245:, Law Officers and "Gentlemen of Importance"), assuming authority under older municipal regulations, were found to have issued contradictory orders to the harassed firemen. This finding prompted the passing of a new regulation whereby the City Firemaster (or, in his absence, his Deputy) was to be given complete command of all firefighting operations, a ruling subsequently adopted throughout Britain's fire services. The inquiry also criticised the inadequate number of firecocks that had been available to the firefighters and recommended improvements. Within a year the number for the whole town was increased from 45 to 97, with 88 more following later. The brigade was also fully re-equipped.
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The south side of the Royal Mile from the Tron Kirk to
Parliament Square was rebuilt as a planned run of well-proportioned but plain five-storey Georgian tenements. Some of the eastern blocks, which suffered less fire damage, incorporated some earlier fabric such as turret stairs. To the west a large
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The fire opened the way for a more formal completion of the
Scottish Law Courts in Parliament Square. This had been proposed as early as 1807, but blocked since 1810 by owners on the east side of the square. The fire destroyed the buildings they had been trying to retain and may have been viewed as a
101:
after the subsequent rebuilding of the affected area). This blaze started on the top floor of an eleven-story building overlooking the
Cowgate. This led to claims of divine intervention and punishment from God, as well as deliberate fire-raising. It was more likely the result of a still smouldering
240:
Amidst mounting public criticism of the new fire brigade and its young firemaster, an inquiry was held after the disaster. Braidwood and his "pioneers" (as the first firemen were called) were exonerated from all blame. The inquiry found that there had been confusion as to who had been in charge of
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collapsed and the fire continued to spread down Conn's Close towards the
Cowgate. Due mainly to a downpour of rain, the conflagration was brought under control by Wednesday evening, although small outbreaks continued and final smouldering did not cease until Friday, 19 November. Over the following
77:
Due to the narrowness of the alleyway, the fire spread quickly to adjoining buildings, first affecting those to the east of
Fishmarket Close and later spreading along the roofs of the High Street through embers carried by a southwesterly breeze. By midnight, four tenements were ablaze as the fire
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from more serious damage. The statue was created by the
Glasgow sculptor, Kenneth Mackay, and paid for from a fund set up by the late Dr Frank Rushbrook CBE, then 93-year-old former Firemaster at Lothian & Borders Fire Brigade.
74:. Although this new force arrived quickly with their custom-built fire engines, they had difficulty locating a water supply and did not begin to tackle the blaze until 11pm, by which time six stories of the building were ablaze.
102:
ember. This second phase of the fire began to consume the buildings on the east side of
Parliament Close. Efforts focused on saving the adjacent Parliament Hall and Law Courts, and stopping the fire leaping to
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An estimated 400 homes were destroyed, with 400-500 families left homeless. Thirteen people died including those of two firemen and many people were injured. Historic homes destroyed included that of
110:
made watercolour sketches during this second phase, viewing the fire from the west. By 5am on
Wednesday 17 November, the fire was described as "grand and terrific". The building housing the
286:, master of the newly formed Edinburgh fire brigade which had fought the fire, was unveiled in Parliament Square. The spot was chosen to mark the stand made by the fire brigade to save
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surviving building was nicknamed "Salamander Land" (due to the legend that salamanders can survive fire). This survived until the 1860s when it was replaced by the Police
Chambers.
82:. The Old Assembly Hall at the centre of the fire (which had given its name to the close) was destroyed during the night. Around midday on Tuesday, 16 November, the spire on the
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The fire broke out around 10pm on 15 November 1824, in James
Kirkwood's engraving workshop on the second floor of the Old Assembly Close, a narrow alleyway just off the
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caught fire and molten lead began to pour from its roof. Although firemen succeeded in reaching the roof of the church, the fierceness of the blaze forced them back.
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days, engineers from the castle and navy were employed to pull down the highly unsafe remnants of buildings left precariously balanced along the closes.
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At 10pm on Tuesday evening a secondary outbreak occurred in buildings on the corner of High Street and Parliament Close (renamed
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The city of Edinburgh had formed a permanent fire brigade only two months earlier under its new firemaster
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333:"Aye Ready!" The History of Edinburgh Fire Brigade, the Oldest Municipal Brigade in Britain
43:. It started on Monday, 15 November 1824, and lasted for five days, with two major phases.
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This article is about the 1824 fire. For the 16th-century English assault on the city, see
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180:: four double tenements of seven to eleven storeys destroyed, including the birthplace of
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a few years later (1829–33), partly to repair and conceal major scorching from the fire.
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Old Assembly Close: four seven-storey tenements lost and the Assembly Hall (a ballroom)
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J Gifford, C McWilliam, D Walker, The Buildings of Scotland, Edinburgh, Penguin 1984
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The fire attracted huge crowds of spectators including a large number of Law Lords:
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Notable residents who lost their home in the fire included
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The Scotsman - Lost Edinburgh: The Great Fire of Edinburgh
335:. Edinburgh: South Eastern Fire Brigade. pp. 10–13.
