BERWICKSHIRE, county, Scotland, forming its south-east extremity, bounded N. by Haddingtonshire and the North Sea; E. by the North Sea ; S.E. by the county of the borough and town of Berwick; S. by the Tweed and Roxburghshire, and W. by Mid Lothian. Its area is 292,535ac. or 457sq.m., and it has a coast line of
The county is naturally divided into three districts; Lammermuir, the upland district occupied by the hills of that name in the north ; Lauderdale, or the valley of the Leader, in the west; and the Merse (the March of Borderland, giving a title to the earls of Wemyss), the largest district, occupying the south east. The Lammermuirs are a range of round-backed hills, whose average height is about i,000ft., while the highest summit, Says Law, reaches 1, 7 49f t. They belong to the Silurian uplands of southern Scotland. The Silurian strata terminate eastward at St. Abb's head ; in this direction, and on the southern flanks of the hills, and in Lauderdale they are overlaid unconformably by old red sandstones. From the Lammermuirs the Merse stretches to the south and east, and is comparatively level country, mainly oc cupied by the cementstone group of the carboniferous system, which attains a great thickness. The coast is rocky and precipitous, broken by ravines and not accessible, except at Eyemouth Har bour, for small vessels, and at Coldingham and Burnmouth for fishing boats. St. Abb's head, a promontory with a lighthouse upon it, rises to
The Eye is the only river of any size which falls directly into the sea. The others—the Leader, the Eden, the Leet and the Whiteadder with its tributaries, the Blackadder and the Dye—all flow into the Tweed. Of these the largest and most im portant is the Whiteadder, which has its source in the parish of Whittingehame on the East Lothian side of the Lammermuirs, and, following a sinuous course of 35m., joins the Tweed within the bounds or liberties of Berwick.
Traces of Roman occupation and early British set tlement exist in various parts of the Merse. Edin's or Etin's Hall, on Cockburn Law, 4m. north of Duns, is still called the Pech's or Pict's House, and is one of the very few brochs found in the Low lands. After the Romans withdrew (4o9) the country formed part of the Saxon kingdom of Northumbria, and the inhabitants were converted to Christianity through Modan in the 6th, and Oswald, Aidan and Cuthbert (traditionally believed to have been born in the vale of the Leader) in the 7th centuries. The Danes landed in 886, and destroyed the nunnery at Coldingham, founded about 65o by Ebba, daughter of iEthelf rith, king of Northumbria, after whom the adjoining promontory of St. Abb's head was named. After the battle of Carham (1018) the district, then part of Loth ian, was annexed to Scotland. Birgham (pron. Birjam), 31m. west of Coldstream, was the scene of the conference in 1188 between William the Lion and the bishop of Durham, which discussed the attempt of the English church to assert supremacy over the Scot tish. Here also met in 1289 a convention of the Scots estates to consider the projected marriage of Prince Edward of England to the Maid of Norway; and here was signed in 1290 the treaty of Birgham, assuring the independence of Scotland. The ford at the confluence of the Leet and Tweed near Coldstream gave access to south-eastern Scotland. Edward I. crossed it with his army in 1296, encamping at Hutton the day before the siege of Berwick, and it was similarly employed as late as 1640, when the marquess of Montrose led the Covenanters on their march to Newcastle, although James VI. had already caused a bridge to be constructed from Berwick to Tweedmouth. During the long period of inter national strife the shire was repeatedly overrun by armies of the English and Scots kings, fighting for the ancient frontier town of Berwick. It was finally ceded to England in 1482. Upon the site of the nunnery at Coldingham King Edgar in 1098 founded a Bene dictine priory, which was one of the oldest monastic institutions in Scotland and grew so wez.lthy that James III. annexed its rev enues to defray his extravagance, a step that precipitated the re volt of the nobles (1488). The priory was seriously damaged in the earl of Hertford's inroad in
and Cromwell blew up part of the church in 1650. The chancel (without aisles) was repaired and used as the parish church. The remains contain some fine architectural features, such as, on the outside, the Romanesque arcades surmounted by lancet windows at the east end, and, in the interior, the Early Pointed triforium. On the coast, about 4m. north-west of Coldingham, are the ruins of Fast Castle—the "Wolf's Crag" of Scott's "Bride of Lammermoor"—situated on a precipitous headland. Four miles west is the Pease or Peaths bridge, built by Thomas Telford in 1786 across the deep pass which was of old one of the strongest natural defences of Scotland. The bridge is 123ft. high, 3ooft. long and 16ft. wide. Near it are the ruins of Cockburnspath Tower, once a strong fortress and sup posed to be the "Ravenswood" of the "Bride of Lammermoor." In the south-west of the shire, besides Dryburgh Abbey (q.v.) there are, at Earlston, remains of the castle traditionally the resi dence of Thomas the Rhymer. Hume Castle, the ancient seat of the Home family, is a picturesque ruin about 3m. south of Green law. Coldstream and Lamberton, being close to the Border, were both resorted to (like Gretna Green in the west) for clandestine marriages. In Lamberton church was signed in 1502 the contract for the marriage of James IV. and Margaret Tudor, which led, a century later, to the union of the crowns of Scotland and England.
