Peeblesshire ( gd, Siorrachd nam Pùballan), the County of Peebles or
Tweeddale
Tweeddale (Scottish Gaelic: ''Srath Thuaidh/Tuaidhdail'') is a committee area and lieutenancy area in the Scottish Borders council area in south-eastern Scotland. It had also been a province in the Middle Ages. From 1975 to 1996 it was a local gov ...
is a
historic county of
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 ...
. Its county town is
Peebles
Peebles ( gd, Na Pùballan) is a town in the Scottish Borders, Scotland. It was historically a royal burgh and the county town of Peeblesshire. According to the 2011 census, the population was 8,376 and the estimated population in June 2018 wa ...
, and it borders
Midlothian
Midlothian (; gd, Meadhan Lodainn) is a historic county, registration county, lieutenancy area and one of 32 council areas of Scotland used for local government. Midlothian lies in the east-central Lowlands, bordering the City of Edinburgh, ...
to the north,
Selkirkshire
Selkirkshire or the County of Selkirk ( gd, Siorrachd Shalcraig) is a historic county and registration county of Scotland. It borders Peeblesshire to the west, Midlothian to the north, Roxburghshire to the east, and Dumfriesshire to the south. ...
to the east,
Dumfriesshire
Dumfriesshire or the County of Dumfries or Shire of Dumfries (''Siorrachd Dhùn Phris'' in Gaelic) is a historic county and registration county in southern Scotland. The Dumfries lieutenancy area covers a similar area to the historic county.
I ...
to the south, and
Lanarkshire
Lanarkshire, also called the County of Lanark ( gd, Siorrachd Lannraig; sco, Lanrikshire), is a historic county, lieutenancy area and registration county in the central Lowlands of Scotland.
Lanarkshire is the most populous county in Scotlan ...
to the west.
History
The origins of Peeblesshire are obscure, but it became a shire sometime around the twelfth century, covering part of the historic district or
province
A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''Roman province, provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire ...
of
Tweeddale
Tweeddale (Scottish Gaelic: ''Srath Thuaidh/Tuaidhdail'') is a committee area and lieutenancy area in the Scottish Borders council area in south-eastern Scotland. It had also been a province in the Middle Ages. From 1975 to 1996 it was a local gov ...
. The southern part of Tweeddale became the sheriffdom of
Selkirkshire
Selkirkshire or the County of Selkirk ( gd, Siorrachd Shalcraig) is a historic county and registration county of Scotland. It borders Peeblesshire to the west, Midlothian to the north, Roxburghshire to the east, and Dumfriesshire to the south. ...
, also known as Ettrick Forest, whilst the northern part of Tweeddale was initially divided into two sheriffdoms, based at
Peebles
Peebles ( gd, Na Pùballan) is a town in the Scottish Borders, Scotland. It was historically a royal burgh and the county town of Peeblesshire. According to the 2011 census, the population was 8,376 and the estimated population in June 2018 wa ...
and
Traquair
Traquair ( gd, Cille Bhrìghde) is a small village and civil parishes in Scotland, civil parish in the Scottish Borders; Counties of Scotland, until 1975 it was in the county of Peeblesshire. The village is situated on the B709 road south of Inn ...
, before those two were united as the single shire of Peebles, or Peeblesshire, around 1304. From then on the shires gradually became the more important areas for administration; the old provinces were not abolished as such, but their importance diminished.
![Peebles courthouse (27786167378)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/95/Peebles_courthouse_%2827786167378%29.jpg)
Peeblesshire County Council was created in 1890 under the
Local Government (Scotland) Act 1889
The Local Government (Scotland) Act 1889 (52 & 53 Vict. c. 50) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which was passed on 26 August 1889. The main effect of the act was to establish elected county councils in Scotland. In this it foll ...
, which established elected county councils across Scotland. The council held its first meeting on 22 May 1890 at the courthouse on High Street in Peebles, also known as County Hall, which had been built in 1844–1848 as a
sheriff court and meeting place for the
Commissioners of Supply
Commissioners of Supply were local administrative bodies in Scotland from 1667 to 1930. Originally established in each sheriffdom to collect tax, they later took on much of the responsibility for the local government of the counties of Scotland. ...
, the main administrative body for the county prior to the creation of the county council.
![Tweeddale District Council Offices - geograph](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d6/Tweeddale_District_Council_Offices_-_geograph.org.uk_-_598870.jpg)
The county council continued to be based at the courthouse until 1935 when it moved to
County Buildings on Rosetta Road in Peebles.
