Editing Selkirkshire

{{Short description|Historic county and registration county in Scotland}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2019}}
{{Use British English|date=November 2019}}
{{Infobox settlement
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| name                   = Selkirk
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| seat_type              = [[County town]]
| seat                   = [[Selkirk, Scottish Borders|Selkirk]]
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| area_note              = Ranked 27th of 34
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'''Selkirkshire''' or the '''County of Selkirk''' is a [[Counties of Scotland|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. It derives its name from its [[county town]], the [[royal burgh]] of [[Selkirk, Scottish Borders|Selkirk]]. The county was historically also known as '''Ettrick Forest'''.

Unlike many historic counties, Selkirkshire does not have its own [[lieutenancy areas of Scotland|lieutenancy area]], but forms part of the [[Roxburgh, Ettrick and Lauderdale]] lieutenancy area.

==History==
[[File:Statue of Sir Walter Scott - geograph.org.uk - 696700.jpg|100px|left|thumb|Statue of [[Sir Walter Scott]], sheriff of the county, outside old courthouse in Selkirk.]]
In the 1st Century [[Anno Domini|AD]] Selkirk formed part of the lands of the native people who hunted it rather than settled there. Neither the [[Roman Empire|Romans]], [[Angles (tribe)|Angles]], or the [[Saxons]] cleared much of the forestry there and for centuries Selkirk was known for its forest coverage. Indeed, an alternative name for the county was [[Ettrick Forest]]. Under the [[Scottish kings]] the forest was regarded as Royal. Despite this it was not until the reign of [[James V]] that sheriffs were appointed to administer the county on the Crown's behalf. During the military occupation of Scotland by [[Edward I of England]], the forest was granted to the [[Earl of Gloucester]].

[[File:Selkirk - A different view of the Town Square - geograph.org.uk - 1524806.jpg|thumb|Selkirk Market Place: the tall building on the right is the Bank of Scotland Buildings, the former offices of Selkirkshire County Council]]

In the [[Middle Ages]] the area that would become Selkirkshire formed part of the [[Provinces of Scotland|province]] of [[Tweeddale]]. The origins of the shire are obscure, but sometime around the twelfth century the area of Tweeddale was divided into two [[sheriffdom]]s: [[Peeblesshire]] to the north and Selkirkshire or Ettrick Forest to the south.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Chalmers |first1=George |title=Caledonia |date=1810 |publisher=Cadell and Davies |location=London |page=963 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=j8Q_AAAAcAAJ&dq=history+of+selkirkshire&pg=PA991 |access-date=17 December 2022 |chapter=Of Selkirkshire}}</ref> The first recorded sheriff of Selkirkshire was Andrew de Synton, who was appointed by [[William the Lion]] (d. 1214).<ref name=EB1911>[[Encyclopædia Britannica]] 1911 edition, article on Selkirkshire.</ref> Synton in the parish of [[Ashkirk]], just east of the village centre, was an enclave of Selkirkshire surrounded by [[Roxburghshire]].<ref>Ordnance Survey One-inch to the mile maps of Scotland, 1st Edition, Jedburgh, pul. 1864</ref>

