Everyday is a school day….

We have had some great days at the "Pillars of Hercules" in Fife and enjoyed a few pleasant walks into Falkland, the nearest town. While in Falkland, I asked a couple of locals if the town had anything to do with the Islands in the South Atlantic, and they didn't know. Therefore, I decided to do some research, and it turns out that, apparently, the first undisputed visitor to the Islands was English Captain John Strong in 1690. He later named the water between the islands in honour of the Fifth Viscount Falkland, Anthony Cary, who held the office of First Lord of the Admiralty from 1693 to 1694. The Falkland Islands are thus named after him.

Falkland Palace

However, what does the Fifth Viscount have to do with the Fife town of Falkland? Well, it turns out that the Viscount's great, great grandfather, the First Viscount (born in 1575), was 'created' Viscount Falkland in the Scottish Peerage in 1620, despite being born in England, and Viscount Falkland refers to the Royal burgh of Falkland in Fife!

Every day is a school day, after all!