The Scottish Highlands consist of the area of the British mainland north and west of the Highland Boundary Fault. The area, as Highland Region became an administrative region of Scotland in 1975, formed by a merger of the former counties of Caithness, Sutherland, Ross and Cromarty, Inverness-shire (excluding Rockall, Harris, North Uist, Benbecula, South Uist and Skye), and Nairnshire. In 1996 Highland became a county of Scotland under the local government reforms of that year. The administrative centre and 'capital' of the Highlands is the city of Inverness.