Scottish Heraldry

The use of colours, symbols and patterns on shields, banners and costume dates to at least the 12th century in Western Europe. Their origins are often assumed to lie in feudal warfare but are equally likely to originate in the use of imagery in a largely illiterate society, through media such as seals and coins, by burgeoning royal, baronial, burghal and ecclesiastical jurisdictions of the 12th century. Historical records relating to coats of arms of Scots survive from the mid-14th century and the earliest known roll of arms produced in Scotland, the Scots Roll, dates from the mid-15th century. The proliferation of symbols to represent families and the invention of rules and terminology about this time led to colleges of arms being created in France, England and Scotland. In Scotland the Court of the Lord Lyon King of Arms traces its origins to the 14th century and is still part of the Scottish legal system. The Court confirms inheritance of arms, the granting of new arms, and can also prosecute for their illegal use. In 1672 the Scottish parliament set up the ‘Public Register of All Armorial Bearings of Scotland’ which is usually called the ‘Lyon Register’: a central record independent of the person of the office holder. Unless a coat of arms is registered in the Lyon Register, it has no legal standing in Scotland.

Editor: Elizabeth Roads (2021)

Bibliography

Dennis, Mark, Scottish Heraldry (Heraldry Society of Scotland, 1999)

Burnet, Charles and Mark Dennis, Scotland’s Heraldic Heritage, The Lion Rejoicing (HMSO, 1997)

Innes, Malcolm, of Edingight, Scots Heraldry, 3rd edition (Johnston & Bacon, 1978)

Innes, Sir Thomas, of Learney, Scots Heraldry, 2nd edition, (Oliver & Boyd, 1956)

Moncreiffe, Iain, of that Ilk, and Don Pottinger, Simple Heraldry (J Bartholemew, 1978)

Urquhart, R. M., Scottish Burgh and County Heraldry (Heraldry Today, 1973)

Links

The Heraldry Society of Scotland [accessed 26 April 2024]

All
Heraldry

What is my family/clan coat of arms?

In Scotland all arms and crests are personal property – i.e. the right to wear a coat of arms and use it (for example on stationery, building ornamentation, flags etc) belongs only to the person or corporate body which matriculated it at the Lyon Court. There is no such thing as a ‘family’ coat of arms or crest. An heir can use the matriculated arms without re-recording them in their own name although it is suggested that title to the arms be made up every third generation or thereby. However, it is not unknown for people to seek re-matriculation of arms which were recorded centuries ago. Younger members of the family bearing the same surname can record the arms with minor differences.

Odd though it may seem, if you use the arms of someone else in Scotland then you are usurping arms, and if you make up your own arms, then you are using bogus arms. In both cases you are committing an offence. In the first instance a possible offence would be investigated by the Procurator Fiscal to Lyon Court, an independently appointed official, and if it was thought there was an offence he could seek to bring the offence to the notice of Lyon Court. This is a very rare occurrence as it is usual that when the potential offence is pointed out the individual or organisation seeks to put matters right.

If a person, or a shop or some other commercial enterprise offers to sell you “your coat of arms” or “your family’s coat of arms” you will probably get a cheaply produced version of the arms of a clan chief or of someone with your surname who has matriculated arms.

The position regarding clan heraldry is more complicated. The origins and extent of the clan system are fiercely debated by historians and research has shown that the ‘clan’ of a Highland chief or landowner did not equate with everyone in Scotland with the same surname. What most people regard as the clan system (the elaborate organisation by surname of tartans, mottoes, and heraldic accoutrements) was largely a 19th century phenomenon. Those who profess allegiance to a chief and wish to demonstrate their association with a clan may wear the crest of the chief within a strap and buckle bearing the chief’s motto (but not the full coat of arms) as a badge but it should not be used on personal items such as stationery, cutlery or signet rings.

What is the difference between a crest and a coat of arms?

A crest is the element of an armorial achievement which appears above the helmet and a crest cannot exist unless associated with a shield of arms. It is incorrect to call an heraldic achievement “a crest”.

How do I obtain a coat of arms?

This is a legal process but is relatively simple and does not normally require a lawyer. The procedure was made much simpler by the publication of templates of the ‘prayer’ to the Lord Lyon for the matriculation of arms in Scots Heraldry by Sir Thomas Innes of Learney (see bibliography). The granting of new arms is normally straightforward, and very little information about an individual is required, but any genealogical claims must be proved by documentary evidence sufficient for a court of law. Provided that you are a person considered reputable and ‘deserving’, a coat of arms will normally be granted, painted onto vellum together with details of personal and family history and recorded in the Lyon Register. If you bear the surname of a Scottish family of which others of the name have recorded arms your arms may be devised to reflect in some way the arms of others of that name. The arms of those for whom there is a chief of name will have their arms based on those chiefly arms even though you may have no provable genealogical connection. The process of matriculation is different from the granting of arms and proof of your connection with a previous member of the family bearing the same surname is required before the Lord Lyon can authorise your own distinct coat of arms. In 2021 the cost of a new grant of shield and crest was around £2800 whilst a re-matriculation of previously recorded arms was around half that sum. For further details on acquiring arms, see the website of the Court of the Lord Lyon.

Where can I find information about the arms of a burgh, county or local authority?

