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County of Nairn

Coordinates:57°30′N3°50′W/ 57.500°N 3.833°W/57.500; -3.833
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County of Nairn
Historic county
CountryScotland
County townNairn
Area
• Total200 sq mi (518 km2)
Ranked 31st of 34
Chapman code
NAI

TheCounty of Nairn,orNairnshire,(Scottish Gaelic:Siorrachd Inbhir Narann) is ahistoric county,registration countyandlieutenancy areaofScotland.The county was named afterNairn,its only town. The county was used for local government until 1975 when the area was redesignated as theNairn District,one of the eight districts of the two-tierHighlandregion.Nairn district was abolished in 1996 when Highland became a single-tiercouncil area.

The county bordersInverness-shireto the west and south,Morayto the east, and has a coastline along theMoray Firthto its north.

History

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The area that would become Nairnshire was anciently part of theProvince of Moray,ruled by theEarls or Mormaers of Moray,sometimes as avassalof the Scottish crown, and at other times as a separate kingdom. The province was finally absorbed into theKingdom of Scotlandduring the 12th century.[1]In order to secure the Scottish crown's authority over the area, it was divided intoshires,being areas administered by asheriff.The old province of Moray was broadly split into the three shires ofElginshire,Nairnshire, and the mainland parts ofInverness-shire.[2]

It is not known exactly when the shire of Nairn, administered by theSheriff of Nairn,was created; there is some evidence that the area was initially included in Inverness-shire, but from the reign ofWilliam the Lion(reigned 1165–1214) there was a separate shire of Nairn.[3]There was also a short-lived shire to the east centred onForres,which in the early 14th century was grouped with Nairn, before later being united instead with Elginshire.[4]

Over time, Scotland's shires became more significant than the old provinces, with more administrative functions being given to the sheriffs. In 1667Commissioners of Supplywere established for each shire, which would serve as the main administrative body for the area until the creation of county councils in 1890. Following theActs of Unionin 1707, the English term 'county' came to be used interchangeably with the older term 'shire'.[5]

Nairn Town and County Buildings

Elected county councils were established in 1890 under theLocal Government (Scotland) Act 1889,taking most of the functions of the commissioners (which were eventually abolished in 1930). Nairnshire County Council held its first meeting on 22 May 1890 at theTown and County Buildingsin Nairn, the county's courthouse (built 1818) which also served as the meeting place for the commissioners and for the town council of theburghof Nairn.[6][7]

County of Nairn,To 1891

The 1889 Act also led to a review of boundaries to eliminateexclaves.There were several such changes affecting the boundaries of Nairnshire, which had five detached parts: three small areas surrounded by Elginshire, a larger area of moorland atDunmaglasssurrounded by Inverness-shire, and the small village ofUrquharton theBlack Isle,surrounded byRoss and Cromarty.Each of these areas was transferred to the county which surrounded them. Parish and county boundaries were also adjusted such that each parish was in a single county, with the exception of the parish ofCroyandDalcross,which was exceptionally allowed to continue to straddle Inverness-shire and Nairnshire. The boundary changes all took effect in 1891.[8][9]

In 1927 Nairnshire, along with many of Scotland's other counties, was granted acoat of armsby theLord Lyon King of Arms,the governor of Scotland's heraldry. The arms was as follows:Or, a chevron gules, between two water-bougets in chief and a stag's head ca Boss ed in base sable, three mullets argent.The motto was "unite and be mindful".[10]

Nairnshire was the second least populous of the Scottish counties at the1921 census,with fewer than 9,000 people.[11]Due to its low population, theLocal Government (Scotland) Act 1929combined the county councils of Nairnshire and neighbouring Moray (as Elginshire had been renamed in 1919) for most purposes in 1930. The two councils continued to be elected as separate bodies, but operated together as the "Joint County Council of Moray and Nairn", serving the combined area of the two counties.[12]Nairnshire County Council did perform some roles alone after 1930, notably acting as thedistrict councilfor the parts of Nairnshire outside the burgh of Nairn.[13][14]

