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Plans of the New Town of EdinburghAuthor(s): M. K. MeadeSource: Architectural History, Vol. 14 (1971), pp. 40-52+142-148Published by: SAHGB Publications LimitedStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/1568296 .

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Plans of the New Town

of Edinburgh byM. K. MEADE

The Edinburgh Town Council minutes for 6 June 1767 record that: 'On

Wednesday last the Magistrates of Edinburgh conferred on Mr James Craig, Architect, a gold medal with the freedom of the city in a silver box, as a reward of his merit for having designed the best plan of the New Town.'

Despite the importance of this plan (Fig. 33a) unfortunately little is known of its architect's background. Born c. 1740, James Craig's father was an Edinburgh merchant, his mother a sister of the poet James Thomson, best remembered as the author of Rule Britannia and The Seasons. No record survives of his early education and though he is supposed to have received his architectural training under Sir Robert Taylor, this would appear to be a confusion with a namesake. An obscure young man then, the New Town Competition of 1766-67, was to

bring him sudden fame. Extension of the Royalty of Edinburgh was by no means a new idea, and

Craig's award-winning plan must be seen as the culmination of a series of

attempts to enlarge the city. The Old Town was hemmed in on its long ridge with the ground falling steeply away to rise abruptly on an open plain to the south and to the north on a broad ridge. The hollow on this side was partly filled by the North Loch. As early as the 1680s James II had encouraged improvement and expansion and a bridge programme to improve access was mooted. All was curtailed, however, by the Revolution of 1688. The issue was not taken up until 1720, when the Council acquired the Loch Bank Estate (on the north side of the North Loch). A residential quarter was to be established, further

properties bought and the loch transformed into a canal. To this end an act was passed in 1723, but in the face of local opposition and a tight financial situation there was no immediate sequel. For long only small unrelated schemes were to make headway in the hands of private enterprise.

Extension of the city was not only being considered at home. The correspon- dence of John, 11th Earl of Mar, exiled for his part in the '15, contains important presages both of the North Bridge and Craig's plan. In a letter of 1728, Mar recommends an almost identical site for a new town on the broad ridge to the north, '.. . having a noble prospect...' and '.. . a fine opportunity for gardens down to the North Loch and one on the other side towards Broughton'.

But if the Royalty was to have a planned expansion, the initiative had to come from the Town Council. Here, however, the opposition lobby continued to put up strong resistance, and the subsequent 'Proposals' of 1752 and 1759 (of great interest as town planning documents of the period) produced in fact no more tangible results, apart from John Adam's Exchange, than those of 1720-23.

Only in 1763 was the North Bridge scheme pursued with any success. In July 40 of that year the Scots Magazine published an article on the bridge, illustrated



with a proposed elevation.' The latter was reissued with a plan of the city showing an advanced 'ringroad scheme' converging on the new bridge (Fig. 32b).4 The road plan and elevation are particularly interesting as they bear

Craig's signature, the earliest extant example of his work and proof of his connection with extension schemes for the city at least three years before the competition of 1766.

Behind the proposals stands the commanding figure of George Drummond. First elected Provost in 1723, he became a most active supporter of the city's expansion. It was Drummond who saw the advantage of first securing acceptance of the bridge: this achieved, his main objective, the development of the fields to the north, would more easily follow. In 1766 Drummond gained the

provostship for the last time. He died before the end of his tenure, but the

opposition had been overcome: the North Bridge was under construction,' and on 22 March the Town Council had announced its intention of holding a public competition for the design of a new town.

Altogether six plans were received, and on 2 August Drummond announced the Committee's decision that plan No.4 by Mr James Craig, architect, held the most merit. The committee of adjudication included 'among the artists the Messrs Adams by whom several alterations were made to the plan'. Obviously the committee was not entirely satisfied, and from August 1766 to July 1767 a series of protracted discussions ensued in which Craig apparently made several amendments and finally produced a new plan. Some light may be thrown on these proceedings by a 'Plan of Edinburgh and Places Adjacent' (Figs 33a & b)6 published by John Laurie, an important Edinburgh cartographer, in 1766. Though on a very small scale, this plan shows the projected new town. Laurie had been called upon to prepare the ground survey for the competition7 and producing an accurate and up-to-date map that same year, he would have every interest in making use of the award-winning design. Engraving on copper, corrections could easily be made and two editions of his plan exist showing different layouts for the New Town (Figs 31a&b).These very possibly illustrate Craig's initial project or the subsequent amendments proposed to the committee prior to the manuscript plan of July 1767.8

