LODBERRIES
The word lodberry
comes from the Old Norse hladberg, meaning a place where boats could be
brought alongside for loading or unloading. The simplest lodberry was a
suitable flat rock, but the surviving examples below the south end of
Commercial Street consist of a jetty with a store and house. Before they
were built, all goods were moved by small boat to and from the ships at
anchor offshore and many merchants had their own lodberry. Shetland and
especially Lerwick had a reputation as a hotbed of smuggling. In recent
times an assortment of barrels, kegs and jars has come to light in cellars
and tunnels under the street.
FORT
CHARLOTTE
The
northern end of Commercial Street passes below what were once sea cliffs,
surmounted by the towering walls of Fort Charlotte, from which there are
excellent views. Built in 1665-7 by Charles II's master mason John Mylne,
its pentagonal form was intended to house a garrison, defend the landward
area and deny the use of Bressay Sound to any enemy.
However, it was
burned by the Dutch in 1673 and lay ruined until 1782 when the barrack
blocks seen today were built. Named after King George III 's Queen, it is
the most complete surviving example of its type.
