Angus, Scotland

The name "Angus" indicates the territory of the eighth-century Pictish king of that name.[1]

The area that now comprises Angus has been occupied since at least the Neolithic period. Material taken from postholes from an enclosure at Douglasmuir, near Friockheim, about five miles north of Arbroath has been radiocarbon dated to around 3500 BC. The function of the enclosure is unknown, but may have been for agriculture or for ceremonial purposes.[2]

Bronze Age archaeology is to be found in abundance in the area. Examples include the short-cist burials found near West Newbigging, about a mile to the North of the town. These burials included pottery urns, a pair of silver discs and a gold armlet.[3] Iron Age archaeology is also well represented, for example in the souterrain nearby Warddykes cemetery[4] and at West Grange of Conan,[5] as well as the better-known examples at Carlungie and Ardestie.

The county is traditionally associated with the Pictish territory of Circin, which is thought to have encompassed Angus and the Mearns. Bordering it were the kingdoms of Cé (Mar and Buchan) to the North, Fotla (Atholl) to the West, and Fib (Fife) to the South. The most visible remnants of the Pictish age are the numerous sculptured stones that can be found throughout Angus. Of particular note are the collections found at Aberlemno, St Vigeans, Kirriemuir and Monifieth.

Angus is first recorded as one of the provinces of Scotland in 937, when Dubacan, the Mormaer of Angus, is recorded in the Chronicle of the Kings of Alba as having died at the Battle of Brunanburh.[6]

The signing of the Declaration of Arbroath at Arbroath Abbey in 1320 marked Scotland's establishment as an independent nation. Partly on this basis, Angus is marketed as the birthplace of Scotland.[7] It is an area of rich history from Pictish times onwards. Notable historic sites in addition to Arbroath Abbey include Glamis Castle, Arbroath Signal Tower museum and the Bell Rock Lighthouse, described as one of the Seven Wonders of the Industrial World.[8]

In the 2001 census, the population of Angus was recorded as 108,400. 20.14% were under the age of 16, 63.15% were between 16 and 65 and 18.05% were aged 65 or above.

Of the 16 to 74 age group, 32.84% had no formal qualifications, 27.08% were educated to 'O' Grade/Standard Grade level, 14.38% to Higher level, 7.64% to HND or equivalent level and 18.06% to degree level.

The most recent available census results (2001) show that Gaelic is spoken by 0.45% of the Angus population. This, similar to other lowland areas, is lower than the national average of 1.16%.[13] These figures are self-reported and are not broken down into levels of fluency.

Meanwhile, the 2011 census found that 38.4% of the population in Angus can speak Scots, above the Scottish average of 30.1%. This puts Angus as the council area with the sixth highest proficiency in Scots, behind only Shetland, Orkney, Moray, Aberdeenshire, and East Ayrshire.

Historically, the dominant language in Angus was Pictish until the sixth to seventh centuries AD when the area became progressively gaelicised, with Pictish extinct by the mid-ninth century.[14] Gaelic/Middle Irish began to retreat from lowland areas in the late-eleventh century and was absent from the Eastern lowlands by the fourteenth century. It was replaced there by Middle Scots, the contemporary local South Northern dialect of Modern Scots, while Gaelic persisted as a majority language in the Highlands and Hebrides until the 19th century.[15][16]

Angus Council are planning to raise the status of Gaelic in the county by adopting a series of measures, including bilingual road signage, communications, vehicle livery and staffing.[17]

Angus Council Comhairle Aonghais
Type
Type	Unitary authority
Leadership
Provost	Brian Boyd, Independent since 26 May 2022[18]
Leader	Beth Whiteside, SNP since 26 May 2022[19]
Chief Executive	Margo Williamson[20] since 1 June 2017[21]
Structure
Seats	28 councillors
Political groups	Administration[22]   SNP (13)   Independent (2) Other parties   Conservative (7)   Independent (5)   Labour (1)
Length of term	Full council elected every 4 years
Elections
Voting system	Single transferable vote
Last election	5 May 2022
Next election	6 May 2027
Meeting place
Town and County Hall, Forfar
Website
www.angus.gov.uk

Map of the area's wards (2017 configuration)

The Local Government (Scotland) Act 1889 established a uniform system of county councils in Scotland and realigned the boundaries of many of Scotland's counties. Subsequently, Angus County Council was created in 1890. In May 1975 the county council was abolished and its functions were transferred to Tayside Regional Council: the local area was served by Angus District Council. The county council was based at the County Buildings in Market Street in Forfar.[23]

Angus Council is one of the 32 local government council areas of Scotland after the two-tier local government council was abolished and Angus was established as one of the replacement single-tier Council Areas in 1996. As of May 2017 there are 28 seats on the council. From the May 2022 elections the seats are held as follows – SNP 13, Independent 7, Conservative 7, Labour 2.

The boundaries of the present council area are the same as those of the historic county minus the Dundee City. The council area borders Aberdeenshire, Dundee City and Perth and Kinross.

The council's civic head is the Provost of Angus. There have been seven Provosts since its establishment in 1996 – Frances Duncan, Bill Middleton, Ruth Leslie-Melville, Helen Oswald, Alex King, Ronnie Proctor and Brian Boyd. Angus is also a lieutenancy area; the Lord Lieutenant of Angus is appointed by the monarch and is unconnected to the council.

The council has had four Chief Executives since its formation – Sandy Watson 1996–2006, David Sawers 2006–2011, Richard Stiff 2011–2017 and Margo Williamson 2017 to date. Margo Williamson is the first female Chief Executive since the council was formed.

The role of provost is largely ceremonial in Angus. Political leadership is instead provided by the leader of the council. The leaders since 1996 have been:[24]

Angus House: Angus Council's main offices since 2007.

Council meetings are generally held at Forfar Town and County Hall at The Cross in the centre of Forfar.[25] In 2007 the council moved its main offices to a new building called Angus House on Silvie Way in the Orchardbank Business Park on the outskirts of Forfar.[26]

Angus is represented by three MPs for the UK Parliament.

• Angus — covers most of the council area, is represented by Dave Doogan of the Scottish National Party.
• Dundee East — mainly covers Dundee, however a small portion of eastern Sidlaw and Carnoustie areas are part of the constituency, is represented by Stewart Hosie of the Scottish National Party.
• Dundee West — mainly covers Dundee, however a small portion of western Sidlaw area is part of the constituency, is represented by Chris Law of the Scottish National Party.

Angus is represented by two constituency MSPs for the Scottish Parliament.

• Angus North and Mearns — covers the north of Angus and a southern portion of Aberdeenshire, is represented by Mairi Gougeon of the Scottish National Party.
• Angus South — covers the south of Angus, is represented by Graeme Dey of the Scottish National Party.

In addition to the two constituency MSPs, Angus is also represented by seven MSPs for the North East Scotland electoral region.