A royal burgh ( ) was a type of Scottish

burgh A burgh ( ) is an Autonomy, autonomous municipal corporation in Scotland, usually a city, town, or toun in Scots language, Scots. This type of administrative division existed from the 12th century, when David I of Scotland, King David I created ...

which had been founded by, or subsequently granted, a

royal charter A royal charter is a formal grant issued by a monarch under royal prerogative as letters patent. Historically, they have been used to promulgate public laws, the most famous example being the English Magna Carta (great charter) of 1215, but ...

. Although abolished by law in 1975, the term is still used by many former royal burghs.Select Committee on Privileges Second Report, September 1999
/ref> Most royal burghs were either created by

the Crown The Crown is a political concept used in Commonwealth realms. Depending on the context used, it generally refers to the entirety of the State (polity), state (or in federal realms, the relevant level of government in that state), the executive ...

, or upgraded from another status, such as burgh of barony. As discrete classes of burgh emerged, the royal burghs—originally distinctive because they were on royal lands—acquired a monopoly of foreign trade. An important document for each burgh was its burgh

charter A charter is the grant of authority or rights, stating that the granter formally recognizes the prerogative of the recipient to exercise the rights specified. It is implicit that the granter retains superiority (or sovereignty), and that the ...

, creating the burgh or confirming the rights of the burgh as laid down (perhaps orally) by a previous monarch. Each royal burgh (with the exception of four 'inactive burghs') was represented in the

Parliament of Scotland In modern politics and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

and could appoint bailies with wide powers in civil and

criminal justice Criminal justice is the delivery of justice to those who have been accused of committing crimes. The criminal justice system is a series of government agencies and institutions. Goals include the rehabilitation of offenders, preventing other ...

.George S Pryde, ''The Burghs of Scotland: A Critical List'', Oxford, 1965. The four inactive burghs were Auchtermuchty, Earlsferry, Falkland and Newburgh By 1707 there were 70 royal burghs. The ( 3 & 4 Will. 4. c. 76) reformed the election of the town councils that governed royal burghs. Those qualified to vote in parliamentary elections under the Reform Act 1832 were now entitled to elect burgh councillors.

Origins

Before the reign of David I Scotland had no towns. The closest thing to towns were the larger than average population concentrations around large monasteries, such as Dunkeld and

St Andrews St Andrews (; ; , pronounced ʰʲɪʎˈrˠiː.ɪɲ is a town on the east coast of Fife in Scotland, southeast of Dundee and northeast of Edinburgh. St Andrews had a recorded population of 16,800 , making it Fife's fourth-largest settleme ...

, and regionally significant fortifications. Scotland, outside Lothian at least, was populated by scattered hamlets, and outside that area, lacked the continental style nucleated village. David I established the first burghs in Scotland, initially only in Middle-English-speaking Lothian (note: Tain claims a charter dating from 1066 under Malcolm III). The earliest burghs, founded by 1124, were Berwick and Roxburgh. However, by 1130, David had established burghs in Gaelic areas:

Stirling Stirling (; ; ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city in Central Belt, central Scotland, northeast of Glasgow and north-west of Edinburgh. The market town#Scotland, market town, surrounded by rich farmland, grew up connecting the roya ...

, Dunfermline,

Perth Perth () is the list of Australian capital cities, capital city of Western Australia. It is the list of cities in Australia by population, fourth-most-populous city in Australia, with a population of over 2.3 million within Greater Perth . The ...

and

Scone A scone ( or ) is a traditional British and Irish baked good, popular in the United Kingdom and Ireland. It is usually made of either wheat flour or oatmeal, with baking powder as a leavening agent, and baked on sheet pans. A scone is often ...

, as well as

Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

. The conquest of Moray in that same year led to the establishment of burghs at Elgin and Forres. Before David was dead, St Andrews, Montrose, and

Aberdeen Aberdeen ( ; ; ) is a port city in North East Scotland, and is the List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, third most populous Cities of Scotland, Scottish city. Historically, Aberdeen was within the historic county of Aberdeensh ...

were also burghs. In the reigns of Máel Coluim IV and William, burghs were added at Inverness, Banff, Cullen, Auldearn, Nairn, Inverurie, Kintore, Brechin, Forfar,

Arbroath Arbroath () or Aberbrothock ( ) is a former royal burgh and the largest town in the Subdivisions of Scotland, council area of Angus, Scotland, Angus, Scotland, with a population of 23,902. It lies on the North Sea coast, some east-northeast of ...

