Kilrenny, Anstruther Easter and Anstruther Wester

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KILRENNY, ANSTRUTHER EASTER & ANSTRUTHER WESTER

Burgh

Incorporated into : 1975 North East Fife District Council (1996 Fife Area Council)

Arms (crest) of Kilrenny, Anstruther Easter and Anstruther Wester

Official blazon

Tierced in pairle reversed: 1st, Sable, an anchor Argent; 2nd, Gules, three fish fretted in triangle Proper; srd, Argent, on the waves of the sea in base Azure and of the field, an open boat rowed by four mariners, the steersman at the helm, a hook suspended by a chain dependant from the side near the stern, in chief the rays of the sun issuant from a cloud, all Proper.

Above the Shield is set a Burghal crown and in an Escrol over the same this Motto "Virtute Res Parvae Crescunt" and in another below the Shield this Motto "Semper Tibi Pendeat Hamus".

Origin/meaning

The arms were granted on July 12, 1930.

Kilrenny, Anstruther Easter and Anstruther Wester were united in I929. Kilrenny was created a Burgh of Regality in favour of John Betoun of Balfour in 1578 and was, by accident, included in the roll of Royal Burghs in 1592; there it stayed despite an attempt to resign in 1672.
Anstruther Easter was made a Burgh of Barony in favour of John Anstruther of that Ilk in 157I-72 and raised by King James VI to a Royal Burgh in 1583.
Anstruther Wester was erected into a Burgh of Barony in favour of the Prior of Pittenweem in 1540-41 and was raised to a Royal Burgh by King James VI in 1587.

The arms of the united Burgh conjoin the devices on the seals of the three former Burghs; though there are only eighteenth-century impressions on record, the seals themselves are obviously older.

The anchor is for Anstruther Easter and denotes that it is a seaport; the black and silver colours are those of Anstruther of that Ilk, whose fortress, Dreel Castle, is now a ruin at the mouth of the Dreel Burn.

The three fish are for Anstruther Wester, and are thought to refer to the salmon in the Dreel Burn which is the boundary between the two Anstruthers; the colours follow tradition.

The Kilrenny arms show a typical fishing scene; again, the colouring is traditional.

The mottoes caused some discussion as Anstruther Wester had no motto on its seal. Eventually, it was decided to place the Anstruther Easter one "By well doing poverty is enriched" above the shield, and the Kilrenny one "May the hook ever hang in your favour" below; the latter refers directly to the hook shown in the arms.

Seals as used in the 1890s:

Seal of Kilrenny

Seal of Anstruther Easter

Seal of Anstruther Wester

Community Council

Official blazon

Tierced in pairle reversed, 1st, Sable, an anchor Argent; 2nd, Gules, three fish fretted in triangle Proper; 3rd, Argent, on the waves of the sea Azure and of the Field an open boat rowed by four mariners, the steersman at the helm, a hook suspended by a chain dependant from the side near the stern, in chief the rays of the sun issuant from a cloud, all Proper.

Above the Shield is placed a Coronet appropriate to a statutory Community Council, videlicet:- a circlet richly chased from which are issuant four thistle leaves (one and two halves visible) and four pine cones (two visible) Or, and in an Escrol below the same this Motto "Semper Tibi Pendeat Hamus".