Leith and district – sail, steam & flight

For a thousand years, Leith has been an active port. Over the past decade, this former rough-edged seaport has turned into a fitting foil for Edinburgh, the ‘Athens of the North’. The steady retreat of Leith's harbour areas to the outer docks led to development of its many waterfront areas into smart, expensive flats, restaurants and bars, and shops and offices.

Victoria Quay, a vast office building completed in 1995 on land previously between two docks, now houses much of Scotland's devolved government. On Victoria Quay’s heels, small high-quality developments popped up across Leith, giving a pleasing mix of new and old.

Whole swathes of converted warehouses now form residential properties or offices. Sympathetic and well-planned new buildings replace derelict ones. An important arrival was the huge Ocean Terminal shopping centre, again on a dockside location.

Moored alongside the stylish Ocean Terminal shopping and leisure complex is the former royal ship, HMS Britannia. The yacht, preserved in the way used for state visits and diplomatic services, attracts many visitors. We viewed the admiral's quarters, the officers' mess, and the Royal apartments, including cabins used by the Queen and Prince Philip. The visitor centre and free audio guide are available.

Much of Leith’s magnificent architecture from earlier waves of investment remains on view. Much of the fine buildings owned by rich shipowners and merchants are still here. The port’s dominance meant there has always been wealth here, though unevenly shared.

Restored historic buildings keep the character of the area. They include Andrew Lamb's House, built in 1587. This 16th century building was where Mary Queen of Scots arrived in Leith in 1561. The South Leith Parish Church contains the core of an earlier church built in 1487. Trinity House is a classical building in the Kirkgate and home to Leith's maritime museum. Viewing its collection of maritime artifacts and memorabilia is by appointment only.

Leith Links is the historical home to The Honourable Company of Golfers. Their game consisted of a five-hole course, each hole being over 400 yards long. In 1744, they drew up the first official rules for a tournament on Leith Links. These rules, 13 in all, form the basis for the modern game of golf.

The Shore is where you'll find a large concentration of stylish bars and restaurants, which have turned Leith into a popular haunt, especially at weekends. It blends the rough of the nearby ports with the elegance of the Neoclassical buildings lining the road along the east side of the Water of Leith. Several classy hotels and luxurious eateries offer delicious seafood, keeping with the maritime theme.

Just get on a 22 bus at Princes Street and you are there. Alternatively, take the two-mile walk down Leith Walk with its hive of small shops. Now part of the Royal Burgh of Edinburgh, Leith is well worth a visit.

What was it like to live in the tightly-knit fishing community at Newhaven, and to earn a living as a fishwife or a fisherman braving the sea? Newhaven Heritage Museum, situated in the historic fish market overlooking the picturesque Newhaven Harbour, brings the past to life. The story of the village and its people is told through reconstructed sets of fishwives and fishermen, historic objects and photographs, and first-hand accounts of people's lives.

There was a fishing community at Newhaven from earliest times. In 1504, King James IV created Newhaven as a deep-water port and here, between 1507 and 1511, the 'Great Michael', the mightiest warship of its time, arose plank by plank.

By the 19th century, the village had grown into an important fishing port. For many years, Newhaven fishermen supplied Edinburgh with oysters, shellfish, white fish, and sprats. They dredged for oysters in the winter months. In the summer, they fished for white fish and later, herring. In the 19th century, the bigger boats fished as far away as off the west coast and as far north as Shetland. The fish was sold at the local market.

The fishing industry gave birth to building fishing boats, knitting fishing nets, and fish curing. Newhaven fishermen had a vast knowledge of the waters of the Firth of Forth. This made them an ideal choice as pilots. For many years, they met ships at the May Island or off Dunbar and guided them safely into Leith.

The Society of Free Fishermen ran the affairs of Newhaven for hundreds of years. It acted as a local town council. It looked after the poor, education, the harbour, and streets. The Society also defended local fishing rights. It was finally wound up in 1989.

The famous Newhaven Fishwives used to wear distinctive Flemish caps, brightly coloured waistcoats and aprons, and distinctive spotted kerchiefs. They bought their fish in the market and sold it to customers in and around Edinburgh and across in Fife. The fish were carried in large creels on their backs. For special occasions, they wore their 'gala' costume. The skirts were red and white and yellow and white striped.
The local fishwives' choirs also wore this costume.

As with many seafaring places, Newhaven is full of traditions and superstitions; don't whistle or sing 'Danny Boy', I'm told, or pass a nun on the way to the boat.
Religion was also an important part of everyday life.

Newhaven still retains a picturesque harbour. The once thriving Fishmarket is now converted into a smaller fish market which is still in use, a fish restaurant, and the Newhaven Heritage Museum. Some of the village, with its characteristic alleys and stairs up to first floor front doors, remains despite the ravages of the 1960s house build.

