Although Edinburgh is situated in a bay by the North Sea, it is a very mountainous city. Even the shortest contact with Edinburgh shows that there are at least 3 hills in the city. The hill on which Edinburgh Castle is located, a very attractive hill called Arthur's Seat, and Calton Hill, which is densely built with various attractions, which will be the main topic of this text.
Calton Hill, located near the New Town of Edinburgh, and due to the characteristic buildings, the hill is called the Acropolis of the North. The main building of the acropolis, reminiscent of the Greek temples of the Parthenon, is the National Monument of Scotland dedicated to the Scottish soldiers and sailors who died in the Napoleonic Wars. According to the inscription, it was to be "A memorial of the past and an encouragement to the future heroism of the men of Scotland". This building was planned and designed as a national mausoleum for the most eminent Scots, but as it turned out, the costs of the building far exceeded the possibilities of the Scottish budget. Thus, the construction started in 1823 was never completed. The building reached its present shape in 1829 and has been unfinished for almost 200 years, although the inhabitants of Edinburgh had various ideas about what functions this building could take. The statue of Queen Victoria, the monument commemorating the 1707 Act of Union with England, the new Scottish National Gallery or the building of the Scottish Parliament were all beautiful ideas, but unfortunately they were never implemented. Mischievous Scots nickname the monument such as "Edinburgh's Disgrace", "Scotland's Pride and Poverty" and "Edinburgh's Folly".
Sort: Trending