The success of Craig's scheme owes much to his simple but effective use of the site, with the central axis terminated by squares on the crown of the ridge and transverse streets connecting the parallel Queen and Princes Streets on the slopes. The latter, having buildings on one side only, provide magnificent views (as Lord Mar predicted) down to the Forth or across to the Old Town and the Castle Rock. The rectilinear design is largely imposed by the site, and it would therefore seem unfair to criticize Craig's lack of originality. Moreover, Craig was not required to produce a grandiose plan on the lines of those illustrated in Patte's Monuments driges d la gloire de Louis XV, but a viable housing scheme to relieve overcrowding of the Old Town as well as providing suitable accommodation for its wealthier inhabitants.

In October 1767 Craig went to London on council business. Capitalizing on his success, he promptly made himself known at Court, and presented his New Town plan to King George III, to whom the origin of some street names is owed. An early print of the plan9 dedicated to the king, omitted any reference to the Town Council, a snub which caused some offence to the magistrates.

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This arrogance in his dealings with his clients was to be a recurring trait of

Craig's character and one which probably contributed to the decline of his

practice in later years. Now well established, Craig saw fit to suggest certain improvements to his

Gold Medal plan. The London episode may have brought him into contact with John Gwynn's contemporary town planning proposals for that city. Possibly he gained some knowledge of the Woods' work in Bath or, more

simply, he was tempted to return to the earlier version in the John Laurie map of 1766(Fig. 31a). At least in 1774 he presented two circus projects(Figs 34a&b)" sited at the junction of Frederick Street and George Street in the centre of his

plan. Building had only just started on the east end of George Street, but the circus scheme was not taken up by the authorities. Placed on the crown of the

ridge, the sharp fall in ground on either side would probably have required considerable banking to handle the design successfully, and for the Town Council the loss in housing, and consequently feu-duty, must have been the main disadvantage. A circus scheme was still being considered in 1780-82 as Ainslie's map shows (Fig.32a)", but, though this version is reduced to a more practical size, it was finally passed over and Craig's original plan followed.

In 1773 Craig had designed St James' Square (Fig.35),12 commissioned by Walter Ferguson, Writer to the Signet, as a private speculation. In this case

Craig also provided the elevations, severe ashlar facades broken only by slightly projecting bays and treated as a unified composition. Perhaps they were his most original, if modest, domestic architecture, for his major commissions show him to be a competent if rather unimaginative second-generation Palladian. Certainly the early 1770s mark the peak of his career with St Andrews church, Dundee, of 1772 and the Physicians Hall of 1773-74, a period epitomized by the David Allan portrait (Fig. 30a).i1

The present constricted approach from Leith Walk to Princes Street must not be blamed on Craig, for if his New Town and St James Square plans had been followed in their entirety Leith Street would have been considerably wider. Later in the 1770s and early 1780s buildings started to encroach on the precise limits he had laid down, and in his pamphlet Plan for Improving the City of Edinburgh"4 of 1786 Craig remonstrates against this development. 'It must strike with force every person, that thirty-five feet is by far too narrow an inlet from the port of Leith both to the Old and New Town.'

It seems unlikely that much attention was paid to Craig's opinion. By the 1780s his prestige had waned and, apart from work on the Battery at Leith, he appears to have found little employment. Yet his Plan for Improving the City of Edinburgh forms a major contribution to the proposals for a South Bridge development at this time (Fig. 36a).

In 1785 Parliament passed the South Bridge Act, allowing for the construction of a bridge or viaduct, an ambitious structure of nineteen arches set on a slightly oblique line from the North Bridge. The architect was Alexander Craig and progress was rapid: building commenced in 1786 and the bridge was opened to pedestrians by 1788.

For some reason the publication of Craig's pamphlet ,which he states to have been drawn up by 18 July 1785, was unavoidably delayed, but it was completed 'before I knew that Mr Robert Adam, Architect of London, had made out a 42



design'. The elevations illustrating Craig's plan do not attain the grandeur and

elegance of Adam's conception for the South Bridge, though they are more

sympathetic in their relation to the old Tron Kirk (Fig. 36b). But the plan itself, with the text of Craig's proposals, is highly original in its consideration of the

practical issues of traffic circulation and civic amenity. That these advanced ideas were ignored by the Town Council is not sur-

prising. Adam's scheme held precedence, but this was also considered too ambitious and the South Bridge was developed on a far more modest scale.