Peeblesshire County Council was abolished in 1975 under the
Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973
The Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 (c. 65) is an Act of Parliament of the United Kingdom that altered local government in Scotland on 16 May 1975.
The Act followed and largely implemented the report of the Royal Commission on Local Gove ...
, which reorganised local government in Scotland into upper-tier regions and lower-tier districts. Peeblesshire became part of the
Borders
A border is a geographical boundary.
Border, borders, The Border or The Borders may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment and media Film and television
* ''Border'' (1997 film), an Indian Hindi-language war film
* ''Border'' (2018 Swedish film), ...
region and
Tweeddale
Tweeddale (Scottish Gaelic: ''Srath Thuaidh/Tuaidhdail'') is a committee area and lieutenancy area in the Scottish Borders council area in south-eastern Scotland. It had also been a province in the Middle Ages. From 1975 to 1996 it was a local gov ...
district, the latter having the same boundaries as the pre-1975 county of Peeblesshire.
The last
lord-lieutenant
A lord-lieutenant ( ) is the British monarch's personal representative in each lieutenancy area of the United Kingdom. Historically, each lieutenant was responsible for organising the county's militia. In 1871, the lieutenant's responsibility ...
for the county of Peeblesshire became the first
Lord Lieutenant of Tweeddale.
The Borders region and its four districts, including Tweeddale, were abolished in 1996, merging to form the present
Scottish Borders
The Scottish Borders ( sco, the Mairches, 'the Marches'; gd, Crìochan na h-Alba) is one of 32 council areas of Scotland. It borders the City of Edinburgh, Dumfries and Galloway, East Lothian, Midlothian, South Lanarkshire, West Lothi ...
council area. The area of the pre-1996 Tweeddale district (and therefore the same area as pre-1975 Peeblesshire) continues to be used as a
lieutenancy area
Lieutenancy areas are the separate areas of the United Kingdom appointed a lord-lieutenant – a representative of the British monarch. In many cases they have similar demarcation and naming to, but are not necessarily coterminate with, the co ...
under the name of Tweeddale.
Coat of arms
The coat of arms of the county, which was matriculated by the
Lord Lyon
The Right Honourable the Lord Lyon King of Arms, the head of Lyon Court, is the most junior of the Great Officers of State in Scotland and is the Scottish official with responsibility for regulating heraldry in that country, issuing new grant ...
in 1931, ia as follows: ''Quarterly, 1st sable five fraises (strawberry leaves) argent; 2nd azure, a horse's head couped argent; 3rd vert, a fleece or; 4th or, fretty gules, on a chief embattled of the last, two thunderbolts of the first.'' The arms are supported by two salmon proper, and the crest is a Border cavalryman. The motto is ''ONWARD TWEEDDALE''. The first quarter is the arms of
Fraser Fraser may refer to:
Places Antarctica
* Fraser Point, South Orkney Islands
Australia
* Fraser, Australian Capital Territory, a suburb in the Canberra district of Belconnen
* Division of Fraser (Australian Capital Territory), a former federal ele ...
of
Oliver Castle
Oliver Castle was a medieval tower house, located in the upper Tweed Valley in the Scottish Borders. The site of the hillfort known as Oliver Castle is to the north of the village of Tweedsmuir, although the site of the tower house is less ce ...
, a prominent local laird; the second, that of Horsburgh, another prominent local laird; the third, a reference to the area's wool industry; and the fourth, that of M. G. (later Sir Michael) Thorburn of Glenormiston, who was sheriff of Peebles at the time of the arms' matriculation.
Geography
![Cramalt Craig view to Broad Law](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/55/Cramalt_Craig_view_to_Broad_Law.jpg)
The county is landlocked and forms part of the
Southern Uplands
The Southern Uplands ( gd, Na Monaidhean a Deas) are the southernmost and least populous of mainland Scotland's three major geographic areas (the other two being the Central Lowlands and the Grampian Mountains and the Highlands, as illustrated ...
geographic region of Scotland. There are few settlements and the county consists mostly of low hill country, including parts of the
Pentland Hills
The Pentland Hills are a range of hills southwest of Edinburgh, Scotland. The range is around in length, and runs southwest from Edinburgh towards Biggar and the upper Clydesdale.
Etymology
The name is first recorded for the farm of Pentlan ...
and
Moorfoot Hills
The Moorfoot Hills are a range of hills south of Edinburgh in east central Scotland, one of the ranges which collectively form the Southern Uplands.
Etymology
The name ''Moorfoot'' was recorded as ''Morthwait'' in 1142. The second element is O ...
