Old Photograph Isle Of May Scotland

Old photograph of the Isle Of May, Scotland. Lying 5 miles off the Fife coast, the Isle of May is the largest of the islands of the Firth of Forth. It is noted amongst naturalists for its colonies of seabirds, its migrant birds and its colony of grey seals. Designated a national nature reserve in 1956, it is now recognised as an important seabird research centre. The island is accessed during the spring and summer when a regular boat service operates from Anstruther and Crail to the landing at Kirkhaven. Weekly stays are possible in the Bird Observatory by prior arrangement. Close to the Kirkhaven landing stand the ruins of the Chapel of St Aidan which are all that remain of a priory built in the 12th century and dedicated to the Christian missionary who was killed on the island by marauding Danes in AD 875. The Isle of May was an important religious centre until its monks moved to Pittenweem in the 16th century, but the island remained inhabited until the early 18th century. In 1636 Alexander Cunningham built a lighthouse beacon, the first permanently-manned lighthouse in Scotland and in 1844 a subsidiary 'Low Light' was built on the east side of the island. During both World Wars the island was under military occupation and in 1989 the Main Lighthouse became fully automated prior to the ownership of the island passing from the Northern Lighthouse Board to the Nature Conservancy Council, now Scottish Natural Heritage.



All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.

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Tour Scotland Isle Of May Slideshow

Tour Scotland Isle Of May Slideshow. Located 5 miles off the Fife coast, the Isle of May is the largest of the islands of the Firth of Forth. It is noted for its colonies of seabirds, its migrant birds and its colony of grey seals. The island is accessed during the spring and summer when a regular boat service operates from Anstruther, Fife, Scotland. Anstruther Pleasure Cruises, Sailing to the Isle Of May.

All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.

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July Photograph Isle Of May East Neuk Of Fife Scotland

July photograph of the Isle Of May, on the horizon, from the East Neuk Of Fife, Scotland.

Tour Scotland Photographs Video Isle of May

Tour Scotland photograph of the Isle of May from, Pittenweem, East Neuk of Fife, Scotland. The island, seen on the horizon, was the site of one of the earliest Christian churches in Scotland, founded in the 9th century and built into an unusual mass-burial mound that probably dates from prehistoric times. The original church was expanded during the 12th century by David I of Scotland, under the aegis of the Reading Abbey which had been founded by his brother-in-law, Henry I of England. The monks agreed to maintain nine priests on the island to pray for the souls of the Kings Of Scots. The island, with the supposed relics of Saint Ethernan who died there in around 669, was a popular destination for pilgrims during the later Middle Ages. Evidence that it was already an important place for pilgrimage in the 12th century include the remains of a ten seater communal lavatory, much larger than necessary for an abbey with only nine or ten monks. Bishop Wishart of St Andrews bought the priory in the middle of the 13th century, although there was an attempt to overturn this and the dispute rumbled on for about fifty years. The priory was finally transferred to the Canons of St Andrews in 1318, and was relocated at Pittenweem. The Prior of Pittenweem passed the island to Patrick Learmonth of Dairsie, Provost of St Andrews in 1549. He sold it to Balfour of Manquhany in 1551, who in turn passed it on to Forret of Fyngask seven years later, who sold it to Allan Lamont, who in turn sold it to it to John Cunningham, or Cunynghame, of Barnes who was responsible for the first lighthouse beacon on the island. The so-called " Battle " of May Island took place nearby on the night of 31 January 1918. A sequence of accidental collisions between Royal Navy warships occurred over little more than an hour which saw two submarines sunk with heavy loss of life, another four damaged along with a light cruiser. The Navy maintained a control centre on the island for indicator loops and six ASDIC units laid on the seabed to detect U-boats and enemy surface vessels trying to enter the Forth from shortly before the Second World War until 1946. Since 1956 the isle has been dedicated as a National Nature Reserve and managed by the Nature Conservancy Council, now Scottish Natural Heritage, although until 1989 it was actually owned by the Northern Lighthouse Board. The Northern Lighthouse Board purchased the island in 1814 from the Duke and Duchess of Portland for 60,000 pounds, by which time the beacon was the last remaining private lighthouse in Scotland. A proper lighthouse was built on the island in 1816 by Robert Stevenson. and is an ornate gothic tower on a castellated stone building designed to resemble a castle, 24 metres high and with accommodation for three light keepers and their families, along with additional space for visiting officials. The new lighthouse started operating on 1 September 1816, and is now a listed building.




Isle of May from, Pittenweem, East Neuk of Fife, Scotland.

All photographs are copyright of Sandy Stevenson, Tour Scotland, and may not be used without permission.

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