Scottish Suburbs

Scottish Suburbs. The Illustrated History of Edinburgh's Suburbs shows how the countryside, farms and villages developed into urban streets, residential areas, shopping districts and industrial estates that are so familiar today. In the course of the last 150 years the outskirts of the city have been transformed, and they have expanded, in a way that would astonish Edinburgh residents of just a few generations ago.In this detailed and fully illustrated account of the suburbs, Sandy Mullay not only offers a concise history of each district, but he also features local anecdotes, myths and folklore, and he remembers remarkable, sometimes bizarre, episodes and notable individuals who played their part in the story. His survey will be essential reading and reference for everyone who takes an interest in their neighbourhood and in the complex, surprising history of the city itself.Recalled in this account are the origins and development of districts as diverse as Trinity, Warriston, Drylaw, Blackhall, Comely Bank, Murrayfield, Dairy, Stenhouse, Craiglockhart, Redford, Morningside, Newington, Liberton, Craigmillar and Portobello.

The Illustrated History of Edinburgh's Suburbs records, in words and photographs, the impact made on the city by an ever-increasing population and changes in industry, at work and in the home. In particular it describes the process of urbanization that encroached on the countryside and gave birth to the city suburbs of today. The book gives a keen insight into the development of each district and into the expansion that created new communities and absorbed the old. The Illustrated History of Edinburgh's Suburbs.

Tour Edinburgh.

Scottish Local Heroes

Scottish Local Heroes. How Loch Fyne Oysters Embraced Employee Ownership and Business Success. The extraordinary evolution of Loch Fyne Oysters, the highly successful and environmentally pioneering seafood company from the west coast of Scotland. A remarkably eloquent and inspiring read, it describes how two men from entirely different walks of life founded and built the company, and how the employee buy-out transpired and developed. The founding partners were Johnny Noble, an extrovert estate-owner drowning in debt, and Andy Lane, a marine biologist who was committed to environmentalism from the age of eight. The sudden death of Noble precipitated four bids from large companies keen to acquire the brand, but in 2003 an all-employee buyout fought off the would-be predators, then faced the challenging but energising process of managing an employee-owned company. Local Heroes: How Loch Fyne Oysters Embraced Employee Ownership and Business Success.

Best Scottish Graveyard Miscellany

Best Scottish Graveyard Miscellany. The Scottish Graveyard Miscellany. The Folk Art of Scotland's Graves. In "A Scottish Graveyard Miscellany", Hamish Brown explores in words and extraordinary pictures the folk art of Scottish graveyards from the eighteenth century (when gravestones began to be widely used) to the present day. Each old kirkyard is a riotous celebration of folk art: there are skulls and skeletons, ships and lighthouses, angels galore, carved portraits of our forebears and even a gravestone decorated with a picture of Bart Simpson and his skateboard! More than mere memorials, the graves are a collection of pages in stone taken from the history of Scottish everyday life. Scotland's kirkyards are not gloomy places to be shunned, but places to find vivid stories from the lives of people, without distinction of class or creed. There is much humour in this book, and the photographs throughout taken by the author illustrate better than words why we should look after the unique treasuries in our midst. The Scottish Graveyard Miscellany: The Folk Art of Scotland's Graves.

Ancestry Tours of Scotland.

Scottish Warriors and Wordsmiths

Scottish Warriors and Wordsmiths. The Warriors and Wordsmiths of Freedom. The Birth and Growth of Democracy. Did you know that the Declaration of Independence was based on a Scottish declaration of independence from the English from nearly 700 years ago? This book will take you from the days of William 'Braveheart' Wallace and Robert the Bruce during the Wars of Independence in Scotland, to the days when Scottish and Irish people emigrated to the American Colonies and helped George Washington and Thomas Jefferson fight for freedom in America during the Revolutionary War. Follow the thread from Scotland to America and come to understand how important one ended up being to the other in the development of democracy. The Warriors and Wordsmiths of Freedom: The Birth and Growth of Democracy.

