Raith, Fife - Izeria

Raith (Scottish Gaelic: ràth, "fort" or "fortified residence"), as an area of Fife, once stretched from the lands of Little Raith (earlier Wester Raith), south of Loch Gelly, as far as Kirkcaldy and the Battle of Raith was once theorised to have been fought here in 596 AD. Raith Hill, west of Auchtertool and immediately to the east of the Mossmorran fractionation plant, may also be in reference to this wider area or may refer to an actual fort on this hill, distinct to the one naming the area. The name is found in Kirkcaldy's professional football team, Raith Rovers. This name was earlier borne by an entirely distinct team, probably named for the Little Raith colliery, east of Cowdenbeath, which merged with Cowdenbeath Rangers to form Cowdenbeath F. C. Raith House and the 19th-century folly Raith Tower sit on Cormie Hill to the west of Kirkcaldy. The former was designed by James Smith in the Palladian style in the 1690s, remodelled and extended by James Playfair in the 1780s and the library and garden remodelled in 1899 by Robert Lorimer. To the southeast, the artificial Raith Lake was formed by the damming of the Dronachy Burn in 1811 and 1812. From the late nineteenth century onwards, tracts of land of the Raith Estate were sold off and developed for housing and to form the town's Beveridge Park, expanding Kirkcaldy westwards. The modern housing estate bearing the Raith name dates from the latter part of the 20th century, long after the origins of the football team.

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Hallyards Castle

Hallyards Castle (Scots: Hall yairds "the yards at the hall"), located to the north-west of the village of Auchtertool, is reputed to have been a hunting seat of Malcolm Canmore. With the establishment of the Roman Church, Halyards became the local residence of the Bishops of Dunkeld; it remained so until the first lay proprietor took possession in 1539. The influence that Halyards had on the district cannot be overstated. When Sir James Kirkcaldy was proprietor the castle witnessed dramatic events; according to John Knox it was visited by James V just before his death, and the murder of Cardinal Beaton was possibly discussed within its walls. During the Reformation Crisis there was fighting between French troops and the Scottish Lords of the Congregation at Halyards. William Kirkcaldy fought for the reformers. According to Knox, after French troops blew up the house, Mary of Guise declared, "Where is now John Knox's God? My God is now stronger than his, yea, even in Fife". In February 1560 it was reported the castle was 'clean overthrown'. Kirkcaldy took his revenge on a Savoyard captain called Sebastian and his 50 French troops. After the baptism of Prince James at Stirling Castle in December 1566, James Stewart, 1st Earl of Moray took the English ambassador the Earl of Bedford on a tour of Fife. They visited Hallyards. In later years Halyards passed to John Boswell of Balmuto, William Forbes of Craigievar, members of the Skene family then the Earls of Moray. The castle’s name was changed to Camilla, popularly held to be in honour of a countess who bore that name, though no so-named Countess of Moray is recorded. Camilla is the name more commonly known in Auchtertool today. With the Earls of Moray living at a distance, Halyards eventually fell into disuse. In 1819 the castle was revisited by a member of the Skene family, who found it in a dilapidated state. The great house was largely demolished in 1847. The remains can be found on farmland to the north-west of the village. Another Hallyards Castle, near Kirkliston in West Lothian, was the focus of a feud which resulted in the shooting of John Graham, Lord Hallyards in February 1593.

Cowdenbeath and Kirkcaldy

Cowdenbeath and Kirkcaldy is a county constituency representing the areas around the towns of Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath, in Fife, Scotland, in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It has been represented since 2024 by Melanie Ward of Scottish Labour. Prior to the 2023 review of Westminster constituencies, which came into effect for the 2024 general election, the seat had different boundaries and was known as Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath. It was previously represented by former Prime Minister Gordon Brown from 2005 until 2015, who had been MP for the Dunfermline East constituency from 1983–2005 until boundary changes. He served as Chancellor of the Exchequer from 1997 to 2007 and as UK Prime Minister from 2007 to 2010.

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Battle of Raith

The Battle of Raith was the theory of E. W. B. Nicholson, librarian at the Bodleian Library, Oxford. He was aware of the poem Y Gododdin in the Book of Aneirin and was aware that no-one had identified the location "Catraeth". He parsed the name as "cat" Gaelic for battle or fight, and "Raeth" and he recalled that there was a place in Scotland called Raith. Nicholson's claim was that this battle was fought in 596 AD to the west of present-day Kirkcaldy. An invading force of Angles landed on the Fife coast near Raith and defeated an alliance of Scots, Britons and Picts under King Áedán mac Gabráin of Dál Riata. Today the location of the Battle of Catraeth is usually recognised instead as Catterick. Nicholson's proposition was given added circulation when it was included in the local history book "Kirkcaldy Burgh and Schyre" by its editor and co-author Lachlan Macbean.

Cardenden

Cardenden (card-en-DEN; ) is a Scottish town located on the south bank of the River Ore in the parish of Auchterderran, Fife. It is approximately four miles (six kilometres) northwest of Kirkcaldy. Cardenden was named in 1848 by the Edinburgh and Northern Railway for its new railway station. A former mining town, Cardenden had a reported population of 448 in 1891 that had increased to 5,533 as of 2011. Areas of Cardenden include Auchterderran, Bowhill, Dundonald, the Jamphlars, New Carden and Woodend.