Last of the Free: A Millennial History of the Highlands and Islands of ScotlandWritten by a man who is both an award-winning historian of the Highlands and Islands and a key figure in shaping the region's future development, this is an account of how the Highlands and Islands of Scotland evolved into the way they are today. But the book is not simply the story of humanity's millennium-long involvement with one of the world's most spectacular localities. It is also a contribution to the present-day debate about how Scotland - and Britain - should be organized. James Hunter's central contention is that the Highlands and Islands were most successful when the region possessed a large measure of autonomy, which turned places like Iona and Kirkwall into centres of European significance. That autonomy was destroyed, he maintains, by mediaeval Scotland's monarchy, by 17th-century Scotland's parliament and by the British politicians who inherited the Scottish state's unrelenting determination to ensure that inhabitants of the Highlands and Islands had no worthwhile control over their own destinies. |
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Contents
The Highlands and Islands | 11 |
Born of a noble lineage | 40 |
The broad loom of slaughter | 71 |
Copyright | |
5 other sections not shown
Other editions - View all
Last of the Free: A History of the Highlands and Islands of Scotland James Hunter Limited preview - 2011 |
Last of the Free: A Millennial History of the Highlands and Islands of Scotland James Hunter No preview available - 2000 |
Last of the Free: A History of the Highlands and Islands of Scotland James Hunter No preview available - 2010 |
Common terms and phrases
Adomnan agriculture Alexander Argyll bards became began Braes Britain British Caithness Caledonian Campbell centre century's chieftains clan chiefs clearances Columba communities course crofters Crofters Commission crofting Dalriada decades despite Donald Earl Earldom earlier Easter Ross economic Edinburgh effect eighteenth century emigration estates evicted families farming Firth fishing Gaelic Gaelic-speaking Glen haaf Hebridean Hebrides Highland Clearances Highland Land League Highland mainland Highlands and Islands hundred Inchtuthil inhabitants Inverness Iona Iona's Ireland Irish Islands landlords Islay Isles Jacobite kelp king Kintyre Knoydart lairds Land League lands and Islands localities Loch Lord Lordship Lowland MacDonald modern monarchs Moray nineteenth century Norse North Norwegian occupied Orcadians organised Orkney Orkney's Orkneyinga Saga Pictish Picts population possessed present-day region result Roman rulers runrig Saga Scotland Scots Scottish monarchy sheep sheep-farmers Shetland Sigurd sixteenth-century Skye Somerled Somerled's sort Stewart Strathrusdale Sutherland tacksmen tenants territories took townships United Kingdom Viking