To reach Newhaven from the city centre, take Lothian Bus services 10, 11, or 16 from Princes Street heading east or service 7 from the Bridges heading north.
Daily: Noon-4:45pm. Admission Free

The Royal Yacht Britannia launched at John Brown's Shipyard in Clydebank in 1953, and served Queen and country for 44 years on 968 official voyages. She now bobs in serene retirement in the historic port of Leith, allowing visitors such as I to step on-board to enjoy the Britannia experience. Tours begin in the Visitor Centre on the second floor of the Ocean Terminal building where you receive an audio-guide.

On board, hundreds of original items are on display, including prints, paintings, the baby grand piano, furniture, silverware, and gifts given to The Queen from nations around the world.

At the Royal Apartments, we learn that the Queen and Prince Phillip had separate rooms on board though connected by an adjoining door. Philip’s is more masculine. The rooms themselves are small but airy. The Queen and Prince Phillip's offices are also different in style with his less fussy.

The Sun Lounge on the Shelter Deck was one of The Queen's favourite spaces. Fitted out in teak, it had a feel of warmth and airiness. It offered privacy and here, Her Majesty liked to take breakfast and afternoon tea while enjoying spectacular views through the large picture windows.

The Drawing Room, with its chintz-covered sofas, deep armchairs, and luxurious Persian rugs, witnessed both official functions and private entertaining. Princess Diana, Princess Margaret, and Princess Alexandra liked to play the baby grand piano, which sits in the corner.

The State Dining Room is the largest and grandest room on board and witnessed spectacular banquets while playing host to the rich, the famous, and the powerful. It took three hours to set the 56 places for a state banquet. Measurement using a ruler determined the position of every knife, fork, and spoon. We viewed it laid for dinner with cutlery and glassware sparkling. Now, corporations can hire the State Dining Room to entertain important clients and receive the same meticulous attention to detail.

Britannia's nerve centre was the 1950s Bridge. From here, the officers navigated, issued orders, kept the logbooks, and planned and plotted every mile of the ship's progress.

The gleaming Engine Room is a testament to 1950s British marine engineering. The two pairs of high- and low-pressure steam turbine engines carried Britannia over one million miles. The Sickbay and Operating Theatre, with their original 1950s fittings, have a stark and slightly ominous appearance; Britannia doubled as a hospital ship in wartime. The original crew’s NAAFI shop now serves as a sweetshop where visitors can buy fudge made in the ship's galley, and other traditional sweets.

Britannia carried a royal car for use in countries where official cars were hard to find. The royal barge lies to the side of the yacht.

At the end of your tour, you hand back your audio guide and pass through the Britannia Gift Shop. It took us 1.5 hours to complete the tour.

Visiting Britannia it is worth the entrance fee: Adults: £9, Senior: £7, Students: £5, Children: £5, Family ticket: £25

Trinity House in Leith is probably the finest museum of shipping in Scotland. It holds rare artifacts dating back more than 600 years. Visitors can see fine paintings, including David Scott's vast illustration of Vasco de Gama passing the Cape of Good Hope. A collection of model ships includes a 68-gun warship made by a French prisoner in Edinburgh Castle in 1799. It is made from wood with painted details and is no more than 80mm high. It sits in its original mahogany and glass case.

Trinity House began life as a charity in the 14th century for mariners. It was firstly the site of a medieval hospital for the sick, elderly, and travelers. Then it became, through trade incorporations, a place for sailors and related traders to retire and get care. Mary Queen of Scots, granted it a Royal Charter in 1566. The chest, which held the Royal Charter of the Incorporation, is on display but the Charter is unfortunately lost. Trinity House prospered, funded by a tax levied on cargo passing through the Port of Leith.

The small port of Leith plays a big part in Scottish maritime history. In 1296, after the English captured Berwick, Leith became the principal port in Scotland. It remained so until the rise of Glasgow after 1707. With the number of Masters declining as the port traffic fell away through the 20th Century, Trinity House is now a working museum.

Trinity House looks like a typical Georgian house, however vaulted cellars dating from 1555, which formed of earlier buildings are still accessible. Unfortunately, now sitting within the 1960s Newkirkgate Shopping Centre at the foot of Leith Walk, the surroundings are less than ideal but it is well worth seeking out.

The building includes fine interiors, decorated with many scenes of the sea and the seafarer, including remarkable ceilings and black slate chimneypieces. A fine stained-glass window on the main stair acts as a memorial to those from the Port of Leith who lost their lives during the First World War. Paintings include a portrait of Admiral Duncan of Camperdown (1731-1804) by Henry Raeburn (1756-1823), which hangs prominently in the meeting room. Duncan, born in Dundee, defeated the Dutch fleet in 1797.

Trinity house also includes the regalia of the Provost of Leith, before merger with Edinburgh. This unique property is in the care of Historic Scotland and a strong reminder of Leith's seafaring heritage.

Any bus traveling from Edinburgh Princes Street to the foot of Leith Walk will take you there. At the foot, walk down through Newkirkgate Shopping Centre to Trinity House (4 miniutes). It is open all year but visits must be booked by calling 0131 554 3289. Because of the open nature of the displays, visits are guided tours only. It is indeed a hidden treasure but worth the search.

