General Information

About Eddleston

The village of Eddleston lies 4 miles north of Peebles and the Tweed River in the Scottish Borders. The various names of the village reflect the general history of the upper Tweed Valley. In 1115, the village was called Pentejacob or Penjacob. These are Cumbric words, a form of old Welsh, meaning Jacob's Outhouses or Jacob's Hill. In the 12th century, the village was renamed Gillemorestun, the town of Gille Moire, or servant of St. Mary.

The Battle of Carham, fought between the Kingdom of Scotland and the Northumbrians in 1018, resulted in the gaelic Scots taking control of the Borders and installing their own overlords, Gille Moire being one of them, to oversee the land and its population. By 1189, control of the village had passed to Edulf, the son of Utred, and its new name would now have been Edulf's town or 'toun' and hence Eddleston.

The Barony Castle Hotel

The Barony Castle Hotel offers fantastic facilities as a hotel or as a residential conference centre. It is set within 25 acres of mature gardens and woodland and has spectacular views over the surrounding countryside. The Barony has 78 bedrooms, as well as a pool, sauna, spa and gym. There is also a 5 a-side football pitch. The remains of a 16th century tower-house, built by the Murrays of Blackbarony, form the oldest part of the building. In the 18th century, the house was extended resulting in the present facade. The hotel passed to the Murrays of Elibank in 1771, who retained ownership until 1930. In the first half of the 20th century, the house was converted to hotel use.

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The Great Polish Map of Scotland

The Great Polish Map of Scotland is a large (50 m x 40 m) three-dimensional, outdoor concrete scale model of Scotland, located in the grounds of the Barony. The map sits in an oval pool about 160ft (50m) wide and 5ft (1.5m) deep and once held water recreating rivers, lochs and seas. The map was the brainchild of Polish Second World War veteran Jan Tomasik, who owned the Barony from 1969 to 1977.

[Polish Map of Scotland]

Even though the map was completed in 1975, the idea for the map goes all the way back to the Second World War. The Barony was requisitioned for the use of Polish forces stationed in Scotland during the war. The Polish forces were there to defend the east coast of Scotland, between Montrose, 38 miles (61 km) north of Dundee, and Burntisland on the Firth of Forth, against a possible invasion from German-occupied Norway. Jan Tomasik and his old commander, Stanislav Maczek, came up with the idea for the map as a tribute to the hospitality of the Scottish nation during the war and as a permanent reminder of the Polish presence at the castle.

Conference Format

Oral presentations will be given Friday afternoon, Saturday and Sunday.
Posters will be displayed for the duration of the conference.
There will be a quiz on Friday evening, following a traditional Burns Supper.
We will take a break from presentations on Saturday afternoon, with an optional fieldtrip available.
There will be a black tie dinner and ceilidh on Saturday night.

Attire

Casual wear is appropriate for the conference with the exception of the black tie dinner. If you wish to go on the Saturday afternoon field trip you may wish to bring suitable outdoor clothing. Bring your bathing suits if you plan on taking advantage of the pool and sauna!

Extra Costs

The only thing you may need money for is to pay for drinks on the Friday and Saturday night!

Science and Engineering at The University of Edinburgh

School of GeoSciences

Postgraduate Study

Section Contents

Annual Conference

Weekends Away

Conference Booklet [PDF]