- published: 20 Jun 2012
- views: 67186
Edinburgh Castle is a fortress which dominates the skyline of the city of Edinburgh, Scotland, from its position atop the volcanic Castle Rock. Human habitation of the site is dated back as far as the 9th century BC, although the nature of early settlement is unclear. There has been a royal castle here since at least the reign of David I in the 12th century, and the site continued to be a royal residence until the Union of the Crowns in 1603. From the 15th century the castle's residential role declined, and by the 17th century its principal role was as a military base with a large garrison. Its importance as a historic monument was recognised from the 19th century, and various restoration programmes have been carried out since. As one of the most important fortresses in the Kingdom of Scotland, Edinburgh Castle was involved in many historical conflicts, from the Wars of Scottish Independence in the 14th century, up to the Jacobite Rising of 1745, and has been besieged, both successfully and unsuccessfully, on several occasions.
Edinburgh (i/ˈɛdɪnbʌrə/ ED-in-burr-ə; Scottish Gaelic: Dùn Èideann) is the capital city of Scotland and the seat of the Scottish Parliament. It is the second largest city in Scotland and the seventh most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a 30 square miles (78 km2) rural area. Located in the south-east of Scotland, Edinburgh lies on the east coast of the Central Belt, along the Firth of Forth, near the North Sea.
The city was one of the historical major centres of the Enlightenment, led by the University of Edinburgh, helping to earn it the nickname Athens of the North. The Old Town and New Town districts of Edinburgh were listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1995 in recognition of the unique character of the Medieval Old Town and the planned Georgian New Town. It covers both the Old and New Towns together with the Dean Village and the Calton Hill areas. There are over 4,500 listed buildings within the city. In May 2010, it had a total of 40 conservation areas covering 23% of the building stock and 23% of the population, the highest such ratios of any major city in the UK. In the 2011 mid-year population estimates, Edinburgh had a total resident population of 495,360.
I woke up in the morning
seven twenty-four
Drank a cup of coffee
stepped out the door
I said Goodbye
to my old best friend
I took a ride
to the old West End
I walked along Princes Street
my feet were hurting bad
as I squirmed inside my shoes
I was thinking about my dad
There was the bones of a song
beatin' around my head
Unless I remember it wrong
this is what it said:
Edinburgh Castle hugging the sky
Cold grey stone, humourless and dry
Sitting like a cork on top of the town
One of these days I'm gonna blow you down
I jumped on a bus
a trusty number 23
to the Royal Botanical Gardens
where a ghost was calling me
I saw a brace of weeping willows,
a burnt and withered land
I saw a man and a little boy
holding hands
I scanned the skyline
It was like the backdrop of a play
I never saw your heartless beauty
until I'd been away
As I was climbing up The mound
it struck me like a chime
I must have dreamed this scene
about a thousand times !
Edinburgh Castle hugging the sky
Cold grey stone, humourless and dry
Sitting like a cork on top of the town
One of these days I'm gonna blow you down
I found myself on Forrest Road
feeling pretty sore
This city once was mine
but it ain't mine anymore
And here's my old school, "Jingling Geordie's"
and I must confess
I couldn't step through that gate
until I'm better dressed
Back at Waverly Station
half dead on my feet
I got on board the four forty-four,
promptly fell asleep
I woke up in Queen Street
at my journey's end
I've got to say it's totally great
to be back in Glasgow again !
Edinburgh Castle hugging the sky
Cold grey stone, humourless and dry
Sitting like a cork on top of my town