The once-sleepy village of Bothwell is in Lanarkshire and has a Glasgow G47 postcode. But, absolutely vitally for those to whom such things matter, it is neither of Glasgow nor Lanarkshire. For generations, it was a haven from Glasgow and a refuge for those who made their money in the black industrial heartland of Lanarkshire.
Glasgow merchants and shipowners had second-home mansions to which they sent their families for the summer. Steelmasters and pit-owners built solid villas, from which they could see the night sky lit up by the flames from the foundries and know they were still making money.
So exclusive was the village, a tunnel was built underneath it so that miners could walk to and from work without their blackened faces and ragged working-clothes causing offence to the residents.
Nowadays, Bothwell is the home to the new aristocracy - the millionaire Foreign Legion of Rangers and Celtic football players, who live in an enclave of quarter- million-pound-plus houses around the golf course. The image has long been one of poshness and desirability.
The truth is more normal and less exclusive. Bothwell's popularity has boosted competition by families for homes in two sizeable council and private estates, flats and small homes were snapped up by first-time buyers and the two primary schools are filled to capacity. It is also a historic conservation village, with the A-listed collegiate church of St Bride's, parts of which go back to the 13th century, and Bothwell Castle, stronghold of the earl who married Mary Queen of Scots and died raving mad in prison in Denmark.
Now that image has boomeranged on the village. The Battle of Bothwell Bridge was an ignominious defeat for the Covenanters; today's Battle of Bothwell is against some of Britain's biggest developers. It has become the most extreme example of a war being fought across the green belt of central Scotland, as speculators home in on attractive sites between Glasgow and Edinburgh.
Communities are finding that councils and local planners lack either the will-power or the firepower to take on the big builders. Meanwhile, the character of their villages - the very thing that made them attractive in the first place - is changed for ever.
At a Planning Scotland's Future conference, Cala Homes managing director David Gill demanded large parts of the central Scotland green belt be handed over to builders: "The current emphasis on brownfield regeneration is not providing the type of housing that people want."
Bothwell's battle began with an application to redevelop a site around the parish church with three- and four-storey tenement-style blocks and parking provision for 200 cars. It includes Glebe Hollow, a place of natural beauty that is a haven for wildlife, including badgers.
To their dismay, villagers discovered Bothwell had been targeted by several national firms and there are seven unconnected applications for developments totalling over 1,000 new homes. No account had been taken of the pressure on village facilities, extra traffic dangers on congested roads or the devastating effect of turning a village into a small town. One plan involves the demolition of a local hotel and the building of 40 homes, all at six-figure prices. Beazer Homes, third largest builder of private homes in the UK, was reported to have paid £1.3 to £1.8 million for the hotel.
Alarmingly, Beazer was so confident it advertised the houses for sale as "Bothwell - Coming Soon" before the planning application had even been considered.
Its spokesman said that in doing so it had created "a huge demand" for houses - ignoring the fact that it had created a demand for houses that did not exist, was opposed by the local people and might not receive permission.
After a 1,000-signature petition and a street demonstration, the hotel application was rejected 14 to 11 at a planning hearing. It was hailed as "a victory for ordinary people" but a long fight looms, through the full council and the appeals process.
Meanwhile, the council has been asked to put on hold all planning applications affecting the village. Bothwell villagers now urge other small communities throughout Scotland to fight their corner against property developers: "We have won a small victory, but the war goes on." The formerly sleepy village is now wide awake.