The pre-eminent historian of Scottish burghs, Roderick Urquhart, published guides to the armory of local authorities in three volumes, which discuss the arms matriculated to burghs and counties (before 1975) and regional, district and island councils between 1975 and 1996, and a third volume discusses the arms of current local authorities. In these volumes, the arms of each local authority is accompanied by a black and white illustration of the arms, details of the matriculation in the Lyon Register, and historical notes on each local authority, especially where local events, individuals or traditional industries have influenced the choice of arms. The arms of pre-1975 burghs and counties are described in R M Urquhart, Scottish Burgh and County Heraldry (Heraldry Today, 1973). The arms of district, regional and island councils 1975-1996 are described in R M Urquhart, Scottish Civic Heraldry (Heraldry Today, 1977) and Scottish Civic Heraldry 2 (Scottish Library Association 2001)

Where can I find information about the history of the royal arms of Scotland?

The evolution of the royal arms of Scotland and of the United Kingdom are discussed in Royal Heraldry by J.H. and R.V. Pinches (Heraldry Today 1974).

There is some information under ‘Symbols’ in the section on ‘The Monarchy Today’ in the website of the UK monarchy <https://www.royal.uk/royal-banner-royal-arms-scotland> [accessed 26 April 2024].

Can I date a building which features royal arms?

The royal arms have not changed since 1837, so a building which features these arms must either (a) have been built after 1836 or (b) have been built earlier than this, but had the royal arms added later. If the royal arms featured belong to a monarch before 1837, then, in theory, the building might date from the reign concerned, but, again, there is always the chance that the building might be earlier, and the arms added later.

Harbours

Harbours

Harbours were essential to enable sea and river trade, particularly when water transport was faster and more reliable than travel overland. Many of the earliest burghs developed beside rivers, estuaries or the sea and constructed harbours to facilitate trade. Burghs usually received rights to control their harbour as part of their founding charter or by subsequent grants. The earliest records of harbour maintenance and improvements in Scotland’s burghs are generally found in the main series of burgh minutes. Outwith the burghs, harbours tended to be owned and controlled by local landowners.

During the 18th and 19th century many burghs obtained local acts of parliament to appoint trustees or commissioners to maintain and improve their harbours. These included Bo’ness in 1744, Port Glasgow and Ayr, both in 1772, Aberdeen in 1810, Dundee in 1815, and Perth in 1830.[1] Both Dundee and Aberdeen’s harbour commissions were initially fully controlled by their town councils and subsequent legislation reduced or removed this control.[2]

In the 19th and early 20th centuries, canal and railway companies obtained private acts to acquire harbours from trusts or burghs as well as purchasing harbours from individual landowners. For example, Gourock Harbour Company was sold to the Caledonian Railway Co in 1866 and Alloa Harbour Trust was transferred to the North British Railway Co in 1891.[3] The harbours owned by railway and canal companies were nationalised in 1948 and transferred to the British Transport Commission.[4] In 1962, when the British Transport Commission was replaced by five transport boards, the nationalised harbours were divided up amongst the Railway Board, the Dock Board and British Waterways Board.[5] The Harbours Act 1964 set up a National Ports Council to oversee the developments of ports and harbours and the act also enabled harbour re-organisation schemes.[6] This resulted in the newly constituted Forth Ports Authority and the Clyde Port Authority taking over various ports, harbours and docks in their respective areas.[7]

Many harbours remained in the ownership of local authorities or trusts. In 1937 local authorities were empowered to acquire ferries (and other marine works) by transfer or compulsory purchase.[8] Under the 1973 Act, responsibilities for local authority piers and harbours transferred to the regional and islands councils who were permitted to acquire land by compulsory purchase for constructing or altering any harbour in poor repair and could also make loans to a harbour authority.[9] In 1982 district councils were also allowed to acquire harbours, piers, boatslips or jetties for sporting or recreational purposes only.[10] The Local Government etc (Scotland) Act 1994 transferred these powers and responsibilities to the unitary councils from 1996.[11]

Compiler: Elspeth Reid (2021)

Related Knowledge Base entries

Public Transport

Ferries

Coast Protection

Bibliography

Bell, James, and James Paton, ‘Clyde Navigation’ in Glasgow: Its Municipal Organization and Administration (J. MacLehose and Sons, 1896) pp. 304-17

Ferguson, Keith, An introduction to local government in Scotland (The Planning Exchange, 1984)

References

[1] Bo’ness Twopenny Act 1744 (15 Geo. II); Port Glasgow Harbour Act 1772 (12 Geo. III c.xvi); Ayr Harbour Act 1772 (57 Geo. III c.xx); Aberdeen Harbour Act 1810 (50 Geo. III c.lxx); Dundee Harbour Act 1815 (55 Geo. III c.cxcvii); Perth Harbour and Tay Navigation Act 1830 (11 Geo. IV & 1 Will. IV c.cxxi).

[2] Dundee Harbour Act 1830 (11 Geo. IV & 1 Will. IV c.cxix); Aberdeen Harbour Act 1829 (10 Geo. IV c.xxxiv); Aberdeen Harbour Improvement Act 1868 (31 & 32 Vict. c.cxxxviii).

[3] Caledonian Railway (Greenock and Gourock) Extensions Act 1866 (29 & 30 Vict. c.ccxlvi); North British Railway (General Powers) Act 1891 (54 & 55 Vict. c. cciii).