, with the highest point being
Broad Law at 840 m (2,760 ft). The
river Tweed
The River Tweed, or Tweed Water ( gd, Abhainn Thuaidh, sco, Watter o Tweid, cy, Tuedd), is a river long that flows east across the Border region in Scotland and northern England. Tweed cloth derives its name from its association with the R ...
is the chief river, flowing in a crescent shape through the county. Bodies of water in Peeblesshire include the
Baddinsgill Reservoir
Baddinsgill Reservoir is a small reservoir in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland close to Carlops, West Linton, and the boundary with Midlothian. It is close to Baddinsgill House. The Lyne Water is dammed to form the reservoir, not the Badd ...
,
West Water Reservoir and
Portmore Loch in the north and the
Megget Reservoir
Megget Reservoir is an impounding reservoir in the Megget valley in Ettrick Forest, in the Scottish Borders. The reservoir is held back by the largest earth dam in Scotland. The reservoir collects water from the Tweedsmuir Hills, which is then co ...
,
Talla Reservoir
Talla Reservoir, located a mile from Tweedsmuir, Scottish Borders, Scotland, is an earth-work dam fed by Talla Water. The reservoir is supplemented by water from the nearby Fruid Reservoir. It was opened in 1905. To assist in bringing the mat ...
and
Fruid Reservoir
Fruid is a small reservoir in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland, UK, near Menzion. It is formed by damming the Fruid Water, and supplements the contents of Talla Reservoir, forming part of the water supply for Edinburgh.
The construction of ...
in the south.
Transport
![Stobo railway station](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bf/Stobo_railway_station.JPG)
The county was formerly served by the
Peebles Railway
The Peebles Railway was a railway company that built a line connecting the town of Peebles in Peeblesshire, Scotland, with Edinburgh. It opened on 4 July 1855, and it worked its own trains.
The friendly North British Railway later promoted a l ...
and the
Symington, Biggar and Broughton Railway, however these lines closed in the 1950s-60s and there are now no active railways in the county.
Settlements
*
Blyth Bridge
Blyth Bridge is a small hamlet in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland, near to West Linton.
It is located in a bend on the A701 which goes from Moffat to Edinburgh, close to the junction with the East-West road the A72 which goes to Peeble ...
*
Broughton
*
Cardrona
*
Carlops
Carlops ( gd, Leum na Caillich) is a small village in the Pentland Hills, within the Scottish Borders area of Scotland, close to the boundary with Midlothian. It lies between West Linton and Penicuik.
The village was founded in 1784 and developed ...
*
Drumelzier
Drumelzier (), is a village and civil parish on the B712 in the Tweed Valley in the Scottish Borders.
The area of the village is extensive and includes the settlements of Wrae, Stanhope, Mossfennan and Kingledoors. To the north is Broughton an ...
*
Eddleston
Eddleston ( gd, Baile Ghille Mhoire) is a small village and civil parish in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland. It lies north of Peebles and south of Penicuik on the A703, which passes through the centre of the village. Nearby is the Great ...
*
Innerleithen
Innerleithen ( gd, Inbhir Leitheann) is a civil parish and a small town in the committee area of Tweeddale, in the Scottish Borders. It was formerly in the historic county of Peeblesshire or Tweeddale.
Etymology
The name "Innerleithen" comes ...
*
Kilbucho
Kilbucho ( gd, Cille Bheagha) is a small settlement in the parish of Broughton, Glenholm and Kilbucho in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland in Peeblesshire and near Biggar and Broughton.
The name derives from the church which was dedica ...
*
Kingledoors
Kingledoors is a group of settlements in a valley in southern Scotland near Tweedsmuir in the Scottish Borders, in the valley of the River Tweed. It is part of the parish of Drumelzier and is bounded on the north by Mossfennan, on the east by Pol ...
*
Kirkbryde
*
Lyne
*
Mossfennan
*
Peebles
Peebles ( gd, Na Pùballan) is a town in the Scottish Borders, Scotland. It was historically a royal burgh and the county town of Peeblesshire. According to the 2011 census, the population was 8,376 and the estimated population in June 2018 wa ...
*
Polmood
Polmood is a small settlement in southern Scotland near Tweedsmuir in the Scottish Borders, in the valley of the River Tweed.
Polmood was for many centuries the centre of the Hunter family in the lowlands and the earliest record was a charter d ...
*
Romannobridge
Romanno Bridge is a village on the Lyne Water, on the A701, in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland.
