Swimming by the castle in Scotland 🏴 with friends ~ St Andrews Castle 🏰
Last week in Visiting The greatest cathedral ⛪️ in Scotland 🏴 with friends ~ St Andrews Cathedral I showed you the great cathedral ruins that are St Andrews cathedral which I visited with the trio of explorers @dreemsteem @samsmith1971 and @penderis.
This week we will leave the cathedral ⛪️ and turn to the right.
First of all though, you have to stop and have a selfie with The Pirate Dreemie herself and the obligatory old wooden door 🚪!
Once you are back onto North Street, the first thing that you come to is the War Memorial. You can see the St Rule's Tower and cathedral facade remains in the background.
St Andrews War Memorial was designed by Sir Robert Lorimer, built in 1922 and unveiled by Earl Haig and is a Category B listed building.
I was brought up attending Memorial Services in November and have laid many a poppy wreath, and always find War Memorials so poignant no matter what country they are in.
As the Ukraine conflict has turned one year old, posting this picture of the War Memomorial I believe is a fitting reminder of the atrocities that we as humans can do to each other.
Before we proceed I just need to remind you that it was January 23rd in the pictures and we are in the East of Scotland in winter !
I remembered as a child there were two outdoor swimming 🏊 pools that I swam in.
So yes that is the sea, and they made an outdoor swimming pool by the castle ruins. Sure enough, there was one that I remembered from my childhood.
How fluffing cool is that!
Take a closer look at the water inside the pool!
The word is invigorating!
This lady had been swimming. She then got dressed and drove away in her car. She was wearing makeup too.
However you can see from this next picture, the cutest thing of all was what she was wearing on her head ...
She had a woolly hat or thick ribbed beanie and was swimming breaststroke so as not to get her head wet! Smart lady.
Could you scale those walls?
Can you imagine trying to scale those walls 🧱 whilst defenders are standing above you, throwing oil and rocks 🪨 at you?
As we are in Fife, you are never far from a sandy beach 🏖️ but I don't there would be much sunbathing going on ifthe castle was being attacked and defended!
At the top of the path from the swimming pool was a plaque.
I have reread this and in a strange coincidence @lhes it happened today March 1st nearly 500 years ago!
It is an obituary to George Wishart and reads
GEORGE WISHART, 1513-1546.
A POWERFUL PROTESTANT PREACHER, HE WAS BETRAYED TO CARDINAL BEATON, BROUGHT HERE, PUT IN THE SEA TOWER, CONDEMNED FOR HERESY AND BURNT AT THE STAKE ON 1 MARCH, THE LETTERING GW ON THE ROADWAY MARKS WHERE HE DIED. HIS FRIENDS CONSPIRED AGAINST THE CARDINAL, AND ON 26 MAY GAINED ENTRY TO THE CASTLE, KILLED HIM AND HUNG HIS BODY FROM THE BATTLEMENTS, THEN TOGETHER IN THE CASTLE THEY CREATED THE FIRST CONGREGATION OF THE PROTESTANT CHURCH IN SCOTLAND.
If you remember when we toured the St Andrews cathedral we found out that its demise was due to the Protestant Reformation.
.>The cathedral and the Protestant Reformation
In 1559, John Knox preached a fiery sermon in St Andrews parish church, and the cathedral was ‘cleansed’ as a result. In 1561, it was abandoned and replaced by the parish church as the chief place of worship. St Rule’s was then left to fall into ruins.
It sends a chill down my spine to know that on this very day in 1546 George Wishart was burnt at a stake just because of the religion he believed in.
But what of the castle?
Well Sam was having fun taking pictures whilst Dreemie was smiling 😁 to my camera 📷
Let's take a closer look at what Sam was taking pictures of, shall we?
Like so many historical castles, there are now only ruins left.
Let's take a look at the main feature of this particular part of the walk!
St Andrews Castle
Some original 🏰 history and castle timeline
So what you see above is what is left of the castle with it's chequered history.
St Andrews Castle is now under the stewardship of Historic Environment Scotland and all quotes are sourced from their castle history information page on their website
Bishop Roger began the new castle as his official residence in 1189 (sounds like a fancy choose to me!)