[4] Transport Act 1947 (10 & 11 Geo. VI c.49).

[5] Transport Act 1962 (10 & 11 Eliz II c.46).

[6] Harbours Act 1964 (c.40) s.18.

[7] Clyde Port Authority Order Confirmation Act 1966 (c.xlv); Forth Harbour Reorganisation Scheme Confirmation (Special Procedure) 1967 (c.xli).

[8] Harbours Piers and Ferries (Scotland) Act 1937 (1 Edw. VII & 1 Geo. VI c.28).

[9] Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 (c.65) s.154.

[10] Local Government and Planning (Scotland) Act 1982 (c.43) s.20.

[11] Local Government etc (Scotland) Act 1994 (c.39).

Graverobbing

In the late-eighteenth and early-nineteenth centuries, there was an increase in demand for bodies for use in dissection by a growing number of anatomy students at medical schools. With bodies in high demand, the price of a fresh cadaver was also high (by the 1820s about £10). ‘Body snatchers’ or ‘resurrectionists’ would dig up the graves of freshly buried people and then sell the corpses to anatomists (surgeons who performed public dissections, mostly in university medical schools). Once a body was stolen, the grave was left almost as it had been found, so there would be no reason to suspect that the body had been taken. Even if a body was discovered as having been ‘stolen’, the bodysnatchers could not be charged with any crime as a body was not property.

In places near university medical schools, especially around Edinburgh, preventative measures were taken. Watch houses were erected at the edges of graveyards and watchmen employed by parish authorities or by societies set up for the purpose. Another method to prevent incidents of grave robbing was to place a mortsafe over the grave. There are illustrations of many types of gravestones and mortsafes on the website of Historic Environment Scotland.<https://canmore.org.uk/> [accessed 20 May 2021].

After many incidents of body snatching and the scandal of Burke and Hare (who murdered 16 people to supply the Anatomists with bodies for dissection but who did not rob graves), the Anatomy Act of 1832 was passed.[1] This required anyone intending to practice anatomy to apply for a licence from the Home Secretary and established HM Inspectors of Anatomy who check licences and premises for compliance with the 1832 Act, as amended by subsequent legislation.[2] The 1832 Anatomy Act allowed ‘unclaimed’ bodies to be donated to the medical schools in the name of furthering medical science. Ultimately this led to the demise of grave robbing as a viable business.

Compilers: SCAN contributors (2000).

Related Knowledge Base entries

Death and disposal of the dead

Burial

Bibliography

Adams, Norman, Dead and Buried: The Horrible History of Body Snatching (Aberdeen University Press, 1972)

Bailey, James Blake, The Diary of a Resurrectionist, 1811-1812 (London, 1896)

Love, Dane, Scottish Kirkyards (Robert Hale Ltd, 1989)

Ross, Ian and Carol Urquhart, ‘Body Snatching in Nineteenth Century Britain: from exhumation to murder’ British Journal of Law and Society, 6(1) (1979), pp. 108-18

References

[1] Anatomy Act, 1832 (2 & 3 Will. IV c. 75).

[2] Anatomy Act 1984 (c.14); Human Tissue (Scotland ) Act 2006 (2006 asp.4).

Further Education

Further education is post-secondary school education, generally at a certificated level. It encompasses technical and vocational training as well as academic learning after school qualifications and prior to studying for a degree. Further education became the responsibility of school boards after the Education (Scotland) Act 1872 came into force: this act permitted school boards to establish evening schools for young people over the age of 13 (which was the school leaving age at that time).[1]

Evening schools became known as continuation classes, teaching school subjects and also craft, technical, domestic and agricultural classes relevant to local employers. By 1908 the school board also had a duty to provide continuation classes in Gaelic language and literature in the Gaelic-speaking areas and to provide opportunities for health classes and physical exercise.[2] School boards could also make byelaws to require young people to attend continuation classes up to age 17. In 1918 the new county-wide education authorities were required to develop schemes for part-time continuation classes in consultation with local employers and workers’ associations. [3] Young people were required to complete 320 hours attendance each year. In 1945 further education was expanded and education authorities were required to provide facilities for part-time and full-time education in junior colleges as well as voluntary recreational and cultural classes for adults.[4] Young people were required to attend on a part-time basis for the equivalent of one day per week for 44 weeks per year up to age 18. Education authorities were also expected to take into account the need for adequate provision of technical education and local technical colleges.

Colleges that had been established by education authorities were transferred to regional councils in 1975.[5] Under the Further and Higher Education (Scotland) Act 1992, these colleges ceased to be run by local authorities on 1 April 1993, and instead became incorporated bodies with individual boards of management and funding through a central body.[6]

From the 1960s onwards, further education colleges increasing also offered higher education through the Council for National Academic Awards. The Further and Higher Education (Scotland) Act 1992 enabled colleges to be given powers to grant degrees themselves. Following this, colleges started to change their names to reflect their dual role as providers of both further and higher education.[7]

Further education was not the sole preserve of local authorities. Workers’ associations and mechanics institutes, such as the School of Arts, Edinburgh (later Heriot-Watt University), the Andersonian University (later Strathclyde University), the Workers Educational Association and Falkirk School of Arts (1827-1891) provided training in science, engineering and industry during the 19th and 20^th centuries. Some became central institutions and then universities, some continued as independent organisations offering adult education, while others closed. However, from the 1940s to the 1990s most further education provision was local authority provided and a list of these colleges can be found in the Transfer of Colleges of Further Education (Scotland) Order 1992.[8]

Records of further education colleges will most often be found in the college itself but may also be found in the archives service of the local authority which was responsible for the college until 1993. National Records of Scotland hold Scottish Government records of communications with and policy on further education institutions (reference code ED27).

