Scottish Highland Clearances
Compared to the well-documented Highland Clearances, it may appear as though ‘the Lowland Clearances’ never existed. By and large, there are few Scottish historians who consider the similarities between the events that took place in the Highlands and Lowlands. Most academics recognize the significance of the agricultural improvements that took place in the south; whereas, they identify the north solely based on the immense number of clearances. In contrast, this acknowledgement is not only one-dimensional, it is simply not true. Throughout the course of two generations, or between 1760 and 1830, the foundation of the Lowland society collapsed, thousands of people were forced to move off their land; hundreds small settlements were either abandoned or destroyed; an entire social class was removed and Scotland was forever changed.1 Without disputing the significance of the Highland Clearances, it is important to reflect on the events taking place in the lowlands during the late eighteenth century. By emphasizing these critical events and providing visibility to the thousands of people who were affected when forces to move off their native land, will outline the validity of the Lowland Clearances and why it has played a vital role in the development of Scottish modernization. At the beginning of the eighteenth century, there was no particular divide between the Scottish highlands and lowlands. Scotland was largely rural, peasant society with one of the most dysfunctional agricultural systems in all of Europe. Farming techniques that were being used had existed and remained the same for hundreds of years. Only a small minority of the population was wealthy enough to afford land but roughly everyone used it as a means of living, work, and nourishment. From single tenants to multiple tenancies that shared a lease, land was allocated to those who were able to afford a modest cash payment and provide labor services. Most people lived in settlements that could sustain
Bibliography: “Agriculture Revolution,” accessed November 3, 2012 http://www.visitdunkeld.com/agricultural-revolution.htm Christoper A. Whatley, Custom, Commerce and Lord Meadowbank: The Management of the Market in Urban Scotland, c.1740-c.1820, (Scotland: Edinburgh University Press), 9. F Dovring, ‘The Transformation of European Agriculture’ (1965) G. Whittington, Was there a Scottish Agricultural Revolution? (Cambridge), 204. Peter Aitchison and Andrew Cassell, The Lowland Clearances: Scotland’s Silent Revolution, 1760-1830. (Great Britain: Tuckwell Press), 2. Robert Dodgshon, The Clearances and the Transformation of the Scottish Countryside, (Oxford: Oxford University Press), 134. T.M. Devine, Social Responses to Agrarian Improvement: the Highland and Lowland Clearances. (Great Britain: Cambridge University Press), 158.