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 nort ...

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 ...

, 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 ...

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

, Aberfoyle,

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 ( g ...

, Kippen,

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 sou ...

, Kincardine, Lecropt and Dunblane.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 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 peopl ...

''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, an ...

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. Dumf ...

, 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", particu ...

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, Earl of Menteith, Gille Críst (or Gilchrist), simply because he is the earliest on record. The ...

. 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 (d. 1258) in right of his wife Isabella; then, through Isabella's sister Mary, to the

Stewarts Stewart's or Stewarts can refer to: * Stewart's Fountain Classics, brand of soft drink ** Stewart's Restaurants, chain of restaurants where the soft drink was originally sold * Stewart's wilt, bacterial disease affecting maize * Stewart's (departme ...

; and finally to the Grahams. 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 r ...

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, 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 de ...

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

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 ...

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 S ...

, 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 Dum ...

on her way to France. On Inch Talla 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)