Trinity House of Leith facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Trinity House of Leith |
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| Location | Leith, Edinburgh |
| Built | 1818 |
| Architect | Thomas Brown |
| Architectural style(s) | Neoclassical style |
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Listed Building – Category A
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| Designated | 14 December 1970 |
| Reference no. | LB27834 |
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Trinity House is an important building in Leith, Edinburgh, Scotland. For hundreds of years, it was a busy place where sailors and merchants met. It helped manage sea trade and looked after people who needed help, like sick or poor sailors and their families. It was also a place where ships paid their taxes and where people learned about the sea. Today, Trinity House is looked after by Historic Scotland and is a maritime museum. It is a very special building, known as a Category A listed building.
History
Masters and Mariners of Leith
Back in 1380, King Robert II gave a group called the Incorporation of Master and Mariners of Leith a special right. They could collect a small tax, called "prime gilt," which was 12 pennies for every ton of goods brought into Leith by ship. They also collected extra money called "crown money," which people gave willingly.
Most of the trade was across the North Sea, with countries like Norway, Sweden, Denmark, and places around the Baltic Sea, as well as the Netherlands and France. The money collected from prime gilt and crown money was used to help people. It went to sick or poor sailors, and to the wives and children of sailors who were lost at sea or captured. It also helped older sailors who could no longer work. The Masters and Mariners of Trinity House became the oldest and richest of Leith's trade groups.
The north wall of Trinity House has a stone that says it was built in 1555. Some older stories say it was built in 1560. It replaced an old building called "St Anthony's blockhouse," which was a strong fort controlling the entrance to Kirkgate. This blockhouse was linked to a small religious site. Records show the blockhouse was pulled down in 1560, but the old arched rooms under Trinity House still exist today.
After some arguments about payments, Mary, Queen of Scots confirmed the Incorporation's right to collect money in 1566. She approved their right to run the hospital and collect the prime gilt tax. If someone refused to pay, their ship's sails and anchor could be taken away!
The way the medieval Incorporation worked became a model for other similar groups. For example, the Trinity House in Newcastle-upon-Tyne was set up in the 1500s, following Leith's example.
In 1680, the Masters and Mariners used their fees and a tax on Leith shipmasters to hire a teacher. This teacher taught the maths of navigation to the sons and apprentices of shipmasters.
Trinity House cared a lot about making the seas safer. They started the first official training for sailors in Scotland. They also gave licenses to pilots who guided ships safely in the Firth of Forth and around the Scottish coast. By the 1600s, they collected "Licht Money" (light money) to keep simple coal-fired lights burning in the Forth. In the 1800s, Trinity House helped plan and pay for new, better lighthouses that used new technology. These included famous lighthouses like Bell Rock lighthouse, Fidra lighthouse, and the Isle of May lighthouse.
On June 29, 1797, the Corporation of the Trinity House of Leith received a special document called a royal charter. This made them a true corporation, not just a charity. They gained new powers, like choosing and licensing harbour pilots. Their right to collect taxes was also confirmed. They charged one penny for every ton of goods unloaded, and this money helped the poor. Also, every shipmaster had to pay sixpence a year, which went directly to help poor sailors.
In the 1700s, the Masters and Mariners bought land near the village of Newhaven. This land became known as Trinity Mains. Over time, it grew into a part of Leith and is now the area called Trinity.
Because of a new law in 1844 that required sailors to have formal qualifications, Trinity House and other groups in Leith started the Leith Navigational School in 1855. This school was in a room at St Ninian's Church on Commercial Street. In 1903, the Scottish Education Department took over the school, and it became Leith Nautical College. This college later joined with others to become part of Edinburgh College.
After the prime gilt tax was stopped in 1862, Trinity House had to rely on money from its properties to pay pensions and other costs.
Today, students from the nearby Leith Primary School learn about the history of Trinity House. They even give tours of the building to other schools and special guests!
History of the building
In 1555, the Incorporation had enough money to build a hospital at the Kirkgate. The basement and arched rooms of that 16th-century building are still part of the current building. The building you see today was designed by Thomas Brown in a style called neoclassical. It was finished in 1818. The new building has three sections on the front. It features a front entrance with pairs of strong, simple columns on the ground floor. Above that, on the first floor, there is a large window with elegant columns and a beautiful semi-circular window above it.
See also
