On this day in 1790
Architect William Henry Playfair is born
William Henry Playfair left his mark on the Scottish capital. He graduated from the University of Edinburgh and, after working in London, returned to Edinburgh and designed many of the buildings for which he is remembered. These include the National Gallery of Scotland, the National Monument, and the building housing the Royal Scottish Academy.
Playfair paralysed
Playfair died in March 1857 after an illness that had left him partially paralysed, and he is buried in Edinburgh’s Dean Cemetery. His death was announced in the Morning Advertiser of 24th March, which quoted the Edinburgh Courant, calling him the greatest of our northern architects and “the man who, more than any other, has filled the Scottish capital with monuments of his genius”.
In 1989, the Post Office issued an air mail letter in Scotland to mark the 200th anniversary of his birth. It featured illustrations of several of his buildings that changed the Edinburgh landscape.
Yesterday…
The Scottish National War Memorial is opened
The Scottish War Memorial, which is the result of a decade of planning and building, sits at the highest point in Edinburgh Castle.
Tomorrow…
The Commonwealth Games opens in Edinburgh
The 1970 Common Wealth Games in Edinburgh were the first to use the metric system, and to employ photography for close finishes.
William McEwan was born in Clackmannanshire, founded the Fountain Brewery and was MP for Edinburgh Central between 1886 and 1900.
