Today we're going to Edinburgh!
I'm here!
This time it's true!
I'm in Edinburgh, and I want to bring many interesting, curious and creepy stories
about this wonderful city that welcomed me so warmly, and made me feel at home.
You already know that each time you come to this channel,
what you get is a lot of culture and information
because I'm not like this kind of Youtuber that travels only to shop, right?
OK!
Let's go!
The capital of Scotland in the south-east of the country in the Lowlands
is divided into the new town, built in the 18th century
and the old town, which developed around Edinburgh Castle
where the first records of civilization in the region were found.
It is believed that Edinburgh was the first place to be occupied in the United Kingdom.
The history of the town and the history of the castle walks together,
perhaps one of Scotland's most famous sites.
Edinburgh faced the Romans during Antiquity and the English
that during Middle Ages tried to conquer it unceasingly
was the stage to many stories.
During the Bronze Age, the strategic place around the volcanic rock was already occupied.
Traces of an ancient civilization were found in the castle six meters below the present surface.
Radiocarbon dating indicated that people lived there between 972 and 830 BC.
They were probably responsible for building the first defences in the region.
1000 years later, during the Iron Age, a hill fort was built.
Probably the capital of a tribe known as the Votadini.
More excavations found remains of a large round-houses
with heather-strewn and even drains.
Archaeologists also discovered that the entrance to the fort was protected by two ditches.
People living around the rock at the time faced an almost indestructible enemy, the Romans
that invaded Scotland on at least three occasions.
But the Votadini and the Romans became allies and commercial partners.
Their friendly relations are proved by pottery and brooches found in the region.
But the Romans weren't able to maintain their troops in Edinburgh for too long.
As to the Votadini, according to a Welsh poem in which they are known as 'Gododdin',
the warriors marched to a battle in North Yorkshire.
But they were slaughtered, and the few men that survived never returned to Edinburgh.
From this point to the Middle Ages, little is known about the place that it would become the city of Edinburgh.
In Middle Ages, around 1018
King Malcolm II takes over Edinburgh
that becomes an important fortified royal capital.
In 1296 King Edward I captures the castle after invading the city.
But in 1314 the national hero King Robert I, better known as Robert the Bruce
captures the castle back making Edinburgh the official city for Scotish royalty again.
During the second half of the 15th century, after the wars of independence
Edinburgh developed.
It became the biggest commercial centre in Scotland
and its official capital during James III's reign.
Another important fact of the time is that the Nor'Loch,
an artificial lake was created to improve the city's defences.
In 1582 one of Scotland's most important institutions was created, the University of Edinburgh.
Until 1707, the same year the Scottish Parliament was dissolved,
Edinburgh was a small and narrow place.
35,000 people lived inside the city's tight closes.
To end the problem, since the concentration of people and the lack of hygiene had already attracted the plague,
in the following years, some changing started to happen in the city.
The Nor'Loch is drained in 1759
giving space to Princes Street gardens
and the development of Edinburgh's New Town begins in 1770.
Within the Old Town, the narrow closed are enlarged.
Edinburgh today is a teeming city with approx. 500,000 people,
lots of pubs, great restaurants, and an agitated commerce.
And in the next videos, you'll know some of the many stories Edinburgh stages.
See ya!
