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The Grassmarket is located to the immediate south of the section of The Royal Mile occupied by Castlehill and The Lawnmarket, in Edinburgh's Old Town. The Grassmarket today is a very popular tourist and student destination for its variety of reasonably priced pubs and restaurants but the ancient edifice of Edinburgh Castle looming over the street reminds us of The Grassmarket's murky past.

The Grassmarket came in to being in the fifteenth century as a cattle and livestock market, a function for which it continued to be used right up until the early days of the twentieth century. In its time, it has been frequented by such historical luminaries as Sir Walter Scott, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Rabbie Burns, but it was also the operating centre of the infamous due of Burke and Hare, those whose grisly deeds provided cadavers for experimentation at the University of Edinburgh.

The Grassmarket was also the site of public executions in Edinburgh and a monument still stands upon the site to this day. There were many petty and not so petty criminals executed upon this spot but there was one lady hanged for a minor crime, by the name of Maggie Dickson, who was still alive when cut down and thus allowed to go free in what was deemed to be an "Act of God." There is a pub today on The Grassmarket named in her honour.

The Grassmarket also saw, however, a number of politically and religiously motivated executions. A great many Covenanters were hanged on this site around the time of the late seventeenth century and for this reason, there is a St Andrew's Cross on the cobblestones bearing the legend, "For the Protestant faith, on this spot many martyrs and covenanters died."

There is a pub on The Grassmarket named, "The Last Drop," in reference to its proximity to the site of the executions, and the pub actually sells souvenir t-shirts bearing its name and the ominous representation of a public gallows.

The Grassmarket today sees a magnificent choice of culturally varied restaurants in which to dine. As well as the traditional Scottish produce offered by most of the pubs, there is an American pizza outlet, as well as Italian and French restaurants. Just off the Grassmarket on Victoria Street, leading up towards The Royal Mile, we can find even more varied establishments.

Whether therefore you are looking to delve in to Edinburgh's cultural or criminal past and get a feel for same, or simply looking to sample some of the city's friendly atmosphere, there is nowhere better than The Grassmarket to find it all confined in to one, very small space. Be sure therefore to visit this street if you ever have cause to be in Edinburgh and get a feel for the city, both for its past and its present.

Learn more about this author, Gordon Hamilton.
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