Compiler: Elspeth Reid (2021)

Related Knowledge Base entries

Higher Education

Education

Bibliography

Anderson, R. D., Education and the Scottish people, 1750-1918 (Clarendon Press, 1995)

Anderson, Robert, ‘Historical Perspectives’ in Scottish Education, 5th edition, ed. by T.G.K. Bryce, Walter M. Humes, Donald Gillies & Aileen Kennedy (Edinburgh University Press, 2018)

Haythornthwaite, J. A., N. C. Wilson and V. A. Batho, Scotland in the Nineteenth Century: an analytical bibliography of material relating to Scotland in Parliamentary Papers, 1800-1900 (Scolar Press, 1993)

References

[1] Education (Scotland) Act 1872 (35 & 36 Vict. c.62) s.40.

[2] Education (Scotland) Act, 1908 (8 Edw. VII c.63) s.10.

[3] Education (Scotland) Act, 1918 (8 & 9 Geo. V c.48) s.15.

[4] Education (Scotland) Act, 1945 (8 & 9 Geo. VI c.37).

[5] Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 (c.65).

[6] Further and Higher Education (Scotland) Act 1992 (c.37).

[7] Colleges of Further Education (Changes of Names) (Scotland) Order 1993 (SI 1993 No. 1891).

[8]Transfer of Colleges of Further Education (Scotland) Order 1992 (SI 1992 No. 1597).

Food Labelling, Standards and Hygiene

Food Labelling, Standards and Hygiene

Food safety since the mid-19th century has focused on three main priorities: ensuring that food is accurately described and does not contain extraneous matter (particularly which could harm people); ensuring food is fit for human consumption; and ensuring that food is prepared and processed in hygienic conditions to prevent contamination. Food safety was initially the responsibility of local authority sanitary inspectors, then also involved medical officers of health, and during the 20th century became a separate specialism within the general area of environmental health.

The earliest concern was ensuring that food was not fraudulently made up of cheaper ingredients than those claimed and early enactments by the Scottish parliament were aimed at correct labelling of food. From 1860 it was an offence to sell adulterated food while claiming it was pure or unadulterated.[1] Commissioners of supply in counties and town councils in burghs were permitted to appoint an analyst and any individual could then pay a capped fee to have food or drugs analysed. Cases were to be heard by justices of the peace or sheriff substitutes and, from 1875, magistrates of police burghs.[2] Medical officers of health and other local authority officers were empowered to obtain samples of food and drugs and submit it to the appointed analyst for tests. In 1887, further explicit controls were introduced for margarine and related foodstuffs, and these were consolidated in 1928 along with renewed prohibitions of any extraneous matter that could be harmful.[3] In that year food and drugs authorities were identified as the town council of burghs and county councils in all other areas, but in 1929, these responsibilities were transferred from small burghs to county councils.[4]

The Public Health (Scotland) Act 1867 gave responsibilities for ensuring food was fit to eat to town councils or police commissioners in towns and to parochial boards elsewhere (which were replaced by district committees or county councils for public health purposes in 1897).[5] Sanitary inspectors were empowered to inspect food and order it to be destroyed if it was deemed unfit for people to eat. These powers were increased in 1897 when medical officers of health, sanitary inspectors and veterinary surgeons were all given powers to seize any diseased animals or meat considered unsound. Inspection and seizure remained the main methods of controlling the quality of food throughout the 20^th century.

Food hygiene was introduced by the requirement for local authorities to register and inspect various food premises from the 1880s onwards, such as dairies, shops selling milk and later ice-cream and aerated water shops.[6] In 1897 people who had been exposed to infectious diseases were prohibited from milking animals, picking fruit or carrying on any trade or business where they might spread disease.[7] Hygiene standards for dairymen were included in subsequent milk and dairy legislation.[8]

Until 1956, local authorities were primarily responsible for regulating food standards and food hygiene through byelaws, inspection, appointment of a public analyst, with some central direction from the Local Government Board for Scotland and then the Scottish Board of Health. In 1956 the three issues of accurate labelling, quality control and hygiene were brought together, and greater powers were given to the Secretary of State for Scotland to make regulations, to undertake sampling and analysis of food and to appoint a new body, the Scottish Food Hygiene Council, to advise on regulations and related matters (abolished in 1982). Local authorities remained responsible for investigating and examining food premises and operations, for registration of food manufacturers and traders, and for responding to notification of food poisoning. They were also permitted to provide facilities for cleaning shellfish and cold stores for meat.[9]

The Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 divided food standards responsibilities between the regional and district councils.[10] Regional councils were given responsibilities for investigating inaccurate labelling and advertising, adulterated food and drugs, and cream substitutes, while district councils dealt with all other responsibilities including examining and seizing food unfit for human consumption and registering food manufacturers and traders. Islands councils dealt with all food standards responsibilities in their areas. In 1990, district and islands councils were designated food authorities.[11] In 2001 the Food Standards Agency was set up as an independent UK advisory and regulatory body, with an office in Scotland, and in 2015, Food Standards Scotland was set up, replacing the Food Standards Agency in Scotland.[12]

Local authority archives services may hold registers of dairy premises, registers of food and drug samples, records of complaints made by sanitary inspectors of medical officers of health, and reports of sanitary inspectors, medical officers of health and environmental health officers. Most modern local authority food standards records are retained only as long as required for business use. National Records of Scotland holds records relating to food standards from the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries and the Home and Health Department and their successors (reference codes AF94 and HH64) as well as files on food standards legislation (reference code SOE26).

