James Gillespie's High School

James Gillespie's High School is a state-funded secondary school in Marchmont, Edinburgh, Scotland. It is a comprehensive high school, educating pupils between the ages of 11 and 18, situated at the centre of Edinburgh. Edinburgh Castle and Holyrood Palace are within the catchment area of James Gillespie's High School. History James Gillespie's High School was founded in Bruntsfield Place in 1803 as a result of the legacy of James Gillespie, an Edinburgh tobacco merchant, and was administered by the Merchant Company of Edinburgh. The school acknowledges Gillespie's links to the North Virginia slave trade and, in keeping with best practice, educates students about slavery in its various forms. A petition in 2020 called for the renaming of the school. The original building was designed by Edinburgh architect Robert Burn. In 1870, the school moved into a larger building on the south side of what is now Gillespie Crescent. The number of students at the school would later exceed 1,000 and include female students.