The district was created in 1975 under the
Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973, which established a two-tier structure of local government across mainland Scotland comprising upper-tier regions and lower-tier districts. Monklands was one of nineteen districts created within the region of
Strathclyde. The district covered parts of four former districts from the
historic county of
Lanarkshire, all of which were abolished at the same time: •
Airdrie Burgh •
Coatbridge Burgh • Seventh
District (
Shottskirk electoral division, rest went to
Motherwell) • Ninth District (
Old Monkland and
New Monkland electoral divisions, rest split between
Glasgow and
Strathkelvin) The name of "Monklands" originated in the grant of lands in the area to the monks of the
Cistercian Abbey of
Newbattle,
Midlothian in 1162. From the seventeenth century the area was formed into the two
parishes of New Monkland and Old Monkland. Apart from the two burghs of Airdrie and Coatbridge, the area included the following settlements: •
Bargeddie •
Calderbank •
Caldercruix •
Chapelhall •
Glenboig •
Glenmavis •
Greengairs •
Plains •
Salsburgh The district was abolished in 1996 under the
Local Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994 which replaced regions and districts with
unitary council areas.
North Lanarkshire council area was formed covering the abolished districts of Monklands,
Motherwell,
Cumbernauld and Kilsyth, and the
Chryston area of
Strathkelvin district. The area is still informally referred to as Monklands. The hospital in Airdrie is
University Hospital Monklands (previously Monklands District General Hospital), and
football matches between the two senior teams in the area,
Airdrieonians and
Albion Rovers, are often referred to as
Monklands Derbies. ==Political control==