| Argyll Earra-Ghàidheal (Scottish Gaelic) | |
|---|---|
| Historic county | |
 | |
| Area | |
| • Coordinates | 56°15′N5°15′W / 56.250°N 5.250°W /56.250; -5.250 United Kingdom |
| History | |
| • Preceded by | Dál Riata; Lordship of the Isles |
| • Abolished | 1975 |
| • Succeeded by | Strathclyde (Region, 1975-1996); Argyll and Bute (District, 1975–1996, Council area 1996–) |
| Chapman code | ARL |
Argyll (/ɑːrˈɡaɪl/;archaicallyArgyle;Scottish Gaelic:Earra-Ghàidheal,pronounced[ɛrˠəˈɣɛː.əl̪ˠ]), sometimes calledArgyllshire, is ahistoric county andregistration county of westernScotland. The county ceased to be used for local government purposes in 1975 and most of the area now forms part of theArgyll and Butecouncil area.
Argyll is of ancient origin, and broadly corresponds to the ancient kingdom ofDál Riata less the parts which were inIreland. Argyll was also amedieval bishopric with its cathedral atLismore. In medieval times the area was divided into a number ofprovincial lordships. One of these, covering only the central part of the later county, was called Argyll. It was initially anearldom, elevated to become adukedom in 1701 with the creation of theDuke of Argyll. Other lordships in the area includedCowal,Kintyre,Knapdale, andLorn. From at least the 14th century there was aSheriff of Argyll, whose jurisdiction was gradually extended; from 1633 theshire covered all these five provinces. Shires gradually eclipsed the old provinces in administrative importance, and also became known as counties. Between 1890 and 1975, Argyll had acounty council. The county town was historicallyInveraray, but from its creation in 1890 the county council was based atLochgilphead.
The county is sparsely populated, with many islands andsea lochs along its coast, and the inland parts are mountainous. Six towns in the county heldburgh status:Campbeltown,Dunoon, Inveraray, Lochgilphead,Oban, andTobermory. Argyll bordersInverness-shire to the north,Perthshire andDunbartonshire to the east, and (separated by theFirth of Clyde) neighboursRenfrewshire andAyrshire to the south-east, and theCounty of Bute to the south.
Argyll ceased to be used for local government purposes in 1975. Most of the pre-1975 county was then included in theArgyll and Bute district of theStrathclyde region. The district created in 1975 excluded theMorvern andArdnamurchan areas from the pre-1975 county, which were transferred to theHighland region, but included theIsle of Bute, which had not been in Argyll. Further reforms in 1996 abolished the Strathclyde region and made Argyll and Bute a single-tiercouncil area instead. As part of those reforms, Argyll and Bute also gained an area aroundHelensburgh which had historically been inDunbartonshire.
The name is generally said to derive from Old Irishairer Goídel, meaning "border region of the Gaels". The early 13th-century author ofDe Situ Albanie wrote that "the nameArregathel means the margin (i.e., border region) of the Scots or Irish, because all Scots and Irish are generally calledGattheli (i.e. Gaels), from their ancient warleader known asGaithelglas." The wordairer also means "coast" when applied to maritime regions, so the name can also be translated as "coast of the Gaels".[1]
An alternative theory has more recently been advanced that the name may actually come from the early Irish kingdom ofAirgíalla.[2]
The legal name of the county was Argyll,[3] which was also used by theRoyal Mail as the name of thepostal county for the mainland (the islands formed their own postal counties).[4] TheOrdnance Survey adopted the alternative form 'Argyllshire' for the county on its maps.[5]
| Year | Pop. | ±% |
|---|---|---|
| 1801 | 81,277 | — |
| 1811 | 86,541 | +6.5% |
| 1821 | 97,316 | +12.5% |
| 1831 | 100,973 | +3.8% |
| 1841 | 97,371 | −3.6% |
| 1851 | 89,298 | −8.3% |
| 1901 | 73,642 | −17.5% |
| 1911 | 70,902 | −3.7% |
| 1921 | 76,862 | +8.4% |
| 1931 | 63,050 | −18.0% |
| 1951 | 63,361 | +0.5% |
| Source:[6] | ||
TheKilmartin Glen hasstanding stones and other monuments dating back to around 3000 BC, and is one of the most significant areas forNeolithic andBronze Age remains in mainlandScotland. In 563 ADIona Abbey was founded, becoming one of the most important earlyChristian sites in Scotland.[7]
TheGaelic kingdom ofDál Riata existed between the 5th and 9th centuries. Its territory covered north-eastern parts ofIreland in what later becameCounty Antrim, part of the mainland ofGreat Britain in what is now westernScotland, and numerous islands in theInner Hebrides. A fortress atDunadd in the Kilmartin Glen, four miles (six kilometres) northwest of the modern town ofLochgilphead, served as the main seat of the kingdom.[8] Dál Riata fragmented in the 9th century during theViking Age; the part in Ireland was absorbed into the kingdom ofUlaid, the islands came under the control of theKingdom of the Isles, and the part on mainland Britain was united in 843 AD with thePictish kingdom to its east underKenneth MacAlpin to become theKingdom of Alba.[9]
The name Argyll (Airer Goídel), meaning 'coast or borderland of the Gaels', came to be used for the part of the former Dál Riata territory on mainland Britain. The name distinguished the area from theInnse Gall, meaning 'islands of the foreigners' which was used for the Kingdom of the Isles, ruled byOld Norse-speakingNorse–Gaels.[1]
