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Kincardineshire

Located on the coast of northeast Scotland, Kincardineshire is a historic county, registration county, and lieutenancy area known as the Mearns. It is bounded to the north and west by Aberdeenshire and to the south by Angus.

Kincardine is also the name of a committee area of the Aberdeenshire Council called Kincardine and Mearns, however it encompasses a far smaller geographic region than the county itself.

History of Kincardineshire

In ancient times, the area was known as the Province of Mearns, and it was bounded to the north by Marr and to the west by Angus. Names of provinces reflect their relative importance, with "great steward" (Mormaer) presiding over the more significant regions and "mere steward" (a lesser official) over the less significant regions (Maer).

Stonehaven, Banchory, Inverbervie, and Laurencekirk were among its burghs, while Drumoak, Muchalls, Newtonhill, and Portlethen were among its other settlements. Historically, Mearns included all of the land north of the River Dee, including the town of Hill of Fare; but, in 1891, the Royal Burgh of Torry was annexed by Aberdeenshire, which is located on the south side of the river.

When sheriffs were established in the area in the 11th century, Kincardine became the seat of a competing power. In spite of popular belief, Kincardine was neither the village of Kincardine O'Neil (which was located in Marr) nor the town of Kincardine in Fife. The Kincardine in issue was a medieval ghost town, with just the ruins of Kincardine Castle, located 2 miles northeast of Fettercairn in the vicinity of the hamlet of Phesdo, remaining today. 

After a brief conflict that marked the commencement of the Wars of Scottish Independence in 1296, King John Balliol wrote a letter of submission to Edward I of England from behind the castle walls. The Estates of Parliament decreed in 1600 that the Stonehaven Tolbooth would serve as the seat of shrieval government for the county of Kincardineshire.

Local government reforms in the middle of the nineteenth century saw the replacement of the old provinces with new counties (shires), with boundaries that corresponded to sheriffdoms. Many of Scotland's counties had their boundaries redrawn and renamed with the passage of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1889, which also standardized the system of county councils throughout the country. As a result, in 1890, the Kincardineshire County Council was established. Starting in the early 1920s, the Kincardine County Council met in a building at 33 Evan Street, Stonehaven. 

In 1975, the county stopped being an administrative division. The northern portion of the county, which included Nigg, was annexed by the City of Aberdeen, while the southern and central portions were merged into the Kincardine and Deeside district in the Grampian region. The district became a part of the Aberdeenshire council area in 1996, when the Grampian region was divided into unitary council areas.

Geography of Kincardineshire

Kincardineshire is roughly triangular in shape, with the coastal Strathmore area being quite flat and the interior being hillier and forested, with the latter comprising part of the Grampian Mountains. Mount Battock, at 2,552 feet (778 meters), is located on the boundary of Angus and is the highest peak in the county.

Scotland, UK Description

Scotland is the most northern of the UK's four constituent countries, occupying roughly one-third of the island. In the 5th century CE, Irish Celts settled on the west coast of Britain, naming it "Scotland." Scotland's name comes from the Latin Scotia, meaning "land of the Scots." Caledonia is a term frequently used to refer to Scotland, particularly in poetry. Caledonii was the Roman name for a tribe that lived in what is now northwest Scotland.

Scotland's harsh climate and extreme weather conditions have made it difficult for many generations to live there, but they have cherished it for its natural beauty and unique culture. During the Scottish Enlightenment, philosophers like Francis Hutcheson and Adam Smith forged important contributions to political and practical theories of progress. Scottish inventors, engineers, and businessmen like Alexander Graham Bell, James Watt, Andrew Carnegie, and John McAdam helped Scotland's influence far beyond its borders.

Scotland-England relations have been strained since the two countries united in 1707 to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain. Despite heavy English influence, Scotland has long maintained its independence, clinging to historical fact and legend to preserve national identity and the Scots dialect of English.

