Edinburgh: History, Former Names & Timeline

Capital of Scotland. The Old Town between the Castle Rock and Holyrood was the seat of the medieval Scottish crown, and in the eighteenth century the city became the centre of the Scottish Enlightenment.

Map showing Edinburgh in 1600 — Border map for 1600. See Europe in 1600.

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Former names of Edinburgh

From	Name	Note
AD 600	Din Eidyn	Brittonic hill fort
1100	Edinburgh

Timeline of Edinburgh

Year	Event
AD 638	Northumbrian Angles besiege Din Eidyn and take the stronghold
1128	David I founds Holyrood Abbey
1583	The University of Edinburgh opens
1603	James VI inherits the English throne and the court moves to London
1707	The Acts of Union take effect and the Scottish Parliament is dissolved
1767	The plan for the New Town is adopted and the city expands north
1999	The Scottish Parliament reconvenes

Who ruled Edinburgh

Derived from the border maps; each row runs until the next recorded border change.

Period	State
500 BC–401 BC	Unclaimed / no data
400 BC–2 BC	Celts
1 BC–799	Unclaimed / no data
800–999	Picts
1000–1782	Scotland
1783–1814	United Kingdom
1815–1937	United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
1938–today	United Kingdom

Battles and sites near Edinburgh

Hadrian's Wall · AD 122
Lindisfarne · AD 793

Nearby cities

York · about 259 km
Dublin · about 350 km
Oxford · about 484 km

Questions about Edinburgh

What was Edinburgh called in the past?

Edinburgh has been known as Din Eidyn (from AD 600, Brittonic hill fort). Its present name dates from 1100.

Which states have ruled Edinburgh?

On the historical border maps from 500 BC to today, Edinburgh lies within 5 different states: Celts, Picts, Scotland, United Kingdom, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.

What are the key dates in the history of Edinburgh?

AD 638: Northumbrian Angles besiege Din Eidyn and take the stronghold. 1128: David I founds Holyrood Abbey. 1583: The University of Edinburgh opens. 1603: James VI inherits the English throne and the court moves to London. 1707: The Acts of Union take effect and the Scottish Parliament is dissolved.

Last updated 9 November 2026. Sources: border data from historical-basemaps, land and rivers from Natural Earth; texts written for Chronica Maps from standard reference works. How we make the maps.