This included the “stay at home” order, including once-a-day exercise and employees working from home where they can.
Ms Sturgeon stated: “Let me blunt. The stringent restrictions on our normal day to day lives that I’m about to set out are difficult and they are unprecedented.
“They amount effectively to what has been described as a lockdown.”
The tight measures came into force the next day.
Today marks the third anniversary of that first lockdown annoucement, and we look back through the archives to what Edinburgh looked like during those dark days, often under sunny skies, when the city looked liked a ghost town.
Take a look through our photo gallery for a reminder of what life was like in Scotland’s capital city.

. 13 eerie photos of Edinburgh from first lockdown in 2020
These 13 eerie photos show Edinburgh’s empty streets during the early days of the first lockdown in 2020 Photo: Third Party


. Union Canal
A few people ventured out to exercise on the Union Canal. Photo: Photographer: Scott Louden

9. Victoria Street
One of Edinburgh's most famous streets, Victoria Street was empty in the early days of lockdown. Photo: Photographer: Scott Louden

10. High Street
The scene on the Royal Mile during lockdown. Photo: Photographer: Scott Louden

11. Princes Street
An empty tram stop on Princes Street. Photo: Photographer: Scott Louden

12. Princes Street
Barely anyone was spotted travelling along Edinburgh's most famous street. Photo: Photographer: Scott Louden