Dundee - Landmarks

Landmarks

The city and its landscape is dominated by The Law and the Firth of Tay. The Law, the large hill that lies to the north of the City Centre was the site of an Iron Age Hill Fort, upon which the Law War Memorial, designed by Thomas Braddock, was erected in 1921 to commemorate the fallen of World War I The waterfront, much altered by reclamation in the 19th century, retains several of the docks that once were the hub of the Jute and Whaling industries, including the Camperdown and Victoria Docks. The Victoria Dock is the home of the frigate HMS Unicorn and the North Carr Lightship, while the RRS Discovery occupies Craig Pier, from where the ferries to Fife once sailed.

The oldest building in the city is St Mary's Tower, which dates to the late 15th century. This forms part of the City Churches, which consists St Clements Church, dating to 1787-8 and built by Samuel Bell, Old St Paul's and St David's Church, built in 1841-2 by William Burn, and St Mary's Church, rebuilt in 1843-4, also by Burn following a fire. Other significant churches in the city include the Gothic Revival Episcopal Cathedral of St Paul's, built by Sir George Gilbert Scott in 1853 on the former site of Dundee Castle in the High Street, and the Roman Catholic Cathedral of St Andrew's, built in 1835 by George Mathewson in Nethergate.

As a result of the destruction suffered during the Rough Wooing, little of the mediaeval city (aside from St Mary's Tower) remains and the earliest surviving domestic structures date from the Early Modern Era. A notable example is the Wishart Arch (or East Port) in Cowgate. It is the last surviving portion of the city walls and, dating prior to 1548, owes its continued existence to its association with the Protestant martyr George Wishart, who is said to have preached to plague victims from the East Port in 1544. Another is the building complex on the High Street known as Gardyne's Land, parts of which date from around 1560. The Howff burial ground in the northern part of the City Centre also dates from this time, having been gifted to the city by Mary Queen of Scots in 1564, having previously served as the grounds of a Franciscan abbey.

Several castles can be found in Dundee, mostly dating to the Early Modern Era. The earliest parts of Mains Castle in Caird park were built by David Graham in 1562 on the site of an earlier hunting lodge of 1460. Dudhope Castle, originally the seat of the Scrymgeour family, dates to the late 16th century and was built on the site of earlier keep of 1460. Claypotts Castle, a striking Z plan castle in West Ferry, was built by John Strachan dates to 1569-1588. The ruins of Powrie Castle, north of Fintry date from the 16th century castle north .

North of the City Churches, at the end of Reform Street, lies the High School of Dundee, built in 1829-34 by George Angus in a Greek Revival style. Another school building of note is Morgan Academy on Forfar Road, built in 1863, designed by John Dick Peddie in a Dutch Gothic style.

Dundee's industrial history as a centre for textile production is apparent throughout the city. Numerous former jute mills remain standing and while some lay derelict, many have been converted into alternate usages. Of particular note are the Tay Works, built by the Gilroy Brothers c.1850-1865, Camperdown Works in Lochee, which built and owned by Cox Brothers, one of Europe's largest jute manufacturing companies, and begun in 1849, and Upper Dens Mill and Lower Dens Works, built by the Baxter Brothers in the mid 19th century.