Historic Edinburgh Tours offer a variety of walks around
Edinburgh’s Old Town. We’re unable to offer Edinburgh
teachers set discounts on our scheduled tours, but if you
contact us about days when we’re already taking guests out
and around Edinburgh, we’ll happily try to fit you in and
offer you a discount.
Teachers are, of course, able to book any of our Edinburgh
tours and our private tours at normal adult rates.
Our Old Edinburgh walking tour would probably be the one
most likely to support teachers own professional
development about the general history of the Old Town.
We do visit a couple of locations which were important to
the life of Mary, Queen of Scots. If you are a teacher and
you are studying Mar, please let us know the date of the
tour you’ve booked on, and your guide will try to point out
other relevant ‘Mary’ places.
Please contact us so that we can discuss your Mary Queen of Scots in Edinburgh
tour requirements.
Email us at; robert@historicedinburghtours.co.uk
You can also call/text us on; 07590 026 077
Please contact us so that we can discuss your Mary Queen of Scots in Edinburgh
tour requirements.
Email us at; robert@historicedinburghtours.co.uk
You can also call/text us on; 07590 026 077
MARY, QUEEN OF SCOTS IN
EDINBURGH TOUR
In a nutshell;
EXPLORE THE EDINBURGH OF MARY,
QUEEN OF SCOTS.
The main events in Mary’s life took place in a wide variety of places. Scotland, France and, ultimately, England all served as stages for Mary’s story. We can’t (and don’t) cover all of Mary’s story in this tour, but we will take your classes to the scenes of incredible importance in Mary’s life. From long-lost palaces where Mary spent her childhood, to the site of the home of one of her most bitter rivals, this tour allows your children to explore the city as Mary would have known it. We think there’s something really exciting about visiting the places where history happened! This tour is not an expository lecture. We’ve incorporated numerous opportunities for ‘think, pair, share’ and other strategies. Although your guide has over twenty years of experience as a primary teacher, this tour has been designed by him to let your pupils use and discuss a variety of different types of evidence. This tour is a carefully crafted experience for your pupils, one which will allow them to use pieces of historical evidence and discover the Edinburgh places where Mary once walked.
“WHAT HAPPENED TO MARY’S
SECOND HUSBAND, HENRY, LORD
DARNLEY?”
Your “Mary” tour of Edinburgh starts with a bang…almost literally! We’ll use ‘crime scene’ maps of the infamous Kirk o’Field site to learn about the assassination of Mary’s second husband. The Kirk o’Field site is a really exciting and relevant part of your Mary tour. Henry, Lord Darnley, was murdered on February 10, 1567, and we’ll take your pupils right to the heart of the crime scene! It could be argued that this assassination was one of the most significant events in Mary’s history.
- £3 per pupil
- Monday-Wednesday availability
(possibly Thursdays also!)
- meets just outside the Museum of Scotland
(on Chamber’s Street)
- tour lasts approximately 2 hours
- pupils work indivdually and
with partners whilst using various
sources of evidence
- tour can be tailored to your times
and specific learning questions, just
let us know what you’d like us to
focus on.
“Our Crime and
Punishment tour on
Thursday night with
two P7 classes was
definitely one of the
best school trips I've
been on in my 22 year
teaching career”
L. Ross -
Class Teacher
“Thanks Robert! Your
knowledge and delivery
today were superb, and
you got the children just
right! I’ve already started
recommending your
tours”
P. Browning
Mary, Queen of Scots tour
A FEW LEARNING QUESTIONS ANSWERED ON YOUR
“WHAT WERE THE MOST
IMPORTANT PLACES IN MARY’S
EDINBURGH?”
We’ll visit quite a few places which were important in Mary’s life. Your class will see the site of the long lost palace of Mary’s mother, Mary de Guise. When she was an infant Mary would have known this place well. We’ll also find out about the welcome Edinburgh gave to Mary when she returned to Scotland after the death of her first husband. Your pupils can visit the High Kirk of St Giles (for a 50p extra fee which goes directly to the Kirk). They’ll also see where John Knox lived and where Mary spent her last night in Edinburgh.
“WHAT THINGS HAPPENED TO
MARY WHEN SHE LIVED IN
EDINBURGH?”
Obviously Mary spent time in places other than Edinburgh, there are a lot of things which happened here and which impacted on her life and times. Mary spent some of her childhood in a Castlehill palace, and the reasons behind this help explain why her reign was a troubled one. Although we don’t visit Holyroodhouse, we will visit the site of the murder of Henry, Lord Darnley. Your pupils will also see a replica of Mary’s tomb, and they’ll find out about support for Mary even after she’d left Scotland.