Dundee Dundee (; ; or , ) is the List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, fourth-largest city in Scotland. The mid-year population estimate for the locality was . It lies within the eastern central Lowlands on the north bank of the Firt ...

, Lanark,

Dumfries Dumfries ( ; ; from ) is a market town and former royal burgh in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, near the mouth of the River Nith on the Solway Firth, from the Anglo-Scottish border. Dumfries is the county town of the Counties of Scotland, ...

and (uniquely for the west coast) Ayr. New Lothian burghs also came into existence, at Haddington and Peebles. By 1210, there were 40 burghs in the Scottish kingdom. Rosemarkie,

Dingwall Dingwall (, ) is a town and a royal burgh in the Highland (council area), Highland council area of Scotland. It has a population of 5,491. It was an east-coast harbour that now lies inland. Dingwall Castle was once the biggest castle north ...

and Cromarty were also burghs by the Scottish Wars of Independence. The date of the initial establishment of burghs in Scotland is obscure. Historian Ian D. Whyte points to the ''Leges Burgorum'' (''Laws of the Burghs'') as the best known compilation of medieval burgh laws, saying that most of the laws therein “were modelled on the mid-twelfth century customs of

Newcastle upon Tyne Newcastle upon Tyne, or simply Newcastle ( , Received Pronunciation, RP: ), is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is England's northernmost metropolitan borough, located o ...

” at a time when Newcastle was under Scottish rule. A mid-twelfth century date corresponds to the reigns of two Scottish kings: David I (1124-1153) and William I (1165-1214). In 1609, the publisher of the ''Laws of the Burghs'' stated that burgh laws were begun by David I, but this was called into question in 1807 by George Chalmers, who pointed out that David I never held Newcastle. At any rate, Whyte notes that medieval Scottish burghs, when compared to their English counterparts, were more uniform and, by the fourteenth century, more politically active. Because of Scottish trading patterns, Scottish burghs came to be populated by foreigners, notably Flemings, French, and English. The burgh's vocabulary was composed totally of either Germanic terms (not necessarily or even predominantly English) such as ''croft'', ''rood'', ''gild'', ''gait'' and ''wynd'', or French ones such as ''provost'', ''bailie'', ''vennel'', ''port'' and ''ferme''. The councils that governed individual burghs were individually known as ''lie doussane'', meaning the dozen.

List of burghs

The list is based on the following references.

By 1153 (royal)

* Berwick-upon-Tweed (before 1124) *

* Lanark (1140) *

* Dunfermline * Elgin * Forres * Linlithgow * Montrose * Peebles *

(took precedence over all other burghs except Edinburgh) *

Rutherglen Rutherglen (; , ) is a town in South Lanarkshire, Scotland, immediately south-east of the city of Glasgow, from its centre and directly south of the River Clyde. Having previously existed as a separate Lanarkshire burgh, in 1975 Rutherglen lo ...

* Roxburgh (Created a royal burgh . By the fifteenth century it had decayed, and on the destruction of Roxburgh Castle in 1460 it ceased to exist. Part of Roxburgh was included in the burgh of barony of Kelso in 1614, and in 1936 Lord Lyon recognised Kelso as the successor to the royal burgh.) *

* Tain

By 1153 (Burghs passing between the king and other lords)

* Haddington (granted to Ada, Countess of Northumberland between 1139 and 1178) * Renfrew (before 1153 had been granted to Walter Fitzalan, High Steward of Scotland, reconfirmed as royal burgh 1397)

By 1153 (Burghs controlled by other lords)

* Canongate (now part of Edinburgh) *

By 1214 (royal)

* Ayr * Auldearn * Cullen *

* Forfar * Inverkeithing * Inverness *

Jedburgh Jedburgh ( ; ; or ) is a town and former royal burgh in the Scottish Borders and the traditional county town of the Shires of Scotland, historic county of Roxburghshire. History Jedburgh began as ''Jedworð'', the "worth" or enclosed settlem ...

