County Dossier
Midlothian
Capital county – seat of kings, parliaments and castles.
Midlothian lies along the southern shore of the Firth of Forth and is dominated by Edinburgh, often hailed as one of Britain’s most beautiful cities.
At a glance
Midlothian at a glance
Capital county – seat of kings, parliaments and castles.
- Ancient heart of Lothian
- Sheriffdom recorded c.1120
- 'Midlodine' in charters
- Area: 362 sq mi
- Population: 621,610
- County Top: Blackhope Scar
County Geography
Midlothian meets West Lothian and Lanarkshire to the west and south-west, Peeblesshire and Selkirkshire to the south, East Lothian to the east, and the Firth of Forth forms the county’s northern edge. The county is shaped by the broad shore plain, the Pentland and Moorfoot hills, and the east-west sweep of the Lothian low country between them.
Midlothian is easy to recognise through the Firth shore, the capital-centred plain, and the southern hill edge.
Map Reference
View Midlothian on the map
Midlothian is the county. The map also shows lieutenancies and council areas that use the county name.
The county.
The lieutenancy.
Council areas.
Places and routes
Edinburgh, Leith, Musselburgh, Dalkeith, and Penicuik show the county from its firth-side capital and port to its inland and southern sides.
Connections
The county’s routes have long centred on Edinburgh, spread east and west along the firth-side plain, and run south through Dalkeith and Penicuik toward the hill edge. Movement follows the same capital, plain, and hill-edge pattern.
Names
- Midlothian
- County of Midlothian
- Edinburghshire
- County of Edinburgh
- Meadhan Labhdaidh
Meadhan Labhdaidh is the Gaelic form of Midlothian. County of Edinburgh is the formal historical style, Midlothian and Edinburghshire are the two long-standing county names, and charters preserve older forms such as Midlodine within the wider history of Lothian.
Midlothian was a sheriffdom by the twelfth century, and the relationship between the capital, the firth-side plain, and the southern hills has kept the historic county distinct ever since.