North Inch is a large public park in

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 i ...

, Scotland. About 54

hectares The hectare (; SI symbol: ha) is a non-SI metric unit of area equal to a square with 100-metre sides (1 hm2), or 10,000 m2, and is primarily used in the measurement of land. There are 100 hectares in one square kilometre. An acre is a ...

in size, it is one of two "Inches" in Perth, the other being the smaller, 31-hectare South Inch, located half a mile across the city. The inches were granted to the city, when it was a

royal burgh A royal burgh () was a type of Scottish burgh which had been founded by, or subsequently granted, a royal charter. Although abolished by law in 1975, the term is still used by many former royal burghs. Most royal burghs were either created by ...

, by King Robert II in 1374. Both inches were once islands in the River Tay; today, they are connected by Tay Street, part of the A989. The inch was the site of the "Battle of the Clans" in 1396. Balhousie Castle and Bell's Sports Centre are located on its western edge. A path circumnavigates the entire park. Overlooking the southern edge of the Inch is the Old Academy, built between 1803 and 1807.

Perth Bridge Perth Bridge (also known as Smeaton's Bridge, locally, the Old Bridge, and in the local dialect of Scots, the Auld Brig) is a toll-free bridge in the city of Perth, Scotland. A Category A listed structure, it spans the River Tay, connecting Pert ...

, which is also known as Smeaton's Bridge and the Old Bridge, is nearby. In the 1840s, a large addition was made to the Inch by an

excambion In Scots law, excambion is the exchange of land. The deed whereby this is effected is termed "Contract of Excambion". There is an implied real warranty in this contract, so that if one portion is evicted or taken away on a superior title, the party ...

with the Thomas Hay-Drummond, 11th Earl of Kinnoull, bringing it up to .''The Tourist's Hand-book to Perth and Neighbourhood'' (1849), p. 48 & 49 Three years after her husband's death in 1861,

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 216 days was longer than that of any previo ...

unveiled a statue of Albert, Prince Consort, at the Inch. The couple and their children had stayed at the city's Royal George Hotel in 1848. It was their first time staying in a hotel, an occurrence prompted by their inability to stay at nearby Scone Palace because William Murray, 4th Earl of Mansfield, was out of town. Another statue, an

obelisk An obelisk (; from grc, ὀβελίσκος ; diminutive of ''obelos'', " spit, nail, pointed pillar") is a tall, four-sided, narrow tapering monument which ends in a pyramid-like shape or pyramidion at the top. Originally constructed by An ...

near the river bank, commemorates the 90th Regiment of Foot, the Perthshire Volunteers, alias the ''Grey Breeks''. It was unveiled by

Garnet Wolseley, 1st Viscount Wolseley Field Marshal Garnet Joseph Wolseley, 1st Viscount Wolseley, (4 June 183325 March 1913), was an Anglo-Irish officer in the British Army. He became one of the most influential and admired British generals after a series of successes in Canada, We ...

, on 8 December 1896.''Official Guide to Perth and Its Neighbourhood by the Tramway Car Routes'' – Perth Town Council (1907), p. 8 Unveiled in 1995, the 51st (Highland) Division War Memorial commemorates the soldiers of that infantry lost in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. A

bandstand A bandstand (sometimes music kiosk) is a circular, semicircular or polygonal structure set in a park, garden, pier, or indoor space, designed to accommodate musical bands performing concerts. A simple construction, it both creates an orname ...

formerly stood to the west of the obelisk, a gift of James Pullar.

Sports

Several sports take place on various parts of the Inch, including

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by str ...

, rugby and

golf Golf is a club-and-ball sport in which players use various clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a course in as few strokes as possible. Golf, unlike most ball games, cannot and does not use a standardized playing area, and coping ...

Golf

There is a reference to King

James IV James IV (17 March 1473 – 9 September 1513) was King of Scotland from 11 June 1488 until his death at the Battle of Flodden in 1513. He inherited the throne at the age of fifteen on the death of his father, James III, at the Battle of Sauch ...

playing golf in Perth in 1504, despite a recently passed law prohibiting the game.

