Princes Street was the scene of rioting in 2005 related to the 31st G8 summit referred to in the press as ' The Battle of Princes Street ' . Independent media claims the rioting was provoked by police Several UK high street brands such as Boots , Scotland 's largest Boots city store , H&M , Debenhams , Marks & Spencer , Topman and Topshop , are just a few of the shops located along Princes Street . Jenners department store ( now owned by House of Fraser ) is an Edinburgh institution , surviving the disappearance of many other local department stores , such as Patrick Thompson 's . There has been controversy over buildings from the latter half of the 20th century on Princes Street . This has prompted plans to demolish the BHS and the Marks & Spencer buildings , in an effort to improve the status of the street . Another problem has been that upper floors are often used for storage , rather than as office , retail or living space . At an early stage in post-World War II designs for the street , a " high level walkway " was planned , as a further shopping frontage for the first floor level , in lieu of the other side of the street . However the walkway as built was never more than a number of isolated balconies and in practice the Royal Bank of Scotland was the only business to maintain a frontage at this level for any length of time ; that branch of the bank closed early in the 21st century , leaving the upper walkway largely forgotten
31st G8 summit
31st G8 summit
Princes Street