Craig's plan even more than Robert Adam's required extensive demolition and would have proved too costly an undertaking, yet in its unusually modern

approach and functional purpose it provides a particularly fitting conclusion to Craig's career as a planner.

He died in 1795, his last years clouded by financial difficulties and unemploy- ment; the brilliant promise of a successful career gradually faded, and to this the intractable side of Craig's character no doubt contributed. Though the

significance of his unadopted projects should not be forgotten, the New Town of Edinburgh must remain Craig's outstanding monument. To the left of the

group of allegorical figures adorning the title of his New Town plan (Fig.33b) a

cupid turns to crown with laurels a figure that can only be the architect himself, perhaps for once a justified presumption.

MAPS AND PLANS OF THE CITY OF EDINBURGH The following list provides a chronology of the most important original maps and engraved plans relating to the history of the development of the city in the

eighteenth century. Part I concerns the Old Town; Part II is devoted to maps and plans that illustrate particular stages in the development of James Craig's New Town; Part III to those plans that form James Craig's personal contribution. Here the various states of the plans and their sequence is of importance and is listed in detail.

PART I: PLANS OF THE OLD TOWN OF EDINBURGH 1742

(1) The Plan of the City and Castle of Edinburgh by William Edgar, Architect, Anno 1742

Engraved by P. Foudrinier. Numbered and lettered key to the streets and buildings in the right lower corner. Appears to be the first trustworthy survey of the Old Town of Edinburgh. Copies: Published in William Maintland, The History of Edinburgh (Edinburgh 1753). Reproduced in Robert Chambers, Reekiana (Edinburgh 1833), and here re- engraved by William Murphy of Edinburgh, with inserts in the top corners, left and right, of Van Hoyen's view of the city of 1650 and of Holyrood Abbey and Palace from Gordon of Rothiemay's plan of 1647. Small reproduction in the Royal Scottish Geographical Society Magazine (1919, pl. 4). Facsimile in D. Simpson, Edinburgh Displayed (Edinburgh 1962). Original in Dr Simpson's possession. Edinburgh Public Library: 1.

1765 (la) The Plan of the City and Castle of Edinburgh by William Edgar, Anno 1765

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No.1 brought up to date, showing the line of the North Bridge, new road from the south, removal of the bastions of the city wall and the addition of the Exchange, Brown's Square, Adam Square and St Cecilia's Hall. Copies: National Library of Scotland: 1; Edinburgh Public Library: 3

PART II: GENERAL PLANS OF EDINBURGH AREA 1763

(1) Map of the County of Midlothian from an actual survey by John Laurie, geographer, 1763

Edinburgh featured on a very small scale but the line of the proposed North

Bridge and the road connecting it with Leith Walk are shown. Curiously, the

map is drawn looking south from the Firth of Forth.

Copies: Edinburgh Public Library: 1; National Library of Scotland: 1; Signet Library: 3

1766

(2) Bearford's Parks MS ground survey for the competition for the New Town of 1766. Includes

part of the North Loch on the south and extends to Dickson's Ground on the north; from St Ninian's Row on the east to Provost Stewart's ground on the west, beyond Dean of Guild Allan's park. The Lang Dykes and Gabriel's Road are shown, feus and tenancies given and named. At the top:'N.B. all the ground within the red shade belong to the City of Edinburgh. J.L. 1766.' J.L. is probably John Laurie, an important Edinburgh cartographer. In the centre: 'Edinburgh 8th January, 1796. The figures marked on several places of this plan, in my opinion, show the declivities taken from this point, which at the time of the

survey was made in all probability the highest part of the ground. William Sibbald.'15 The piers of the North Bridge are shown marked 'North Loch

Bridge and abutments'.

Copies: Original MS in the City Chambers, Edinburgh, Estate Surveyors Office, Long box No. 14

(2a) Ground Plan of the City of Edinburgh's Property on the North Side of the Town intended to be feu'd out for Building upon [Fig. 30b] Engraved copy on a reduced scale of the MS survey (No.2) printed for the

guidance of those who took part in the competition of 1766.

