Menteith or Monteith ( gd, Mòine Tèadhaich), a district of south

Perthshire Perthshire (locally: ; gd, Siorrachd Pheairt), officially the County of Perth, is a historic county and registration county in central Scotland. Geographically it extends from Strathmore in the east, to the Pass of Drumochter in the north, ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

, roughly comprises the territory between the Teith and the

Forth Forth or FORTH may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''forth'' magazine, an Internet magazine * ''Forth'' (album), by The Verve, 2008 * ''Forth'', a 2011 album by Proto-Kaw * Radio Forth, a group of independent local radio stations in Scotla ...

. Earlier forms of its name include ''Meneted'', ''Maneteth'' and ''Meneteth''. (Historically, the area between

Callander Callander (; gd, Calasraid) is a small town in the council area of Stirling, Scotland, situated on the River Teith. The town is located in the historic county of Perthshire and is a popular tourist stop to and from the Highlands. The town ser ...

and

Dunblane Dunblane (, gd, Dùn Bhlàthain) is a small town in the council area of Stirling in central Scotland, and inside the historic boundaries of the county of Perthshire. It is a commuter town, with many residents making use of good transport links ...

was known in English by the similar name of the “Vale of Menteith”.) Menteith encompasses the parishes of

Aberfoyle Aberfoyle may refer to: *Aberfoyle, County Londonderry, Northern Ireland * Aberfoyle, Stirling, Scotland * Aberfoyle, Ontario, Canada * Aberfoyle, Texas, United States *Aberfoyle, Warwick Aberfoyle is a heritage-listed detached house at 35 Woo ...

Port of Menteith Port of Menteith ( gd, Port Loch Innis Mo Cholmaig) is a village and civil parish in the Stirling district of Scotland, the only significant settlement on the Lake of Menteith. It was established as a burgh of barony, then named simply Port ( gd ...

Kippen Kippen is a village in west Stirlingshire, Scotland. It lies between the Gargunnock Hills and the Fintry Hills and overlooks the River Forth, Carse of Forth to the north. The village is west of Stirling and north of Glasgow. It is south-east ...

Kilmadock Kilmadock parish (Scottish Gaelic ''Cille Mo Dog''), named for Saint Cadoc, containing the settlements of Doune, Deanston, Buchany, Argaty, Hill of Row, Drumvaich, and Delvorich, is situated in Stirling council area, Scotland, and is on the so ...

, Kincardine,

Lecropt Lecropt (''Leac Croit'' in Gaelic) is a rural parish lying to the west of Bridge of Allan, Scotland. The population of the parish of Lecropt is estimated to be around 75, consisting entirely of isolated farms and houses, as well as the Keir Estat ...

and

.Ordnance Gazetteer of Scotland: A survey of Scottish Topography statistical biographical and historical, by Francis H. Groome; publ. Thomas C. Jack, Edinburgh, 1882 - 1885. (Article on Monteith)

Etymology

The name ''Menteith'' may be derived from the

Brittonic Brittonic or Brythonic may refer to: *Common Brittonic, or Brythonic, the Celtic language anciently spoken in Great Britain *Brittonic languages, a branch of the Celtic languages descended from Common Brittonic *Britons (Celtic people) The Br ...

cognate of

Welsh Welsh may refer to: Related to Wales * Welsh, referring or related to Wales * Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales * Welsh people People * Welsh (surname) * Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...

''mynydd'' (borrowed into

Gaelic Gaelic is an adjective that means "pertaining to the Gaels". As a noun it refers to the group of languages spoken by the Gaels, or to any one of the languages individually. Gaelic languages are spoken in Ireland, Scotland, the Isle of Man, and Ca ...

as ''monadh''), meaning "mountain, muir", combined with river-name '' Teith'' (of obscure origin). Alternatively, given the topography of the area the name is possibly derived from the

word ''moine'', meaning Moss or Marsh, cognate with '' Teith'’.

History

In medieval Scotland, Menteith was a

stewartry Stewartry was a local government district from 1975 until 1996 within the Dumfries and Galloway region in south-west Scotland. Under the name Stewartry of Kirkcudbright the area of the former district is still used as a lieutenancy area. Dumfr ...

, and later an

earl Earl () is a rank of the nobility in the United Kingdom. The title originates in the Old English word ''eorl'', meaning "a man of noble birth or rank". The word is cognate with the Scandinavian form ''jarl'', and meant "chieftain", particular ...

dom, ruled by the

earls of Menteith The Mormaer or Earl of Menteith was the ruler of the province of Menteith in the Middle Ages. The first mormaer is usually regarded as Gille Críst (or Gilchrist), simply because he is the earliest on record. The title was held in a continuous ...