King James VI Golf Club King James VI Golf Club, located in Perth, Scotland, is a private golf course also open to visitors. The River Tay setting is notable as it is the country's only self-contained course on a river island. The Island course is only accessible by f ...

was formed in 1858, and held its matches on the Inch until 1897. After a dispute with the tenant of Muirton over grazing rights had led to the temporary loss of the extension to the Inch course, it opened its own, laid out by "Old" Tom Morris, then of

Prestwick Prestwick ( gd, Preastabhaig) is a town in South Ayrshire on the west coast of Ayrshire in Scotland about southwest of Glasgow. It adjoins the larger town of Ayr to the south on the Firth of Clyde coast, the centre of which is about south, an ...

, on

Moncreiffe Island Moncreiffe Island, also known as Friarton Island, is an island in Perth, Scotland. It divides the River Tay into two channels as it flows through Perth, and is crossed by the single-track Tay Viaduct, carrying the Scottish Central Railway. Lan ...

. In 1861, the town council planted trees on the Inch as an amenity for the public. The patrons of the Inch's golf course, not appreciative of the interference the trees would cause in their rounds, uprooted them. The council decided not to replace them.Civic History of Perth from Medieval Times
– Perth Civic Trust In 1864 and 1866, the Inch was the venue for two open tournaments. That of 1864 was won by Old Tom Morris. His son, "Young" Tom Morris, played in the same tournament. The golf course has had eighteen holes since 1892.

Rugby

Perthshire RFC, formed in 1868, plays its home games on the Inch. As of 2021, the club are members of Scottish National League Division Three.

Cricket

The first recorded cricket match held on the ground came in 1849, when Perth played Grange. The ground held its first first-class match when

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...

played

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

in 1909. Five further first-class matches were played there, the last of which came in 1970 when Scotland played Ireland. Other first-class matches had seen the ground host the

Australians Australians, colloquially known as Aussies, are the citizens, nationals and individuals associated with the country of Australia. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or ethno-cultural. For most Australians, several (or all) ...

in 1912,

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

in 1923, and the

South Africans The population of South Africa is about 58.8 million people of diverse origins, cultures, languages, and religions. The South African National Census of 2022 was the most recent census held; the next will be in 2032. In 2011, Statistics South ...

in 1929. The ground held its first List A match when Scotland played

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other English counties, functions have ...

in the 1984 Benson & Hedges Cup. Three further List A matches were played there, the last of which saw Scotland play

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancash ...

in the 1989 Benson & Hedges Cup. In the 1986 Benson & Hedges Cup Scotland historically defeated Lancashire, marking their first defeat of county opposition in limited-overs cricket. In recent history the ground has become the victim of repeated vandalism and lack of funds. This led, in 2009, to the extinction of Perth County Cricket Club, which played at North Inch.

Gallery

File:North Inch bandstand.jpg, Now-demolished bandstand, a gift to the city from James Pullar in the early 20th century File:North Inch.jpg, Looking southeast towards the city centre File:Perth, Scotland (8924972766).jpg, Statue of Albert, Prince Consort, unveiled by his widow,

, in 1864 File:90th Light Infantry Memorial, North Inch (geograph 3727339).jpg, Memorial to the 90th Regiment of Foot, Perthshire Volunteers File:Perth city centre from the air (geograph 3605803).jpg, The North Inch is on the right in this aerial view of the city

References

External links

North Inch at Perth and Kinross Council's websitePerth North Inch (Perth and Kinross)
- Scotland's Landscape, BBC
North Inch Golf Course website
at CricketArchive {{Rugby union in Perth and Kinross Sports venues in Perth, Scotland Golf clubs and courses in Perth and Kinross Cricket grounds in Scotland Parks in Perth, Scotland Tourist attractions in Perth, Scotland