Edinburgh Eye on the past

Published on Saturday 9 February 2002 00:00

It's all water under the bridge for Leith

Persevere is the motto of Leith, Edinburgh's historic port. And persevere it has through many transformations.

From the 13the century to the 18th century, Leith was Scotland's principal port, with shipbuilding a vital trade.

The ill-fated Mary Queen of Scots landed here in 1561 after years in France, George IV arrived in a kilt in 1822 and set off a new craze and the doomed Darien expedition left Leith in 1698. Burned in 1544 by Henry VIII's army, battered in a siege in 1560 and occupied by Oliver Cromwell's troops in 1650, Leith has always bounced back.

Its biggest struggle in the 20th century was with poverty and decay as the old trades vanished. Millions were flooded into the port, although views are mixed on how well the area has been "regenerated". Now its challenge is to keep its name after plans were revealed to relabel its parliamentary constituency.