Strathgryffe or Gryffe 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 ...

River Gryffe The River Gryfe (or Gryffe) is a river and tributary of the Black Cart Water, running through the County of Renfrew in the west of Scotland. It gives its name to the surrounding Gryffe Valley, also known as Strathgryfe. Flow The Gryfe emerges ...

, which lies within the historic county of

Renfrewshire Renfrewshire () (; ) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland. Renfrewshire is located in the west central Lowlands. It borders East Renfrewshire, Glasgow, Inverclyde, North Ayrshire and West Dunbartonshire, and lies on the southern ba ...

in the west

central Lowlands The Central Lowlands, sometimes called the Midland Valley or Central Valley, is a geologically defined area of relatively low-lying land in southern Scotland. It consists of a rift valley between the Highland Boundary Fault to the north and ...

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 ...

. Strathgryffe also gives its name to a feudal

lordship A lordship is a territory held by a lord. It was a landed estate that served as the lowest administrative and judicial unit in rural areas. It originated as a unit under the feudal system during the Middle Ages. In a lordship, the functions of eco ...

, which covered the western portion of Renfrewshire in the 12th century and formed the nucleus of the county. The land was originally associated with the

House of Stewart The House of Stuart, originally spelled Stewart, also known as the Stuart dynasty, was a royal house of Scotland, England, Ireland and later Great Britain. The family name comes from the office of High Steward of Scotland, which had been held ...

, who went on to be monarchs of Scotland and later

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...

. The settlements of Strathgryffe are divided between the

council areas For local government purposes, Scotland is divided into 32 areas designated as "council areas" (), which are all governed by single-tier authorities designated as "councils". They have the option under the Local Government (Gaelic Names) (Sc ...

Inverclyde Inverclyde (, , , "mouth of the Clyde") is one of 32 council areas used for local government in Scotland. Together with the East Renfrewshire and Renfrewshire council areas, Inverclyde forms part of the historic county of Renfrewshire, which ...

and

and largely follow the flow of the River Gryffe, from

Kilmacolm Kilmacolm () is a village and Civil parishes in Scotland, civil parish in the Inverclyde council area, and the Counties of Scotland, historic county of Renfrewshire (historic), Renfrewshire in the west central Lowlands of Scotland. It lies on th ...

in the far west to where the river meets the

Black Cart Water The River Cart is a tributary of the River Clyde, Scotland, which it joins from the west roughly midway between the towns of Erskine and Renfrew and opposite the town of Clydebank. The River Cart itself is very short, being formed from the conf ...

between

Houston Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

and

Inchinnan Inchinnan (; ) is a small village in Renfrewshire, Scotland. The village is located on the main A8 road between Renfrew and Greenock, just south east of the town of Erskine. History The name of Inchinnan village is derived from the Gaelic ...

. Other significant settlements include

Bridge of Weir Bridge of Weir is a village within the Renfrewshire council areas of Scotland, council area and wider counties of Scotland, historic county of Renfrewshire (historic), Renfrewshire in the west central Lowlands of Scotland. Lying within the Gryf ...

Quarriers Village Quarrier's Village or Quarriers Village is a small settlement in the civil parish of Kilmacolm in Inverclyde council area and the historic county of Renfrewshire, in the west Central Lowlands of Scotland. It lies within the Gryffe Valley between ...

and

Crosslee Crosslee is a small village lying on the bank of the River Gryffe in the civil parish of Houston and Killellan, Renfrewshire, in Scotland. It lies around half a mile south of the old village centre of Houston and immediately west of Craigends, a ...

Name

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 ...

is a wide

glen A glen is a valley, typically one that is long and bounded by gently sloped concave sides, unlike a ravine, which is deep and bounded by steep slopes. The word is Goidelic in origin: ''gleann'' in Irish and Scottish Gaelic, ''glion'' in Manx. ...

. The term is rendered in

Scots Gaelic Scottish Gaelic (, ; endonym: ), also known as Scots Gaelic or simply Gaelic, is a Celtic language native to the Gaels of Scotland. As a member of the Goidelic branch of Celtic, Scottish Gaelic, alongside both Irish and Manx, developed ou ...

as 'Srath' and in

Modern Welsh The history of the Welsh language () spans over 1400 years, encompassing the stages of the language known as Primitive Welsh, Old Welsh, Middle Welsh, and Modern Welsh. Origins Welsh evolved from British (Common Brittonic), the Celtic languag ...

as 'Ystrad'. 'Stragrif' is mentioned in the 1169 charter of

Paisley Abbey Paisley Abbey is a parish church of the Church of Scotland on the east bank of the River Cart, White Cart Water in the centre of the town of Paisley, Renfrewshire, about west of Glasgow, in Scotland. Its origins date from the 12th century, base ...

