Ayrshire is a historic county and registration county, in south-west Scotland, located on the shores of the Firth of Clyde. The lieutenancy area of Ayrshire and Arran covers the entirety of the historic county as well as the island of Arran, formerly part of the historic county of Buteshire. Its principal towns include Ayr, Kilmarnock and Irvine and it borders the counties of Renfrewshire and Lanarkshire to the north-east, Dumfriesshire to the south-east, and Kirkcudbrightshire and Wigtownshire to the south. Like many other counties of Scotland, it currently has no administrative function, instead being sub-divided into the council areas of East Ayrshire, North Ayrshire and South Ayrshire. It has a population of approximately 366,800.
Dumfries and Galloway is one of the 32 unitary council areas of Scotland, located in the western part of the Southern Uplands. It is bordered by East Ayrshire, South Ayrshire, and South Lanarkshire to the north; Scottish Borders to the north-east; the English county of Cumbria, the Solway Firth, and the Irish Sea to the south, and the North Channel to the west. The administrative centre and largest settlement is the town of Dumfries. The second largest town is Stranraer, located 76 miles (122 km) to the west of Dumfries on the North Channel coast.
The A77 road is a major road in Scotland. It runs in a southwesterly direction from the city of Glasgow, past the towns of Giffnock, Newton Mearns, Kilmarnock, Prestwick, Ayr, Girvan and Stranraer to the village of Portpatrick on the Irish Sea. It passes through the council areas of Glasgow City, East Renfrewshire, East Ayrshire, South Ayrshire and Dumfries and Galloway.
Earl of Inchcape is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created in 1929 for the Scottish shipping magnate and public servant James Mackay, 1st Viscount Inchcape. He had been created Baron Inchcape, of Strathnaver in the County of Sutherland, in 1911, and Viscount Inchcape, of Strathnaver in the County of Sutherland, in 1924. He was made Viscount Glenapp, of Strathnaver in the County of Sutherland, at the same time as he was given the earldom. These titles are also in the Peerage of the United Kingdom.
The River Stinchar is a river in South Ayrshire, Scotland. It flows south west from the Galloway Forest Park to enter the Firth of Clyde at Ballantrae, about 20 kilometres south-southeast of Ailsa Craig.
Simon Brooke Mackay, Baron Tanlaw, is a former member of the House of Lords. He is the senior life peer.
Ballantrae is a community in Carrick, South Ayrshire, Scotland. The name probably comes from the Scottish Gaelic Baile na Tràgha, meaning the 'town by the beach'. Ballantrae has a primary school. The beach consists of shingle and sand and offers views of Ailsa Craig, the Isle of Arran and Kintyre.
Kelburn Castle is a large house near Fairlie, North Ayrshire, Scotland. It is the seat of the Earl of Glasgow. Originally built in the thirteenth century it was remodelled in the sixteenth century. In 1700, the first Earl made further extensions to the house in a manner, not unlike a French château which is virtually how it appears today. In 1977 the house and grounds opened to the public as a country park. It is one of the oldest castles in Scotland and has been continuously inhabited by the same family for longer than any other. The castle is protected as a category A listed building, while the grounds are included in the Inventory of Gardens and Designed Landscapes in Scotland.
Kenneth Peter Lyle Mackay, 4th Earl of Inchcape, known as Peter Inchcape, is a British peer, landowner, and business man. He was a member of the House of Lords from 1994 to 1999.
James Lyle Mackay, 1st Earl of Inchcape,, known as Sir James Mackay from 1894 to 1911, was a British businessman and colonial administrator in India who became Chairman of the Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company ("P&O") and founded Inchcape Retail Ltd.
Elsie Mackay was a British actress, jockey, interior decorator and pioneering aviator who died attempting to cross the Atlantic Ocean with Walter G. R. Hinchliffe in a single engined Stinson Detroiter. Her stage name as an actress was Poppy Wyndham.
Torthorwald is a village and civil parish in Dumfries and Galloway, south-west Scotland. It is located 6 kilometres (3.7 mi) east of Dumfries on the A709 road to Lochmaben. The area was the property of the de Torthorwald family until the end of the 13th century, when the estate passed by marriage to the Kirkpatricks. In 1418, William de Carleil married the Kirkpatrick heiress. He may have been the builder of Torthorwald Castle, which was erected around this time, possibly on top of an earlier a motte. Torthorwald was erected as a burgh of barony in 1473. Torthorwald Castle was occupied until 1715; only two of its walls still stand, to a height of around 18 metres (59 ft).
The Scottish Coastal Way is a proposed national long-distance trail that goes around the coastline of mainland Scotland. The idea was first proposed by walkers, and in November 2009 Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) hosted a conference on the subject. In 2010 SNH estimated that around 2,700 km of coastal paths and routes were existence, compared to a total coastline length of 10,192 km. The existing coastal paths were predominantly in the more populous parts of the country, and few coastal paths exist in more remote areas such as Highlands and Islands. It was recognised that a coastal route, along the lines of the Wales Coast Path, would have many positives, but that development of a fully waymarked route would conflict with conservation aims such as the preservation of the "wild land" qualities of much of the Scottish coast.
The Ayrshire Coastal Path is a coastal long-distance hiking path in Ayrshire, Scotland. The route, which is 161 kilometres (100 mi) long, runs along the coast from Glenapp, Ballantrae to Skelmorlie. South of Glenapp, the route links with the Mull of Galloway Trail to Stranraer.
Sundrum Castle is a Scottish medieval castle located 1.5 kilometres (0.93 mi) north of Coylton, South Ayrshire, by the Water of Coyle river. It was built in the 14th century for Sir Duncan Wallace, Sheriff of Ayr. The castle was inherited by Sir Alan de Cathcart, who was the son of Duncan's sister. The Cathcarts sold Sundrum in the 18th century, where it eventually fell into the possession of the Hamilton family. The Hamiltons expanded the castle in the 1790s, incorporating the original keep into a mansion.
Inch is a civil parish in Dumfries and Galloway, southwest Scotland. It lies on the shore of Loch Ryan, in the traditional county of Wigtownshire.
Shewalton House and estate were composed of the 'Lands of Shewalton' and the laird's dwelling, originally a tower castle and later a mansion house on the River Irvine in the Shewalton area, two miles from Irvine and west of Drybridge village, East Ayrshire, Dundonald Parish, Scotland. In 1883 the Boyle's estate of Shewalton was 2,358 acres in extent in Ayrshire and was worth at that time £2,708 a year.
Kenneth Mackay, 2nd Earl of Inchcape was a barrister, a businessman and an earl in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. He became Earl of Inchcape on 23 May 1932 after the death of his father, James Mackay, 1st Earl of Inchcape. During World War I he served with the 12th Royal Lancers and Machine Gun Corps as a Lieutenant.
The Mull of Galloway Trail is a coastal long-distance path in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. The route, which is 59 km (37 mi) long, runs along the coast from Glenapp near Ballantrae to the Mull of Galloway. The path was developed by the Rotary Club of Stranraer, who maintain the route on a voluntary basis. It opened in 2012, and is now designated as one of Scotland's Great Trails by NatureScot. It also forms part of the International Appalachian Trail.
