From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The border country is the area either side of the Anglo-Scottish border including parts of the modern council areas of Dumfries and Galloway and the Scottish Borders, and parts of the English counties of Cumbria, County Durham and Northumberland. It is a hilly area, with the Scottish Southern Uplands to the north, and the English Cheviot Hills to the south.
Before the two kingdoms were united as the Kingdom of Great Britain, the Border clans would switch allegiance between the Scottish and English thrones depending on what was most favourable for the members of the clan.
Border clans should not be confused with the Highland clan; the Border clan was a much looser structure, with far less in the way of clan culture or a recognition of clan history[citation needed]. In fact, the Border "clans" were not referred to as such in law or proclamations, but as "grains".
Well-known Border clans include the following: Armstrong, Beattie, Bell, Carr, Dickson, Douglas, Elliot, Fenwick, Graham, Kerr, Naisbitt, Ogilvie, Robson and Scott. In addition, there were Lowland families associated with these clans, including the Ballantyne, Fraser, Jamieson, Henderson, Irvine, Jardine, Moffat, Porteous, Tweedie, and Veitch families, amongst many others.
[edit] See also
This Dumfries and Galloway location article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.
This Scottish Borders location article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.
This Northumberland location article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.
This Cumbria location article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.
