Located less than six miles from Edinburgh, and only accessible at low tide, is Cramond Island, a deserted island in the Firth of Forth. The island has a rather unique and varied history, from the prehistoric era right up to the Second World War.
One of 17 islands that can be walked to from the Scottish mainland, Cramond hit headlines back in 2011 when a man and woman got trapped on the island when the tides came back in. This story hit the national news when it was revealed that the man’s name was Daniel Defoe. This led to comparisons to the adventure novel Robinson Crusoe, written by another Daniel Defoe and published in 1719.
While the island has been deserted for most of its history, there is evidence of human activity on the island, dating as far back as the prehistoric era.
Archaeological evidence suggests the island held special significance to those living on the Scottish coastline, and at least one burial cist has been found on the island.
Cramond Island is also believed to be the site of Urbs Iudeu, an early medieval stronghold that was referenced by Bede in his Ecclesiastical History of the English People. If this is the case, then it was once besieged in 655 AD.
In 1596, Cramond Island was the site of a duel sanctioned by James VI of Scotland. Adam Bruntfield accused James Carmichael of killing his brother and challenged him to single combat, with Bruntfield proving victorious.
Following this period, the British Wool Society grazed sheep on the island in the 1790s and the island was used for farming until 1904, when the last farmer, Peter Hogg, died.
A ruined farmstead still sits on the island to this day – while this appeared in a man created in 1853, it’s unclear exactly when this dates back to.
The island was then used by the military in both the First and Second World Wars. In 1914, an anti-submarine net was constructed between Cramond Island, Inchmickery, Inchcolm, and the Fife coast.
At the outbreak of World War II in 1939, Cramond Island was refortified to counter a potential invasion via the Forth River, and an anti-boat boom was laid across the estuary from Cramond.
Gun emplacements were also placed on the island, and a spotlight was built that would sweep over the causeway.
The invasion never came, and after the end of the war, the island was once again deserted, with the ruins of its WW2 fortifications still standing to this day.