Last night we met up with our Road Scholar group of 13 (including the four of us). Now the learning about Scottish history begins in earnest!
We began the morning with a short tour of Edinburgh's "New town" and "Old town" before going to the Edinburgh Castle for a tour. We all agreed there are so many intricacies of relationships between Scotland, England and France as well as rivalries between the Catholic and Protestant religions. Layer on the Royal marriages that were arranged to secure land, money, and faith and it all gets pretty complicated!
There a lot of interesting places within the Edinburgh Castle including the Crown Room that holds the "Scottish Honours." The Honours are the oldest Crown Jewels in Britain. Made of gold, silver, and precious gems, the priceless crown, sceptre, and sword of state are objects of immense significance. ( no photographs allowed)
There are amazing views of Edinburgh from the Castle which makes clear why this location was of such strategic importance.
After we made our way back down to the Royal Mile, we continue to be struck by how many people were there - most likely due in part that this is the last day of the Fringe Festival.
From the castle, we went to the other end of the Royal Mile to the Holyrood Palace - there we took another audio walking tour which delved into much of the history of the Palace from the 12th century on. Today, the Palace continues to be used by the Royal family. In fact, a year ago when Queen Elizabeth died, she layed in state within the palace walls.
Surrounding the Palace are beautiful gardens and the whole area is "under" Arthur's Seat.
We are hoping by the end of our Road Scholar's Program we have a lot more knowledge about the history of this country.
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