Events from the year 1960 in Scotland.

Incumbents

Secretary of State for Scotland The secretary of state for Scotland ( gd, Rùnaire Stàite na h-Alba; sco, Secretar o State fir Scotland), also referred to as the Scottish secretary, is a Secretary of State (United Kingdom), secretary of state in the Government of the Unit ...

and Keeper of the Great Seal – John Maclay

Law officers

* Lord Advocate – William Rankine Milligan; then

William Grant William Grant may refer to: Politicians *Sir William Grant (Master of the Rolls) (1752–1832), Member of the Parliament, 1790–1812; Master of the Rolls, 1801–1817 *William Grant (Northern Ireland politician) (1883–1949), Unionist M.P. for ...

* Solicitor General for Scotland –

until May; then David Colville Anderson

Judiciary

* Lord President of the Court of Session and Lord Justice General – Lord Clyde * Lord Justice Clerk – Lord Thomson * Chairman of the Scottish Land Court –

Lord Gibson Richard Patrick Tallentyre Gibson, Baron Gibson (5 February 1916 – 20 April 2004) was a British businessman in the publishing industry, and later arts administrator. Life Gibson was educated at Eton and Magdalen College, Oxford. He became a ...

Events

16 January Events Pre-1600 *27 BC – Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus is granted the title Augustus by the Roman Senate, marking the beginning of the Roman Empire. * 378 – General Siyaj K'ak' conquers Tikal, enlarging the domain of King Speart ...

– the last regular ship on the

Cork Cork or CORK may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Cork (plug), a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container ***Wine cork Places Ireland * Cork (city) ** Metropolitan Cork, also known as G ...

– Glasgow crossing runs, ending a 103-year-old service. *

2 March Events Pre-1600 * 537 – Siege of Rome: The Ostrogoth army under king Vitiges begins the siege of the capital. Belisarius conducts a delaying action outside the Flaminian Gate; he and a detachment of his ''bucellarii'' are almost cut of ...

– Elvis Presley stops off at Glasgow Prestwick Airport for a few hours on his journey home to the United States, after doing military service in West Germany. This is notable for being the only time he ever visited the UK. His ancestor, blacksmith Andrew Presley, migrated from Lonmay to North Carolina in

1745 Events January–March * January 7 – War of the Austrian Succession: The Austrian Army, under the command of Field Marshal Károly József Batthyány, makes a surprise attack at Amberg and the winter quarters of the Bavaria ...

. *

14 March Events Pre-1600 *1074 – Battle of Mogyoród: Dukes Géza and Ladislaus defeat their cousin Solomon, King of Hungary, forcing him to flee to Hungary's western borderland. *1590 – Battle of Ivry: Henry of Navarre and the Huguen ...

– Jock Stein is appointed manager of

Dunfermline Athletic F.C. Dunfermline Athletic Football Club is a Scottish football club based in the city of Dunfermline, Fife. Founded in 1885, the club currently play in Scottish League One after being relegated from the 2021–22 Scottish Championship. Dunfermline ...

28 March Events Pre-1600 *AD 37 – Roman emperor Caligula accepts the titles of the Principate, bestowed on him by the Senate. * 193 – After assassinating the Roman Emperor Pertinax, his Praetorian Guards auction off the throne to Didius ...

–

Cheapside Street Whisky Bond Fire The Cheapside Street whisky bond fire in Glasgow on 28 March 1960 was Britain's worst peacetime fire services disaster. The fire at a whisky bond killed 14 fire service and 5 salvage corps personnel. This fire was overshadowed only by a similar ...

in Glasgow: 19 firemen killed in Britain's worst peacetime fire services disaster. *

18 May Events Pre-1600 * 332 – Emperor Constantine the Great announces free distributions of food to the citizens in Constantinople. * 872 – Louis II of Italy is crowned for the second time as Holy Roman Emperor at Rome, at the age of ...