Copies: Bodleian Library: original engraving (Gough Collection); Edinburgh Public Library: 3 photostats

(3) A Plan of Edinburgh and Places Adjacent from an Actual Survey by John Laurie, geographer, 1766 [Fig.31a] Engraved by Alexander Baillie. Edinburgh is shown on a small scale as in Part II No. 1 above, but the plan has the normal viewpoint from south to north. The projected New Town is featured, here called 'New Edinburgh', and is possibly Craig's original scheme awarded the prize on 2 August 1766. Layout based on a central square with streets radiating from it to form a pattern similar to that of a Union Jack, but with lateral streets limiting the scheme to north and south. These have houses on both sides. The streets peter out to the west and run into 44



Leith Walk to the east. The North Loch is shown as a formal canal bordered by trees. Certain place names are missing in the area of the Old Town.

Copies: National Library of Scotland: 1; Edinburgh Public Library: Photographic enlargement of New Town area

(3a) A Plan of Edinburgh and Places Adjacent from an Actual Survey by John Laurie, geographer, 1766 [Fig.31b] Engraved by Alexander Baillie. Very similar to No.3 above but appears to be

re-engraved. The most noticeable difference is the New Town, now so named. Here the layout is very close to Craig's gold medal plan approved by the Council in July 1767 (Part III No.3). It is more accurately sited with a public building terminating the line of the bridge."6 But the layout is still different from Craig (Part III No.3) in that only three blocks of houses are shown between the squares which contain further housing blocks to the north and south, leaving access only on the line of the central street, a possible reference to the Place Vend6me. The vista is closed by two churches to the east and west of the

squares as in Craig's 1767 design. Houses are still shown on either side of the northern and southern lateral streets. This perhaps represents Craig's amended version before he presented his 'new plan' accepted in July 1767. Castle Hill, Calton Hill, Arthur's Seat, Portsburgh and the Abbey (Holyrood) are so named as they are not in No.3 above.

Copies: National Library of Scotland: 1; Edinburgh Public Library: 1

c. 1780

(4) Plan of the City of Edinburgh [Fig.32a] Earliest version of John Ainslie's plan, dedicated to Provost David Stewart

(Provost 1780-82), but undated. The New Town is shown completed to about

mid-way along the section of George Street between St Andrew's Square and Hanover Street. A projected circus is shown at the junction of Frederick Street and George Street, contained within the line of the secondary streets. This is

presumably the last variant of Craig's circus project first put forward around 1774 (Part III No.3e) but never executed. A facsimile of the plan is reproduced in D. Simpson, Edinburgh Displayed (Edinburgh 1962). Original in Dr Simpson's possession.

PART III: PLANS OF THE NEW TOWN AND CONNECTED WORKS

BY JAMES CRAIG

July 1763

(1) A Plan and Elevation of the Bridge Intended to be built over the North Loch Edinburgh Inscribed below title with ornamental border top centre, 'James Craig Delint, H. Gavin Sculpt Edinr 1763'. Plan and elevation in two figures of the proposed bridge showing the buildings between Fleshmarket Close and Halkerston's Wynd with proposed access through there from the High Street to the bridge. Sections showing gradients of the proposed bridge and its access compared with those of the then existing roads between the Old Town and Multrees Hill. Three 'figures' and an 'explanation' thereof in righthand upper corner, on the left an NB: 'The area of the Upper and Lower Flesh Mercats, with

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those of the Neighbouring Ruins may be turned into a Noble and spacious square, quite open upon the end of the Bridge.'7 Of particular interest as the first occasion on which Craig appears to be connected with the New Town

projects. Copies: Published in the Scots Magazine xxv, (July 1763), 361, prefacing the article 'Of the Intended Enlargement of the City of Edinburgh'. On p.362: 'NB A plan of the intended brige may be seen in the hands of Mr George Fraser, deputy auditor of the Excise... This plan, with a map of the city and its environs is since published by Messrs Phinn and Mitchelson, engravers.'

