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David Aikinhead
David Aikinhead or Aikenhead or Aikinhid (1566–1637) was a 17th-century Scottish lawyer who twice served as Lord Provost of Edinburgh, from 1620 to 1622 and 1625 to 1630. Life He was born in Edinburgh in 1566 the son of Helen Ramsey and her husband James Aikenhead, a town burgess. He was descended from the Aikenheads of Lanarkshire. In 1620 he succeeded Alexander Clerk as Provost of Edinburgh. In 1622 Clerk (then known as Alexander Clerk of Stenton) regained office. Aikinhead was elected again in 1625 and then served for 5 years, being replaced by Clerk's son, Alexander Clerk of Pittencrieff. In his second term of office Aikenhead was responsible for major improvements and reorganisation of the University of Edinburgh. He died in Edinburgh on 13 August 1637 aged 71. He was buried within the interior of Greyfriars Kirk but was removed (with others) to the exterior (the north-east outer face of the church) following the fire of 1845. Family He was father of James Aikenhe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Greyfriars Kirkyard
Greyfriars Kirkyard is the graveyard surrounding Greyfriars Kirk in Edinburgh, Scotland. It is located at the southern edge of the Old Town, adjacent to George Heriot's School. Burials have been taking place since the late 16th century, and a number of notable Edinburgh residents are interred at Greyfriars. The Kirkyard is operated by City of Edinburgh Council in liaison with a charitable trust, which is linked to but separate from the church. The Kirkyard and its monuments are protected as a category A listed building. History Greyfriars takes its name from the Franciscan friary on the site (the friars of which wear grey habits), which was dissolved in 1560. The churchyard was founded in August 1562 after Royal sanction was granted to replace the churchyard at St Giles' Cathedral in Edinburgh. The latter burial ground was not used after around 1600. The Kirkyard was involved in the history of the Covenanters. The Covenanting movement began with signing of the National Cov ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Thomas Aikenhead
Thomas Aikenhead ( bapt. 28 March 1676 – 8 January 1697) was a Scottish student from Edinburgh, who was prosecuted and executed at the age of 20 on a charge of blasphemy under the Act against Blasphemy 1661 and Act against Blasphemy 1695. He was the last person in Great Britain to be executed for blasphemy. His execution occurred 85 years after the death of Edward Wightman (1612), the last person to be burned at the stake for heresy in England. Early life Thomas Aikenhead was the son of James Aikenhead and Helen Ramsey. His father was a burgess of Edinburgh, as was his paternal grandfather (also named Thomas Aikenhead). His maternal grandfather was a clergyman. He was baptized on 28 March 1676, the fourth child and first son of the family. Of his three older sisters (Jonet, Katherine, and Margaret), at least one and possibly two died before he was born. Indictment During his studies at the University of Edinburgh, he engaged in discussions regarding religion with his fri ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Burials At Greyfriars Kirkyard
Burial, also known as interment or inhumation, is a method of final disposition whereby a dead body is placed into the ground, sometimes with objects. This is usually accomplished by excavating a pit or trench, placing the deceased and objects in it, and covering it over. A funeral is a ceremony that accompanies the final disposition. Humans have been burying their dead since shortly after the origin of the species. Burial is often seen as indicating respect for the dead. It has been used to prevent the odor of decay, to give family members closure and prevent them from witnessing the decomposition of their loved ones, and in many cultures it has been seen as a necessary step for the deceased to enter the afterlife or to give back to the cycle of life. Methods of burial may be heavily ritualized and can include natural burial (sometimes called "green burial"); embalming or mummification; and the use of containers for the dead, such as shrouds, coffins, grave liners, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1637 Deaths
Events January–March * January 5 – Pierre Corneille's tragicomedy '' Le Cid'' is first performed, in Paris, France. * January 16 – The siege of Nagpur ends in what is now the Maharashtra state of India, as Kok Shah, the King of Deogarh, surrenders his kingdom to the Mughal Empire. * January 23 – John Maurice, Prince of Nassau-Siegen arrives from the Netherlands to become the Governor of Dutch Brazil, and extends the range of the colony over the next six years. * January 28 – The Manchu armies of China complete their invasion of northern Korea with the surrender of King Injo of the Joseon Kingdom. * February 3 – Tulip mania collapses in the Dutch Republic. * February 15 – Ferdinand III becomes Holy Roman Emperor upon the death of his father, Ferdinand II, although his formal coronation does not take place until later in the year. * February 18 – Eighty Years' War – Battle off Lizard Point: Off the coast of C ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
1566 Births
__NOTOC__ Year 1566 ( MDLXVI) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events January–June * January 7 – Pope Pius V succeeds Pope Pius IV, as the 225th pope. * February 24 – In one of the first gun assassinations in Japanese (if not world) history, Mimura Iechika is shot dead by two brothers (Endo Matajiro and Yoshijiro), sent by his rival Ukita Naoie. * March 28 – The foundation stone of Valletta, which will become Malta's capital city, is laid by Jean Parisot de Valette, Grand Master of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta. * April 5 – The Compromise of Nobles is presented to Margaret of Parma, Governor of the Habsburg Netherlands, but it succeeds only in delaying the beginning of the Eighty Years' War in the Netherlands. July–December * August 6 – The siege of Szigetvár is begun by Suleiman the Magnificent, Sultan of the Ottoman Empire. This is the Ottoman Empire ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Edinburgh University
The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 1582 and officially opened in 1583, it is one of Scotland's four ancient universities and the sixth-oldest university in continuous operation in the English-speaking world. The university played an important role in Edinburgh becoming a chief intellectual centre during the Scottish Enlightenment and contributed to the city being nicknamed the "Athens of the North." Edinburgh is ranked among the top universities in the United Kingdom and the world. Edinburgh is a member of several associations of research-intensive universities, including the Coimbra Group, League of European Research Universities, Russell Group, Una Europa, and Universitas 21. In the fiscal year ending 31 July 2021, it had a total income of £1.176 billion, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Patrick Sands
