The GATEWAY to SCOTLAND

Welcome to Scotland

(Fàilte ort a dh'Albainn)

Welcome to the "Gateway to Scotland", the best starting-point for information about Scotland on the Internet.

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The Gazetteer for Scotland is now the definitive source of information on places and people in Scotland, with 12,000 text entries, more than 5000 photographs and growing.
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Gateway to Scotland

We look to Scotland for all our ideas
of civilisation -- Voltaire

These pages are intended to provide a gateway to Scotland; its geography, history, people, traditions and culture. No-one was providing this information, so we decided to take the initiative. Much information is provided locally by ourselves, but there are also links to other providers of Scottish information. Please tell us if you think there is other information out there which we have missed.

Scotland - Introduction

Scotland is one of four constituent nations which form the United Kingdom (the other three are England, Wales and Northern Ireland). Scotland forms the northern part of the island of Great Britain.

Scotland is 31,510 sq. miles in area; it is 274 miles long from North to South and varies in breadth between 24 and 154 miles. An active map of Scotland is available, which details Scotland's major cities.

Population statistics for Scotland (1811 - 1991) are available here. Other demographic and socio-economic statistics are also available.

[IMAGE: The Thistle and the Heather The official language is English, although Gaelic is spoken, primarily in the North and West of Scotland. For your information, the local date and time are available in Gaelic. The Scots language (which has many similarities to English, but also draws on French and Gaelic) is also spoken. Whereas Gaelic is the language of the Highlands & Islands, Scots is the language of the Lowlands.

A detailed government-produced profile of Scotland is available here.

The national flower is the thistle, although the heather which covers significant moorland areas is also closely associated with the country, providing peat for the fire and, along with lichens, dyes for tartan. Both are illustrated to the right.

Scotland - Physical Characteristics

Scotland is divided into three main regions; the Highlands, the Midland Valley and the Southern Uplands. The cities of Edinburgh, Glasgow and Dundee together with numerous towns, most of the population and the majority of Scotland's industry is located within the Midland Valley. This broad valley averages 50 miles across and runs WSW to ENE across the centre of the country. It is geologically distinct from the surrounding regions, being composed of Devonian Old Red Sandstone, peppered with ancient volcanoes, as against the older sedimentary rocks forming the Southern Uplands or the ancient metamorphic melange, comprising the Highlands to the north.

Scotland includes 787 islands, of which most belong to groups known as the Hebrides, Orkney and Shetland. Only 62 exceed three square miles in area.

Of 26 rivers flowing directly into the sea, the most significant are listed here. The Rivers Clyde, Forth and Tay open into significant estuaries and support three of the major cities of Scotland (Glasgow, Edinburgh and Dundee respectively).

[IMAGE: Lamb] Scotland is well known for its mountainous and beautiful scenery. Much of the upland within the UK is contained within the borders of Scotland, along with the highest peaks. The highest mountains in Scotland are listed here.

Scotland is also noted for its lochs (this name is generally used for lakes in Scotland). Much of the west coast of the country is intersected by Sea Lochs, the longest of which, Loch Fyne, penetrates more than 40 miles inland. Notable fresh-water lochs include Loch Ness (the one with the Monster!). Further information is available here.

Scotland - Government and Commerce

Government in Scotland is in four tiers. A new Scottish Parliament was elected in 1999, following devolution of powers from the United Kingdom Parliament in London. This is the first time Scotland has had its own parliament in 300 years. The Scottish Parliament, which sits in Edinburgh, is responsible for most aspects of Scottish life. The national parliament in Westminster (London) retains responsibility for areas such as defence, foreign affairs and taxation. The European Parliament in Brussels (Belgium) exercises certain powers vested in the European Union.

Further information is available regarding the what the Parliament does. You can also watch the parliament and all of its committees live on the web.

The Scottish Parliament is supported the Scottish Executive also based in Edinburgh. The Scottish Government is led by a First Minister. A Secretary of State for Scotland remains part of the UK Cabinet, and is supported by the Scotland Office (previously the Scottish Office) based in Glasgow, with offices in Edinburgh and London.

Local government is divided into 29 unitary authorities and three island authorities, having been subject to a major reorganisation in 1995.

Scotland has its own legal system, judiciary and an education system which, at all levels, differs from that found "south of the border" in England and Wales. More information on Scottish Law.

Scotland also has its own banking system and its own banknotes. Edinburgh is the second financial centre of the UK and one of the major financial centres of the world.

Scotland - Famous People

Scotland has given rise to many more famous people, notable in the arts, literature, the sciences and as inventors, philosophers, architects and so on, than would be expected for a country of such modest size and population. A list of some of these individuals is available here.

Alternatively visit the famous people section of the Gazetteer for Scotland, which includes full biographies together with associated places and family names.

