The Celtic culture we know through song and story is often a rural one, filled with small villages, open fields, and ancient woodlands. But there are also wonderful cities in the Celtic world, like the magnificent city of Edinburgh.
Situated on the southern shore of the Firth of Forth, Edinburgh has been recognized as the capital of Scotland since at least the 15th Century. Actual political power moves south to London after the Union of the Crowns in 1603, and the Union of Parliaments in 1707, but after nearly three centuries of British government, a measure of self-government returned with the devolved Scottish Parliament, officially opened in Edinburgh in 1999.
Every inch of Edinburgh is a reminder of its rich history. Exploring the narrow cobblestone closes of the old town, and the elegant Georgian crescents of the new town, you see why they've been awarded UNESCO World Heritage Site status.
The famous Edinburgh Tower is built on the castle rock dominating the city. Along with the Crown Jewels of Scotland, the Stone of Destiny, or the Stone of Scone, is kept at the castle. The stone was used for centuries in the coronation of Scottish monarchs, and later the monarchs of England and Great Britain, and it's been much fought-over by England and Scotland through the ages. Legend has it that the real stone was swapped for a fake, either in the 13th Century or the 1950s. And to this day, the authentic stone is supposedly still secretly hidden away.
Edinburgh Castle is also one of the most haunted places in Scotland, one famous ghost being the Long Piper. As the tale goes, a few hundred years ago, secret tunnels were discovered deep underground, running from the castle throughout the city. A piper boy was sent down to investigate and told to constantly play his pipes so those above could chart his progress through the tunnels. When the playing suddenly stopped, they went down to search for the piper, but he had vanished. His ghostly pipes can be heard playing in the castle to this day, as he eternally walks the dark tunnels below.
Outside the castle, the medieval old town continues down High Street and Canongate toward the Palace of Holyrood House, and the New Scottish Parliaments. These streets are collectively called the Royal Mile, and here you'll find St. Giles Cathedral and the Museum of Childhood, John Knox's house, Greyfriars, King Mary's Close, and endless grey stone shops filled with tartans and whiskeys. Edinburgh's also home to beloved national institutions like the National Museum, the National Library, the Scottish National Gallery.
The city's buoyant economy traditionally centered on banking and insurance makes it the biggest financial center in the UK after London. It's also beloved and celebrated as an international center of education of the arts. The University of Edinburgh, founded in 1583 placed 17th in the World University Rankings in 2014. There are festivals year-round, from Hogmany to the Edinburgh International Festival, the Book Festival, and the famous Fringe Festival, which is the largest international arts festival in the world.
In 2004, Edinburgh became the world's first UNESCO City of Literature, an accolade awarded in recognition of its rich literary heritage. Perhaps novelist Alexander McCall Smith summed up Edinburgh best, saying, "This was a townscape raised in the teeth of cold winds from the east, a city of winding cobble streets and haughty pillars. A city of dark nights, candlelight, and intellect. A city of shifting light, of changing skies, of sudden vistas. A city so beautiful, it breaks the heart again and again."
For Celtic Cultural Alliance, this is Kate Scuffle – Slainte!
