Park information

Bruntsfield Links adjoins the Meadows and offers a green place for a relaxing stroll or enjoy a game on the short golf course. Bruntsfield Links is the remainder of the Burgh Muir, which was woodland. In the past, the area has been used as a hunting ground, quarry and became one of the earliest known locations where the game of golf was played in Scotland.

History and Heritage

Bruntsfield Links is the easterly part of what was the famous old Borough Muir, wherein 1513 King James IV reviewed his troops before they set off to the fatal field of Flodden. The Borough Muir or Myre, was gifted to the ‘Magistrates, Council and Community of the City’ by David 1 of Scotland and once extended westwards from what is now the Dalkeith Road area Merchiston, and southwards to the Pow Burn.

In those ancient times, not only did the moor abound with oak trees, but outlaws and Edinburgh outcasts made it their home. It was not a place to be caught after dark, but the Scottish nobility once used it for their hunting ground, when deer and wild boar were plentiful.

“Great stone quarries” are recorded on the site and old Edinburgh Town Centre minutes indicate that one Patrick Carfrae, deacon of the masons, was given permission to dig for stones there in 1599. Quarrying continued on the Links for at least 200 years and rightful concern was expressed from time to time about their depth and danger.

Wildlife

Large flocks of starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) can be seen on the golf course links in the summer – with parents feeding their large brown chicks. In the winter, flocks of redwings descend on the Links and Meadows. These resemble thrushes but have a red breast and are surprisingly confident!

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