Auchtermuchty (Gaelic:
Uachdar Mucadaidh - English interpretation: "Field of Boars") is a town in
FifeFife is a council area of Scotland, situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries to Perth and Kinross and Clackmannanshire. It was originally one of the Pictish kingdoms, known as Fib, and is still commonly known as the Kingdom of Fife within Scotland.It is a...
,
ScotlandScotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, situated beside Pitlour Hill nine miles north of
GlenrothesGlenrothes is a former new town situated in the heart of Fife, in east central Scotland. It is located approximately equidistant between the cities of Edinburgh and Dundee ....
. Until 1975 it was a
royal burghA royal burgh was a type of Scottish burgh which had been founded by, or subsequently granted, a royal charter. Although abolished in 1975, the term is still used in many of the former burghs....
, established under charter of
King James VJames V was King of Scots from 9 September 1513 until his premature death at the age of thirty, which followed the Scottish defeat at the Battle of Solway Moss...
in 1517. There is evidence of human habitation in the area dating back over 2,000 years, and the Romans are known to have established a camp in the southeast corner of the town.
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Auchtermuchty (Gaelic:
Uachdar Mucadaidh - English interpretation: "Field of Boars") is a town in
FifeFife is a council area of Scotland, situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries to Perth and Kinross and Clackmannanshire. It was originally one of the Pictish kingdoms, known as Fib, and is still commonly known as the Kingdom of Fife within Scotland.It is a...
,
ScotlandScotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, situated beside Pitlour Hill nine miles north of
GlenrothesGlenrothes is a former new town situated in the heart of Fife, in east central Scotland. It is located approximately equidistant between the cities of Edinburgh and Dundee ....
. Until 1975 it was a
royal burghA royal burgh was a type of Scottish burgh which had been founded by, or subsequently granted, a royal charter. Although abolished in 1975, the term is still used in many of the former burghs....
, established under charter of
King James VJames V was King of Scots from 9 September 1513 until his premature death at the age of thirty, which followed the Scottish defeat at the Battle of Solway Moss...
in 1517. There is evidence of human habitation in the area dating back over 2,000 years, and the Romans are known to have established a camp in the southeast corner of the town. In the past, the linen industry was a major source of work in the town, but in the early 18th century the firm of John White was established, bringing the town its first foundry (there were two eventually). There was even a distillery in operation from 1829 to 1929, when Prohibition in the U.S.A. led to its closure. The town nowadays is a quiet but thriving community, situated in the Scottish countryside, where there are several local recreational footpaths. There is a modest range of local industry, but most people of working age travel outwith the town for employment.
There is a festival held each year in August.
The town was used as the location for
TannochbraeTannochbrae is a fictional town in Scotland which serves as the setting for A. J. Cronin's Dr. Finlay stories, as well as for the television and radio series based on these short stories....
in the 1990s TV series
Dr Finlay's CasebookDr. Finlay is a fictional character, the hero of a series of stories by Scottish author A. J. Cronin. The stories were used as the basis for the long-running BBC television programme, Dr. Finlay's Casebook, screened from 1962 to 1971, and radio series . Based on Cronin's novella entitled Country...
.
The town's church is mentioned in James Hogg's
The Private Memoirs and Confessions of a Justified SinnerThe Private Memoirs and Confessions of a Justified Sinner: Written by Himself. With a detail of curious traditionary facts and other evidence by the editor was published by the Scottish author James Hogg in 1824...
.
The town gets a mention in
The Family Ness theme song,
You'll Never Find A Nessie In The Zoo, in the refrain "You can go to Auchtermuchty and to
DrumnadrochitDrumnadrochit is a village inthe Highland local government council area of Scotland, lying on the west shore of Loch Ness, at the foot of Glenurquhart. The settlement grew up around a bridge over the River Enrick and the name Drumnadrochit is thought to be derived from the Scottish Gaelic and mean...
too, but you'll never find a Nessie in the zoo". The town, which is on the main road to the world famous golf courses at St. Andrews, was frequently mentioned in a light-hearted manner by the journalist Sir
John JunorSir John Donald Brown Junor was a Scottish journalist and editor-in-chief of the Sunday Express, having previously worked as a columnist there...
, but although he was a frequent visitor, he did not come from or live there.
Notable people
- John Glas
John Glas , was a Scottish clergyman who started the Glasite church movement.He was born at Auchtermuchty, Fife, where his father was parish minister. He was educated at Kinclaven and Perth Grammar School, graduated from the University of St Andrews in 1713, and completed his education for the...
- founder of the GlasiteThe Glasites or Glassites were a Christian sect founded in about 1730 in Scotland by John Glas. It was spread by his son-in-law Robert Sandeman into England and America, where they were called Sandemanians....
religious sect
- Charlie and Craig Reid - musicians and founders of folk/rock group The Proclaimers
The Proclaimers are a Scottish band composed of identical twin brothers, Charlie and Craig Reid . They are best known for the songs "Letter from America", "I'm On My Way", and "I'm Gonna Be ".-Career:...
- Martin Stewart
Martin Stewart is a ska keyboardist.-Biography:He was the keyboard player for Bad Manners, who had nine UK hits with classics including 'Special Brew' and 'Can Can'. He left the band in 1991, and performed with the reformed Selecter until 2006. Shortly after this, Martin joined Skaville UK along...
- Bad Manners keyboard player
- Sir Jimmy Shand
Sir James Shand MBE was a Scottish musician who played traditional Scottish dance music on the accordion.-Early life:James Shand was born in East Wemyss in Fife, son of a farm ploughman turned miner...
- musician
- Sir John Arnott
Sir John Arnott, 1st Baronet JP was an Irish entrepreneur and a major figure in the commercial and political spheres of late-19th century Cork. He was also founder of the Arnotts department chain.-Background:...
MP and founder of ArnottsArnotts is the oldest and largest department store in Dublin, Ireland. The company has three stores in Dublin. Their flagship store is located on Henry Street on the northside of the city centre, and there is a smaller store selling mainly shoes in an outlet in Stillorgan Shopping Centre in south...
department stores in Dublin and elsewhere
External links