Editing Stranraer (section)

==History==
The Battle of Loch Ryan was fought near Stranraer on 9/10 February 1307 during the [[Scottish Wars of Independence]]. King [[Robert I of Scotland]]'s invasion of his ancestral lands in [[Annandale, Dumfries and Galloway|Annandale]] and [[Carrick, Scotland|Carrick]] began in 1307. The Annandale and Galloway invasion force was led by his brothers [[Alexander de Brus]] and [[Thomas de Brus]], Malcolm McQuillan, Lord of Kintyre, an Irish sub-king and Sir [[Reginald Crawford (d.1307)|Reginald de Crawford]]. The force consisted of 1,000 men and 18 galleys. They sailed into Loch Ryan and landed near Stranraer.

The invasion force was quickly overwhelmed by local forces, led by [[Dungal MacDouall]], who was a supporter of the Balliols, Comyns and King Edward I of England, and only two galleys escaped. All the leaders were captured. MacDouall summarily executed the Irish sub-king and Malcolm McQuillan, Lord of Kintyre. Alexander, Thomas and Reginald de Crawford were sent to Carlisle, England, where they were executed. The heads of McQuillan and two Irish chiefs were sent to King Edward I.

On 12 November 1595, the ''Clashant of Stranrawer'' was named part of Ninian Adair's lands of Barony <ref>[https://archive.org/stream/hereditarysherif01agne#page/431/mode/1up "Hereditary Sheriffs of Galloway" at Openlibrary.org]</ref> and, in 1596, was erected into a [[burgh of barony]], the Barony of Kinhilt. This is recorded in the Register of the [[Great Seal of Scotland]].<ref>[https://archive.org/stream/registrummagnisi06scot#page/123/mode/1up Register Great Seal of Scotland, vol. 6, pp. 123-124.]</ref> The partial translation into English is: <blockquote>At [[Linlithgow]], 12 November 1595, the King confirms and for faithful service again dedicates to Ninian Adair of Kinhilt, and the legitimate male heirs of his body, which failing his nearest legitimate male heirs whosoever bear the name and insignia of Adair[, various lands....] In addition, the King creates the village at Clauchane de Stranraer as a free burgh of the barony with a free port, called the Burgh and Port of Stranraer; and the said Ninian etc shall have the authority to appoint a [[bailiff]], treasurer, [[Dean of Guild]], magistrate, [[burgess (title)|burgess]]es, officials etc; and the burgesses shall have the authority and leave to pack and unpack [meaning the selling of bulk merchandise (wholesale trade) allowed by law only by free men in a free burgh], to buy and sell [also allowed only in a free burgh] etc; [...] and the said Ninian etc shall have authority to hold the position of governor of the said burgh, [...] to hold weekly markets on Saturday, with free (untaxed) market days twice a year, viz [[Barnabas|Saint Barnabas]]' day the 11th of June, and at Peter's Imprisonment called [[Lammas]] on the 1st of August, [...] and the said Ninian etc shall have authority over all the port customs of the said burgh raised by sea or land among the land tenents of the said burgh and support of the said port; and the said Ninian etc shall have authority to receive resignations of lands of the said burgh etc [i.e. recover his lands from towns people who choose to sell them or give them up]; from those persons whatsoever who chose to dispose of them; the townspeople may meet three times a week on Monday, Wednesday and Friday.</blockquote>

By 1600, Stranraer had become the market town for western [[Wigtownshire]]. Around this time, Stranraer was reached by a military road built from [[Dumfries]] to allow easier access to [[Portpatrick]] for transportation of people to Ireland for the [[Plantation of Ulster]]. Stranraer became a [[royal burgh]] in 1617.

The first harbour in Stranraer was built in the mid-18th century, with further port development in the 1820s. The arrival of the railway from Dumfries in 1861 (closed 1965), giving the shortest journey to/from London, finally established Stranraer as the area's main port. In 1862, the line was extended to serve the harbour directly, and a link to Portpatrick was also opened. In 1877, a rail connection north to [[Girvan]] and [[Glasgow]] was also established. Stranraer remained the main Scottish port for the Irish ferries for the next 150 years or so. On 31 January 1953, 133 people died when the ''[[MV Princess Victoria|Princess Victoria]]'' sank near [[Belfast Lough]] after its car deck was swamped by heavy seas.

Stranraer and its surrounding area saw a significant amount of activity during the [[World War II|Second World War]], as it became a focus for anti-U-boat work. Flying boats operated from the area in an attempt to secure the waters of the [[North Channel (British Isles)|North Channel]] and the south western coast of Scotland. Almost all of Britain's shipping imports passed through those two sea areas en route to the Clyde or the Mersey. Indeed, the flying boat ''[[Supermarine Stranraer]]'' is named after the town. Winston Churchill himself departed from Stranraer in a Boeing Flying Boat on the night of 25 June 1942, when making his second visit of the war to the United States. Churchill also spent time at nearby Knockinaam Lodge during the war years.

Stranraer has an active local history trust, which publishes work on the area's history, commissioned from local authors.<ref>[https://stranraerhistory.org.uk/ Local history trust]</ref>