There are many long and steep footpaths and sets of stairs named ‘Jacob’s Ladder.’ They can be found all over Britain and elsewhere in the world. The name comes from the Biblical story in which Jacob had a dream where he saw a ladder that reached from the earth up to the heights of heaven. It was quite a busy ladder with lots of angels ascending and descending it. This prompted many a wit to later ask why they would do so if they had wings. Anyway, Edinburgh also has a Jacob’s Ladder, a narrow and steep path of winding stairs that rises from Calton Road up to Regent Road. The path was first recorded on a map in 1784, but is likely to have been in existence long before then.
Supposedly
the path was once used as a funeral procession route from the Old Town of
Edinburgh up to the Old Calton Burial Ground. How they did this, I’m not sure
given the steepness of the path and the number of stairs, but seemingly they
did. Of course, back then there were
maybe no stairs, just a very steep, twisting path. If that was the case, I can
picture in my mind the bodies being lugged up the hill on the back of a cart by
some worn out old pony, panting and snorting as it dragged its load, while
behind it the black clad mourners huffed and puffed, as a fine Edinburgh
drizzle soaked them through.
In
1860, a royal visitor paid a visit to and made their way down Jacob’s Ladder. Empress
Eugenie, the wife of Napoleon III of France, had taken a brief trip up to
Edinburgh, where she went for a walk around the city with her entourage. After
visiting Calton Hill, much to the amazement of the gathered press, she led those
with her down the steep and narrow path of Jacob’s Ladder in the sleet and
rain, as she wanted to walk up to Arthur’s Seat. Unfortunately, the weather
being so bad, she only made it as far as St Anthony’s Chapel in Holyrood Park
before deciding to call it a day.
Jacob’s
Ladder is gated at both entrances, and now these lie open all day every day. However,
back in December 1883, these were heavily guarded when ten members of a group known
as the Dynamitards were held at the nearby Calton Jail, awaiting trial at
Edinburgh High Court. The Dynamitards were a group of Irish Republicans who
wanted to establish an independent Irish Republic and, in the cause of this, carried
out a bombing campaign, blowing up various sites in London and Glasgow with dynamite.
The reason for the overwhelming security on Jacob’s Ladder while they were held
at Calton Jail, was that there was a ‘wide sewer’ going up to the jail that
could be easily accessed from the path by removing a couple of steps. Given
this, there were worries that other members of the group could attempt a rescue
or even just dynamite the jail. At the conclusion of the trial, all ten were
found guilty of various roles within the bombing campaign, with five sentenced
to life imprisonment, and the other five to seven years.
Over
the years Jacob’s Ladder fell into disrepair, and at night became a path of
shadows and darkness with a reputation as a place to be avoided. Then, in 2019
it was refurbished with handrails and lighting, making it a slightly less scary
place for a nocturnal walk.
On
my wandering up and down the path of Jacob’s Ladder, it was busy with people
going to and from work, and tourists exploring. This surprised me given what a
wet day it was, and made it difficult to find a place to discreetly put a
Skulferatu without looking like I was up to no good. However, during a quiet
spell I found a hole in the wall that the Skulferatu with me could slip in
nicely, and so I left it there. Then, as I made my way back up, I spotted a
flash of brown fur on the grassy slope beside the stairs. Thinking it was one
of the many city rats, I called out a hello and a little head appeared out of
the undergrowth. The little head of a rather cute looking stoat, who gave a
stare and quick sniff and then disappeared back out of sight.
The
coordinates for the location of the Skulferatu are -
Latitude
55.952903
Longitude
-3.182683
what3words:
brass.sector.stops
I
used the following sources for information on Jacob’s Ladder –
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