About Linlithgow

Linlithgow

Our Kind of Town

The shield of St. Michael, patron saint of Linlithgow. The town's motto is "St. Michael is always kinde to strangers".

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The town's coat of arms showing a black bitch dog against an oak-tree. The townspeople are known as "Black Bitches".

The Royal Burgh of Linlithgow - in the county of West Lothian - borders the South shore of Linlithgow Loch and is situated in a fertile valley enclosed by the Forth Estuary on one side and the Bathgate Hills to the South.

Linlithgow has good road and rail links throughout central Scotland and is close to the M8 and M9 Motorways. There is an estimated population of around 14000 and the town centre has undergone recent renovation. Linlithgow is a past winner of the Scottish Tourist "Oscar" and is busy but pleasant small town.

Linlithgow has had an important place to play in Scottish History and continues to prove an attractive environment for people to live and bring up their families. There is a good range of shops and excellent Schools with Linlithgow Academy having an excellent academic record. There are excellent opportunities for recreation in and around the environs of the town and it has a new swimming pool and leisure centre.

Linlithgow has had a long history steeped in tradition and rich in heritage. The derivation of the name "Linlithgow" is open to question but it seems most likely it means "Lake in the damp hollow' which is appropriate, since at one time the valley bottom contained a chain of lochs and marshes. In such surroundings, the Palace mound was obviously eminently suitable for settlement and was the genesis of the present town.

It seems likely that Linlithgow grew up around the Royal hunting lodge built by King David I in the 12th century upon raised site where the Palace was later built. The town was to develop from the centre along a road running parallel to the Loch. The houses would have been on both sides with their "riggs", long narrow strips of cultivated land, radiating out behind. The town was then bounded by wall running along the end of the riggs.

The Palace, which is now ruined, was built by James I and enlarged and improved by James III, IV, and V; and the Pre-Reformation Church of St Michael's was completed.

The Church of St. Michael of Linlithgow was consecrated by Bishop David de Bernham of St Andrews on the 22nd of May 1242. St Michael is the Patron Saint of Linlithgow and the town's motto is "St Michael is kind to strangers".

"The town enjoyed charter rights to a lucrative monopoly of trade along the Forth from the River Almond to the River Avon with its own port at Blackness. It often acted as host to the Royal Court during this period and, of course, it was here that Mary Queen of Scots was born in 1542."

It is said that Bonnie Prince Charlie was entertained in the Palace during the 45 rebellion and the palace was later to suffer a devastating fire which gutted the building. The Palace has never been rebuilt, although there have been grandiose schemes to re-roof and renovate the Grand Hall but these have so far come to nothing.

Linlithgow also developed into a thriving commercial centre and was famous for its leather industry which supported the companies making boots and shoes. Lace making and Linen manufacturing were also important industries and much later the paper industry was also provide many Jobs. The Edinburgh and Glasgow Union Canal, opened in 1822 also provided passing trade for the town, but now the canal is an excellent leisure facility and it is about to benefit from Lottery Money to restore the canal and make reopen the blockages. Sadly most of the trades mentioned have disappeared, however, in their place there is the high tech factory of "Sun Micro Systems" making computers for export all over the world.

Linlithgow has continued to celebrate its heritage and the annual custom of 'Riding the Marches" is held each year on the first Tuesday after the second Thursday in June. The ceremony dates back to the 14th century, although the first officially recorded date for this to take place was 1541 when every trade turned out behind their elected Deacon to check the boundary stones and visit Linlithgow's Port at Blackness.

When local government was reorganized in 1974 Linlithgow Town Council was dissolved, however, special dispensation was obtained for the position of Provost to be retained on Marches day each year so that the traditionof Marches would continue.

Linlithgow has many places worth seeing and whether your interest is in Historic buildings, Stately Homes, Churches, Country Parks, or even if your interest is in sport, Linlithgow is an ideal base to explore West Lothian. Within a few miles of the Town there are acclaimed buildings in Hopetoun House, the House of the Binns and Blackness Castle, all in the shadow of the Forth Bridges. We hope that as Rotarians this page will whet your appetite and you will come and visit Linlithgow and find out for your self. We look forward to meeting you all.

For the latest news in and around Linlithgow, please visit Linlithgow News at Linlithgow Gazette and be sure to visit the town website at Linlithgow.com