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For the latest news from Scotland see our ScotNews feed at:
https://electricscotland.com/scotnews.htm
Electric Scotland News
I've done a deal with MyHeritage folk which means I've thus removed almost all other advertising on the site. I hope it will work out for everyone. The adverts all have a search engine embedded into them allowing you to search for your ancestors. You can also make use of their family tree software to keep a record of your researches.
-------
On the topic of the Scots Diaspora I noted in a recent article that Americans are very poorly educated on their history with many not even aware of the civil war. I thus thought it might be useful for you to note that under the Scots Diaspora section we have a section for the USA and when you go there you'll find two links to "American History on Electric Scotland" and "Scots Irish in America" where you will find a huge amount of history for you to explore. We have an excellent History of the Southern States of America in 13 volumes and here is the Preface which might inspire you to have a read of this publication...
PREFACE
The addition of a thirteenth volume devoted to an index and analysis of the twelve-volume Library, THE SOUTH IN THE BUILDING OF THE NATION, is intended to meet the oft-expressed desires of many readers. Certainly no work of reference more keenly merits such treatment. At every turn as the editor progressed with the work new avenues opened up inviting research and suggesting still further fields of investigation.
t has been a wonderfully inspiring study, and one which in the doing would be calculated to make every Southerner and every American citizen glow with pride. If only the men of early deeds, the empire-builders of the past, had been privileged to look through the broad, rich pages of these books, foreseeing the achievement of each state and of the South as a Whole, how great would have been their joy of proprietorship! But what was denied them is now within the reach of every schoolIboy and girl. Truly the half had 'never been told no, nor even the tenth part set down until this series of monumental volumes was published!
To have aided in any way in such a work, even though it be only as a guide pointing out pleasant paths to follow, is a source of gratification to the present editor. The need of systematic guidance to the Library has been long apparent. There is far too much in these comprehensive volumes for even the experienced reader to grasp at one trial; while the student following any special lines would inevitably miss many related topics of great value without recourse to an Index or Courses of Study.
The present Index merits the name of Analytical, as it cites every important name and subject throughout the twelve vol- umes often in more than one way, as, for example, a state university will be found listed both under the state and under the word university. The Index is closely alphabetized, and contains nearly 20,000 references, each complete in itself. The Reading and Study Courses, which follow are given a special word of explanation. They are the other hemisphere to the completed whole, or, to vary the figure of speech, the other segment to the keystone of the arch. They should be used closely in connection with the Index, as they constantly refer back to it for further citations. This was found necessary in order to avoid extending the Courses uselessly. For example, George Washington might be referred to only once at a given place in the Courses, whereas an entire column of entries will be found under his name in the Index. With the two placed side by side, the reader should be able to map out many congenial lines of related research and pleasurable perusal for himself. This is but another tribute to the inexhaustible quality of the Library. It carries us back unwearied to the very well-springs of history and shows us all the varied causes social, industrial, political, intellectual, aesthetic, military, which have made the South a mighty factor in the upbuilding of our common country.
J. WALKER MCSPADDEN
May 13, 1913
You can get to this collection at:
https://electricscotland.com/history...outh/index.htm
I might just add that one of the reasons for covering the history of a country is to put it into context for the people that emigrated to that country at a particular time period. You can thus read what the country was like when your ancestors first arrived.
Scottish News from this weeks newspapers
Note that this is a selection and more can be read in our ScotNews feed on our index page where we list news from the past 1-2 weeks. I am partly doing this to build an archive of modern news from and about Scotland and world news stories that can affect Scotland and as all the newsletters are archived and also indexed on Google and other search engines it becomes a good resource. I might also add that in a number of newspapers you will find many comments which can be just as interesting as the news story itself and of course you can also add your own comments if you wish which I do myself from time to time.
When it comes to the EU - there’s no going back
SCOTLAND WILL NEVER go back to being an EU country unless the rest of the UK does as well, and that seems pretty unlikely, not in the short, medium or long term.