Best of The River Clyde Scotland

The River Clyde. From the Source to the Sea. Scottish Guide. Beginning deep in the hills of South Lanarkshire, the River Clyde twists her way for over 100 miles through a remarkably varied landscape, eventually flowing into the Firth of Clyde near to the towns of Gourock and Helensburgh. In-between, the River Clyde journeys along a feral and spacious landscape, tumbles down huge waterfalls, courses past historic buildings, by world renowned shipyards, man-made lochs, a world heritage site, and the magnificent architecture of her buildings and bridges. It is an integral part of the Scottish landscape, one rich in wildlife, and with a history almost unparalleled. Through beautiful photographs and incisive text, The River Clyde, from the Source to the Sea, celebrates the outstanding beauty, scale and diversity of this magnificent river, the crucial part she has played in the development of Scotland's industry, the battles fought, the role she has played in the lives of many from Roman times to present day, and the abundance of flora and fauna to be found by her banks in all seasons and weather. The River Clyde, from The Source to The Sea also details 12 simple walks which will allow readers to discover for themselves the magnificence that is the River Clyde. The River Clyde: From the Source to the Sea.

Best of Southwest Scotland

Best of Southwest Scotland. Scottish Guide. A guide to the Western side of Scotland. With this full colour, itinerary based guide customers will be able to prepare for their holiday with an extensive briefing on all aspects of this region of Scotland, including: history, climate, culture, food and drink. The guide covers Glasgow, Argyll, The Isles, Stirling and The Trossachs, Greater Glasgow and Clyde Valley, Ayrshire and Arran and Dumfries and Galloway. The comprehensive FactFile at the end includes details of main attractions, information on local amenities, getting there and other essentials. Look out for the author's top tips. Southwest Scotland (Landmark Visitors Guide).

Scottish Highland Cowboys

Scottish Highland Cowboys. Highland Cowboys. From the Hills of Scotland to the American Wild West. From droving to driving, heilan coos to long horns, "Highland Cowboys" explores the links between the two cattle cultures of Scotland and America through music, song, dance, and folklore. The vast number of Scots who emigrated to North America, whether through forcible eviction during the Highland Clearances or voluntarily in the hope of a better life, has been well documented. With them they took their culture, their language, their music and their skills. Cattle droving in Scotland was an established profession from the 16th century, and many such migrants took cowboy jobs in the American West. The medium of music paints a vivid picture of their social and personal lives, and describes a mutual exchange as music crossed and re-crossed the Atlantic creating strong links between the old culture and the new. This unique exploration of the cowboy culture sheds new light on the everyday life of the cattle communities. Highland Cowboys: From the Hills of Scotland to the American Wild West.

Scottish Classic Munros

Glencoe, Classic Munros. Glencoe (Classic Munros).


Cairngorms, Scottish Classic Munros. This easy-to-use series of pocket guides features the best hill walks in Scotland. This book is small enough to fit in your pocket, but packed with essential information. There are introductions to the history and topography of the mountains along with detailed route summaries with access, distances, ascents, walking times, maps, transport and facilities. The walks are accompanied by graphic photographs and unique 3-D shaded hill maps. There is also practical advice on safety in the hills. Cairngorms (Classic Munros).

Scottish Border Reivers

The Steel Bonnets. The Story of the Anglo-Scottish Border Reivers. From the thirteenth to the sixteenth centuries, outlaws reigned supreme on the contentious frontier between England and Scotland. Feud and terror, raid and reprisal, were the ordinary stuff of life, and a way of survival. Power was held by the notorious border reivers, the "steel bonnets," named for their flashy helmets, who robbed and murdered in the name of family: the famous clans (or "grains") such as Elliot, Armstrong, Charlton, and Robson, all romanticized by Sir Walter Scott. In The Steel Bonnets, George MacDonald Fraser, author of the bestselling Flashman novels, and himself a borderer, tells the fascinating and bloody story of the reivers, their rise to power as ferocious soldiers of horse, and their surprisingly sudden fall from grace. The Steel Bonnets: The Story of the Anglo-Scottish Border Reivers.