Compiler: Elspeth Reid (2021)

Related Knowledge Base entries

Cleansing and Refuse Disposal

Sanitary Inspection & Environmental Health

Bibliography

Bradgate, J. Robert and Geraint G. Howells, ‘Food Law in the United Kingdom’ Food, Drug, Cosmetic Law Journal, 46.3 (1991) pp. 447-66.

Elton, G. A. H. and W. H. Nightingale, ‘Food technology and the Law’ Proceedings of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological Sciences, 191 (1102), (1975), pp. 99-110

Ferguson, Keith, An introduction to local government in Scotland (The Planning Exchange, 1984)

French, Michael & Jim Phillips, ‘Food safety regimes in Scotland, 1899-1914’ Journal of Scottish Historical Studies 22.2 (2002), pp. 134-57

Whyte, W. E., Local Government in Scotland (Hodge & Co, 1936)

References

[1] Act preventing the adulteration of articles of food and drink, 1860 (23 & 24 Vict c.84).

[2] Sale of Food and Drugs Act 1875 (38 & 39 Vict c.63).

[3] Margarine Act 1887 (50 & 51 Vict. c.29); Food and Drugs (Adulteration) Act 1928 (18 & 19 Geo. V c.31).

[4] Local Government (Scotland) Act 1929 (19 & 20 Geo. V c.25).

[5] Public Health (Scotland) Act, 1867 (30 & 31 Vict. c.101); Public Health (Scotland) Act 1897 (60 & 61 Vict. c.38).

[6] Dairies, Cowsheds and Milkshops Orders, 1885, 1887, 1889; Burgh Police (Scotland) Act 1903 (3 Edw. VII c.33) s.82.

[7] Public Health (Scotland) Act 1897 (60 & 61 Vict. c.38).

[8] Milk and Dairies (Scotland) Act 1914 (c.46).

[9] Food and Drugs (Scotland) Act 1956 (c.30).

[10] Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 (c.65).

[11] Food Safety Act 1990 (c.16).

[12] Food Standards Act 1999 (c.28); Food (Scotland) Act 2015 (asp.1).

Flood Prevention

The Flood Prevention (Scotland) Act 1961 gave local authorities powers to prevent or mitigate flooding in their area, excluding flooding on agricultural land, from any watercourses apart from sewers and water mains. They could develop flood prevention schemes for approval by the Secretary of State for Scotland.[1] These powers were transferred to Regional and Island Councils in 1975.[2] The 1961 Act was amended by the Flood Prevention and Land Drainage (Scotland) Act 1997. This required local authorities to assess watercourses for flood risks and placed a duty on them to publish reports.[3] The 1997 Act was repealed by the Flood Risk Management (Scotland) Act 2009 which required local authorities to prepare plans to manage flood risk, assess risks of flooding and consider options to reduce the risk, and empowered local authorities to obtain information and documents to assist this work.[4]

Local authority archives services for areas which are historically prone to flooding are likely to hold records relating to flood damage, surveys, reports and photographs, including material pre-dating the development of this local authority function. National Records of Scotland holds files relating to flood prevention schemes (reference codes DD12 and DD43).

Compiler: Elspeth Reid (2021)

Bibliography

Ferguson, Keith, An introduction to local government in Scotland (The Planning Exchange, 1984)

References

[1] Flood Prevention (Scotland) Act 1961 (c.41) Sch.2.

[2] Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 (c.65) s.137.

[3] Flood Prevention and Land Drainage (Scotland) Act 1997 (c.36).

[4] Flood Risk Management (Scotland) Act 2009 (asp.6) ss.44-47.

Fire & Rescue Services

Fire was a regular problem for medieval and early modern burghs. In 1652 fire destroyed about a third of Glasgow and following this the town council required that as part of their admission, burgesses were to pay £5 towards the cost of leather buckets for firefighting.[1] As early as 1656 Glasgow town council appointed James Colquhoune to construct an engine to throw water on fires, and sent him to view one in Edinburgh, and in 1725 they purchased a London-made fire engine.[2]

Glasgow appointed a superintendent of fire-engines in 1809 and had salaried masters of fire engines by 1817.[3] In Edinburgh, the town council, police commissioners, representatives of insurance companies and others agreed to set up a Fire Engine Committee under the auspices of the police commissioners and to fund the appointment of a paid fire brigade.[4] They appointed James Braidwood as their fire master, with four head engine men and 53 firemen, all initially part-time but Braidwood became a full-time fire superintendent within a year and this is generally regarded as the first public fire brigade.[5] Following this, many other burghs obtained local acts which included the powers to set up and operate fire engines, employ firemen and recover the costs from owners and occupiers of buildings.[6] These powers were then included in the general police and improvement acts which enabled burghs to operate fire engines, employ firemen and cross burgh boundaries to fight fires in neighbouring local authority areas, covering their costs by levying assessments and charging owners and occupiers.[7] Alongside the development of local authority fire brigades, larger businesses were motivated by their insurance policies to set up works fire brigades.