* Kinghorn * Kintore * Lauder * Nairn

By 1214 (Burghs passing between the king and other lords)

* Crail

By 1214 (Burghs controlled by other lords)

* Annan (a royal burgh by 1532) *

* Brechin *

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

* Kirkintilloch * Prestwick

Burghs created by Alexander II

(1226) (later became a burgh of barony of the Earl of Ross 1321, re-established as a royal burgh in fifteenth century) * Dumbarton (1222)

By 1300 (royal)

* Auchterarder (status had been lost by 1707) * Cromarty (appears to have become a burgh of barony under the Earl of Ross 1315, re-established as a royal burgh 1593) * Fyvie * Kilrenny * Lanark * Rosemarkie * Selkirk * Wigtown

By 1300 (Burghs controlled by other lords)

* Crawford (had ceased to exist by 16th century) *

Dunbar Dunbar () is a town on the North Sea coast in East Lothian in the south-east of Scotland, approximately east of Edinburgh and from the Anglo–Scottish border, English border north of Berwick-upon-Tweed. Dunbar is a former royal burgh, and ...

(became a royal burgh 1445) * Inverurie (became a royal burgh 1558) * Irvine (became a royal burgh 1372) * Kelso (never became a royal burgh) *

Lochmaben Lochmaben () is a small town and civil parish in Scotland, and site of a castle. It lies west of Lockerbie, in Dumfries and Galloway. By the 12th century the Bruce family had become the local landowners and, in the 14th century, Edward I of Engl ...

(a royal burgh by 1447) * Newburgh, Aberdeenshire (never became a royal burgh) * Newburgh, Fife (became a royal burgh in 1631) * Urr (short-lived)

Early 14th century

* Cupar (by 1327) * Inverbervie (1342)

Burghs created by Robert II

* Banff (1372) * North Berwick (1373; suppressed by

William Douglas, 1st Earl of Douglas William Douglas, 1st Earl of Douglas (c. 1323 – 1 May 1384) was a Kingdom of Scotland, Scottish nobleman, peer, magnate, and head of the Black Douglas family. Under his leadership, the Black Douglases continued their climb to pre-eminence i ...

, current charter 1568)

Burghs created by Robert III

* Rothesay (1400/1)

Burghs created by James II

(1445) * Falkland (1458) *

Kirkcudbright Kirkcudbright ( ; ) is a town at the mouth of the River Dee, Galloway, River Dee in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, southwest of Castle Douglas and Dalbeattie. A former royal burgh, it is the traditional county town of Kirkcudbrightshire. His ...

(1455) *

(date unknown) * Tain c 1439

Burghs created by James III

* Elgin (1457) (royal burgh status lost in 1312 restored) * Kirkwall (1486) * Nairn (1476) (royal burgh status lost in 1312 restored)

Burghs created by James IV

(1497/8) (re-established) * Forres (1496) (charter restored royal burgh status lost in 1312, although it may have been a ''de facto'' royal burgh) * Kintore (1506/7) (re-erected as a royal burgh) * Whithorn (1511)

Burghs created by James V

* Annan (1538/9) (status confirmed) *

Auchtermuchty Auchtermuchty ( ; , 'upland of the pigs/boar') is a town in Fife, Scotland. It is beside Pitlour Hill and north of Glenrothes. History Until 1975 Auchtermuchty was a royal burgh, established under charter of James V of Scotland, King Jame ...

(1517) *

Burntisland Burntisland ( , ) is a former Royal burgh and parish in Fife, Scotland, on the northern shore of the Firth of Forth. It was previously known as Wester Kinghorn or Little Kinghorn. The town has a population of 6,269 (2011). Burntisland is known ...

(1541) * Pittenweem (1541)

Burghs created by Mary, Queen of Scots

* Inverurie (1558) (restored lost royal burgh status) * Rattray (1564)

Burghs created by James VI

* Anstruther Easter (1583) * Anstruther Wester (1587) *

(1599) * Cromarty (1593) (re-established). Disenfranchised by Privy Council 1672. Later re-established as a burgh of barony in 1685. * Culross (1592) * Earlsferry (1589) (charter confirmed status since time immemorial) *

(1611) (had been a ''de facto'' previously) * Fortrose (1590) became part of royal burgh of Rosemarkie 1592 * Kilrenny (1592) (The burgh was included in roll of royal burghs by mistake and continued to enjoy that status, despite attempting to resign it) * Rosemarkie (1592) by union of royal burgh of Fortrose and burgh of barony of Rosemarkie re-established as royal burgh of Fortrose 1661 *

(1620) (confirmation of ''de facto'' status) * Sanquhar (1598) *

Stranraer Stranraer ( , in Scotland also ; ), also known as The Toon or The Cleyhole, is a town in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, on Loch Ryan and the northern side of the isthmus joining the Rhins of Galloway to the mainland. Stranraer is Dumfries ...

