Scotland: The Story of a Nation
A timely and vivid look at Scotland’s long and difficult road to nationhood, re-exploring some cherished myths and unearthing a wealth of fascinating new detail.This edition contains a limited number of illustrations.Magnus Magnusson’s starting point is Sir Walter Scott’s classic version of Scotland’s history, ‘Tales of a Grandfather’ (1827-29), which has moulded the views of generations of Scottish schoolchildren. Like Scott, Magnus Magnusson is a master story teller. In investigating the many questions raised by the nation’s turbulent and often poignant past, he gives full weight to the living treasure of local legends and tradition which he believes has as much resonance as academic analysis.Where did the ‘Scots’ come from? What is the truth about such historical figures as Macbeth, William Wallace and Robert Bruce? What was the significance of the tragic reign of Mary Queen of Scots? What was the impact of Bonnie Prince Charlie and his brutal defeat at Culloden?Incorporating the findings of many leading modern historians, ‘Scotland: The Story of a Nation’ casts the nation’s history in a fascinating new light. It is essential reading for anyone with an interest in Scotland at this pivotal moment in its history.
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SCOTLAND
THE STORY OF A NATION
MAGNUS MAGNUSSON
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First published in Great Britain by
HarperCollinsPublishers 2000
Copyright © Magnus Magnusson 2000
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Source ISBN: 9780006531913
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From the reviews of Scotland: The Story of a Nation:
‘The answer to a prayer – a history of this complex country that is at the same time intelligent and intelligible’
IAIN GALE, Sunday Herald (Glasgow) Books of the Year
‘Readable, poignant, fascinating, a lively combination of narrative and analysis’
The List
‘[Magnus Magnusson] is excellent on the sense of place in history, and any visitor to Scotland would benefit from taking this book as a companion’
ALLAN MASSIE, Spectator
‘This is never a dry and dusty academic account. [Magnusson] weaves into his narrative a geographical tour of the country’s historical sights that can only come from being a former chairman of Scottish Natural Heritage. His colourful descriptions of history’s main players are often filled out with humorous and telling anecdotes of the time … The great strength to which Mr Magnusson plays is the richness of characters who set the course of the nation’s history, from the Roman Agricola through William Wallace, Robert the Bruce, Mary Queen of Scots and John Knox to Rob Roy, Sir Walter Scott and beyond. The book will fill many a dark winter evening for anyone who wants to learn more about Scotland’s complex past’
LAURA KIBBY, Sunday Express
Contents
3 Picts, Scots, Britons, Angles and Others
5 Malcolm Canmore and St Margaret
8 The Thirteenth Century: Alexanders II and III
9 John Balliol – ‘Toom Tabard’
17 James IV and the Renaissance
19 Mary Queen of Scots: 1 – Reign and the Reformation
20 Mary Queen of Scots: 2 – Imprisonment and Civil War
21 James VI and the Union of the Crowns
22 Charles I and the National Covenant
23 Charles II and the Covenanters
24 James VII & II: The Last Stewart King
25 William and Mary: ‘The Glorious Revolution’?
26 Queen Anne and the Act of Union
28 ‘Bonnie Prince Charlie’ and the ’45
29 Sir Walter Scott: ‘The Wizard of the North’
Epilogue: ‘There Shall be a Scottish Parliament’
Early medieval Scotland (C.AD 700)
The Battle of Stirling Bridge, 11 September 1297
The Battle of Otterburn, 19 August 1388
The Battle of Flodden, 9 September 1513
The Battle of Solway Moss, 24 November 1542
The Battle of Dunbar, 3 September 1650
The Battle of Worcester, 3 September 1651
The Battle of Killiecrankie, 27 July 1689
These Tales were written in the interval of other avocations, for the use of the young relative to whom they are inscribed [Sir Walter Scott’s grandson, John Hugh Lockhart]. They embrace at the same time some attempt at a general view of Scottish History, with a selection of its more picturesque and prominent points … The compilation, though professing to be only a collection of Tales, or Narratives from the Scottish Chronicles, will nevertheless be found to contain a general view of the History of that country, from the period when it begins to possess general interest.
SIR WALTER SCOTT,
PREFACE TO TALES OF A GRANDFATHER
These are stirring times for Scotland. With a parliament of its own – the first for 292 years – Scotland stands on the threshold of a new future. What this future will bring is anyone’s guess; all we can be sure of is that it will be informed and influenced by the past, just as our present has been. History gives the present a context.
