Tour Scotland Video Lifeboat Anstruther

Tour Scotland video of the Lifeboat leaving the harbour in Anstruther, East Neuk of Fife, Scotland. The Anstruther Lifeboat, The Kingdom of Fife, leaving Anstruther Harbour on exercise. The boat is a 12 metre Mersey Class, Fast Carriage Boat. I am a big supporter of the RNLI which is funded by charitable donations. Royal National Lifeboat Institution.

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Old Photographs North High Street Musselburgh Scotland

Old photograph of people, shops and houses on North High Street, Musselburgh, East Lothian, Scotland.



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Old Photograph Whittingehame House Scotland

Old photograph of Whittinghame House, East Lothian, Scotland. James Balfour engaged James Dorward, from Haddington, to build a new neo-classical mansion and offices to designs by Sir Robert Smirke, Whittingehame House, completed about 1817, with additions and alterations by architect William Burn ten years later. This became the family home of the Balfours and the birthplace of the Prime Minister Arthur Balfour and the scientist Francis Maitland Balfour. Between 1939 and 1941, Whittingehame was converted into a school for Jewish refugee children coming to Britain through the Kindertransport. The school, known as the Whittingehame Farm School, sheltered 160 children between the ages of 7 and 17. This building, a huge country house and A-listed, still stands, albeit now divided into private apartments. It is not open to the public.



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Old Photograph Tyninghame House Scotland

Old photograph of Tyninghame House, East Lothian, Scotland. Splendid 17th century pink sandstone Scottish baronial house, rebuilt in 1829 by William Burn. Seat of Lord Haddington. In 1628 when Thomas Hamilton, the 1st Earl of Haddington received that title in exchange for that of Earl of Melrose he acquired Tyninghame by purchase. His son was killed in an explosion at Dunglass Castle in 1640, and by 1669 the 5th Earl had inherited the property. He married Margaret Leslie, 8th Countess of Rothes, daughter of the Duke of Rothes, and lived mainly on his wife's estate. His son, the 6th Earl, took up residence at Tyninghame following his marriage around 1700. In 1791 Charles, the 8th Earl, renovated the house, but these were superseded by the works carried out by the 9th Earl. In 1828 he commissioned William Burn to redesign the house in the Scots Baronial style. Burn made only limited alterations to the plan of the house, but totally altered the elevations, refacing most of the building in red sandstone, and adding turrets and other details. The 9th Earl also carried out further plantings in the parks, and erected an obelisk in 1856 to commemorate the work of the 5th Earl. On the death of the 9th Earl in 1858, the estate was inherited by a cousin, George Baillie of Mellerstain. His son, the 11th Earl carried out further improvements in the 1880s. After the 12th Earl died in 1986, the 13th Earl chose to retain Mellerstain House near Duns as his main residence, and Tyninghame was sold the following year.



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Old Photograph Bilsdean Scotland

Old photograph of Bilsdean, East Lothian, Scotland. This village is located between Thorntonloch and Cockburnspath.



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Old Photograph Whittinghame Tower Scotland

Old photograph of Whittinghame Tower, East Lothian, Scotland. Whittingehame Tower was built on lands belonging to the Cospatrick Earls of March. In the 14th century the lands were acquired by the Douglases. During the reign of Mary, Queen of Scots, they were held by James Douglas, 4th Earl of Morton. The property subsequently passed through the hands of the Setons, Hays and Balfours of Balbirnie, who occupy the castle still. Arthur James Balfour, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1902 to 1905, belonged to this family. It is said that in 1567 the Earl of Morton, the Earl of Bothwell, the future husband of Mary, Queen of Scots, and William Maitland of Lethington, the queen's secretary, were entertained here by the owner, Archibald Douglas. They conferred together in the shelter of a yew tree in the grounds to plot the murder of Henry Stewart, Lord Darnley, Queen Mary's unpopular and increasingly estranged husband. Morton, just returned from exile in England after the murder of David Rizzio, was unenthusiastic, and requested the queen's direct guidance. Despite the queen's reluctance to give the matter her sanction, the plot put together at Whittingehame was put into effect in due course. However, the hatching of this plot is more commonly thought to have taken place at Craigmillar Castle in late 1566. Mary's half brother, the Earl of Moray, was received at Whittingehame by Morton and Lethington about 18 months later, and they concurred with his expression of horror at the murder of Darnley. Bothwell was by then an outlaw.



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Old Photograph Whitekirk Church Scotland

Old photograph of Whitekirk Church, East Lothian, Scotland. Whitekirk was an important centre of pilgrimage when a nearby well was pronounced to have healing qualities around 1300. A shrine to Our Lady of Haddington was constructed. The original Church structure at Whitekirk was a 12th Century parish church, under the jurisdiction of Holyrood Abbey. However, in 1413 around 16,000 pilgrims came to Whitekirk and King James I placed the Whitekirk under his personal protection and built hostels to shelter the growing numbers of pilgrims.