Scottish Piper Alpha Disaster

Scottish Piper Alpha Disaster. The fire was visible seventy miles away as a distant, flickering flame on the horizon. The heat generated was so intense that a helicopter could only circle at a perimeter of one mile. Flying at a height of 200 feet, the air crew saw that the tongues of flame extended high above the rotor blades. On the surface two converted fishing trawlers inched as close as possible, but the paint on each vessel's hull blistered and burnt, and the rope handrails began to smoke. In the water surrounding the inferno, men's heads could be seen bobbing like apples as their yellow hard hats melted with the heat.

At the centre stood, at least for now, the Piper Alpha oil platform, 120 miles northeast of Aberdeen, accounting for ten per cent of the oil and gas production from the North Sea. On 6 July 1988, its final day, it was ablaze with 229 men onboard. Only sixty-two would survive.

Fire in the Night will tell, for the first time and in gripping detail, the devastating story of that summer evening. Combining interviews with survivors, witness statements and transcripts from the official enquiry into the disaster, this is the emotional tale of what went on, minute by minute, on that fateful night inside an oil rig inferno. Fire in the Night: The Piper Alpha Disaster.

Scottish Stone of Destiny

Scottish Stone of Destiny. The Stone of Destiny, In Search of the Truth of Jacob's Pillow. The first book to explore the reasons behind the theft of the Stone of Scone in 1296 by King Edward I of England and to examine the validity of the myths and legends associated with its origins. It is widely believed that the stone taken to Westminster Abbey and returned to Scotland in 1996 was the Covenant Stone of the Israelites, also known as Jacob's Pillow, which was carried to Spain by the Egyptian Princess Scotia before being moved to Ireland and subsequently to Scotland, and used as the Coronation Seat of the early Scottish kings. The authors examine the political situation between the various kingdoms of Britain and the Church of Rome during the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, and how very real the threat of another European crusade, like the Albigensian Crusade, must have been felt in Scotland. Also explored are the many theories about the authenticity of the stone now on display in Edinburgh Castle and whether this is the Palladium of Scotland that Edward intended to take, or whether there is another artifact that can make sounder claims to being the genuine Coronation Stone. The Stone of Destiny: In Search of the Truth of Jacob's Pillow.

Tour Aberdeen, Tour Edinburgh, Tour Glasgow, Tour Inverness, Ancestry Tour of Scotland. Best Scottish Tours, Best Scottish Food, Best Scottish Hotels, Small Group Tours of Scotland, Rent a Cottage in Scotland.

Best Glasgow Town and Country Walks

Best Scottish Glasgow Town and Country Walks. The very best city, parkland and hill walks within reach of Glasgow, Scotland's largest and liveliest city. From the the glorious city parklands, which gave Glasgow its name as the Dear Green Place, to the easily-gained hills which look down over shimmering Loch Lomond, this guide contains 40 easy walking routes which will surprise locals as well as inspire visitors to explore this fascinating heartland of Scotland. Glasgow: 40 Town and Country Walks (Pocket Mountains).

Best Scottish Western Isles Walks

Best Scottish Western Isles Walks. The Western Isles describes 25 walks in the long chain of islands that form the Outer Hebrides. The scenery is unique with immense seascapes and vistas both to adjacent islands and the mainland. The walks are varied and visit many places of historic interest including ancient standing stones and Iron Age forts. The area is rich in wild flowers and many birds can be seen in a variety of habitats. Like the other books in the 25 Walks series, The Western Isles is both a practical guide and an attractive souvenir. The walks are clearly described and accompanied by easy-to-use maps and colour photographs. The Western Isles (25 Walks).

The Western Isles are renowned for superb scenery which includes beaches of silver or golden shell sand washed by seas bright with jewel colours of amethyst, turquoise and sapphire and a pale luminous green where the sand shows through. There are rugged mountains as wild as any on the mainland with the bare backbone of ancient gneiss outcropping among the heather and peat of the moorland.

