Musselburgh
Musselburgh
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 Rennie Bridge over the River Esk |
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 Musselburgh
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| Musselburgh shown within East Lothian | |
| Population | 21,900 |
| OS grid reference | NT3472 |
| Civil parish | |
| Council area | |
| Lieutenancy area | |
| Country | Scotland |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | MUSSELBURGH |
| Postcode district | EH21 |
| Dialling code | 0131 |
| Police | Scottish |
| Fire | Scottish |
| Ambulance | Scottish |
| EU Parliament | Scotland |
| UK Parliament | |
| Scottish Parliament | |
Musselburgh (Gaelic: Baile nam Feusgan) is the largest settlement in East Lothian, Scotland, on the coast of the Firth of Forth, 6 miles (10 km) east of Edinburgh city centre. The population of Musselburgh is 21,900.
The name Musselburgh is Old English in origin, with "mussel" referring to the shellfish, and "burgh" derived from the Old English for "town".
Musselburgh was first settled by the Romans in the years following their invasion of Scotland in AD 80. They built a fort a little inland from the mouth of the River Esk, at Inveresk.
They bridged the Esk downstream from the fort, and thus established the line of the main eastern approach to Scotland's capital for most of the next 2000 years. The bridge built by the Romans outlasted them by many centuries. It was rebuilt on the original Roman foundations some time before 1300, and in 1597 it was rebuilt again, this time with a third arch added on the east side of the river. The Old Bridge is also known as the Roman Bridge and remains in use today by pedestrians. To its north is the New Bridge, designed by John Rennie the Elder and built in 1806. This in turn was considerably widened in 1925.
The Battle of Pinkie Cleugh was fought south of Musselburgh.
In about 1315 Musselburgh was made a burgh of barony, earlier than Edinburgh, which became a burgh in 1329; and there is a popular local song (in Scots) commemorating this:
Musselburgh is known as "The Honest Toun", and celebrates this by the annual election of the Honest Lad and Lass. The town motto "Honestas" dates back to 1332, when the Regent of Scotland, Randolph, Earl of Moray, died in the burgh after a long illness during which he was devotedly cared for by its citizens. His successor offered to reward the people for their loyalty but they declined, saying they were only doing their duty. The new regent, the Earl of Mar, was impressed and said they were a set of honest men, hence "Honest Toun".
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Wikipedia