The Great Hunger in nineteenth-century Ireland was a major human tragedy of modern times. Almost a million perished and a further two million emigrated in the wake of potato blight and economic collapse. Acute famine also gripped the Scottish Highlands at the same time, causing misery, hardship and distress. The story of that lesser known human disaster is told in this prize-winning and internationally acclaimed book. The author describes the classic themes of highland and Scottish history, including the clearances, landlordism, crofting life, emigration and migration in a subtle and intricate reconstruction based on a wide range of sources. This book should appeal to all those with an interest in Scottish history, the emigration of Scottish people and the Highland Clearances.

For more than a century and a half the real story of Scotland's connections to transatlantic slavery has been lost to history and shrouded in myth. There was even denial that the Scots, unlike the English, had any significant involvement in slavery. Scotland saw itself as a pioneering abolitionist nation untainted by a slavery past. This book is the first detailed attempt to challenge these beliefs. Written by the foremost scholars in the field, with findings based on sustained archival research, the volume systematically peels away the mythology and radically revises the traditional picture. In doing so the contributors come to a number of surprising conclusions. Topics covered include national amnesia and slavery, the impact of profits from slavery on Scotland, Scots in the Caribbean sugar islands, compensation paid to Scottish owners when slavery was abolished, domestic controversies on the slave trade, the role of Scots in slave trading from English ports and much else. The book is a major contribution to Scottish history, to studies of the Scots global diaspora and to the history of slavery within the British Empire. It will have wide appeal not only to scholars and students but to all readers interested in discovering an untold aspect of Scotland's past.

This is the first wide-ranging, cross-disciplinary overview of immigration to Scotland in recent history and its impact on both the newcomers and the host society. It examines key themes relating to postwar migration by showcasing the experiences of many of Scotland's most striking immigrant communities of people arriving from England, Poland, India, Pakistan, China, the Caribbean and the African continent. New Scots also features analysis of asylum seekers and refugees, along with Jewish and Roma migrants, and includes a chapter on migrant voting patterns during the Independence Referendum of 2014. Framed in chronological, thematic and international contexts, New Scots offers its readers a penetrating understanding of immigration, one of the most crucial issues confronting the United Kingdom today.

For more than a century and a half the real story of Scotland's connections to transatlantic slavery has been lost to history and shrouded in myth. There was even denial that the Scots unlike the English had any significant involvement in slavery .Scotland saw itself as a pioneering abolitionist nation untainted by a slavery past. This book is the first detailed attempt to challenge these beliefs.Written by the foremost scholars in the field, with findings based on sustained archival research, the volume systematically peels away the mythology and radically revises the traditional picture.In doing so the contributors come to a number of surprising conclusions. Topics covered include national amnesia and slavery, the impact of profits from slavery on Scotland, Scots in the Caribbean sugar islands, compensation paid to Scottish owners when slavery was abolished, domestic controversies on the slave trade, the role of Scots in slave trading from English ports and much else. The book is a major contribution to Scottish history, to studies of the Scots global diaspora and to the history of slavery within the British Empire.It will have wide appeal not only to scholars and students but to all readers interested in discovering an untold aspect of Scotland's past.

This is the first wide-ranging, cross-disciplinary overview of immigration to Scotland in recent history and its impact on both the newcomers and the host society. It examines key themes relating to postwar migration by showcasing the experiences of many of Scotland's most striking immigrant communities of people arriving from England, Poland, India, Pakistan, China, the Caribbean and the African continent. New Scots also features analysis of asylum seekers and refugees, along with Jewish and Roma migrants, and includes a chapter on migrant voting patterns during the Independence Referendum of 2014. Framed in chronological, thematic and international contexts, New Scots offers its readers a penetrating understanding of immigration, one of the most crucial issues confronting the United Kingdom today.

This is the first comprehensive history of the Scottish economy over the last three centuries to appear in a generation. Written by leading scholars in the field, it presents 'state of the art' research in an accessible style to all those interested in understanding the historical context of modern Scotland. Fresh interpretations are revealed on such key and controversial issues as the impact of the Union of 1707, the Clearances, the rise and fall of Scottish heavy industry and the recent transformation of the modern economy. The distinctive features of the Scottish economic system are stressed but these are also analysed within a British and international context. The focus of the volume is both broad and detailed with full treatment of agriculture, finance, industry and the service sector as well as the impact of momentous economic changes on the lives of the people and the massive new role in the twentieth century of the state in economic affairs. At a time of intense debate on the present and future condition of Scotland under a devolved parliament and executive, this book provides the essential background and the long-run perspectives on the challenges and opportunities facing the nation.

A comprehensive examination of the past, present and future prospects of the Anglo-Scottish Union, this book is written by the cream of the academic talent in modern Scottish history and Scottish politics. It appeals to a wide readership while conforming to the highest standards of scholarship and no other volume considers the entire 300-year experience of Union - from its origins in the early 18th century to the historic parliamentary victory of the SNP in May 2007.All the key themes and questions are covered here: why the Union took place; its growing acceptance in the eighteenth century; the central role of the Scots in the British Empire and the impact on Scotland; the politics of unionism; the challenge of nationalism; Thatcherism and the Union; and, devolution and prospects for the future. This is the essential text for understanding one of the most burning issues in British public life today. This is the only book which comprehensively considers the entire 300-year history of the Union, its present condition and future prospects from the origins of 1707 to the historic SNP victory in 2007. It is written by the cream of the academic talent in modern Scottish history and modern Scottish politics. It is designed to be accessible to a wide readership.