On the west coasts there is the unique machair, where blown shell sand produces a lime-rich soil that supports a profusion of wild flowers and is cultivated by the crofter to grow crops for animal food. There are myriads of lochs and lochans and a coastline with rocky cliffs and inlets. The whole area is a paradise for naturalists and birdwatchers. Ecologically, the area is important because of its position at the extreme western edge of Europe, and there are 40 Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Scottish Natural Heritage has identified 40% of the land area as being of outstanding scenic value. In addition there are many archaeological sires throughout the islands including prehistoric forts, chambered cairns and the Stone Circle at Callanish, which is of international importance.

The walks in this book have been chosen to include as many distinctive features of the islands as possible. They vary in length from 4 to 15 km (2k to 9 miles) and none of them is especially arduous. In the case of the longer walks, shorter versions are suggested whenever possible. Equally, possibilities of longer walks are indicated when appropriate. Some of the hill walks are pathless, and because of the nature of the land may involve picking a way through boggy ground. All the walks are within the scope of the average fit person. Times are given for guidance only, and although generous do nor include rest stops.

The sunniest weather is in May and June and the driest months are from May to August, but days without wind are rare. Even when it seems cold because of the wind, the sun is liable to bum and it is wise to use protective creams. Lightweight waterproof and windproof outer clothing should be taken and strong waterproof boots are advised for many walks. Although a map is provided for each walk, the appropriate OS Landranger map is listed as these provide invaluable information and interest. They are also a help in finding the starring point of the walks and in identifying distant landmarks. The Western Isles are covered by six of these maps and they are all available locally. The Western Isles are a unique corner of the British Isles, different in many ways from the Inner Hebrides and even more different from the mainland. They have a different culture, language and scenery and are much more sparsely populated, yet each island has its own individual character. I hope you enjoy these walks and equally enjoy the discovery of the special charms of the individual islands.

Other titles in the 25 Walks series include: The Chilterns, The Cotswolds, Deeside, Dumfries and Galloway, Edinburgh and Lothian, Fife, In and Around Belfast, In and Around Glasgow, In and Around London, Down District, The Scottish Borders, Skye and Kintail, The Trossachs, The Western Isles and The Yorkshire Dales.

Best One Hundred Scottish Walks

Best One Hundred Scottish Walks. Walking is one of Scotland's favourite leisure activities, and with 100 Walks in Scotland you can find a variety of mapped walks to suit all abilities, from the casual walker to the experienced hiker. The book features all the practical detail you need, accompanied by fascinating background reading on the history and wildlife of the area, as well as other local points of interest. All walks are annotated with places to visit along the way, featuring Scottish Churches, Scottish Country Houses, Scottish Museums, villages and towns. Each walk also has refreshment information, including Scottish tea rooms and Scottish pubs, with extra details on their character and the food on offer. Every Scottish walk is given a summary of distance, time, gradient, level of difficulty, type of surface and access, landscape, dog friendliness, parking and public toilets. Scotland (Aa 100 Walks) (AA 100 Walks Series).

Tour Aberdeen, Tour Edinburgh, Tour Glasgow, Tour Inverness, Ancestry Tour of Scotland. Best Scottish Tours, Best Scottish Food, Best Scottish Hotels, Small Group Tours of Scotland, Rent a Cottage in Scotland, Tour Isle of Skye.

Scottish Superstitions of the Highlands and the Islands

The Gaelic Otherworld.Scottish Highlands and the Islands and Witchcraft and Second Sight in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland. John Gregorson Campbell (1834-91), a Gaelic speaker from Appin who spent his life as minister of Tiree, was one of a number of outstanding folklorists working in Scotland during the second half of the 19th century. Based on materials which he had gathered in the 1850s and 1860s, his Superstitions of the Highlands and Islands of Scotland and Witchcraft and Second Sight in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland were published posthumously in 1900 and 1902. Engagingly written in an anecdotal style, they introduce us to a galaxy of fairies, witches, ghosts and supernatural creatures, as well as general superstitions and the beliefs and rituals of the traditional calendar. Having been written as a single work, they are now reunited as one volume. The Gaelic originals of Campbell’s shorter quotes are brought out of his footnotes into the main text, and the Gaelic originals of his longer ones have been restored from previously unpublished manuscripts.

