Kirkwall is the largest town and capital of the Orkney Islands, off the north coast of Great Britain. The town is first mentioned in Orkneyinga saga in the year 1046 when it is recorded as the residence of Rögnvald Brusason the Earl of Orkney, who was killed by his uncle Thorfinn the Mighty. In 1486, King James III of Scotland elevated Kirkwall to the status of a royal burgh; modern roadsigns still indicate "The City and Royal Burgh of Kirkwall".
Population: 8,500
Latitude: 58° 59' 5.24" N
Longitude: -2° 57' 31.43" W
Orkney /ˈɔrkni/ (Scottish Gaelic: Arcaibh), also known as the Orkney Islands, is an archipelago in northern Scotland, 16 kilometres (10 mi) north of the coast of Caithness. Orkney comprises approximately 70 islands, of which 20 are inhabited. The la…
Scapa Flow (/ˈskɑːpə/ or /ˈskæpə/; from Old Norse Skalpaflói, meaning "bay of the long isthmus") is a body of water in the Orkney Islands, Scotland, United Kingdom, sheltered by the islands of Mainland, Graemsay, Burray, South Ronaldsay and Hoy.
The scuttling of the German fleet took place at the Royal Navy's base at Scapa Flow, in Scotland, after the end of the First World War. The High Seas Fleet was interned there under the terms of the Armistice whilst negotiations took place over the f…
The Ring of Brodgar (or Brogar, or Ring o' Brodgar) is a Neolithic henge and stone circle about 6 miles north-east of Stromness on the Mainland, the largest island in Orkney, Scotland.
Maeshowe (or Maes Howe; Norse: Orkhaugr) is a Neolithic chambered cairn and passage grave situated on Mainland, Orkney, Scotland. It was probably built around 2800 BCE. It gives its name to the Maeshowe type of chambered cairn, which is limited to O…
Highland Park distillery is a Scotch whisky distillery based in Kirkwall, Orkney.
John Rae (Inuktitut Aglooka ᐊᒡᓘᑲ English: “long strider”) (30 September 1813 – 22 July 1893) was a Scottish doctor who explored Northern Canada, surveyed parts of the Northwest Passage and reported the fate of the Franklin Expedition. In 1846–47 he …
Ness of Brodgar is an archaeological site covering 2.5 hectares (6.2 acres) between the Ring of Brodgar and the Stones of Stenness in the Heart of Neolithic Orkney World Heritage Site near Loch of Harray, Orkney, in Scotland. Excavations at the site…
The Mainland is the main island of Orkney.
Heart of Neolithic Orkney refers to a group of Neolithic monuments found on the Mainland, one of the islands of Orkney, Scotland.
The Standing Stones of Stenness is a Neolithic monument five miles northeast of Stromness on the mainland of Orkney, Scotland. This may be the oldest henge site in the British Isles. Various traditions associated with the stones survived into the mo…
The KW postcode area or Kirkwall postcode area is a group of postcode districts in the far north-east of Scotland. Though the area includes all of the Orkney Islands and is named after their largest town, the first 14 districts are on the mainland o…
The Churchill Barriers are a series of four causeways in the Orkney Islands, Scotland, with a total length of 1.5 miles (2.3 km).
Kirkwall Airport (IATA: KOI, ICAO: EGPA) is the main airport serving the Orkney Islands in Scotland. It is located 2.5 NM (4.6 km; 2.9 mi) southeast of Kirkwall and is owned by Highlands and Islands Airports Limited.
Shapinsay is one of the Orkney Islands off the north coast of mainland Scotland. There is one village on the island, Balfour, from which roll-on/roll-off car ferries sail to Kirkwall on the Orkney Mainland. Balfour Castle, built in the Scottish Baro…
Prehistoric Orkney refers to a period in the human occupation of the Orkney archipelago of Scotland that was the latter part of these islands' prehistory. The period of prehistory prior to occupation by the genus Homo is part of the geology of Scotl…
Scapa distillery is a Scotch whisky distillery situated on The Mainland of Orkney, Scotland on the shore of Scapa Flow near the town of Kirkwall.
The Italian Chapel is a highly ornate Catholic chapel on Lamb Holm in the Orkney Islands. It was built during World War II by Italian prisoners of war, who were housed on the previously uninhabited island while they constructed the Churchill Barrier…