Nairnshire is about 22miles in length and 15miles in breadth (35×24km); comprising an area of 200 square miles (520km2), or 128,000 acres.[1] 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 the Grampian Mountains in the south. These moorlands reach 634m (2,080ft) at Carn nam Bain-tighearna, on the county march (boundary) just east of Slochd summit on the A9. There is no old-established name for these heights, but they have been termed the "Nairnshire Hills".[2] The coast forms an arc shape, with the Whiteness Head peninsula in the west and The Bar peninsula in the east. The main rivers are the River Nairn and the Findhorn, which both follow deeply incised courses across the general slope northwards.[3] The chief bodies of water are Loch Loy, Cran Loch, Clunas Reservoir, Loch of Boath and Loch Kirkcaldy.
Until 1891 Nairnshire had a number of exclaves in other counties, the most considerable of which was situated some distance away from the bulk of the county of Nairn, in the county of Inverness. Another sizable portion existed in the County of Ross, around the village of Urquhart, on the Black Isle. Other, smaller, detached parts existed in the County of Moray. Under the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1889, these detached parts became part of their host territories.[7]
The Local Government (Scotland) Act 1889 established a uniform system of county councils in Scotland and realigned the boundaries of many of Scotland's counties. Subsequently, Nairn County Council was created in 1890. The new county council was based at Nairn Town and County Buildings.[8] However, Nairn County Council amalgamated with Moray County Council for almost all aspects of administration in 1930.[9]
20th century
In 1927 Nairnshire, along with many of Scotland's other counties, matriculated a coat of arms by the Lord 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 cabossed in base sable, three mullets argent. The motto was UNITE AND BE MINDFUL.[10]
Local government council functions were divided between the regional council and the district council. For example, education was a regional responsibility, and housing was a district responsibility.
The new unitary Highland Council adopted the areas of the former council districts as management areas. Each management area was represented, initially, by area committees consisting of councillors elected from areas (groups of local government wards) corresponding to the management areas, but changes to ward boundaries in 1999 created a mismatch between committee areas and management areas.
21st century
In 2007, following further changes to ward boundaries, the Local Government council created a new management structure, with three new corporate management areas and 16 new ward-level management areas. Therefore, Nairn is now both one of the 22 wards of the Highland council area and one of the Highland Council's 16 ward-level management areas.
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 the royal burgh of Nairn (chartered in 1476), the four parishes of Ardclach, Auldearn, Dyke & Moy and Nairn; and most of the parish of Cawdor (also known as Calder), and parts of those of: Croy & Dalcross; Moy & Dalarossie; Petty; and Urquhart & Logie Wester.[1][7][11]
↑ 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
↑ 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.
Highland is a council area in the Scottish Highlands and is the largest local government area in the United Kingdom. It was the 7th most populous council area in Scotland at the 2011 census. It shares borders with the council areas of Aberdeenshire, Argyll and Bute, Moray and Perth and Kinross. Their councils, and those of Angus and Stirling, also have areas of the Scottish Highlands within their administrative boundaries.
Inverness is a city in the Scottish Highlands. It is the administrative centre for The Highland Council and is regarded as the capital of the Highlands. Historically it served as the county town of the county of Inverness-shire. Inverness lies near two important battle sites: the 11th-century battle of Blàr nam Fèinne against Norway which took place on the Aird, and the 18th century Battle of Culloden which took place on Culloden Moor. It is the northernmost city in the United Kingdom and lies within the Great Glen at its northeastern extremity where the River Ness enters the Beauly Firth. At the latest, a settlement was established by the 6th century with the first royal charter being granted by Dabíd mac Maíl Choluim in the 12th century. Inverness and Inverness-shire are closely linked to various influential clans, including Clan Mackintosh, Clan Fraser and Clan MacKenzie.
Nairn is a town and former burgh in the Highland council area of Scotland. It is an ancient fishing port and market town around 17 miles (27 km) east of Inverness. It is the traditional county town of Nairnshire.
