Strathearn or Strath Earn (), also the Earn Valley, is the

strath A strath is a large valley, typically a river valley that is wide and shallow (as opposed to a glen, which is typically narrower and deep). Word and etymology An anglicisation of the Gaelic word , it is one of many that have been absorbed i ...

of the

River Earn The River Earn () in Scotland leaves Loch Earn at St Fillans and runs east through Strathearn, then east and south, joining the River Tay near Abernethy. The Earn is about long. It passes by Comrie, Crieff (where it is joined by the Pow ...

, which flows from

Loch Earn Loch Earn (Scottish Gaelic, ''Loch Eire/Loch Éireann'') is a freshwater loch in the southern highlands of Scotland, in the districts of Perth and Kinross and Stirling. The name is thought to mean "Loch of Scotland", and it has been suggeste ...

to meet the

River Tay The River Tay (, ; probably from the conjectured Brythonic ''Tausa'', possibly meaning 'silent one' or 'strong one' or, simply, 'flowing' David Ross, ''Scottish Place-names'', p. 209. Birlinn Ltd., Edinburgh, 2001.) is the longest river in Sc ...

in the east of

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

. The area covers the stretch of the river, containing a number of settlements in

Perthshire Perthshire (Scottish English, locally: ; ), officially the County of Perth, is a Shires of Scotland, historic county and registration county in central Scotland. Geographically it extends from Strathmore, Angus and Perth & Kinross, Strathmore ...

. It shares a name with a modern

ward Ward may refer to: Division or unit * Hospital ward, a hospital division, floor, or room set aside for a particular class or group of patients, for example the psychiatric ward * Prison ward, a division of a penal institution such as a pris ...

used for elections to

Perth and Kinross Council Perth and Kinross Council () is the local authority for Perth and Kinross, one of the 32 council areas of Scotland. The council has been under no overall control since 1999. It is based in Perth. History A district called Perth and Kinross was ...

. Strathearn was also the name of an ancient

province A province is an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire, Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

of the

Kingdom of Alba The Kingdom of Alba (; ) was the Kingdom of Scotland between the deaths of Donald II in 900 and of Alexander III in 1286. The latter's death led indirectly to an invasion of Scotland by Edward I of England in 1296 and the First War of Scotti ...

, under the authority of a

mormaer In early medieval Scotland, a mormaer was the Gaelic name for a regional or provincial ruler, theoretically second only to the King of Scots, and the senior of a '' Toísech'' (chieftain). Mormaers were equivalent to English earls or Continenta ...

and then an Earl. More recently, the name has since been used in a number of titles used by the

British royal family The British royal family comprises Charles III and other members of his family. There is no strict legal or formal definition of who is or is not a member, although the Royal Household has issued different lists outlining who is considere ...

History

The historic province of Strathearn was bounded on the north by

Atholl Atholl or Athole () is a district in the heart of the Scottish Highlands, bordering (in clockwise order, from north-east) Marr, Gowrie, Perth, Strathearn, Breadalbane, Lochaber, and Badenoch. Historically it was a Pictish kingdom, becoming ...

, north west by Breadalbane, south west by

Menteith Menteith or Monteith () is a district of south Perthshire, Scotland, roughly comprises the territory between the River Teith, Teith and the River Forth, Forth. Historically, the area between Callander and Dunblane was known in English by the si ...

, south east by

Fife Fife ( , ; ; ) is a council areas of Scotland, council area and lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area in Scotland. A peninsula, it is bordered by the Firth of Tay to the north, the North Sea to the east, the Firth of Forth to the s ...

, and on the east by '' Perthia''. The earliest attested

of Strathearn is

Mael Ísu I Malise (Gaelic: ''Maol Íosa''; fl. 1099–1141) is the earliest-known earl, or mormaer, of Strathearn in central Scotland. Biography In 1138, Malise participated in King David's invasion of England, and he fought in the vanguard at the Battl ...