Admission: Adult £4 Child £2 Concessions £3.00

The Museum of Flight, at East Fortune, is the Scottish National Aviation Museum, and home to the Concorde Experience, housed in Hangar 4. Displays give an insight into Concorde's development and commercial history, but it is the dramatically lit Concorde itself, which commands attention. Purchasing a Concorde Boarding Pass gives access to its remarkably long and narrow interior. An audio guide gives a full commentary on all aspects of the plane.

For 27 years, Concorde, looking more like a space shuttle than a jetliner, rocketed celebrities and tycoons across the Atlantic faster than many fighter jets (double the speed of sound) and at an altitude so high that if you look up, you see the darkness of space, and if you look down, you can see the curvature of the earth. It did all this in comfort. It compressed time and space in a way that suggested anything was possible. It lifted air travel to high art, making New York and London almost neighbours being only three hours apart.

It was first class all the way: special Concorde lounges at the airports, the best foods, including caviar, and the best wines. Six flight attendants lavished luxurious service on a maximum of 100 passengers. The reclining seats included raising the knees higher than the hips - a crucial design tactic missed by most chairs in the world.

For the three pilots the plane proved a delight to fly. "It was like riding a thoroughbred race horse or driving a Maserati," says former Concorde Captain Jock Lowe. "It was a great plane for a pilot: responsive, lot of power. It could do things only fighter planes could do."

People on the ground weren’t always so happy. There are two sonic booms heard on the ground but in the plane they felt like two gentle bumps. However, the first time the Concorde landed in Toronto, during the early '80s, "three-quarters of a million people turned out just to see the plane". People just loved to look at Concorde, it's designed perfectly, an artist's dream."

In terms of fuel use per passenger carried, one gallon of fuel on Concorde will take one passenger 16.7 miles. While The Boeing 747 is 4.8 times more fuel efficient, Concorde compares well with an SUV.

A catastrophic Concorde crash in Paris killed all aboard reducing Concorde from one of the safest planes to one of the most dangerous. Investigators traced the accident to a metal strip left on the runway. It punctured the fuel tank, starting a fire. Although modifications were made to the plane three years later, the decision was made to retire both the British and French fleets.

It will be a long time before we see the likes of those planes flying again. Some reckon they were a greater technological triumph than the landing on the moon, which occurred the same year the first Concorde prototype flew.

East Fortune, home to the Museum of Flight, belongs to another age with its widely-spaced hangers dating from the 1940s set against the backdrop of the landing field. From here, in the Great War, aircraft defended Edinburgh and the Forth from attack by Zeppelins. In 1919, the airship R34 left here on its record-breaking return trip to New York. On reaching its destination, an aviator parachuted out to guide it in, the first man to arrive in America by air. During World War II, the airfield’s planes again provided a protective shield against attack.

East Fortune is now home to an impressive collection of over 50 aircraft. In March 2005, the Concord Experience opening doubled visitor numbers. A 10-year development programme will make East Fortune one of the great transport museums.

Parked outside Hanger 1 are the De Havilland Comet passenger plane and the delta wing Avro Vulcan Bomber, an aircraft outstanding for its sheer size, grace, and power. One observer commented ‘If you can imagine an aircraft the size of an airliner thrown around the sky like a Spitfire, you have some idea of what a was like.’ The Comet, first flying in 1949, is the world's first jet powered passenger airliner. Unfortunately, there were several crashed because of metal fatigue.

Hanger 1 contains celebrated fighter aircraft such as the Spitfire, Harrier Jump Jet, and The Messerschmitt Me-163, among others.

The Supermarine Spitfire, one of the greatest military aircraft of all-time, first flew in 1936. The RAF's first all-metal fighter, its exploits in World War II are legendary. Spitfires served in every combat area, performing as fighters, fighter-bombers, survey aircraft, and carrier-based fighters. In the Battle of Britain, it gained the respect of the Luftwaffe and with the Hawker Hurricane, saved Britain from invasion. By 1947, some 40 different variants of the Spitfire had flown. A beautiful aircraft, it took propeller-driven aircraft design to its perfectione and came within .92 of breaking the sound barrier.

Now, imagine an aircraft that combines the best features of a helicopter with those of a fighter jet, a craft capable in any war theatre. From such imaginings comes reality, even though the earliest design of such a craft resembled a humble flying bedstead. Eventually, through the dream came the Harrier Jump Jet, the world’s first vertical take off and landing jet fighter. In battle, it proved its worth and is leading to a new generation of aircraft. Like the Spitfire, the pilot almost wears this plane as a garment as a glance in both cockpits will show.

An example of a brilliant but flawed design is the stumpy Messerschmitt Me-163, which entered service for Germany in 1944. The world's only rocket powered interceptor, the unique Me-163 was the fastest aircraft of WWII. Its high-speed proved a hindrance in combat and they were vulnerable, as they had to glide in to land. Jet-powered planes rather than rocket-powered proved to be the way ahead.