Lecropt (''Leac Croit'' in

Gaelic Gaelic is an adjective that means "pertaining to the Gaels". As a noun it refers to the group of languages spoken by the Gaels, or to any one of the languages individually. Gaelic languages are spoken in Ireland, Scotland, the Isle of Man, and Ca ...

) is a rural

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or ...

lying to the west of

Bridge of Allan Bridge of Allan ( sco, Brig Allan, gd, Drochaid Ailein), also known colloquially as ''Bofa'', is a town in the Stirling council area in Scotland, just north of the city of Stirling. Overlooked by the National Wallace Monument, it lies on the ...

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 th ...

. The population of the parish of Lecropt is estimated to be around 75, consisting entirely of isolated farms and houses, as well as the Keir Estate owned by the landed Stirling family. Lecropt today contains no town or village, though it lies on the outskirts of the village of Bridge of Allan. Historically, Lecropt's population was higher and was as high as 500 around the year 1800. The decline in population over the decades can be explained partly, but not wholly, by rural depopulation. However, in 1800 Bridge of Allan, then a tiny hamlet of no more than 100 people, was included in Lecropt. As Bridge of Allan grew during the 19th century, the whole village was eventually brought under the adjacent parish of Logie, reducing Lecropt's population. There had also been another village called Lecropt, the site of which was further north-west, on the other side of the line of the M9 motorway from the current parish church. This village hosted the parish church until this was moved to its present site in the early 19th century, on the A9 road. The village of Lecropt itself had been abandoned.

Geography

Historically about two thirds of this parish were situated within the

county of Perth Perthshire ( locally: ; gd, Siorrachd Pheairt), officially the County of Perth, is a historic county and registration county in central Scotland. Geographically it extends from Strathmore in the east, to the Pass of Drumochter in the no ...

, and one-third in the

county of Stirling Stirlingshire or the County of Stirling, gd, Siorrachd Sruighlea) is a Counties of Scotland, historic county and registration countyRegisters of Scotland. Publications, leaflets, Land Register Counties. of Scotland. Its county town is Stirli ...

. Today, Lecropt falls wholly within

Stirling Council 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 ...

area. The

River Teith The River Teith is a river in Scotland, which is formed from the confluence of two smaller rivers, the ''Garbh Uisge'' (River Leny) and ''Eas Gobhain'' at Callander, Stirlingshire. It flows into the River Forth near Drip north-west of Stirling. ...

bounds it on the south-west, where it meets the

Forth Forth or FORTH may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''forth'' magazine, an Internet magazine * ''Forth'' (album), by The Verve, 2008 * ''Forth'', a 2011 album by Proto-Kaw * Radio Forth, a group of independent local radio stations in Scotla ...

and the

Allan Water The Allan Water ( gd, Uisge Alain) is a river in central Scotland. Rising in the Ochil Hills, it runs through Strathallan to Dunblane and Bridge of Allan before joining the River Forth. It is liable to cause floods in lower Bridge of Allan. ...

on the east. The southern point is where the Allan falls into the united streams of the other two. From east to west it extends about , and nearly about as much from north to south. It contains about , one-half of which – the southern part – is known as the Carse of Lecropt. The fertile soil of the

carse In Scottish geography, a Carse (the modern form of older Scots ; Scottish Gaelic or ) is an area of fertile, low-lying (typically alluvial) land occupying certain Scottish river valleys, such as that of the River Forth. Carse of Forth The Car ...

is a rich clay. The other, northern half is upland, or what is generally called dry-field. Much of this consists of the policy lands of Keir House. The clay soil on the south is divided from the upland by a bank, which crosses the parish almost parallel to the north side, and nearly at one-third of the distance between it and the southern extremity. The defunct political party Scottish Voice was based here, headquartered at the Keir Estate offices on the Lecropt Kirk-

Doune Doune (; from Scottish Gaelic: ''An Dùn'', meaning 'the fort') is a burgh within Perthshire. The town is administered by Stirling Council. Doune is assigned Falkirk postcodes starting "FK". The village lies within the parish of Kilmadock and ma ...

road. The party contested its first election to the

Scottish Parliament The Scottish Parliament ( gd, Pàrlamaid na h-Alba ; sco, Scots Pairlament) is the devolved, unicameral legislature of Scotland. Located in the Holyrood area of the capital city, Edinburgh, it is frequently referred to by the metonym Holy ...

on 3 May 2007. Lecropt Kirk (see below) and nearby Lecropt Nursery, which used to be the parish school, stand on the A9 road leading out of Bridge of Allan, north towards

Dunblane Dunblane (, gd, Dùn Bhlàthain) is a small town in the council area of Stirling in central Scotland, and inside the historic boundaries of the county of Perthshire. It is a commuter town, with many residents making use of good transport links ...

