Timeline of Inverkeithing
The following is a timeline of the history of Inverkeithing in Fife, Scotland.
1st century
- 79 AD - 87 AD - During the Roman Conquest of Britain, it is likely Governor Agricola established an encampment in the Inverkeithing area during his war against the Caledonians.[1]
12th century
- 1114 - Inverkeithing is mentioned in the foundation charter of Scone Abbey granted by Alexander I.[2] This is the earliest surviving documentation of Inverkeithing.
- 1161 - Inverkeithing has been granted Royal Burgh status; it is mentioned as an existing royal burgh under the reign of Malcolm IV.[1]
- 1163 - Pope Alexander III summons the clergy of Inverkeithing to the British Isles Council of Tours.[3]
- 1196 - A hostel for pilgrims in Inverkeithing is documented as a possession of Dryburgh Abbey.[4]
13th century
- 24 August 1244 - Inverkeithing's medieval church was consecrated to St. Peter by Bishop de Bernham.[5]
- 1270 - A colony of Jews makes an unsuccessful application to Alexander III to settle at Inverkeithing.[6]
- 1282 - According to the Lanercrost Chronicle, a scandal of Inverkeithing parish priest. At Easter, the priest "revived the profane rites of Priapus, collecting young girls from the villages, and compelling them to dance in circles to the honour of Father Bacchus, [...] singing and dancing himself and stirring them to lust by filthy language." When the priest exhibited similar behaviour during Lent, a scandalised citizen stabbed him to death.[7]
- 19 March 1286 - King Alexander III is last seen in Inverkeithing, before dying in a storm on route to Kinghorn.[8]
14th century
- 2nd March 1304 - King Edward I of England, known as the Hammer of the Scots, stays in Inverkeithing on his return to Scotland during the First War of Scottish Independence.[9]
- Autumn 1316 - King Robert the Bruce issues two charters from Inverkeithing.[6]
- April 1354 - The Parliament of Scotland meets at Inverkeithing.[10]
- 1385 - Inverkeithing Franciscan Friary is mentioned to have been built.[11]
- 1389 - Inverkeithing Mercat Cross is erected, likely marking the marriage between the Duke of Rothesay and the daughter of the Earl of Douglas.[12]
15th century
- 1429 - Inverkeithing Burgh authorities were reimbursed for expenses from the landing and passing through of Princess Elizabeth, daughter of King James I.[13]
- 1487 - Act of Parliament during the reign of James III specifies that the Convention of Royal Burghs will be held annually in Inverkeithing. It would be moved to Edinburgh in 1552.[14]
16th century
- 1503 - an Act of Parliament charges the inhabitants of Inverkeithing with the building of a wall seaward with ports of stone and lime.[6]
- November 1504 - following a plague scare at Dunfermline Palace, four African women including Ellen More, with John Mosman, the court apothecary, came to stay in Inverkeithing.[15]
- 1535 - at the King's Council, representatives of Inverkeithing protest at the imposition of national stent on the grounds of poverty.[6]
- 1557 - Stone town walls were added around Inverkeithing (the last remains of which are found on the south side of Roman Road).[16]
- 1559 - Inverkeithing Friary is sold to a private buyer as part of the Scottish reformation.[17]
- 1582 - the earliest mention of a schoolmaster in Inverkeithing; the earliest mention of a school is after its erection in 1675.[6]
- 1598 - Inverkeithing was granted a charter of confirmation as a Royal Burgh by James VI.[13]
17th century
- c. 1608/1609 - an epidemic of the plague broke out in Inverkeithing.[6]
- 1611 - the parishes of Inverkeithing and Rosyth were united.[18]
- 1621 - six local women are tried for witchcraft at Inverkeithing Tolbooth.[19]
- 1621 to 1652 - at least 51 people are executed for witchcraft in Inverkeithing.[20]
- 1646 - First mention of Inverkeithing Highland Games.[21]
- 1648 - Inverkeithing Lammas Fair mentioned in Burgh records as “…a great day for fun, frolic, fit races, ale and drunken folks, gentle and simple”[21]
- 20th July 1651 - the Battle of Inverkeithing takes place; the decisive final battle of the Wars of the Three Kingdoms in Scotland, giving Oliver Cromwell's forces control over Scotland.[22]
18th century
- 9th April 1707 - Robert Balfour commits a famous a crime of passion in Inverkeithing.[23]
- 1707 - James Spittle, representing Inverkeithing, votes in favour of ratification of the Treaty of Union with England (see Acts of Union).
- 30th November 1735 - Samuel Grieg is born in Inverkeithing.
- 19th November 1754 - Freemason Lodge St John 60 of Inverkeithing is granted charter.[24]
- 1755 - Inverkeithing Town House is built.
