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Council Chambers, Edinburgh
Edinburgh City Chambers in Edinburgh, Scotland, is the meeting place of the City of Edinburgh Council and its predecessors, Edinburgh Corporation and Edinburgh District Council. It is a Category A listed building. History The current building was originally built as the Royal Exchange, which was funded by subscription and commissioned in 1753. It was designed by John Adam with detail alterations by John Fergus. The building works absorbed many small streets, commonly known in Edinburgh as "closes", that ran north to south across the breadth of the site. The Royal Exchange building sat partially on top of the truncated buildings on the closes that were subsequently blocked-off. These now underground closes were still accessible but were closed for public access for many years until reopened as 'The Real Mary King's Close'. The Exchange was opened by Lord Provost George Drummond in 1760. The exchange had a coffee shop and shops including a millinery operated by Sibilla Hutton. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mercat Cross, Edinburgh
The Mercat Cross of Edinburgh is a market cross, which stands in Parliament Square, Edinburgh, Parliament Square next to St Giles' Cathedral, facing the Royal Mile#High Street, High Street in the Old Town, Edinburgh, Old Town of Edinburgh. Description and history The current Mercat Cross, mercat cross is of Victorian era, Victorian origin, but was built close to the site occupied by the original. The Cross is first mentioned in a charter of 1365 which indicates that it stood on the south side of the High Street about from the east end of St. Giles'. In 1617, it was moved to a position a few yards (metres) down the High Street now marked by "an octagonal arrangement of cobble stones" (actually Sett (paving), setts). This is the position shown on Gordon of Rothiemay's map of 1647 (see external link below). In 1756, the Cross was demolished and parts of the pillar re-erected in the grounds of Drum House, Gilmerton. A monument now stands there and on it a plaque that reads: "Ere ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Groin Vault
A groin vault or groined vault (also sometimes known as a double barrel vault or cross vault) is produced by the intersection at right angles of two barrel vaults. Honour, H. and J. Fleming, (2009) ''A World History of Art''. 7th edn. London: Laurence King Publishing, p. 949. The word "groin" refers to the edge between the intersecting vaults. Sometimes the arches of groin vaults are pointed instead of round. In comparison with a barrel vault, a groin vault provides good economies of material and labor. The thrust is concentrated along the groins or arrises (the four diagonal edges formed along the points where the barrel vaults intersect), so the vault need only be abutted at its four corners. Groin vault construction was first employed by the Romans, but then fell into relative obscurity in Europe until the resurgence of quality stone building brought about by Carolingian and Romanesque architecture. It was superseded by the more flexible rib vaults of Gothic architecture ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cockburn Street, Edinburgh
Cockburn Street ( ) is a street in Edinburgh's Old Town, created as a serpentine link from the Royal Mile#High Street, High Street to Waverley Station in 1856. Originally named Lord Cockburn Street after the then recently deceased Scottish lawyer, judge and literary figure Henry Cockburn, Lord Cockburn, Henry, Lord Cockburn who was influential in urging his fellow citizens to remain vigilant in ensuring that early-Victorian expansion, e.g. improvements such as Cockburn Street, did not irrevocably damage or obliterate the built heritage and environment. Lord Cockburn's head is carved over the entrance to 1 Cockburn Street (the former Cockburn Hotel) which now serves as offices for the Edinburgh Military Tattoo. The street contains a series of small specialist shops. History The street was sliced through the previous medieval pattern of Alley#Scotland_and_Northern_Ireland, closes in order to give a more gentle gradient and wider thoroughfare to Waverley Station (opened in 184 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chambers Dictionary
''The Chambers Dictionary'' was first published by William and Robert Chambers as ''Chambers's English Dictionary'' in 1872. It was an expanded version of ''Chambers's Etymological Dictionary'' of 1867, compiled by James Donald. A second edition came out in 1898, and was followed in 1901 by a new compact edition called ''Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary''. The dictionary is widely used by British crossword solvers and setters, and by ''Scrabble'' players (though it is no longer the official ''Scrabble'' dictionary). It contains many more dialectal, archaic, unconventional and eccentric words than its rivals, and is noted for its occasional wryly humorous definitions. Examples of such definitions include those for '' éclair'' ("a cake, long in shape but short in duration") and ''middle-aged'' ("between youth and old age, variously reckoned to suit the reckoner"). These jocular definitions were removed by the publisher in the 1970s, but many of them were reinstated in 19 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
William Chambers (publisher)
William Chambers of Glenormiston (; 16 April 180020 May 1883) was a Scotland, Scottish publisher and politician, the brother (and business partner) of Robert Chambers (publisher born 1802), Robert Chambers. The brothers were influential in the mid-19th century, in both scientific and political circles. Biography Chambers was born in Peebles the son of James Chambers, a cotton mill owner, said to have 100 looms in his factory, and his wife, Jean Gibson. William was educated locally, but well, being trained in the Classics.Grant's Old and New Edinburgh vol.2 p.224 The family moved to Edinburgh in 1814 to work in the book-selling trade. William was apprenticed to a John Sutherland, a bookseller with a circulating library based at 9 Calton Street at the base of Calton Hill. William was paid 4/- per week, from which he paid 1/6 per week for lodgings at Boak's Land off the West Port at the west end of the Grassmarket. William opened his own bookshop in 1819 on Broughton Str ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ebenezer James MacRae
