Linlithgow
 | This article's lead section may be too short to adequately summarize the key points. (November 2009) |
Linlithgow
| |
|---|---|
 Linlithgow from Linlithgow Palace | |
| Population | 13,370 |
| OS grid reference | NS996774 |
| Council area | |
| Lieutenancy area | |
| Country | Scotland |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Post town | LINLITHGOW |
| Postcode district | EH49 |
| Dialling code | 01506 |
| Police | Scotland |
| Fire | Scottish |
| Ambulance | Scottish |
| UK Parliament | |
| Scottish Parliament | |
Linlithgow (Template:Pron-en) (Scottish Gaelic: Gleann Iucha, Scots Lithgae) is a Royal Burgh in West Lothian, Scotland. The town's coat of arms shows a black dog, chained to an oak tree, which grows on an island. Linlithgow's patron saint is Saint Michael and its motto is St. Michael is kinde to strangers.
Linlithgow is twinned with the French town Guyancourt and, as part of West Lothian, with Grapevine, Texas in the USA.
History
Formerly the principal town of West Lothian, which was also known as Linlithgowshire, the town lies some 20 miles (32 km) west of Edinburgh along the main railway route to Glasgow. Before the construction of the M8 & M9 motorways and the opening of the Forth Road Bridge, the town lay on the main road from Edinburgh to Stirling, Perth and Inverness while the canal system linked the burgh to Edinburgh and Glasgow. The nearby village of Blackness once served as the burgh's port.
The chief historic attraction of Linlithgow is the remains of Linlithgow Palace, the birthplace of James V and Mary, Queen of Scots, and probably Scotland's finest surviving late medieval secular building. The present Palace was started (on an older site) in 1424 by James I of Scotland. It was burnt in 1746, and while unroofed is still largely complete although very few of the original furnishings survived.
Linlithgow was also the site of the Battle of Linlithgow Bridge at the western edge of the town. Another attraction is 15th century St. Michael's Church, the most complete surviving example of a large late medieval 'burgh kirk' in Scotland[citation needed]. Its western tower originally had a distinctive stone crown spire, of the type seen also on St Giles Cathedral in Edinburgh, or Newcastle Cathedral, which was removed in the early 19th century. In 1964 a replacement, and at the time controversial, spire in aluminium in a modern style, representing Christ's crown of thorns, was added.
James Hamilton of Bothwellhaugh carried out the first assassination with a firearm, when he shot James Stewart, 1st Earl of Moray, the regent of Scotland, on 11 January 1570 in Linlithgow.
The town's coat of arms features a black bitch dog against an oak tree, after a legend of a black greyhound whose master was sentenced to starve to death on an island in Linlithgow loch. She used to swim from the town every day with food for him, and managed to save his life. The townspeople took the symbol of the dog's loyalty and bravery as their own. The local pub named "The Black Bitch" is one of Scotland's oldest pubs.[1]
Development
Two large tracts of the northern side of the High Street were demolished in the 1960s and replaced by flats and public buildings in a modernist style. Although these buildings were no doubt welcomed at the time as being a vast improvement on what must have been cramped and dilapidated traditional accommodation, they were poorly conceived and constructed and have required extensive maintenance and renovation over the years.[citation needed] Many locals[who?] lament the brutal effect these buildings have had on the character and appearance of the town's main thoroughfare, and indeed such a dramatic remodelling of buildings forming such a central part of the town would be unthinkable nowadays.
Today the town is especially popular with middle classes and commuters, not only because of its excellent transport links with Edinburgh, Glasgow and Stirling, but also because of the perceived quality of its schooling. Its size grew considerably during the 1990s with the completion of several housing developments on the east side of the town. There is little scope for the town to grow further as it is now bounded by green belt to the south and east, the M9 to the north, the river Avon and county boundary to the West and with the east side of the town having limited access to the M9. The town also now suffers from parking problems with the local schools running to full capacity due to the massive increase in population over the last ten years.
Linlithgow is also home to a major computing centre owned by Oracle. Former industries include the St. Magdalene's distillery, the Nobel explosives works, paper mills and many tanneries.
Geography
The town has a generally east-west orientation and is centred on what used to be the main Edinburgh-Stirling road; this now forms the main thoroughfare called the High Street. Plots of farmed land, known as rigs, ran perpendicular to the High Street and comprised much of the town's development until the 19th century. Growth was restricted to the north by Linlithgow Loch, and by the steep hill to the south, but, in the late 19th & early 20th centuries, development began to take place much further south of the High Street. In the late 20th century, demand for housing saw many residential developments take place much further south, as well as spreading into new areas. This southward development was bisected by the Union Canal and latterly the main Edinburgh-Glasgow railway line, and today the limited crossings of both cause problems with modern traffic as there are only three places where each can be crossed in the town.
