Leuchars

Leuchars
Scottish Gaelic: Luachar
St. Athernase Church in Leuchars
Leuchars  Leuchars shown within Fife
OS grid reference	NO455215
Council area	Fife
Lieutenancy area	Fife
Country	Scotland
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	ST. ANDREWS
Postcode district	KY16
Dialling code	01334
Police	Scottish
Fire	Scottish
Ambulance	Scottish
EU Parliament	Scotland
UK Parliament	North East Fife
Scottish Parliament	North East Fife
List of places UK Scotland

Leuchars (pronounced ⁱ/ˈluːxərs/ or /ˈluːkərz/; Scottish Gaelic: Luachar "rushes") is a small town near the north-east coast of Fife in Scotland.

History

Leuchars Station

The surrounding area was improved by drainage in the 18th century. In the 19th century, a railway station on the line from Edinburgh to Aberdeen brought increased prosperity to the town. When the St Andrews Railway branch line was closed in the late 1960s, Leuchars became the closest place to get the train to St Andrews. Since then, Leuchars railway station has been used by many University of St Andrews students.

The 12th century St Athernase Church is one of the finest surviving examples of an unaisled Romanesque parish church in Scotland, or indeed anywhere in Great Britain, with two levels of blind arcading in the Norman style running round the exterior, surmounted by a corbel table with heads of various designs. The interior has elaborate chancel and apse arches, and a series of powerful beast-heads on the corbels supporting the ribs of the internal vaults. The nave has unfortunately been rebuilt. The apse roof is crowned by a rather incongruous small bell-tower added in the 17th century.

Geography

The town is located near the north-eastern coast of Fife. The town has a population of 3,060.

The town is nearly 2 miles (3 km) to the north of the village of Guardbridge, which lies on the north bank of the River Eden where it widens to the Edenmouth estuary before joining the North Sea at St Andrews Bay. Leuchars is north-east of Cupar and 6 miles (10 km) north-west from the university town of St Andrews. The city of Dundee is 7 miles (11 km) to the north, across the rail and road bridges that span the Firth of Tay.

The town had an adjoining Royal Air Force base, RAF Leuchars, which was established in 1920, and was home to the Eurofighter Typhoon. In 2015, the RAF base became an Army base, as the regimental headquarters of the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards, who saw their return to Scotland after 20 years in Germany, as coming home.

Climate

Leuchars has an oceanic climate, like the rest of Western Europe. On average, Leuchars gets 654 mm of rain each year and 1,523.2 hours of sunshine.

Climate data for Leuchars (1971-2000 averages)
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Average high °C (°F)	6.3 (43.3)	6.9 (44.4)	9.0 (48.2)	11.0 (51.8)	13.6 (56.5)	16.8 (62.2)	19.0 (66.2)	18.9 (66)	16.2 (61.2)	12.8 (55)	9.0 (48.2)	7.0 (44.6)	12.21 (53.97)
Average low °C (°F)	0.4 (32.7)	0.6 (33.1)	1.8 (35.2)	3.2 (37.8)	5.6 (42.1)	8.4 (47.1)	10.5 (50.9)	10.3 (50.5)	8.4 (47.1)	5.7 (42.3)	2.4 (36.3)	1.1 (34)	4.87 (40.76)
Average rainfall mm (inches)	68.6 (2.701)	45.8 (1.803)	49.5 (1.949)	43.9 (1.728)	49.5 (1.949)	51.1 (2.012)	46.8 (1.843)	47.2 (1.858)	61.7 (2.429)	66.4 (2.614)	57.3 (2.256)	66.2 (2.606)	654 (25.748)
Mean monthly sunshine hours	58.9	76.6	119.0	152.1	195.0	191.1	190.7	173.9	133.2	105.4	77.4	49.9	1,523.2
Source: Met Office

External links

• Comprehensive local website