Under Henry VIII, England became a Protestant land. On 6 February 1685, James II of England and James VII of Scotland, one king for two kingdoms, ascended to the throne. He was, within four short years, to be the last Catholic monarch of England and Scotland. Despite being deterred, James antagonised the Protestant establishment in Parliament, and pushed policies that sought to erode the prominence of the Protestant faith. In June 1688, James baptised his son and heir apparent in the Catholic faith. English noblemen, concerned about yet more political disruption in the wake of the English Civil War (1642-1651), called upon the Protestant king of the Netherlands, William, to land in England with his army. William did so and James fled into exile. Both England and Scotland declared that James had abandoned the throne and offered themselves to William and his wife Mary, thereby completing the “Glorious Revolution.”

Many Catholics and those loyal to the House of Stuart were unhappy with these developments. This gave rise to Jacobitism (Jacobus is Latin for James), a political ideology that advocates the restoration of the senior line of the House of Stuart to the British throne. Jacobitism holds that monarchs are appointed by God, and as such the post-1688 monarchs are illegitimate. The political movement also functioned as an outlet for popular discontent. In Scotland, there was a Jacobite uprising in 1689, as well as serious revolts in 1715, 1719 and 1745. The 1745 Rising saw Bonnie Prince Charlie seek to reclaim the throne with the support of clan nobility. The Battle of Culloden ended the Jacobite cause with the heavy defeat of Charlie’s forces.

What does all of this have to do with the New Town of Edinburgh? In the 1700s, Edinburgh’s Old Town was overcrowded and insanitary. It was regarded as one of the worst slums in Europe. The city authorities were concerned that wealthier citizens, benefitting from Empire, would relocate to London. On 22 March 1766, the city advertised a competition to design a ‘New Town.’ The winner was the architect James Craig. A bird’s eye view of the New Town shows us that Craig pursued a Unionist vision for the expansion of Edinburgh – his inspiration was the Union flag of James VI and I. It is understood that the original Craig design showed diagonal streets that would have met at the centre of George Street, but that these diagonals were straightened by the city authorities on the grounds that they bring better opportunity to add housing.

The central east-west thoroughfare is George Street, named after the reigning King George III. Along the north-south axes there is Castle Street, so named for the views of Edinburgh Castle, Frederick Street, so named for the King’s second son, and Hanover Street, so named for the House of Hanover to which George III belonged. George Street is flanked by two squares, one called St George’s Square – the patron saint of England – and one called St. Andrew’s Square – the patron saint of Scotland. The former name did not survive; there was already a George Square in the Old Town – so perhaps confusing – and anyway the King wished to honour his wife, Queen Charlotte. Along the east-west axis to the north there is Thistle Street, and to the south there is Rose Street. The thistle symbolises Scotland, and the rose symbolises England.

You can visit James Craig’s grave in Greyfriars Kirkyard (bottom of the hill).

Did you know?
The first Union flag of Great Britain represented the crosses of St. George and St. Andrew that together symbolise the union of England and Scotland in 1606 under one crown. The flag is called the ‘Union Jack.’ The name ‘Jack’ was chosen as it is the shortening of ‘Jacobus,’ being the Latin for James, the name of the then presiding king, James VI of Scotland and James I of England. Note that the cross of St. Patrick was added to the flag with effect from 1 January 1801, so was not a consideration for James Craig’s design of 1766.