Burns Monument, Regent Road

 India (New Town)  No Responses »
Apr 242018
 

Burns Monument

Burns Monument, 1759 Regent Rd, Edinburgh EH7

The idea to erect a monument to Burns was first proposed by John Forbes-Mitchell of Thainstone, Aberdeen, in Bombay in 1812. Expatriates raised a ‘considerable sum’ (£27,500, 2018 prices) and John raised more when he was back in Britain. A committee was formed with the Duke of Atholl as Chair, in 1819 at the London Freemason’s Tavern. Three of its members made their money in India: George Elphinstone, 1st Viscount Keith; Charles Forbes, head of Forbes & Co. of Bombay; and his relative, John Forbes-Mitchell. Thomas Hamilton, the architect, also designed the Alloway Burns Monument and the Royal High School (opposite).

Inside the Burns Monument.

Inside the Burns Monument.

 

The original Burns Statue by Flaxman, now in the Portrait Gallery in Queen Street.

The original Burns Statue by Flaxman, now in the Portrait Gallery in Queen Street.

 

John Forbes-Mitchell of Thainstane, 1820s.

John Forbes-Mitchell of Thainstane, 1820s.

Find out more

Sciennes House Place: Braid Place Cemetery

 Jewish History  No Responses »
Dec 182017
 

Sciennes House Place , Edinburgh EH9 1NWBraid Place Cemetery

Braid Place cemetery was the first communal Jewish cemetery in Edinburgh. This cemetery was consecrated in 1820. Twenty-nine separate stones can be found in this cemetery. On the companion website you can find out more about one stone and the history it can reveal: Moses Ezekiel. Across the street is the house of the moral philosopher, Professor Adam Ferguson, one of that renowned group of literati of Edinburgh’s ‘Golden Age’, of the Scottish Enlightenment, where in 1786 the only meeting between Sir Walter Scott and Rabbie Burns took place. In that era, the house was so remote from the city centre that his house was called Kamchatka, the name of a village in north-eastern Siberia. Even 34 years later, when the Braid Place Jewish cemetery was consecrated, the area was considered remote.

Gravestone of Moses Ezekiel

Gravestone of Moses Ezekiel

Find out more

Statue and grave of Robert Fergusson

 Scottish Enlightenment  2 Responses »
Sep 192017
 

Statue of James Fergusson.153 Canongate, Edinburgh EH8 8BN

Writing in English and Scots, the poet Robert Fergusson lived in Edinburgh at the height of the Scottish Enlightenment. Although he died at the tragically early age of 24 in 1750, he nonetheless left behind an important body of work. His poetry deeply influenced the work of his younger contemporary, Robert Burns.His collection of poems Auld Reekie, a vivid portrait of his home town published in 1773, is generally considered to be his masterpiece. He died from an injury sustained in a mysterious accident. His headstone in Canongate Kirkyard was designed and paid for by Robert Burns, who also wrote the epitaph that it bears.

Portrait of Robert Fergusson (1750–74) by Alexander Runciman.

Portrait of Robert Fergusson (1750–74) by Alexander Runciman.

Grave of James Fergusson, Cannongate Kirkyard.

Grave of James Fergusson, Canongate Kirkyard.

Epitaph to James Fergusson by Robert Burns.

Epitaph to James Fergusson by Robert Burns.

Find out more

 

Adam Ferguson’s House (Sciennes Hill House)

 Scottish Enlightenment  No Responses »
Sep 192017
 

Adam Ferguson's House.3 Sciennes House Place, Edinburgh EH9 1NN

Adam Ferguson was professor of moral philosophy at the University of Edinburgh, and, as the author of the Essay on the History of Civil Society (1767), is often considered one of the founders of sociology. He regularly entertained many of the leading figures of the Scottish Enlightenment at his house in Sciennes. In Ferguson’s day the house was on the very edge of the city and, because of its remoteness, his friends jokingly referred to it as ‘Kamchatka’ after the peninsula in Siberia. In the winter of 1786/7 he hosted a dinner here at which the two most famous Scottish writers of the period, Robert Burns and the young Walter Scott, met for the first and only time.

Portrait of Adam Ferguson (1723–1816) by Sir Joshua Reynolds.

Portrait of Adam Ferguson (1723–1816) by Sir Joshua Reynolds.

Plaque commemorating the meeting of Robert Burns and Walter Scott at the house of Adam Ferguson.

Plaque commemorating the meeting of Robert Burns and Walter Scott at the house of Adam Ferguson.

Find out more

National Records of Scotland – Adam Ferguson (1723-1816)

Site of the house of Lord Monboddo

 Scottish Enlightenment  No Responses »
Sep 192017
 

Site of the house of Lord Monboddo13 St John St, Edinburgh EH8 8DG

James Burnett, Lord Monboddo (1714–99), was a judge and pioneer of comparative linguistics. He discussed his theories at ‘learned suppers’ held in this house where he entertained many of the leading figures of the Scottish Enlightenment. As well as expounding his ideas on the origins of languages his also speculated on the relationship between apes and humans, which has led some to see him as an early evolutionary thinker. His beautiful daughter Elizabeth, who died of tuberculosis in 1790 at the tragically early age of 24, was the subject of a poem by Robert Burns, ‘Elegy on the late Miss Elizabeth Burnet of Monboddo’.

Portrait of James Burnett, Lord Monboddo (1714–99).

Portrait of James Burnett, Lord Monboddo (1714–99).

Find out more