The River Forth is a major river in central Scotland, 47 km (29 mi) long, which drains into the North Sea on the east coast of the country. Its drainage basin covers much of Stirlingshire in Scotland's Central Belt.[1] The Gaelic name for the upper reach of the river, above Stirling, is Abhainn Dubh, meaning "black river". The name for the river below the tidal reach[2] (just past where it is crossed by the M9 motorway) is Uisge For.
Forth
The River Forth meanders over fertile farmlands near Stirling
Forth derives from Proto-Celtic*Vo-rit-ia (slow running), yielding Foirthe in Old Gaelic. [3]
Course
The Forth rises in the Trossachs, a mountainous area 30 km (19 mi) west of Stirling. Ben Lomond's eastern slopes drain into the Duchray Water, which meets with Avondhu River coming from Loch Ard. The confluence of these two streams is the nominal start of the River Forth.[4] From there it flows roughly eastward through Aberfoyle, joining with the Kelty Water about 5 km further downstream. It then flows into the flat expanse of the Carse of Stirling, including Flanders Moss. Just west of the M9, it is joined by the River Teith (which itself drains Loch Venachar, Loch Lubnaig, Loch Achray, Loch Katrine, and Loch Voil). The next tributary is the Allan Water, just east of the M9. From there the Forth meanders into the ancient port of Stirling. At Stirling the river widens and becomes tidal.[5] This is the location of the last (seasonal) ford of the river. From Stirling, the Forth flows east, accepting the Bannock Burn from the south before passing the town of Fallin. It then passes two towns in Clackmannanshire: firstly Cambus (where it is joined by the River Devon), closely followed by Alloa. Upon reaching Airth (on the river’s south shore) and Kincardine (on its north shore), the river begins to widen and becomes the Firth of Forth.
The meandering Forth viewed from the Wallace Monument. The river flows from right to left, and the former limit of navigation was in the left distance.
In the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, Stirling harbour was a busy port, with goods coming into Scotland and being exported to Europe. As a result, Stirling had very close ties with the Hansa towns, with Bruges[6] in Belgium, and with Veere (known at the time as Campvere)[7] in the Netherlands. After 1707, trade with America became the new focus, and so a lot of trade activity shifted from Stirling in the east to the port of Glasgow in the west. During World Wars I and II, Stirling harbour began thriving again: It became a gateway for importing supplies of tea into Scotland. After the wars, other trade activities slowly returned, but growth was slow because the harbour’s owners levied heavy shore duties on shipping, making it less economically attractive to the few agricultural merchants who were based at Stirling. Today, Stirling's harbour has fallen into disuse, but there are plans to redevelop it.
Upstream from Stirling, the river is rather narrow and can be crossed in numerous places. (Crossing used to be more difficult before the installation of modern drainage works, because the ground was often treacherously marshy near the riverbank.) However, after its confluence with the Teith and Allan, the river becomes wide enough that a substantial bridge is required. At Stirling, there has been a bridge over the river since at least the 13th century, and it was the easternmost road crossing until 1936, when another road crossing was opened at Kincardine. The Clackmannanshire Bridge, just upstream of the Kincardine Bridge, opened on 19 November 2008. A railway bridge, the Alloa Swing Bridge, previously connected Alloa on the northern shore with Throsk on the southern shore. It opened in 1885 and was closed and mostly demolished in 1970: Only the metal piers remain.
River Forth[9] (1956): A silent, 15-minute, black-and-white film that includes scenes of animals being herded through the streets.
Britain's Lost Routes with Griff Rhys Jones (2012): Episode 3 explores the difficulties that cattle drovers might have encountered at Frew, shows cows being taken across the Auld Brig, and includes aerial shots.[10]
Sruth gu Sal, Episode 1: A 25-minute look at the Forth River (2 Nov 2009).[11]
^"River Forth Catchment Profile" (PDF). SEPA. Retrieved 8 April 2017.
^"OS 25 inch, 1892-1905". National Library of Scotland - Map Images. Ordnance Survey. Retrieved 8 April 2017.
^Field, John:Place Names of Great Britain and Ireland, page 74. London, David & Charles, 1980
^"Interactive Map". RBMP. SEPA. Retrieved 8 April 2017.
^The new statistical account of Scotland. Edinburgh and London: W. Blackwood and Sons. 1845. p. 397. Retrieved 8 April 2017.
^"Scotland in Europe". BBC History. Retrieved 8 April 2017.
^Morris, David B. (1919). The Stirling merchant gild and life of John Cowane. Stirling: Morris, David B. pp. 195–210. Retrieved 8 April 2017.
