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Stirling (; ; ) is a city in Central Belt Scotland, northeast of Glasgow and north-west of Edinburgh. The city is surrounded by rich farmland and had a royal Stirling Castle, the medieval old town with its merchants and tradesmen, the Old Bridge and the port are all linked in to its history. Situated on the River Forth, Stirling is the administrative centre for the Stirling council area, and is traditionally the county town and historic county of Stirlingshire. Stirling's key position as the lowest bridging point of the River Forth before it broadens towards the Firth of Forth made it a focal point for travel north or south. It has been said that "Stirling, like a huge brooch clasps Highlands and Lowlands together". The city's status as "Gateway to the Highlands" also historically lent it great strategic importance—the credo "he who holds Stirling, holds Scotland" is sometimes attributed to Robert the Bruce.
When Stirling was temporarily under Anglo-Saxon sway, according to a 9th-century legend, it was attacked by Danish invaders. The sound of a wolf roused a sentry, however, who alerted his garrison, which forced a Viking retreat. This led to the wolf being adopted as a symbol of the town as is shown on the 1511 Stirling Jug. The area is today known as Wolfcraig. Even today the wolf appears with a Eurasian goshawk on the council's coat of arms along with the recently chosen motto: "Steadfast as the Rock".
Once the capital of Scotland, Stirling is visually dominated by Stirling Castle. Stirling also has a medieval parish church, the Church of the Holy Rude, where, on 29 July 1567, the infant James VI was anointed King of Scots by Adam Bothwell, the Bishop of Orkney, with the service concluding after a sermon by John Knox. The poet King was educated by George Buchanan and grew up in Stirling. He was later also crowned King of England and Ireland on 25 July 1603, bringing closer the countries of the United Kingdom. Modern Stirling is a centre for local government, higher education, tourism, retail, and industry. The mid-2012 census estimate for the population of the city is 36,440; the wider Stirling council area has a population of about 93,750.
One of the principal royal strongholds of the Kingdom of Scotland, Stirling was created a royal burgh by David I between 1124 and 1127. In 2002, as part of the Golden Jubilee celebrations, Stirling was granted city status. In the run up to 2024, it was decided to celebrate Stirling's 900th anniversary at the earliest point it could have happened, the coronation of DavidI.
A geographical survey of Britain in the eighth-century Ecclesiastical History of the English People by Bede also mentions a place called urbs Giudi ("the town of Giudi"). Although its location is not certain, a 2023 study found that "Stirling is the location of urbs Giudi favoured by most scholars", and itself supported this identification. This name is thought to be Celtic.A. Breeze, "Some Celtic Place-names of Scotland: Ptolemy's Verubium Promontorium, Bede's Urbs Giudi, Mendick, Minto, and Panlathy’, Scottish Language, 23 (2004), 57–67. The ninth-century Historia Brittonum mentions a similar-looking battle-site called urbs Iudeu, which many scholars have assumed was the same as Bede's urbs Giudi, but this identification is uncertain.
The city has two Latin mottoes, which appeared on the earliest burgh seal of which an impression of 1296 is on record.RM Urquhart, Scottish Burgh and County Heraldry, London, 1973 The first alludes to the story as recorded by Boece who relates that in 855 Scotland was invaded by two Northumbrian princes, Osbrecht and Ella. They united their forces with the Cumbrian Britons in order to defeat the Scots. Having secured Stirling castle, they built the first stone bridge over the Forth.
On the top they reportedly raised a crucifix with the inscription: "Anglos, a Scotis separat, crux ista remotis; Arma hic stant Bruti; stant Scoti hac sub cruce tuti." John Bellenden translated this loosely as "I am free marche, as passengers may ken, To Scottis, to Britonis, and to Inglismen." It may be the stone cross was a tripoint for the three kingdom's borders or marches; the cross functioning both as a dividing territorial marker, and as a uniting witness stone like in the Bible story in Joshua 22. "Angles and Scots here demarked, By this cross kept apart. Brits and Scots armed stand near, By this cross stand safe here." This would make the cross on the centre of the first stone bridge the Heart of Scotland.