Read more at:
https://thinkscotland.org/2021/05/wh...no-going-back/
Mega £17bn deal looms - as fishermen celebrate new record
MINISTERS are working towards a new post-Brexit deal with Canada that could supercharge Britain's £17bn relationship with its Commonwealth ally.
Read more at:
https://www.express.co.uk/news/polit...ncial-services
Report finds Scotland has worst education system in UK
NICOLA Sturgeon has come under fierce criticism after a new report found Scotland has the worst performing education system in the UK.
Read more at:
https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/14...nce-referendum
Nicola Sturgeon reelected as First Minister for another term by MSPs
The SNP leader saw off rival bids from Willie Rennie and Douglas Ross to take on the top job in Scottish politics once again.
Read more at:
https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/p...ister-24133704
Nicola Sturgeon announces new SNP Cabinet in post-election shake-up
The First Minister revealed her new top team earlier today
Read more at:
https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/p...w-snp-24141319
List of amber/red list countries and the rules for Scots travelling to them
The Scottish Government has published a list of the countries that have been put on the amber and red lists on the traffic light system put in place on Monday
Read more at:
https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/s...rules-24148506
Back the Australian trade deal
The UK has now rolled over the EU deals with other countries as promised in the referendum. The draft Australian Free Trade Agreement could be the first of the new UK negotiated deals, which will go much further than the EU went in opening up opportunities for more trade and business activity.
Read more at:
https://johnredwoodsdiary.com/2021/0...ian-trade-deal
Electric Canadian
Life of Sir William E. Logan
First director of the geological survey of Canada by Bernard J. Harrington (1883) (pdf)
A great read which you can find at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/make...an_william.pdf
Thoughts on a Sunday morning - the 16th day of May 2021
By the Rev. Nola Crewe
You can view this at:
http://www.electricscotland.org/foru...16h-day-of-may
Agri-Lmi - Labour Market Information
Agriculture 2025: How the Sector’s Labour Challenges Will Shape Its Future (pdf)
An interesting read which you can get to at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/tran...NAT_report.pdf
Report on the Affairs of the Indians in Canada
Laid before the legislative assembly 20th March 1845 (pdf)
You can read this old account at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/hist...nsincanada.pdf
Electric Scotland
Beth's Video Talks
Got in her talk for May 20th 2021 - Archaic words in Genealogy
You can view this at: https://electricscotland.com/bnft/videos.htm
Galic Antiquities
Consisting of a History of the Druids, particularly of those of Caledonia; a Dissertation on the Authenticity of the poem of Ossian; and a collection of Ancient Poems, translated from the Galic of Ullin, Ossian, Orran, &c., By John Smith, Minister of Kilbrandon, Argyleshire (1780) (pdf)
This is one of these books where the letter s is replaced by the letter f but you do get used to it before long and so you should enjoy this book which you can find at: https://electricscotland.com/history...ntiquities.pdf
Historical notices of the Clan Gregor from Authentic Sources
By Donald Gregory (1891) (pdf)
This was the first real attempt at writing the history of this clan and you can view this at:
https://electricscotland.com/webclan...lan_Gregor.pdf
History and Rhymes of the Lost Battalion
By Buck Private McCollum, Sketches by Franklin Sly (1922) (pdf)
Added this to our American history section and you can read it at:
https://electricscotland.com/history...tbattalion.pdf
Clan Henderson
Got in the June 2021 newsletter which you can read at:
https://electricscotland.com/familyt...rson/index.htm
Good Men and True
Biographies of Workers in the Fields of Beneficences and Benevolence by Alexander H. Japp, LL.D. (Second Edition) (1890) (pdf)
The first person mentioned in this book is the Rev. Norman MacLeod with two other Scots also featured and you can read this at:
https://electricscotland.com/history...menandtrue.pdf
Story
Stuart McHardy
A Lad o Pairts Speaks
Another take on 1320
On the seventh hundred anniversary of the Declaration of Arbroath much is being made of how it has influenced the development of human rights. Scholars from many parts of the globe consider it of fundamental importance in the growth of democracy. While much of this is probably correct there are other aspects to this famous document that to date have not been investigated. One of these is the statement that...