The population of Berwick shire was 29,643 in 1911 and 26,601 in 1931, in which year the number of persons speaking Gaelic and English was 74. The only considerable towns are Eyemouth (pop. in 1931, 2,231) and Duns (1,788). The county with Haddington, returns one member to parliament. Lauder is the only royal burgh, and Duns the county town, a status, however, which was held by Greenlaw from 1696 to 1853, after which date it was shared by both towns until con ferred on Duns alone. Berwickshire forms a sheriffdom with Rox burgh and Selkirk shires, and there is a resident sheriff-substitute at Duns.
The soils vary, sometimes on the same farm. Along the rivers is a deep rich loam, resting on gravel or clay, chiefly the former. The less valuable soil of the Merse has been much improved by drainage. The more sandy and gravelly soils grow quantities of turnips. Oats and barley are the principal grain crops, but wheat also is raised. The flocks of sheep are heavy, and cattle are pastured in considerable numbers. Large holdings pre dominate. A migratory tendency noted among the agricultural labourers, which they may have by inheritance as Borderers, has fitted them for colonial life, to which the scarcity of industrial occupation has largely driven the surplus population. The trade of the county is mainly agricultural. The sales of cattle and sheep mostly take place at the auction marts at Reston, Duns and Earls ton. There are also grain markets at Duns and Earlston. Berwick, however, from which the county derives its name, but with which it has no legal or fiscal connection, is its chief market.
The Tweed salmon fisheries are famous, and the lesser rivers of the Merse are held in esteem by anglers. Eyemouth, Burnmouth and Cove are engaged in the sea fisheries, Eyemouth being the centre of a fishing board district. Haddock, herring, lobsters and crabs are principally taken. There is some quarrying of the sandstones and of certain of the intrusive igneous rocks which are found in limited areas. Earlston produces woollen cloths. At Cumledge on the Whiteadder, blankets and plaids are manufactured, and paper is made at Chirnside and near Ayton.
The L.N.E. railway serves the coast districts from Berwick to Cockburnspath, and there is a branch which runs from Reston to St. Boswells.
municipal borough, county of itself, Northumberland, England, at the mouth of the Tweed on the north bank 339m. N. by W. of London; pop.
12,299. The east coast route from London (L.N.E.R.) to Scotland crosses the border here. The town lies on the lower slope of bare hills rising from the river on north and south.
Very little is known of the history of Berwick before the Con quest. It was not until the Tweed became the boundary between England and Scotland in the 12th century that Berwick as the chief town on that boundary became really important. Until the beginning of the 14th century Berwick was one of the four royal boroughs of Scotland. After Edward I. had conquered Berwick in 1302 he gave the burgesses a charter, by which the town was made a free borough with a gild merchant, having two markets every week, and a fair. It has been noted for salmon fishery in the Tweed from very early times. James I. granted the incorporation charter in 1604 ; but on his accession to the English throne, Berwick rapidly lost its importance as a frontier town. The town has the rare feature of a complete series of ramparts surrounding it. The Bell Tower, from which alarms were given when border raiders were observed, is in fair pres ervation. There are slight remains of the castle, which fell into disrepair after the union of England and Scotland. There are no traces of the churches, monasteries or other principal buildings of the ancient town. Educational institutions include an Eliza bethan grammar school. Two bridges connect the town with the south side of the Tweed. The older was finished in 1634; the other, the Royal Border bridge, situated a quarter of a mile up the river, is a railway viaduct, 126 ft. high, with 28 arches. A much larger and wider bridge was erected in 1926.
The reach of the river from the old bridge to the mouth forms the harbour. The entrance to the harbour is protected by a stone pier. Principal exports are grain, coal and fish; imports are bones and bone-ash, guano, phosphate and timber. The herring and other sea fisheries are of some value. A fair is held annually at the end of May. Many of the inhabitants are employed in the coal-mines and ironworks of the neighbourhood.
The custom of mentioning Berwick-upon-Tweed specially after Wales, though abandoned in acts of parliament, is retained in certain proclamations. The title of "county in itself" also helps to recall its ancient history. The liberties of the borough, com monly called Berwick Bounds, include the towns of Spittal, at the mouth, and Tweedmouth immediately above it, on the south bank of the river. Berwick-upon-Tweed is governed by a mayor, 6 aldermen and 18 councillors. Area, 6,396 acres.
Berwick was at first represented in the court of the four boroughs and in 1326 in Robert Bruce's parliament. After being taken by the English it remained unrepresented until it was re taken by the Scots, when it sent two members to the parliament at Edinburgh from 1476 to 1479. In 1482 the burgesses were allowed to send two members to the English parliament, and were represented there until 1885, when the town was included in the Berwick-upon-Tweed division of the county of Northumberland.
