found as early as in the records of Ptolemy who in one of his chronicles describes a settlement of Votadini – a Celtic tribe that lived in the north of Scotland. Among Romans in the II century the settlement was also known under the name of “Alauna” which is translated as a “rocky place”; this may have been the first mention of the Castle Rock. Excavations carried out in the Castle in the 1980s found a lot of fragments of houses similar to fragments of the houses of Votadini discovered earlier in Northumbria which is another evidence in favor of this theory.

Others say that the Castle Rock was inhabited as early as 1000 B. C. and refer to the testimonies of Andrew of Wyntoun, a Medieval Scottish chronicler and poet. His main work is a big metric “Orygynale Cronykil of Scotland” which is a major historic source on Scotland’s history of the XIV-XV centuries. The work consists of nine books and is dedicated mainly to Scottish history from the mythical times till enthronement of the King James I in 1406. While writing the chronicle Andrew of Wyntoun used old monastery records in Latin as well as local Scottish chronicles.

According to “Orygynale Cronykil”, a legendary king of the Britons Efrawg or Efrog «byggyd [built] Edynburgh». According to Geoffrey of Monmouth (around 1100-1154) Efrawg founded several cities: Kaerebrauc, Alclud, and Castelh Munud Agnedр (the “Castle of Vrigins”), in Latin “Castell Puellarum”; this name was used for the Castle until XVI century. As the legend has it in the Castle girl virgins of royal blood were guarded. However, trustworthy proofs of these legends were not found in sufficient number, and excavations showed that, most likely, Ptolemy was right: in the I-II centuries on the Castle Rock there was a small fortified fortress.

The next mention of the Edinburgh Castle can be found only in 600 A. D. In the brythonic epic Y Gododdin the place Din Eidyn is mentioned — “Fortress Eidyn”. Some historians once again believe that it is the Castle Rock. The lore tells us that king Mynyddog Mwynfawr after the whole month of feasts and amusements in the Fortress went out to fight the Angles and despite his valor and bravery was utterly defeated.

The first documental testimonies of the Edinburgh Castle date back to the records of a Scottish chronicler John of Fordun, the author of the Chronicle of the Scottish Nation (in Latin Chronica gentis Scotorum). In it he speaks about Malcolm III’s Dowager, would-be Saint Margaret who, while in the Castle of Virgins, finds out about her husband’s death in 1093. John tells us that Saint Margaret died several days after of grief over her late husband, and how the king’s brother Donald Bane (old Gaelic name Domnall mac Donnchada) besieged the Castle with a goal to kill possible heirs to the throne. Yet Margaret’s children managed to escape through a hidden door in the western wall of the Castle and get to their uncle Edgar Atheling in England.

During the reign of King Malcolm III Dunfermline, and not Edinburgh, was the capital of the Scottish kingdom. However, under his son David I (reigned 1124-1153) the situation gradually altered.
David I carries out serious administrative reforms. During his reign in the Castle of Edinburgh there was held the first meeting of the Scottish Parliament around 1140. It is believed that by that time on the Castle Rock there were already many wooden buildings as well as several stone ones. Among them were Saint Margaret Chapel and Virgin Mary Church which gives the ground to think that the first facilities of the Castle were located in the northern part of the Castle Rock around Saint Margaret Chapel, and the Chapel itself is the last remains of the donjon of the Castle.
In 1174 David I’s grandson William I “the Lion” of Scotland (ruled 1165-1214) at a battle at Alnwick was captured by Englishmen. In exchange for his release the King had to sign a shameful peace treaty (Treaty of Falaise), according to which he acknowledged himself a vassal of Henry II and Scotland – his fief. The Castle Edinburgh as well as Berwick, Roxburgh, and Stirling also went into the English King’s possession.

According to the treaty of Falaise Henry II even received the right to choose a spouse for William. His choice fell on Ermengarde de Beaumont, a granddaughter of Henry I of England, and the wedding took place on September 5 1186 in Woodstock. The Castle of Edinburgh was given back to William as the dowry.

The independence of Scotland was established by Treaty of Canterbury (1189) between William the Lion and Richard I the Lion Heart who needed money to participate in the Third Crusade and sold their fathers’ suzerain rights over Scotland for 10 thousand silver marcs.
In March of 1296 Edward I gave an order to invade Scotland and, thus, began an almost three hundred year war for Scotland’s independence. As early as in two months’ time The Castle of Edinburgh was in Edward’s hands. For three days the English intensively bombarded the Castle from siege-guns which caused the garrison to surrender. All the regalia and valuables of Scottish kings were confiscated; many historic archives were moved to England.

The regime set up by English authorities was so cruel that as soon as in 1297 the Scotch rebelled headed up by William Wallace and Andrew de Moray and the English army was defeated at a battle on the bridge of Sterling. In 1298 Edward I once again invaded Scotland and at Falkirk battle defeated the Scotch. As a result Wallace was forced to give up the responsibilities of the Regent.
After Edward I’s death in 1307 England’s control over Scotland got weaker. On March 14 of 1314, an unexpected attack of Thomas Randolph, the first Earl of Moray, helped to return the Castle of Edinburgh. Thirty soldiers armed with lances headed by William Francis were able to go up the steep northern side of the mountain and take the guards aback. Robert the Bruce immediately ordered to destroy all fortifications in the Castle so that after he was gone the English could not use the Castle again. This is what he did to all the castles he conquered back from the English. Robert the Bruce soon solidified his victories at a battle at Bannockburn and, a few years later, he was able to regain Scotland’s independence.

After Bruce died England’s King Edward I decided to finish his father’s project and claimed his rights over Scottish land. In 1333 another invasion into Scotland began.
In 1335 English troops seized and strengthened the Castle of Edinburgh, but as soon as in 1341 the Scotch under William Douglas were able to conquer it back. William got dressed as an English tradesman, took a bottle of whine and a bottle of beer and went to the Governor in the Castle. They agreed on the price for the goods and William promised to deliver the entire cargo on the next morning. On April 17 of 1341, with a dozen of Scotchmen dressed as sailors he appeared at the gates of the Castle. As soon as the gates opened the Scotch attacked the guards and killed them all. At the same time by a sign their comrades rushed out of an ambush into the Castle and slaughtered the remaining garrison of the Castle.

In 1357 Treaty of Berwick was signed which put an end to the war for independence. David II became legal King of Scotland and made the Castle of Edinburgh his residence.
In 1367 construction of a tower which was later named as the Tower of David began. It was finished only by 1370s under Robert II.

The tower was where a Half Moon Battery is now and it was connected by a wall with a small Constable’s Tower, which was where today’s Portcullis Gate is. The Tower was huge by the measures of that time — 30 meters high. Originally, it served as the main entry to the Castle, however later a lot of guest rooms for the noblemen were adjoined to it.
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