St James’s Park’s is at the very heart of London and covers 23 hectares (58 acres). It is the oldest Royal Park in London and is surrounded by three palaces.

St James’s Park is bounded by The Mall to the north, Horse Guards to the east, and Birdcage Walk to the south. The park has a small lake, St James’s Park Lake, with two islands, Duck Island (named for the lake’s collection of waterfowl), and West Island.St James Park

A bridge across the lake affords a westward view of Buckingham Palace framed by trees and fountains,

and a view of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, similarly framed, to the east.

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Edinburgh History and Edinburgh Castle begins on the rock on which Edinburgh Castle stands.

The rock was formed 70 million years ago.
Edinburgh Castle is an ancient fortress which, from its position atop

Castle Rock, dominates the sky-line of the city of Edinburgh, and is Scotland’s second most visited tourist attraction

It occupies the summit of an ancient plug of volcanic rock towering 260ft or 80m above the city it dominates, and is visible for tens of miles in every direction.

Edinburgh Castle started to develop into a royal fortress during the reign of David I from 1124 to 1153. Edward I of England took the castle after a three day siege in 1296. The Scots retook it in 1314 by scaling the rock at night, but the English were back in possession by 1335, only to lose it once more to the Scots by stealth in April 1341.
Edinburgh Castle
In 1715 the Jacobites very nearly captured Edinburgh Castle by scaling the rock, as Robert the Bruce’s men had done 401 years earlier

Edinburgh Castle remains a military base today. Direct administration of the castle by the Ministry of Defence only came to an end in 1915 when the army moved to the city’s Redford Barracks. Nevertheless, the Castle continues to have a strong connection with the Army. Sentries still stand watch at the castle gatehouse between 6pm and 9am,

As early as 1818 the potential of Edinburgh Castle as a visitor attraction

The Castle is now run and administered, for the most part, by Historic Scotland. Historic Scotland is an executive agency of the Scottish Government.

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