They journeyed from Greater Scythia by way of the Tyrrhenian Sea and the Pillars of Hercules, and dwelt for a long course of time in Spain among the most savage tribes, but nowhere could they be subdued by any race, however barbarous.
Now this statement chimes with material from even earlier which claims the Scots had initially come from Egypt led by Scota, a daughter of the Pharoah around the time of Moses. This suggests that there was an origin myth amongst the Scots that effectively has them coming to the islands off the north-west of Europe from Africa via Spain. This is remarkable in two respects. Firstly modern scientific opinion is in total agreement that the human species arose in Africa then spread out through the Middle East to populate the rest of the planet. Also we now know that during the last Ice Age in northern Iberia there was what is known as a refugium from where humans spread north as the ice retreated. Secondly research over the past few decades has shown that oral transmission can carry actual data over tens of millennia. The best example of this is the Dreamtime stories from Australia that talk of giant marsupials. the scientific term is Diprotodon, which have been extinct for over thirty thousand years. It is perfectly feasible that stories of an origin in far off Africa had arrived with the first settlers from the Iberian refugium after the Ice Age, and had continued to be told. The inclusion of Scota as a daughter of the Pharoah fits with the general Western tradition of suggesting legitimacy by referring to material that was extant in the Christian Bible, but it the story suggests that our distant ancestors left Africa via the Middle East and spent some time in Iberia, which is exactly what the science suggests happened. 13th century suggestions that Scota came to Scotland rather than Ireland were reinforced at the dawn of this century by Euan Campbell’s exposure of the apparent inaccuracy of the story of the Scots coming to Scotland from Ireland. Literacy came with the Christian religion and though it came to dominate many aspects of life it did not completely eradicate the indigenous culture that had arisen over millennia.
There is another aspect to the 1320 declaration that I suggest has not been fully appreciated. It is stated...
Yet if he should give up what he has begun, and agree to make us or our kingdom subject to the King of England or the English, we should exert ourselves at once to drive him out as our enemy and a subverter of his own rights and ours, and make some other man who was well able to defend us our King; for, as long as but a hundred of us remain alive, never will we on any conditions be brought under English rule.
Now most Scottish commentators on this have emphasised the bit about resisting English rule, but what comes before it tells us something quite remarkable. Though the idea that new king will be created if the current one fails in his duty to the community of the realm has been interpreted as a very modern idea, it is nothing of the sort. It is in fact a fundamental reality of tribal society that the person at the top is responsible to the tribe as a whole. This is clear from a range of different episodes amongst Scotland’s clans, when the chief for one reason or another was deemed unfit, or unsuitable to reign. The best example is probably the story of Ranald Gallda, the Hen Chief of the MacDonalds, whose rejection by his kin led to the Famous Battle of the Shirts in 1544. As late as the 1720s Edmund Burt wrote of a chief being embarrassed in front of a group of English visitors to whom he had boasted of his control over his clansmen, peat-stained and clad only in a scrap of tartan when one them stepped out of a crude dwelling and shook him by the hand and wished him good day. He may have been ready to follow him into battle and give up his life for the clan, but he knew his chief was still his cousin.
The signatories of the 1320 Declaration needed to comply with the international and courtly protocols of the contemporary world to preserve their freedom but as the document shows, their capacity to function together was rooted in their own indigenous culture. Take a look at their names, apart from less than a handful, they are Scottish place or family, that is kin-group, names. They kennt wha they were.
END.
Visit Stuart's web site at: https://stuartmchardy.wordpress.com/
And that's it for this week and hope you all have a great weekend.
