Coordinates: 56°06′39″N 3°10′03″W / 56.11073°N 3.16737°W / 56.11073; -3.16737

Kirkcaldy
Scottish Gaelic: Cair Chaladain[1]
Scots: Kirkcaldy,[2]
The Lang Toun[3]
Top: A view of Kirkcaldy to the south-west, Left: Town House Clock Tower, Middle top: Merchant's House on High Street, Middle bottom: Maggie's Centre Fife, Right: Old Kirk Tower, Bottom: Looking across to the Beveridge Park pond
Kirkcaldy  Kirkcaldy shown within Fife
Area	6.9 sq mi (18 km2)
Population	48,630 [4]
- Density	1,669 /sq mi (644 /km2)
OS grid reference	NT275915
- Edinburgh	11 miles (18 kilometres) S
- London	341 miles (549 kilometres) SSE
Council area	Fife
Lieutenancy area	Fife
Country	Scotland
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	KIRKCALDY
Postcode district	KY1, KY2
Dialling code	01592
Police	Fife
Fire	Fife
Ambulance	Scottish
EU Parliament	Scotland
UK Parliament	Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath
Scottish Parliament	Kirkcaldy Mid Scotland and Fife
List of places: UK • Scotland •

Kirkcaldy (ⁱ/kərˈkɔːdi/ kər-KAW-dee; Scots: Kirkcaldy, Scottish Gaelic: Cair Chaladain) is a town and former royal burgh in Fife, on the east coast of Scotland. It is approximately 18.6 miles (30 km) north of Edinburgh and 44.4 miles (71 km) south-southwest of Dundee. The town had an estimated population of 48,630 in 2008, making it the biggest settlement in Fife. Kirkcaldy has long been nicknamed the Lang Toun ( listen (help·info); Scots for "long town") in reference to the 0.9-mile (1.4 km) early town's main street, as indicated on maps of the 16th and 17th centuries. The street later reached a length of nearly 4 miles (6.4 km) connecting the burgh to neighbouring settlements of Linktown, Pathhead, Sinclairtown and Gallatown.

The town was first recorded in about 1075, when Malcolm III granted the shire of Kirkcaladunt to the church of Dunfermline (later Dunfermline Abbey). Under King Robert I, in 1327 the township status of Kirkcaldy changed to that of a burgh dependent on Dunfermline Abbey. The award of feu-ferme status in 1451 gave the burgh semi-independence from the abbey; full independence was achieved via a charter for royal burgh status, granted by Charles I in 1644.

Early industries in the town included textiles, nailmaking and salt panning. During the 19th and 20th centuries, Kirkcaldy became a leading producer of linoleum. The town expanded considerably in the 1950s and 1960s, though the decline of the linoleum industry and other manufacturing restricted its growth thereafter. The town is a major service centre for the central Fife area, home to numerous retail, cultural and leisure facilities. Adam Smith College has two campuses in town (St Brycedale and Priory). In the early twenty-first century employment was dominated by the service sector; the biggest employer was MGt plc (a call centre), while other major employers included Victoria Hospital, Forbo-flooring (floor coverings), Adam Smith College (education) and R Hutchison Ltd (food).

History[link]

Toponymy[link]

The name Kirkcaldy means "place of the hard fort" or "place of Caled's fort". It is derived from the Pictish caer meaning "fort", caled, which is Pictish "hard" or a personal name, and –in, a suffix meaning "place of". Caled may describe the fort itself or be an epithet for a local "hard" ruler.^[2] An interpretation of the last element as din (again meaning "fort", but from Gaelic) rather than –in is incorrect.^[2] The Old Statistical Account states a derivation from culdee, which has been repeated in later publications,^[3][5] but this is also incorrect.^[2]

Early[link]

The discovery of 11 Bronze Age cist burials which date from 2500 BC and 500 BC suggest that this is the most ancient funerary site in the area.^[3][6] What probably made this location ideal, was of natural terraces stretching away from the sand bay and the close proximity of the East Burn to the north and the West (Tiel) Burn to the south.^[6] Four Bronze Age burials dating from around 4000 BC have also been found around the site of the unmarked Bogely or Dysart Standing Stone to the east of the present A92 road.^[3][6] Although there are few Roman sites in Fife, a Roman camp was known to exist at Carberry Farm on the town's outskirts.^[6]

