History of the Pub


	The Ensign Ewart forms part of a building called Milne's Court, which dates back to 1690. It is believed that there has been a pub on this site since that date and probably even beforeThe Lawnmarket, part of Edinburgh's renowned Royal Mile, has witnessed many historic events over the centuries. The City of Edinburgh was born here, on the long ridge, down from the Castle to the Palace of Holyrood. Along the Lawnmarket, Kings and Queens of Scotland have processed, sometimes off to battle, or to affairs of state at the nearby Parliament Hall, or heading towards their palace. Armies fell on the Castle from here, lawbreakers and other unfortunates passed this way on their final journey to the scaffold, the gentry lived here and traders and merchants did their business here. The last witch to be executed in Edinburgh was marched past here in 1702, to meet her fate on Castlehill. The Lawnmarket taverns, including the one now known as The Ensign Ewart, saw all of this and more

		View of the Lawnmarket from the site of The Ensign Ewart in 1854


		The pub showing part of the north tenement of Milne’s Court above, and with the Church of Scotland General Assembly Hall to the left. This is currently being used as the temporary home of the Scottish Parliament.

	Milne's Court was one of the very first civic improvement schemes in the world. It is also one of the oldest buildings in Edinburgh. In the late 1680's it was decided to tear down a number of squalid, disease ridden buildings in the Lawnmarket. Milne's Court was built, in 1690, by the architect Sir Robert Milne of Balfarg, master mason to King Charles II, who had been responsible for much of the renovation of Holyrood Palace. He designed and constructed great new tenements, around a spacious courtyard, which was named after him. Each tenement was divided into flats which were to house some of the richest and most important men in Edinburgh. Some of these flats cost around £6,000 Scots, which was a considerable amount for the time. The most important merchants, the nobility and even an ambassador lived there.

Although currently located on the street level, the original bar was in the cellar, which extends under the Lawnmarket. The rear of the cellar is even older, dating back to at least 1590. Thus there may have been a tavern on this site when Oliver Cromwell stationed his men here to besiege the castle in 1650. Entrance to the original cellar bar was by way of the west passage, which may have given the bar the name "The Hole of the Wall". However this passage was demolished when the west tenement was torn down, in 1883, to make way for the Church of Scotland General Assembly Hall. By then the bar had moved to street level

Throughout its history, many famous people have either lived in, or visited the Lawnmarket and its taverns, including Robert Burns, Robert Louis Stevenson and Sir Walter Scott. During much of the Eighteenth Century the Lawnmarket was the fashionable area of Edinburgh. There were few offices in those days, so business was carried out in the taverns. The customers of our cellar bar were a "dram-drinking, newsmongering set of citizens, who met every morning at seven o'clock at the Post Office and then headed to the bar to talk business over large amounts of brandy". An additional attraction of this bar was that it was only a short walk to watch the public executions in the Grassmarket or the burning of witches by the castle walls. In the evenings, talk of business turned to gossip, and singing and dancing ( a custom which continues to this day).


	In 1745 the Highland Army of Prince Charles Edward Stuart entered Edinburgh and attempted to blockade the castle. The officers of the army occupied Milne's Court for six weeks. The room above the pub is still sometimes referred to as "Prince Charles' Guard Room". In commemoration of this the pub has a print, on one wall, showing a section of the famous painting depicting the Battle of Culloden.

The growth of Edinburgh's New Town towards the end of the century meant the decline of the Lawnmarket as the wealthy moved out and the poor took their place. Consequently by the time the young Walter Scott was frequenting the Lawnmarket taverns, the clientele had changed somewhat. By the 1830's the original cellar bar had gone, to be replaced by two smaller pubs on the street level, numbers 521 and 523 The Lawnmarket. The rapid decline of the Lawnmarket by the 1860's meant that the bars were full of some very shady and disreputable characters, and "women of ill-repute". The area thus became a magnet for the likes of Robert Louis Stevenson and his student friends, always on the lookout for a "good time". The two bars of Milne's Court, run separately by James Miller and James Birrell, were just the kind of places that these wild and riotous students enjoyed, and many a riot broke out and had to be quelled by the police. Business must have been good, however, for in 1879 James Miller bought out James Birrell and the two bars were converted into one, which Miller ran for another 21 years.


	In 1899, the bar was bought over by George MacKay and Company who owned the St. Leonard's Brewery in Edinburgh. Under a succession of managers, they ran the bar, renamed "The Eagle", for the next sixty years. During the 1950's and early 1960's the pub became a favourite for the bagpipers from Edinburgh Castle, and many a "lone piper" from the Tattoo "tuned his pipes" in this bar. Rumour has it that a piper haunts the pub, having lost his way in one of the numerous tunnels that run under the Royal Mile.



	Milne’s Court, at the rear of the pub, showing the current temporary public entrance to the Scotish Parliament’s debating chamber. If you wish to see the politicians in action, you should check to see if they are actually there. They seem to spend most of their time somewhere else! The Palace of Mary of Guise used to be on the site of the west tenement where the Assembly Hall now stands.




	By the early 1960's, Milne's Court was a "picturesque slum" and had it not been for the intervention of the University of Edinburgh, the whole site might have been cleared. However, the University, needing student accommodation, embarked on a programme of renovation, which saved the tenement from demolition. The owners of "The Eagle" bar, renovated the pub too. In 1964, the pub was re-opened with a new name, "The Ensign Ewart", after Ensign Charles Ewart, who served with the Royal Scots Greys and was known as "The Hero of Waterloo".

		The opening ceremony was performed by the Commanding Officer of the Royal Scots Greys accompanied by the regimental band. Shortly after this the bar was taken over by the Alloa Brewery, who managed the bar until 1985. Since then it has been under private management, whose aim has been to provide a high quality tavern, serving good beer and providing a venue for traditional music and entertainment.


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