Dunardry in Argyll, was the historic seat of the ancientMacTavish clan. An early mention of theClan MacTavish lineage and its presence in Argyll can be found in records from thePhilological Society of London, the oldest scholarly society in Great Britain. One of its publications notes: "Our author's father was married to a daughter of Campbell of Ashfield, and her mother was a daughter of MacTavifh or Thomfon of Dunardary (spelling as originally printed). This is a highly esteemed and ancient family, having held the Dunardary estate for over nine centuries."[10] Further corroboration of this claim appears inThe Scots Magazine from 1793.[11] Given that the MacTavishes were documented at Dunardary for 900 years prior to that reference, their presence in the region can be traced back to approximately 893 AD.[12]
Argyll was divided into several lordships orprovinces, includingKintyre,Knapdale,Lorn,Cowal, and a smaller Argyll province which covered the area around Inveraray betweenLoch Fyne andLoch Awe (the latter sometimes described by later writers as "Argyll proper" or "Mid-Argyll" to distinguish it from the wider area).[13] The term "North Argyll" was also used to refer to the area later calledWester Ross. It was called North Argyll as it was settled by missionaries and refugees fromDál Riata, based at the abbey ofApplecross. The position of abbot was hereditary, and whenFerchar mac in tSagairt, son of the abbot, became theEarl of Ross in the 13th century, the region of North Argyll gradually became known as Wester Ross instead.
Alba evolved into the kingdom of Scotland, but lost control of Kintyre, Knapdale and Lorn toNorwegian rule, as was acknowledged in a treaty of 1098 betweenEdgar, King of Scotland andMagnus Barefoot,King of Norway.[14] In 1266, theTreaty of Perth re-established the Scottish crown's authority over the parts of Argyll which had been under Norwegian rule, along with the former Kingdom of the Isles, which together became the semi-independentLordship of the Isles.[9][15]
By this time, the rest of the area under Scottish rule was divided intoshires, administered bysheriffs. The shires covered different territories to the provinces, and it was the shires which subsequently evolved into Scotland's counties rather than the older provinces. Following the Treaty of Perth, the Argyll provinces were initially placed in theshire of Perth. In 1293, two new shires were created within Argyll; theSheriff of Kintyre, covering just that province, and theSheriff of Lorn, covering Lorn, Knapdale, and Mid-Argyll (which probably included Cowal at that time).[16]
The earliest reference to aSheriff of Argyll was in 1326.[17] The position appears to have been a re-establishment or renaming of the position of the Sheriff of Lorn. The post subsequently became a hereditary position held by members ofClan Campbell.[18]
Despite the creation of the shires, much of the area remained under the practical control of the Lord of the Isles until 1476, whenJohn MacDonald, last Lord of the Isles,quitclaimed Kintyre, Knapdale, and Mid-Argyll to full Scottish control. In 1481, Knapdale was added to the shire of Kintyre which then became known asTarbertshire, being initially administered fromTarbert.[19]
TheScottish Reformation coincidentally followed the fall of the Lordship of the Isles. The MacDonalds (the clan of the former Lords of the Isles) were strong supporters of the former religious regime. The Campbells, by contrast, were strong supporters of the reforms. At the start of the 17th century, under instruction fromJames VI, the Campbells were sent to the MacDonald territory atIslay andJura, which they subdued and added to the shire of Argyll. Campbell pressure at this time also led to the sheriff court for Tarbertshire being moved toInverary, where the Campbells held the court for the sheriff of Argyll. Tarbertshire was subsequently abolished by an act of parliament in 1633, being absorbed into the shire of Argyll. The act also confirmed the town of Inveraray's position as "head burgh" of the enlarged shire.[20]
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In 1667,Commissioners of Supply were established for each shire, which would serve as the main administrative body for the area until the creation of county councils in 1890.[21]
David II had restored MacDougall authority over Lorn in 1357, butJohn MacDougall (head of the MacDougalls) had already renounced claims to Mull (in 1354) in favour of the MacDonalds, to avoid potential conflict. TheMacLeans were an ancient family based in Lorn (including Mull), and following the quitclaim, they no longer had a Laird in Mull, so themselves became Mull's Lairds. Unlike the MacDonalds, they were fervent supporters of the Reformation, even supporting acts ofcivil disobedience against kingCharles II'srepudiation of theSolemn League and Covenant.Archibald Campbell (Earl of Argyll) was instructed by theprivy council to seize Mull, and suppress thenon-conformist behaviour; by 1680 he gained possession of the island, and transferred shrieval authority to the sheriff of Argyll.
