Time for your weekly history lesson!
What happened this week in Scottish history?
October 5, 1785: Italian aeronaut Vincenzo Lunardi, made a 46-mile balloon flight from from George Heriot's School, Edinburgh to Ceres, Fife.
October 6, 1564: John Knox, a Scottish clergyman, who off and on took issue with Mary Queen of Scots, wrote to Cecil, the advisor of Queen Elizabeth I of England, as well as Dudley, another of Elizabeth's council. He expressed his distress that 9 of 12 of Mary's council were accepting of her wish to marry Darnley, stating Mary was "born to be a plague to this realm" with her "inordinate desires."
October 7, 1782: One of the founders of The Scotsman newspaper, Charles McLaren, was born. He edited the paper for 27 years and also was the editor for the 6th Edition of the Encyclopedia Britannica.
October 8, 1515: The birth of Margaret Douglas, Countess of Lennox. Her grandson, James VI, succeeded Elizabeth I of England, uniting both Scotland and England under the same monarch.
October 9, 1506: The Charter incorporating the Surgeons and Barbers was ratified by King James IV.
October 10, 1802: Geologist and writer, Hugh Miller, was born on the Black Isle (Cromarty). He penned many verses, pamphlets and articles, including geological books, the most famous being The Old Red Sandstone. He was pioneer in researching fossils, and the relationship between different geological ages.
October 11, 1297: A letter written by William Wallace and Andrew Moray to the mayors of Lubeck and Hamburg, after the victory at Stirling Bridge, which stated, "The Kingdom of Scotland has, by God's Grace, recovered by battle from the power of the English".
