Ayrshire
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Ayrshire
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(Click on the picture to see a larger one) The largest Scottish county south of the Highland Line, Ayrshire bordered Scotland's western coastline, stretching from Largs in the north to Ballantrae in the south. The county played an important part in Scotland's wars of independence in the 13th and 14th centuries. In 1263 King Alexander defeated the invading Norwegian Vikings at Largs in the north of the county, and only a few decades later it was from Ayrshire that both William Wallace and Turnberry-born Robert Bruce launched their campaigns against the English. Just under 500 years later, in 1759, Scotland's most famous literary son, Robert Burns, was born in Alloway, just south of Ayr. Burns' birthplace features on our map as does the Bachelors Club at Tarbolton, which the poet founded in 1781. Also on our map are a number of castles (including Culzean, Dundonald, Deans, and Kelburn) and other well-known buildings. Former U.S. president Dwight D. Eisenhower was given a flat (apartment) in Culzean castle for his lifetime in recognition of his services during World War 2. The castle is now the National Trust for Scotland's most visited property. Just north of Ballantrae in the south of the county is Bennane Head where, in the 16th century, Sawney Beane and his dreadful community lived in a cave. For some 25 years Beane and his companions (who apparently included a number of "depraved women") seized passing travellers and then ate them. They were eventually caught when dogs led a search party to the cave. The remains of many of their victims were still in evidence, hanging up as dried meat or preserved in pickle barrels. Ayrshire now has some of Scotland's finest golf courses. Turnberry, Prestwick and Troon are particularly well known; Turnberry was Scotland's first purpose-built golfing resort, Prestwick hosted the first British Open Championship in 1860, and Troon alone has five courses! Family names with roots in Ayrshire include Kennedy, Fergusson, Crawford, Cunningham, Montgomerie, Wallace, Campbell, Boyd, Stewart, and Dunbar. Our kit of Ayrshire measures 12� x 16� inches (315 x 420 mm) when stitched on the recommended Linda 27-count evenweave. It includes 32 colours, 26 buildings, ferry, fishing and sailing boats, as well as place names, compass and crest. The stitch count is 167 x 223.
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