Dumfries and Galloway
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| Dumfries and Galloway | |
|---|---|
| Location | |
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| Geography | |
| Area | Ranked 3rd |
| -Total | 6,426 km² |
| -% Water | ? |
| Admin HQ | Dumfries |
| ISO 3166-2 | GB-DGY |
| ONS code | 00QH |
| Demographics | |
| Population | Ranked 12th |
| -Total (2005) | 148,340 |
| -Density | 23 / km² |
| Politics | |
| Dumfries and Galloway Council http://www.dumgal.gov.uk/ |
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| Control | NOC (Labour administration) |
| MPs | |
| MSPs | |
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Dumfries and Galloway (Dùn Phris agus an 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.
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[edit] Trivia
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 as "the bleakest place on Earth".
[edit] Towns and villages
- Ae, Airieland, Airds of Kells, Annan, Anwoth, Ardwell
- Beattock, Beeswing
- Caerlaverock, Cairngaan, Cairnryan, Cargenbridge, Carsphairn, Castle Douglas, Castle Kennedy, Clarencefield, Corsock, Creetown
- Dalbeattie, Dalton, Drumlanrig, Drummore, Dumfries, Dundrennan
- Eastriggs, Ecclefechan, Eskdalemuir
- Garlieston, Gatehouse of Fleet, Glenluce, Gretna Green
- Johnstonebridge
- Keir, Kippford, Kirkcolm, Kirkcudbright
- Langholm, Lochmaben, Lockerbie
- Millhousebridge, Moffat, Moniaive, Mull of Galloway
- New Abbey, New Galloway, New Luce, Newton Stewart, Newton Wamphray
- Palnackie, Parton, Penpont, Portpatrick
- Ruthwell
- Sandhead, Sanquhar, St. John's Town of Dalry, Stranraer
- Terregles, Thornhill, Twynholm
- Wanlockhead, Whithorn, Wigtown
[edit] Places of interest
- Mull of Galloway - RSPB/South Rhins Community Development Trust
- Caerlaverock Castle - Historic Scotland
- Caerlaverock NNR - National Nature Reserve
- Cardoness Castle
- Corsewall Lighthouse, privately owned
- Devil's Porridge, Eastriggs - site of a munitions factory[1] during the Great War
- Drumlanrig Castle
- Galloway Forest Park, Forestry Commission
- Kenmure Castle - a seat of the Gordon family
- Loch Ken
- Ruthwell Cross
- Samye Ling Tibetan Monastery
- Southern Upland Way - long distance footpath
- Sweetheart Abbey, New Abbey
- WWT Caerlaverock - a reserve of the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust
[edit] Council political composition
- Independent - 12
- Labour - 13
- Conservative - 13
- Liberal Democrats - 5
- Scottish National Party - 5
Subdivisions created by the Local Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994
Aberdeen • Aberdeenshire • Angus • Argyll and Bute • Clackmannanshire • Dumfries and Galloway • Dundee • East Ayrshire • East Dunbartonshire • East Lothian • East Renfrewshire • na h-Eileanan Siar (Western Isles) • Edinburgh • Falkirk • Fife • Glasgow • Highland • Inverclyde • Midlothian • Moray • North Ayrshire • North Lanarkshire • Orkney • Perth and Kinross • Renfrewshire • Scottish Borders • Shetland • South Ayrshire • South Lanarkshire • Stirling • West Dunbartonshire • West Lothian
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