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Forfar (,〔(The Online Scots Dictionary )〕 (スコットランド・ゲール語:Baile Fharfair)) is the county town of Angus, Scotland and the administrative centre for Angus Council. Its population is 14,048 Forfar Castle dates from the Roman occupation, and was held by the Picts and then the English, before being captured by the Scots and presented to Robert the Bruce. Forfar has been both a traditional market town and a major manufacturing centre for linen and jute. Today the main activities are agriculture and tourism around the scenic valley of Strathmore. The local glens are popular with hill-walkers, and there are ski-slopes in the mountains. The town has a second division football club, Forfar Athletic, and Rugby Union is represented by Strathmore Rugby Football Club. The Forfar Bridie, a popular Scottish meat pastry snack, is traditionally identified with the town. ==History== Chiefs met at a castle by Forfar Loch to plan how best to repel the Romans who invaded on several occasions between the 1st and 4th centuries AD. Ultimately the Romans prevailed, only to be displaced in the Early Middle Ages by the Picts.〔(History of Forfar, Angus )〕 The Romans established a major Roman camp at Battledykes, approximately three miles north of Forfar; this camp was analysed to have held 50,000 to 60,000 men.〔Alan Reid, ''The Royal Burgh of Forfar: A Local History'', 1902, Houlston & sons; 445 pages〕 From Battledykes northward the Romans established a succession of camps including Stracathro, Raedykes and Normandykes.〔(C. Michael Hogan, ''Elsick Mounth'', Megalithic Portal, ed Andy Burnham (2007) )〕 A "claimant" to the throne, the daughter of the leader of the Meic Uilleim, who were descendants of King Duncan II, had her brains dashed out on Forfar market cross in 1230 while still an infant.〔http://archive.org/stream/chronicondelaner00mait#page/n79/mode/2up Maitland Club, Edinburgh 1839. ''Lanercost Chronicle'', pp40-41 (in Latin)〕 During the first war of independence, the castle of Forfar was held by the English. After Robert the Bruce's victory over the Earl of Buchan, Philip, the Forester of Platane, together with some of his friends raised ladders against the wall and, climbing over, surprised the garrison and slew them. He then yielded the castle to Bruce, who rewarded him and gave instructions for its demolition. The Meffan Museum is in the heart of the town. It was built by a daughter of the Provost Meffan as a bequest in 1898. It is home of the Forfar story. It is also an art gallery and a meeting place for local speakers, summer clubs for children and groups. The story of Forfar takes you from the history of the little cobbler shops to the burning of the witch Helen Guthrie. There is also a good selection of Pictish stones found in and around Forfar and Kirriemuir. The Large Class I Pictish stone, with a rare carving of a flower, is called the Dunnichen Stone. It was found in the early 19th century when a farmer from the East Mains of Dunnichen was ploughing. It was initially displayed at a church in the vicinity, then at Dunnichen House. In 1966 it was relocated at St Vigeans and finally moved to Dundee museum in 1972. After the Meffan Institute had been renovated it was brought to Forfar on a long term loan where it is displayed alongside the Kirriemuir Sculptured Stones. There is also a canoe, excavated from Forfar Loch, that dates back to the 11th century (one of two that were found). Like other parts of Angus, Forfar was home to a very successful textile industry during and after the Industrial Revolution. In the late 18th century the firm of William Don & Co. (later William and John Don & Co) was founded in the town. The firm originally bought and sold webs of linen which were woven in local cottages, although it also operated a small weaving shed. In 1865 the firm merged with A J Buist, a Dundee based firm, and began construction of St James Works in Forfar. The partnership also operated mills in Dundee and later built Station Works in Forfar, which contained some 300 looms. Workers housing was also built by the firm in Forfar. Don Brothers, Buist & Company Ltd, as the firm was known from 1904, built another works in Forfar, at Strang Street, in 1929. In 1960 it merged with another Dundee firm, Low Brothers & Co (Dundee) Ltd, eventually becoming Don & Low (Holdings) Ltd. The firm retains premises in Forfar, mainly producing woven and non-woven polypropylene industrial textile products and plastic food packaging.〔(【引用サイトリンク】url=http://arccat.dundee.ac.uk/dserve.exe?&dsqIni=Dserve.ini&dsqApp=Archive&dsqCmd=show.tcl&dsqDb=Catalog&dsqPos=0&dsqSearch=((text)=%27ms%20100%27) )〕〔(【引用サイトリンク】url=http://arccat.dundee.ac.uk/dserve.exe?&dsqIni=Dserve.ini&dsqApp=Archive&dsqDb=Catalog&dsqCmd=Show.tcl&dsqSearch=(RefNo==%27MS%20100/1%27) )〕〔(【引用サイトリンク】url=http://www.donlow.com/ )〕 Another important textile firm was J & A Craik & Company, Linen and Jute Manufacturers, which was based at the Manor Works in Forfar. Craiks was started in 1863 when James Craik obtained land in Forfar to build the Manor Works and the company survived until 1981, the year it became part of the Low and Bonar group. In 1911 more than 20% of workers in Forfar were employed in the jute industry. Employment levels in this industry generally dramatically declined in other parts of Angus, including Dundee, during the next four decades. Notably in Dundee, the centre of the British jute industry, more than 40.4% of the working population had worked in the jute industry in 1911, but by 1951 this had fallen to just 18.5%. In Forfar, however this trend was not followed as percentage of the workforce employed in the jute industry had actually risen to 24.4% by 1951. In the town there is a metal plaque to General Sikorski and the Polish troops commemorating the visit of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth to the town on 7 March 1941. The metal plaque is located on a wall on Market Street below the Sheriff Court building. It was here on 7 March 1941 that the Royal couple, along with General Sikorski, took the salute in the march past of the Polish troops.〔(【引用サイトリンク】url=http://www.ostrycharz.free-online.co.uk/PolonicaForfar.html )〕 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「Forfar」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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