River Tweed
River in the Scottish Borders and northern England
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The River Tweed, or Tweed Water (Scottish Gaelic: Uisge Thuaidh /ɯʃgʲə huəj/), is a river 97 miles (156 km)[1] long that flows east across the Border region in Scotland and northern England. Tweed cloth derives its name from its association with the River Tweed.[2] The Tweed is one of the great salmon rivers of Britain and the only river in England where an Environment Agency rod licence is not required for angling. The river generates a large income for the local borders region, attracting anglers from all around the world.[3]
| River Tweed | |
|---|---|
The River Tweed at Abbotsford | |
 River Tweed watershed (Interactive map) | |
 | |
| Native name | Uisge Thuaidh (Scottish Gaelic) |
| Location | |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Part | Scotland, England |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Source | Tweed's Well |
| • location | Tweedsmuir, Scottish Borders, Scotland |
| • coordinates | 55.445°N 3.496°W |
| Mouth | North Sea |
• location | Berwick-upon-Tweed, Northumberland, England |
• coordinates | 55.7652°N 1.9909°W |
| Length | 156 km (97 mi) |
Etymology
Tweed may represent an Old Brittonic name meaning "border".[4] A doubtful proposal is that the name is derived from a non-Celtic form of the Indo-European root *teuha- meaning "swell, grow powerful".[5]
Course
The River Tweed flows primarily through the scenic Borders region of Scotland. Eastwards from the settlements on opposing banks of Birgham and Carham it forms the historic boundary between Scotland and England.
It rises in the Lowther Hills at Tweed's Well near the rising points of the Clyde -- draining northwest (10 kilometres (6.2 mi) from the Tweed's Well) -- and the Annan, draining south (1.9 kilometres (1.2 mi) from the Tweed's Well).
"Annan, Tweed and Clyde rise oot o’ ae hillside" is a saying from the Border region.[6] East of Kelso, it becomes a section of the eastern part of the border. Entering England, its lower reaches are in Northumberland, where it enters the North Sea at Berwick-upon-Tweed. For only 7 kilometres of its course is it purely in England, and for 30 kilometres it is between England and Scotland.[7]
Catchment
The river east of St Boswells runs through a drumlin field. It is the relic of a paleo-ice stream that flowed through the area during the last glaciation. Major towns through which the Tweed flows include Innerleithen, Peebles, Galashiels, Melrose, Kelso, Coldstream and Berwick-upon-Tweed, where it flows into the North Sea. Tweed tributaries include:
- Whiteadder Water
- River Till
- Eden Water
- Teviot Water
- Leader Water
- Ettrick Water
- Yarrow Water
- Tima Water
- Gala Water
- Leithen Water
- Quair Water
- Eddleston Water
- Manor Water
- Lyne Water
- Holms Water
The upper parts of the catchment of the Tweed in Scotland form the area known as Tweeddale, part of which is protected as the Upper Tweeddale National Scenic Area, one of 40 such areas in Scotland which are defined so as to identify areas of exceptional scenery and to ensure its protection from inappropriate development.[8]
Management
| Tweed Fisheries Act 1771 | |
|---|---|
| Act of Parliament | |
.svg) | |
| Long title | An Act for regulating and improving the Fisheries in the River Tweed, and the Rivers and Streams running into the same; and also within the Mouth or Entrance of the said River. |
| Citation | 11 Geo. 3. c. 27 |
| Territorial extent | Great Britain |
| Dates | |
| Royal assent | 12 April 1771 |
| Commencement | 13 November 1770[a] |
| Other legislation | |
| Amended by | |
| Repealed by | |
Status: Repealed | |
| Text of statute as originally enacted | |
| Tweed Fisheries Act 1775 | |
|---|---|
| Act of Parliament | |
| |
| Long title | An Act for amending and rendering more effectual an Act, passed in the Eleventh Year of His present Majesty's Reign, intituled, "An Act for regulating and improving the Fisheries in the River Tweed, and the Rivers and Streams running into the same, and also within the Mouth or Entrance of the said River." |
| Citation | 15 Geo. 3. c. 46 |
| Territorial extent | Great Britain |
| Dates | |
| Royal assent | 22 May 1775 |
| Commencement | 12 May 1775[b] |
| Repealed | 29 May 1830 |
| Other legislation | |
| Amends | |
| Amended by | |
| Repealed by | |
Status: Repealed | |
| Text of statute as originally enacted | |
| Tweed Fisheries Act 1797 | |
|---|---|
| Act of Parliament | |
| |
| Long title | An act for altering, amending, and rendering more effectual two acts, made in the eleventh and fifteenth years of the reign of his present Majesty, for the regulation and improvement of the fisheries in the river Tweed, and the rivers and streams running into the same, and also within the mouth or entrance of the said river. |
| Citation | 37 Geo. 3. c. 48 |
| Territorial extent | Great Britain |
| Dates | |
| Royal assent | 3 May 1797 |
| Commencement | 3 May 1797[c] |
| Repealed | 29 May 1830 |
| Other legislation | |
| Amends | |
| Amended by | |
| Repealed by | |
Status: Repealed | |
| Text of statute as originally enacted | |
| River Tweed Fisheries Act 1807 | |
|---|---|
| Act of Parliament | |
.svg) | |
| Long title | An Act to amend and render more effectual Three Acts, made in the Eleventh,[ad] Fifteenth,[ae] and Thirty-seventh[af] Years of His present Majesty, for the Regulation and Improvement of the Fisheries of the River Tweed. |
