Perthshire

The shire is famous for its dyeing and bleaching works, which are situated in Perth and its vicinity; but, apart from these, there are flax and jute mills at Rattray and Blairgowrie, and cotton mills at Stanley, Deanston and Crieff ; woollens, linen, jute and tartans are woven at Dunblane, Alyth, Coupar-Angus, Auchter arder and Crieff.

The L.M.S. railway main line to Aberdeen enters the county near Dunblane and runs in a north-easterly direction via Perth. At Crieff junction it sends off a branch to Crieff and at Perth branches to Dundee and Lochearnhead. The Stirling to Oban line of the same company crosses the shire from Dunblane to Tyn drum. The main line to Inverness runs northwards from Perth, and has a branch at Ballinluig to Aberfeldy. Branches of the L.N.E. railway reach Perth from Mawcarse in Kinross-shire and Ladybank in Fifeshire, and Aberfoyle from Buchlyvie, part of the branch from Buchlyvie on the Forth and Clyde line runs to Aber foyle. The West Highland branch skirts the west of the shire.

In 1931 the population was 120,772; 4,828 persons spoke Gaelic and English, while II spoke Gaelic only. Chief towns Perth (34,807), Crieff (5,544), Blairgowrie and Rattray (4,676), Dunblane (2,692), Auchterarder (2,254), Coupar-Angus (1,883), Callander (1,572). Among lesser centres are Aberfeldy (1,505), favourite resort on the Tay, well known for the falls of Moness, mentioned in Robert Burns's song "The Birks of Aberfeldy"; Abernethy, the seat of an early bishopric, retaining one of the three ancient round towers in Scotland; Alyth (1,662), Comrie, a holiday resort on the Earn, and Pitlochry. Of old the county was divided into hereditary jurisdictions, which were abolished in 1748. The county forms a sheriffdom with a sheriff-substitute at Perth. For parliamentary purposes it is divided into an eastern and western division (the latter including Kinross). The shire is under school-board jurisdiction, and there are secondary schools at Perth and Crieff, and Trinity college in Glen Almond is a well known public school on the English model.

History.

In 83 Agricola explored the lands beyond the Forth and in the following year penetrated to the Grampians, defeating the Caledonians under Galgacus with great slaughter. The site of this battle is disputed. The Romans did not pursue their victory, and the Picts were left undisturbed for a considerable period. At this time, according to Ptolemy, the territory now known as Perthshire was occupied by three tribes—the Dam nonii, the Venicones and the Vacomagi. The growing lawlessness

of the southern Picts and their frequent raids in the more settled country in the south at last compelled the attention of the em peror Severus. He arrived in Britain in 208, but though he led a strong army to the shores of the Moray firth, he was unable effectually to subdue the tribesmen. The road he constructed ran from Stirling to Ardoch (where there are notable remains) and thence by Strageath, near Muthill, where it branched north westwards to Dalginross and Buchanty, and north-eastwards to Perth and so to the Grampians.

When the Romans finally withdrew from Britain, the Picts established their capital first at Abernethy and then at Forteviot. Abernethy was the centre of the Celtic church after the con version of the natives by Ninian, Palladius and other missionaries in the 5th and 6th centuries. On the burning of Forteviot by the Norsemen in the 8th century, the seat of Pictish government was removed to Scone. In the latter half of the 9th century Dunkeld —to which Kenneth Macalpine had brought some of the relics of Columba from Iona—became the scene of monastic activity, the abbot succeeding to the position of the abbot of Iona, and exercising great influence for nearly 1 oo years. The Danes periodically harried the land, but a crushing defeat at Luncarty in 961 put an end to their inroads in this quarter. In Macbeth was defeated at Dunsinane by Siward, earl of Northum berland, who had invaded Scotland in the interest of his kins man, Duncan's son, who, on the death of the usurper three years later, ascended the throne as Malcolm III., called Canmore.

With Malcolm's accession the Celtic rule of the monarchy of Scone came to an end. Perth became the capital at the begin ning of the 12th century; from that time the history of the shire is merged in that of the county town, with the exception of such isolated incidents as the removal of the Coronation Stone from Scone to Westminster in 1296, the defeat of Robert Bruce at Methven in 1306, the battle of Dupplin in 1332, the victory of Dundee at Killiecrankie in 1689 and the indecisive contest at Sheriffmuir in 1715. Among archaeological remains may be men tioned the hill-fort on Dunsinane; the ship-barrow of the vikings at Rattray, weems (or earth-houses) in the parishes of Monzie, Alyth and Bendochy; standing stones near Pitlochry, and an extraordinary assemblage of sculptured stones at Meigle.