The Castle Esplanade is the broad, open parade ground you cross to reach the gate of Edinburgh Castle, at the very top of the Royal Mile. Most of the year it is a windy forecourt with views over the city, but every August it is filled with grandstands and becomes the stage of the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo. Around its edges stand some of the city's most interesting military memorials and a small fountain remembering the women burned here as witches.
The Castle Esplanade at a glance
- Where: the eastern end of Castle Rock, between Castlehill at the top of the Royal Mile and the castle gatehouse.
- Laid out: as a parade ground in the 18th century and given its present form around 1816.
- What it is today: the approach to Edinburgh Castle, a viewpoint, and from late summer the arena of the Military Tattoo.
- Time needed: 15 to 20 minutes to walk round the memorials and enjoy the views, more if you are queuing for the castle.
From execution ground to parade ground
Long before it was paved, the open ground in front of the castle was a place of public execution. Between the late 15th and early 18th centuries, people accused of witchcraft, most of them women, were strangled and burned on Castle Hill. In the 18th century the army levelled the area into a parade ground, and around 1816 it was enlarged and enclosed with the walls and railings you see today, roughly 130 by 90 metres of flat ground on top of the volcanic rock.
Through the 19th and early 20th centuries, Scottish regiments added memorials along the edges, turning the esplanade into an outdoor hall of remembrance. Since 1950 it has also been the home of the Edinburgh Military Tattoo, held every August during the festival season, with massed pipes and drums performing in front of the floodlit castle. Temporary stands go up on three sides each summer, so the look of the esplanade changes with the season.
What to look for
- The Witches' Well: a small bronze fountain on the wall at the north-east corner, near the entrance from Castlehill, put up in 1894 in memory of the women executed for witchcraft here. Look for the snake and the two heads in its design.
- Ensign Ewart's grave: Charles Ewart, a sergeant of the Scots Greys, captured a French eagle at Waterloo in 1815. He was reburied on the esplanade in 1938 under a granite block, and the eagle he took is in the National War Museum inside the castle.
- The Duke of York: a bronze statue of Frederick, Duke of York, the army commander-in-chief remembered in the nursery rhyme about marching ten thousand men up a hill.
- Regimental memorials: Celtic crosses and an obelisk for Highland regiments, including the 78th Highlanders and the 72nd Highlanders, along the north side.
- The views: on a clear day you can look north over the New Town to the Firth of Forth and Fife, and south towards the Pentland Hills.
A patch of Nova Scotia?
A plaque on the esplanade recalls the Baronets of Nova Scotia, a title created in the 1620s to raise money for a Scottish colony in what is now Canada. A popular story says the esplanade was declared part of Nova Scotia so that new baronets could formally take possession of their lands without sailing across the Atlantic. Historians treat this as a tradition rather than proven law, but it is a good tale to tell while you wait for the castle gates.
Tips for your visit
- Come early in the morning or towards the end of the day, when the castle queues are shorter and the light on the stonework is softer.
- From roughly June to August the Tattoo grandstands block much of the space and the views, so if you want the open esplanade, visit in spring or autumn.
- Hold on to hats and maps: the esplanade is exposed and can be very windy even on a sunny day.
- Look back down the Royal Mile from the top of the esplanade before you leave; the street runs straight downhill towards Holyrood.
Nearby
- Edinburgh Castle: the fortress itself, with the Crown Jewels of Scotland, St Margaret's Chapel and the One O'Clock Gun.
- Camera Obscura and World of Illusions: a Victorian camera obscura at the top of the Royal Mile that projects live views of the city.
- Ramsay Garden: the picturesque cluster of red-and-white apartments just below the esplanade on the north side.
- St Giles' Cathedral: the High Kirk of Edinburgh, a short walk down the Royal Mile.
See Edinburgh with World City Trail
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If you prefer a different format, Edinburgh also has a self-guided walking tour and an outdoor escape game.
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Facts checked in October 2026.