Local government was reformed in 1975 under theLocal Government (Scotland) Act 1973,which replaced Scotland's counties, burghs and landward districts with a two-tier structure of upper-tier regions and lower-tierdistricts.A new Nairn district was created covering the same area as the pre-1975 county. Nairn District Council was a lower-tier district level authority subordinate to theHighland Regional Council.[15]Alieutenancy areacovering the same area as the new district was created at the same time.[16]Throughout the district council's existence a majority of the seats were held byindependents.[17]The district council met at the Town and County Buildings, as the old county council had done, with its offices in the adjoining building at 4 Courthouse Lane.[18][19]

Further local government reforms in 1996 under theLocal Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994saw the regions and districts created in 1975 abolished and replaced with single-tiercouncil areas.The former Highland region became one of the new council areas.[20]TheNairn lieutenancyarea continues to be defined as the pre-1996 district of Nairn.[21]The boundaries of the historic county of Nairnshire (as it was following the 1891 boundary changes) are still used for some limited official purposes connected with land registration, being aregistration county.[22]

TheHighland Councilhas a number ofarea committeesfor debating local matters. One of the committees is called the Nairnshire Committee, comprising the councillors who represent theNairn and Cawdor ward,which broadly corresponds to the pre-1975 county.[23][24][25]

Geography

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The 13th-centuryRait Castle,nearNairn
Dunearn hill fort

Nairnshire is about 22 miles in length and 15 miles in breadth (35×24 km); comprising an area of 200 square miles (520 km2), or 128,000 acres.[26]The county consists of a flattish coastal region where the vast majority of the population live, with a sparsely populated hilly interior, rising to the foothills of theGrampian Mountainsin the south. These moorlands reach 634 m (2,080 ft) atCarn nam Bain-tighearna,on the county march (boundary) just east ofSlochdsummit on the A9. There is no old-established name for these heights, but they have been termed the "Nairnshire Hills".[27]The coast forms an arc shape, with theWhiteness Headpeninsula in the west andThe Barpeninsula in the east. The main rivers are theRiver Nairnand theFindhorn,which both follow deeply incised courses across the general slope northwards.[28]The chief bodies of water areLoch Loy,Cran Loch,Clunas Reservoir,Loch of BoathandLoch Kirkcaldy.

Nairn can be seen from several distant points such asBen Rinnes,a peak that is a common point of distant view to such places asInverness-shireandLongman HillinBanffshire.To the north, Nairn is bounded by theMoray Firth.[29]

Civil parishes

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Nairnshire c.1851

Civil parishes are still used for some statistical purposes, and separate census figures are published for them. As their areas have been largely unchanged since the 19th century this allows for comparison of population figures over an extended period of time.

The county consisted of theroyal burghofNairn(chartered in 1476), the four parishes ofArdclach,Auldearn,Dyke & Moy and Nairn; and most of the parish ofCawdor(also known as Calder), and parts of those of:Croy&Dalcross;Moy& Dalarossie; Petty; and Urquhart & Logie Wester.[26][9][30]

Parliamentary constituencies

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The parliamentary constituency for the Westminster Parliament isInverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspeyand the MP isDrew Hendryof the Scottish National Party.

The parliamentary constituency for theScottish ParliamentisInverness and Nairn,represented byFergus EwingMSP.

Transport

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TheAberdeen–Inverness railway lineruns through the north of the county west–east.

Settlements

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Church in Nairn
Wikimedia Commons has media related toNairnshire.
Wikisourcehas the text of the1911Encyclopædia Britannicaarticle "Nairnshire".