, who is recorded fighting alongside

David I David I may refer to: * David I, Caucasian Albanian Catholicos c. 399 * David I of Armenia, Catholicos of Armenia (728–741) * David I Kuropalates of Georgia (died 881) * David I Anhoghin, king of Lori (ruled 989–1048) * David I of Scotland ...

at the

Battle of the Standard The Battle of the Standard, sometimes called the Battle of Northallerton, took place on 22 August 1138 on Cowton Moor near Northallerton in Yorkshire, England. English forces under William of Aumale repelled a Scottish army led by King Davi ...

in 1138. Unlike some provinces where the holder of the office of mormaer rotated between kin-groups, the mormaership of Strathearn was dominated by a single family, with a Mael Ísu in every generation until the death of

Mael Ísu V Malise V, Earl of Strathearn and Caithness, Jarl of Orkney (; died ) was the last of the native Gaels, Gaelic Earls of Strathearn. Biography He succeeded to the Earldom of Strathearn in 1329, on the death of his father Malise IV, Earl of Strath ...

in the mid 14th century.

Battle of Strathearn

In 904, during the reign of

Constantine II of Scotland Causantín mac Áeda ( Modern Gaelic: , anglicised Constantine II; born no later than 879; died 952) was an early King of Scotland, known then by the Gaelic name ''Alba''. The Kingdom of Alba, a name which first appears in Constantine's lifeti ...

, sons of

Bárid mac Ímair Bárid mac Ímar (also referred to as Baraid or Bardur Ivarsson); or ; d. 881) was a ninth-century King of Dublin. He was a son of Ivar (Ímar) Ragnarsson and a member of the Uí Ímair. Biography The earliest mention of Bárid in the Iris ...

sent a Danish army to attack Strathearn, and were ultimately defeated, the

Kingdom of Scotland The Kingdom of Scotland was a sovereign state in northwest Europe, traditionally said to have been founded in 843. Its territories expanded and shrank, but it came to occupy the northern third of the island of Great Britain, sharing a Anglo-Sc ...

wasn't attacked by

Vikings Vikings were seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway, and Sweden), who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded, and settled throughout parts of Europe.Roesdahl, pp. 9� ...

for the next 50 years.

Modern administrative history

Strathearn became a stewartry under the authority of the

Earls of Perth Earl of Perth is a title in the Peerage of Scotland. It was created in 1605 for James Drummond, 4th Lord Drummond. The Clan Drummond, Drummond family claim descent from Maurice, son of George, son of Andrew I of Hungary, George, a younger son of ...

and part of

for administrative purposes, until the abolition of

heritable jurisdictions Heritable jurisdictions were, in the law of Scotland, grants of jurisdiction made to a man and his heirs. They were a common accompaniment to feudal tenures and conferred power on great families. Both before and after Act of Union 1707, the Union ...

in 1748. It continued to be recognised as one of the ancient divisions of the county, without administrative or judicial function. The Strathearn ward of

was created in 2007.

Geography

Settlements

Bridge of Earn from Moncreiffe Hill - geograph

The primary settlements of Strathearn are: *

Lochearnhead Lochearnhead (Scottish Gaelic: Ceann Loch Èireann) is a village in Perthshire on the A84 road, A84 Stirling to Crianlarich road at the foot of Glen Ogle, north of the Highland Boundary Fault. It is situated at the western end of Loch Earn where ...

* St Fillans *

Comrie Comrie may refer to: Places *Comrie (crater), a lunar crater *Comrie, Fife, a village in Fife, Scotland *Comrie, Perth and Kinross, a village and parish in Strathearn, Scotland People with the surname

*Aaron Comrie (born 1997), Scottish footba ...

Crieff Crieff (; , meaning "tree") is a Scottish market town in Perth and Kinross on the A85 road between Perth, Scotland, Perth and Crianlarich, and the A822 road, A822 between Greenloaning and Aberfeldy, Scotland, Aberfeldy. The A822 road, A822 joins ...

Muthill Muthill (pronounced ) is a village in Perth and Kinross, Scotland. The name derives from Scottish Gaelic meaning “soft-ground”. The village lies south of Crieff, just west of the former railway line connecting Crieff with Gleneagles. H ...

Auchterarder Auchterarder (; , meaning Upper Highland) is a town north of the Ochil Hills in Perth and Kinross, Scotland, and home to the Gleneagles Hotel. The High Street of Auchterarder gave the town its popular name of "The Lang Toun" or Long Town. The ...

* Dunning *

Forteviot Forteviot () (Ordnance Survey ) is a village in Strathearn, Perth and Kinross on the south bank of the River Earn between Dunning and Perth. It lies in the council area of Perth and Kinross. The population in 1991 was 160. The present village ...

