Astley Ainslie Hospital

A historical perspective, drawn from the Ordnance Gazetteer of Scotland: A Survey of Scottish Topography, Statistical, Biographical and Historical, edited by Francis H. Groome and originally published in parts by Thomas C. Jack, Grange Publishing Works, Edinburgh between 1882 and 1885.

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Borough Muir, a quondam open common in St Cuthbert and Liberton parishes, Edinburghshire, adjacent to the S side of Edinburgh city. In 1504 it was overgrown with wood, of which it was mainly cleared in result of an order of the Edinburgh authorities allowing the citizens to purchase portions of the timber on highly advantageous terms; in 1513 it was the ground where James IV. mustered and reviewed his army on the eve of marching to Flodden. A large chapel, dedicated to St Roque, stood at the W end of the common; had a cemetery where victims of the plague were buried; and, at the Reformation, was converted into private property. Much of the quondam common is occupied now by handsome suburbs. A massive stone, in which was planted James IV. 's standard, still stands in a wall adjoining Morningside church, and bears the name of Bore Stone.

An accompanying 19th C. Ordnance Survey map is available, or use the map tab to the right of this page.

Note: This text has been made available using a process of scanning and optical character recognition. Despite manual checking, some typographical errors may remain. Please remember this description dates from the 1880s; names may have changed, administrative divisions will certainly be different and there are known to be occasional errors of fact in the original text, which we have not corrected because we wish to maintain its integrity. This information is provided subject to our standard disclaimer

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