^Johnson, Simon (4 September 2017). "Queen opens new Forth crossing 53 years to the day after she opened old road bridge". The Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 22 January 2018.
^"River Forth". Moving Image Archive. Templar Film Studios. Retrieved 4 April 2017.
^"Highland Cattle Drovers". BBC. Retrieved 10 April 2017.
^"Sruth gu Sal". BBC Alba. Retrieved 7 September 2017.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to River Forth.
Scottish Parliament: Forth Crossing Bill Committee Report, March 2010
River Forth Crossing: House of Commons debates 18 May 2009
British Waterways: River Forth
Gazetteer for Scotland: River Forth
SCRAN image: Steam dredger, River forth, late 19th Century
Stirling Council: River Forth
Forth Ports PLC
Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA): River level data for River Forth
Forth Estuary Forum, a Scottish Charity
Forth District Salmon Fishery Board
River Forth Fisheries Trust
FYCA Alloa Swing Bridge
RIVER FORTH (1956) FORTH - POWERHOUSE FOR INDUSTRY (1968) (archive films about the River Forth from the National Library of Scotland: Scottish Screen Archive)
March 08, 2023
river, forth, another, river, tasmania, major, river, central, scotland, long, which, drains, into, north, east, coast, country, drainage, basin, covers, much, stirlingshire, scotland, central, belt, gaelic, name, upper, reach, river, above, stirling, abhainn,. For another river see River Forth Tasmania The River Forth is a major river in central Scotland 47 km 29 mi long which drains into the North Sea on the east coast of the country Its drainage basin covers much of Stirlingshire in Scotland s Central Belt 1 The Gaelic name for the upper reach of the river above Stirling is Abhainn Dubh meaning black river The name for the river below the tidal reach 2 just past where it is crossed by the M9 motorway is Uisge For ForthThe River Forth meanders over fertile farmlands near StirlingCourse of River ForthLocationCountryScotlandCouncilsStirlingCityStirlingPhysical characteristicsSourceConfluence of Duchray Water and the Avondhu River below Loch Ard coordinates56 10 52 N 4 24 30 W 56 1810 N 4 4084 W 56 1810 4 4084 elevation33 m 108 ft MouthFirth of Forth North Sea locationUK coordinates56 03 52 N 3 43 37 W 56 0645 N 3 7270 W 56 0645 3 7270 Coordinates 56 03 52 N 3 43 37 W 56 0645 N 3 7270 W 56 0645 3 7270 elevation0 m 0 ft Length47 km 29 mi Contents 1 Name 2 Course 3 Settlements on the river 4 Port activities 5 Bridges 6 Islands 7 On film and TV 8 See also 9 References 10 External linksName EditForth derives from Proto Celtic Vo rit ia slow running yielding Foirthe in Old Gaelic 3 Course EditThe Forth rises in the Trossachs a mountainous area 30 km 19 mi west of Stirling Ben Lomond s eastern slopes drain into the Duchray Water which meets with Avondhu River coming from Loch Ard The confluence of these two streams is the nominal start of the River Forth 4 From there it flows roughly eastward through Aberfoyle joining with the Kelty Water about 5 km further downstream It then flows into the flat expanse of the Carse of Stirling including Flanders Moss Just west of the M9 it is joined by the River Teith which itself drains Loch Venachar Loch Lubnaig Loch Achray Loch Katrine and Loch Voil The next tributary is the Allan Water just east of the M9 From there the Forth meanders into the ancient port of Stirling At Stirling the river widens and becomes tidal 5 This is the location of the last seasonal ford of the river From Stirling the Forth flows east accepting the Bannock Burn from the south before passing the town of Fallin It then passes two towns in Clackmannanshire firstly Cambus where it is joined by the River Devon closely followed by Alloa Upon reaching Airth on the river s south shore and Kincardine on its north shore the river begins to widen and becomes the Firth of Forth Settlements on the river EditThe banks have many settlements along them including Aberfoyle Gargunnock Stirling Fallin Cambus Throsk Alloa South Alloa Dunmore Airth and Kincardine Beyond these settlements the water turns brackish and is usually considered part of the Firth of Forth Port activities Edit The meandering Forth viewed from the Wallace Monument The river flows from right to left and the former limit of navigation was in the left distance In the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries Stirling harbour was a busy port with goods coming into Scotland and being exported to Europe As a result Stirling had very close ties with the Hansa towns with Bruges 6 in Belgium and with Veere known at the time as Campvere 7 in the Netherlands After 1707 trade with America became the new focus and so a lot of trade activity shifted from Stirling in the east