The Royal Burgh of St Andrews
There has been a settlement on the site of the city from at least the sixth century AD. Since then the city has played an important part in the history of the development of Scotland.
St Andrew
Two tales purport to explain how the bones of St Andrew, the patron saint of the town, came to rest at what was then called Kilrymont.
One legend suggests that a mediaeval Greek monk (although others describe him as an Irish assistant of St Columba) called St Rule (or St Regulus) was warned by an angel in a dream that the remains of St Andrew, who had been crucified on an X shaped cross and his remains buried in Constantinople, were in danger and needed to betaken to the 'ends of the earth' for safe-keeping. Scotland was close to the edge of the known world at that time and when St Rule was shipwrecked on the Fife coast he came ashore at what is now St Andrews.
It is perhaps more likely that the relics of St Andrew were brought to the town in 733 by Accra, a renowned relic collector. There certainly seems to have been a religious centre at St Andrews at that time, either founded by St Rule in the sixth century or by Ungus a Pictish King.
Whichever tale is true, the relics were placed in a specially constructed chapel, which was replaced by the Cathedral of St Andrews in 1160.
St Andrews soon became the religious capital of Scotland and a great centre for mediaeval pilgrims who came to view the relics. Today St Andrew is celebrated as the patron saint of all Scotland.
The distinctive saltire flag is the most prominent tribute to his memory, and Scots commemorate his life each year on November 30.
From the Middle Ages to the Renaissance
In the Middle Ages, as the focus for the national cult of St Andrew, the town became a religious centre of major importance.
In the Renaissance the city was a thriving intellectual centre with links to Paris and other continental university towns. St Andrews was also an important political and recreational centre for the Scottish royal family with Mary, Queen of Scots, making several visits.
Royal Burgh
St Andrews first became a burgh somewhere between 1144 and 1153 when it was given such a status by Bishop Robert, with the permission of King David I.
The town became a Burgh of Regality in 1614 and was finally confirmed as a Royal Burgh by James VI in 1620.
From the Reformation to today
During the Reformation the city witnessed the sometimes violent power struggles between factions. Ultimately supporters of the Protestant faith gained ascendancy.
In the aftermath of the Reformation and more particularly after the Union with England (1707), the importance of the city declined.
It was not until the middle of the nineteenth century that the fortunes of the city began to revive. There was a three-fold expansion of the area covered by its boundaries between 1900 and the present day.