Exploring the City

Glasgow is a remarkable city and the architecture alone could have kept us enthralled as we made our way through the city on foot and on the Hop On Hop Off Bus (highly recommended!). The city has approximately 1,800 structures listed by Historic Scotland to protect them for future generations.

Hogwarts, A History… The University of Glasgow, a very brief history

On our second day in Glasgow, having unofficially recovered from our jetlag, we decided to set out to explore the University campus and take care of a few international student tasks. The campus is approximately 20 minutes walking from my flat, a walk that took us past the Botanical Gardens and along Byres Road, which is described as the heart and soul of the West End. Tenements and shops began popping up along Byres Road in 1870, to coincide with the relocation of the university.

The University of Glasgow was founded in 1451 in the original burgh of Glasgow. It was built upon request of King James II, and is the second oldest university in Scotland after St. Andrew’s, and the fourth oldest in the English-speaking world. The university was moved to Gilmorehill in 1870. The Gilmorehill building was designed by Sir George Gilbert Scott, and is the second largest example of a Gothic Revival building in Great Britain after the Palace of New Westminster.

Having arrived in the city a week before “Fresher’s Week” we had the opportunity to navigate the campus without the mad rush of starry eyed new students. Don’t get me wrong, we were both quite starry eyed, but it was a bonus not having to elbow first year students out of the way to take the perfect selfie or to gawk at the incredible architecture of the many university buildings. After walking for what felt like 100 miles around the campus and adjacent Kelvingrove Park, we made our way home and, naturally, proceeded to watch terrible Netflix movies to regain our strength for the next day.

 Hop On Hop Off

We kick started our first real “touristy” day by heading downtown via the subway to explore Buchanan Street, one of the main shopping districts in the city (YES!) and George square, the principal civic square in the city. The square was laid out in 1781 and is named after King George III; however, due to having fallen out of favor with Glaswegians at that time due to the War of American Independence in 1775, the populous opted not to erect his statue. Instead, Sir Walter Scott was chosen to grace the 80ft Doric column in 1837. This is said to have been quite a statement at the time, as Glasgow and Edinburgh were rival cities, and Sir Walter Scott was born in Edinburgh, not Glasgow.

The square is also the site of the city’s Cenotaph, and eleven statues including the only known equestrian statues of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, poets Robert Burns and Thomas Campbell, and inventor James Watt.

Saint Mungo and the Glasgow Cathedral

Our second stop on the Hop On Hop Off was the Glasgow Cathedral and the Glasgow Necropolis. The city of Glasgow is thought to have begun developing around 540 with the arrival of 25 year old Kentigern, known more commonly as Mungo (“Dear One”). Mungo began his Christian ministry in Glasgow, then called Cathures, and was welcomed by the current King of Strathclyde.

Mungo soon became Glasgow’s first bishop; however, due to the anti-Christian movement around 550, he was forced to seek refuge in Wales. During this time, he founded a monastery at modern day St. Asaphs. In 581, Mungo returned to Glasgow until his death on January 13, 603. He was buried where the Glasgow Cathedral now stands, which was built in the 12^th century and is dedicated to Saint Mungo. 

Glasgows geographical location helped spur the cities growth; however, much of the later growth can be attributed to the fact that it was Scotland’s second largest bishopric and was recognized as such by King David I of Scotland. Glasgow thrived as a place of worship and a place of pilgrimage.

The Glasgow Necropolis is located adjacent to the Cathedral, and a bridge across the Molendinar Burn takes you through the main entrance. The bridge became known as the “Bridge of Sighs” because of the funeral processions that proceeded across it. The planning of the cemetery was spearheaded by the Merchants’ House of Glasgow in 1831. At the time, burial for profit was not condoned and required a change in the law. The Merchants’ anticipated the Cemeteries Act, which was passed in 1832, and the Necropolis opened its gates in April 1833. Fifty thousand individuals have been buried in the Necropolis, and there are approximately 3500 monuments throughout the area.

Once we wandered through the Cathedral and between the tombs, we made our way back to the Hop On Hop Off bus and continued our cruise around the city. The Bus passed through the downtown core, through Merchant City, past the Glasgow Green, and took us along the River Clyde to the Riverside Museum.

.... to be continued

*All historical facts are derived from Britannica, Wikipedia, the Hop On Hop Off tour, and Glasgow, A History by Michael Meighan which I borrowed from the Hillhead Community Library