Alastair
https://electricscotland.com/scotnews.htm
Electric Scotland News
I've done a deal with MyHeritage folk which means I've thus removed almost all other advertising on the site. I hope it will work out for everyone. The adverts all have a search engine embedded into them allowing you to search for your ancestors. You can also make use of their family tree software to keep a record of your researches.
-------
On the topic of the Scots Diaspora I noted in a recent article that Americans are very poorly educated on their history with many not even aware of the civil war. I thus thought it might be useful for you to note that under the Scots Diaspora section we have a section for the USA and when you go there you'll find two links to "American History on Electric Scotland" and "Scots Irish in America" where you will find a huge amount of history for you to explore. We have an excellent History of the Southern States of America in 13 volumes and here is the Preface which might inspire you to have a read of this publication...
PREFACE
The addition of a thirteenth volume devoted to an index and analysis of the twelve-volume Library, THE SOUTH IN THE BUILDING OF THE NATION, is intended to meet the oft-expressed desires of many readers. Certainly no work of reference more keenly merits such treatment. At every turn as the editor progressed with the work new avenues opened up inviting research and suggesting still further fields of investigation.
t has been a wonderfully inspiring study, and one which in the doing would be calculated to make every Southerner and every American citizen glow with pride. If only the men of early deeds, the empire-builders of the past, had been privileged to look through the broad, rich pages of these books, foreseeing the achievement of each state and of the South as a Whole, how great would have been their joy of proprietorship! But what was denied them is now within the reach of every schoolIboy and girl. Truly the half had 'never been told no, nor even the tenth part set down until this series of monumental volumes was published!
To have aided in any way in such a work, even though it be only as a guide pointing out pleasant paths to follow, is a source of gratification to the present editor. The need of systematic guidance to the Library has been long apparent. There is far too much in these comprehensive volumes for even the experienced reader to grasp at one trial; while the student following any special lines would inevitably miss many related topics of great value without recourse to an Index or Courses of Study.
The present Index merits the name of Analytical, as it cites every important name and subject throughout the twelve vol- umes often in more than one way, as, for example, a state university will be found listed both under the state and under the word university. The Index is closely alphabetized, and contains nearly 20,000 references, each complete in itself. The Reading and Study Courses, which follow are given a special word of explanation. They are the other hemisphere to the completed whole, or, to vary the figure of speech, the other segment to the keystone of the arch. They should be used closely in connection with the Index, as they constantly refer back to it for further citations. This was found necessary in order to avoid extending the Courses uselessly. For example, George Washington might be referred to only once at a given place in the Courses, whereas an entire column of entries will be found under his name in the Index. With the two placed side by side, the reader should be able to map out many congenial lines of related research and pleasurable perusal for himself. This is but another tribute to the inexhaustible quality of the Library. It carries us back unwearied to the very well-springs of history and shows us all the varied causes social, industrial, political, intellectual, aesthetic, military, which have made the South a mighty factor in the upbuilding of our common country.
J. WALKER MCSPADDEN
May 13, 1913
You can get to this collection at:
https://electricscotland.com/history...outh/index.htm
I might just add that one of the reasons for covering the history of a country is to put it into context for the people that emigrated to that country at a particular time period. You can thus read what the country was like when your ancestors first arrived.
Scottish News from this weeks newspapers
Note that this is a selection and more can be read in our ScotNews feed on our index page where we list news from the past 1-2 weeks. I am partly doing this to build an archive of modern news from and about Scotland and world news stories that can affect Scotland and as all the newsletters are archived and also indexed on Google and other search engines it becomes a good resource. I might also add that in a number of newspapers you will find many comments which can be just as interesting as the news story itself and of course you can also add your own comments if you wish which I do myself from time to time.
When it comes to the EU - there’s no going back
SCOTLAND WILL NEVER go back to being an EU country unless the rest of the UK does as well, and that seems pretty unlikely, not in the short, medium or long term.