to the port of Glasgow in the west During World Wars I and II Stirling harbour began thriving again It became a gateway for importing supplies of tea into Scotland After the wars other trade activities slowly returned but growth was slow because the harbour s owners levied heavy shore duties on shipping making it less economically attractive to the few agricultural merchants who were based at Stirling Today Stirling s harbour has fallen into disuse but there are plans to redevelop it Bridges EditMain article History of the Forth Crossing River Forth passing Cambus Tullibody Inch and Alloa Inch Beyond that Alloa and Kincardine The water is known as the Firth of Forth beyond the Clackmannanshire and Kincardine bridges although the transition point is unclear Upstream from Stirling the river is rather narrow and can be crossed in numerous places Crossing used to be more difficult before the installation of modern drainage works because the ground was often treacherously marshy near the riverbank However after its confluence with the Teith and Allan the river becomes wide enough that a substantial bridge is required At Stirling there has been a bridge over the river since at least the 13th century and it was the easternmost road crossing until 1936 when another road crossing was opened at Kincardine The Clackmannanshire Bridge just upstream of the Kincardine Bridge opened on 19 November 2008 A railway bridge the Alloa Swing Bridge previously connected Alloa on the northern shore with Throsk on the southern shore It opened in 1885 and was closed and mostly demolished in 1970 Only the metal piers remain Much further downstream joining North Queensferry and South Queensferry is another railway bridge the famous Forth Bridge which opened in 1890 and the Forth Road Bridge which opened in 1964 To the west of the Forth Road Bridge is Queensferry Crossing construction of which began in 2011 It finally opened on 4 September 2017 8 Islands EditMain article Islands of the Forth Two islands known as inches lie in the meandering estuarine waters downstream from Stirling Tullibody Inch near Cambus and Alloa Inch near Alloa Both islands are fairly small and are uninhabited On film and TV EditRiver Forth 9 1956 A silent 15 minute black and white film that includes scenes of animals being herded through the streets Britain s Lost Routes with Griff Rhys Jones 2012 Episode 3 explores the difficulties that cattle drovers might have encountered at Frew shows cows being taken across the Auld Brig and includes aerial shots 10 Sruth gu Sal Episode 1 A 25 minute look at the Forth River 2 Nov 2009 11 See also Edit275 kV Forth Crossing List of rivers of Scotland Rivers and Fisheries Trusts of Scotland RAFTS Shipping ForecastReferences Edit River Forth Catchment Profile PDF SEPA Retrieved 8 April 2017 OS 25 inch 1892 1905 National Library of Scotland Map Images Ordnance Survey Retrieved 8 April 2017 Field John Place Names of Great Britain and Ireland page 74 London David amp Charles 1980 Interactive Map RBMP SEPA Retrieved 8 April 2017 The new statistical account of Scotland Edinburgh and London W Blackwood and Sons 1845 p 397 Retrieved 8 April 2017 Scotland in Europe BBC History Retrieved 8 April 2017 Morris David B 1919 The Stirling merchant gild and life of John Cowane Stirling Morris David B pp 195 210 Retrieved 8 April 2017 Johnson Simon 4 September 2017 Queen opens new Forth crossing 53 years to the day after she opened old road bridge The Telegraph ISSN 0307 1235 Retrieved 22 January 2018 River Forth Moving Image Archive Templar Film Studios Retrieved 4 April 2017 Highland Cattle Drovers BBC Retrieved 10 April 2017 Sruth gu Sal BBC Alba Retrieved 7 September 2017 External links Edit Wikimedia Commons has media related to River Forth KML file edit help Template Attached KML River ForthKML is from Wikidata Wikisource has the text of the 1911 Encyclopaedia Britannica article Forth Scottish Parliament Forth Crossing Bill Committee Report March 2010 River Forth Crossing House of Commons debates 18 May 2009 British Waterways River Forth Gazetteer for Scotland River Forth SCRAN image Steam dredger River forth late 19th Century Stirling Council River Forth Forth Ports PLC Scottish Environment Protection Agency SEPA River level data for River Forth Forth Estuary Forum a Scottish Charity Forth District Salmon Fishery Board River Forth Fisheries Trust Forth Bridges Visitor Centre Trust FYCA Alloa Swing Bridge RIVER FORTH 1956 FORTH POWERHOUSE FOR INDUSTRY 1968 archive films about the River Forth from the National Library of Scotland Scottish Screen Archive Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title River Forth amp oldid 1122633865, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
