Dumfries and Galloway
Dumfries and Galloway (
Dùn Phris agus Gall-Ghaidhealaibh in
Gaelic) is one of 32
council areas of
Scotland. To the north it borders onto
South Ayrshire,
East Ayrshire and
South Lanarkshire; in the east the
Borders; and to the south the county of
Cumbria in
England. It lies to the north of the
Solway Firth and to the east of the
Irish Sea.
Dumfries and Galloway covers the
counties of
Wigtownshire (in the west),
Kirkcudbrightshire (centre) and
Dumfriesshire (in the east). Together Kirkcudbrightshire and Wigtownshire are referred to as
Galloway.
The Galloway part of the region is made up of the Stewartry of Kirkcudbright, the Machars and the Rhins. The Dumfries part includes the Inner Solway and the county of Dumfriesshire. The term 'Dumfries and Galloway' has been used since at latest the
19th century - by 1911 the three counties had a united
Sheriffdom under that name.
In
1975 it became a two-tier region with the districts
Annandale and Eskdale,
Nithsdale,
Stewartry, and
Wigtown. These districts were abolished in
1996, and so Dumfries and Galloway became a
unitary authority.
The region is well-known for its many
artists and
writers. It is the scene of
Dorothy Sayers's novel
Five Red Herrings (1931).
The
Dumfries and Galloway Constabulary is the smallest police force in the
United Kingdom. From
December 21,
1988 until November
1991, it presided over
Britain's largest criminal inquiry, when it led the investigation into the bombing of
Pan Am Flight 103, which resulted in criminal indictments against two
Libyan nationals, and the conviction of one.
|
Dalveen Pass from Comb Head summit, near Thornhill, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. |
The celebrated horror movie
The Wicker Man was filmed almost entirely on location in Dumfries and Galloway, predominantly in the Kirkcudbright area, in 1972. The actress
Britt Ekland described it - to the irritation of locals, and the bafflement of anyone who knows the area - as "the bleakest place on Earth".
*
Ae,
Annan,
Ardwell*
Beattock*
Caerlaverock,
Cairnryan,
Carsphairn,
Castle Douglas,
Castle Kennedy,
Corsock,
Creetown*
Dalbeattie,
Dalton,
Drumlanrig,
Drummore,
Dumfries*
Ecclefechan,
Eskdalemuir*
Gatehouse of Fleet,
Glenluce,
Gretna Green*
Kirkcolm,
Kirkcudbright*
Langholm,
Lochmaben,
Lockerbie*
Millhousebridge,
Moffat,
Moniaive,
Mull of Galloway*
New Abbey,
New Galloway,
New Luce,
Newton Stewart*
Portpatrick*
Ruthwell*
Sandhead,
Sanquhar,
St. John's Town of Dalry,
Stranraer*
Thornhill*
Wanlockhead,
Whithorn,
Wigtown*
Mull of Galloway -
RSPB/
South Rhins Community Development Trust*
Caerlaverock Castle -
Historic Scotland*
Caerlaverock NNR -
National Nature Reserve*
Corsewall Lighthouse, privately owned
*
Galloway Forest Park,
Forestry Commission*
Samye Ling Tibetan Monastery
*
Southern Upland Way -
long distance footpath*
Sweetheart Abbey,
New Abbey*
WWT Caerlaverock - a reserve of the
Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust*
Independent - 13
*
Labour - 13
*
Conservative - 11
*
Liberal Democrats - 5
*
Scottish National Party - 5