In 1746, followingJacobite insurrections, theHeritable Jurisdictions Act abolishedregality, and forbade the position of sheriff from being inherited. Local governance was brought into line with that of the rest of the recently unifiedGreat Britain, and the English term "county" came to be used interchangeably with the term "shire". In 1890, elected county councils were created under theLocal Government (Scotland) Act 1889.
The 1889 Act also led to parish and county boundaries being adjusted to eliminate cases where parishes straddled county boundaries. The parish ofSmall Isles straddled Argyll and Inverness-shire, with the islands ofMuck,Rùm,Canna, andSanday being in Argyll butEigg in Inverness-shire. The whole parish was placed in Inverness-shire in 1891. The parishes ofArdnamurchan andKilmallie both also straddled Argyll and Inverness-shire; the county boundary through Kilmallie was adjusted to followLoch Eil in 1891.[22] In 1895 these two parishes were both split along the county boundary; the part of Ardnamurchan in Inverness-shire became a new parish ofArisaig and Moidart, leaving the reduced Ardnamurchan parish wholly in Argyll, whilst the part of Kilmallie in Argyll became a new parish ofArdgour.[23][24]
Argyll was abolished as a county for local government purposes in 1975, with its area being split betweenHighland and Strathclyde Regions. Alocal government district calledArgyll and Bute was formed in theStrathclyderegion, including most of Argyll and the adjacentIsle of Bute (the former County of Bute was more extensive). TheArdnamurchan,Ardgour,Ballachulish, Duror,Glencoe,Kinlochleven, andMorvern areas of Argyll were detached to become parts ofLochaber District, in Highland. They remained in Highland following the 1996 revision.
In 1996, a newunitary council area ofArgyll and Bute was created, with a change in boundaries to include part of the former Strathclyde district ofDumbarton. The historic county boundaries of Argyll are still used for some limited official purposes connected with land registration, being aregistration county.[25]
Argyll County Council held its first meeting at thecourthouse in Inveraray on 22 May 1890, when over three hours were spent debating where the council should meet thereafter, with proposals put forward in favour of meeting inLochgilphead,Inveraray,Oban,Dunoon, or evenGlasgow (despite the latter being outside the county). It was decided to meet at Dunoon between May and September and at Oban for the rest of the year.[26] The council did subsequently hold meetings in more places than just those two towns, meeting occasionally at all the towns which had been suggested at that first meeting.[27]
The council also appointed a clerk who was based in Lochgilphead at its first meeting, beginning the practice of having the council's main offices in that town.[26][28] The clerk's offices were initially at the County Offices which formed part of Lochgilphead's courthouse and police station on Lochnell Street, which had been built in 1849.[29][30][31] In 1925 the council bought the former Argyll Hotel at 5 Lochnell Street for £2,700, converting it to become their offices.[a] The hotel had been built in 1887, and was renamed County Offices.[33][34] The Lochgilphead building was not large enough to house all the council's staff, and some departments remained in other towns throughout the county council's existence, with the county treasurer being based in Campbeltown, the health department in Oban, and the education offices in Dunoon.[27][35]
After the county council's abolition in 1975, the building at 5 Lochnell Street became the sub-regional office ofStrathclyde Regional Council, being renamed "Dalriada House", whilst the newArgyll and Bute District Council established its headquarters at nearbyKilmory Castle.[36][37]
Argyll is split into two non-contiguous mainland sections divided byLoch Linnhe, plus a large number of islands that fall within theInner Hebrides. Mainland Argyll is characterised by mountainousHighland scenery interspersed with hundreds of lochs, with a heavily indented coastline containing numerous small offshore islands. The islands present a contrasting range of scenery – from the relatively flat islands ofColl andTiree to the mountainous terrain ofJura andMull. For ease of reference the following is split into three sections: Mainland (north), Mainland (south) and the Inner Hebrides.
The northern mainland section consists of two large peninsulas –Ardnamurchan andMorvern – divided byLoch Sunart, with a large inland section – known traditionally asArdgour – bounded on the east byLoch Linnhe. This loch gradually narrows, before turning sharply west in the vicinity of Fort William (where it is known asLoch Eil), almost cutting the northern mainland section of Argyll in two. This area, in the vicinity ofFort William and along the railway line, contains the largest towns of northern mainland Argyll.
