We approached Edinburgh Castle from the rear, which shows to good effect the extinct volcano plug on which it’s built. It’s mostly sheer rock back there, and the fortress seems to grow from it. Impregnable is the word I would use, though it’s the most besieged castle in Scotland.

Now it’s tourists attacking the fortress — not Jacobites. 

But if you can find a quiet corner — especially a place like the 12th-century Saint Margarett’s Chapel, the oldest building in Edinburgh — you feel the majesty and antiquity of the place.