Seat and Plaque
Guildry Seat and Plaque at Stirling Old Harbour, Riverside
Handover Ceremony 1.45pm Tuesday 22 November 2005
The Merchant Guildry of Stirling was instituted 1119 and was a powerful organisation involved in running the town until the Burgh Reform Act 1833 and Burgh Trading Act 1845 provided for the election of Town Councils and abolished the privileges of Merchant Guilds.
The Guild contributed to the wealth of Stirling through weekly markets and trading with European ports from the early 1400s (Deans of Guild date from 1470 to the present day).
Over the centuries goods were brought into Stirling and exports taken to European trading places via ships at Old Stirling Harbour, of which today there is little evidence.
A James Proudfoot drawing in 1972 suggests how the harbour would look circa 1600 with two sailing ships docked against a background of the top of the town and Stirling Castle. During the 19th and 20th Century pleasure steamers and various vessels sailed up the River Forth to Stirling.
The current Dean of Guild, Alan Webb, felt it would be appropriate to highlight the site of the old harbour and the Guild have donated a seat on which is placed a plaque with an extract of the Proudfoot scene. Hopefully local people and visitors can sit, enjoy the views and contemplate the history of sailing and its contribution to the growth and importance of Stirling.
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