Later, the [[Earl of Pembroke]] assumed the hereditary sheriffdom. Under and after King [[Robert I of Scotland|Robert the Bruce]], the [[Earl of Douglas|Earls of Douglas]], and later [[Earls of Angus]] administered the county. In 1501 John Murray (d. 1510), laird of Falahill, was made sheriff of Selkirkshire and on 30 Nov. 1509 he obtained a grant of the hereditary sheriffdom of Selkirkshire.<ref>Dictionary of National Biography, 1885-1900, Volume 39, by Thomas Finlayson Henderson</ref> His descendant [[Sir James Murray, Lord Philiphaugh|Sir James Murray]] was deprived of office in 1681 for being remiss in punishing [[conventicle]]s, but at the [[Glorious Revolution]] was raised to the [[Court of Session|session]] bench as Lord Philiphaugh and reinstated as sheriff. His son [[John Murray (died 1753)]] was the hereditary Sheriff of Selkirk from 1708 to 1734, when he was returned unopposed as MP for Selkirkshire, having resigned his hereditary sheriffdom to one of his sons.<ref>Web site of History of Parliament Online http://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1690-1715/constituencies/selkirkshire retrieved Feb 2016</ref> When in 1747 the [[Heritable Jurisdictions (Scotland) Act 1746|heritable jurisdictions were abolished]], Murray of Philiphaugh received £4,000 in compensation. The Sheriff-Deputes, previously appointed by the hereditary sheriffs, were now appointed by the crown and acted in place of the hereditary sheriffs <ref>Peebles and Selkirk. Cambridge County Geographies. By George Pringle, Cambridge, 1914. p. 119</ref> One such sheriff of Selkirkshire was [[Sir Walter Scott]] who was appointed Sheriff-Depute in 1799, an office he held until his death in 1832.<ref>See http://www.walterscott.lib.ed.ac.uk/biography/chronology.html retrieved Feb 2016</ref>

[[File:County Buildings, Ettrick Terrace - geograph.org.uk - 3543595.jpg|thumb|[[County Buildings, Selkirk|County Buildings]], Ettrick Terrace, Selkirk]]
[[File:Coat of Arms of Selkirkshire County Council.svg|thumb|Coat of arms of Selkirkshire County Council.]]
Selkirkshire County Council was created in 1890 under the [[Local Government (Scotland) Act 1889]], which established elected county councils across Scotland. The 1889 Act also instigated a review of boundaries, particularly where [[burgh]]s straddled county boundaries. The boundary review for Selkirkshire concluded in 1891 and made a number of mostly minor changes. The most significant change was that the burgh of [[Galashiels]] was brought entirely within Selkirkshire, where it had previously been partly in [[Roxburghshire]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Selkirkshire Scottish County |url=https://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/unit/10210884#tab02 |website=A Vision of Britain through Time |publisher=GB Historical GIS / University of Portsmouth |access-date=17 December 2022}}</ref> Selkirkshire County Council met at the [[County Buildings, Selkirk|County Buildings]] on Ettrick Terrace in Selkirk, which had been built in 1870 as a [[sheriff court]] and meeting place for the [[Commissioners of Supply]], the main administrative body for the county prior to the creation of the county council.<ref>{{cite news |title=First Meeting of County Council |url=https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/ |access-date=17 December 2022 |work=Southern Reporter |date=20 February 1890 |location=Selkirk |page=3}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=The budget rise in Selkirkshire |url=https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/ |access-date=17 December 2022 |work=Southern Reporter |date=14 September 1944 |location=Selkirk |page=6 |quote=...at a meeting of Selkirk County Council in the County Buildings, Selkirk, on Thursday evening...}}</ref><ref>{{Historic Environment Scotland|num=LB43747|desc=Selkirk Sheriff Court and Justice of the Peace Court, including gatepiers, railings and boundary walls|cat=B|access-date=17 December 2022}}</ref> The council's staff were based at the Bank of Scotland Buildings in the Market Place in Selkirk.<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=19011|page=576|date=23 July 1971|city=e}}</ref><ref>{{Historic Environment Scotland|num= LB43793|desc=Bank Of Scotland, 6 Market Place, Selkirk|access-date=18 July 2021}}</ref> 

The county council was abolished in 1975 under the [[Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973]], which reorganised local government in Scotland into upper-tier regions and lower-tier districts. Selkirkshire became part of the [[Scottish Borders|Borders]] region and part of the [[Ettrick and Lauderdale]] district.<ref name=1973act>{{cite legislation UK|type=act|act=Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973|year=1973|chapter=65|accessdate=22 November 2022}}</ref>