“WHAT EVIDENCE CAN WE USE TO
FIND OUT WHAT MARY’S
EDINBURGH WAS LIKE?”
We think it’s really exciting to be able to use copies of the famous “Kirk o’Field murder scene” at the very place shown in this map! Your pupils will use special laminated sheets to discover the past. There are plenty of opportunities for ‘think, pair, share’ as we compare images from the past with the streets we can see today. Your class will also see the replica of Mary’s tomb and a coin which tells us a lot more than they might expect!
“WHAT WAS LIFE LIKE IN MARY’S
EDINBURGH?”
We know that a little ‘colour’ can help your pupils imagine what life was like for the people who lived during the reign of Mary, Queen of Scots. We can lead your class right into an Old Town close. These important little side-streets are where most of Edinburgh’s social life happened. Your classes can find out about typical domestic arrangements, including (of course) what people did with their ‘household waste’! “Gardyloo!”
EXPLORE THE OLD TOWN WITH OUR
AWARD-WINNING EDINBURGH TOURS
*
IMPORTANT INFORMATION
FOR THE CLASS TEACHER
ACCESSIBILITY INFORMATION
Although pupils won’t be walking for the full two hour duration of this tour, there are limited places where we can offer rest areas. We’ve put together a page which will highlight some relevant accessibility issues which occur on this tour route. We’ve put together a page which will highlight some relevant accessibility issues which occur on this tour route. We can suggest some route alterations if your class requires this. There are limited options for this, however. Sadly, the Old Town is hilly and not brilliantly paved. All our tour routes cross at pedestrian crossings, and any alternative solutions might include streets which don’t have proper crossing areas. We’ve put together an accessibility information sheet with some information for your risk assessment print-out. You can access these here.
WET WEATHER INFORMATION
This tour is an ‘outside’ tour, and there are no areas where we can shelter out of the rain. We do realise that a wet and windy day probably isn’t going make for positive memories! We’re pretty flexible and will happily reschedule your date. There’s no extra cost for this. We realise this is useful if you are travelling on foot or using public transport. If you have organised transport, then please know that, whatever the weather, we will be there for you! If you’d like to reschedule your tour, please let us know by 8.30 am on the morning of your tour. My mobile number is 07590 026 077.
RISK ASSESSMENT
Risk assessment is something which your governing body will legally need you to carry out and, as such, we can only offer some suggestions and recommendations for your paperwork. While we can’t offer these as your official risk assessment, please click here to download our suggested risk assessment information and our route instructions. We’ve put together an accessibility information sheet with some information for your risk assessment print-out. You can access these here. This document has a standard meeting point for this tour. You may have discussed a different location in correspondence with your guide. This would be your starting place.
TOILETS (AND ADDED VALUE!)
We’ve got no ‘toilet’ stops on our tour, but you are welcome to ask the Museum of Scotland if you can use theirs. Most of our schools' tours of Edinburgh start just across the road from there. You may also want to book a teacher-led guided tour/exploration of the Museum of Scotland. This is free. They also offer a series of paid workshops. Booking something either of these options will allow you to ask for the use of their lunchroom. We also recommend checking out the educational workshops at Riddle’s Court. These come with a cost. A lunchroom is sometimes available.
Please contact us so that we can discuss your Mary Queen of Scots in Edinburgh
tour requirements.
Email us at; robert@historicedinburghtours.co.uk
You can also call/text us on; 07590 026 077
“WHY WAS MARY’S REIGN SO
IMPORTANT?”
There’s are many reasons so many classes study the reign of Mary, Queen of Scots and we’ll try to answer some of these on your tour. Your pupils will learn about the significance of Mary’s son when we look at the replica of Mary’s tomb. James became the first King of Scotland and England, something which played a part in his commissioning of the tomb. Classes will also find out about the intolerance of Mary’s time when they visit the site of the palace of Marie de Guise. We’ll also learn about the armed struggle which took place even after Mary had left Scotland.
TEACHER DISCOUNTS ON OUR SCHEDULED
AWARD-WINNING EDINBURGH TOURS
*
Text/Call us :
+44 (0)7590 026 077
Copyright Historic Edinburgh Tours Ltd 2020
Registered in Scotland I SC 454482
28/2 Bridge Road, Edinburgh, EH13 0LQ
FIRST LEVEL OLD EDINBURGH TOUR
