History Scotland

PATRONS

David Breeze Christopher Smout Historiographer Royal Elizabeth Ewan

MEET THE CONTRIBUTORS

Dr Ewan Gibbs is lecturer in economic and

Key George IV Edinburgh visit item discovered on eve of visit anniversary

Curators at Museums & Galleries Edinburgh have rediscovered a key object relating to the visit of King George IV to Edinburgh in 1822

Demolished Victorian jute mill to serve a new purpose

Reclaimed stone from a historic Dundee jute mill is to find a new purpose at the University of Dundee

Call for coastal heritage survey volunteers

Over the summer of 2022, SCAPE volunteers have walked parts of the Moray Firth and Aberdeenshire coastlines to update records of heritage sites on the coast and intertidal zone

FROM THE EDITOR

Welcome to our November/December issue, with Mary Queen

Historic children’s home archive opens with donation from former resident

A new archive making more than a century’s worth of records from Aberlour Children’s Charity accessible for the first time has been officially opened by a former resident

One million newspaper pages free to access from British Newspaper Archive and British Library

The British Newspaper Archive in partnership with the British Library has made a further one million historical newspaper pages available completely free to the public, reaching a total of two million free to explore pages

MEMORIALISING MARY QUEEN OF SCOTS

Why does Mary Queen of Scots have such an enduring place in Scotland’s collective memory? A research team at the University of Glasgow have spent the past seven years examining this question.The project’s co-investigators, Anne Dulau Beveridge and Dr Steven Reid tell us more

Winter archaeologies

Summer past, and in anticipation of the first frosts of autumn, this short piece by Gavin MacGregor, director of Archaeology Scotland, explores different aspects of winter archaeology

SPOTLIGHT ON… Uist Community Archaeology Group

Simon Davies introduces an archaeology group whose location in the Outer Hebrides gives members unique opportunities in terms of archaeological finds and interaction with archaeologists across the UK and further afield

THE ISLE OF LISMORE LIGHTHOUSE AND ITS 19TH-CENTURY KEEPERS

Dr Robert Hay explores the census and archive records to discover what life was like for lighthouse keepers on the Isle of Lismore; men who kept watch during the hours of darkness and carried out a myriad of tasks during the day

THE LOGARITHMIC (EQUIAN GULAR) SPIRAL

As one of the last surviving members of

THE EYESORE AND THE EMPEROR’S SWORD: A HIGHLANDER IN 19TH-CENTURY DELHI

David Taylor tells the story of Major Robert Macpherson, a Badenoch-born soldier whose career in India underlines the links between India and the Scottish highlands in the late 18th and early 19th centuries

THE BANDIT KING

The 17th century was the heyday of banditry in Scotland, and among the most notorious of all the century’s brigands was Patrick MacGregor, better known by his nickname, ‘Gilderoy’. Dr Allan Kennedy explores his exploits, downfall and afterlife

Coal country: Deindustrialisation and the making of contemporary Scotland

The contraction of the industrial sector has been one of the most prominent trends in recent Scottish history, with huge consequences not just for the economy, but for politics and society as well. Drawing on his recent book, Dr Ewan Gibbs explores the process and meaning of this deindustrialisation with reference to Scotland’s coalfields

SELKIRK, SCOTLAND AND THE SOUTH PACIFIC: THE BUCCANEER BEHIND CRUSOE

Well known as the real-life inspiration behind Daniel Defoe’s Robinson Crusoe, Alexander Selkirk was more than merely the source of a novelist’s inspiration – he was a fascinating, complex character who encapsulated the rapid changes taking place in Scottish society during the early 18th century. Will Barber-Taylor reflects on Selkirk’s remarkable story

PUTTING CAPE WRATH BACK ON THE MAP

For centuries, map-makers got the shape of Scotland’s northern coast wrong, cutting off the entire north-western tip. It was left to the surveying efforts of a little-known 18th-century minister to reveal the coastline’s true form. Alastair Mitchell tells the remarkable tale

...DAVID II AND MARGARET LOGIE

History Scotland’s consultant editor, Dr Allan Kennedy, looks into the relationship between David II (r.1329-71) and his second wife, Margaret Logie – one of the most controversial royal marriages of the Middle Ages

THE BLACK BOOK OF TAYMOUTH A GENEALOGICAL TREASURE

In our regular spotlight on treasures of the National Records of Scotland, Dr Alison Rosie takes a look at a remarkable bound manuscript that charts the fortunes of the Campbells of Glenorchy over several centuries

The 1745 Rising reassessed

Martin Margulies reveals new perspectives on the Jacobite Rising

RECENTLY PUBLISHED

Scottish colonial literature: writing the Atlantic, 1603-1707 By

DIARY DATES

EVENTS AROUND THE COUNTRY, PLUS SELECTED ONLINE EVENTS TO ENJOY FROM ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD

How to find evidence of an ancestor’s passport

Ken Nisbet takes a look at the history of passport issuing, explaining where you can look to find out whether your ancestor was issued with such a document

A long tradition of scholarship

THE SCOTTISH HISTORY SOCIETY: VOLUME IN THE SPOTLIGHT

FINAL WORD

We talk to Claire McDade, the newly-appointed Industrial Museums Scotland Coordinator, about the various aspects of her role, and a new project to address a crucial skills gap

SCOTTISH LOCAL HISTORY FORUM

In this regular round-up, we take a look at the various activities of the Scottish Local History Forum over the past few months, including a slavery mini-conference and a visit to Kinneil House

Spotlight on… Abertay Historic al Society

The Abertay Historical Society (AHS) recently celebrated its demisesquicentenary (75 years). It was founded at University College, Dundee, by Principal D. N. Wimberley and Dr F.T. Wainwright on 29 May 1947 with the aim of promoting the study of local history in Dundee, Angus, Perthshire and Fife

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