Scotland in the Summer

Summer in the Washington, DC area can be a miserable time of year; oppressive heat and humidity are the norm. Hence, a summer getaway sounded like a good idea. The question was: Where? It would have to be someplace that offered cooler temperatures, which ruled out most of the places on my travel wish list, and it would also have to be someplace I’d never been before. Then my friend Cindy, an Outlander fan, started talking about how much she wanted to go to Scotland. 

 

I’d been to England several times, but Scotland hadn’t really interested me. I tend to favor more exotic locales for my travels. I imagined Scotland as a damp, dreary, colorless place where Queen Elizabeth and family bundled up in layers of dull shapeless clothes on their annual summer retreat at Balmoral. But Cindy’s enthusiasm convinced me that while Scotland might be overly familiar, it would offer the advantages of cooler summer weather (albeit gray and rainy), drinkable tap water, and last but not least, the possibility of running into a kilt-wearing Scot like Outlander’s Jamie Fraser. 

 

And so I went ahead and booked a 15-day OAT adventure called Scotland Revealed, which started in Glasgow, went as far north as Inverness, and ended in Edinburgh. 

At the time, I was hopelessly ignorant when it came to Scottish history. I tended to lump Scotland and England together – after all, they’re on the same island and part of the same country and they use the same currency. However, as part of my usual pre-trip routine, I did some cursory research that helped me understand the complex relationship between Scotland and its neighbor to the south. I started to realize how today’s Scotland is a unique blend of the many groups who made their homes in this land over the centuries: various Celtic and Germanic tribes, Vikings from Scandinavia, Norman French, immigrants from across Europe, and more recently, from around the world. Once I had gained a little bit of knowledge, I was eager to learn more about the identity of the Scottish people and their way of life. 

 

My fabulous OAT tour leader, Stephen, and the various local guides taught me so much while I was in Scotland. 

 

And since I’m an incorrigible history nerd, when I returned from my trip, I spent way too much time doing more research to try to untangle the web of Scotland’s history. If you’re so inclined, you can review this brief (ha!) overview of some key dates and events. (I consulted multiple sources but don’t consider this authoritative in any way.) And please feel free the skip the following section if you’d rather just jump ahead to the next post, Getting to Know Glasgow, which I’ll publish tomorrow. You can always come back to this for reference at a later time. 

 

Earliest history:

·      Iron Age (800 BCE to 43 CE) – Caledonians (a Celtic people) are earliest known inhabitants of today’s Scotland.

·      1^st century CE – Romans defeat Caledonians, then in the 2^nd century CE build Hadrian’s Wall and withdraw south to Roman Britain, leaving today’s Scotland to the Picts (descendants of the Caledonians) and other Celtic tribes.

The Middle Ages:

·      6^th century – Gaelic (Celtic) kingdom of Dál Riata is established on the west coast of Scotland and northern coast of Ireland.  The two parts separate in the mid-7^th century. Additional kingdoms included the Brittonic (Celtic) kingdom of Strathclyde in the region of today’s Glasgow. 

·      Around 547 - Angles and Saxons (Germanic tribes who settled in Britain after Roman era) defeat the Celts and establish the Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Bernicia in southeast Scotland. 

·      7^th century and 8^th century – There’s a lot of fighting among different groups. In 654, The Anglo-Saxon king of Bernicia conquers Deira to the south (formerly in Roman Britain) and forms the kingdom of Northumbria.  Scottish Dál Riata eventually falls under the dominance of the Picts.

·      793 – Viking invasions begin and continue until 1266, with many Norse settling in Scotland.

·      9^th century – Picts and Scots unite to form Kingdom of Alba (Scottish Gaelic for Scotland), which lasts about 400 years.  

·      11^th century – Clans (extended families with a chief) started to form. 

·      12^th century – King David I of Alba introduces feudal landholding system.  