At the time of the local government reorganisation in 1975, the posts of [[lord-lieutenant]] of Selkirkshire and lord-lieutenant of [[Roxburghshire]] were both held by [[John Scott, 9th Duke of Buccleuch]]. The new district of Ettrick and Lauderdale and the neighbouring district of [[Roxburgh (district)|Roxburgh]] became nominally separate [[lieutenancy areas of Scotland|lieutenancy areas]], although the Duke of Buccleuch was appointed to both positions, effectively continuing the pre-1975 arrangement.<ref>{{cite legislation UK|type=si|si=The Lord-Lieutenants Order 1975|year=1975|number=428|accessdate=27 November 2022}}</ref> When local government was reorganised again in 1996, the two lieutenancies were formally united into a single lieutenancy area called [[Roxburgh, Ettrick and Lauderdale]].<ref>{{cite legislation UK|type=si|si=The Lord-Lieutenants (Scotland) Order 1996|year=1996|number=731|accessdate=16 December 2022}}</ref>

Folk ballads written of the county commemorate the [[Battle of Philiphaugh]] in 1645, the 'Dowie Dens' at [[Yarrow, Scottish Borders|Yarrow]] and Tibbie Shiels at [[St Mary's Loch]].

==Geography==
[[File:St Mary's Loch near Selkirk from the west bank.jpg|thumb|330px|St Mary's Loch near Selkirk from the west bank]]
Selkirkshire is a rural county, with a handful of small settlements set within hill and forest country. It forms part of the [[Southern Uplands]] geographical region. The [[Ettrick Water]] and [[Yarrow Water]], both tributaries of the [[river Tweed]], flow through the county. The most prominent loch is [[St Mary's Loch]] (including the Loch of the Lowes), with smaller lochs being found east of this such as [[Akermoor Loch]], [[Shaws Under Loch]], [[Shaws Upper Loch]], [[Halemoor Loch]], [[Alemoor Reservoir]], [[Clearburn Loch]], [[Kingside Loch]], [[Crooked Loch]] and [[Windylaw Loch]]. The traditional highest point (county top) of Selkirkshire prior to border changes in the 20th century was [[Dun Rig]], with a height of {{convert|744|metres}} above sea level.

===Ettrick Forest===
'''Ettrick Forest''', also known as '''Selkirk and Traquair Forests''', is a former [[royal forest]] in the [[Scottish Borders]] area of [[Scotland]]. It is a large area of [[moorland]], south of [[Peebles]], that once stretched from [[Ayr]] to [[Selkirk, Scottish Borders|Selkirk]].

===Keepers of the Forest===
* Simon Fraser of Oliver (d. 1291)
* [[William Comyn of Kirkintilloch]] (d. 1291)
* Thomas de Burnham<ref>[[John Veitch (poet)|Veitch, John]] (1893), ''History and Poetry of the Scottish Border'', Volume 1, [[William Blackwood and Sons]], p. 310</ref>
*[[Simon Fraser (d. 1306)|Simon Fraser]] (1299–1306)

==Transport==
The [[Borders Railway]] connects Galashiels and Tweedbank with [[Edinburgh]]. Closed for many years, this line re-opened in 2015.<ref name="Rail-783">{{cite magazine|title=The long wait is finally over as £296m Borders Railway opens|first1=Richard|last1=Clinnick|magazine=[[Rail (magazine)|Rail]]|issue=783|date=16–29 September 2015|pages=6–7}}</ref>
There are also buses to [[Berwick-Upon-Tweed]] and [[Carlisle]] operated by [[Borders Buses]].

== Civil parishes and population ==
Selkirkshire was historically divided into civil parishes. There were originally nine parishes; Ashkirk, Bowside, Buccleuch (or Rankilburn), Duchoire, Ettrick, Kirkhope, Lindean, St Mary's (or St Mary of the Lowes) and Selkirk. There have been a number of changes since the medieval period:

* Caddonfoot was created in 1898 from the part of the parish of [[Stow of Wedale]] that lay within Selkirkshire.
* Galashiels was formed by the union of two ancient parishes, Bowside and Lindean.
* The parish of Rankilburn or Buccleuch was suppressed and united to Yarrow c. 1600, then transferred to Ettrick 1650.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Saints in Scottish Place-Names - Rankilburn, former parish, Ettrick|url=https://saintsplaces.gla.ac.uk/place.php?id=1365|access-date=2021-01-30|website=saintsplaces.gla.ac.uk}}</ref>
* The ancient parishes of Duchoire, St Mary's and Kirkhope were united to form the parish of Yarrow; Kirkhope was then separated from Yarrow in 1852.<ref>{{Cite web|last=GENUKI|title=Genuki: Yarrow, Selkirkshire|url=https://www.genuki.org.uk/big/sct/SEL/Yarrow|access-date=2021-01-30|website=www.genuki.org.uk|language=en}}</ref>

Population of the county by Civil Parish, according to the latest census (2011):<ref name="KS101SC">Census of Scotland 2011, Table KS101SC – Usually Resident Population, publ. by National Records of Scotland. Web site http://www.scotlandscensus.gov.uk/ retrieved Feb 2016. See "Standard Outputs", Table KS101SC, Area type: Civil Parish 1930</ref><ref name="acreage">Acreage from Gazetteer of Scotland, publ, by W & AK Johnston, Edinburgh, 1937. Figures for each parish, which are presented alphabetically with other places</ref>
[[File:Map_of_Parishes_of_Selkirkshire.jpg|250px|right|thumb|Civil parishes of Selkirkshire]]

{| class="wikitable"
!Civil Parish!! Area<br /> <small>(acres)</small> !! Pop.<br /> 2011 
|-
|align="left"| Ashkirk
|align="right"| 13,159
|align="right"| 246
|-
|align="left"| Caddonfoot
|align="right"| 19,252
|align="right"| 912
|-
|align="left"| Ettrick
|align="right"| 42,456
|align="right"| 83
|-
|align="left"| Galashiels
|align="right"| 6,487
|align="right"| 10,081
|-
|align="left"| Kirkhope 
|align="right"| 22,734 
|align="right"| 263
|-
|align="left"| Selkirk 
|align="right"| 17,854
|align="right"| 6,401 
|-
|align="left"| Yarrow
|align="right"| 48,851
|align="right"| 281 
|-
| '''COUNTY''' 
|align="right"| '''170,793''' 
|align="right"| '''18,267''' 
|}

The population of the towns in the county (in 2011):<ref name= Settlement>Census of Scotland 2011, Table KS101SC – Usually Resident Population, publ. by National Records of Scotland. Web site http://www.scotlandscensus.gov.uk/ retrieved Oct 2016. See "Standard Outputs", Table KS101SC, Area type: Settlement</ref>
*'''Galashiels''' - 14,994 (of which 12,893 in Selkirkshire) <ref name= OutputArea>Excluding [[Tweedbank]], which is in the Galashiels Settlement (according to the Census map with Settlement population) but is in the civil parish of Melrose. Census of Scotland 2011, Table KS101SC – Usually Resident Population, publ. by National Records of Scotland, for Tweedbank. Web site www.scotlandscensus.gov.uk - retrieved Oct 2016. See "Standard Outputs", Table KS101SC, Area type: Output Area. (See Tweedbank Wikipedia article).</ref>
*'''Selkirk''' - 5,784

Historical population of the county as returned by the [[census]] was as follows:<ref>[http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/unit_census_page.jsp?u_id=10210884&c_id=10107260 Selkirkshire: Census Tables (Vision of Britain)]</ref>
*1801: 5,889
*1811: 6,637
*1821: 6,833
*1841: 7,990
*1851: 9,809
*1861: 10,449
*1871: 19,651
*1881: 26,346
*1891: 28,068
*1901: 23,356
*1911: 24,601
*1921: 22,607
*1931: 22,711
*1951: 21,729
*1961: 21,055<ref name=statAcc3>Third Statistical Account of Scotland, volume Peeblesshire & Selkirkshire, publ.1964, by J.P.B. Bulloch and J.M. Urquhart; chapter on Selkirkshire: Population</ref>
*1971: 20,868 <ref>Census of Scotland, 1971</ref>
*1981: 15,815 <ref>Census of Scotland, 1981 - SAS Table 6 Present Population (aggregate of the 7 civil parishes)</ref>
*1991: 17,456<ref>Scotland's Census 1991 - National Records of Scotland - Table KS101SC - Usual resident population (aggregate of the 7 civil parishes)</ref>
*2001: 17,757<ref name= CAS002>Census of Scotland 2001, Table CAS002 – Population by Age by Sex and Marital Status, publ. by National Records of Scotland. Web site http://www.scotlandscensus.gov.uk/ retrieved Feb 2016. See "Standard Outputs", Table CAS002, Area type: Civil Parish 1930; total for all Selkirkshire parishes</ref>
*2011: 18,267<ref name= KS101SC/>