Until 1938, although many local authorities set up fire brigades, this was not mandatory. The Fire Brigades Act, 1938, set up a centrally co-ordinated service throughout the UK and required local authorities to make arrangements for an effective fire service.[8] In 1941, as a consequence of the war, a National Fire Service was set up by the Fire Services (Emergency Provisions) Act 1941.[9] Scotland was the No. 11 Region of the civil defence organisation under the Home Office and there were six fire areas in Scotland with headquarters in Glasgow, Paisley, Edinburgh, Dundee, Aberdeen and Inverness.[10]

The Fire Services Act, 1947, transferred responsibility for fire services back to the control of local authorities but created combined fire brigades administered by local authority joint committees. Scottish fire brigades were placed into ten areas: Lanark, Central, Western, South-Western, South-Eastern, Fife, Perth & Kinross, Angus, North-Eastern, and Northern. Large burghs, counties and counties of cities became the fire authorities and within these ten combined areas were required to work together to submit an administrative scheme to the Secretary of State for Scotland covering their arrangements for providing fire services, the relationship between fire authorities represented on the joint committee and other matters.[11]

In 1975, regional and islands councils were designated as the fire authorities. The fire brigades of Borders Region and Lothian region were combined as were the fire brigades of Highlands Region and the three islands councils, resulting in eight fire brigades: Strathclyde, Lothian & Borders, Grampian, Tayside, Fife, Central, Highlands & Islands, and Dumfries & Galloway, supervised by regional or joint committees.[12] Under the Local Government etc (Scotland) Act 1994 these eight services were continued and were established as independent joint authorities with representation on their boards from the relevant unitary local authorities.[13] In 2004 the Fire Brigades changed their names to Fire and Rescue Services.[14] The Police and Fire Reform (Scotland) Act 2012 removed fire services from local authority supervision and created a national service led by a Board of 10 members appointed by Scottish Ministers.[15]

Records of fire and rescue services have in most cases been deposited in local authority archives services.

Compiler: Elspeth Reid (2021)

Related Knowledge Base entries

Fire authorities

Bibliography

Blackstone, Geoffrey, A history of the British Fire Service (London, 1957)

Bell, James and James Paton, Glasgow: Its Municipal Organization and Administration (MacLehose, 1896)

Ewen, Shane Fighting fires: creating the British fire service, 1800-1978 (Palgrave Macmillan, 2010)

Ferguson, Keith, An introduction to local government in Scotland (The Planning Exchange, 1984)

References

[1] James Bell and James Paton, Glasgow: Its Municipal Organization and Administration (MacLehose, 1896) pp.148-49.

[2] Bell & Paton Glasgow pp. 150-51.

[3] Bell & Paton Glasgow p. 153.

[4] Edinburgh City Archives, (GB 236) ED/9/12/1, Edinburgh Police Commissioners Fire Engine Committee Minutes, 1824

[5] Ewen, Shane, Fighting Fires: Creating the British Fire Service, 1800-1978 (Palgrave Macmillan, 2010) pp. 38-39.

[6] Glasgow City Extension and Improvement Act 1807 (47 Geo. III c.xxix), Glasgow Improvements Act 1866 (29 & 30 Vict. c.lxxxv), Dundee Police and Improvement Consolidation Act 1882 (45 & 46 Vict. c.clxxxv).

[7] Burgh Police (Scotland) Act 1833 (3 & 4 Will. IV c.46) s.97; General Police & Improvement (Scotland) Act 1862 (25 & 26 Vict. c.101) ss.344-348; Burgh Police (Scotland) Act 1892 (55 & 56 Vict. c.55) s.291.

[8] Fire Brigades Act 1938 (1 & 2 Geo. VI c.72).

[9] Fire Services (Emergency Provisions) Act 1941 (4 & 5 Geo. VI c.22)

[10] The National Archives, London, (GB66) HO 207 Home Office and Ministry of Home Security: Civil Defence Regions, Headquarters and Regional Files, 1935-1957.

[11] Fire Services Act 1947 (10 & 11 Geo. VI c.41) s.36, Sch.4.

[12] Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 (c.65) s.147.

[13] Local Government etc (Scotland) Act, 1994 (c.39).

[14] Fire and Rescue Services Act 2004 (c.21)

[15] Police and Fire Reform (Scotland) Act 2012 (asp 8)

Ferries

Ferries were used to cross rivers and estuaries until reliable bridges could be built: there was a ferry across the River Forth at North and South Queensferry until 1964, and across the Beauly Firth at Kessock until 1982. Ferries are still a major method of connecting islands to each other and to the mainland of Scotland. They were, and still are, owned and operated by a mix of local authorities, central authorities (originally the Crown and subsequently central government), private individuals, commercial companies and community-based trusts.

