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Edinburgh Snowball Riot of 1838

On Jan 11th 1838, after students at the University of Edinburgh were attacked by locals, a multi-day snowball riot broke out on the quadrangle. Heavily armed, the local police and the 79th Highlanders beat and arrested students. 35 students were apprehended by the police and five students were put on trial. All were acquitted. 

Battle of the Quadrangle
From Left: Charles John Dalrymple, Alfred Westmacott, John Aikenhead, Edward Kellet, Robert Scot Skirving.
  • University of Edinburgh Students’ Committee (1838) Report of the Trial of the Students on the Charge of Mobbing, Rioting, and Assault, at the College, on January 11 and 12, 1838. Andrew Shortrede: Edinburgh. 100pp.
  • Anon (1838) The University Snowdrop: An Appendix to the Great Trial. Richard Weston & Son, Edinburgh. 82pp