| 68th | Top Scottish Gaelic place names |
| Ailsa Craig | |
|---|---|
| Location | |
 
Ailsa Craig
|
|
| Ailsa Craig shown within Scotland | |
| OS grid reference | NX019997 |
| Names | |
| Gaelic name | Creag Ealasaid |
| Meaning of name | Elizabeth's rock or Fairy rock |
| Area and summit | |
| Area | 0.38 sq.mi. (0.99 km²) |
| Area rank | 149= |
| Highest elevation | 1,110 ft (338 m) (a Marilyn) |
| Population | |
| Population (2001) | 0 |
| Groupings | |
| Island group | Firth of Clyde |
| Local Authority | South Ayrshire |
  |
|
| References | [1][2][3][4] |
| If shown, area and population ranks are for all Scottish islands and all inhabited Scottish islands respectively. | |
Ailsa Craig (Scottish Gaelic: Creag Ealasaid) is an island in the outer Firth of Clyde, Scotland where granite was quarried to make curling stones. "Ailsa" is pronounced "ale-sa", with the first syllable stressed. The now uninhabited island is formed from the volcanic plug of an extinct volcano.
The island was a haven for Catholics during the Scottish Reformation in the 16th century, but is today a bird sanctuary, providing a home for huge numbers of gannets and an increasing number of puffins.
Contents |
The island is located approximately 10 miles (16 km) west of Girvan. Two miles (3 km) in circumference and rising to 1,110 feet (340 m), the island consists entirely of the volcanic plug of an extinct volcano that might have been active about 500 million years ago.[5]
It is part of to the administrative district of South Ayrshire, in the ancient parish of Dailly.
The lighthouse on its east coast faces the Scottish mainland, and a ruined keep of uncertain origins is perched on the hillside above.
Ailsa Craig was a haven for Roman Catholics during the Scottish Reformation. In 1597 the Catholic supporter, Hugh Barclay of Ladyland, took possession of Ailsa Craig, which he was intent on using as a provisioning and stopping off point for a Spanish invasion which would re-establish the Catholic faith in Scotland. He was discovered by the Protestant minister Andrew Knox and upon being discovered he either tried to escape or deliberately drowned himself in the sea off Ailsa Craig.[6]
In 1831, the twelfth earl of Cassillis became first Marquess of Ailsa, taking the title from the Craig, which was his property.
From the mid-19th to mid-20th centuries, the island was quarried for its rare type of micro-granite with riebeckite (known as "Ailsite") which was used to make curling stones. As of 2004, 60 to 70% of all curling stones in use were made from granite from the island.[7] The floor of the Chapel of the Thistle in St Giles Cathedral, Edinburgh is also made of this rock.
Ailsa Craig is now uninhabited, the lighthouse having been automated in 1990.[8] Though quarry blasting is no longer allowed, loose granite rock from the island has been recently used for manufacture into curling stones by the Kays of Scotland company.[9] The island is now a bird sanctuary. Huge numbers of gannets nest here and following a pioneering technique to eradicate the island's imported population of rats a growing number of puffins are choosing to return to the Craig from nearby Glunimore and Sheep Islands.
The island belongs to the 8th Marquess of Ailsa, 19th Earl of Cassillis.
The name of the island is an anglicisation of the Gaelic, Aillse Creag, or Creag Ealasaid, now understood to mean "Elizabeth's rock". The first element, Aillse, appears to represent Allt Shasann, "cliff of the English", mentioned in the Book of Leinster as Aldasain.[10] The 10th-century Cath Maige Mucrama appears to refer to the area around Port Ríg (modern Portree) as the airer Saxan ocus Bretan, "the coastland of the English and Welsh", indicating that the region's Northumbrian character was still notable to the Gaelic-speakers settling the region in this period.[11]
As a result of being the most conspicuous landmark in the channel between Ireland and Scotland, the island is known by a number of different names;
The name Elizabeth is actually a corruption of Elspeth, and refers to Elspeth McCrudden, daughter of Alexander "Sawney" Bean who planted The Hairy Tree in the Ayrshire town of Girvan (which is visible from Ailsa Craig). Local legend holds that Elspeth tried (unsuccessfully) to swim to Ailsa Craig to escape the mob who later hanged her from The Hairy Tree.
The island is sometimes known as Paddy's Milestone[12], being approximately the halfway point of the sea journey from Belfast to Glasgow, a traditional route of emigration for many Irish labourers coming to Scotland to seek work.
The Bass Rock is sometimes nicknamed "the Ailsa Craig of the East", but its prominence in the Firth of Forth is not as great as that of Ailsa Craig in the Firth of Clyde.
