The tiny diamond-shaped island of Pabay lies in Skye's Inner Sound, just two and a half miles from the bustling village of Broadford. One of five Hebridean islands of that name, it derives from the Norse papa-ey, meaning 'island of the priest'. Many visitors since the first holy men built their chapel there have felt that Pabay is a deeply spiritual place, and one of wonder. These include the great 19th-century geologists Hugh Miller and Archibald Geikie, for whom the island's rocks and fo...

In the early 1820s, Thomas Harvie, a newly rich, arrogant Glasgow distiller, bought Westthorn estate on the eastern edge of the city close to the north bank of the River Clyde. To establish the bounds of his property and keep out intruders, he erected two walls, the larger of which ('Harvie's Dyke') was massive, fortified and blocked a long-established pathway alongside the river. Colliers and other workers from nearby villages (many of whom regularly used the walkway) were outraged. A lar...

Robert Burns was by far and away the most iconic figure in nineteenth-century Scotland. Multiple editions of his works poured incessantly from the presses. Unprecedentedly large crowds gathered to commemorate him at huge festivals and at the unveiling of memorials. His work was at the heart of the palpable rise of Scottish-ness that swept Scotland from the 1840s through to the First World War, including demands for Home Rule. If Walter Scott imagined Scotland, Burns shaped it. He gave ordi...

Discover the story of Scotland, salt and the world.Salt is a vital commodity. For many centuries it sustained life for Scots as seasoning for a diet dominated by grains (mainly oats), and for preservation of fish and cheese.Sea-salt manufacturing is one of Scotland's oldest industries, dating to the eleventh century if not earlier. Smoke- and steam-emitting panhouses were once a common sight along the country's coastline and are reflected in many of Scotland's placenames....

Robert Burns has been a key figure in Scottish identity globally since his death in 1796. But he has always been much more than that. In America, his admirers have included Emerson, President Lincoln, Maya Angelou and many others, for Burns was long held to be a friend to the American way of life, an opponent of kings and tyranny, and someone who proved that the values that built the United States were not extinct in Europe. In Europe itself, Burns was seen as both an authentic voice of th...

This is the first volume of a distance-learning history of Scotland course. The 26 major topics are covered in five books, designed for self-study and written to accompany the course. These volumes are: two tutorial volumes, two volumes of reprinted articles and essays, and a volume of documents. The first half of the course covers the period 1707 to 1850.Beginning with the Union of 1707 and Jacobitism, the course considers topics, including: industrialization, politics, religion, ...

This is the second volume of a distance-learning history of Scotland course. This book covers 1850 to the present. The 26 major topics are covered in five books, designed for self-study and written to accompany the course. These volumes are: two tutorial volumes, two volumes of reprinted articles and essays, and a volume of documents. The first half of the course covers the period 1707 to 1850. Beginning with the Union of 1707 and Jacobitism, the course considers topics, including: industr...

Social clubs as they existed in eighteenth- and early nineteenth-century Scotland were varied: they could be convivial, sporting, or scholarly, or they could be a significant and dynamic social force, committed to improvement and national regeneration as well as to sociability. The essays in this volume examine the complex history of clubs and societies in Scotland from 1700 to 1830. Contributors address attitudes toward associations, their meeting places and rituals, their links with the ...