August 1763

(2) A Plan and Elevation of the intended New Bridge over the North Loch with a Plan of Edinburgh Exhibiting all the proposed Improvements in that City [Fig. 32b] 'Published by Authority, Edinburgh, Augt 1763 and sold at the shop of Phinn and Mitchelson, Copperplate and Seal Engravers, Luckenbooths, and by Hector Gavin, Engraver, Parliament Close.' The plan of the city, in the upper right-hand half of the sheet would seem to derive from Edgar (Part I No. 1). It shows a 'ring road' round the northern and western sides of the city con-

necting up with the proposed bridge and a southern approach on the line of the future Nicholson Street forking at its northern end, the purpose being to relieve traffic congestion within the city and facilitate communication with the Port of Leith. Explanatory note to this effect inserted between the title and the

plan. In the lower left-hand part of the sheet, a re-engraved version of the plan and elevation of the bridge shown in No.1. The carriage shown in No.1 is not inserted here; the NB is now 'figure' 4 in the explanatory note. The scale is

slightly larger. At the foot of the plate 'Jas. Craig Delin". A print of the section showing the city, and the ring road exists and is probably an earlier version. It is unsigned, without the explanatory note, title or date. The projected road from Abbey Hill round the southern face of Calton Hill

(the present Regent Road) stops short at the Calton burial ground and does not cross over the Calton ravine. The line of Nicholson Street is only pencilled in. At the top centre is a lettered key to streets &c. On the back is written in pencil: 'This appears to be an early proof of a plan of the City Improvements by James Craig. The finished plate has a plan of the North Bridge.' It is reproduced in RSGS Mag. (1919), marked 'Anonymous map, circa 1767' and in Book of the Old

Edinburgh Club xxiii, 4 (Edinburgh 1941). Copies: Phinn & Mitchelson plan - British Museum: 1; Public Library: 1 and 2

photostats; National Library of Scotland: 1 photostat; Huntly House Museum, Edinburgh: 1 photostat; early print - Royal Scottish Geographical Society, Edinburgh: 1

July 1767

(3) Plan of the New Town Original MS approved by the Town Council and signed by the Lord Provost, Gilbert Laurie, 29 July 1767. At the top centre enclosed in an ornamental border a quotation from the poet James Thomson, Craig's uncle, 'Liberty, Part V, The Prospect'.18 The streets on the plan are unnamed, nor are the widths of the 46



streets inscribed. The central area of the two squares is drawn on a separate piece of paper and stuck down, that of the western square being wrongly set so that it reads from south to north. Thus the two 'equestrian statues' inscribed on the western square face north instead of facing along the axis of the central main street, to the pair correctly shown on the eastern square. In the centre of each square an 'obelisque' is marked. In the centre of the blocks, on the western and eastern side of the squares respectively, a site is provided for a church. Gardens are shown, corresponding to the blocks of houses to the north and south and on the south side of the North Loch, now laid out as an ornamental canal. The area to the north of the bridge and east of the eastern square is marked 'Cleland's Feu' and includes other properties (outside the extended

Royalty). A square 'public building', also stuck on, is shown due north of the

bridge, overlapping part of Cleland's Feu and the other properties, and is the future Register House projected in the'Proposals' of 1752.

Copies: Huntly House Museum, Edinburgh: original MS

1767

(3a) Plan of the New Town at Edinburgh [Fig.33a] Apparently the earliest engraving from the original plan, it is unsigned. The title in the lower left corner is surrounded by allegorical figures. At the

top centre is an ornamental border with vignettes of streets, but an empty space within the border where Thomson's lines are later inserted. The churches, obelisks and equestrian statues, though shown as in the original MS above, are not so named. Ornamental gardens are shown behind the blocks of houses. The property of Sir Lawrence Dundas19 is shown, surrounded

by a dotted line, behind the site of the eastern church; and the squares, later named after St Andrew and St George. The main parallel streets read from top to bottom: Forth Street, George Street and St Giles Street; the transverse ones, from left to right: Castle Street, Green Street and Hanover Street. The transverse streets on either side of the squares are unnamed, as are the secondary streets. To the right of the bridge the Orphans' Hospital and Trinity College church are shown but not named. The plan is reproduced in F. C. Mears & J. Russells' 'The New Town of Edinburgh', Book of the Old Edinburgh Club xxiii (Edinburgh 1941), in folder at back.

Copies: Original engraving in the possession ofF. C. Mears FRIBA

On 15 August 1767 appeared the following advertisement:

'Speedily will be published, by Authority of the Right Honourable the Magis- trates of Edinburgh a Plan of the New Town, Elegantly engraved from the original designed by James Craig, Architect.'

Plan No.3a must be an early proof following the advertisement and printed before the Town Council minute of 14 October 1767: 'A question was raised anent the common sewers for the New Town. In the absence of anyone present being capable of giving proper directions, Mr Craig expressed his willingness to go to London thereanent.'