To the west, Linlithgow Bridge used to be a somewhat distinct village with its own identity, but in the latter half of the 20th century it was enveloped in the expansion of the main town and today the distinction between them is hard to make out.
Facilities and leisure
Linlithgow's rich history and central location make it a popular tourist destination, while a significant proportion of the local population make the daily commute to Glasgow, Edinburgh or Stirling, made relatively easy by the town's railway station and proximity to both the M8 & M9 motorways.
The town is served by three supermarkets and a retail park situated in Linlithgow Bridge hosting a Homebase and an Argos Extra among its five units. However, the town continues to support a diverse range of local retailers in the High Street. There are controversial proposals for a new retail development to the East of the town. These are being opposed by a local lobby group.[2]
Linlithgow is of sufficient size that facilities for most common participitation sports can be found in or around the town.BFC linlithgow was formed in 1992 and is a youth football team with over 200 players in the community club. Linlithgow is also host to Linlithgow Rose Football Club and Linlithgow Rugby Football Club, as well as West Lothian County Cricket Association. Linlithgow also hosts two main Scotland Supporters Clubs for the Scotish National football team, they are named Linlithgow & District Tartan Army and (LADTA) and the Young Linlithgow Tartan Army (YLTA). Both of which are registered Scotland Supporters Clubs.
A number of local parks, including play areas for children, are spread throughout the burgh, with the tract of land surrounding the palace known as The Peel being particularly popular in summer. Low Port Outdoor Education Centre[3] is situated next to the loch and provides facilities for many outdoor activities, many based on the adjacent loch. Nearby country parks include Beecraigs and Muiravonside.
Educational establishments within the town include Linlithgow Academy, which regularly appears close to the top of the school league tables in Scotland and is one of the main reasons for the demand for housing in Linlithgow, and five primary schools; Linlithgow Primary School, St Josephs Primary School, Linlithgow Bridge Primary School, Low Port Primary School and Springfield Primary School.
Donaldson's College - Scotland's national school for the deaf - relocated from Edinburgh to a new building in Linlithgow in 2008.
The Riding of the Marches, held in one form or another since the mid-16th century and nowadays celebrated on the first Tuesday after the second Thursday in June, involve young and old in the tradition of checking the burgh's perimeter, including the town's historic port of Blackness. Although today's activities are centered more on the colourful parades through the town that involve bands and floats decorated by local groups, the more ceremonial duties of the Marches are still adhered to and a variety of local groups ensure that the traditions, old and new, are maintained.
There are many other events during the year such as the Children's Gala Day,[4] the Linlithgow Folk Festival and a pre-Christmas Victorian Street Fayre, and the sense of community is enhanced by many active local groups such as Linlithgow Amateur Musical Productions (LAMP) [2], Lithca Lore, The Linlithgow Players [3] and The 41 Club. The town also has its own weekly local newspaper, the Linlithgow Gazette.
The Linlithgow Union Canal Society run a canal museum and operate narrowboat tours from Manse Road basin.[5]
The town has two Church of Scotland parish churches - St Michael's and the smaller St. Ninian's Craigmailen. There are also churches of other denominations, including a Methodist chapel (now an evangelical church, St. Johns, which meets in Linlithgow Academy on a Sunday morning), an architecturally distinctive Scottish Episcopal church, and a Roman Catholic church, also called St Michael's, which was used as an ambulance depot by Polish servicemen during the second world war.[6]
Notable people
King James V ] was born in Linlithgow Palace.
Mary, Queen of Scots ] , was born and christened in Linlithgow.
Linlithgow was the childhood home of the current First Minister of Scotland, Alex Salmond.
In September 2007, the Linlithgow Story museum at Annet House unveiled a memorial plaque dedicated to the fictional Star Trek character Scotty, the chief engineer of the 'Federation Starship Enterprise', who, it has been claimed, was born in Linlithgow in 2222.
See also
References
- ^ Grant Stott (9 March 2007). "What! Mr Scott was Black Bitch? - Scotsman.com News". The Scotsman. Retrieved 2009-03-24.
- ^ Linlithgow Against Springfield Development (2008-06-24). "Welcome | Linlithgow Against Springfield Development". Lasd.org.uk. Retrieved 2009-04-30.
- ^ [1][dead link]
- ^ "Linlithgow & Linlithgow Bridge Children's Gala Day". Retrieved 2008-04-08.
- ^ "Linlithgow Canal Centre". Retrieved 2008-04-08.
- ^ "1ST MOTOR AMBULANCE CONVOY - The story of a Polish ambulance unit stationed in the historic burgh of Linlithgow". 1st-mac.com. Retrieved 2009-04-30.