Read more at:
https://thinkscotland.org/2021/05/wh...no-going-back/
Mega £17bn deal looms - as fishermen celebrate new record
MINISTERS are working towards a new post-Brexit deal with Canada that could supercharge Britain's £17bn relationship with its Commonwealth ally.
Read more at:
https://www.express.co.uk/news/polit...ncial-services
Report finds Scotland has worst education system in UK
NICOLA Sturgeon has come under fierce criticism after a new report found Scotland has the worst performing education system in the UK.
Read more at:
https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/14...nce-referendum
Nicola Sturgeon reelected as First Minister for another term by MSPs
The SNP leader saw off rival bids from Willie Rennie and Douglas Ross to take on the top job in Scottish politics once again.
Read more at:
https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/p...ister-24133704
Nicola Sturgeon announces new SNP Cabinet in post-election shake-up
The First Minister revealed her new top team earlier today
Read more at:
https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/p...w-snp-24141319
List of amber/red list countries and the rules for Scots travelling to them
The Scottish Government has published a list of the countries that have been put on the amber and red lists on the traffic light system put in place on Monday
Read more at:
https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/s...rules-24148506
Back the Australian trade deal
The UK has now rolled over the EU deals with other countries as promised in the referendum. The draft Australian Free Trade Agreement could be the first of the new UK negotiated deals, which will go much further than the EU went in opening up opportunities for more trade and business activity.
Read more at:
https://johnredwoodsdiary.com/2021/0...ian-trade-deal
Electric Canadian
Life of Sir William E. Logan
First director of the geological survey of Canada by Bernard J. Harrington (1883) (pdf)
A great read which you can find at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/make...an_william.pdf
Thoughts on a Sunday morning - the 16th day of May 2021
By the Rev. Nola Crewe
You can view this at:
http://www.electricscotland.org/foru...16h-day-of-may
Agri-Lmi - Labour Market Information
Agriculture 2025: How the Sector’s Labour Challenges Will Shape Its Future (pdf)
An interesting read which you can get to at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/tran...NAT_report.pdf
Report on the Affairs of the Indians in Canada
Laid before the legislative assembly 20th March 1845 (pdf)
You can read this old account at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/hist...nsincanada.pdf
Electric Scotland
Beth's Video Talks
Got in her talk for May 20th 2021 - Archaic words in Genealogy
You can view this at: https://electricscotland.com/bnft/videos.htm
Galic Antiquities
Consisting of a History of the Druids, particularly of those of Caledonia; a Dissertation on the Authenticity of the poem of Ossian; and a collection of Ancient Poems, translated from the Galic of Ullin, Ossian, Orran, &c., By John Smith, Minister of Kilbrandon, Argyleshire (1780) (pdf)
This is one of these books where the letter s is replaced by the letter f but you do get used to it before long and so you should enjoy this book which you can find at: https://electricscotland.com/history...ntiquities.pdf
Historical notices of the Clan Gregor from Authentic Sources
By Donald Gregory (1891) (pdf)
This was the first real attempt at writing the history of this clan and you can view this at:
https://electricscotland.com/webclan...lan_Gregor.pdf
History and Rhymes of the Lost Battalion
By Buck Private McCollum, Sketches by Franklin Sly (1922) (pdf)
Added this to our American history section and you can read it at:
https://electricscotland.com/history...tbattalion.pdf
Clan Henderson
Got in the June 2021 newsletter which you can read at:
https://electricscotland.com/familyt...rson/index.htm
Good Men and True
Biographies of Workers in the Fields of Beneficences and Benevolence by Alexander H. Japp, LL.D. (Second Edition) (1890) (pdf)
The first person mentioned in this book is the Rev. Norman MacLeod with two other Scots also featured and you can read this at:
https://electricscotland.com/history...menandtrue.pdf
Story
Stuart McHardy
A Lad o Pairts Speaks
Another take on 1320
On the seventh hundred anniversary of the Declaration of Arbroath much is being made of how it has influenced the development of human rights. Scholars from many parts of the globe consider it of fundamental importance in the growth of democracy. While much of this is probably correct there are other aspects to this famous document that to date have not been investigated. One of these is the statement that...
