History of Leith, Edinburgh

5/31/2005

Leith’s Early Shipping Trade

IN the early Middle Ages Berwick became the greatest commercial town in Scotland: “A city so populous and of such trade,” says an English chronicler of the time of Edward I., “that it might justly be called another Alexandria, whose riches were the sea, and the waters its walls.” This great prosperity of Berwick as a centre of commerce is said to have been due mostly to the wool trade with the Netherlands of the great religious houses, such as the abbeys of Kelso and Melrose.

At this period the monks took the leading part in the making of Scotland, for there was little commercial or industrial enterprise to be found outside the monasteries. Wherever they settled the land was made “blithe with plough and harrow,” and in this way the waste lands became fruitful fields. Further, they encouraged trading among others by acting the part of bankers and advancing money without interest on the security of lands and tenements.
for more click here

Ships in Leith Docks 1989-1995

For anyone interested in Ships and Leith for more click here

Edinburgh Timeline

Useful source of information on Leith and Edinburgh for more click here.

Leith Theatre

Bomb Damage 1941

Kenneth McKellar, Elizabeth Robson and Jimmy Shand 1959

acknowledgement Edinburgh Evening News

Five centuries of sharp objects, sharp minds

ASPIRING surgeons in 16th-century Scotland were trained in all aspects of medicine – both physical and philosophical. Bloodletting and astrology were every bit important to the craft as amputations and repairing fractures.

Over the centuries the Royal College of Surgeons – generally considered the oldest school of surgery in Britain – has adapted well to the advances and unconventional aspects of medicine. As it celebrates its 500th anniversary, the proud Edinburgh establishment has evolved from a craft to a learned institution and has always been more than just a school of surgeons.
for more click here

5/30/2005

Definition of the word ‘Leith’

As with the history of clans and tartans in Scotland, there are a variety of opinions on the meaning of the word ‘Leith’. My research has uncovered eight meanings, some of which are related. It is important to remember that the name is taken from the harbour of Leith, a strategically important fishing port that stands on the river named the Water of Leith. Some of the meanings can be taken from the purpose of such a location: river and flowing water. John Arthur, Historian of Leith, Edinburgh states that the river is about 50 to 60 feet wide now due to development, but was much wider in the past which may lend to broad (leathan in Gaelic), wide, and wide river. As Mr. Arthur mentions below, Leith can be spelled Lyth(e) or Leeth on old maps. Lythe is defined by Webster’s Online Dictionary as the European pollack, a fish of the cod family. I could not find nor varify Mr. Arthur’s definition of Leeth; however, he has Leeth as meaning a crossing point. In the Oxford English Dictionary of 1993 I found Leet, it’s third defintion being a “meeting of the ways, a cross-way”. Other meaings that I have come upon are meadow, and dweller’s of the river’s meadow
for more click here

5/28/2005

History of wool

This section is all about clothing, what it was made from, how it was made and what it looked like.

We start with a history of wool and will add more sections as time passes. These will explore all aspects of historic dress and will include specialist features on making clothing appropriate for historic re-enactment.
for more click here

Neil Munro, Scott and Stevenson

Anyone reading Neil Munro’s John Splendid or The New Road will be struck by their resemblance to, respectively, Scott’s Montrose and Stevenson’s Kidnapped. This is not to accuse Munro of plagiarism – he was too good a writer and too honest a man for that and, in any case, the points of difference are of as much importance as those of similarity. Scott portrayed the Marquis of Argyll as a sadistic, war-mongering poltroon and Holy Willie (he allowed that the marquis was not devoid of learning and culture so the resemblance to some present-day politicians was not complete).
for more click here

How Scottish perceptions have been damaged

YOU report (May 26) that a spokeswoman for the Scottish Executive, in response to the absence of a Scots history question in the recent Higher Modern History, says: “Scottish pupils need to know about what happens outside our borders.” She fails to explain why.
What on earth is the use of knowing about other lands when Scots pupils are not taught or examined in depth about their own land? How can “lessons be learned” when they have no Scots yardstick to compare?
for more click here

5/25/2005

The Great Hall Parliament house 1883

The Great Hall Parliament House 1883

 
 

0.664 || Powered by WordPress