Greyfriars Kirkyard
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Greyfriars Kirkyard is the graveyard surrounding Greyfriars Kirk in Edinburgh, Scotland, and is in the hands of a separate trust from the church. For many people, the graveyard is associated primarily with Greyfriars Bobby, the loyal dog who guarded his master's grave. Though Bobby's headstone is at the entrance to the Kirkyard, he is actually buried at a grassy verge by a wall nearby, as the Kirk authorities would not allow his burial on consecrated ground. The dog's famous statue is opposite the graveyard's gate, at the junction of George IV Bridge, and Candlemaker Row.
The Kirkyard was involved in the history of the Covenanters. They began in 1638 with signing of the National Covenant in the Kirk, and in 1679 some 1200 Covenanters were imprisoned in the Kirkyard pending trial.
Many of the plots are enclosed in ornate stone and ironwork cages, called mortsafes, to preserve the dead from the attentions of the early 19th century resurrection men who supplied Edinburgh Medical College with the corpses for dissection. During the early days of photography in the 1840s the kirkyard was used by David Octavius Hill and Robert Adamson as a setting for several portraits and tableaux such as The Artist and The Gravedigger.
The Greyfriars Cemetery is reputedly haunted. One such haunt is attributed to the restless spirit of the infamous 'Bluidy' George Mackenzie (buried there in 1691), which is said to cause bruising and minor scratches and grazes on those who come into contact with it; few visitors tend to feel any ill effects. The Kirkyard is a favourite with ghost tours, which operate during the summer months, generally leaving from the High Street, and it is these which have embellished the reports. The SciFi channel's Scariest Places on Earth features Greyfriars Cemetery in a 2008 episode (This show was a repeat as Scariest Places is only in re-run status. It was only on for 4 years from 1999 to 2003).
The Kirkyard backs on to George Heriot's School, and the pub named Greyfriars Bobby.
A sign at the entrance of the Kirkyard (right) reads as follows
- In Greyfriars Church the National Covenant was adopted and signed 28 February 1638. In the Churchyard are objects of historical interest as the Martyrs' Monument towards the North East and the Covenanter's prison towards the South West. Also the graves of many Scotsmen and citizens of Edinburgh of whom some of the most important are
- James Douglas, Earl of Morton Regent of Scotland died 1581
- George Buchanan, Historian and Reformer died 1582
- Alexander Henderson, Churchman and Statesman died 1646
- Sir George McKenzie, King's Advocate died 1691
- Mary Erskine, School Founder died 1707
- William Carstairs, Statesman died 1715
- George Watson, School Founder died 1723
- Colin MacLaurin, Mathematician died 1746
- Thomas Ruddiman, Grammarian died 1757
- Allan Ramsay, Poet died 1758
- William Robertson D.D., Historian died 1793
- Duncan Ban MacIntyre, Gaelic Poet died 1812
- William Creech, Bookseller died 1815
- Henry MacKenzie, "The Man of Feeling" died 1831
- Thomas McCrie, Historian died 1835
Duncan Ban MacIntyre's memorial was renovated in 2005, after a fundraising campaign of over a year at the cost of about £3,000 [1].
Other people buried in the kirkyard include:
- Joseph Black (1728–1799)
- William McGonagall (1825–1902)