In April 2009, Northern Irish singer/songwriter, Foy Vance, released the EP 'Portraits Of The Artist', which contained a song titled 'Portraits of Ailsa Craig'.[13]
Coordinates: 55°15′7″N 5°6′59″W / 55.25194°N 5.11639°W
This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica, Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain.
|
|||||
Ailsa Craig (Scottish Gaelic:Creag Ealasaid) is an island in the Firth of Clyde off the coast of Ayrshire in Scotland. It is colloquially known as "Paddy's Milestone" as it is roughly marks the halfway point of the sea journey from Belfast to Glasgow. Ailsa Craig is a spectacular landmark, rising steeply out of the sea up to 1110 feet at its peak. It can be seen from all along the Ayrshire coast, as well as Kintyre and from Northern Ireland, although it is only 3/4 of a mile long by 1/2 a mile wide.
From the mid-19th to mid-20th centuries, the island was quarried for its rare type of granite, known as "Ailsite" which was used to make curling stones. The floor of the Chapel of the Thistle in St Giles Cathedral, Edinburgh is also made of this rock.
Ailsa Craig is now uninhabited, the lighthouse having been automated in 1990. The quarry is still operated from time to time, but there are no resident workers. The island is now a bird sanctuary managed by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) [1]. Huge numbers of gannets nest here and following a pioneering technique to eradicate the island's imported population of rats a growing number of puffins are choosing to return to the Craig from nearby Glunimore and Sheep Islands.
The only way to reach Ailsa Craig is by boat.
From Ayrshire
From Campbeltown
Although there is a narrow gauge railway line once used by the miners, there are no actual trains on the island, so the only way to get around is by walking.
Bring everything you want to eat with you, as there are no catering facilities on the island.
Plans have been mooted to convert the former miners cottages into luxury holiday accommodation, but this has been opposed by conservation groups, so at the moment there is nowhere to sleep on the island.
Boats that operate trips to the island are generally open, or only partly covered, so it's important to take warm, windproof, waterproof clothing, at any time of year. The island is surrounded by steep cliffs, so care should be exercised at all times.
| This article is an outline and needs more content. It has a template, but there is not enough information present. Please plunge forward and help it grow! |
Category: Outline articles
AILSA CRAIG, an island rock at the mouth of the Firth of Clyde, 10 m. W. of Girvan, Ayrshire, Scotland. It is of conoidal form, with an irregular elliptic base, and rises abruptly to a height of 1114 ft. The only side from which the rock can be ascended is the east; the other sides being for the most part perpendicular, and generally presenting lofty columnar forms, though not so regular as those of Staffa. This island is composed of micro-granite with riebeckite, of great interest on account of the rare occurrence of this type in Britain. It is comparatively fine-grained and of a greyish colour. Its essential constituents are felspar, quartz and riebeckite - a soda amphibole. The last of these minerals occurs in small irregular patches between the idiomorphic felspars which Dr J. J. H. Teall has found to be a soda orthoclase. The rock is allied to paisanite described by C. A. Osann and has been termed ailsite by Professor M. F. Heddle. It forms part of an intrusive mass which, on the south and west cliffs of the island, has a columnar arrangement and is traversed by dykes of dolerite, most of which run in a northwest direction. The age of this mass is uncertain, as its relations to other rocks are not visible in the island. As riebeckite-granophyre has been found in Skye it may be of Tertiary age. The rock is a favourite material for curling-stones, about three-fourths (according to estimate) of those in use in the countries where the game obtains being made of it. On this account curling-stones are popularly known as "Ailsas" or "Ailsa Craigs." A columnar cave exists towards the northern side of the island, and on the eastern are the remains of a tower, with several vaulted rooms. Two springs occur and some scanty grass affords subsistence to rabbits, and, on the higher levels, to goats. The precipitous parts are frequented by large flocks of solan geese and other sea birds. The lighthouse on the southern side shows a flashing light visible for 13 m. In 1831 the twelfth earl of Cassillis became first marquis of Ailsa, taking the title from the Craig, which was his property. When John Keats was in Girvan during his Scottish tour in 1818 he apostrophized the rock in a fine sonnet.
|
Aimak >> |
   | Ordnance Survey - Ordnance Survey, Britain's national mapping agency |
| | Northern Lighthouse Board - Automation of lighthouse - Ailsa Craig History |
| | Image of Ailsa Craig - Ailsa Craig on Flickr - Photo Sharing! |
| | Atomic Jeep - Flickr: atomicjeep's Photostream |
| | Flickr - Welcome to Flickr - Photo Sharing |
|
|
Wikis
Quiz
Map
Misc
Search
