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The Brass Rubbing Centre is housed in Trinity Apse, which is the only remaining part of Edinburgh's Holy Trinity Collegiate Church. The Church was built in the 15th century, and was regarded by many as one of the most architectually significant buildings in the whole city. However, in the 1840s the church was demolished to make way for the railway. The stones from the church were put to one side with the intention that the church would be rebuilt on a different site. But by the time the city's authorities gave the go-ahead for the re-building, most of the stones had been stolen.
As a result only the Apse of the chuch could be rebuilt, which is what you see today. Inside the Apse is the Brass Rubbing Centre. There are lots of medieval church brasses to take rubbings from and guides are on hand to show you what to do. The Brass Rubbing Centre is open daily except Sundays, from 10am to 5pm. Entry is free but you do have to pay a small fee for any rubbings that you do. One of Edinburgh's most recent tourist attractions is the Royal Yacht Britannia, which you can visit at the port of Leith.
The Royal Yacht Britannia was launched in 1953, the 83rd Royal Yacht since Charles II owned the first one in 1660. Although obviously meant to be used as a Royal Yacht during peacetime, the ship was also designed to be used as a hospital in the case of war breaking out, although luckily it was never used for this purpose. In her 44 years of service Britannia travelled over a million nautical miles and visited dozens of countries. She is 125m long, the main mast reaches 42m above sea level and her top speed is 21.5 knots.
When the yacht went out of service in 1977 it was decided not to replace her with a new Royal Yacht, which means that the Royal Yacht Britannia is the last of a long line. And it is worth noting that since she went out of commission, as the Queen no longer uses her, she is officially now only known as Britannia. Now permanently docked at Leith near Edinburgh, the Britannia is open to the public. You can look through many of the rooms including the Bridge, the Royal Drawing Room and even the Queen's bedroom. The yacht is open daily from 10am to 5pm. Admission costs around £6 for adults. You will need to make a prior reservation in order to board.
Deacon William Brodie is one of Edinburgh's most colourful, and most famous, characters. Born in the 18th century, Brodie was a respected Edinburgh citizen by day, even becoming a town councillor. However, at night this was far from the case - Brodie was also a prolific burglar. He was eventually arrested and was executed in 1788 - ironically on a set of gallows that he himself had designed. Unrepentant to the last, Brodie's Will contained the facetious remark "I recommend to all rouges, thieves and gamblers to take care of theirs by leaving all wicked practices and becoming good members of society". Edinburgh has a long reputation of being a town of contrasts and Brodie is regarded by many as the embodiment of this.