Edinburgh Castle
July 12, 2001
A reminder -
the castle was also a military installation.
| Scotland
Edinburgh Castle July 12, 2001 |
A reminder - the castle was also a military installation. |
When you begin your tour of the castle, you have the opportunity to borrow a CD player and headset for tourists. (Covered in the price of your admission.) Several numbered plaques are placed around the castle grounds and by pressing the corresponding number on the CD player, you get the audio information about the site. Very convenient, allowing each tourist to proceed at their own pace. |
| There is another ceremony, at once more modern and at the same time so "British" which is the firing of the One O'Clock Gun. Since 1861, the gun has been fired daily at 1 PM, except Sundays, Good Friday, and Christmas, and for periods during the two World Wars. The timing was originally to announce the time to ships in port and to the population of the city. While a modern artillery piece is used today, the actual time it is fired is based on a computer clock in an observatory. So, there is realistically no longer any function but it goes on, as ceremonially British. | 
Mons Meg |
Firing of the One O'Clock Gun |
Firing of the One O'Clock Gun from Edinburgh Castle. | 
Gunnery Sergeant |
England |
Scotland |