The Stirling seal has only the second part, in a slightly different form:
The Latin is apparently not first rate, as it has four syllables in "cruce tuti". However, the meaning seems to be that the Lowland Strathclyde Britons on the southern shore and the Highland Pictish Scots on the northern shore stand protected from each other by their common Christianity.
A more modern translation suggests that rather than Briton, bruit might be better read as brute, i.e. brute Scots, implying a non-Scots identity was retained in Stirling for some time after inclusion into the land controlled by the King of Scots.
The second motto is:
It has been claimed that the "Bridge" seal was regarded as the Burgh seal proper, the "Castle" seal being simply a reverse, used when the seal was affixed by a lace to a charter. This agrees with a description in an official publication (which spells Bruti with only one letter t). Clearer images are available with different lettering. Robert Sibbald conflated the two mottos into a single rhyme; he gave no indication that he was aware of Boece's work.
Stirling was first declared a royal burgh by King David in the 12th century, with later charters reaffirmed by subsequent monarchs. A ferry, and later bridge, on the River Forth at Stirling brought wealth and strategic influence, as did its tidal port at Riverside. As Stirling's economy grew, a Royal Park was established as a landscape setting to the north of the castle in the 12th century. The short-lived New Park was established in the later 13th century and contains a cockshoot (Coxet Hill), likely to have been used as a base in the Battle of Bannockburn. Major battles during the Wars of Scottish Independence took place at the Stirling Old Bridge in 1297 and at the nearby village of Bannockburn in 1314 involving Andrew Moray and William Wallace, and Robert the Bruce respectively. After the Battle of Stirling Bridge, Moray and Wallace wrote to Hanseatic League leaders in Lübeck and Hamburg to encourage trade between Scottish and German ports. There were also several Sieges of Stirling Castle in the conflict, notably in 1304.
Economically, the city's port supported foreign trade, historically doing significant trade in the Low Countries, particularly with Bruges in Belgium and Veere in the Netherlands. In the 16th century there were so many Scots in Danzig in Prussia that they had their own church congregation and trade is mentioned with that city in Stirling Council's minutes of 1560. Around John Cowane's time there is an account which states there were about 30,000 Scots families living in Poland although that was possibly an exaggeration. Trade with the Baltic region also took place such as a timber trade with Norway.
After the Jacobite threat had faded but before the railways were established, the Highland cattle drovers would use the Auld Brig on their way to market at Falkirk or Stenhousemuir. Three times a year, tens of thousands of cattle, sheep and ponies were moved together to the trysts in the south with some drovers going as far as Carlisle or even London's Smithfield. There is a record of a four-mile long tailback (of livestock) developing from St. Ninians to Bridge of Allan after a St. Ninians tollman had a dispute.
The Princes Street drill hall was completed in 1908 and the Municipal Buildings, which formed the headquarters of Stirling Burgh Council for much of the 20th century, were completed in 1918.
After the blockades of the World Wars there was some increase in the use of the port including a tea trade with India. However, with normal shipping lanes open, the growth of the railways including The Forth Rail Bridge, left the harbour uneconomical and by the mid 20th century the port had ceased to operate.
For the purposes of the Scottish Parliament, the city of Stirling forms part of the Stirling constituency of the Scottish Parliament constituency. The Stirling Scottish Parliament (or Holyrood) constituency created in 1999 is one of nine within the Mid Scotland and Fife electoral region. Each constituency elects one Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) by the first past the post system of election, and the region elects seven additional members to produce a form of proportional representation. The constituency's Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) is Evelyn Tweed of the Scottish National Party (SNP).
In terms of national government, the city of Stirling forms part of the county constituency of Stirling and Strathallan, electing one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the parliament of the United Kingdom by first past the post system. Chris Kane of the Labour Party has been the MP for Stirling and Strathallan since the 2024 general election, when the seat was first contested - prior to this, Stirling was part of the constituency of Stirling.
Historical voting records can be found in online databases.