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Old Fishmarket Close: four six-storey tenements lost and
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was one of the most destructive fires in the history of
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was rebuilt in 1828, with a tall stone spire in the
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James Braidwood biography on Unidiscovered Scotland
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236:James Braidwood statue in Parliament Square
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134:(Solicitor General, later Lord Hope); the
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373:Grant's Old and New Edinburgh vol.2 p.242
162:) of great antiquity destroyed completely
158:Conn's Close: two timber-framed 'lands' (
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16:City fire in City of Edinburgh, Scotland
851:Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art
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32:A contemporary illustration of the fire
1182:Graveyards and cemeteries in Edinburgh
1131:Edinburgh International Film Festival
1126:Edinburgh International Book Festival
196:'s shop in Parliament Close destroyed
168:Borthwick's Close: six tenements lost
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307:J Grant, Old and New Edinburgh, 1880
218:Robert Dundas of Arniston, the Elder
93:Great Fire of Edinburgh by D O Hill
1027:Edinburgh Waverley railway station
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1080:Moray House School of Education
763:Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh
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773:Scottish Parliament Building
202:Several printworks destroyed
199:Old Assembly Hall destroyed.
62:One of Edinburgh's earliest
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821:National Museum of Scotland
140:Henry (later Lord) Cockburn
37:The Great Fire of Edinburgh
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120:Charles Hope, Lord Granton
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1306:Commercial building fires
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1032:Haymarket railway station
846:Scottish National Gallery
650:Lord Provost of Edinburgh
645:City of Edinburgh Council
173:Neill & Co printworks
1100:Scotland's Rural College
1065:Edinburgh College of Art
584:Edinburgh Stock Exchange
331:Reid, Alexander (1974).
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609:Great Fire of Edinburgh
553:Visit of King George IV
124:John Boyle of Shewalton
1311:Disasters in Edinburgh
1172:Geography of Edinburgh
1070:Heriot-Watt University
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753:Princes Street Gardens
683:Brass Founders' Pillar
478:Parliament of Scotland
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126:(Lord Justice Clerk);
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548:North British Railway
282:In 2008, a statue of
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78:advanced towards the
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1321:November 1824 events
1267:55.94972°N 3.18944°W
957:Edinburgh BioQuarter
907:Royal Lyceum Theatre
698:Craiglockhart Castle
564:Edwin of Northumbria
503:Edinburgh town walls
453:Mary, Queen of Scots
448:Burning of Edinburgh
21:Burning of Edinburgh
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1022:Edinburgh Crossrail
882:Edinburgh Playhouse
826:National War Museum
816:Museum of Edinburgh
806:Fruitmarket Gallery
783:St Giles' Cathedral
655:Scottish Parliament
498:Treaty of Edinburgh
468:Kingdom of Scotland
266:The steeple of the
257:St. Giles Cathedral
190:newspaper destroyed
108:David Octavius Hill
1291:1820s in Edinburgh
1272:55.94972; -3.18944
947:Caledonian Brewery
811:The Georgian House
533:Disruption of 1843
528:Church of Scotland
288:St Giles Cathedral
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104:St Giles Cathedral
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47:Sequence of events
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1177:Beer in Edinburgh
1085:Napier University
1060:Edinburgh College
912:St Cecilia's Hall
902:Reid Concert Hall
778:St Andrew's House
733:National Monument
718:Forth Road Bridge
713:Forth Rail Bridge
473:Act of Union 1707
188:Edinburgh Courant
130:(Lord Advocate);
112:Edinburgh Courant
99:Parliament Square
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1160:Other topics
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1270: /
743:Old College
738:New College
693:Calton Hill
594:Silvermills
523:James Craig
518:Robert Adam
53:High Street
1285:Categories
1255:55°56′59″N
1051:Health and
922:Usher Hall
877:(proposed)
836:Public art
688:Bute House
636:Governance
569:Devolution
483:David Hume
342:0950376809
295:References
272:Wren style
153:Royal Mile
106:. A young
1258:3°11′22″W
1114:Festivals
1075:Hospitals
1053:education
993:Transport
666:landmarks
599:Tron riot
443:Etymology
424:Edinburgh
268:Tron Kirk
228:Aftermath
160:tenements
132:John Hope
84:Tron Kirk
41:Edinburgh
1201:Category
1146:Hogmanay
513:New Town
508:Old Town
194:John Kay
1225:Outline
1213:Commons
1095:Schools
1007:Airport
1002:A1 road
933:Economy
797:Museums
579:Lothian
434:History
243:Bailies
80:Cowgate
1237:Portal
339:
261:ashlar
138:; and
1042:Trams
574:Burgh
557:Sir
337:ISBN
220:and
209:and
1287::
323:^
274:.
224:.
142:.
55:.
415:e
408:t
401:v
345:.
23:.
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