Balkan

St Stephen's Church

Silvermills · 0.6 miles

A striking Baroque-Grecian structure dominates the vista from the lower end of St Vincent Street, its 162-ft tower housing Europe’s longest clock pendulum at 60 ft, installed in 1828 by James Ritchie & Son. The building sits on the corner of Saint Stephen Street and Saint Vincent Street in Edinburgh’s Northern New Town, nearest the Silvermills area, and was erected between 1827 and 1828 to a design by William Henry Playfair. Its square plan, with cut-off north and south corners, follows the oblique line of Saint Stephen Street, while the interior originally featured vaulted cellars that the first minister, William Muir, used for an evening school for the illiterate. The interior was reconfigured in 1956 after a decline in the congregation, creating a gallery level accessed from St Vincent Street and a series of halls below, including a main hall with a fully fitted stage that has hosted Festival Fringe productions. After a brief ownership by the Benzies Foundation, the property was purchased in 2017 by ballet dancer Peter Schaufuss, who renamed the principal space Ashton Hall. The venue now serves as a theatre and event space, home to the Edinburgh Festival Ballet, its school, and the MGA Academy, and continues to host performances during the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. Operated by the Benzies Foundation, the site offers a mixture of cultural and community activities, with its historic organ by Willis retained on the gallery level. Access is via the surrounding streets, and the building’s prominent tower remains a visible landmark in the neighbourhood.

Melville's Monument

New Town · 1.2 miles

A striking column dominates St Andrew Square in Edinburgh’s New Town, rising to roughly 45 m and serving as a memorial to the Scottish statesman Henry Dundas, 1st Viscount Melville. Construction began in 1821 and, after cost overruns, the monument was completed in 1827; the debt was finally cleared a decade later. Designed by William Burn and modelled on Rome’s Trajan’s Column, the shaft supports a 4.2 m statue of Dundas, sculpted by Francis Leggatt Chantrey and carved by Robert Forrest. The structure is listed as a historic monument and is recognised as one of Edinburgh’s most prominent landmarks. In recent years the monument has attracted debate over Dundas’s role in delaying the abolition of the Atlantic slave trade. Following protests in 2020, the City of Edinburgh Council added a plaque in October 2021 that attributes responsibility for “deferring the abolition of the Atlantic slave trade” and “imposing colonial rule on indigenous peoples” to Dundas. A planning committee voted in March 2023 to remove the plaque, although the council later confirmed it does not intend to do so. The monument is situated at the eastern end of St Andrew Square, readily reachable on foot from the surrounding New Town streets; no specific admission facilities are mentioned.

Adam Black Memorial

Old Town · 1.2 miles

A bronze statue commemorating Adam Black stands in East Princes Street Gardens, Edinburgh, close to the Old Town area. The monument, recorded as a historic memorial on OpenStreetMap, was erected in 1877 and was sculpted by John Hutchison. It marks the site where the publisher and former Lord Provost of Edinburgh is publicly remembered. Adam Black (20 February 1784 – 24 January 1874) was a prominent Scottish publisher and politician. After completing an apprenticeship with an Edinburgh bookseller, he opened his own business in 1808 and quickly became one of the city’s leading booksellers. In 1827 he, together with Macvey Napier and James Browne LLD, acquired the copyright of the Encyclopædia Britannica, overseeing the production of its seventh, eighth and ninth editions. His publishing house also secured the rights to the Waverley Novels in 1851 and later the works of De Quincey. Beyond his commercial activities, Black served twice as Lord Provost of Edinburgh and represented the city in Parliament from 1856 to 1865. The memorial provides a visual reference to Black’s contributions to publishing and civic life. As a listed monument within the public gardens, it forms part of the historic landscape surrounding Edinburgh’s Old Town, offering a point of interest for visitors interested in the city’s literary and political heritage.

Scottish American War Memorial

New Town · 1.2 miles

A bronze figure of a kilted infantryman stands on a Craigleith sandstone plinth in West Princes Street Gardens, looking toward Castle Rock. The central statue is accompanied by a low-relief frieze that depicts rows of men, including a pipe band, marching from civilian life into military service. The monument’s apex bears the intertwined escutcheons of Scotland and the United States, underscoring the transatlantic link that inspired its creation. Funded by the Scottish-American War Memorial Committee, the work was presented by Scottish-Americans as a tribute to Scots who fought in the First World War. Designed by the Scottish-Canadian sculptor R. Tait McKenzie, with architectural input from Reginald Fairlie, the piece was unveiled on 7 September 1927 by the United States Ambassador, Alanson B H Houghton. The bronze backdrop and the inscription of E. A. Mackintosh’s poem “A Creed” complete the composition, while contemporary accounts recorded a construction cost of ten thousand pounds. Historic Scotland classifies the memorial as a Category B listed building. The memorial occupies a publicly accessible garden in Edinburgh’s New Town, allowing visitors to view the sculpture at any time the gardens are open. No admission fee is mentioned, and the setting provides the usual amenities of the surrounding park. Its listed status ensures that the monument is protected under heritage regulations.

Dugald Stewart Monument

Greenside · 1.2 miles

A prominent memorial to the Scottish Enlightenment philosopher Dugald Stewart rises on Calton Hill, giving a clear view across Edinburgh. The monument, commissioned by the Royal Society of Edinburgh in 1830, marks the site where the university professor held the chair of moral philosophy from 1786 until his death in 1828. Designed by William Henry Playfair, the structure follows the form of the ancient Choragic Monument of Lysicrates in Athens, presenting a circular podium surrounded by nine fluted Corinthian columns that support an elevated urn. Construction finished in September 1831 and the monument has been protected as a category A listed building since 19 April 1966. Playfair’s work on the monument links it to other classical commissions on the hill, including the nearby Robert Burns Monument by Thomas Hamilton and the National Monument of Scotland, which he co-designed with Charles Robert Cockerell. The thoroughfare that frames Calton Hill on three sides—Royal Terrace, Carlton Terrace and Regent Terrace—was also laid out by Playfair, reinforcing the hill’s architectural cohesion. The site is recorded in OpenStreetMap as a landmark and historic memorial, with Greenside identified as the nearest town. Visitors can approach the monument on foot along the established paths that traverse Calton Hill; no specific admission charge or visitor facilities are noted in the available material.

Calton Hill

Greenside · 1.2 miles

Offering extensive panoramas of Edinburgh, Calton Hill stands just beyond the east end of Princes Street and forms part of the city’s UNESCO World Heritage area. The elevated ground hosts a collection of prominent structures, including the National Monument, the Nelson and Dugald Stewart monuments, the former Royal High School, and memorials to Robert Burns, the Political Martyrs and other historic figures. The southern slope accommodates St Andrew’s House, the headquarters of the Scottish Government, while the Scottish Parliament Building and Holyrood Palace lie close to the hill’s base. The site is identified on OpenStreetMap as a park, with Greenside recorded as the nearest settlement. The hill’s name appears in a 1456 charter as “Cragingalt”, suggesting an origin linked to a crag or a small wood. Archaeological hints point to a possible prehistoric hill-fort and historic quarrying activity on the eastern side. In the mid-15th century James II granted the surrounding low ground for tournaments and archery practice, and the area later served as an open-air theatre venue. A Carmelite monastery was established at Greenside in 1518, later converted into a leper hospital after the Reformation. Ownership passed from the Logan family to the Elphinstone barony, and the western portion was sold to Edinburgh in 1725, with the eastern side retained by Heriot’s Trust. Calton remained a burgh of barony until its formal incorporation into the city under the 1856 Municipality Extension Act.