Kintyre

Kintyre highlighted within Argyll

Kintyre (Scottish Gaelic: Cinn Tìre, Scottish Gaelic pronunciation: [kʲʰiɲˈtʲʰiːɾʲə]) is a peninsula in western Scotland, in the southwest of Argyll and Bute. The region stretches approximately 30 miles (48 km), from the Mull of Kintyre in the south, to East Loch Tarbert in the north. The region immediately north of Kintyre is known as Knapdale.

Kintyre is long and narrow, at no point more than 11 miles (18 km) from west coast to east coast. The east side of the Kintyre Peninsula is bounded by Kilbrannan Sound, with a number of coastal peaks such as Torr Mor. The central spine of the peninsula is mostly hilly moorland. The coastal areas and hinterland, however, are rich and fertile. Kintyre has long been a prized area for settlers, including the early Scots who migrated from Ulster to western Scotland and the Vikings or Norsemen who conquered and settled the area just before the start of the second millennium.

The principal town of the area is Campbeltown (about 5.5 miles (8.9 km) by road from the Mull), which has been a royal burgh since the mid-18th century. The area's economy has long relied on fishing and farming, although Campbeltown has a reputation as a producer of some of the world's finest single malt whisky. Campbeltown Single Malts include the multi-award winning 'Springbank'.

Kintyre Pursuivant of Arms in Ordinary, one of the officers of arms at the Court of the Lord Lyon, is named after this peninsula.

Towns and villages in Kintyre

The north-eastern coast of the Kintyre peninsula looking northward to Skipness and the Sound of Bute

Skipness Castle

• Achinhoan
• Bellochantuy
• Campbeltown
• Carradale
• Clachan
• Claonaig
• Drumlemble
• Glenbarr
• Grogport
• Kilchenzie
• Machrihanish
• Muasdale
• Peninver
• Saddell
• Skipness
• Southend
• Stewarton
• Tayinloan
• Tarbert
• Whitehouse

Transport

Information on all forms of public transport is available from Traveline Scotland

Bus and coach services

• Long distance coach services to and from Glasgow are operated by West Coast Motors and Scottish Citylink
• Bus services throughout the Kintyre peninsula are operated by West Coast Motors alone.

Flights

• Available between Glasgow International Airport and Campbeltown Airport

Ferry services

• Operated by Caledonian MacBrayne on the following routes:
  • Claonaig - Lochranza (in Summer)
  • Kennacraig - Islay
  • Tarbert - Lochranza (in Winter)
  • Tarbert - Portavadie
  • Tayinloan - Gigha
  • Campbeltown- Ardrossan(in Summer)
• Operated by Kintyre Express:
  • Campbeltown - Troon
  • Campbeltown - Ballycastle, County Antrim

Railways

No railways remain in use but there was a light railway from Campbeltown to Machrihanish from 1876 until 1931, initially built to transport coal. (see Campbeltown and Machrihanish Light Railway)

Places of historic interest

Ruins of the old church at Kilchenzie with beehives below.

• Clachan Church - carved medieval grave slabs
• Kilchenzie church
• Kilchousland Chapel, near Peninver
• Kilcomkill, Southend - St Columba's Chapel, carved grave slabs, "St. Columba's footprints" nearby
• Killean - St. John's Church - "most important medieval parish church in Kintyre"^[1] - carved grave slabs
• 18th century Killean and Kilchenzie Church (united parish) at A'Chleit
• Saddell Abbey
• Saddell Castle
• Skipness Castle
• Tarbert Castle

Prehistoric sites

Kintyre Peninsula visible from Torrisdale Bay.

• Avinagillan standing stone
• Ballochroy standing stones
• Beacharr standing stone, near Tayinloan
• Corriechrevie cairn - intact
• Dun Skeig - Iron Age forts near Clachan
• Kildonan galleried dun
• A crag near the chapel of Keil and St. Columba's Well, between Dunaverty Bay and Carskey in Kintyre, has two footprints carved at a place where St. Columba is reputed to have first set foot in Dál Riata, Scotland. One is recent and the other genuinely old. Kingship rituals may have been connected with this petrosomatoglyph.

Associated peerage titles

• Duke of Kintyre (extinct)
• Marquess of Kintyre and Lorne (subsidiary title of the Duke of Argyll)

Test

The Mull of Kintyre test is an unofficial guideline of the British Board of Film Classification for the censorship of adult films and images.^[2]

See also

• Kildonald Bay

Related songs

• The best known of these is Paul McCartney's 1977 track "Mull of Kintyre", performed by Wings. The song was written in tribute to the picturesque peninsula, where McCartney has owned High Park Farm since 1966, and its headland or Mull of Kintyre. The song was Wings' biggest hit in the United Kingdom where it became Christmas number one, and was the first single to sell over two million copies in the United Kingdom.

References

1. Newton, Norman S (1999). Kintyre.
2. Hoyles, John (2000-08-29). "The Realm Of The Senses - Ai No Corrida". Movie Mail. Retrieved 2007-04-09.

External links

• Kintyre.org - Official visitor and tourist information website for Kintyre
• VisitKintyre.info - Web Site including webcam, accommodation, news, photo galleries etc
• KIntyre.biz - Visitor information, accommodation, photos and much more
• walkthekintyreway.co.uk - Guide to the long distance Kintyre Way walk

Coordinates: 55°30′N 5°35′W / 55.500°N 5.583°W