Notes and references

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  1. ^Turnock, David (2005).The Historical Geography of Scotland since 1707.Cambridge University Press. p. 19.ISBN9780521892292.Retrieved21 August2024.
  2. ^Shaw, Lachlan (1882).The History of the Province of Moray: Volume 1.London / Glasgow: Hamilton, Adams and Co. / Thomas D. Morison. p. 47.Retrieved21 August2024.
  3. ^Bain, George (1893).History of Nairnshire.Nairn: Nairn Telegraph. p. 85.Retrieved25 August2024.
  4. ^Publications of the Scottish History Society.1928. p. 361.Retrieved21 August2024.
  5. ^Brown, Keith."Act of the convention of estates of the kingdom of Scotland etc. for a new and voluntary offer to his majesty of £72,000 monthly for the space of twelve months, 23 January 1667".Records of the Parliament of Scotland.University of St Andrews.Retrieved25 February2023.
  6. ^"Nairnshire County Council".Forres, Elgin and Nairn Gazette.Forres. 28 May 1890. p. 3.Retrieved25 August2024.
  7. ^Historic Environment Scotland."Former Court House including prison and boundary walls to rear, High Street, Nairn (LB38427)".Retrieved18 November2021.
  8. ^Shennan, Hay (1892).Boundaries of counties and parishes in Scotland as settled by the Boundary Commissioners under the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1889.Edinburgh: W. Green. p. 152.Retrieved25 August2024.
  9. ^ab"Nairnshire Scottish County".A Vision of Britain through Time.GB Historical GIS / University of Portsmouth.Retrieved25 August2024.
  10. ^Urquhart, R.M.Scottish Burgh and County Heraldry(1973 ed.). Heraldry Today. p. 72.consulted 20 December 2013.
  11. ^"1921 Census of Scotland, County Report".A Vision of Britain through Time.GB Historical GIS / University of Portsmouth.Retrieved1 August2024.
  12. ^"No. 19664".The Edinburgh Gazette.9 May 1975. p. 652.
  13. ^"Local Government (Scotland) Act 1929: Section 10",legislation.gov.uk,The National Archives,1929 c. 25 (s. 10),retrieved1 August2024
  14. ^"County of Nairn".Scan.Retrieved19 July2021.
  15. ^"Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973",legislation.gov.uk,The National Archives,1973 c. 65,retrieved17 April2023
  16. ^"The Lord-Lieutenants Order 1975",legislation.gov.uk,The National Archives,SI 1975/428,retrieved3 August2024
  17. ^"Compositions calculator".The Elections Centre.Retrieved30 November2022.
  18. ^Historic Environment Scotland."4 and 6 Courthouse Lane (LB38413)".Retrieved25 August2024.
  19. ^"No. 20310".The Edinburgh Gazette.27 June 1978. p. 646.
  20. ^"Local Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994",legislation.gov.uk,The National Archives,1994 c. 39,retrieved17 April2023
  21. ^"The Lord-Lieutenants (Scotland) Order 1996",legislation.gov.uk,The National Archives,SI 1996/731,retrieved3 August2024
  22. ^"Land Mass Coverage Report"(PDF).Registers of Scotland. Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 3 March 2016.Retrieved16 May2015.
  23. ^"Nairnshire Committee".Highland Council.Retrieved25 August2024.
  24. ^"Quarter-inch Administrative Areas Maps: Scotland, Sheet 5, 1969".National Library of Scotland.Ordnance Survey.Retrieved25 August2024.
  25. ^"Election Maps".Ordnance Survey.Retrieved25 August2024.
  26. ^abNairnshire,inA Topographical Dictionary of Scotlandby Samuel Lewis (1846), pp. 298-309, accessed 2 March 2008
  27. ^Jarman D (2017): Very long-term landscape evolution - a geomorphological contextual approach. In Merritt JW, Auton CA and Phillips E (eds) The Quaternary around Nairn and the Inverness Firth - Field Guide. Quaternary Research Association, London, 18-27
  28. ^Jarman D (2017): Very long-term landscape evolution - a geomorphological contextual approach. In Merritt JW, Auton CA and Phillips E (eds) The Quaternary around Nairn and the Inverness Firth - Field Guide. Quaternary Research Association, London, 18-27.
  29. ^New Boundary Maps/Wards,Highland Council websiteArchived2008-02-15 at theWayback Machine
  30. ^"Calder Parish: Clunas 1782"Archived17 May 2007 at theWayback Machine.Am Baile. Retrieved 27 July 2013.

57°30′N3°50′W/ 57.500°N 3.833°W/57.500; -3.833

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