·      1174 - King William I of Alba is forced to swear allegiance to King Henry II of England after a major military defeat. 

·      1237 – The southern border of Scotland is established in the Treaty of York.

·      1296 – King Edward I of England invades Scotland, setting off the First Scottish War of Independence. 

·      1297 – Forces led by Andrew Moray and William Wallace defeat the English forces at Stirling Bridge. 

·      1305 – William Wallace is captured by the English, tortured, and executed. 

·      1314 – Scots under King Robert the Bruce defeat the English at Bannockburn and England recognizes Scottish independence.  

·      1371 – Robert II of Scotland (great-nephew of Robert the Bruce) becomes the first Stewart king of Scotland. 

·      1413 – University of St. Andrews is founded (the oldest in Scotland). 

 

Get ready for a busy (and confusing) time:

·      1488 – James IV (Stewart) becomes king of Scotland. 

·      1560 – The Protestant Reformation of the Church of Scotland begins when John Knox returns from Geneva to promote Calvinism. 

·      1561 – Mary Stewart/Stuart (aka Mary Queen of Scots), daughter of James V of Scotland and great-granddaughter of Henry VII of England, returns from France as heir to the throne of Scotland – but she’s a Catholic monarch in a Protestant country. 

·      1567 – Mary is forced to abdicate in favor of her infant son, James VI of Scotland. 

·      1568 – Mary flees to England seeking protection from her cousin Queen Elizabeth I (Protestant) who instead imprisons her. Many English Catholics see Mary as legitimate heir to English throne.

·      1583 – James VI takes over rule of Scotland from regents.

·      1587 – Mary is executed on orders of Elizabeth

·      1603 – After the death of Elizabeth I of England, the crowns of Scotland and England unite with James VI of Scotland (son of Mary, Queen of Scots) becoming James I of England and Ireland, the 1^stStewart/Stuart king (and he’s Protestant). 

·      1625 – Charles I succeeds his father as king of England, Scotland, and Ireland but his authoritarian rule and arguments with Parliament lead to civil war.  

·      1649 – Parliament has Charles I executed. 

·      1654 – The Commonwealth is established under Oliver Cromwell who is succeeded by his son Richard Cromwell and it turns into a military dictatorship. 

·      1660 – Parliament restores the monarchy with Charles II (Protestant), son of Charles I.  

·      1685 – When Charles II dies, his brother, a Catholic, becomes James II. 

·      1688 – The Glorious Revolution takes place when Parliament deposes James II because of his policies favoring Catholics and his attempts to expand royal power. Parliament invites William of Orange (grandson of Charles I) and his wife Mary (daughter of James II), who are Protestant, to serve as monarchs. 

·      1689 – There’s a Jacobite (referring to the Latin for James) rising in the Highlands with the goal of restoring deposed king James II.

·      1702 – William and Mary are succeeded by Mary’s sister Anne, the last Stuart monarch.

·      1707 – The Acts of Union join Scotland and England.  

·      1714 – When Anne dies, Parliament selects George of Hanover (Anne’s closest Protestant relative) to succeed her. Jacobite uprisings continue. 

·      1745 – Bonnie Prince Charlie comes from France to Scotland to lead the Jacobite uprising to return his father to the British throne. 

·      1746 – The Jacobites are decisively defeated by British forces at the Battle of Culloden, ending their resistance. Clan power ends and Highland culture is banned. 

·      1750 – Highland Clearances begin and last about 100 years. 

·      1846-56 – The Highland potato famine leads to more emigration.

 

And modern times:

·      1999 – A devolved Scottish Parliament meets for the first time in 272 years, giving Scotland limited autonomy. 

·      2014 – A referendum in Scotland on regaining national independence: 55% to 45% vote to remain part of United Kingdom. 

·      2020 – The United Kingdom withdraws from the European Union.

 

Congratulations if you’ve read this far. Now pour yourself a wee dram of whisky and get ready to explore Scotland.