Fidra

Infobox Scottish island
latitude=56.07
longitude=-2.78


GridReference=NT512869
celtic name=Fiodra
norse name=Fiðrey
meaning of name=Feathery island
area= c.10ha
area rank=
highest elevation=c.20 m
Population=0
population rank=
main settlement=
island group=Islands of the Forth
local authority=East Lothian
references= [2001 UK Census per List of islands of Scotland] Haswell-Smith] [ [http://www.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/ Ordnance Survey] ]

Fidra (archaically Fidreycite web |url=http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.asp?compid=43439&strquery=fidrey#s30 |title=Faifley - Fifeshire |work=A Topographical |date=1846 |author=Lewis, Samuel |accessdate=2008-06-18] ) is an uninhabited island in the Firth of Forth, convert|4|km|mi north-west of North Berwick, on the east coast of Scotland.

Geography

Like the other islands near North Berwick, Fidra is the result of volcanic activity around 335 million years ago. Fidra consists of three sections; a hill at one end with the lighthouse on it; a low lying section in the middle, effectively an isthmus; and a rocky stack at the other end.

History

Its name is believed to be Old Norse in origin, referring to the large number of bird feathers found there. Like the nearby Bass Rock, it has a substantial seabird population, and is now an RSPB reserve. The village of Gullane lies to the south-west, and the nature reserve of Yellowcraigs and village of Dirleton, to which parish Fidra belongs, Martine, John (1890) "Fourteen Parishes of the County of Haddington", Edinburgh, p.50-51] are to the south. Fidra has an automated lighthouse, and can be accessed via a primitive jetty on the west of the island. Remotely-operated cameras on the island send live pictures to the watching visitors at the Scottish Seabird Centre in North Berwick. [ [http://www.seabird.org/webcam-fidra.asp Fidra Web Cam] Scottish Seabird Centre. Retrieved on 18 June 2008. ]

Upon the island are ruins of an old chapel, or "lazaretto" for the sick, which was dedicated in 1165 to St. Nicholas. In the 12th century, the island formed part of the barony of Dirleton, which was granted to the Anglo-Norman John de Vaux by King David I. The de Vaux family built a stronghold, known as Tarbet Castle, on the island, but in 1220, William de Vaux gifted Fidra to the monks of Dryburgh Abbey, in the Borders. His successor built Dirleton Castle, on the mainland, as a replacement dwelling. [Tabraham, Chris (2007) "Dirleton Castle" 2nd edition. Historic Scotland. ISBN 1904966418 pp.21-22]

Lighthouse

The lighthouse was built in 1885, and was automated in 1970. The light flashes every 24 seconds.fact|date=June 2008

Cultural references

It is said that Robert Louis Stevenson based his map of "Treasure Island" on the shape of Fidra. He often visited the beaches at the area known today as Yellowcraigs. He also mentioned it in his novel "Catriona"cite web |url=http://www.geo.ed.ac.uk/scotgaz/features/featurefirst1599.html |title=Fidra |work=Gazetteer for Scotland |accessdate=2008-06-18] Fidra Books is a publishing house, named after the island, and which uses it as part of its logo. [cite web |url=http://www.fidrabooks.co.uk/ |title=Fidra Books |accessdate=2008-06-18] The progressive rock band Marillion also briefly mention Fidra in the song, "Warm Wet Circles", where it says "She nervously undressed in the dancing beams of the Fidra Lighthouse", [cite web |url=http://www.faqs.org/faqs/music/marillion-faq/part1/section-36.html |title=What is the Fidra Lighthouse? |work=Marillion Frequently Asked Questions |date=1992-1997 |author=Schipper, Jeroen (ed.) |accessdate=2008-06-18] because apparently the coast nearby is a courting spot.fact|date=June 2008

Footnotes

External links

* [http://www.henniker.org.uk/html/e_lothian4.htm Images of Fidra]
* [http://www.lighthousedepot.com/database/uniquelighthouse.cfm?value=1866 Fidra Island light]