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Stirling, one of the four oldest royal burghs in Scotland, was created a royal burgh by David I (c 1080-1153) in around 1124. The settlement at Stirling was already important, not least because of its geographical position and the use of its castle as a royal stronghold. The creation of a royal burgh granted certain privileges to the town including trading rights, and the freedom to elect town councils and to build defensive walls and gates. In return the monarch was able to demand men for his armies and to claim a proportion of the customs and tolls charged within the burgh. Stirling retained its strategic importance and continued to grow. In 1857 it became a police burgh under the General Police (Scotland) Act 1850, 13 & 14 Vict., c.33. Some burgh administration was to be carried out by police commissioners who were responsible for cleansing, policing and public health. In Stirling they were not responsible for the lighting (the Stirling Gas Company had been founded in 1825 and the cost of lighting was shared between the Town Council and hospitals) or the water, which was the responsibility of the Stirling Water Commission (founded 1848). By 1891 Stirling had a population of 16,781. In the following years the Burgh Police (Scotland) Act 1891 (55 & 56 Vict., c.55) and the Town Councils (Scotland) Act 1900 (63 & 64 Vict., c. 49) ended the overlap and sometimes friction which had existed between burgh councils and police commissioners. Stirling, as a burgh with 7000 or more inhabitants, was allowed to retain its police force. Stirling Town Council was abolished in 1975 under the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 (c. 65). Its powers were assumed by Central Regional Council and Stirling District Council. These in turn were replaced by Stirling Council in 1996 under the Local Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994 (c. 39).
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