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Old Photograph Oldhamstocks School Scotland

Old photograph of the school in Oldhamstocks, East Lothian, Scotland. John Broadwood, born 6 October 1732, died 17 July 1812, was the Scottish founder of the piano manufacturer Broadwood and Sons. He was at St Helens, Cockburnspath in Berwickshire, and grew up in Oldhamstocks. He inherited his father James Broadwood's profession, that of a wright or carpenter, and as a young man walked from Oldhamstocks to London, England, a distance of almost 400 miles, where he worked for the harpsichord maker Burkat Shudi. Burkat Shudi died in 1773, and John Broadwood took control of the company in 1783. Broadwood is credited, together with Robert Stodart, founder of another famous firm of piano makers, of helping Americus Backers to perfect the English Grand Action, which remained in use by many makers virtually unchanged for 70 years and, in Broadwoods' case over 100 years, and continued in use in various improved forms until the early years of the 20th century. John married Shudi's daughter Barbara in 1769. They had four children, then Barbara died. He then married Mary Kitson in 1781 and had a further six children. Many of his descendants were involved in pianoforte manufacturing in England and some were involved in the British Army in India during the reign of Queen Victoria. Others emigrated to Australia, where Broadwood descendants still live. The Broadwood family tree can be traced back to circa 1580.



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Old Photograph Oldhamstocks Scotland

Old photograph of houses, cottage and people in Oldhamstocks village, East Lothian, Scotland. John Broadwood, born 6 October 1732, died 17 July 1812, was the Scottish founder of the piano manufacturer Broadwood and Sons. He was christened on 15 Oct 1732 at St Helens, Cockburnspath in Berwickshire, and grew up in Oldhamstocks. He inherited his father James Broadwood's profession, that of a wright or carpenter and joiner, and as a young man walked from Oldhamstocks to London, England, a distance of almost 400 miles where he worked for the harpsichord maker Burkat Shudi. Burkat Shudi died in 1773, and John Broadwood took control of the company in 1783. John married Shudi's daughter Barbara in 1769. They had four children, then Barbara died. He then married Mary Kitson in 1781 and had a further six children. Many of his descendants were involved in pianoforte manufacturing in England and some were involved in the British Army in India during the reign of Queen Victoria. Others emigrated to Australia, where Broadwood descendants still live. The Broadwood family tree can be traced back to 1580. The British general Robert George Broadwood, born 1862, died 1917, was a grandson by his son Thomas, son by John's second wife Mary Kitson, and Mary Athlea Matthews.



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Old Photograph Oldhamstocks Church Scotland

Old photograph of the church and cemetery in Oldhamstocks, East Lothian, Scotland. The old kirk has been in existence since before 1127. In that year, Adulph priest of Oldhamstocks, witnessed a charter of Robert, Bishop of St Andrews, to the monks of Saint Cuthbert of Coldingham. The church was consecrated in October 1242 by David, Bishop of St Andrews, Fife.



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Tour Scotland Photograph Tartan Sheep

Tour Scotland photograph of a Tartan Sheep on the Isle of Skye, Inner Hebrides, Scotland. Scotland has more sheep than people. The sheep population is around 6.57 million on about 14,800 farms, according to the Scottish government.



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Old Photograph Gosford House Scotland

Old photograph of Gosford House, near Longniddry in East Lothian, Scotland. Gosford was built by the 7th Earl of Wemyss between 1790 and 1800. It was built to plans by the architect Robert Adam, born 1728, died 1792, who died before the house was completed. The 8th Earl knocked down the wings, and his grandson, the 10th Earl, rebuilt them in 1891 to designs by the architect William Young.

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Old Photograph Whitekirk Scotland

Old photograph of cottages in Whitekirk, East Lothian, Scotland. Whitekirk is four miles from North Berwick, eight miles from Dunbar and 25 miles east of Edinburgh. The shrine of Our Lady at Whitekirk was desecrated by the armies of Edward III of England in 1356, a period that would become known as the Burnt Candlemas. Whitekirk continued to be a place of pilgrimage, however, receiving visits from the future Pope Pius II and Kings James IV and James V. The Covenanting preacher John Blackadder gave his last conventicle on the hill behind the Church in 1678. Whitekirk was on the pilgrim's route from St Andrews, Fife to Santiago de Compostela in Spain, and described as a stopping point in the Iter pro peregrinis ad Compostellam., Book V of the Codex Calixtinus.

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Old Photograph East Linton Scotland

Old photograph of East Linton, East Lothian, Scotland. Civil engineer John Rennie (1761 - 1821) was born here. He died at his home in London while working on the London Bridge project, a bridge he designed. The work was completed by his sons, George and Sir John Rennie.

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