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Dysart (; (スコットランド・ゲール語:Dìseart)) is a former town and royal burgh located on the south-east coast between Kirkcaldy and West Wemyss in Fife. The town is now considered to be a suburb of Kirkcaldy. Dysart was once part of a wider estate owned by the St Clair or Sinclair family. They were responsible for gaining burgh of barony status for the town towards the end of the 15th century. The first record of the town was made in the early 13th century, its initial role being to settle civil matters between the church and landowners. During the middle of the 15th century, trade with the Low Countries began for salt and coal exportation. In the 16th and 17th centuries, trade expanded to the Baltic Countries. Dysart acquired two nicknames: "Salt Burgh" and "Little Holland" as a result. Following the sudden decline of the town's harbour caused by the closure of the Lady Blanche Pit, the town was amalgamated into the royal burgh of Kirkcaldy under an act of parliament in 1930. Urban clearance during the 1950s and 1960s saw large parts of the historic town demolished for new housing. Demand from the town's residents meant that part of the historic town — most notably the 16th-century and the 18th-century houses of Pan Ha' opposite the harbour — were salvaged and preserved for future generations. Today, Dysart retains an individual character within the boundary of neighbouring Kirkcaldy. == History == The local saying "as old as the three trees of Dysart" may prove to be vital evidence that the town's existence stretches back to ancient times.〔Pearson, John M. ''Around Kirkcaldy'' pp.24–25.〕 Dysart’s name is considered to have had two possible meanings - either from the Latin word "deserta" meaning "the fasting place of a holy man" in reference to the legend of St Serf who came to Dysart around 500 AD or from the Celtic word "dys-ard" meaning height of god.〔Eunson ''Old Dysart and East Kirkcaldy'' pp.3–4.〕〔Omand ''The Fife Book''〕〔Swan, Jim and McNeill, Carol ''Dysart – A Royal Burgh'' pp.11–14.〕 According to the statistical accounts of the parish ministers of 1793 and 1836, the name is alleged to come from Gaelic "Dus-ard" meaning "the temple of the most high". Nonetheless, Dysart’s most famous son, Dr John Stuart explains what he thinks about the origin of the name and why.〔Cummingham ''Dysart: Past and Present'' p.3.〕 ''"We learn from an early life of St Serf that he won’t resort to cell or caves for the purpose of devotion, and that while in one of the latter “in deserto’ he was assaulted by the devil, who wished to engage him in a religious disruption”'' Prior to the 16th century, very little is known about the history of the town.〔Kirkcaldy District Council Community Programme, ''Dysart'', pp.5–6.〕 The earliest record of the town's existence is a document about a papal decision between Dysart Kirk and Dunfermline Abbey in 1220.〔〔Swan and McNeill, ''Dysart – A Royal Burgh'' p.76.〕 Another record followed in 1245, this time about the reconsecration of Dysart Kirk undertaken by David de Bernham of St Andrews.〔 The initial role of the town, like many communities in Scotland, was to serve the church and landowners by resolving civic matters and dealing individually with property issues.〔Swan, Jim and McNeill, Carol ''Dysart – A Royal Burgh'' p.12.〕 The first port has been said to date as far back as 1450. This helped the export of coal and salt with the town's trading partner, the Low Countries. A man-made harbour was eventually built, but could only be used at low tide with limited space.〔Swan, Jim and McNeill, Carol ''Dysart: A Royal Burgh'' p.17.〕 The damage caused by the jetty which was commonly known as the "east haven of Dysart" temporarily cut short the function of the east pier in the mid-17th century.〔 The harbour was later extensively rebuilt in 1829-31 with the assistance of Robert Stephenson, to include an inner basin with a nearby quarry at the harbour head and an extension of the east pier which would be raised and pointed southwards.〔〔Eunson ''Old Dysart and East Kirkcaldy''〕 During the 16th and 17th centuries, the town went through hard times with many residents, particularly skippers, being killed in the wars of covenanting (1644–1645) and the five-year occupation of Oliver Cromwell between 1651 and 1656. However, the salt trade prospered between the town and its two trading partners – Netherlands and the Baltic Countries with production thriving between 1570 and 1630.〔 Subsequently, the town was given two nicknames: ''salt burgh'' (for the salt industry keeping the fish fresh for export) and later ''Little Holland'' (for the Dutch influence in Dysart's buildings inspired by the shipowners who went there).〔〔〔Swan, Jim and McNeill, Carol ''Dysart: A Royal Burgh''〕 The first coal pit in the town - known as Lady Blanche - opened towards the end of the 16th century. Two new pits – Frances and Randolph – would follow by the middle of the 17th century as coal began to succeed the salt trade.〔 Meanwhile, the harbour was revived with the imports of wine and spirits being sent to other harbours at Leith, Dundee and Perth. In the 1920s, the owners of the harbour, the Earl of Rossyln's Coal Company, put pressure on the town council to deepen the harbour for use of larger ships. The council was plunged into financial ruin after the coal company refused to pay for the work in excess of £500. Many ships went instead to Buckhaven and Methil, where they received a quicker turnaround than in Dysart.〔Swan, Jim and McNeill, Carol ''Dysart – A Royal Burgh'' pp.28–29.〕 The closure of the uneconomic Lady Blanche Pit in 1929, proved to be the end of the town's coal trade from the harbour.〔〔〔 The lack of revenue from Dysart's harbour forced the town to merge with Kirkcaldy under a private act of parliament in 1930.〔 Dysart Golf Club (now defunct) was founded in 1897. The club and course closed at the time of WW2.〔("Dysart Golf Club" ), "Golf’s Missing Links".〕 Today, Dysart is considered to be a north-eastern suburb of Kirkcaldy and the village forms one of 48 conservation areas in Fife. Important landmarks in the village include the Dutch influenced houses on Pan Ha'; the six-storey St Serf's Church Tower; Dysart Tolbooth and the Francis Collery gearhead which is situated on the northern boundaries. An £11 million pound scheme has been started by The Townscape Heritage Initiative (THI) and Conservation Area Grants Scheme (CARS) to regenerate Dysart over a period of five years, due to be completed in 2014. This will include repairing historic buildings and structures such as Dysart Tolbooth and Dysart Harbour as well as providing new housing and meeting environmental needs.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Dysart Townscape Heritage Initiative (THI) )〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Dysart, Fife」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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