The land surrounding Stirling has been most affected by glacial erosion and deposition. The city itself has grown up around its castle which stands atop an ancient quartz-dolerite sill, known as the Stirling Sill, a major defensive position which was at the lowest crossing point on the River Forth. Stirling stands on the Forth at the point where the river widens and becomes tide. To the east of the city the Ochil Hills dominate the skyline with the highest peak in the range being Ben Cleuch, although Dumyat is more noticeable from Stirling. The Ochils meet the flat carse (floodplain) of the River Forth to the east of the distinctive geographical feature of Abbey Craig, a crag and tail hill upon which stands the 220 ft (67 m) high Wallace Monument. Abbey Craig Gazetteer for Scotland
Historical place names for Stirling town in 1858–61 were compiled by Ordnance Survey map makers.
Historical records also exist both in book form and in online databases.
There are about sixteen libraries and two mobile libraries in Stirling. The Smith Art Gallery and Museum is now free to tourists and residents alike. Shearer's 1895 Penny Guide to Stirling and Neighbourhood used to list it under "How to spend a few hours on a wet day". The Macrobert Arts Centre has a variety of exhibitions and performances. There are many events at the Stirling Tolbooth and at The Albert Halls. Stirling has hosted the National Mòd several times: in 1909, 1961, 1971 and 1987. List of Mod's places for each year on Sabhal Mòr Ostaig website
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The Forthside Urban renewal on the site of the former port area and the former Ministry of Defence site, adjacent to Stirling Railway Station, is linked to the railway station via Forthside Bridge. The development comprises retail, residential and commercial elements, including a conference centre, hotel and Vue multiplex cinema, expanding the city centre area and linking it to the River Forth, which had been cut off from the city centre area since the construction of the A9 bypass under the railway station in the 1960s.
In the service sector, financial and insurance services as well as tourism are the biggest employers. The financial services and insurance company Scottish Amicable Life Assurance, later part of Prudential plc and M&G, established a large base at Craigforth on the outskirts of Stirling in the 1970s.
In terms of tourism, the presence of such historical monuments as Stirling Castle and the Wallace Monument and other nearby attractions like Blair Drummond Safari Park has bolstered Stirling's position as a significant tourist destination in Scotland.
The University of Stirling and Stirling Council are two of the biggest employers in the area. Knowledge related industries, research and development as well as life sciences have clustered around the university in the Stirling University Innovation Park, close to its main campus.
Mauchline ware started producing wooden snuff-boxes in 1790 in Mauchline, Ayrshire. They were produced of the wood from the trees from the Castle craig. Today they are highly collectible.
Stirling is home to national construction companies Ogilvie Group, chaired by Duncan Ogilvie, who was listed in the Sunday Times Rich List as being worth £32 million in 2009.
A Bank of Scotland survey in 2009 found that workers in Stirling had the highest average earnings of £716 a week.
Local bus services to districts within the city are almost completely provided by buses operated by McGill's Scotland East. The surrounding towns, like Bridge of Allan, Alloa, Falkirk and Glasgow via Cumbernauld have services from the bus station.
Coaches to many Scottish towns and cities also run regularly.
There are also railway links from Stirling railway station, including inter-city rail services to Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh Waverley, Inverness, Glasgow Queen Street, and London King's Cross. Services to Alloa, Bridge of Allan, Falkirk and Dunblane also run. Stirling Council provides some approximate journey times. Working lines include the Highland Main Line, the Edinburgh–Dunblane line and the Croy Line. The station formerly provided direct railway services to Callander and Oban, and to Loch Lomond, over very scenic lines, and a fast service to Dunfermline.
Cities with motorway links to Stirling include Glasgow, via the M80 motorway past Cumbernauld, and Edinburgh, via the M9 motorway past Falkirk. To the north, the M9 provides access to Dunblane with easy links to Perth and further beyond the Central Belt.
Stirling has no airport, but there are international airports at Glasgow Airport and Edinburgh which can be reached within an hour. Light aircraft can be chartered at Cumbernauld Airport.