(1617) * Wick (1589)

Burghs created by Charles I

* Brechin (1641) (''de facto'' status ratified by parliament) *

Dornoch Dornoch (; ; ) is a town, seaside resort, parish and former royal burgh in the county of Sutherland in the Highlands of Scotland. It lies on the north shore of the Dornoch Firth, near to where it opens into the Moray Firth to the east. ...

(1628) * Fortrose (1661) (reforming of royal burgh of Rosemarkie) * Inveraray (1648) *

Kirkcaldy Kirkcaldy ( ; ; ) is a town and former royal burgh in Fife, on the east coast of Scotland. It is about north of Edinburgh and south-southwest of Dundee. The town had a recorded population of 49,460 in 2011, making it Fife's second-largest s ...

(1644) (although ''de facto'' since 1574) * New Galloway (1630) * South Queensferry (1636) * Newburgh, Fife (1631)

Burghs created by William II

* Campbeltown (1700)

20th century

* Auchterarder (1951) (reinstated as a royal burgh) * Elie and Earlsferry (1930) (formed by union of royal burgh of Earlsferry and police burgh of Elie) * Kilrenny, Anstruther Easter and Anstruther Wester (formed by union of three royal burghs 1930)

Abolition and status since 1975

The rights of the royal burghs were preserved (if not guaranteed) by Article XXI of the Treaty of Union between Scotland and England of 1707, which states "That the Rights and Privileges of the Royal Boroughs in Scotland as they now are Do Remain entire after the Union and notwithstanding thereof". Royal burghs were abolished in 1975 by the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973, and the above-mentioned Article XXI, which was thus rendered redundant, was deemed by

Her Majesty's Government His Majesty's Government, abbreviated to HM Government or otherwise UK Government, is the central government, central executive authority of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

to be abrogated by the 1973 act. The towns are now sometimes referred to officially as "former royal burghs", for instance by the

Local Government Boundary Commission for Scotland Boundaries Scotland is an independent body in Scotland created as the Local Government Boundary Commission for Scotland under the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973. According to its website, it is responsible for: carrying out reviews of bo ...

. The issue of the future status of royal burghs was discussed during debate on the Local Government Bill. In the

Commons The commons is the cultural and natural resources accessible to all members of a society, including natural materials such as air, water, and a habitable Earth. These resources are held in common even when owned privately or publicly. Commons ...

on 4 December 1972 Ronald Murray, the member of parliament (MP) for Edinburgh, Leith, stated "Most of the well-known cities and towns of Scotland became royal burghs by Charter. The Bill does not say that those Charters are removed or are of no legal effect, but Schedule 24 repeals the legislation upon which they appear to stand. I hope that the Government do not intend to abolish entirely the ancient rights of royal burghs, at least to be royal burghs." In June 1973,

David Steel David Martin Scott Steel, Baron Steel of Aikwood (born 31 March 1938) is a retired Scottish politician. Elected as Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament for Roxburgh, Selkirk and Peebles (UK Parliament constituency), Roxb ...

(MP for Roxburgh, Selkirk and Peebles), unsuccessfully introduced an amendment that "the title of "Provost" shall attach to the chairman of any community council which is based on any existing burgh .. to .. carry forward a title which appears, for example, in the Royal Charters of those burghs". In 1977, Alick Buchanan-Smith (MP for North Angus and Mearns) asked Frank McElhone, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Scotland: "Why a community council for a former Royal burgh is not able to use the words "Royal Burgh" in its title; and what scope there is for the continuance of historical titles under the present organisation of local authorities." In reply, McElhone stated: "The title which may be used by a community council is a matter for the district council to decide when drawing up the scheme for community councils in its area. Section 23 of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 governs any change of name of region, islands or district councils. There is no statutory ban to the continuance of historic titles for other purposes." Accordingly, some community councils established since 1975 have the term "Royal Burgh" incorporated in their title. Lord Lyon has permitted the armorial bearings of a number of royal burghs to be rematriculated by community councils.R M Urquhart, ''Scottish Civic Heraldry 2'', Hamilton, 2001