Editing Edinburgh (section)

===17th century===
[[File:Edinburgh in the 17thC (detail) by Wenceslas Hollar (1670).jpg|thumb|left|Edinburgh in the 17th century]]

In 1603 [[James VI and I|King James VI of Scotland]] succeeded to the English throne, uniting the crowns of Scotland and England in a [[personal union]] known as the [[Union of the Crowns]], though the two kingdoms remained separate realms governed in personal union.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Donaldson |first=Gordon |title=Scottish Kings |publisher=Batsford |year=1967 |page=213}}</ref> In 1638 [[Charles I of England|King Charles I]]'s attempt to introduce [[Anglican Communion|Anglican]] church forms in Scotland encountered stiff [[Presbyterianism|Presbyterian]] opposition, culminating in the conflicts of the [[Wars of the Three Kingdoms]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Newman |first=P R |url=https://archive.org/details/companiontoengli0000newm/page/13 |title=Companion to the English Civil Wars |publisher=Facts on File Ltd |year=1990 |isbn=978-0-8160-2237-3 |location=Oxford |page=[https://archive.org/details/companiontoengli0000newm/page/13 13]}}</ref> Subsequent Scottish support for [[Charles II of England|Charles II]]'s restoration to the throne of England resulted in Edinburgh's occupation by [[Oliver Cromwell]]'s [[Commonwealth of England]] forces – the [[New Model Army]] – in 1650.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Stephen C. Manganiello |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=an-eXXA3DBMC |title=The Concise Encyclopedia of the Revolutions and Wars of England, Scotland, and Ireland, 1639–1660 |publisher=Scarecrow Press |year=2004 |isbn=978-0-8108-5100-9 |page=587 |access-date=11 February 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130528020433/http://books.google.com/books?id=an-eXXA3DBMC |archive-date=28 May 2013 |url-status=live}}</ref>

In the 17th century Edinburgh's boundaries were still defined by the city's defensive [[Edinburgh town walls|town walls]]. As a result, the city's growing population was accommodated by increasing the height of the houses. Buildings of 11 storeys or more were common,<ref>{{Cite book |last=Chambers |first=Robert |url=https://archive.org/details/noticesmostrema00chamgoog |title=Notices of the most remarkable fires in Edinburgh, from 1385 to 1824 |publisher=C. Smith & Company |year=1824 |page=[https://archive.org/details/noticesmostrema00chamgoog/page/n20 11] |access-date=17 February 2013}}</ref> and have been described as forerunners of the modern-day skyscraper.<ref name="Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat">{{Cite journal |last=Peet |first=Gerard |year=2011 |title=The Origin of the Skyscraper |url=http://global.ctbuh.org/resources/papers/download/321-the-origin-of-the-skyscraper.pdf |url-status=live |journal=CTBUH Journal |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180629024523/http://global.ctbuh.org/resources/papers/download/321-the-origin-of-the-skyscraper.pdf |archive-date=29 June 2018 |access-date=7 September 2019}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Wilson |first=Neil |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ygf59UOCPfQC&q=skyscrapers&pg=PA37 |title=Edinburgh Encounter |year=2008 |isbn=978-1-74179-306-2 |page=37|publisher=Lonely Planet }}</ref> Most of these old structures were replaced by the predominantly [[Victorian era|Victorian]] buildings seen in today's Old Town. In 1611 an act of parliament created the [[High Constables of Edinburgh]] to keep order in the city, thought to be the oldest statutory police force in the world.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.scotsman.com/news/high-praise-citys-first-police-2462621 |title=High praise for city's first police |website=www.scotsman.com|date=August 2011 }}</ref>