During his stay in London, Craig submitted a copy of his plan to King George III and it was then that the street names were changed and the dedication added. The King himself suggested the alteration of St Giles Street to Princes

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Street, as the name of St Giles was then associated with an insalubrious area of London. Craig had mistakenly named Queen's Street Forth Street and this was corrected. Sir John Pringle, the Council's representative in London, apparently suggested the alteration of Green Street to Frederick Street in compliment to the royal family. The plan received the royal approval, and the dedication read as follows: 'To His Sacred Majesty George III the Munificent patron of every Polite and Liberal Art. This plan of the New Streets and Squares intended for His ancient

Capital of North Britain; one of the happy Consequences of the Peace, Security, and Liberty his People enjoy under his mild and auspicious Government, Is with the utmost Humility Inscribed by His Majesties Most devoted Servant and Subject, James Craig.'2?

1767

(3b) Plan of the New Town at Edinburgh The only surviving copy of the plan mentioned in the Town Council minute of 23 December 1767. It bears the dedication to the King and the new street names (as they are today apart from St George's Square, soon changed to its present name, Charlotte Square). There is no reference to the Lord Provost or magistrates, an omission that caused them some irritation. There are certain differences from plan No.3a; the ornamental border at the top centre is of a

slightly different shape and design, there are no vignettes. The quotation from Thomson's Liberty Part V uses another combination of lines from that in plan No.3, lines 701-702, 709, 710 and up to 'enlivened isle' in line 711. The square public building north of the bridge is now called 'Register House' and to the right of the bridge Trinity College church is now so named. The streets and squares have their widths marked. The gardens behind the houses are shown en bloc, no longer ornamental. Apart from these divergences, the plan is similar to No.3.

Copies: British Museum: 1; Edinburgh Public Library: 1 photostat

1768

(3c) Plan of the New Streets and Squares intended for the City of Edinburgh Similar type to No. 3a, at the foot of the sheet the plan is signed 'Ja. Craig, Arch. inven. et delin. and P. Begbie, Sculp.', dated January 1768. The title ornamented by allegorical figures is in the lower left corner as in No.3a. Top centre is an ornamental border as in No.3a, with the quotation from Thomson's Liberty Part V as in No.3b, now used in all subsequent prints. The Lord Provost is now acknowledged at the foot of the plate above the middle of the margin: 'This Plan was begun to be carried into execution Anno 1767, The Right Honourl" Gilbert Laurie, Esq., Lord Provost.' The dedication to George III signed by Craig with the royal coat of arms in the centre is placed below the margin. Instead of the equestrian statues and obelisques shown in the previous plans, only one equestrian statue is now inscribed in the middle of the two squares. The two churches in the squares are now so named. The square building due north of the bridge is marked 'public building' not 'Register House' as in No.3b. The buildings to the right of the bridge are as in No.3b, below them, above the margin, is now inserted a note giving the widths of the main streets 48



and of the pavement. The gardens behind the houses are shown en bloc as in No.3b and as in all subsequent prints. Sir Lawrence Dundas's property is now laid out with parterres, though he had already acquired the site of the eastern church the latter is still featured as in the following New Town plans. Copies: National Library of Scotland: 1; Edinburgh Public Library: 2; Edinburgh University: 2

1768 (3d) Plan of the New Streets and Squares intended for the City of Edinburgh [Fig.33b] Similar to No.3c but with certain additions and changes: the 'public building' is now changed to 'Register Office', its shape approximating to Robert Adam's design. Its insertion has caused certain alterations around it: the square building previously shown to the right of it is erased and the 'Register Office' encroaches to the north on Cleland's Feu. In the area to the right of the bridge 'Lady Glenorchy's Church' and the 'Methodist Meeting' have been inserted, while the unnamed Orphans' Hospital has been slightly twisted round. The 'North side of the High Street' has now been inscribed at the foot of the plate to the left of the bridge and the words 'scale of feet' have been erased. This is the final form of the January 1768 series. Copies: National Library of Scotland: 3; Edinburgh Public Library: 2; Edinburgh University: 1