. Lecropt was a separate

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of Parish (administrative division), administrative parish used for Local government in England, local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below district ...

until 1900, when it was amalgamated into the parish of Dunblane and Lecropt.

Lecropt Kirk

Lecropt Kirk is a handsome essay in Gothic revival style, built in 1825-7 to the designs of David Hamilton and William Stirling, a local architect. It is a parish church of the

Church of Scotland The Church of Scotland ( sco, The Kirk o Scotland; gd, Eaglais na h-Alba) is the national church in Scotland. The Church of Scotland was principally shaped by John Knox, in the Scottish Reformation, Reformation of 1560, when it split from t ...

. Occupying an elevated position overlooking the carse lands, Stirling Castle and the

Wallace Monument The National Wallace Monument (generally known as the Wallace Monument) is a 67 metre tower on the shoulder of the Abbey Craig, a hilltop overlooking Stirling in Scotland. It commemorates Sir William Wallace, a 13th- and 14th-century Scottish her ...

can be clearly seen from the church grounds and is located about a mile from

and from

. The interior contains in its loft, vaults and monuments the influence of an old landed family, the Stirlings of Keir, built in the age of patronage. This late Georgian church is an early example of its style in Scotland, in company with the other carse Kirks of Kippen and Kincardine in Menteith. There has been a church at Lecropt prior to 1827, the old kirk was built in 1400 in what is now the Keir estate although nothing remains of the Kirk, except the old graveyard, which lies unloved, overgrown and difficult to access. It is known that there was a church at Lecropt prior to 1260. Important stained glass by Stephen Adam was added in 1907.

Famous people from Lecropt

David Stirling Sir Archibald David Stirling (15 November 1915 – 4 November 1990) was a Scottish officer in the British army, a mountaineer, and the founder and creator of the Special Air Service (SAS). He saw active service during the Second World War. ...

, founder of the

Special Air Service The Special Air Service (SAS) is a special forces unit of the British Army. It was founded as a regiment in 1941 by David Stirling and in 1950, it was reconstituted as a corps. The unit specialises in a number of roles including counter-ter ...

. * Archie Stirling, founder and leader of Scottish Voice.

Locations

* Bairnsburn * Cottonhaugh (historic; abandoned) * Craigarnhall * Craigdownings (historic; abandoned) * Easter Row * Greenocks * Heathershot (historic; abandoned) * Knockhill * Lecropt Kirk (see above) * Longleys * Mid Lecropt: a farm and cottage are situated just west of the M9 motorway, and just south-west of Lecropt Kirk * Moss Side (historic; abandoned) * Netherton * Old Keir * Park of Keir * Southland (formerly Deafleys, renamed) * Steeds * Westleys

Transport

The parish church, as mentioned above, is on the

A9 road This is a list of roads designated A9. * A009 road (Argentina), a road in the northeast of Santa Fe Province * ''A9 highway (Australia)'' may refer to : ** A9 (Sydney), a road linking Windsor and Campbelltown ** A9 highway (South Australia), a li ...

just outside Bridge of Allan in the direction of Dunblane. The M9 motorway passes through the parish. Imposing views of the church towering above the carse lands are to be had when travelling north on this motorway. However, no junction connects the motorway directly to Lecropt, access normally being via Keir roundabout (junction 11 on the M9) or through Bridge of Allan. Lecropt is in a very central position in Scotland's road network. The A9 leads north to

Perth Perth is the list of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the Australian states and territories of Australia, state of Western Australia. It is the list of cities in Australia by population, fourth most populous city in Aust ...

Inverness Inverness (; from the gd, Inbhir Nis , meaning "Mouth of the River Ness"; sco, Innerness) 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. Histo ...

and, via the A90, Dundee and

Aberdeen Aberdeen (; sco, Aiberdeen ; gd, Obar Dheathain ; la, Aberdonia) is a city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous city in the country. Aberdeen is one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas (as Aberdeen City), ...

. Southwards on the M9 is Edinburgh and, via the M80, Glasgow. Lecropt is served by Bridge of Allan railway station, which is ¼ mile south east of the church, connecting the parish with Dunblane, Stirling,

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

and

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated pop ...

References

{{reflist

*Parish of Lecropt, Presbytery of Dunblane, Synod Perth and Stirling. The Rev. Peter M'Laren, Minister (Statistical Account of Scotland 1845) *https://web.archive.org/web/20070306185811/http://www.dgnscrn.demon.co.uk/genuki/STI/Lecropt/index.html Former civil parishes of Scotland Populated places in Stirling (council area)