–

1960 European Cup Final The 1960 European Cup Final was the fifth final in the history of the European Cup, and was contested by Real Madrid of Spain and Eintracht Frankfurt of West Germany. Real won 7–3 in front of a crowd of over 127,000 people at Glasgow's Hampden ...

Hampden Park Hampden Park (Scottish Gaelic: ''Pàirc Hampden''), often referred to as Hampden, is a football stadium in the Mount Florida area of Glasgow, Scotland. The -capacity venue serves as the national stadium of football in Scotland. It is the no ...

, Glasgow:

Real Madrid C.F. Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (, meaning ''Royal Madrid Football Club''), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid. Founded in 1902 as Madrid Football Club, the club has traditionally worn ...

defeat Eintracht Frankfurt 7-3, Rangers F.C. having been knocked out by Frankfurt in the semi-finals. *

21 June Events Pre-1600 * 533 – A Byzantine expeditionary fleet under Belisarius sails from Constantinople to attack the Vandals in Africa, via Greece and Sicily (approximate date). * 1307 – Külüg Khan is enthroned as Khagan of the Mo ...

– the Royal Highland Show opens for the first time at its permanent site, the

Royal Highland Showground The Royal Highland Centre, originally the Royal Highland Showground, is an exhibition centre and showground located at Ingliston in the western outskirts of Edinburgh, Scotland, adjacent to Edinburgh Airport and the A8. History The Royal H ...

at Ingliston in the Lowlands. * August – murder of the Little Ross lighthouse keeper. *

7 September Events Pre-1600 * 70 – A Roman army under Titus occupies and plunders Jerusalem. * 878 – Louis the Stammerer is crowned as king of West Francia by Pope John VIII. * 1159 – Pope Alexander III is chosen. *1191 – Third C ...

– North Ford Causeway opened, connecting North Uist and Benbecula via Grimsay (5 miles (8 km)), completing an all-weather road link between North and South Uist. * October – Queen's Bridge in Perth opened. *

30 October Events Pre-1600 * 637 – Arab–Byzantine wars: Antioch surrenders to the Rashidun Caliphate after the Battle of the Iron Bridge. * 758 – Guangzhou is sacked by Arab and Persian pirates. *1137 – Ranulf of Apulia defeats Roger ...

– Michael Woodruff performs the first successful kidney transplantation in the UK, at the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary. *

5 November Events Pre-1600 *1138 – Lý Anh Tông is enthroned as emperor of Vietnam at the age of two, beginning a 37-year reign. *1499 – The '' Catholicon'', written in 1464 by Jehan Lagadeuc in Tréguier, is published; this is the first Bret ...

– Glasgow area suburban train services electrified. *

24 December Events Pre-1600 * 502 – Chinese emperor Xiao Yan names Xiao Tong his heir designate. * 640 – Pope John IV is elected, several months after his predecessor's death. * 759 – Tang dynasty poet Du Fu departs for Chengdu, wher ...

– The rebuilt

Barrowland Ballroom The Barrowland Ballroom (also known as Barrowlands) is a dance hall and music venue in Glasgow, Scotland. History The original building opened in 1934 in a mercantile area east of Glasgow's city centre, built by Maggie McIver, the "Barras Queen ...

reopens in Glasgow. * Seafield Colliery at

Kirkcaldy Kirkcaldy ( ; sco, Kirkcaldy; gd, Cair Chaladain) is a town and former royal burgh in Fife, on the east coast of Scotland. It is about north of Edinburgh and south-southwest of Dundee. The town had a recorded population of 49,460 in 2011, ...

opens. * Little Houses Improvement Scheme launched by the National Trust for Scotland to promote conservation of vernacular architecture.

Births

7 February Events Pre-1600 * 457 – Leo I becomes the Eastern Roman emperor. * 987 – Bardas Phokas the Younger and Bardas Skleros, Byzantine generals of the military elite, begin a wide-scale rebellion against Emperor Basil II. *1301 &ndash ...