Settlements nearby include West Linton, Halmyre, Dolphinton, Blyth Bridge, and Mountain Cross. The village is served by a community centre ( ...
*
Skirling
Skirling is a parish, community council area and village in Peeblesshire in the Scottish Borders situated 2½ miles east of Biggar in Lanarkshire. Biggar Water, a tributary the River Tweed forms the southern boundary of the parish with the pa ...
*
Stanhope
*
Traquair
Traquair ( gd, Cille Bhrìghde) is a small village and civil parishes in Scotland, civil parish in the Scottish Borders; Counties of Scotland, until 1975 it was in the county of Peeblesshire. The village is situated on the B709 road south of Inn ...
*
Tweedsmuir
Tweedsmuir ( gd, Sliabh Thuaidh) is a village and civil parish in Tweeddale, the Scottish Borders Council district, southeastern Scotland.
Geography
The village is set in a valley, with the rolling hills and burns on both sides, covering some ...
*
Walkerburn
Walkerburn ( gd, Allt an Fhùcadair) is a small village in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland, on the A72 about from Peebles and from Galashiels.
It was founded in 1854 to house the workers for the tweed mills owned by the Ballantyne fami ...
*
West Linton
West Linton ( gd, Liontan Ruairidh) is a village and civil parish in southern Scotland, on the A702. It was formerly in the county of Peeblesshire, but since local government re-organisation in the mid-1990s it is now part of Scottish Borders. M ...
Civil parishes
![PEEBLESSHIRE Civil Parish map](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/71/PEEBLESSHIRE_Civil_Parish_map.jpg)
#
Broughton, Glenholm and Kilbucho
Broughton, Glenholm and Kilbucho is a parish in Peeblesshire in the Scottish Borders, 11 miles south-west of Peebles, lying in the upper part of the valley of the River Tweed in the Southern Uplands. It is a union of three former parishes of be ...
(union of
Broughton, Glenholm and
Kilbucho
Kilbucho ( gd, Cille Bheagha) is a small settlement in the parish of Broughton, Glenholm and Kilbucho in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland in Peeblesshire and near Biggar and Broughton.
The name derives from the church which was dedica ...
in 1794)
#
Drumelzier
Drumelzier (), is a village and civil parish on the B712 in the Tweed Valley in the Scottish Borders.
The area of the village is extensive and includes the settlements of Wrae, Stanhope, Mossfennan and Kingledoors. To the north is Broughton an ...
#
Eddleston
Eddleston ( gd, Baile Ghille Mhoire) is a small village and civil parish in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland. It lies north of Peebles and south of Penicuik on the A703, which passes through the centre of the village. Nearby is the Great ...
#
Innerleithen
Innerleithen ( gd, Inbhir Leitheann) is a civil parish and a small town in the committee area of Tweeddale, in the Scottish Borders. It was formerly in the historic county of Peeblesshire or Tweeddale.
Etymology
The name "Innerleithen" comes ...
#
Kirkurd
Kirkurd is a parish in Peeblesshire in the Scottish Borders situated 3 miles south-east of Dolphinton and 6 miles north-east of Broughton. Tarth Water, a tributary of Lyne Water (itself a tributary of the River Tweed) forms the northern boundar ...
#
Linton or West Linton
#
Lyne (formerly Lyne and
Megget
Megget is a former chapelry or parish containing the valley of Megget Water, now forming the westernmost part of the parish of Yarrow, Selkirkshire in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland. The centre of the valley is 19 miles west of Selkirk.
...
; Megget, an ancient parish which was united to Lyne in 1621, was transferred to the Selkirkshire parish of Yarrow in 1891)
#
Manor
#
Newlands
Newlands may refer to:
Places Australia
* Newlands, Queensland, a locality in the Whitsunday Region
New Zealand
* Newlands, Wellington, a suburb of Wellington
South Africa
* Newlands, Cape Town, a suburb of Cape Town
* Newlands, Johannesbur ...
#
Peebles
Peebles ( gd, Na Pùballan) is a town in the Scottish Borders, Scotland. It was historically a royal burgh and the county town of Peeblesshire. According to the 2011 census, the population was 8,376 and the estimated population in June 2018 wa ...
#
Skirling
Skirling is a parish, community council area and village in Peeblesshire in the Scottish Borders situated 2½ miles east of Biggar in Lanarkshire. Biggar Water, a tributary the River Tweed forms the southern boundary of the parish with the pa ...