Scotland - History

The Midland Valley of Scotland represented the most northern extent of the Roman conquest of Britain after 79 A.D. Remnants of the Antonine Wall, which the Romans built between the River Forth and the River Clyde to defend this frontier, can still be seen. The lands to the north (known to the Romans as Caledonia) were occupied by a war-like tribe called the Picts. Little is known of the Picts, but their origin and language is most-likely Celtic. The more famous Hadrian's Wall, which is over 100 miles long and lies close to the current border between England and Scotland, was built by the retreating Romans (having been harried by continuous Pictish attacks) around 119 A.D.
In the 5th Century the "Scots" came from their home in Ireland and settled in the West of Scotland. The Scots, partially christianised when they came, had Saint Columba as their great missionary, and through him and his followers, built on the work of Saint Ninian converting the Picts and other tribes to christianity. Saint Columba is buried on the sacred island of Iona off the west coast of Scotland.
After centuries of wars with the Picts, they put the crown of Scots and Picts on the head of their king, Kenneth MacAlpin, in 843.
The reign of Malcolm Canmore (1057 - 1093) was a time of great social, political and religious revolution. Malcolm had spent much time in England and he and his saintly queen (Margaret) encouraged English customs, the English language and gave shelter to English refugees fleeing the Norman invasion of 1066. As the Normans spread north, so French culture was brought to Scotland.
Scotland was a wealthy country through until the beginning of the 14th Century, when Edward I of England (known as the "Hammer of the Scots") was determined to incorporate Scotland into the English crown.
The defeat of Edward II at Bannockburn in 1314 was a great victory, reflected in the songs and spirit of Scottish nationalism until present times. The desire to preserve independence was embodied in a plea to the Pope, known as the Declaration of Arbroath. Long, bloody and destructive wars over the succeeding 300 years ensured that, while Scotland remained free, it was also poor.
John Knox, the Edinburgh churchman, played his part in the reformation in Scotland, which adopted a Presbyterian tradition losing the link between church and state (which is retained in England).
England and Scotland were linked through James VI of Scotland acceding to the English throne in 1603, following the death of Queen Elizabeth I (of England). Elizabeth had persecuted (and finally executed) James' mother and her own cousin, Mary Queen of Scots, but died childless.
Succeeding British monarchs were not as well disposed towards Scotland as James had been. Following the formal Act of Union in 1707, displeasure particularly amongst Highland Scots, supported the rebellions of 1715 and 1745 which attempted to restore respectively the Old and Young (Bonnie Prince Charlie) Pretenders to the throne of Scotland.
After the 1745 rebellion, which was effectively a Civil War, the Highland Clearances began. Thousands were evicted from their rented crofts and the mass migration of Scots to other parts of the world began. Despite the popularist view that the landlords were English, the majority were Scots, but not those of the gaelic-speaking Roman Catholic tradition who had fought for the 'Bonnie Prince'.
Some Important dates in Scottish history are here.
More information on Scottish history is here.
Interested in Scottish Castles? There are hundreds here.

Further Information about Scotland

Scottish Maps, Regions & Places

Who Owns Scotland? [NEW!]

Discovering Scotland through Tourist Portraits, Media & Film and Scottish Literature

The Arts in Scotland [NEW!]

Scottish Music, Song and Dance

Traditional Scottish Food and Drink

The Scottish Weather (forecasts, images, snow conditions)

Sport in Scotland

Scottish Dress and Tartans

A miscellany of questions answered about Scotland

A collection of culture from the Gathering of the Clans (Canada)

Indexes of Scottish Web Server and some of the main WWW Servers

Scottish Events near to you

Tourist Gateway, all you need to know about visiting Scotland [NEW!]

Tracing your Scottish Ancestry

All about the Scottish Flag(s)

Looking for people - try the UK Telephone Directory (this covers all of the UK, not just Scotland) [NEW!]

Looking for businesses and facilities - try the UK Yellow Pages (this also covers all of the UK)

Scottish Web Cams

What the Reviewers say about Gateway to Scotland

Where we are, the local time and about this server

Scotland: An Encyclopedia of Places and Landscape
Munro and Gittings

The most up-to-date geographical reference book on Scotland (published Nov 2006), which absolutely must be on the bookshelf of anyone with serious interests in the country.

Collins Encyclopaedia of Scotland
Keay and Keay

A comprehensive general reference book about Scotland, which is a wise purchase for those interested in scottish history, people and places.

We welcome your comments and suggestions, but we do receive an huge amount of feedback, so please read this first.

Supported by the Royal Scottish Geographical Society

Background Music is "Jessie, the Flower o' Dunblane", written by Robert Tannahill (1774-1810) and sequenced by Barry Taylor. See Music, Song & Dance section for links.

URL: http://www.geo.ed.ac.uk/home/scotland/scotland.html
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