==Settlements==
[[File:Church spires in Galashiels - geograph.org.uk - 717309.jpg|thumb|right|Galashiels]]
[[File:Yarrowford.jpg|thumb|right|Typical Selkirkshire scenery, near Yarrowford]]
*[[Boleside]]
*[[Bowhill, Scottish Borders|Bowhill]]
*[[Broadmeadows, Scottish Borders|Broadmeadows]]
*[[Caddonfoot]]
*[[Clovenfords]]
*[[Ettrick, Scotland|Ettrick]]
*[[Ettrickbridge]]
*[[Galashiels]] (partly in [[Roxburghshire]] prior to 1891)
*[[Philiphaugh]]
*[[Roberton, Scottish Borders|Roberton]]
*[[Selkirk, Scottish Borders|Selkirk]]
*[[Yarrow, Scottish Borders|Yarrow]]
*[[Yarrowford]]

==See also==
*[[James Hogg]]
*[[List of places in the Scottish Borders]]
*[[List of places in Scotland]]
*[[Craik Forest]]
*[[Wauchope Forest]]
*[[List of forests in the United Kingdom]]

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==Further reading==
The archeology and historic buildings of the county were documented in 1957 by the [[Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments in Scotland]].
There is also a ''History of Selkirkshire'' by T. Craig Brown, published in 1886.

==External links==
{{commons category|Selkirkshire}}
{{NIE Poster|Selkirkshire}}
*[http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.asp?compid=43478#s47 "Selkirkshire" from ''A Topographical Dictionary of Scotland'' by Samuel Lewis, 1846] (British History Online)
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20070930230519/http://www.visionofbritain.org.uk/gaztext_page.jsp?u_id=10210884&c_id=10107260 Entries on Selkirkshire from the ''Ordnance Gazetteer of Scotland'' by Frances Groome(1882-4) and the ''Gazetteer of the British Isles'' by John Bartholomew (1887)] (Vision of Britain)
*[http://www.ettrickforestarchers.co.uk EttrickForestArchers.co.uk]
*[http://www.scotlandsplaces.gov.uk/search_item/index.php?service=NAS&id=RHP9446 RCAHMS record for Ettrick Forest or Selkirkshire]
*[http://www.scran.ac.uk/database/record.php?usi=000-000-112-736-C SCRAN: Bowling champions in front of club house at Ettrick Forest Bowling Club, Selkirk]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20120306162028/http://bft.svr4.factonomy.com/woodlandconservation.aspx The Borders Forest Trust]
*[http://www.scottish-places.info/features/featurefirst9960.html Gazetteer for Scotland; Ettrick Forest]
*[https://www.jstor.org/pss/1150730 Jstor: A newly discovered map of Ettrick Forest by Robert Gordon of Straloch]
*[http://www.tartanregister.gov.uk/tartanDetails.aspx?ref=1137 The Ettrick Forest Tartan]
*[http://www.ramshornstudio.com/hogg.htm James Hogg, the Ettrick Shepherd]

{{Clear}}
{{Scotland counties}}

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[[Category:Selkirkshire| ]]
[[Category:Former counties of Scotland]]
[[Category:Forests and woodlands of Scotland]]
[[Category:History of the Scottish Borders]]
[[Category:Geography of the Scottish Borders]]
[[Category:Counties of the United Kingdom (1801–1922)]]