Edinburgh to London Euston and Putney Bridge🚉: 13. 5.1999

Edinburgh Waverley to London Euston🚉: 13.5.1999

Day 7 BritRail Pass🇬🇧 back to London where it all began, end of 8-day whirlwind fairy tale of 5 stopovers and 1200 rail miles across the length and breadth of the British Isles. Lifetime experience i will always treasure*🙏💕

Took the 9:00 am ScotRail Express Class 158 8-car train to Glasgow Queen Street calling at Haymarket, Falkirk and Polmont. Across the station is George Square named after King George III with statues of famous Scots such as Robert Burns, James Watt, Sir Robert Peel and Sir Walter Scott. 10-min walk from George Street takes you to Glasgow Central, a historic Victorian station, most of its original features retained.

Caught the “11:50” Virgin West Coast Trains #Intercity125 Main Line express to London Euston hauled at the rear by Class 87 no.87008 25kv overhead line electric loco - sheer pleasure @ 125 mph 1 hr 39 min to Carlisle with stops at Motherwell and Lockerbie. Jumped off at Carlisle on the English/Scottish border city in Cumbria and experienced its rich history:

1. After the Romans invaded Britain in 43 AD, the governor Agricola built a fort in 72 AD that provided support for garrisons on Hadrian Wall. It became a city named Luguvalium after a Celtic noble of the Carvetii tribe. By 1106, it had changed to Carleol, modern day Carlisle.

2. In 876 the Vikings invaded Carlisle. This changed in 1092 when William II invaded the region and incorporated Carlisle into England resulting in 400-year history of turbulence between Scotland and England until the English & Scottish crowns were united in 1603 after the death of Queen Elizabeth I and her succession by James VI of Scotland as King James I of England.

3. One of the bloodiest episodes of The War of the Roses (between the Houses of Lancaster and York) was the siege of 1461 when a combined Lancastrian & Scottish army took Carlisle Castle from the Yorkists.

4. During the English Civil War, the town was besieged from 1644 to 1645, the Royalist defenders under Charles I finally surrendered to Parliamentary forces of Oliver Cromwell.

5. In 1745, the Jacobites under Prince Charles Edward Stuart marched south from Scotland and after a short siege took Carlisle but did not hold it for long. Ten days later English forces under Prince William, the Duke of Cumberland (youngest son of George II), recaptured the castle and executed 31 Jacobites.

As you exit the station, you will encounter the beautiful façade of Carlisle Citadel station with its turreted octagonal tower opened in 1847. The first view of the city is the imposing towers of the Citadel that dominate the original south entrance into the city dating to 1541 when Henry VIII built it to replace the medieval Botcher Gate which was a gateway through the city walls. The East Tower held Civil Trials, outside stands the statue of William Lowther, the Earl of Lonsdale. The West Tower held Criminal Trials; there is no statue outside instead there is a cannon that protected the city during the Jacobite rising of 1745.

Walking from the Citadel takes you to English Street past the statue of James Steel, Mayor of Carlisle 1845-1846. Behind it is Marks & Spencer, site of Highmore House where Prince Charles Edward Stuart slept on 6/7 November 1745 as he headed to England in an attempt to restore the Stuart Monarchy. A stone plaque recording this event is on the wall. Notable buildings in Market Square and Greenmarket are the medieval Guildhall now a museum, and the Old Town Hall in existence since 1345, now the Carlisle Tourist Information Centre. The clock tower has four sides yet only three clocks; the one bare side faces Scotland, petty jibe at our neighbours to the north, dating back to the middle ages*😜

In front of the Old Town Hall is the Carlisle (Market) Cross erected in 1682, traditional place for public proclamations. Prince Charles Edward Stuart proclaimed his father king here in 1745. An inscription on the north face reads: “Joseph Reed, Mayor, 1682” The lion at the top holds a copy of the City’s Charter in its paw, is said to face Scotland but snarling defiantly to the west. Below it are are four sundials. In pouring rain, i reached the magnificent Carlisle Castle built in 1092 by William II from stones taken from Hadrian’s Wall, and rebuilt by Henry I in 1122. In 1568, Mary Queen of Scots spent the first 2 months of her 19 years in captivity here. Currently, it is the Border Regiment Museum.

Time running out, i headed back to the station past the Citadel, the Cumbrian Hotel on the left was built in 1852 for the arrival of Queen Victoria in 1853 on her way to Balmoral. Next to it is Griffin Pub, formerly the Midland Bank.

Walked on the footbridge across platforms in time to see the “14:57” Virgin #Intercity125 to London Euston approach and snake its way to the platform & enjoyed 4-hour journey calling at Lancaster and Preston.

Took a ‘tube’ to Victoria, changed at Earl's Court for Putney Bridge to my hub at Fulham SW6💕