One of the most popular tourist attractions in Scotland is Edinburgh Castle. It resides about 400 feet high above the city and was erected on a basalt block of an extinct volcano.
Due to an old legend the place of Edinburgh Castle was inhabited already around 600 AD by the King Mynyddog Mwynfawr who fought the Angles near Yorkshire. However the castle as we know it today first took the shape of a castle in the late 11th century when the widow of King Malcom III, Margaret, was living in the castle. Later Malcom's son David made Edinburgh the scottish capital. From his contributions today only the St.Margaret's chapel has survived. The first meeting of the Scottish Parliament in the castle dates back to 1140. During the first war of Scottish independence the castle was conquered by the English under King Edward I . and a garrison was erected inside of the castle.
Edinburgh Castle seen from the city
At last when Robert the Bruce won at the Battle of Bannockburn the castle remained in Scottish hands. In 1386 the David's tower was added by David II, a son of Robert the Bruce. The tower consisted of three stories and after its construction took over the role of an entrance to the castle. After Mary Queen of Scots married James Hepburn in 1567 the castle came under siege for one year by Sir William Kirkclady of Grange. During this conlfict the tower was destroyed and the remnants blocked the water well of the castle so that it had to surrender. When the castle was rebuild the enormous Half Moon Battery standing to the side of the David's tower was added.
On top of the castle, the Crown Square, a citadel constructed during the 15th century under James III resides. The name Crown Square dates back to the recovery of the Honours of Scotland in 1818. It consists of the National War Memorial in the North, the Royal Palace in the East, the Great Hall in the South and the Queen Anne Building in the West. In the Crown room the Scottish Crown Jewels are stored. They include the crown of Scotland, a sceptre and a sword dating back to 1540. The most interesting item might be the Stone of Destiny upon which the monarchs of scotland are crowned.
In the Great Hall meetings of the Scottish parliament were held off until a new Parliament Hall was build in 1639 near St.Giles cathedral. The Queen Anne building once served as a kitchen, later it held rooms for Staff Officers. In 1933 it was converted into the Naval and Military Museum besides the National War Memorial.
The National War Museum of Scotland inside the castle today covers the last 400 years of Scottish military history. Each year in August the famous Edinburgh Military Tattoo is held on the Esplanade. Edinburgh Castle is also the home of the Royal Regiment of Scotland and the 52 Infantry Brigade and houses the regimental museums of the Royal Scots an of the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards.