| Citation | 47 Geo. 3 Sess. 1. c. xxix |
| Territorial extent | United Kingdom |
| Dates | |
| Royal assent | 25 April 1807 |
| Commencement | 25 April 1807[b] |
| Repealed | 29 May 1830 |
| Other legislation | |
| Amends | |
| Repealed by | |
Status: Repealed | |
| Text of statute as originally enacted | |
| River Tweed Fisheries Act 1830 | |
|---|---|
| Act of Parliament | |
.svg) | |
| Long title | An Act for the more effectual Preservation and Increase of the Breed of Salmon; and for better regulating the Fisheries in the River Tweed, and the Rivers and Streams running into the same, and also within the Mouth or Entrance of the said River. |
| Citation | 11 Geo. 4 & 1 Will. 4. c. liv |
| Territorial extent | United Kingdom |
| Dates | |
| Royal assent | 29 May 1830 |
| Commencement | 29 May 1830[b] |
| Repealed | 17 August 1857 |
| Other legislation | |
| Repeals/revokes | |
| Amended by | |
| Repealed by | |
Status: Repealed | |
| Text of statute as originally enacted | |
| River Tweed Fisheries Act 1836 | |
|---|---|
| Act of Parliament | |
| |
| Long title | An Act to alter, amend, and enlarge the Powers of an Act paged in the Eleventh Year of the Reign of His late Majesty, intituled "An Act for the more effectual Preservation and Increase of the Breed of Salmon, and for better regulating the Fisheries in the River Tweed, and the Rivers and Streams running into the same, and abo within the Mouth or Entrance of the said River." |
| Citation | 6 & 7 Will. 4. c. lxv |
| Territorial extent | United Kingdom |
| Dates | |
| Royal assent | 21 June 1836 |
| Commencement | 21 June 1836[b] |
| Repealed | 17 August 1857 |
| Other legislation | |
| Amends | |
| Repealed by | |
Status: Repealed | |
| Text of statute as originally enacted | |
| Tweed Fisheries Act 1857[b] | |
|---|---|
| Act of Parliament | |
.svg) | |
| Long title | An Act to consolidate and amend the Acts for the more effectual Preservation and Increase of Salmon, and the Regulation of the Fisheries in the River Tweed. |
| Citation | 20 & 21 Vict. c. cxlviii |
| Territorial extent | United Kingdom |
| Dates | |
| Royal assent | 17 August 1857 |
| Commencement | 17 August 1857[c] |
| Other legislation | |
| Repeals/revokes | |
| Amended by | |
| Repealed by | |
Status: Repealed | |
| Text of statute as originally enacted | |
| Revised text of statute as amended | |
| Text of the River Tweed as in force today (including any amendments) within the United Kingdom, from legislation.gov.uk. | |
| Tweed Fisheries Amendment Act 1859[b] | |
|---|---|
| Act of Parliament | |
| |
| Long title | An Act to amend "The Tweed Fisheries Act 1857," and to alter the Annual Close Times in the River Tweed. |
| Citation | 22 & 23 Vict. c. lxx |
| Territorial extent | United Kingdom |
| Dates | |
| Royal assent | 1 August 1859 |
| Commencement | 5 October 1859[d] |
| Repealed | 15 November 2006 |
| Other legislation | |
| Amends | |
| Amended by |
|
| Repealed by | |
| Relates to | |
Status: Repealed | |
| Text of statute as originally enacted | |
| Revised text of statute as amended | |
| Text of the River Tweed as in force today (including any amendments) within the United Kingdom, from legislation.gov.uk. | |
| Tweed Fisheries Act 1969[e] | |
|---|---|
| Act of Parliament | |
.svg) | |
| Long title | An Act to amend the Tweed Fisheries Act 1857 and the Tweed Fisheries Amendment Act 1859; to apply certain provisions of those Acts to freshwater fish; and for other purposes. |
| Citation | 1969 c. xxiv |
| Territorial extent | United Kingdom |
| Dates | |
| Royal assent | 25 June 1969 |
| Commencement | 25 June 1969[c] |
| Repealed | 15 November 2006 |
| Other legislation | |
| Amends | |
| Repealed by | |
Status: Repealed | |
| Text of statute as originally enacted | |
| Revised text of statute as amended | |
| Text of the River Tweed as in force today (including any amendments) within the United Kingdom, from legislation.gov.uk. | |
| Scotland Act 1998 (River Tweed) Order 2006[e] | |
|---|---|
| Statutory Instrument | |
| |
| Citation | SI 2006/2913 |
| Territorial extent | |
| Dates | |
| Made | 14 November 2006 |
| Commencement | 15 November 2006[g] |
| Other legislation | |
| Repeals/revokes |
|
| Made under | |
Status: Current legislation | |
| Text of statute as originally enacted | |
| Text of the River Tweed as in force today (including any amendments) within the United Kingdom, from legislation.gov.uk. | |
Despite that the catchment straddles the border between Scotland and England, management of it – in terms of water quality, bio-security, and ultimately protection of the salmon of the River Tweed – is overseen by a single body, the River Tweed Commission.[9]
River Tweed Trail
As of 2024[update], work is in progress on the development of a 113-mile (182 km) walking and cycling route following the length of the river from Moffat to Berwick-on-Tweed. The work includes new sections of path, upgrades to existing paths, bridge replacement and repairs, pedestrian road crossings, lighting and signage. The path is expected to be completed during 2028.[10]
Gallery
The River Tweed at Abbotsford, near Melrose
The River Tweed from Mertoun House, near St Boswells
The Anglo-Scottish border, with the Tweed on the east. Its estuary and the town of Berwick-upon-Tweed were a late annexation by England.