Ardnamurchan is a remote, mountainous region with only one access road; it terminates inArdnamurchan Point andCorrachadh Mòr, thewesternmost points of the British mainland. In the north-east of the peninsula two unnamed sub-peninsulas almost encircleKentra Bay, and are bound by the South Channel ofLoch Moidart to the north; to the east of this lies theRiver Shiel and thenLoch Shiel, a long loch which forms most of this section of the border with Inverness-shire. Morvern is a large peninsula and like its northern neighbour is remote, mountainous and sparsely populated. In its north-westLoch Teacuis cuts deeply into the peninsula, as doesLoch Aline in the south. At the estuary of Loch Teacuis lie the large islands ofOronsay,Risga andCàrna. There are numerous lochs in northern Argyll, the largest beingLoch Doilet,Loch Arienas,Loch Teàrnait,Loch Doire nam Mart andLoch Mudle.
The southern mainland section is much larger than the northern, and is dominated by the longKintyre peninsula, theterminus of which lies only 13 miles (21 kilometres) fromNorthern Ireland on the other side of theNorth Channel. The coast is complex, with the west coast in particular being heavily indented and containing numerous sea inlets, peninsulas and sub-peninsulas; of the latter, the major ones (north to south) areAppin,Ardchattan,Craignish,Tayvallich,Taynish,Knapdale andKintyre, and the major loch inlets (north to south) areLoch Leven,Loch Creran,Loch Etive,Loch Feochan,Loch Melfort,Loch Craignish,Loch Crinan,Loch Sween,Loch Caolisport andWest Loch Tarbert, the latter dividing Kintyre from Knapdale. To the eastLoch Fyne separates Kintyre from theCowal peninsula, which is itself split into three sub-peninsulas by LochsStriven andRiddon and split on its east coast byHoly Loch andLoch Goil; south across theKyles of Bute lies the island ofBute, which is part ofButeshire, and to east acrossLoch Long lies theRosneath peninsula inDunbartonshire. The topography of south Argyll is in general heavily mountainous and sparsely populated, with numerous lochs; Kintyre is slightly flatter though still hilly. NearGlen Coe can be foundBidean nam Bian, the tallest peak in the county at 1,150 m (3,770 ft). Of the lochs and bodies of water the largest are (roughly north to south) theBlackwater Reservoir,Loch Achtriochtan,Loch Laidon,Loch Bà,loch Buidhe,Lochan na Stainge,Loch Dochard,Loch Tulla,Loch Shira, theCruachan Reservoir,Loch Restil,Loch Awe,Loch Avich,Blackmill Loch,Loch Nant,Loch Nell,Loch Scammadale,Loch Glashan,Loch Loskin,Loch Eck,Asgog Loch,Loch Tarsan,Càm Loch,Loch nan Torran,Loch Ciàran,Loch Garasdale,Lussa Loch andTangy Loch.
Note that islands lying off the west coast are generally considered to be part of the Inner Hebrides (see below)
Argyll contains the majority of the Inner Hebrides group, with the notable exceptions ofSkye andEigg (both in Inverness-shire). The islands are too geographically diverse to be summarised here; further details can be found on the individual pages below.
Starting in 1590, as one of the measures that followed the Scottish reformation, each sheriffdom electedcommissioners to theParliament of Scotland. As well as the commissioner representingArgyll, at least one was sent to represent Tarbertshire,Sir Lachlan Maclean ofMorvern.[38][39][40] In the 1630 parliamentary session, Sir Coll Lamont,laird of Lamont, was the commissioner for "Argylland Tarbert".[41]
There was anArgyllshire constituency of theParliament of Great Britain from 1708 to 1801, and of theParliament of the United Kingdom from 1801 to 1983 (renamedArgyll in 1950). TheArgyll and Bute constituency was created when the Argyll constituency was abolished.
Civil parishes are still used for some statistical purposes, and separate census figures are published for them. As their areas have been largely unchanged since the 19th century, this allows for comparison of population figures over an extended period of time.
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TheWest Highland railway runs through the far north of the county, stopping atLocheilside,Loch Eil Outward Bound,Corpach andBanavie, before carrying on toMallaig in Inverness-shire. A branch of the line also goes toOban, calling atDalmally,Loch Awe,Falls of Cruachan,Taynuilt andConnel Ferry.
Numerous ferries link the islands of the Inner Hebrides to each other and the Scottish mainland. Many of the islands also contain small airstrips enabling travel by air. A fairly extensive bus network links the larger towns of the area, with bus transport also available on the islands of Islay, Jura and Mull.[45]
The county contains a number of small airports which serve the region and Edinburgh/Glasgow:Oban,Tiree,Coll,Colonsay,Campbeltown andIslay.
Kintyre has been one of the mooted locations for a proposedBritish-Irish bridge; as the closest point to Ireland at first glance it appears to be the most obvious route, however Kintyre is hampered by its remoteness from the main centres of Scotland's population.
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