c. 1774 (3e) Plan of the New Town [Fig.34a] Original MS of an amended plan submitted to the Town Council around 1774 showing a circus at the intersection of George Street and Frederick Street, on a large scale similar to No.3. The circus is open only on the line of George Street; Frederick Street simply gives access to the secondary streets between Queen Street and George Street and between the latter and Princes Street which curve round the circus in crescents. Housing blocks are only shown on their straight sections at the Castle Street and Hanover Street ends. An obelisk is marked in the centre of the circus. The housing blocks in the left of the circus have a central emphasis, but in the right half only the northern and southern blocks facing St Andrew's Square have this feature. As in No.3 Sir Lawrence Dundas's property is not shown, although by this date the construction of his house was in progress. Two temples are shown on either side of the west end of the canal. The Register Office, Craig's Royal College of Physicians (built 1775-77) and the Theatre Royal (1768) are inserted, like the squares apparently stuck on. The quotation from Thomson is the same as in No.3. The plan bears no signature or date. Though there is a handwritten note describing the widths of the streets in the upper left-hand corner, it is partly illegible. Copies: Huntly House Museum, Edinburgh: original MS

1774

(3f) Plan of the New Streets and Squares intended for the City of Edinburgh [Fig.34b] Engraved plan for the circus scheme, title and style are of the form of No.3d.

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Above the royal coat of arms in the dedication is inscribed: 'This improvement was presented to the Magistrates by Mr Craig in A.D. 1774.' A circus is shown at the junction of George Street and Frederick Street but there are certain differences from No.3e: the circus has the same diameter but the intermediary streets (now called Rose Street and Thistle Street) have houses on their crescents as well; the line of Frederick Street is restored but two churches are now inserted extending back from the circus to the Rose Street and Thistle Street crescent. The central emphasis to the blocks in the left-hand section of No.3e is no longer shown, nor are the Royal College of Physicians and the Theatre Royal. This plan is also featured in the portrait of James Craig by David Allan [Fig.30a]. Copies: Huntly House Museum, Edinburgh: 1; Edinburgh Public Library: photostat

1773

(4) Plan of a New Designed Square, the property of Mr Walter Ferguson, writer in Edinburgh [viz. 4b, Fig. 35] Plan of St James' Square. The title is at the top and in the bottom left-hand corner: 'Jas. Craig Arch. inven. et delin., Edinburgh, 1773.' In the upper left corner is a note of four figures stating the 'Advantages of the Situation of the

Square'. It shows the development of the area of Cleland's Feu north of the Register Office. The Register Office and other buildings including the 'Metho- dist Meeting' and the Theatre Royal are shown as well as the eastern side of St Andrew's Square. Instead of the church, Sir Lawrence Dundas's house is shown. The road to the left of the Register Office is partly continued by a dotted line, intimating perhaps the intention of continuing it to join the open upper left-hand corner of the square. The streets leading out of the square to the right are also open suggesting continuation of the scheme to Leith Walk. Copies: Heriot Trust, Edinburgh: tracing probably of original drawing

1773

(4a) St James' Square Same title as in No.4 above, but engraved version 'P. Begbie, Sculpt.' Copies: City Chambers, Edinburgh (archives): 1

1773

(4b) St James' Square Engraved version as in No. 4a, but with Register Office shown in elevation. Copies: British Museum: 1; Edinburgh Public Library: 2 photostats; Bodleian Library (Gough Collection): 1

1773

(4c) St James' Square Signed by Craig and engraved by Begbie, this plan is limited to the area of the square and the Register Office (plan only). It does not extend so far south, east or west, nor does it have the note on the advantages of the square; it is coloured. Copies: Edinburgh Public Library: Edinburgh Miscellania vi 50



1786 (5) Plan for Improving the City of Edinburgh [Figs 36a & b] Pamphlet published by Craig in 1786, illustrated with his plan of the projected South Bridge development, engraved by Kirkwood and showing an octagon at the junction of the High Street with the North and proposed South Bridge. A crescent is laid out at the southern end of the South Bridge containing in its upper part the enlarged University area and in the lower the Old Infirmary. A new road is shown running from Lauriston east towards Arthur's Seat and Musselburgh. In the lower right-hand corner it is emphasized that Leith Street should be considerably wider than the present constricted approach to Princes Street. Elevations of the houses in the proposed octagon and the Tron Kirk are also included, engraved by Joshua Archibald.