, which placed the churches of the area under the control of the new

abbey An abbey is a type of monastery used by members of a religious order under the governance of an abbot or abbess. Abbeys provide a complex of buildings and land for religious activities, work, and housing of Christians, Christian monks and nun ...

. Later, the name 'Gryff' is recorded in the Military Survey of Scotland 1747–1755, compiled by

William Roy Major-General William Roy (4 May 17261 July 1790) was a Scottish military engineer, surveyor, and antiquarian. He was an innovator who applied new scientific discoveries and newly emerging technologies to the accurate geodetic mapping of Gr ...

, a predecessor to the

Ordnance Survey The Ordnance Survey (OS) is the national mapping agency for Great Britain. The agency's name indicates its original military purpose (see Artillery, ordnance and surveying), which was to map Scotland in the wake of the Jacobite rising of ...

maps of

. The 'Gryffe' spelling has gained predominance in the area, seen for example in signposts showing the name of the river and the names of organisations such as the

Gryffe Valley Strathgryffe or Gryffe Valley () is the strath of River Gryffe, which lies within the historic county of Renfrewshire in the west central Lowlands of Scotland. Strathgryffe also gives its name to a feudal lordship, which covered the western ...

Rotary Club Rotary International is one of the largest Service club, service organizations in the world. The self-declared mission of Rotary, as stated on its website, is to "provide service to others, promote integrity, and advance world understanding, go ...

and Gryffe High School.

History

The lands of Strathgryffe were granted by King

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 ...

Walter fitz Alan Walter FitzAlan (1177) was a twelfth-century Anglo-Norman baron who became a Scottish magnate and Steward of Scotland. He was a younger son of Alan fitz Flaad and Avelina de Hesdin. In about 1136, Walter entered into the service of David I, K ...

, first

High Steward of Scotland Prince and Great Steward of Scotland is one of the titles of the heir apparent to the British throne. The holder since 8 September 2022 is Prince William, who bears the other Scottish titles of Duke of Rothesay, Earl of Carrick, Lord of the Is ...

, and founder of the Stewart family in Scotland, probably in the 1150s. The Royal house would continue to hold lands in Renfrewshire, with the heir to the British throne holding the title of Baron Renfrew, and in part forming the principality of Scotland. In the early 15th century, the area emerged as a

county A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

by the name

, owing to the Stewart's base at

Renfrew Castle Renfrew Castle was situated at the royal burgh of Renfrew, Scotland, which is near the confluence of the River Clyde and the River Cart. The original 12th-century castle was built by Walter fitz Alan, upon a river islet known as the King's Inc ...

. Initially the chief magistrate in a county was its

sheriff A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland, the , which is common ...

- and later in the 15th century the position of

Sheriff of Renfrew A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland, the , which is commonly ...

was held by the Sempill family - an arrangement that continued until the 17th century.

Geography

The geography of the area is a contrasting mix of green fields surrounding the river, with rough

moorland Moorland or moor is a type of Habitat (ecology), habitat found in upland (geology), upland areas in temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands and the biomes of montane grasslands and shrublands, characterised by low-growing vegetation on So ...

in the higher areas, particularly

Clyde Muirshiel Regional Park Clyde Muirshiel Regional parks of Scotland, Regional Park is the collective name for areas of countryside set aside for conservation and recreation on the South River Clyde, Clyde estuary in Scotland. The park covers an area of of Inverclyde, N ...

Settlements

There are a number of villages in Strathgryffe, varying considerably in size. The following straddle or are immediately adjacent to the River Gryffe: *

Quarrier's Village Quarrier's Village or Quarriers Village is a small settlement in the civil parish of Kilmacolm in Inverclyde council area and the historic county of Renfrewshire, in the west Central Lowlands of Scotland. It lies within the Gryffe Valley betwee ...

(Kilmacolm civil parish) *

(including

Craigends Craigends is a residential area in the Civil parishes in Scotland, civil parish of Houston and Killellan in Renfrewshire, Scotland lying south of the River Gryffe and on the banks of the River Locher. Craigends is on the south-eastern edge of ...

on the South-east bank of the river) *

(

Houston and Killellan Houston and Killellan is a Civil parishes in Scotland, civil parish in the county and council area of Renfrewshire in the west central Lowlands of Scotland. It contains the villages of Houston, Renfrewshire, Houston and Crosslee, as well as a num ...

civil parish)

Notes

References

Feudalism in Scotland Glens of Scotland Landforms of Renfrewshire Landforms of Inverclyde {{Scotland-hist-stub