Lady Stair's Close

Located on Edinburgh's Lawnmarket, Lady Stair's Close leads down to the 16th Century Lady Stair's House, which today is home for the Writer's Museum. It is one of a large number of narrow passages, of Mediaeval origins, which leads off the Royal Mile. It gives access to the Mound by descending a set of steep steps and was one a major thoroughfare. When the Mound was first created and long before the road was pushed through via George IV Bridge, Lady Stair's Close provided the main entry into the Old Town from the north.

The poet Robert Burns (1759 - 96) lived on the east side of what is today Lady Stair's Close, during his first visit to Edinburgh in 1786.


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