The Castle suffered a shitload of damage during the Wars of Independence with England (1296–1356) and was substantially rebuilt by Bishop Walter Trail (1385–1401).
Archbishop James Beaton (1521–39) built new gun towers to strengthen the castle’s defences.
His nephew Cardinal David Beaton (1539–46) had Protestant preacher George Wishart burned in front of the castle. (That was today March 1st and the plaque I showed you). In response, a group of Protestant nobles occupied the castle and assassinated Beaton.
The siege that followed, led by the Regent Arran, caused more fluffing damage! It also resulted in the creation of the castle’s most remarkable features – the mine (dug by Regent Arran’s troops) and countermine (dug by the Protestant rebels). These underground passages of medieval siege warfare are unique.
Looks like someone was trying to see where those mines and countermines were!
- Archbishop John Hamilton (1546–71) repaired the badly damaged castle, giving it a new entrance front.
Hamilton was eventually hanged and St Andrews Castle was left without a resident or a purpose when bishops were abolished in 1592. It fell rapidly into ruin.
In 1801, the Great Hall collapsed and most of it plunged into the sea. There were further losses until a sea wall was built in 1886.
If you would to know more about the history of the castle then I refer you to this free 9 page document.
Download your free copy of the St Andrews Castle Statement of Significance here. I found it a fascinating read, and gives you a great timeline from 1123 onwards. Note the image is my screenshot of my copy that I downloaded.
And then...
The weather seemed like it was going to take a turn for the worse and someone needed restroom, so we ploughed on!
Who knows the name of that building?
This concludes part 2 of the wee St Andrews adventure 💙
Find part 1 here 👉 Visiting The greatest cathedral ⛪️ in Scotland 🏴 with friends ~ St Andrews Cathedral
This is also my contribution to #wednesdaywalk from the terrific @tattoodjay
Thanks for visiting and enjoy the rest of your day!
All images and ramblings are from me, the mad Scotsman TengoLoTodo and pictures taken with my Smartphone or Canon HS Powershot Bridge camera.
@tengolotodo March 1st 2023
PS It is the first of the month and that means HPUD!
So here is my power up today!
I know, it is not that great, but in my defence, I power up every day, so in reality that power up is three times that when taking the whole month into account!
This gave me a HP of 3,765.084. That will do for me!
Onwards and upwards people. and Happy HPUD
- If you don't know about Hive Power Up Day (HPUD) then check out It's here! Hive Power Up Day for March 1st, 2023 from our very own Queen of the HPUD @traciyork
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I think that you guys had the experience of a lifetime. WoW! You go boy! 🤗❤️💕❤️❤️😊
hehe I think you got that spot on😁💙
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What a fun day you all had. It looks awesome there Ed.
Beautiful ruins. And a swimming pool next to it.
The lady swimming with woolly hat hahaha 🤣 amazing.
Thanks for sharing that.
Have a great Wednesday, and happy HPUD 🎉🎉
Yes it was not the pool I vividy remember, but yes the woman with her wooly hat tickled me. She loved it and was wearing make up too, got out dried off then away into her car and off to work!
Yes was a fun time, happy HPUD Jackie:)
Hahaha just the sight alone, sooo cool. In make up too. Wow 😯 hahaha 🤣
What a way to wake up or have a swim in break time. They do say it’s healthy.
Thank you so much Ed 👋🏻😊
The remains of the castle are imposing. I can't imagine someone trying to take over the castle and getting hot oil. By the way, they are in winter and the woman was bathing in the pool. Too cold for me, but she looks very adapted. Do you go swimming in the pool in winter time?
The swimming is not something I do in winter, only in the summer when it is warm. Yes she enjoys it, then goes to work feeling wonderful she said!
The castle is imposing and you can imagine the place it would have been!
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I love posts that promote places with fabulous history and yes such places deserve their place here in the community.
Allow me to show you a picture of a place I like to go.
Wow, imagination running wild how that place must have been in its prime time.
Thanks for the trip and the pictures.
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And Dreemie decided that she wanted a bandage over her eyes 😂. I could hardly see the sockets😂
I have forgotten all the history I just read but George's is definitely unforgettable. 😐
Ooft - that lady was brave swimming at this time of year - it must have been freezing !