Patrick Sands (–1635) was the third Principal of the University of Edinburgh, serving from 1620 until demitting office in 1622. Life He was educated as a member of the original class to enter the University of Edinburgh on its opening in 1583, graduating in 1587. He tutored at the University from 1589 to 1597, before travelling abroad, studying law and practising as an advocate. He was a "layman who had been unsuccessful at the bar". In 1620 Henry Charteris resigned as Principal of the University, and Sands was appointed by the town council, in an act which "many thought scandalous nepotism" – Sands was the brother-in-law of David Aikinhead, a prominent councillor and future Lord Provost. The Principal had previously doubled as Professor of Divinity, but as Sands was not a theologian, Andrew Ramsay was separately appointed Professor of Divinity and Rector. He was Principal from March 1620 until his resignation in August 1622. From 1620 until 1622 he was "second charge" ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Blasphemy
Blasphemy is a speech crime and religious crime usually defined as an utterance that shows contempt, disrespects or insults a deity, an object considered sacred or something considered inviolable. Some religions regard blasphemy as a religious crime, especially the Abrahamic religions, including the speaking the " sacred name" in Judaism and the " eternal sin" in Christianity. In the early history of the Church heresy received more attention than blasphemy because it was considered a more serious threat to Orthodoxy. Blasphemy was often regarded as an isolated offense wherein the faithful lapsed momentarily from the expected standard of conduct. When iconoclasm and the fundamental understanding of the sacred became more contentious matters during the Reformation, blasphemy was treated similar to heresy, and accusations of blasphemy were made not only against people who made off-the-cuff profane remarks while drunk, but against those types of persons who espoused unorthodox ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Alexander Nisbet
Alexander Nisbet (bapt. 23 March 1657; died 7 Dec. 1725) was a Scottish lawyer and antiquarian. He is remembered for his works on the subject of heraldry, which are generally considered to be some of the most complete and authoritative ever produced in the British Isles. Life Nisbet was born in Edinburgh, the third of ten children of Adam Nisbet WS and his wife Janet, only daughter of Alexander Aikenhead WS. Adam, and later Alexander, were chiefs of the ancient Nisbet family, of Nisbet in Berwickshire; however, the family had recently lost much of their wealth due to their zealous support of King Charles in the civil war, and had been forced to sell their ancestral estate. In his ''Essay on Additional Figures and Marks of Cadency'', Nisbet remarks that he "had a very early inclination to the study of herauldry, and when a boy ... looked on its figures with wonder, and often wish'd to know their names and signification." Nisbet matriculated at Edinburgh University in 1675, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Edinburgh
Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of the Firth of Forth. Edinburgh is Scotland's List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, second-most populous city, after Glasgow, and the List of cities in the United Kingdom, seventh-most populous city in the United Kingdom. Recognised as the capital of Scotland since at least the 15th century, Edinburgh is the seat of the Scottish Government, the Scottish Parliament and the Courts of Scotland, highest courts in Scotland. The city's Holyrood Palace, Palace of Holyroodhouse is the official residence of the Monarchy of the United Kingdom, British monarchy in Scotland. The city has long been a centre of education, particularly in the fields of medicine, Scots law, Scottish law, literature, philosophy, the sc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
William Nisbet Of Dean
Sir William Nisbet of Dean (c. 1570 – c. 1630) was a 16th/17th century Scottish merchant who twice served as Provost of Edinburgh from 1616 to 1619 and 1622 to 1623. Life He was the son of Henry Nisbet of Dean, Provost of Edinburgh in 1597/98, and his wife Jonet Bannatyne or Bellenden (d. 1621). His father died in 1608 and William inherited Dean House in western Edinburgh, extending it greatly. He was twice Provost of Edinburgh (he pre-dated the use of the term Lord Provost). In 1616 he succeeded Sir John Arnot. He served a second term 1622/23. During his first term of office, in 1617, he would certainly have met and hosted King James VI, in his role as leader of the capital city, on this the King's only return to Edinburgh after the Union of the Crowns. As Dean House lay in the parish of St Cuthberts Church he is buried there with his father. Dean House was demolished in 1842 and the grounds used to create Dean Cemetery. It had been downsized in the 18th century and w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Greyfriars Kirk
Greyfriars Kirk ( gd, Eaglais nam Manach Liath) is a parish church of the Church of Scotland, located in the Old Town of Edinburgh, Scotland. It is surrounded by Greyfriars Kirkyard. Greyfriars traces its origin to the south-west parish of Edinburgh, founded in 1598. Initially, this congregation met in the western portion of St Giles'. The church is named for the Observantine Franciscans or "Grey Friars" who arrived in Edinburgh from the Netherlands in the mid-15th century and were granted land for a Friary at the south-western edge of the burgh. In the wake of the Scottish Reformation, the grounds of the abandoned Friary were repurposed as a cemetery, in which the current church was constructed between 1602 and 1620. In 1638, National Covenant was signed in the Kirk. The church was damaged during the Protectorate, when it was used as barracks by troops under Oliver Cromwell. In 1718, an explosion destroyed the church tower. During the reconstruction, the church was p ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
