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An introduction to the nautical history of the North Atlantic. For
centuries the Atlantic hemmed Europe behind its storms and
mysterious breadth. This was the ocean sea that extended to
nowhere, or to the end of the world. Although there were legends of
crossings by Celtic saints and Norse ocean farers, it took the
vision of an Italian and the finance of a Spanish queen to shatter
the shackles of superstition. Columbus was the catalyst who opened
the door to the modern world. "Across the Pond" tells of the
changing use of this ocean, from a barrier to a route to riches and
a highway for trade. There are episodes of exploration and
exploitation, there are fighting ships and fisheries, treasure and
timber, and always the danger of the sea. There also slipped the
slavers with their cargo of shame. This is an ocean that bred some
of the world's hardiest mariners, famous men such as Cabot and
Hudson and Vespucci, but also the nameless thousands who manned
ships, the hard-used mariners from the Chesapeake, the Solway and
Seville. Here was bred the down east Yankee, the Nova Scotian
bluenose and the Scouser from Liverpool.
The Highlands and Islands of Scotland are full of iconic places, beautiful landscapes and flourishing wildlife, but its past has seen horrifying and brutal crime of all sorts.
Life in the Highlands of the 19th century was not easy. The glens and moors were home to poachers and whisky smugglers, while the towns were often ready to explode into riot and disorder. Even the Hebridean seas had their dangers, while the Islands seethed with discontent.
Whisky Wars looks behind the façade of romantic tartan and vast estates. As well as petty thefts and assaults, the Highlands had a coastal town where riots were endemic, an island rocked by a triple murder, a mob besieging Dornoch jail and religious troubles on the Black Isle. Add the thief who targeted tourist hotels and an Exciseman hanged for forgery, and a hidden history is unearthed in all its unique detail.
A fascinating insight into life in the Highlands and Islands as the forces of law and order battled to bring peace to a troubled land.
'Throws off the cloak of romance and shows the land was rife with all manner of crime' - SCOTS MAGAZINE
'History buffs and crime fans will be equally intrigued by this atmospheric account of the law-makers and law-breakers of past times' - DAILY RECORD
Previously published as Whisky Wars, Riots and Murder
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