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The Battle of Prestonpans (also known as the Battle of Gladsmuir) was the first significant conflict in the second Jacobite Rising. The battle took place on September 21, 1745. The Jacobite army loyal to James Francis Edward Stuart and led by his son Charles Edward Stuart defeated the army loyal to the Hanoverian George II led by Sir John Cope. The victory was a huge morale boost for the Jacobites, and a heavily mythologized version of the story entered art and legend. A memorial to the Battle of Prestonpans is in the form of a modest stonemason mason-built cairn, and sits close to the battle site. An earlier monument to Colonel Gardiner, a Hanoverian who was mortally wounded on the field of battle, was also erected in the 19th century near Bankton House where the Colonel lived. Each year on the anniversary of the battle, a Battlefield Walk is organised by local historians, and in September 2008 the Battle of Prestonpans 1745 Trust is organising a symposium on local battlefields.
[edit] Modern Prestonpans
Nowadays, Prestonpans is home to mostly working class families. There is very little industry and no longer any mining in the area, and growth of the town has stagnated in recent years. However, new developments are starting to accelerate and there is potential for more affordable housing in the town.There remains a community spirit and a festival in early summer runs for two weeks and links Prestonpans with neighbouring Cockenzie and Port seton, hence the title of The 3 Harbours Festival.
The town has a primary school, an infant school, a nursery (or kindergarten) and Preston Lodge High School. Prestonpans railway station is on the Edinburgh - North Berwick line. The local non-league football team Preston Athletic F.C. plays its home games at the Pennypit Park in the town, along with the local rugby team Preston Lodge RFC. Prestonpans is also home to the Royal Musselburgh Golf Club, the sixth-oldest golf course in the world (and home to The Old Club Cup, the world's oldest golfing trophy still being played for) and the town's cricket team Preston Village Cricket Club. The Prestonpans Murals Trail has become popular over the last few years[citation needed]. In 2006 it hosted the Global Murals Conference.
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Coordinates: 55°56'N, 2°58'W
(Source: Wikipedia) |