Elgin is a Royal burgh and the county town of Morayshire. It is market town and general administrative and educational centre for the rich agricultural lowlands that surround it. It received its charter in 1234 and was originally the site of a splendid cathedral founded in 1224, virtually completed in the 13th century but destroyed by fire in 1270 and again in 1390.
Elgin's industries include distilling, wool milling and support industries for what remains of the trawler fleet.