The Grassmarket is a wide, cobbled rectangle lying directly beneath the craggy, vertical rock face of Edinburgh Castle. You can identify it by the way the immense stone walls of the fortress tower nearly one hundred meters above the…
Edinburgh's Religious Wars
This walking tour traces the fierce 16th- and 17th-century struggles of the Reformation and Covenanting eras that permanently reshaped Scotland.
Listen to this tour in the Mira app →Walk it in street view
1. Grassmarket
2. Greyfriars Kirk
Greyfriars Kirk is a yellowish harled, barn-like building set within the Old Town. It holds the distinction of being the first church built in Edinburgh after the Reformation of fifteen sixty, with construction beginning in sixteen oh two…
3. Greyfriars Covenanters' Prison
The Covenanters' Prison sits in the southeast corner of Greyfriars Kirkyard, separated from the rest of the graveyard by iron gates. The site dates to sixteen seventy-nine, following the defeat of militant Covenanters at the Battle of…
4. The Magdalen Chapel
The Magdalen Chapel on Cowgate is distinguished by a mid-sixteenth-century tower and spire, a modest but enduring presence in the heart of Edinburgh's Old Town. Built between fifteen forty-one and fifteen forty-four through a bequest from…
5. St Giles' Cathedral
The most recognizable feature of St Giles' Cathedral is the stone crown spire that pierces the Edinburgh skyline. Supported by eight flying buttresses, the open shape of this spire is modeled on the royal crown of Scotland. While the…
6. Mercat Cross
The Mercat Cross is an eight-sided stone structure topped by a pillar and a crowned unicorn, the national animal of Scotland. It stands in Parliament Square, next to Saint Giles' Cathedral, where it serves as the official site for royal…
7. John Knox House
The John Knox House is distinguished by a timber gallery that projects over the High Street, a signature feature of Edinburgh’s medieval architecture. Built in the late fifteenth century, the house is a rare survivor from a time when the…