From the 12th century the right to operate a ferry at a particular place was a heritable property right, granted through charters and sasines. Most such ferry rights were held by individual landowners but there are also instances of town councils controlling ferry rights.[1] For example, Dundee Town Council controlled the ferry across the River Tay from Seamyles-on-Tay from 1641. In 1713 the Guildry of Dundee purchased lands for a new harbour at what became Newport.[2] Perth Town Council held the ferry right across the Tay at Perth from 1621, when the old bridge collapsed, until the replacement was completed in 1771.[3] The right to have a ferry was included in a charter to the burgh of Renfrew in 1614.[4]

The right of ferry included an obligation to provide a boat, the right to charge for the service and the right to be protected from competition from other nearby boats. The ferry proprietor was also obliged to keep the slips, quays or harbours maintained. Ferrymen usually paid the proprietor for a tack to operate the ferry and then recouped their costs through an agreed proportion of the income from charges. Both public and private ferries were usually subject to local regulations.[5]

From 1669 justices of the peace (JPs) had responsibilities for surveying and ensuring the repair of ferries and these responsibilities were shared with commissioners of supply from 1686.[6] From 1889 the ferry responsibilities of commissioners of supply were transferred to county councils.[7] JPs continued to have power to regulate ferry fares until 1908.[8]

From the late 18th century, the development of canals and the expansion of freight transport led to ferry rights being acquired by canal and navigation companies and later by railway companies seeking to link routes. The East and West Erskine Ferries were bought by the Clyde Navigation Trust in 1890 from the Lord of Blantyre after a long-running dispute.[9] The Loch Tay route was bought by the Caledonian Railway Company to connect Killin and Kenmore. Railway-owned ferry routes and ferry companies were subsequently nationalised by the Transport Act 1947.[10] Following a Ministry of Transport inquiry into ferries throughout Great Britain, which discovered that many were not fit for purpose, many inland ferry routes were replaced by bridges.[11] However, other ferry routes were upgraded to accommodate changes in the type of traffic carried. The operation of nationalised routes was contracted to ferry companies, including the nationalised Clyde Shipping Services (now CalMac Ferries Ltd).

In 1937 local authorities were empowered to acquire ferries (and other marine works) by transfer or compulsory purchase.[12] The Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 required regional and islands councils to develop policies to promote the co-ordination of public transport systems and enabled them to subsidise public transport by land, water or air. Local authority responsibilities for ferries, piers, harbours, boatslips and jetties were also transferred to regional and islands councils.[13] The Local Government etc (Scotland) Act 1994 transferred these powers and responsibilities to the unitary councils from 1996.[14]

Central government records relating to ferries are held by National Records of Scotland in the Agriculture and Fisheries files (reference code AF) and amongst roads and bridges files from the Scottish Office Development Department (reference code DD4). Local authority archives services may hold records relating to ferries.

Compiler: Elspeth Reid (2021)

Related Knowledge Base entries

Public transport

Harbours

Bibliography

Walker, David M., ‘Roads. Bridges and Ferries’ in Source book and history of administrative law in Scotland ed. by M. R. McLarty (Hodge, 1956) pp.210-212.

Weir, L. M. W. ‘Ferries in Scotland between 1603 and the advent of steam’ (Unpublished doctoral thesis, University of Edinburgh, 1985)

Weir, Marie, Ferries in Scotland (John Donald, 1988)

Ferries in Great Britain. Report of the committee appointed by the Minister of Transport (HMSO, 1948)

References

[1] L.M.W. Weir, ‘Ferries in Scotland between 1603 and the advent of steam’ (Unpublished doctoral thesis, University of Edinburgh, 1985) p.2.

[2] Weir, Marie, Ferries in Scotland (John Donald, 1988) pp.98-100.

[3] Weir, Ferries in Scotland (1988), p.24.

[4] Weir, Ferries in Scotland (1988), p.82.

[5] Wier, ‘Ferries in Scotland between 1603 and the advent of steam’ (1985), pp.2-3.

[6] Act for repairing highways and bridges, 1669. The Records of the Parliaments of Scotland to 1707 [RPS] ed. by K.M. Brown and others (2007-2021) 1669/10/53 http://www.rps.ac.uk/trans/1669/10/53; Act anent highways and bridges, 1686 RPS, 1686/4/28 http://www.rps.ac.uk/trans/1686/4/28 [both accessed 26 Aug 2021].

[7] Local Government (Scotland) Act 1889 (52 & 53 Vict. c.50).

[8] Local Government (Scotland) Act 1908 (8 Edw. VII c.62).

[9] Weir, Ferries in Scotland, (1988) p.80.

[10] Transport Act 1947 (10 & 11 Geo. VI c.49)

[11] Ferries in Great Britain. Report of the committee appointed by the Minister of Transport (HMSO, 1948)

[12] Harbours Piers and Ferries (Scotland) Act 1937 (1 Edw. VII & 1 Geo. VI c.28)

[13] Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 (c.65) s.153

[14] Local Government etc (Scotland) Act 1994 (c.39)

