Calton Hill

In 1456, James II granted land to Edinburgh by charter wherein Calton Hill is referred to as "Cragingalt", the name by which it appears on the 1560 Petworth map of the Siege of Leith (rendered as "Cragge Ingalt"). The name may have derived from Old Welsh meaning "crag on the hill" or "wooded hillside". The name might come from the Brittonic *Celdi (a small wood or holt) and the locative *-in (at), so it means “place of the small wood” and is equivalent to Gaelic “Coilltinn”. The records of South Leith Parish Church name "Caldtoun" as one of the quarters of the parish in 1591, though the village and area are otherwise generally referred to as "Craigend", signifying the main land form (crags) at the western end of the feudal barony of Restalrig, as opposed to the distinguishing feature at its eastern end, a loch, hence the name Lochend. The name "Caldtoun" (sometimes anglicised as "Cold town") remained general until about 1700, the names Calton and Caltonhill first appearing when Wester Restalrig was sold to Edinburgh in 1725. and Ainslie's maps of Edinburgh record a change in spelling from Caltoun to Calton between 1780 and 1804. ==History==

There was possibly a prehistoric hillfort on Calton Hill and an area used for quarrying (the Quarry Holes at the eastern end). By his charter of 1456, James II granted the community of Edinburgh the valley and the low ground between Calton Hill and Greenside for performing tournaments, sports and other warlike deeds. Monasteries were abandoned following the Scottish Reformation of 1560, and in 1591 the Calton Hill monastery was converted into a hospital for lepers, founded by John Robertson, a merchant. So severe were the regulations that escape, or even the opening of the gate of the hospital between sunset and sunrise, would incur the penalty of death carried out on the gallows erected at the gate. The monastery would appear to have been located at the north-east end of Greenside Row and its site is shown there on the 1931 Ordnance Survey maps. Ten skeletons found in July 2009 during roadworks to create a new tramway in Leith Walk (project cancelled from York Place to Leith but revived and completed in 2023), are believed to have been connected with the hospital. , with the Dugald Stewart Monument in the foreground on Calton Hill in central Edinburgh, Scotland, 2023 The Calton area was owned by the Logan family of Restalrig but their lands were forfeited in 1609 following the posthumous sentence of treason on Robert Logan. The lands of Restalrig and Calton, otherwise known as Easter and Wester Restalrig, passed to the Elphinstone family. James Elphinstone was made Lord Balmerino in 1604 and in 1673 the lands of Restalrig and Calton were erected into a single barony. In 1725, the western side of Calton Hill was sold to the royal burgh of Edinburgh. The eastern end was owned by the charitable institution of Heriot's Trust. at the summit of Calton Hill. ==Buildings and structures==

The Old Calton Burial Ground was the first substantial development on Calton Hill and lies on the south-western side of the hill. and died there in 1841. Burns, Scotland's national poet, sent Clarinda many verses over several years in unsuccessful (it is believed) attempts to seduce this beautiful married lady. Calton Hill was the location of the notorious Calton Jail, while on Regent Terrace is located the United States Consulate. Her young son, Henri, the Comte de Chambord, is said to have wept bitterly when his family left for Austria in 1832 as he had become very attached to Scotland. The western end of Regent Terrace was closed in 2001 to traffic because of security concerns about the United States Consulate. Playfair was responsible for many of the monumental structures on the summit of the hill, most notably the Scottish National Monument. ==Political symbol==

For a number of years, while the Royal High School was earmarked for the site of the future Scottish Assembly, and subsequently as a potential site for the Scottish Parliament, Calton Hill was the location of a permanent vigil for Scottish devolution. However, Donald Dewar, then Secretary of State for Scotland, considered the site a "nationalist shibboleth", and the nearby St Andrew's House buildings (which at that time were the base of the Secretary of State for Scotland and the former Scottish Office) to look "Nazi" like "Dresden" (sic). ==Events==

Calton Hill is the venue for a number of events throughout the year. The largest of these is the Beltane Fire Festival held on 30 April each year, attended by over 12,000 people. The Dussehra Hindu Festival also takes place on Calton Hill near the beginning of October each year and the Samhuinn Fire festival takes place at the end of October. Calton Hill has been used as a location for films such as Sunshine on Leith (where Davy and Yvonne sing Misty Blue), Death Defying Acts (Houdini) and Greyfriars Bobby (views across the city). ==Illegal activities==

Calton Hill has been the focus of considerable police and local media interest. Controversy has revolved around the area's popularity as a venue for public sex and prostitution among males, as well as for drug use and underage drinking; city centre councillor David Beckett said that it "has traditionally been known as the place to go for homosexual sex in Edinburgh". A male-on-male gang rape occurred on the site in 2000, and a man was arrested for encouraging tourists to watch him simulating sex with a traffic cone two years later. In 2008, a member of staff at Blacks Outdoor Retail advised against camping in the area after a couple who had pitched a tent on the hill claimed that a man had made "lewd" and inappropriate advances towards them. Calton Hill has also been the site of assaults on gay people, and on people suspected of being gay: == Calton Hill Conservation Trust ==

The Calton Hill Conservation Trust, founded in 2024 is a registered charity whose objective is to "make the hill a cleaner, safer and more beautiful place". It is actively involved in projects for heritage and biodiversity management, archaeology etc and arrange events to celebrate the hill in all its aspects. They also organise volunteer groups to clear drainage, pick up litter, remove graffiti and stickers. The Trust works closely with the City of Edinburgh Council who have responsibility for the Common Good Fund that owns the hill, NatureScot who manage the Site of Special Scientific Interest, and Edinburgh World Heritage who look after the World Heritage Site. ==See also==