Moray or Morayshire, called Elginshire until 1919, is a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland, bordering Nairnshire to the west, Inverness-shire to the south, and Banffshire to the east. It was a local government county, with Elgin the county town, until 1975. The county was officially called Elginshire, sharing the name of the Elginshire parliamentary constituency, so named since 1708.
Badenoch and Strathspey is a local government ward of the Highland council area and a ward management area of the Highland Council in Scotland. It was previously one of eight districts of the two-tier Highland region, 1975 to 1996, and one of eight management areas of the Highland Council, 1996 to 2007.
Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross is a constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom (Westminster). It is the most northerly constituency on the British mainland. It elects one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first-past-the-post system of election.
Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey is a constituency of the House of Commons of the UK Parliament. As with all seats since 1955 it elects one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election.
Ross, Skye and Lochaber is a constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom (Westminster). It elects one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election.
Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross was a constituency of the Scottish Parliament (Holyrood), in use between 1999 and 2011. It elected one Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) by the first past the post method of election. Also, however, it was one of eight constituencies in the Highlands and Islands electoral region, which elects seven additional members, in addition to eight constituency MSPs, to produce a form of proportional representation for the region as a whole.
Ross, Skye and Inverness West was a constituency of the Scottish Parliament (Holyrood). It elected one Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) by the first past the post method of election. Also, however, it is one of eight constituencies in the Highlands and Islands electoral region, which elects seven additional members, in addition to eight constituency MSPs, to produce a form of proportional representation for the region as a whole.
Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber was a constituency of the Scottish Parliament (Holyrood). It elected one Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) by the first past the post method of election. It was one of eight constituencies in the Highlands and Islands electoral region, which elects seven additional members, in addition to constituency MSPs, to produce a form of proportional representation for the region as a whole.
The politics of the Highland council area in Scotland are evident in the deliberations and decisions of the Highland Council, in elections to the council, and in elections to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom (Westminster) and the Scottish Parliament (Holyrood). In the European Parliament the area was within the Scotland constituency, which covers all of the 32 council areas of Scotland.
The third set of Highland Council wards, 22 in number, became effective for election purposes in 2007, for the fourth general election of the Highland Council. The new wards were created under the Local Governance (Scotland) Act 2004, and are as defined in recommendations of the Local Government Boundary Commission for Scotland.
The second set of Highland Council wards, 80 in number, became effective for election purposes in 1999, for the second general election of the Highland Council, and were used also for the third general election in 2003. These wards replaced 72 older wards, and were themselves replaced by a set of 22 wards for the fourth general election in 2007.
The first set of Highland Council wards was first used for Highland Council election purposes in 1995, for the first general election of the council. They were replaced with 80 new wards for the second general election in 1999.
The Highland Council, the political body covering the Highland local authority created in 1995, comprises 22 wards, each electing three or four councillors by the single transferable vote system, which creates a form of proportional representation. The total number of councillors is 74, and the main meeting place and main offices are in Glenurquhart Road, Inverness.
Inverness-shire is a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland. Covering much of the Highlands and Outer Hebrides, it is Scotland's largest county, though one of the smallest in population, with 67,733 people or 1.34% of the Scottish population.
Inverness and Nairn is a constituency of the Scottish Parliament (Holyrood) covering part of the Highland council area. It elects one Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) by the first past the post method of election. It is also one of eight constituencies in the Highlands and Islands electoral region, which elects seven additional members, to produce a form of proportional representation for the region as a whole.
Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch is a constituency of the Scottish Parliament (Holyrood) covering part of the Highland council area. It elects one Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) by the first past the post method of election. Also, however, it is one of eight constituencies in the Highlands and Islands electoral region, which elects seven additional members, in addition to eight constituency MSPs, to produce a form of proportional representation for the region as a whole. In 2011 it replaced most of the constituency of Ross, Skye and Inverness West with Inverness being moved into a new seat called Inverness and Nairn.
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