They journeyed from Greater Scythia by way of the Tyrrhenian Sea and the Pillars of Hercules, and dwelt for a long course of time in Spain among the most savage tribes, but nowhere could they be subdued by any race, however barbarous.
Now this statement chimes with material from even earlier which claims the Scots had initially come from Egypt led by Scota, a daughter of the Pharoah around the time of Moses. This suggests that there was an origin myth amongst the Scots that effectively has them coming to the islands off the north-west of Europe from Africa via Spain. This is remarkable in two respects. Firstly modern scientific opinion is in total agreement that the human species arose in Africa then spread out through the Middle East to populate the rest of the planet. Also we now know that during the last Ice Age in northern Iberia there was what is known as a refugium from where humans spread north as the ice retreated. Secondly research over the past few decades has shown that oral transmission can carry actual data over tens of millennia. The best example of this is the Dreamtime stories from Australia that talk of giant marsupials. the scientific term is Diprotodon, which have been extinct for over thirty thousand years. It is perfectly feasible that stories of an origin in far off Africa had arrived with the first settlers from the Iberian refugium after the Ice Age, and had continued to be told. The inclusion of Scota as a daughter of the Pharoah fits with the general Western tradition of suggesting legitimacy by referring to material that was extant in the Christian Bible, but it the story suggests that our distant ancestors left Africa via the Middle East and spent some time in Iberia, which is exactly what the science suggests happened. 13th century suggestions that Scota came to Scotland rather than Ireland were reinforced at the dawn of this century by Euan Campbell’s exposure of the apparent inaccuracy of the story of the Scots coming to Scotland from Ireland. Literacy came with the Christian religion and though it came to dominate many aspects of life it did not completely eradicate the indigenous culture that had arisen over millennia.
There is another aspect to the 1320 declaration that I suggest has not been fully appreciated. It is stated...
Yet if he should give up what he has begun, and agree to make us or our kingdom subject to the King of England or the English, we should exert ourselves at once to drive him out as our enemy and a subverter of his own rights and ours, and make some other man who was well able to defend us our King; for, as long as but a hundred of us remain alive, never will we on any conditions be brought under English rule.
Now most Scottish commentators on this have emphasised the bit about resisting English rule, but what comes before it tells us something quite remarkable. Though the idea that new king will be created if the current one fails in his duty to the community of the realm has been interpreted as a very modern idea, it is nothing of the sort. It is in fact a fundamental reality of tribal society that the person at the top is responsible to the tribe as a whole. This is clear from a range of different episodes amongst Scotland’s clans, when the chief for one reason or another was deemed unfit, or unsuitable to reign. The best example is probably the story of Ranald Gallda, the Hen Chief of the MacDonalds, whose rejection by his kin led to the Famous Battle of the Shirts in 1544. As late as the 1720s Edmund Burt wrote of a chief being embarrassed in front of a group of English visitors to whom he had boasted of his control over his clansmen, peat-stained and clad only in a scrap of tartan when one them stepped out of a crude dwelling and shook him by the hand and wished him good day. He may have been ready to follow him into battle and give up his life for the clan, but he knew his chief was still his cousin.
The signatories of the 1320 Declaration needed to comply with the international and courtly protocols of the contemporary world to preserve their freedom but as the document shows, their capacity to function together was rooted in their own indigenous culture. Take a look at their names, apart from less than a handful, they are Scottish place or family, that is kin-group, names. They kennt wha they were.
END.
Visit Stuart's web site at: https://stuartmchardy.wordpress.com/
And that's it for this week and hope you all have a great weekend.
Alastair