Its lovely place - nice castle too !!!
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the History there and the beauty is spectacular
that Woman is impressive swimming in the middle of winter, no way i could these days
back when I was growing up in NZ I did swim all year round in the ocean as part of my training for rugby but then again winters are mild there
having served in the Military and peacekeeping I do find war memorials very touching and profound also
Thanks for joining the Wednesday, its always fun for me to visit the walks from all around the world, getting a feel for communities where people live and what they see on their daily walks
Hi, here I am enjoying that ride. I didn't understand about The Pirate Dreemie...I have an OCD I have to understand everything.
I don't understand why with so many years we already have as a civilization the wars continue. Certainly we humans don't seem to be moving forward to become superior beings.
I found that image of the sea very poetic, and very well placed after your reflection on war. It is so peaceful.
Great about the swimming pool... here in Havana in some places on the Malecon there are concrete squares like that, as if they were swimming pools... one day I was told that in the past they had been public baths. I didn't like the image that came into my head :))
I can't see people bathing in the sea without wanting to get their hair wet, I immediately get naughty.
Maybe that hat isn't waterproof, is it?
No, I can't imagine that climb... terrible. I heard screams of pain.
Are you sure there are no ghosts in that area? I think there was too much pain there.
VOILÀ
I just met the pirate!!! Forgive my absentmindedness :))
No, I just saw that it was just a translation problem, lazy that I am I used google translator and missed the detail (herself) I'm not that absent-minded after all.
This post is very very good... lets know the history of that place in detail. Thanks for sharing. My respects and my regards.
Swimming in winter? Gosh that lady was something!
Ruins, I would love to visit that place too!
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Hi there, Ed. The place is really breath-taking!
I also loved the swimming pool at the beach.
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My Fluffy Teng, the Pirate Queen, and my dearest Sam with Pen. You guys are doing super well. I love the pictures taken.
If there is one thing I love, it's ancient history. I was literally gawking at my screen waiting to find out what you all saw next.
You did a great job with the explanation.✨
It seems you all really had fun, too bad the weather had to interrupt the fun.
Okay well, now I've seen everything...LOL! A lady swimming in cold water in the middle of winter...with a beanie on her head!
Here we have a standing joke about how you can tell who are holidaymakers versus who are locals around here during the winter months. I am talking about having temperatures between 18 degrees to about 25 degrees Celcius. All the locals are sitting on the beach with thick jackets on while all the holidaymakers are swimming and playing in the water...lol!
I think when it comes to having temperatures like yours during winter months, you won't even find any of us anywhere near the water... Although, as I've just seen now, we are allowed to use beanies while swimming in the water...😀👍!
Thanks for sharing these photos of your walk with the Pirate Dreemie, Ed!
When I lived in the South of Spain, I was the same laughing at the holidaymakers in water, when I would be in my winter coat lol
Crazy what some people will do, although winter swimming seems more popular now.
We have a Christmas and New Years day tradition in many places to have a swim or jump in the sea!
Hahaha...sounds like a lot of fun! BUt I think it will take a lot to get me in that water at those temperatures...LOL!
Have a great weekend, Ed!
Aww. I see you both; you and dreemie and I am smiling here. So cute photo of you guys.
Then the sea.... So cool and fascinating too 😎😎
You guys actually had fun together and I admire that.
I popped in through #dreemport
Great place you people have visited and really enjoyed yourselves
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The four musketeers (Scottish version)😂😂
That castle looks so cool although it's just ruins now😭😂😂
Hehe the four international musketeers I think
Yeah I do love old castles, they are fluffing mental!
hehe that woman was crazy!!! !LOLZ and to think she wasn't even in training for anything in particular; she just loves to go swimming each day. I was pretty gobsmacked when she walked up from the beach, fully made up and looking like she just needed to throw on an evening dress and she'd be set for a night out on the town.
St. Andrews was a lovely town to visit. So much history... from the cathedral to the castle to the golf course! And what a fun day it was, spent in such great company.
Well done on the power up - your HP is looking very healthy!
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