Merchants
Merchants and Burgh Expansions
Following the departure of the Royal Court in 1603 when James VI became King of England, the Burgh continued to prosper but through the activities of its merchants and the Burgh Council. Industries grew around weaving, tanning, brewing, and Stirling established strong links through its port on the River Forth with Holland and Scandinavian countries.
The
Burgh Council developed the harbour, the Kirk, Tolbooth, bridges, markets and grammar school. It controlled
building regulations, weights & measures, and set market prices.
It's many merchants
and tradesmen, most of whom where on the Council, created its wealth. The most notable of these was
John Cowane who served on the Council for 22 years and was Dean of Guild.
He was also the Burghs outstanding
benefactor, leaving a hospital and much land which is still held in trust for the relief of poor families
in Stirling. This trust still plays a remarkable role in the conservation and development of the modern
Stirling.
The end of the Jacobite years saw the town begin to change
to something like the shape and feel it has today. The town gates disappeared as the burgh spread beyond
its old defensive walls. By the early 1800s the recently- tumpiked approaches to Stirling passed through
the elegant Georgian suburbs which still stand today more..
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