_and_the_Royal_Regiment_of_Scotland._Edinburgh_Castle,_Scotland,_UK.jpg){kind=link}
Clips are making the rounds on social media showing a group of people occupying the grounds of Edinburg Castle on 17 August while proclaiming that they have taken “their building back”.
“We are sovereign. We are free. That belongs to the people of Scotland. We have been lied to all our lives. And it’s time. Enough is enough,” a woman can be heard saying in the video as castle staffers and policemen stand nearby, visibly confused.
According to the Guardian, the development took place on Tuesday at about 5.45 pm near the entrance to the Museum of The Royal Regiment for Scotland. A group of some 20 people entered the premises, saying that they'd “seized” the place. Edinburgh Live reports that the group consisted of some 30 people, as visitors were evacuated from the scene and police officers were called upon to deal with the demonstrators.
In a clip that was shared through Facebook Live, the rioters can be heard telling police officers that it “was not a protest” but a “lawful” procedure to take the castle back following “article 61 of the Magna Carta”.
“We have had enough. The people of Scotland have had enough and today we claim our power back,” the woman goes on.
"We're waiting to restore the rule of law. We're doing this peacefully and we're doing this lawfully,” she told the Scottish policemen as they calmly reply “okay” and “no worries at all” to her passionate calls.
It’s not clear how the standoff was resolved in the end but a Police Scotland and Historic Environment Scotland spokespeople confirmed that the incident took place on Tuesday.
“A group of around 20 individuals entered Edinburgh Castle this evening [17 August] without payment. After refusing requests to leave the premises Police Scotland were called to the site and are dealing with the matter,” Historic Environment Scotland’s spokesperson said.
The Magna Carta, a royal charter of rights signed into law by King John of England in 1215, predated the Act of Union which united Scotland and England into one kingdom. This means that it never originally applied to Scotland.