The Radical Road
People who know Edinburgh know that the “Radical Road” is the footpath leading from the meadow behind Holyrood House and the Scottish Parliament up the Salisbury Crags and then on to where the path to ascend Arthur’s Seat, Edinburgh’s backyard mountain, begins.
The path resulted from the social unrest in 1820, where labourers in Scotland protested against the government and the working and living conditions being forced on them, which they considered unfair. On 3 April 1820, a national strike started in Glasgow and was suppressed with an iron fist (some of the leaders were executed or transported to the colonies). After King George IV’s visit to Edinburgh in 1822, the famous writer Sir Walter Scott suggested that out-of-work “radical” weavers could build the footpath as a job creation scheme, and that was what eventually happened.
Bad news for tourists – and Edinburgh natives –: In 2018, the popular hiking path with its glorious views of the city was closed to the public for the time being, after a 50-ton rockfall. It is quite unclear what will happen in the long term – options include a glass “skyway”, security measures using wire meshes or avalanche galleries, a reopening for walkers “at one’s own risk”, or permanent closure.
From “Anselm's Notes on Dances”, by Anselm Lingnau
(Used by permission.)