Stirling

Sister cities

• Budapest District III
• Galway

History

A stone cist, found in Coneypark Nursery in 1879, is Stirling's oldest catalogued artefact. Bones from the cist were radiocarbon dated and found to be over four millennia old, originating within the date range 2152 to 2021 BC. Nicknamed Torbrex Tam, the man, whose bones were discovered by workmen, died while still in his twenties. Other Bronze Age finds near the city come from the area around Cambusbarron. It had been thought that the Randolphfield standing stones were more than 3000 years old but recent radiocarbon dating suggests they may date from the time of Bruce. The earliest known structures in Stirling are now destroyed but comprised two Neolithic Cursus in Bannockburn. To the south of Stirling is Gillies Hill which contains a series of prehistoric fortifications. Two structures are known: what is currently called Wallstale Dun on the southern end of Touchadam Craig, and Gillies Hill fort on the northwest end of the craig. Both structures were built by Iron Age peoples and Gillies Hill is c 2500 years old while the Wallstale structure is later and is related in form to brochs, these appear to coincide with the Roman period and there are around 40 or so in the wider area. South of the city, the King's Park prehistoric carvings (cup and ring marks) can still be found, these date to c 3000 BC. Its other notable geographic feature is its proximity to the lowest crossing point of the River Forth. Control of the bridge brought military advantage in times of unrest and excise duty, or pontage dues, in peacetime. Unsurprisingly excise men were installed in a covered booth in the centre of the bridge to collect tax from any entering the royal burgh with goods. Stirling remained the river's lowest reliable crossing point (that is, without a weather-dependent ferry or…

Geography

Stirling is renowned as the Gateway to the Highlands and is generally regarded as occupying a strategic position at the point where the flatter, largely undulating Scottish Lowlands meet the rugged slopes of the Highlands along the Highland Boundary Fault. The starkness of this contrast is evidenced by the many hills and mountains of the lower Highlands such as Ben Vorlich and Ben Ledi which can be seen to the northwest of the city. On the other hand, the Carse of Stirling, stretching to the west and east of the city, is one of the flattest and most agriculturally productive expanses of land in the whole of Scotland. The land surrounding Stirling has been most affected by glacial erosion and deposition. The city itself has grown up around its castle which stands atop an ancient quartz-dolerite sill, known as the Stirling Sill, a major defensive position which was at the lowest crossing point on the River Forth. Stirling stands on the Forth at the point where the river widens and becomes tidal. To the east of the city the Ochil Hills dominate the skyline with the highest peak in the range being Ben Cleuch, although Dumyat is more noticeable from Stirling. The Ochils meet the flat carse (floodplain) of the River Forth to the east of the distinctive geographical feature of Abbey Craig, a crag and tail hill upon which stands the 220 ft (67 m) high National Wallace Monument. Top of the Town consists of Broad Street, Castle Wynd, Ballengeich Pass, Lower Castle Hill Road, Darnley Street, Baker Street (formerly Baxters St), St John Street and St Mary's Wynd. These streets all lead up to Stirling Castle and are the favourite haunt of tourists who stop off at the Old Town Jail, Mar's Wark, Argyll's Lodging and the castle. Ballengeich Pass leads to the graveyard at…

Most-observed species

• Eurasian red squirrel

  Sciurus vulgaris Linnaeus, 1758 · Mammalia
  5,109
• Common Wood-Pigeon

  Columba palumbus Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  3,793
• Carrion Crow

  Corvus corone Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  3,412
• Eurasian Magpie

  Pica pica (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  3,120
• Eurasian Blackbird

  Turdus merula Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  3,004
• European Robin

  Erithacus rubecula (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  2,903
• eastern gray squirrel

  Sciurus carolinensis Gmelin, 1788 · Mammalia
  2,889
• Eurasian Blue Tit

  Cyanistes caeruleus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  2,526

Most recent

• M 3.5 — 2026-04-16
  42 km WNW of Comrie, United Kingdom
• M 3.9 — 2025-10-20
  29 km NW of Comrie, United Kingdom
• M 2.5 — 2018-08-30
  1 km ENE of Gourock, United Kingdom
• M 2.6 — 2017-11-01
  2 km NNW of Tarbert, United Kingdom
• M 2.5 — 2005-12-31
  3 km WSW of Auchterarder, United Kingdom
• M 2.5 — 2003-06-20
  12 km NNW of Balfron, United Kingdom