Riders saddle up again for horse event

EDINBURGH is set to stage the Riding of the Marches for the second year on the trot -and it now looks like becoming an annual event.

The Edinburgh Riding is due to take place this Sunday, 12 months after it was revived following a 63-year break.

Thousands of people lined the streets of the Capital last year to watch more than 250 horses and riders taking a seven-hour journey around the city, ending in the Royal Mile.

A similarly large crowd is expected to turn out this weekend to watch the procession follow Captain Steve McGill as he rides out with the City Banner.

A spokeswoman for the Edinburgh March Riding Association said: "The event was successfully revived last year and its immediate popularity became evident when registration for this year's event opened.

"All spaces were filled within 24 hours and many would-be participants were left disappointed.

"The ride takes a new route this year, going from Lang Long Road, taking in the splendour of Craigmillar Castle, before riding through Holyrood Park then returning the Banner safely to the City during a Civic Reception at the Mercat Cross."

Edinburgh's last Riding of the Marches prior to 2009 was held in 1946, when the event was resurrected after more than 200 years to celebrate the end of the war. On that occasion, around 70 riders took part and the crowd was described as "approaching royal visit dimensions".

The event had previously been held on a regular basis between 1579 and 1718, essentially as a meeting to inspect the "Burgh Marches".

Any resident who failed to attend the gathering in its early days was fined.

This year's ride is set to begin on Lang Loan Road, on the outskirts of the City Bypass, at 10.30am before proceeding to Craigmillar Castle grounds where the principle horses will stand at the gate to the castle.

It will continue through Holyrood Park where the horses maintain a walking pace, heading towards the city centre, before finishing at the Mercat Cross with a Civic Reception at around 3.30pm.

The Association intends to make the Riding an annual event, with plans already under way for next year. The 2011 event will see the appointment of the first Edinburgh Lass, a ceremonial position to be chosen from local lassies "of good character".

In Musselburgh, the Honest Lass is chosen every year to lead the town's annual ride-out alongside the Honest Lad, carrying the Burgh flag.