Western europe: scotland – western europe – culture – planet knowledge

expect – but only until the Battle of Culloden in 1746. There a Scottish clan army under Bonnie Prince Charlie fought for the return of the deprived Stuarts to the Scottish throne.

But the English crushed the insurgents and systematically murdered all Stuart supporters. This ended all dreams of renewed Scottish independence.

Humans have to give way to sheep

The so-called “Highland Clearances” at the beginning of the 19th century are a traumatic chapter in Scottish history: The power of the clan chiefs is no longer measured by the number of men who fought for them, but by the yield of their lands.

Many of them lived an extravagant, feudal life. In order to finance this lifestyle, they wanted to establish lucrative sheep farming on their lands in the highlands.

Partly with brutal harshness, they systematically drove out the people who lived there. Entire areas were depopulated. The displaced landed in the slums of major cities and industrial areas.

In addition, thousands emigrated to the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa each year from the beginning of the 19th century. In 1755 every second Scots lived in the highlands, in 1981 it was only every fifth. A second wave of displacement followed after 1910.

The Scottish highlands have never recovered from this depopulation policy: the direct consequences of the clearances are the picturesque picture of a deserted landscape that the tourism industry is so keen to market and a large part of the economic problems of certain regions.