Old Corstorphine stood on a piece of dry land, between two lochs, the Gogar Loch and Corstorphine Loch, though both have now been drained. The first recorded proprietors of Corstorphine were David le Mareschall, in the reign of
Alexander II, and Thomas le Mareschall and William de la Roche, whose names occur in
Ragman Rolls of 1296. The estate remained in the possession of the families of Thomas le Mareschall and William de la Roche until the reign of
David II, when it was forfeited by David le Mareschall and given by the King to Malcolm Ramsay. It was next held by William More of Abercorne, who left it to his brother, Gilchrist More, who sold it to Adam Forester. An important family in the area were the
Lords Forrester, whose name has been given to several streets and whose large house can still be seen on Corstorphine High Street. Their main home, Corstorphine Castle, a 14th-century stronghold, was in ruins by the end of the 18th century and does not exist today. The only remnant of the castle is the 16th-century
dovecote which stands alongside Dovecot Road and a commemoration in a street name, Castle Avenue. The lands and Barony of Corstorphine have long been associated with the Forrester family. The first firm link with Corstorphine comes with Adam Forrester, a wealthy
burgess of Edinburgh in the 1360s when he began to acquire land in the vicinity. Between 1374 and 1377
King Robert II confirmed Adam Forrester in the lands of the Lordship of Corstorphine, which had previously been owned by William More of
Abercorn. Forrester founded a chapel dedicated to
St. John the Baptist, connected to the parish church of Corstorphine. Sir John Forrester, who succeeded his father upon his death, was granted various lands, mostly in
West Lothian, in 1426 which were united into the barony of Liberton. In
Perth on 4 February 1431
James I confirmed him in the house and lands of Corstorphine, which would be thereafter known as the Barony of Corstorphine. He likely founded the
Corstorphine Collegiate Church in 1429, which forms part of today's parish kirk. Sir John is thought to have died in 1448 and was buried in Corstorphine Kirk, where recumbent effigies of him and one of his wives survive. He had four children: John, Henry, Elizabeth, and Janet. The title then fell to his eldest son John, who is believed to have been more of a soldier than a civil servant. In 1443 he was with
the Earl of Douglas when he destroyed Barnton Castle, a stronghold of the
Crichtons. As a direct consequence, Forrester's house at Corstorphine was razed. He died in 1454 and was buried in Corstorphine Kirk, where his tomb can still be seen.
16th century , built in the 16th century to serve Corstorphine Castle, which has since been demolished.
William Dunbar mentions a poet, Roull of Corstorphin, in his
Lament for the Makaris, 1505. has celebrated Roull's memory in his volume
Ghosts at Cockcrow. On 5 February 1556, James Forrester of Corstorphine (son of the previously mentioned James Forrester), husband of Janet Lauder, was confirmed by
Mary, Queen of Scots, in the Barony of Corstorphine. In 1577 Sir James presented the parish kirk with a bell for its steeple. This bell still survives, although it was renewed in 1728. On 22 October 1599, Henry Forrester of Corstorphine sold various lands within the parishes of Corstorphine and St Cuthbert's. Henry died sometime around 1615 and his eldest son George became laird.
James VI had already confirmed George Forrester, son and heir apparent of Henry Forrester of Corstorphine, and his wife Christine Livingstone in various properties in the barony of Corstorphine, on 15 November 1607. At
Holyrood House on 30 July 1618, King James confirmed Sir George Forrester of Corstorphine in the lands and barony of Corstorphine. On 22 July 1633 he was created Lord Forrester of Corstorphine by
Charles I. Lord Forrester had no sons, so resigned most of his properties, including Corstorphine, in favour of James Baillie. During the mid-17th century, the family seems to have experienced some financial problems which resulted in lands being temporarily out of their control. On 3 August 1663, the lands and Barony of Corstorphine, except for the castle of Corstorphine and the town of Corstorphine, were granted to Sir John Gilmour.
Oliver Cromwell had granted Laurence Scott of Bavelaw and his wife Katherine Binning, the lands, Lordship and Barony of Corstorphine, tower, manor-place, mills, mill-lands, parsonage etc., in lieu of the money due by James, Lord Forrester, to Beatrix Ramsay in Corstorphine who had assigned the debt to the said Laurence Scott in 1654. On 5 August 1664, the lands, Lordship and Barony of Corstorphine formerly belonging to James, Lord Forrester, and his brother German William Baillie which had been taken in lieu of debt, were granted to Florentius Gardner,
baillie of Grangepans. On 10 May 1666, land was similarly granted to John Boyd, merchant burgess of Edinburgh. The Forresters soon reacquired much of their lands around Corstorphine. James Baillie's first wife Johanna died early. He then married Janet Ruthven, daughter of the
Earl of Forth. This latest Lord Forrester was a man of dubious morals and seduced his niece, the wife of an Edinburgh burgess James Nimmo. She, however, later quarrelled with Forrester and stabbed him to death in his garden at Corstorphine on 26 August 1679. Mrs Nimmo was later executed at the Cross of Edinburgh for the murder. The titles then fell to William, the son of his brother William Baillie and his wife Lillias, daughter of the first Lord Forrester. In 1698, the estate of Corstorphine was sold to Hugh Wallace of
Ingliston, a
Writer to the Signet. In 1713, he sold it to Sir
James Dick of Prestonfield, in whose family it remained until 1869. The Dicks were a prominent family of lawyers and merchants in Edinburgh. Sir James Dick (1643–1728) was a merchant and baillie of Edinburgh and also served as
Dean of Guild and later as
Lord Provost.
18th century and later The Register of the
Great Seal of Scotland records the transfer of the lands and Barony of Corstorphine to Sir James Dick on 2 June 1713. Unlike some other areas of Edinburgh, Corstorphine escaped widespread industrialisation in the 19th century. It only started to be absorbed into the Edinburgh urban area in the mid-20th century. But even before then, it had started to transform into a middle-class dormitory area for Edinburgh workers. By the late 20th century, Corstorphine had an ageing demographic. In 1961,
Queen Margaret College (now QMU) obtained land up on the edge of Corstorphine next to
Clermiston, and set up a campus there. This was closed in 2007, when they moved all their facilities out to
Musselburgh. Corstorphine became part of Edinburgh on 1 November 1920. ==Landmarks, attractions, and facilities==