–

Steve Bronski Steven William Forrest (7 February 1960 – 7 December 2021) was a Scottish singer-songwriter, best known for his time as a member of synth pop band Bronski Beat, with Jimmy Somerville and Larry Steinbachek. Career He was a co-founder and keyb ...

, born Steve Forrest, synth-pop keyboardist (died 2021) *

11 February Events Pre-1600 *660 BC – Traditional date for the foundation of Japan by Emperor Jimmu. * 55 – The death under mysterious circumstances of Tiberius Claudius Caesar Britannicus, heir to the Roman empire, on the eve of his coming ...

– Momus, born Nicholas Currie, songwriter * February – Lesley Riddoch, political journalist and broadcaster *

10 March Events Pre-1600 * 241 BC – First Punic War: Battle of the Aegates: The Romans sink the Carthaginian fleet bringing the First Punic War to an end. * 298 – Roman Emperor Maximian concludes his campaign in North Africa and makes a t ...

– Anne MacKenzie, broadcast journalist *

23 March Events Pre-1600 *1400 – The Trần dynasty of Vietnam is deposed, after one hundred and seventy-five years of rule, by Hồ Quý Ly, a court official. *1540 – Waltham Abbey is surrendered to King Henry VIII of England; the last rel ...

– Nicol Stephen, Liberal Democrat MSP, leader of the Scottish Liberal Democrats (2005-2008) and Deputy First Minister of Scotland (2005-2007) *

3 April Events Pre-1600 * 686 – Maya king Yuknoom Yich'aak K'ahk' assumes the crown of Calakmul. * 1043 – Edward the Confessor is crowned King of England. * 1077 – The Patriarchate of Friûl, the first Friulian state, is created ...

–

Shona McIsaac Shona McIsaac (born 3 April 1960) is a British Labour Party politician. She was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Cleethorpes from 1997 to 2010. She was defeated by Conservative candidate Martin Vickers in the 2010 election. Early life McI ...

, Labour politician *

28 April Events Pre-1600 * 224 – The Battle of Hormozdgan is fought. Ardashir I defeats and kills Artabanus V effectively ending the Parthian Empire. * 357 – Emperor Constantius II enters Rome for the first time to celebrate his victory ...

– Ian Rankin, crime novelist *

5 May Events Pre-1600 * 553 – The Second Council of Constantinople begins. *1215 – Rebel barons renounce their allegiance to King John of England — part of a chain of events leading to the signing of the Magna Carta. *1260 – Kub ...

– David Nish, businessman *

19 June Events Pre-1600 * 325 – The original Nicene Creed is adopted at the First Council of Nicaea. *1179 – The Battle of Kalvskinnet takes place outside Nidaros (now Trondheim), Norway. Earl Erling Skakke is killed, and the battle chang ...

– Paul Coia, television presenter *

24 June Events Pre-1600 * 1312 BC – Mursili II launches a campaign against the Kingdom of Azzi-Hayasa. * 109 – Roman emperor Trajan inaugurates the Aqua Traiana, an aqueduct that channels water from Lake Bracciano, northwest of Rome. * ...

– Elish Angiolini, née McPhilomy, Solicitor General for Scotland (2001-2006) and Lord Advocate (2006-2011) *

30 June Events Pre-1600 * 296 – Pope Marcellinus begins his papacy. * 763 – The Byzantine army of emperor Constantine V defeats the Bulgarian forces in the Battle of Anchialus. * 1422 – Battle of Arbedo between the duke of Milan an ...

– Jack McConnell,

First Minister of Scotland The first minister of Scotland ( sco, heid meinister o Scotland; gd, prìomh mhinistear na h-Alba ) is the head of the Scottish Government and keeper of the Great Seal of Scotland. The first minister chairs ...

(2001-2007) *

20 August Events Pre-1600 *AD 14 – Agrippa Postumus, maternal grandson of the late Roman emperor Augustus, is mysteriously executed by his guards while in exile. * 636 – Battle of Yarmouk: Arab forces led by Khalid ibn al-Walid take control ...