The pamphlet itself is an enlightened town planning document. The octagon would 'prevent the accidents to which both carriages and foot passengers would be liable if the entry to so great a thoroughfare was at right angles to the High Street.' Markets are provided by the North Bridge. The South Bridge had to be wide enough, with buildings running its length, to allow for heavy traffic. The vast crescent'would represent the City like an open generous friend with extended arms giving a hearty welcome to all strangers from the south'. The suggested east-west axis from Lauriston to Musselburgh was to pass between Calton Hill and Arthur's Seat, where landscaping would improve the natural beauty of the setting, 'the most picturesque and elegant approach that probably can be to any city whatsoever'. This new road proposal is strongly reminiscent of the ring road scheme of 1763 (Part III No.2), and Craig points the comparison by his suggestion here that 'a road should be carried up the south side of Calton Hill which would complete the circle and make an elegant road round the City'. Copies: City Chambers, Edinburgh (archives): 1; Edinburgh Public Library: 2

MEADE: NEW

TOWN OF

EDINBURGH

NOTES

1 Of this relationship Craig was inordinately proud, frequently ornamenting his plans with appropriate quotations from Thomson's Prospect of Britain. 2 Milne's Square 1684-88, Milne's Court in the 1690s, then James Court in 1727 nearby in the Old Town. Soon after came Argyle Square to the south (east of Greyfriars), part of which was built by 1742, viz. William Edgar's map of that year (Part I No. 1). Brown Square and farther east St James' Square c.1762. Most important of these small schemes was the laying out in 1766 of the far more spacious George Square, immediately north of the Meadows. 3 Part III No. 1. 4 Part III No.2. 5 The bridge was eventually built to the designs of William Mylne, brother of the architect of Blackfriars Bridge; cf. R.S. Mylne, The Master Masons of the Crown of Scotland (Edinburgh 1893), Book 4, p.249. 6 Part II Nos 3 & 3a. 7 Part II Nos 2 & 2a. 8 Part III No.3. 9 Part III No.3b. 10 Part I No.3e & 3f.

51



ARCHITECTURAL

HISTORY 14: 1971

11 Part II No.4. 12 Part III No.4. 13 The David Allan portrait shows the elevation of his Physicians Hall of 1773

(influenced by Chambers's Duddingston House of 1768)and the second version of his circus project of 1774 (Part III No.3). 14 Part III No. 5. 15 William Sibbald was Superintendent of Works and Deacon of Masons, 1807-08. 16 The city was unable to acquire the land immediately north of the bridge at the time of the competition. Eventually the Register House was built to the

designs of Robert Adam. Craig was later able to site St James' Square in this area in a speculative private commission (cf. Part III No. 4). 17 In 1786 Craig was to present a plan for an octagon at the junction of the

High Street with the North Bridge (Part III No.5); though differently sited, this was perhaps a development of the idea first considered here. 18 The quotation seems to be an arbitrary compendium of the lines 701-702, and 709, 710 then jumping back to lines 692-693 with certain changes. This rather garbled form may be due to the amendment made by Lyttelton in his

publication of Thomson's Works in 1750, after the poet's death in 1748. Drastic

changes were made in subsequent editions, but in 1762 the Works was re-

published by Murdoch, returning to the form of 1750. 19 Before the year was out Sir Lawrence had managed to acquire the feu of the

proposed site for the eastern church. Here he soon started to build a town house to the design of Sir William Chambers, completed by 1778. The area marked 'Sir Lawrence Dundas's Property' on the plan he made his garden. Thus St Andrew's church had to be relegated to a secondary position on the north side of George Street. 20 The Town Council minutes for 23 December 1767 give full details in a

transcript of a letter to the Council from Sir John Pringle.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

F. C. Mears & J. Russell, 'The New Town of Edinburgh', Book of the Old Edinburgh Club xxii & xxiii (Edinburgh 1939-41) W. Cowan, The Maps of Edinburgh 1544-1929 (Edinburgh 1932) D. Simpson, Edinburgh Displayed (Edinburgh 1962) A. J. Youngson, The Making of Classical Edinburgh (Edinburgh 1966)

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I am indebted to Dr David Simpson for his advice and for permission to re- produce plans in his possession, also to Dr Alistair Rowan for his invaluable help and encouragement. Thanks go also to Mr J. Makey, the City Archivist, and to the staff of the Edinburgh Room of the Edinburgh Public Library.

Illustrations are reproduced by kind permission of the National Library of Scotland, the Edinburgh Public Library, the Scottish National Portrait Gallery. the Old Edinburgh Club, Huntly House Museum and the Bodleian Library.

The photographs were taken by Mr Graham S. Falconer of Edinburgh, except for those supplied by the National Library of Scotland, the Scottish National Portrait Gallery and the Bodleian Library, Oxford. 52



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