In a lively introduction, Ronald Black points to the relevance of The Gaelic Otherworld to everyday social issues in our own time. He illuminates Campbell’s work with extensive explanatory notes and a radically revised biography, supported by bibliography, maps and index. The sheer readability of Campbell’s work disguises its importance, but Black’s meticulous research and innovative analysis enable it to take its rightful place alongside Popular Tales of the West Highlands and Carmina Gadelica as a classic of world folklore.

Formerly a lecturer in Celtic in the universities of Glasgow and Edinburgh, Ronald Black is Gaelic Editor of The Scotsman and a columnist in the West Highland Free Press. As well as various anthologies and studies of 18th- and 20th-century Gaelic verse, he has edited Birlinn’s edition of Johnson’s Journey to the Western Islands and Boswell’s Journal of a Tour to the Hebrides published as To the Hebrides. The Gaelic Otherworld: Superstitions of the Highlands and the Islands and Witchcraft and Second Sight in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland.

Scottish Country Life

Scottish Country Life. Country Life in Scotland is the updated version of Scottish Country Life, the classic account of rural life in Scotland. Professor Alexander Fenton provides a vivid picture of the way in which the countryside has changed over the past 300 years and the people who changed with it; their ways of working, their tools and equipment, their homes and way of life, and their food. It is a treasurehouse of factual material on rural life as it was lived in the Lowlands and in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland’s past. Professor Emeritus Alexander Fenton, CBE, son of an Aberdeenshire shoemaker and crofter, is the author of many books and articles on Scottish country life. Country Life in Scotland: Our Rural Past.

Scottish Bouldering

Scottish Bouldering. Bouldering in Scotland. A full-colour companion to all the best bouldering areas in Scotland, with hundreds of topos, maps, photographs and circuits for the travelling boulderer. It also documents the history of bouldering in Scotland and points to a limitless future for new bouldering from a vibrant community of climbers.Scotland is an exciting and vast geological arena for bouldering. This new guide covers recent development and classic bouldering in the main areas: Dumfries and Galloway, the Clyde Valley, the Trossachs and Arrochar, Lochaber and Glen Nevis, Torridon and Applecross, the East Coast, Aberdeenshire, Inverness and Strathspey, the Far North West and the Islands. Each area is given access maps, diagrams and photo-topos to pinpoint the classic problems and testpieces. It is a guide for the dedicated boulderer as much as the travelling circuit boulderer, and will appeal to all those who enjoyed the first edition. This new edition is full colour and has been radically updated and exhaustively researched. Bouldering in Scotland: The Stone Country Guide to (Stone Country Guides).

Tour Aberdeen, Tour Edinburgh, Tour Glasgow, Tour Inverness, Ancestry Tour of Scotland. Best Scottish Tours, Best Scottish Food, Best Scottish Hotels, Small Group Tours of Scotland, Rent a Cottage in Scotland.

Scottish Balliol Dynasty

The Balliol Dynasty, 1210-1364. This study examines the political ambitions and influences of the Balliol dynasty in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries in Scotland, England and France. The generally accepted opinion in previous historiography was that John (II), King of Scots from 1292 to 1296, and Edward Balliol were politically weak men and unsuccessful kings. In a reassessment of the patriarch of the family, the Balliols are revealed as committed English lords and loyal servants of the kings of England, underlining how the family has been unfairly judged for centuries by both chroniclers and historians, who have assessed them as Scottish kings rather than as English lords.

Despite the forfeiture of the Balliol estates in England and Scotland in 1926, John (II) and Edward retained close relationships with the successive English kings and used these connections to fuel their political ambitions. Their kingships illustrate their desires to recover some influence in English politics which the family had enjoyed in the mid-thirteenth century. This re-evaluation of the Balliols highlights their relationship with the English crown. The Balliol Dynasty: 1210-1364.

