Edinburgh

"Croft-an-Righ"

A 16th Century house at Abbeyhill

Location

Abbeyhill

This view shows the 16th century house 'Croft-an-Righ' or 'Field of the King'.  In the background is Arthur's Seat in Queen's Park. 

Croft-an-Righ is situated at Abbey Hill, a short distance to the north of Holyrood Palace and Abbey.

Recollections

Thank you to Maurice Wilkins, Oban, Argyll, Scotland for sending me these recollections of Croft-an-Righ.

Maurice wrote:

The House

"I lived for a few years in the old house of Croft-an-Righ, off Abbeyhill, while working as a gardener at Holyrood Palace, from 1973-76.

I visited it again last year on Open Doors day, 2003, Having a resurgence of interest in old Edinburgh.  The house is said to have been built originally for Regent Moray in 1588.

I'm sure it's the most interesting house I shall ever live in! I remember the difficulty I had in drilling holes to take the curtain rails! Solid rock!

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The engraving (above, published 1890) is amazing! The house is so similar to its state today.

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We occupied the two top floors. The number of times I have walked down the front steps and back in through the small door beyond the turret, to climb a set of wooden steps to enter the Palace gardens!

Mr Duthie the Chargehand,  my boss, lived with his family in the two lower floors and entered through the door just this side of the steps."

The Palace Grounds

"Looking back it was interesting working in the Palace grounds too - I'll always remember going down the garden one morning to find a huge hole in the lawn exposing a wonderful stone-built culvert with the section of an egg in shape, about 4-5ft high. Shining a torch along it showed it to be intact as far as the beam would reach in both directions - from the old town area towards Portobello.

As far as I remember, it was just filled in without ceremony. I suppose it was just a drain.

I also remember someone digging in the frame yard to lay pipes and uncovering a mass of yellowing bones. The police were called as a formality but they were a few hundred years too late, probably being a plague graveyard.

The other thing that stands out in my mind is creeping across the lawn and daring to go into the abbey ruins at midnight, for some reason.  That was before the surveillance equipment went in, of course!"

Maurice Wilkins, Oban, Argyll, Scotland: October 5 to 17, 2003

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