Remembering two great Scottish poets

Scotland's national poet, Robert Burns died on this day, 21 July, in 1796. He was only 37 years of age. Burns travelled from his home in Ayrshire to Edinburgh in November, 1786, after the publication of Poems Chiefly in the Scottish Dialect earlier in that year had been very well received in the Scottish capital.

Burns is most widely known having written poems such as ‘The Jolly Beggars’ (1786) and ‘Tam o' Shanter’ (1791). He also brought the song Auld Lang Syne - the song traditionally sung at English speaking parties to mark the arrival of the New Year - into the public domain, though he never claimed it as his own work.

Burns's widow, Jean Armour, gave birth to a baby boy on the day of her late husband's funeral. Sadly, the youngster, named Maxwell, did not survive into childhood.

Robert Burns Scotland's national bard is remembered on Burns Night, 25 January, each year. The 25 January was his birthday. Haggis is served on Burns Night. Burns wrote 'Ode to a Haggis'.

Burns was not the only Scottish poet to have his life cruelly cut short, as listeners to the Royal Mile & More, Edinburgh city walking tour will discover. Cannongate Kirkyard contains the grave of Robert Fergusson. He died when hew was just 24 years of age. The photograph accompanying this blog entry shows the clock of Canongate Tolbooth a former prison, which now houses The People's Story museum.

There is no evidence that Burns and Fergusson ever met. In spite of this, Burns held Fergusson in sufficiently high esteem to pay for a gravestone for Fergusson's previously unmarked grave. David Annand’s bronze statue, depicting Fergusson, to the right of the church was unveiled in 2004.

Visitors to Edinburgh can hear about the history of the Scottish capital with two Walk Talk Tours of the city. Fergusson coined the term 'Auld Reekie' in the poem of the same name. In the poem - penned like much of Burn's best work in eighteenth century colloquial Scottish dialect - Fergusson describes how the smoke generated from the fires of the homes and businesses in Edinburgh's Old Town could be seen as far away as Fife. To hear an audio sample from the Royal Mile & More mp3 guided tour please click here.

Edinburgh's Old Town was an overcrowded, dirty place. By the late eighteenth century, many well-heeled residents of the city had had enough. In 1767 James Craig, a young architect, won the competition to design a new town to the North of the Nor Loch. The neo-classical architecture of the New Town helped earn the capital of North Britain the title of 'Athens of the North.' When Robert Burns visited Edinburgh in 1786, he was keen to impress Edinburgh's polite society. An increasing number of the residents lived in Edinburgh's New Town.

Independent travellers in Edinburgh can hear where Robert Burns spent his final night in the Scottish capital on the Old & New Towns audio downloadable walking tour. The Old & New Towns mp3 guided tour begins outside the Castle then guides listeners down to the Grassmarket - where you will hear about a woman who survived the hangman's noose and how one infamous murderer got off 'scot free.' Listeners then climb up to George IV bridge passing the Museum on the Mound - Scotland's museum of money - before descending the Playfair steps into Princes Street Gardens.

Walk Talk Tourists then proceed to the Scott Monument - which commemorates another great Scottish literary figure - before crossing Princes Street to St Andrew Square. Listeners to the Old & New Towns podcast guided tour then walk along George Street. Hear why the church of St Andrew and St George is round and what important role it played in Scottish ecclesiastical history, then pass the Assembly Rooms where the great and the good have dined and partied down the years (the Assembly Rooms are now a venue at the annual Fringe Festival). The Old & New Towns iPod travel guide concludes in Charlotte Square. Visitors to the capital of North Britain can visit a recreated Georgian House at Number 6, Charlotte Square and see the official residence of Scotland's First Minister at Number 7.

Each Walk Talk Tour comes complete with a Where & When page, which provides information about the opening times and admission charges of key attraction en route.

The Royal Mile & More, Edinburgh visitor guide and the Old & New Towns, Edinburgh travel guide, cost just £5.95 each. Customers purchasing both tours simultaneously will receive a twenty per cent discount.

Unlike on a conventional guided tour, with a Walk Talk Tour you're in charge. Sightseeing with children? Are they driving you round the bend? Simply, stop your tour and resume it when the kids have had a chance to refresh. In addition, each Walk Talk Tour comes complete with a downloadable map - for you to print off - so you won't miss a thing.