Finding a hotel in Falkirk

Unitary authority in central Scotland created from the former district of the same name in 1996 from part of the former Central region. It covers an area of 115 sqaure miles (297 sq. Km). The population is around 146,000. It borders onto North Lanarkshire, Stirling and West Lothian. The council area covers part of the traditional county of Stirlingshire as well as part of the traditional county of West Lothian. The administrative centre is Falkirk.

Geography

Falkirk is centrally located between Edinburgh and Glasgow, this low-lying area borders the southern side of the Firth of Forth. The major river is the Avon.

Industry

An industrial area, the main industries are chemicals and petrochemicals, bus building, soft drinks, toffees. In addition to traditional industries such as coach-building, iron-founding, paper-making and sawmilling, Falkirk has developed a number of hi-tech business parks and industrial estates, and at Grangemouth on the River Forth is Scotland's leading petrochemical complex and container port. In the rural areas there is some dairy and arable farming. The area continues to function as a very significant industrial and business centre, with a modern petrochemicals complex at Grangemouth, Scotland's largest deep-sea container port. Engineering, manufacturing, biotechnology, timber, distribution and business services also flourish. the area has an equally high reputation nowadays for its new residential, retail, heritage and leisure developments and it has gained much popularity as a place to live and a place to visit.

History

The area had strategic importance since Roman times, when the Romans built the Antonine Wall between the Firths of Forth and Clyde to form its northern frontier. Many of the best visible remains of the Romans in Scotland occur in the Falkirk Area.

Two major Scottish battles took place at Falkirk. The first in July 22, 1298 saw the defeat of William Wallace by King Edward II. The second battle of Falkirk took place in 17th January, 1746 as the Jacobites, under Bonnie Prince Charlie laid siege to Sterling Castle. In the 18th century the area served as the cradle of Scotland's industrial revolution, becoming the earliest major centre of the iron-casting industry and at the forefront of canal construction when the Forth and Clyde Canal opened in 1790.