#
Stobo
#
Traquair
Traquair ( gd, Cille Bhrìghde) is a small village and civil parishes in Scotland, civil parish in the Scottish Borders; Counties of Scotland, until 1975 it was in the county of Peeblesshire. The village is situated on the B709 road south of Inn ...
#
Tweedsmuir
Tweedsmuir ( gd, Sliabh Thuaidh) is a village and civil parish in Tweeddale, the Scottish Borders Council district, southeastern Scotland.
Geography
The village is set in a valley, with the rolling hills and burns on both sides, covering some ...
(separated from Drumelzier in 1643)
The parish of Kailzie existed until 1674, when it was suppressed, parts going to Innerleithen and parts going to Traquair.
Community Councils
Community Councils:
[Scottish Borders Council: Scheme for the Establishment of Community Councils (under Local Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994) www.scotborders.gov.uk/info/20015/your_council/643/community_councils retrieved June 2016]
#
Carlops
Carlops ( gd, Leum na Caillich) is a small village in the Pentland Hills, within the Scottish Borders area of Scotland, close to the boundary with Midlothian. It lies between West Linton and Penicuik.
The village was founded in 1784 and developed ...
#
Eddleston
Eddleston ( gd, Baile Ghille Mhoire) is a small village and civil parish in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland. It lies north of Peebles and south of Penicuik on the A703, which passes through the centre of the village. Nearby is the Great ...
#
Innerleithen
Innerleithen ( gd, Inbhir Leitheann) is a civil parish and a small town in the committee area of Tweeddale, in the Scottish Borders. It was formerly in the historic county of Peeblesshire or Tweeddale.
Etymology
The name "Innerleithen" comes ...
and District
# Lamancha, Newlands and
Kirkurd
Kirkurd is a parish in Peeblesshire in the Scottish Borders situated 3 miles south-east of Dolphinton and 6 miles north-east of Broughton. Tarth Water, a tributary of Lyne Water (itself a tributary of the River Tweed) forms the northern boundar ...
#
Manor, Stobo and Lyne
# Royal Burgh of
Peebles
Peebles ( gd, Na Pùballan) is a town in the Scottish Borders, Scotland. It was historically a royal burgh and the county town of Peeblesshire. According to the 2011 census, the population was 8,376 and the estimated population in June 2018 wa ...
and District
# Skirling
#
Tweedsmuir
Tweedsmuir ( gd, Sliabh Thuaidh) is a village and civil parish in Tweeddale, the Scottish Borders Council district, southeastern Scotland.
Geography
The village is set in a valley, with the rolling hills and burns on both sides, covering some ...
# Upper Tweed
#
Walkerburn
Walkerburn ( gd, Allt an Fhùcadair) is a small village in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland, on the A72 about from Peebles and from Galashiels.
It was founded in 1854 to house the workers for the tweed mills owned by the Ballantyne fami ...
#
West Linton
West Linton ( gd, Liontan Ruairidh) is a village and civil parish in southern Scotland, on the A702. It was formerly in the county of Peeblesshire, but since local government re-organisation in the mid-1990s it is now part of Scottish Borders. M ...
Gallery
File:Stobo Castle, Scottish Borders.JPG, Stobo Castle
File:Innerleithenfromafar.jpg, Innerleithen
File:Blyth Bridge.jpg, Blyth Bridge
File:Kilbucho Church.jpg, Ruins of Kilbucho Church
File:Barony Castle Hotel, Eddleston near Peebles, Scotland.JPG, Barony Castle
Black Barony, also known as Blackbarony, Barony Castle, and Darnhall, is a historic house at Eddleston in the Scottish Borders area of Scotland. The house is currently operated as a hotel, and is protected as a Category B listed building. Nearb ...
in Eddleston, which contains the Great Polish Map of Scotland
The ''Great Polish Map of Scotland'' is a large (50 m x 40 m) three-dimensional, outdoor concrete scale model of Scotland, located in the grounds of the Blackbarony, Barony Castle Hotel, outside the village of Eddleston near Peebles in t ...
File:Tweed Bridge, Peebles.jpg, Bridge over the Tweed at Peebles, the county town
File:Entrance to Neidpath Castle - geograph.org.uk - 778154.jpg, Neidpath Castle in Peebles
References
External links
{{Authority control
Former counties of Scotland
Clan Fraser
*
Peebleshire
Peeblesshire ( gd, Siorrachd nam Pùballan), the County of Peebles or Tweeddale is a historic county of Scotland. Its county town is Peebles, and it borders Midlothian to the north, Selkirkshire to the east, Dumfriesshire to the south, and Lana ...
Counties of the United Kingdom (1801–1922)