Lothian and Borders Fire and Rescue Service was a Local Authority fire and rescue service covering an area of 2,500 square miles (6,500 km2) of south east Scotland, and serving a total population of 890,000. It was amalgamated into the single Scottish Fire and Rescue Service in April 2013. It was the oldest municipal fire brigade in the UK and the world, founded in 1824 under the leadership of James Braidwood, who later went on to establish the London Fire Brigade.