–

Annabelle Ewing Annabelle Janet Ewing (born 20 August 1960) is a Scottish politician and lawyer who has served as Deputy Presiding Officer of the Scottish Parliament, alongside Liam McArthur, since May 2021. A member of the Scottish National Party (SNP), sh ...

, Nationalist politician and lawyer * 10 September – Margaret Ferrier,

Scottish National Party The Scottish National Party (SNP; sco, Scots National Pairty, gd, Pàrtaidh Nàiseanta na h-Alba ) is a Scottish nationalist and social democratic political party in Scotland. The SNP supports and campaigns for Scottish independence from ...

politician *

26 September Events Pre-1600 *46 BC – Julius Caesar dedicates a temple to Venus Genetrix, fulfilling a vow he made at the Battle of Pharsalus. * 715 – Ragenfrid defeats Theudoald at the Battle of Compiègne. * 1087 – William II is crow ...

–

Stephen Kerr Stephen Charles Kerr (born 26 September 1960) is a Scottish politician serving as convener of the Education, Children and Young People Committee since 2021. A member of the Scottish Conservatives, he has been a Member of the Scottish Parliame ...

, Conservative politician * 6 October – Richard Jobson, rock singer-songwriter (

Skids __NOTOC__ Skid or Skids may refer to: * Skid, a type of pallet * Skid (aerodynamics), an outward side-slip in an aircraft turn * Skid (automobile), an automobile handling condition where one or more tires are slipping relative to the road * Skid, ...

), filmmaker and television presenter *

12 December Events Pre-1600 * 627 – Battle of Nineveh: A Byzantine army under Emperor Heraclius defeats Emperor Khosrau II's Persian forces, commanded by General Rhahzadh. *1388 – Maria of Enghien sells the lordship of Argos and Nauplia ...

–

Benny Higgins Benny Higgins is a Scottish banker, and is the former chief executive officer (CEO) of Tesco Bank. Upbringing He was brought up in Prospecthill Circus in Toryglen, Glasgow, Scotland. He attended Holyrood Secondary School in the city. Career A ...

, banker *

22 December Events Pre-1600 *AD 69 – Vespasian is proclaimed Emperor of Rome; his predecessor, Vitellius, attempts to abdicate but is captured and killed at the Gemonian stairs. * 401 – Pope Innocent I is elected, the only pope to succeed his ...

– Elvis McGonagall, born Richard Smith, slam poet *

Katrina Porteous Katrina Porteous (born 1960 in Aberdeen) is a Scottish poet, historian and broadcaster. Her particular interests include the inshore fishing community of the Northumberland coast, and the cultural and natural history of that area. Biography Ka ...

, poet

Deaths

11 January Events Pre-1600 * 532 – Nika riots in Constantinople: A quarrel between supporters of different chariot teams—the Blues and the Greens—in the Hippodrome escalates into violence. * 630 – Conquest of Mecca: The prophet Muhammad ...

–

Isabel Emslie Hutton Isabel Galloway Emslie Hutton, Lady Hutton CBE (11 September 1887 – 11 January 1960), previously Isabel Galloway Emslie, was a Scottish physician who specialised in mental health and social work.McConnell, Anita (2004) "Hutton, Isabel Gallowa ...

, nurse in Serbia during World War I and psychiatrist (born

1887 Events January–March * January 11 – Louis Pasteur's anti-rabies treatment is defended in the Académie Nationale de Médecine, by Dr. Joseph Grancher. * January 20 ** The United States Senate allows the Navy to lease Pearl Har ...

) *

15 August Events Pre-1600 * 636 – Arab–Byzantine wars: The Battle of Yarmouk between the Byzantine Empire and the Rashidun Caliphate begins. * 717 – Arab–Byzantine wars: Maslama ibn Abd al-Malik begins the Second Arab Siege of Const ...