Ebenezer James MacRae (18 January 1881 – 15 January 1951) was a Scottish people, Scottish architect serving as City Architect for Edinburgh for most of his active life. Life He was the son of Rev Alexander MacRae of the Free Church of Scotland (1843-1900), Free Church of Scotland. To family and friends he was generally known as Ben MacRae. He studied architecture under Archibald MacPherson from 1899 to 1907, remaining good friends until death. He trained at both Heriot-Watt College, the University of Edinburgh and later Edinburgh College of Art. He did various sketching tours around the country in his twenties: York, England (1902 and 1904), Melrose, Scotland, Melrose (1904), Belgium (1905), Cambridge (1907), Lincoln, England, Lincoln (1907), Northamptonshire (1907), and Oxford (1907). In 1908 he trained further, under John Kinross. Late in 1908 he got a post as an assistant in the City Architect's Department of the then Edinburgh Corporation, serving under James Anderson Wi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Royal Mile
The Royal Mile () is the nickname of a series of streets forming the main thoroughfare of the Old Town, Edinburgh, Old Town of Edinburgh, Scotland. The term originated in the early 20th century and has since entered popular usage. The Royal Mile runs between two significant locations in the royal history of Scotland, Edinburgh Castle and Holyrood Palace, and has a total length of approximately one mile. The streets which make up the Royal Mile are (west to east) Castlehill, the Lawnmarket, the High Street, the Canongate and Abbey Strand. The Royal Mile is the busiest Tourism in Scotland, tourist street in the Old Town, rivalled only by Princes Street in the New Town, Edinburgh, New Town. The Royal Mile contains a variety of shops, restaurants, public houses, and visitor attractions. During the annual Edinburgh Festival Fringe, Edinburgh Fringe, the High Street becomes crowded with tourists, entertainers, and buskers. Parliament Square is at the heart of Scotland's legal syste ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Robert Morham
Robert Morham (31 March 1839 – 5 June 1912) was the City Architect for Edinburgh for the last decades of the nineteenth century and was responsible for much of the “public face” of the city at the time. His work is particularly well represented within Edinburgh City Chambers where each of the high Victoriana main council chambers (Edinburgh Room, Nelson Mandela Room, European Room etc.) is under his hand. Most of his buildings are utilitarian in function: police stations, fire stations, swimming baths etc. and these are generally atypical of the Edinburgh streetscape in terms of material being generally in red sandstone rather than cream. This allows the public buildings to quickly be identified in the streets concerned. His work in parks is also noteworthy including one of the world's best known public spaces, Princes Street Gardens. This included negotiations for the widening of Princes Street and the placing of a great number of statues along the edge of the park fa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the world's countries participated, with many nations mobilising all resources in pursuit of total war. Tanks in World War II, Tanks and Air warfare of World War II, aircraft played major roles, enabling the strategic bombing of cities and delivery of the Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, first and only nuclear weapons ever used in war. World War II is the List of wars by death toll, deadliest conflict in history, causing World War II casualties, the death of 70 to 85 million people, more than half of whom were civilians. Millions died in genocides, including the Holocaust, and by massacres, starvation, and disease. After the Allied victory, Allied-occupied Germany, Germany, Allied-occupied Austria, Austria, Occupation of Japan, Japan, a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stanisław Maczek
Lieutenant General Stanisław Władysław Maczek (; 31 March 1892 – 11 December 1994) was a Polish tank commander of World War II, whose division was instrumental in the Allied liberation of France, closing the Falaise pocket, resulting in the destruction of 14 German Wehrmacht and SS divisions. A veteran of World War I, the Polish–Ukrainian and Polish–Soviet wars, Maczek was the commander of Poland's only major armoured formation during the September 1939 campaign, and later commanded a Polish armoured formation in France in 1940. He was the commander of the famous 1st Polish Armoured Division, and later of the I Polish Army Corps under Allied Command in 1942–45. Family Stanisław Władysław Maczek was born on 31 March 1892 in the Lwów suburb of Szczerzec (now Ukrainian: Shchyrets), then in Austro-Hungarian Galicia. His father was a lawyer, who after retiring opened chambers in Drohobycz. His family was of distant Croatian extraction; he was a cousin of the Cr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Armistice Day
Armistice Day, later known as Remembrance Day in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth and Veterans Day in the United States, is commemorated every year on 11 November to mark Armistice of 11 November 1918, the armistice signed between the Allies of World War I and German Empire, Germany at Compiègne, French Third Republic, France, at 5:45 am for the cessation of hostilities on the Western Front of World War I, which took effect at 11:00 am—the "eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month" of 1918—although, according to Thomas R. Gowenlock, an intelligence officer with the 1st Infantry Division (United States), U.S. First Division, shelling from both sides continued for the rest of the day, ending only at nightfall. The armistice initially expired after a period of 36 days and had to be extended several times. A formal peace agreement was reached only when the Treaty of Versailles was signed the following year. The date is a national holiday in Public holi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Prince Henry, Duke Of Gloucester
Prince Henry, Duke of Gloucester (Henry William Frederick Albert; 31 March 1900 – 10 June 1974) was a member of the British royal family. He was the third son of King George V and Mary of Teck, Queen Mary, and was a younger brother of kings Edward VIII and George VI. He served as Governor-General of Australia from 1945 to 1947, the only Prince to hold the post. Henry was the first son of a British monarch to be educated at school, where he excelled at sports, and went on to attend Eton College, after which he was commissioned in the 10th Royal Hussars, a regiment he hoped to command. However, his military career was frequently interrupted by royal duties, and he was nicknamed "the unknown soldier" due to his low profile. While big-game shooting in Kenya, he met the future pilot Beryl Markham, with whom he became romantically involved. The court put pressure on him to end the relationship, but he had to pay regular hush-money to avert a public scandal. In 1935, also under paren ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
