Category History

Scottish History at a Glance: The Wolf of Badenoch

Our History lecturer, Dr Allan Kennedy, explores the life and legacy of King Robert II’s notorious third son, Alexander Stewart, better known as ‘the Wolf of Badenoch’. This article first appeared as part of the ’10 Minutes On…’ column in…

Scottish History at a Glance: The ‘Black Dinner’ of 1440

Our History lecturer, Dr Allan Kennedy, looks at the notorious executions of two noblemen under suspicious circumstances during the minority of James II. This article first appeared as part of the ’10 Minutes On…’ column in History Scotland magazine, with…

Scottish History at a Glance: The Meic Uilleim Risings

Our History Lecturer, Dr Allan Kennedy, provides a brief summary of the long-standing resistance offered to the MacMalcolm kings of the 12th and 13th centuries by the rival Meic Uilleim family. This article first appeared as part of the ’10 Minutes…

Scottish History at a Glance: Agricola’s Caledonian Campaign

Our History Lecturer, Dr Allan Kennedy, provides an overview of the Roman attempt to subjugate Scotland towards the end of the 1st century CE. This article first appeared as part of the ’10 Minutes On…’ column in History Scotland magazine, with whose kind…

Scottish History at a Glance: The Marian Civil War

Our History Lecturer, Dr Allan Kennedy, provides an overview of the short but vicious civil war that followed the deposition in 1567 of Mary, Queen of Scots. This article first appeared as part of the ’10 Minutes On…’ column in…

Leaving the Cold Country

In an exclusive preview of his new book, Professor Graeme Morton explores the rise of meteorological science in the nineteenth century, and asks how it might have related to the Scottish experience of mass emigration. Even when the rain and…

Imagining Union before the Union

The Union of 1707 did not come out of nowhere; Scots had been discussing the concept almost ceaselessly throughout the 17th century. Dr Allan Kennedy outlines the major models of Union they came up with, demonstrating that the form adopted…

Dying to Invest: Scotland and the Tontine

A plot-point in numerous books, films, and TV shows, the tontine is among the most notorious financial products every devised. But, as Dr Andrew McDiarmid explains, this most infamous of investment schemes had a notable – and broadly positive –…