Cornton is a district of the city of

Stirling Stirling (; sco, Stirlin; gd, Sruighlea ) is a city in central Scotland, northeast of Glasgow and north-west of Edinburgh. The market town, surrounded by rich farmland, grew up connecting the royal citadel, the medieval old town with its me ...

on the North Bank of the

River Forth The River Forth is a major river in central Scotland, long, which drains into the North Sea on the east coast of the country. Its drainage basin covers much of Stirlingshire in Scotland's Central Belt. The Gaelic name for the upper reach of t ...

in central

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to ...

History

It is amongst the oldest of Stirling settlements originating in Pre-Roman times and servicing the ford marked by the Causewayhead Road. The area that is now the Cornton and on the opposite bank, the

Raploch Raploch, known locally as The Raploch or The Raptap, is a district of the city of Stirling, which lies to the south of the River Forth in central Scotland. The first houses were built in the late 17th century, after the land had been sold by t ...

, were the only available patches of agricultural land prior to draining programs of later eras.

Wallace Wallace may refer to: People * Clan Wallace in Scotland * Wallace (given name) * Wallace (surname) * Wallace (footballer, born 1986), full name Wallace Fernando Pereira, Brazilian football left-back * Wallace (footballer, born 1987), full name ...

´s

Battle of Stirling Bridge The Battle of Stirling Bridge ( gd, Blàr Drochaid Shruighlea) was a battle of the First War of Scottish Independence. On 11 September 1297, the forces of Andrew Moray and William Wallace defeated the combined English forces of John de Warenne ...

took place on and around the site of the present housing estate and although there is no clear marker anywhere to inform the adventurous visitor, the dominant position of the

Abbey Craig The Abbey Craig is the hill upon which the Wallace Monument stands, at Causewayhead, just to the north of Stirling, Scotland. Physical geography The Abbey Craig is part of a complex quartz-dolerite intrusion or sill within carboniferous stra ...

indicates the natural route to the battle scene. The original bridge was anecdotally regarded as being positioned at least fifty metres up stream from the present location of the medieval bridge and archaeological dives in the last century provided evidence of the original piers of a previous bridge. Cornton is home to the only all woman's prison in Scotland,

Cornton Vale Cornton Vale is a women's prison in Stirling, operated by the Scottish Prison Service. Built in 1975, Cornton Vale comprises a total of 217 cells in its 5 houses. It accepted solely convicted women and girls from 1975 until 1978. In 1978 Parliam ...

. The prison, built in 1975, is located north of the housing area, close to the River Forth. The most famous former Cornton resident is the jockey

Willie Carson William Fisher Hunter Carson, OBE (born 16 November 1942) is a retired jockey in thoroughbred horse racing. Life and career Best known as "Willie", Carson was born in Stirling, Scotland in 1942. He was apprenticed ...

. The nurse of

Mary, Queen of Scots Mary, Queen of Scots (8 December 1542 – 8 February 1587), also known as Mary Stuart or Mary I of Scotland, was Queen of Scotland from 14 December 1542 until her forced abdication in 1567. The only surviving legitimate child of James V of S ...

Jean Sinclair Jean or Janet Sinclair was the Scottish nurse of Mary, Queen of Scots. In a letter to Mary of Guise written in 1553, Sinclair mentions her long service starting as nurse to her short-lived son James, Duke of Rothesay (born 1540), Prince James, bo ...

, was granted lands at Cornton as a reward for her services.''Exchequer Rolls of Scotland'', vol. 19, p. 28
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External links

Railscot - Cornton

References

Populated places in Stirling (council area) Areas in Scotland Stirling (city) {{Stirling-geo-stub