Aberdeen, city (2020 pop. 229,060)
and council area, NE Scotland, on the North Sea at the mouth of the Dee River. It is
Scotland's third largest city in population. Aberdeen is the financial and administrative
center for Britain's North Sea oil industry as well as a major fishing port and
granite-quarrying center. Aberdeen became a royal burgh in 1176 and was a leading port for
trade with England and the Low Countries as early as the 14th cent. The town was burned by the
English in 1336. It was a stronghold of royalist and episcopal sentiment in the religious wars
of the 17th cent. Aberdeen is noted for its granite Cathedral of St. Machar. The Univ. of
Aberdeen includes King's College (founded 1493) and Marischal College (founded 1593). In the
21st century, it has been cited as a leading UK hub for business.
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