–

Rachel Annand Taylor Rachel Annand Taylor (3 April 1876 – 15 August 1960) was a Scottish people, Scottish poet, prominent in the Celtic Revival, and later a biographer and literary critic. Life and work Born in Aberdeen to stonemason John Annand and his wife Clari ...

, poet (born

1876 Events January–March * January 1 ** The Reichsbank opens in Berlin. ** The Bass Brewery Red Triangle becomes the world's first registered trademark symbol. * February 2 – The National League of Professional Base Ball Clubs i ...

) *

17 August Events Pre-1600 * 309/310 – Pope Eusebius is banished by the Emperor Maxentius to Sicily, where he dies, possibly from a hunger strike. * 682 – Pope Leo II begins his pontificate. * 986 – Byzantine–Bulgarian wars: Battle of ...

– Calum Maclean, folklorist (born

1915 Events Below, the events of World War I have the "WWI" prefix. January * January – British physicist Sir Joseph Larmor publishes his observations on "The Influence of Local Atmospheric Cooling on Astronomical Refraction". *January 1 ...

) *

24 August Events Pre-1600 * 367 – Gratian, son of Roman Emperor Valentinian I, is named co-Augustus at the age of eight by his father. * 394 – The Graffito of Esmet-Akhom, the latest known inscription in Egyptian hieroglyphs, is written. * ...

–

Charlotte Ainslie Dr Charlotte Edith Ainslie OBE (15 February 1863 – 24 August 1960) was a Scottish people, Scottish educationist and headmistress. Life Ainslie was born in Lauriston Place in Edinburgh in 1863, the second daughter of Mary Ann Wood and William Ai ...

, educationalist and headmistress (born

1863 Events January–March * January 1 – Abraham Lincoln signs the Emancipation Proclamation during the third year of the American Civil War, making the abolition of slavery in the Confederate states an official war goal. It proclaims t ...

) *

13 December Events Pre-1600 *1294 – Saint Celestine V resigns the papacy after only five months to return to his previous life as an ascetic hermit. *1545 – The Council of Trent begins as the embodiment of the Counter-Reformation. *1577 & ...

– Dora Marsden, radical feminist and modernist literary editor (born

1882 Events January–March * January 2 ** The Standard Oil Trust is secretly created in the United States to control multiple corporations set up by John D. Rockefeller and his associates. ** Irish-born author Oscar Wilde arrives in ...

)

The arts

* 20–28 May – The Beatles, as the Silver Beetles (uncredited), play their first ever tour, as a backing group for Johnny Gentle on a tour of Scotland opening at Alloa Town Hall and ending at Peterhead. The lineup comprises John Lennon, Paul McCartney,

George Harrison George Harrison (25 February 1943 – 29 November 2001) was an English musician and singer-songwriter who achieved international fame as the lead guitarist of the Beatles. Sometimes called "the quiet Beatle", Harrison embraced Indian c ...

, Edinburgh-born Stuart Sutcliffe and Tommy Moore. * 10 August – The Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art opens at Inverleith House in the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh. * August – Sydney Goodsir Smith's verse play ''The Wallace'' ("a Triumph in Five Acts") has its stage première at the Edinburgh Festival in the General Assembly Hall of the Church of Scotland. * Autumn – release of Andy Stewart's recordings of "

A Scottish Soldier "A Scottish Soldier" is a song written by Andy Stewart (musician), Andy Stewart using the tune of "The Green Hills of Tyrol", which was transcribed by John MacLeod during the Crimean War from "La Tua Danza Sì Leggiera", a chorus part in the third a ...

" and "

Donald Where's Your Troosers? "Donald Where's Your Troosers?" is a comic song about a Scotsman who wears a kilt rather than trousers. It was written by Andy Stewart with music by Neil Grant. When performed by Andy Stewart and the White Heather Group, it was a hit in 1960, rea ...

References

{{Years in Scotland Scotland Years of the 20th century in Scotland 1960s in Scotland