- 1773 - Inverkeithing burgh council orders the ports of Inverkeithing town walls to be taken down.[25]
- 1783 - The Halbeath Waggon Way opens, terminating at Inverkeithing harbour.[26]
- 1795 - Whisky distillery in Inverkeithing is founded by Duncan Montgomery.[27]
19th century
- 1821 - merchant and politician Sir Robert Preston directed the development of Preston Crescent.[28]
- 1825 - Fire destroys most of Inverkeithing Parish Church.[29]
- 1835 - Lazaretto at Inverkeithing is decommissioned, after being constructed in the early 19th century.[30]
- 1877 - Inverkeithing Railway station is opened.[31]
- 1890 - Inverkeithing railway station expanded to dual track following the completion of the Forth Railway Bridge.[31]
- 1896 - Quarrying begins at Prestonhill Quarry. Over the next 90 years, 2 million square meters of rock will be extracted.[32]
20th century
- 1901 - Inverkeithing Bowling Club is founded.[33]
- 1903 - St Peter's Episcopal Church is built.[34]
- 1905 - Scottish oil painter Robert Hope (1869 - 1936) paints works on Inverkeithing, including "Inverkeithing".[35]
- 1906 - Inverkeithing United F.C. is founded.
- 1913 - Inverkeithing United win the 1912-1913 Scottish Junior Cup.
- 1914 - Inverkeithing builds on of the first cinemas in Scotland, Majestic Cinema at Boreland Road, which stays open until 1960.[36]
- 1914 to 1918 - 130 men from Inverkeithing die in WWI.[37]
- 1921 - HMS Dreadnaught scrapped at the newly built Thos. W. Ward shipbreaking yard at Inverkeithing, created for scrapping WWI ships. [38]
- 14 April 1923 - Inverkeithing War Memorial unveiled.[37]
- 1930 - Inverkeithing was granted its own Burgh Arms, a coat of arms for Royal Burghs. These were based on the oldest known Burgh seals, which date from 1296 and 1357.[39]
- 1935 to 1937 - RMS Olympic is dismantled at Inverkeithing.[40]
- 16 October 1939 - The first air raid of Britain during WWII takes place over the Firth of Forth; Pilots of the 602 (Glasgow) squadron spotted Luftwaffe aircraft of Helmuth Pohle over Inverkeithing; at Inverkeithing orders were given to chase through broken clouds, resulting in the killing of two German crew and incapacitating the German aircraft engines.[41]
- 1939 to 1945 - 39 men and women of Inverkeithing die in WWII.[42]
- 1971 - Rock band Nazareth starts rehearsals in Inverkeithing; the band would become the most studio recorded Scottish rock band of all time.[43]
- 1975 - Inverkeithing ceases to be a Royal Burgh after over 800 years and becomes part of Fife Council.[44]
- 1977 - St Peter in Chains Catholic Church is founded on Hope Street.[45]
- 1996 - Inverkeithing Hillfield Swifts F.C. are founded.[46]
21st century
References
- ^ a b "Inverkeithing Conservation Area Appraisal". Fife Council. 2011. Archived from the original on 16 July 2019.
- ^ "POMS: record". poms.ac.uk. Retrieved 23 October 2025.
- ^ Rupert-Jones, John A (1917). Rosyth. Dunfermline: A. Romanes.
- ^ Bradley, Ian (2019). The Fife Pilgrim Way: In the Footsteps of Monks, Miners and Martyrs. La Vergne: Birlinn. ISBN 978-1-78027-592-5.
- ^ "Inverkeithing, Church Street,... | Place | trove.scot". www.trove.scot. Retrieved 23 October 2025.
- ^ a b c d e f Simpson, Stevenson (1981). Historic Inverkeithing: the Archeological Implications of Development. Glasgow: University of Glasgow.
- ^ Murray, Maragret (1931). The God of the Witches. London: Sampson Low, Marston and Co., Ltd.
- ^ Moffat, Alistair (2015). Scotland: A History from Earliest Times (1st ed.). London: Birlinn, Limited. ISBN 978-1-78027-280-1.
- ^ Millar, Alexander (1895). Fife: Pictorial and Historical; its people, burghs, castles, and mansions. Cupar: Cupar: A. Westwood & Son.
- ^ "Records of the Parliaments of Scotland". www.rps.ac.uk. Retrieved 23 October 2025.
- ^ "Inverkeithing, Queen Street, ... | Place | trove.scot". www.trove.scot. Retrieved 23 October 2025.
- ^ Brown, Raymond Lamont (2002). Fife in history and legend. Edinburgh: John Donald. ISBN 978-0-85976-567-1.
- ^ a b "Between the Ochils and the Forth". electricscotland.com. Retrieved 23 October 2025.
- ^ J., Mackay (1884). The Convention of Royal Burghs of Scotland, From its Origin down to the Completion of the Treaty of Union between England and Scotland in 1707. Edinburgh: Co-operative printing co.