Prior to the development of Kirkcaldy, the Battle of Raith in 596 AD is believed to have taken place to the west of the town. The battle fought between the Angles and an alliance, was led by King Áedán mac Gabráin of Dál Riata, of Scots, Picts and Britons.^[3][7]

Medieval[link]

The first document to recognise the town was issued in 1075, when the King of Scots, Malcolm III (reign 1058-93) granted the shire of Kirkcaladunt, among other gifts to the church at Dunfermline.^[8][9] The residents were expected to pay dues and taxes for the church's general upkeep.^[3] Two charters, later confirmed by Malcolm's son, David I in 1128 and 1130, refer to Kircalethin and Kirkcaladunit respectively, but do not indicate their locations.^[5][8]

In 1304, a weekly market and annual fair for Kirkcaldy was proposed by the Abbot of Dunfermline to King Edward I, during a period of English rule in Scotland from 1296 to 1306.^[9][10] The reason given for these discussions was that the town, given to the Abbey by David I, may have been referred to as "one of the most ancient of burghs".^[5][9] This status as a burgh dependent on Dunfermline Abbey was later confirmed in 1327 by Robert I, King of Scots (reign 1306-29).^[5][8]

A special charter in 1363, granted by David II, King of Scots (reign 1329-71), awarded the burgh the right to trade across the regality of Dunfermline. This charter allowed the burgesses of Kirkcaldy to purchase and sell goods to the burgesses of the three other regality burghs—Queensferry, Dunfermline and Musselburgh—that belonged to the Abbey.^[5][11] By 1451, Kirkcaldy was awarded feu-ferme status. Under the status, responsibility would now lie with the bailies and council to deal with the routine administration of the town and its fiscal policies; conditioned on an annual payment of 33s 4d (£49.65) to the Abbot of Dunfermline.^[3][8]

16th to 18th centuries[link]

At the beginning of the 16th century, the town became an important trading port.^[10] The town took advantage of its east coast location, which facilitated trading contacts with the Low Countries, the Baltic region, England, and Northern France.^[5] The feu-ferme charter of 1451 between the Abbot of Dunfermline and the burgesses of Kirkcaldy mentioned a small but functioning harbour; it is not known when this harbour was established, or whether it was always located at the mouth of the East Burn.^[5][9][12] According to treasurers' accounts of the early 16th century, timber imported via the harbour—possibly from the Baltic countries—was used at Falkland Palace and Edinburgh Castle, as well as in shipbuilding.^[5] Raw materials such as hides, wool, skins, herring, salmon, coal and salt were exported from the town until well into the 17th century.^[5][13]

Remains of the common muir now known as Volunteers' Green

A charter issued by Charles I granting royal burgh status in 1644 led to the full independence of the town. As a gesture, the king gave 8.12 acres (3.29 ha) of common muir suitable for "bleaching of linen, drying of clothes, recreation and perpetuity" to the town.^[14] In 1638, under the reign of Charles I, the town subscribed to the National Covenant, which opposed the introduction of episocopacy and patronage in the Presbyterian church.^[15] Support for the Covenanting cause cost the town over 250 men at the Battle of Kilsyth in 1645.^[14] The Civil War, which followed, killed at least another 480 men and led to the loss of many of the harbour’s trading vessels.^[10][14] By 1660, this left the town with only twelve registered ships, down from the one-hundred it is claimed were recorded between 1640 and 1644.^[14][15]

Towards the end of the 17th century, the economy recovered with growth in manufacturing.^[13][15] During this period, Daniel Defoe described Kirkcaldy as a "larger, more populous, and better built town than...any on this coast".^[15] A shipbuilding revival produced 38 vessels between 1778 and 1793.^[16] In the mid-19th century, whaling became important to the town for a short period.^[16] In 1813, the first Kirkcaldy whaling ship, The Earl Percy, sailed north to the Davis Strait; the town's last whaler, The Brilliant, was sold in 1866 to Peterhead, bringing an end to the industry.^[16] Construction of a new turnpike from Pettycur to Newport-on-Tay via Cupar in 1790, while improving only one section of Fife's isolated road system, brought a huge increase in traffic along Kirkcaldy's High Street, and helped to strengthen the town's position.^[10][15]