Entertainment & Culture

Entertainment & Culture

This Knowledge Base entry focuses on the local authority responsibilities for licensing and for providing or supporting entertainment and cultural activities. Prior to 1973, local authority involvement in entertainment and cultural activities was mainly concerned with licensing of theatres, cinemas and other forms of entertainment. Under the Theatres Act 1843, Justices of the Peace were responsible for licensing all theatres, but in 1892 this function within burghs was given to the burgh magistrates.[1] Cinemas were first licensed in 1909 by royal, parliamentary or police burgh magistrates and county councils.[2] Responsibilities for licensing theatres and cinemas was transferred from magistrates to town councils (except in Aberdeen and Glasgow) and from JPs to county councils in 1947.[3] Local authorities were required to register people training and exhibiting performing animals from 1925.[4] Buildings for use as a meeting place or public entertainment venue also required construction permission with plans being submitted in police burghs from 1862 and this was subsequently incorporated into building standards.[5]

The Local Government (Scotland) Act 1947 permitted local authorities to use their halls and other buildings for concerts and bazaars but not for plays, variety performances or films.[6] In the same year, the Civic Restaurant Act 1947 enabled county councils and town councils to set up restaurants, repealed in 1982.[7]

The Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 enabled local authorities to do anything or arrange for or fund the provision of ‘adequate facilities for social, cultural and recreative activities’ including entertainment, facilities for dancing, arts and crafts, provision of a theatre, cultural centre, arts centre, concert hall, dance hall, community centre or other premises; maintain a band, orchestra or theatrical company and enabled ancillary activities such as selling refreshments and advertising.[8] In 1982 these powers were restricted to district and islands councils, while regional councils were limited to supporting recreational, sporting, cultural and social facilities and activities through grants to district councils or voluntary organisations or other persons.[9] These powers were subsequently transferred to unitary authorities in 1996.[10] From 2007 onwards, some councils set up trusts, which could acquire charitable status, to manage council-owned facilities and provide entertainment and cultural functions on behalf of the council.

Licensing records along with records of local authority operated entertainment and performing arts venues and activities are likely to be held by local authority archives services. The National Library of Scotland holds records of a wide range of clubs and societies as well as the Moving Image Archive which holds cinema memorabilia and business records of cinema companies, as well as films by professionals and amateurs and related material.

Many entertainment and cultural venues were operated by commercial companies and, of course, many theatre companies, orchestras, dance companies, and other performing arts companies are independent businesses. Records and printed memorabilia may be found in the Scottish Theatre Archive, the Scottish Music Archive and the National Library of Scotland as well as some university and local archives services.

Compiler: Elspeth Reid (2021)

Related Knowledge Base entries

Scottish Cinemas

Film production in Scotland

Bibliography

Bell, James, and James Paton, Glasgow: Its Municipal Organization and Administration (J. MacLehose and Sons, 1896)

Ferguson, Keith, An introduction to local government in Scotland (The Planning Exchange, 1984)

Whyte, W. E., Local Government in Scotland (Hodge & Co, 1936)

References

[1] Theatres Act 1843 (6 & 7 Vict. c.68); Burgh Police (Scotland) Act 1892 (55 & 56 Vict. c.55) ss.395-402.

[2] Cinematograph Act 1909 (9 Edw. VII c.30).

[3] Local Government (Scotland) Act 1947 (10 & 11 Geo. VI c.43) ss.313-314.

[4] Performing Animas (Regulation) Act 1925 (15 & 16 Geo. V c. 38).

[5] General Police and Improvement (Scotland) Act 1862 (25 & 26 Vict. c.101) s.349.

[6] Local Government (Scotland) Act 1947 (10 & 11 Geo. VI c.43) s74(5).

[7] Civic Restaurants Act 1947 (10 & 11 Geo. VI c.22); Local Government (Scotland) Act 1982 (c.43) Sch.4.

[8] Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 (c.65) s.91.

[9] Local Government and Planning (Scotland) Act 1982 (c.43) ss.15-17.

[10] Local Government etc (Scotland) Act 1994 (c.39).

Employment of Young Persons

Local authorities were empowered to make byelaws to regulate the employment of children in the entertainment industry by the Prevention of Cruelty to and Protection of Children Act 1889.[1] This was later reinforced by the Employment of Children Act 1903 through which school boards were empowered to set the age and the number of hours that children could work in any type of employment, while town councils and county councils were empowered to regulate employment of under 16s as street traders.[2] The Children and Young Persons (Scotland) Act 1937 prescribed the ages and hours of working permitted but continued to enable education authorities to set byelaws within these general parameters.[3] The ages permitted in certain categories, such as entertainment and street trading were raised in 1963.[4] Education authorities were given more enforcement powers in 1973.[5] Although these additional powers were repealed in 2008, the essential provisions of the 1937 act remain in force.

Compiler: Elspeth Reid (2021)

Related Knowledge Base entries

Care of children, young people and families

Bibliography

Abrams, Lynn & Linda Fleming, Report into the Historic System to protect and prevent the abuse of children in care in Scotland, 1948-1995 (Scottish Child Abuse Inquiry, 2019) <https://childabuseinquiry.scot/research/research-reports/the-historic-system-to-protect-and-prevent-the-abuse-of-children-in-care-in-scotland-1948-1995/> [accessed 21 June 2021]

[1] Prevention of Cruelty to and Protection of Children Act 1889 (53 & 53 Vict c.44).

[2] Employment of Children Act 1903 (3 Edw VII c.45).

[3] Children and Young Persons (Scotland) Act,1937 (1 Edw VIII & 1 Geo VI c.37) ss.28-29.

[4] Children and Young Persons Act 1963 (c.37).

[5] Employment of Children Act 1973 (c.24).