Scottish Baronial and Ecclesiastical Antiquities

The Baronial and Ecclesiastical Antiquities of Scotland. Originally published in four volumes between 1845-1852, this work with 240 superlative engravings, revealed the wealth of distinctive Scottish architecture.

As well as providing exquisite illustrations to inform the reader, it also became the source for much Victorian Scottish architecture. The architect, Rowand Anderson wrote in 1901 that this work was in the front rank of Architectural publications, and from this position it has yet to be displaced.

This high-quality limited edition will enable many more to enjoy the high standard of artistic and accurate draughtsmanship and the careful selection of examples that make this a classic architectural publication. The Baronial and Ecclesiastical Antiquities of Scotland.

Scottish Prisoners of War

All Men Are Brethren. Prisoners of War in Scotland 1803-14. This is the first book to attempt a comprehensive and detailed history of the thousands of French and other prisoners of war (POW) in Scotland during the Napoleonic Wars.

In 1803–14 POW in Scotland endured experiences similar to but also different from prisoners of more recent times. All Men are Brethren describes conditions at each Scots depot (as the POW camps were then termed) at locations such as Edinburgh Castle, Perth and Penicuik.

Describes in vivid detail how the prisoners passed their years of captivity, gambling, forging banknotes, making impressive items from straw, paper, wood, hair and mutton bones from their rations, playing musical instruments, attending education classes, fencing with sticks, keeping pets and even playing cricket. From the culmination of twenty years of research and writing, this book is based on material from the National Archives in Kew and Edinburgh, on diaries and memoirs by prisoners, and on reports in contemporary Scots and English newspapers. All Men Are Brethren.

Scottish Farmtouns

The Ballad and the Plough. A Portrait of the Life of the Old Scottish Farmtouns. The era of the great farms of Scotland is over now. They flourished for nearly eighty years from the mid 19th century, and those years are renowned for the strength of their characters and the legendary status of their stories. Probably the finest and richest aspect of bothy life was the ballad. Often sentimental, sometimes simplistic, they nevertheless give unrivalled detail about a vanished way of life and work.

Quoting generously from the ballads, David Kerr Cameron has written a book rich in anecdote and insight. The working day was hard and long, and mealtimes consisted mainly of porridge and potatoes. Yet laughter and generosity of spirit were commonplace. For these communities, horses were as important as people, and tens of thousands of noble Clydesdales helped to cultivate the land. Ploughmen, dairymaids, bailiffs and shepherds all appear in the pages of this unique testament to the Scottish countryside. The Ballad and the Plough: A Portrait of the Life of the Old Scottish Farmtouns.

Scottish Highland Clearances

Scottish Highland Clearances. This is the first fully documented study for many years of one of Scotland’s most emotive subjects. It traces the origins of the Clearances from the eighteenth century to their culmination in the crofting legislation of the 1880s, showing how the process of clearance was part of a wider European movement of rural depopulation. Eric Richards describes the appalling conditions and treatment suffered by the Highland people, yet at the same time illustrates how difficult the choices were that faced even the most benevolent landlords in the face of rapid economic change.

The Clearances were the most rugged and painful of many attempted ‘solutions’ to the problem of those who maintain a population on marginal and infertile land. In drawing attention away from the mythology or the hard facts of what actually happened, this book offers a balanced analysis of events which created a terrible scar on the Highland and Gaelic imagination, the historical legacy of which still lies unresolved in the twenty-first century. The Highland Clearances.

Tour Aberdeen, Tour Edinburgh, Tour Glasgow, Tour Inverness, Ancestry Tour of Scotland. Best Scottish Tours, Best Scottish Food, Best Scottish Hotels, Small Group Tours of Scotland, Rent a Cottage in Scotland.

Scottish Herring Gutters

Scottish Herring Gutters.

Scottish Granite Workers

Scottish Granite Workers.

Scottish Bee

" Hello Donald ! Got a bee in your Bonnet ? "
" No Sandy ! A wasp in my kilt ! "