- ^ Balfour Paul, James (1900). Accounts of the Treasurer of Scotland: 1500–1504, vol. 2. Edinburgh: H.M. General Register House. p. 465.
- ^ "Inverkeithing, East Port | Place | trove.scot". www.trove.scot. Retrieved 23 October 2025.
- ^ Bradley, Ian C. (2019). The Fife pilgrim way: in the footsteps of monks, miners and martyrs. Edinburgh: Birlinn. ISBN 978-1-78027-592-5.
- ^ GENUKI. "Genuki: Inverkeithing, Fife". www.genuki.org.uk. Retrieved 23 October 2025.
- ^ "witches". witches.is.ed.ac.uk. Retrieved 23 October 2025.
- ^ "How a small Fife town became a '˜hotbed of witch-finding and punishing'". The Scotsman. 13 August 2018. Retrieved 23 October 2025.
- ^ a b "Inverkeithing Highland Games". www.inverkeithinghighlandgames.com. Retrieved 28 November 2025.
- ^ "Battle of Inverkeithing II (BTL23)". portal.historicenvironment.scot. Archived from the original on 18 February 2025. Retrieved 23 October 2025.
- ^ "Balfour". electricscotland.com. Retrieved 23 October 2025.
- ^ "Lodge St John 60 | Inverkeithing". stjohn60. Retrieved 27 November 2025.
- ^ "Inverkeithing, East Port | Place | trove.scot". www.trove.scot. Retrieved 28 November 2025.
- ^ "BORELAND ROAD, BRIDGE OVER KEITHING BURN, HALBEATH WAGGON WAY AND RAILWAY (LB49935)". portal.historicenvironment.scot. Archived from the original on 12 February 2025. Retrieved 28 November 2025.
- ^ "Inverkeithing | Scotch Whisky". scotchwhisky.com. Retrieved 27 November 2025.
- ^ "Commercial Road, Bridge Over ... | Designation | trove.scot". www.trove.scot. Retrieved 23 October 2025.
- ^ "Inverkeithing, Church Street,... | Place | trove.scot". www.trove.scot. Retrieved 28 November 2025.
- ^ Simson, James (1882). Reminisces of Childhood at Inverkeithing (1st ed.). New York: James Miller.
- ^ a b "Inverkeithing Railway Station from The Gazetteer for Scotland". www.scottish-places.info. Retrieved 28 November 2025.
- ^ "What next for controversial quarry as site is put up for sale". Dunfermline Press. 5 June 2025. Retrieved 27 November 2025.
- ^ "Inverkeithing Bowling Club". www.inverkeithingbc.org.uk. Retrieved 28 November 2025.
- ^ sct-admin (24 September 2017). "St Peter's Episcopal Church, Inverkeithing". Scotlands Churches Trust. Retrieved 27 November 2025.
- ^ "Inverkeithing | Art UK". artuk.org. Retrieved 27 November 2025.
- ^ "Majestic Cinema in Inverkeithing, GB - Cinema Treasures". cinematreasures.org. Retrieved 28 November 2025.
- ^ a b "Inverkeithing - WW1 and WW2". Imperial War Museums. Retrieved 28 November 2025.
- ^ "Inverkeithing Feature Page on Undiscovered Scotland". www.undiscoveredscotland.co.uk. Retrieved 28 November 2025.
- ^ "Inverkeithing – The Fife Post………..for genealogy and historical information". Retrieved 23 October 2025.
- ^ "R.M.S. Olympic". greatships.net. Retrieved 28 November 2025.
- ^ "The thread about a day of firsts; when the World War 2 air war over Britain started over the Firth of Forth". Threadinburgh. 14 July 2023. Retrieved 28 November 2025.
- ^ "Inverkeithing - WW1 and WW2". Imperial War Museums. Retrieved 28 November 2025.
- ^ "Rock royalty as Nazareth's 25th studio album keeps them at number one". Dunfermline Press. 16 April 2022. Retrieved 27 November 2025.
- ^ franz@gooii.com (8 February 2022). "Burghs until 1975". Your Scottish Archives. Retrieved 28 November 2025.
- ^ GENUKI. "Genuki: St Peter in Chains, Inverkeithing, Roman Catholic, Fife". www.genuki.org.uk. Retrieved 27 November 2025.
- ^ "Interesting training bases for new season". Central Fife Times. 11 June 2018. Retrieved 28 November 2025.
- ^ "Ferrytoll Bus Park and Ride". www.fife.gov.uk. 21 November 2025. Retrieved 28 November 2025.
- ^ Crawford, Ewan. "Caldwell's Paper Mill - RAILSCOT". railscot.co.uk. Archived from the original on 26 April 2025. Retrieved 28 November 2025.