Forgandenny Forgandenny (Scottish Gaelic ''Forgrann Eithne'', 'Over-Bog of Eithne' n ancient female Gaelic name is a small village in Perth and Kinross, Scotland, located four miles south of Perth, Scotland, Perth. Perth is a 20-minute bus ride from Forg ...

Bridge of Earn Bridge of Earn () is a small town in Perthshire, Scotland. Often referred to simply as 'Brig' (Scots Language, Scots for 'bridge'). The village grew up on the south bank of an important crossing of the River Earn, whose sandstone bridge existed ...

* Abernethy

Royal title

Following the demise of the ancient Earls of Strathearn, with the title in its later creation being forfeited by

Walter Stewart, Earl of Atholl Walter Stewart, Earl of Atholl, Strathearn and Caithness (c. 1360 – 26 March 1437) was a Scottish nobleman, the son of Robert II of Scotland. Stewart advocated for the ransom and return to Scotland of the future king in exile, James I, in 1424. ...

, the Strathearn title was resurrected for use for a number of

Royal duke Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they a ...

doms, awarded to members of the

. The name appeared in the titles of the

Duke of Cumberland and Strathearn Duke of Cumberland and Strathearn was a title in the Peerage of Great Britain that was conferred upon a member of the British royal family. It was named after the county of Cumberland in England, and after Strathearn in Scotland. History The ...

Duke of Kent and Strathearn Duke of Kent and Strathearn is a title that was created once in the Peerage of Great Britain. History Several Earl of Kent, Earls of Kent had previously been created in the Peerage of England. Henry Grey, 1st Duke of Kent, Henry Grey, 12th Earl ...

and

Duke of Connaught and Strathearn Duke of Connaught and Strathearn was a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom that was granted on 24 May 1874 by Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland to her third son, Prince Arthur. At the same time, he was al ...

. More recently,

Prince William William, Prince of Wales (William Arthur Philip Louis; born 21 June 1982), is the heir apparent to the British throne. He is the elder son of King Charles III and Diana, Princess of Wales. William was born during the reign of his p ...

, now

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales (, ; ) is a title traditionally given to the male heir apparent to the History of the English monarchy, English, and later, the British throne. The title originated with the Welsh rulers of Kingdom of Gwynedd, Gwynedd who, from ...

and

Duke of Rothesay Duke of Rothesay ( ; ; ) is the main dynastic title traditionally given to the male heir apparent to the Scottish and, later, British thrones. The dukedom was created in 1398 by Robert III of Scotland for his eldest son. Duke of Rothesay i ...

, was created

Earl of Strathearn Earl or Mormaer of Strathearn is a title of Scottish nobility, referring to the region of Strathearn in southern Perthshire. Of unknown origin, the mormaers are attested for the first time in a document perhaps dating to 1115. The first known mo ...

, as a subsidiary title to

Duke of Cambridge Duke of Cambridge is a hereditary title of nobility in the British royal family, one of several royal dukedoms in the United Kingdom. The title is named after the city of Cambridge in England. It is heritable by agnatic, male descendants by pr ...

, on 29 April 2011, the day of his wedding to

Catherine Middleton Catherine, Princess of Wales (born Catherine Elizabeth Middleton; 9 January 1982), is a member of the British royal family. She is married to William, Prince of Wales, heir apparent to the British throne. Born in Reading, Catherine grew u ...

Other uses

* "Strathearn" / "Strathern" is also a surname in the United States and

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...

, predominantly in the

Bellaghy Bellaghy () is a village in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It lies north west of Lough Neagh and about 5 miles north east of Magherafelt. In the centre of the village (known locally as The Diamond) three main roads lead to Magherafelt, ...

area of

County Londonderry County Londonderry (Ulster Scots dialects, Ulster-Scots: ''Coontie Lunnonderrie''), also known as County Derry (), is one of the six Counties of Northern Ireland, counties of Northern Ireland, one of the thirty-two Counties of Ireland, count ...

References

Bibliography

* *

External links

Historic map showing Strathearn in the Shire of PerthHistoric map showing Strathearn in ScotlandHistoric map showing Strathearn in ScotlandHistoric map showing Strathearn in Scotland
{{Coord, 56, 19, 57, N, 3, 40, 57, W, type:river_region:GB, display=title Valleys of Perth and Kinross Provinces of Scotland