Many people were continuing to arrive in the the Scottish capital last night to take part in a series of demonstrations and rallies leading up to this week's G8 summit in Gleneagles.
While police said Saturday's Make Poverty History rally in Edinburgh, which attracted more than 200,000 people, was trouble-free, they say they are prepared for potential violence at smaller anti-G8 demonstrations due to take place this week.
Thousands of police from England and Wales are arriving in Scotland as part of a 10,000-strong force which will be involved in the G8 security operation.
Protesters will be allowed to march near the Gleneagles Hotel, the venue for the G8 summit, which has been ringed by an 8km security fence. A rally is also scheduled to take place in nearby Auchterarder on the first day of the world leaders' meeting.
A number of anarchist groups opposed to the G8 have pledged to disrupt the three-day summit, which begins on Wednesday, by obstructing traffic trying to reach the meeting.
Chief constable Peter Wilson, who is in charge of the Scottish Police Information and Co-ordination Centre, said they were prepared for trouble.
"We'll have some difficulty, I've no doubt, some will want to draw attention in an unlawful way to themselves, but we have sufficient resources to deal with that and that's what we'll do," Mr Wilson told reporters.
Meanwhile, hundreds of Irish people from groups such as Trócaire, Oxfam and Dóchas formed part of Saturday's Make Poverty History rally, which called on G8 leaders to deliver substantial progress on trade, aid and debt issues.
Cardinal Keith O'Brien, the leader of Scottish Catholics, read out a message to protesters from Pope Benedict XVI, urging rich nations to bear the burden of reducing debt for the poor.
"We recognise our solidarity with the poor of the whole world. We demand generosity and justice in our giving and politics," Cardinal O'Brien said.
At a smaller event organised by the charity Christian Aid in Edinburgh, Britain's chancellor of the exchequer Gordon Brown said he supported the aims of the protesters. "You are standing up today for people who have no power of their own but need power, and we are on their side.
"To tackle the greatest evil of our time, ours must now become the greatest moral crusade of our time." Waving banners, blowing whistles and clutching balloons, protesters dressed in white - the symbol of the anti-poverty campaign - streamed through the streets of Edinburgh for several hours.
Organisers said between 200,000 and 225,000 people took part in Saturday's march, a figure endorsed by Edinburgh City Council estimates.
Scottish police paid tribute to the crowd for the trouble-free atmosphere and to organisers for their "meticulous planning and co-operation".
There was just one security incident, when about 60 anarchists pushed over a barricade and charged at a line of police. They were quickly surrounded by up to 200 police, who described the incident as a minor disturbance.
Protest talks and events continued yesterday, when a group called G8 Alternatives held what it described as the "biggest day of political debate and discussion" in Scottish history.
Several thousand people attended discussions and debates across the city, on subjects ranging from the future of Africa to war and globalisation.