. Gilchrist is the first known earl. In

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

's ''

Macbeth ''Macbeth'' (, full title ''The Tragedie of Macbeth'') is a tragedy by William Shakespeare. It is thought to have been first performed in 1606. It dramatises the damaging physical and psychological effects of political ambition on those w ...

'', Menteth (''sic'') is one of the "noblemen of Scotland" appearing in Act V who allies himself with Malcolm and others to oppose Macbeth's usurpation. The lands and the earldom passed to

Walter Comyn Walter Comyn, Lord of Badenoch (died 1258) was the son of William Comyn, Justiciar of Scotia and Mormaer or Earl of Buchan by right of his second wife. Life Walter makes his first appearance in royal charters as early as 1211–1214. In 1220 ...

(d. 1258) in right of his wife

Isabella Isabella may refer to: People and fictional characters * Isabella (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Isabella (surname), including a list of people Places United States * Isabella, Alabama, an unincorpor ...

; then, through Isabella's sister

Mary Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religious contexts * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also calle ...

, to the Stewarts; and finally to the

Grahams Graham and Graeme may refer to: People * Graham (given name), an English-language given name * Graham (surname), an English-language surname * Graeme (surname), an English-language surname * Graham (musician) (born 1979), Burmese singer * Clan G ...

. The earldom became extinct in 1694, but because

sheriffdom A sheriffdom is a judicial district in Scotland, led by a sheriff principal. Since 1 January 1975, there have been six sheriffdoms. Each sheriffdom is divided into a series of sheriff court districts, and each sheriff court is presided over by a ...

s had previously been introduced into Scotland, sheriffs were a ready-made alternative source of authority: Menteith was covered by the sheriffdom based at

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...

. When local government reforms in the mid-19th century replaced the ancient provinces with new counties (''shires'') that were coextensive with the sheriffdom boundaries, Menteith became the south-western portion of the newly created county, ''

''.

Lake of Menteith

The Loch or

Lake of Menteith Lake of Menteith, also known as Loch Inchmahome (Scottish Gaelic: ''Loch Innis Mo Cholmaig''), is a loch in Scotland located on the Carse of Stirling (the flood plain of the upper reaches of the rivers Forth and Teith, upstream from Stirling). ...

, situated south of

Loch Venachar Loch Venachar (Scottish Gaelic: Loch Bheannchair) is a freshwater loch in Stirling district, Scotland. Geography The loch is situated between Callander and Brig o' Turk. It lies approximately above sea level, and is long with a maximum ...

, measures long by broad, and contains three islands. On Inchmahome (', island of St Colmaig) stand the ruins of

Inchmahome Priory Inchmahome Priory is situated on Inchmahome, the largest of three islands in the centre of the Lake of Menteith, close to Aberfoyle, Stirling, Aberfoyle, Scotland. The name "Inchmahome" comes from the Scottish Gaelic, Gaelic ''Innis MoCholmaig ...

, an

Augustinian Augustinian may refer to: *Augustinians, members of religious orders following the Rule of St Augustine *Augustinianism, the teachings of Augustine of Hippo and his intellectual heirs *Someone who follows Augustine of Hippo * Canons Regular of Sain ...

priory A priory is a monastery of men or women under religious vows that is headed by a prior or prioress. Priories may be houses of mendicant friars or nuns (such as the Dominicans, Augustinians, Franciscans, and Carmelites), or monasteries of mon ...

founded in 1238 by Walter Comyn, and built in the Early English style, with an ornate western doorway.

Mary, Queen of Scots Mary, Queen of Scots (8 December 1542 – 8 February 1587), also known as Mary Stuart or Mary I of Scotland, was Queen of Scotland from 14 December 1542 until her forced abdication in 1567. The only surviving legitimate child of James V of Scot ...

, when a child of four, lived on the island for a few weeks in 1548 before leaving for

Dumbarton Castle Dumbarton Castle ( gd, Dùn Breatainn, ; ) has the longest recorded history of any stronghold in Scotland. It sits on a volcanic plug of basalt known as Dumbarton Rock which is high and overlooks the Scottish town of Dumbarton. History Dumba ...

on her way to France. On

Inch Talla Inchtalla or Inch Talla is an island in the Loch or Lake of Menteith in central Scotland. Its name derives from the Gaelic words ''innis'' ("island") and "talla" ("hall"). The entire island is dominated by Talla Castle, which appears to have be ...

stands the ruined tower, dating from 1428, that belonged to the estate of the earls of Menteith. The village of the

lies on the north shore of the loch.

References

* Watson, William J., ''The Celtic Place-names of Scotland.'' Revised with introduction by Simon Taylor. Edinburgh: Birlinn, 2004.

External links

Historic map showing Menteith beside Stirling & LennoxHistoric map showing Menteith in ScotlandHistoric map showing Menteith in Scotland
{{Scottish provinces, mainland, state=uncollapsed Geography of Stirling (council area)