Stirling used to have steamboats which carried hundreds of passengers a day. There is currently no working port at Stirling but there are plans to develop the river and the harbour which might include links with towns on the Firth of Forth. Since the River Forth is tidal at Stirling, development of pontoon style landing stages could potentially allow river taxis and tourist boats to operate during the summer.
The Stirling News and Stirling Observer are the local newspapers in the city.
The senior football team, Stirling Albion, play in the Scottish League Two at their home ground at Forthbank Stadium. In July 2010, the Stirling Albion Supporters' Trust successfully took over the running of the club buying out the long-serving chairman, Peter McKenzie, after 14 months of campaigning. This made Stirling Albion the first fully owned community club in the history of British football, after previous attempts made by Manchester United, Liverpool and Rangers. Stirling University L.F.C. are the premier women's football team. They play in the Scottish Women's Premier League. Their home ground is The Gannochy Sports Centre at University of Stirling. Scotland international footballers Billy Bremner, John Colquhoun, Duncan Ferguson, female footballer Frankie Brown and brothers Gary Caldwell and Steven Caldwell were born in Stirling. So were rugby internationals Kenny Logan, Ally Hogg and Alison McGrandles, jockey Willie Carson, and Dougie Brown.
Stirling County currently play in rugby's Scottish Premiership Division One. Stirling Knights Basketball Team are based at the Peak at Forthbank beside Forthbank Stadium. The athletics team Central Athletic Club are based at the University of Stirling. The Stirling Wanderers Hockey Club moved to a brand new (international standard) pitch at Forthbank for season 2008–09.
Next to this pitch there is also the ground of Stirling County Cricket Club, whose pavilion captured an architectural award in June 2009, three years after its opening.
The University of Stirling is a major centre of sports training and education in Scotland. It was designated as Scotland's University for Sporting Excellence by the Scottish Government in 2008. The headquarters of the Scottish Institute of Sport is a purpose-built facility on the campus which opened in 2002. Also at the university is the Scottish National Swimming Academy, where Rio 2016, Olympic silver medalists and students at the university, Duncan Scott and Robert Renwick trained. Commonwealth gold medalist Ross Murdoch, who also competed at Rio 2106, is a student at the university. The Gannochy National Tennis centre, which is seen as a tennis centre of excellence, was where Andy Murray and his brother Jamie Murray honed their skills as juniors. Gordon Reid, wheel chair Olympic gold medalist in 2016, was a tennis scholar at the university. The university men's and women's golf teams are consistently ranked among the best in Europe.
The university has a dedicated sports studies department, which is within the Faculty of Health Science and Sport, and is ranked amongst the best in the United Kingdom for its provision of sports facilities, with the maximum 5-star award, shared by 16 other universities in the UK. University of Stirling External Visitor Information The University of Stirling also currently hosts the Scottish men's lacrosse champions. Stirling and its surrounding area has a number of 9- and 18-hole , the largest of which is the Stirling Golf Course, located in the Kings Park area of the city. The Peak, a new Sports Village, was opened in April 2009 to cater for a range of sporting activities.
In June 2014, Stirling became the home of Scottish cricket after an agreement between Stirling County Cricket Club, Cricket Scotland and Stirling Council. It is hoped that the redevelopment of the ground will start at end 2014 with the intention being to upgrade it to international match standards. Scotland will play the majority of their home international games at the ground, starting with the World T20 qualifiers in the summer of 2015. The development will see a new pavilion and indoor training facility built at New Williamfield, the home of Stirling County Cricket Club, with Cricket Scotland relocating its headquarters from the National Cricket Academy at Ravelston, Edinburgh.
There are four main high schools in Stirling itself – Stirling High School, with a school roll of 964 pupils, Wallace High School with 958 pupils, St Modan's High School with 912 pupils, and Bannockburn High School in Broomridge with 752 pupils. All the city's secondary school premises have been redeveloped as a result of a Public-private partnership scheme. Stirling also has a Gaelic-medium unit situated in the city's Riverside Primary School which teaches pupils from across Stirling and Clackmannanshire through the medium of Scottish Gaelic. Queen Victoria School, an agency of the Ministry of Defence, is in Dunblane, near Stirling.
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