Geographical Description of Scotland

The Aegean, Atlantic, North, and English Channels border Scotland's southern, western, and northern borders, as well as its eastern border. The west coast is dotted with large islands ranging in size from small rocks to the massive Lewis and Harris, Skye, and Mull landmasses (sea lochs or fjords). Orkney and Shetland islands are located north of Scotland. 274 miles (441 kilometers) from Cape Wrath to the Mull of Galloway, and 154 miles wide from Applecross in the western Highlands to Buchan Ness in the eastern Grampians. Scotland's mainland has two halves: north and south (248 km). With only 30 miles of land separating the Firth of Clyde and the Firth of Forth, Scotland's two major estuarine inlets on its west and east coasts, from the sea, the vast majority of places are within 40 to 50 miles (65 to 80 kilometers) of the sea.

The Highlands are in the north, the Midland Valley (Central Lowlands) is in the middle, and the Southern Uplands are in the south. (The latter two are part of the Lowlands cultural region, which includes the former two.) Low-lying areas run the length of the Midland Valley and the US east coast. The east coast's smoother outline contrasts with the west coast's rugged outline, resulting in a topographic as well as a north-south divide. The Glen Mor (Glen Albyn) fault line separates the Highlands from the rest of the country. To the north of Glen Mor is an ancient plateau eroded into a series of peaks of similar height separated by glens carved by glaciers (valleys). The Lewisian Complex rocks have been worn down by severe glaciation to form a hummocky landscape punctuated by small lochs and protruding rocks from thin, acidic soil. The magnificent Torridonian sandstone mountains have weathered into sheer cliffs, rock terraces, and pinnacles.

The Grampian Mountains are located southeast of Glen Mor, though there are intrusions such as the Cairngorm Mountains' granitic masses. The Grampians are less rocky and rugged than the Northwest Mountains, being more rounded and grassy, with larger plateau areas. The area has some of Britain's highest mountains, including Ben Nevis (4,406 feet), which has cliffs and pinnacles that make climbing difficult (1,343 metres). Rannoch Moor, a desolate expanse of bogs and granitic rocks punctuated by narrow, deep lochs such as Rannoch and Ericht, is the most striking example (Rannoch Moor is the most striking of these). The Highland Boundary Fault runs northeast-southwest from Stonehaven, just south of Aberdeen, to Helensburgh on the River Clyde, passing through Loch Lomond, Scotland's largest freshwater body. The southern boundary of the Midland Valley is divided by a fault that runs from northeast to southwest, beginning with the Lammermuir and Moorfoot hills. It's misleading to call this part of Scotland the Lowlands because, while it's low compared to other parts of Scotland, it's not flat. Volcanic hills like the Sidlaws, Ochils, Campsies, and Pentlands dominate the landscape (579 metres). The Southern Uplands are not as high as the Highlands. Glaciation has created narrow, flat valleys that divide rolling mountains into sections. The gently sloping, grassy, and rounded hills just east of Nithsdale open up into fertile Merse farming land to the south. With time, the landscape west of Nithsdale becomes more rugged, with granitic intrusions around Loch Doon, and the soil becomes more peaty and wet. Merrick's high moorlands and hills can support a sheep farm at 2,766 feet (843 metres) above sea level. The uplands slope down to the Solway Firth's coastal plains in the south and the machair and Mull of Galloway in the west.

The Economy of Scotland

As a result of the problems that plagued many European countries during the 1970s and 1980s, including the widespread failure of heavy industries, Scotland's economy suffered greatly during this period. Unemployment became a significant issue, particularly in areas where major industries were in decline at the same time. A variety of measures were implemented by successive governments to improve the situation. Because of the extraction of North Sea oil and natural gas, as well as the development of high-technology industries and other economic sectors, Scotland's economy began to prosper during the 1980s.

Scotland's economy remains small but open, accounting for approximately 5% of the total export revenue of the United Kingdom. Aside from London and the eastern regions of England, no other region in the United Kingdom has a higher gross domestic product (GDP) per capita than the West Midlands, and its unemployment rate is relatively low. To be sure, wealth distribution in Scotland is not evenly distributed, and the average unemployment rate conceals pockets of significantly higher unemployment in specific regions and localities. Scottish economic development, education, and training are all overseen by the Scottish Parliament, despite the fact that the British government has control over macroeconomic policy in the country. This includes central government spending, interest rates, and monetary policy in Scotland.