History Scotland

Explore centuries of Scottish history and archaeology with fascinating features on topics from all branches and periods of Scottish history and archaeology, written by leading historians, archaeologists and museum curators. With news on the latest research, opinion, expert reviews and spotlights on the country's most significant historical archives, this lavishly-illustrated magazine has everything you need to explore Scotland's rich past.

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FROM THE EDITOR

Entry now open for the annual Alasdair Ross prize • The Scottish History Society and History Scotland magazine invite entries for the annual Alasdair Ross prize, which aims to support postgraduate students and early career researchers undertaking archival research on Scottish history and/or environmental history

Prestonpans Town Hall to host Victorian opening ceremony re-enactment • Historic Environment Scotland has provided £4,500 funding to support a series of projects to mark the heritage of Prestonpans Town Hall, including a Victorian re-enactment of the hall's original opening ceremony

Origins of the Black Death revealed for the first time • A team of researchers has ended a six-century mystery, after discovering the origins of the Black Death for the first time

SIR WALTER SCOTT AND THE KING • This summer sees the 200th anniversary of a visit by King George IV to Scotland. David McVey assesses the significance of the visit, explaining how its ramifications are still with us today

A TWO-NIGHT STAY AT THE CAIRNDALE HOTEL & LEISURE CLUB • Dumfries and Galloway is a fantastic spot to explore the life and history of Robert Burns and we’re offering the perfect base for one lucky reader and a companion in this exclusive competition

RECENT ARCHAEOLOGICAL WORK AT SAUGHTON HALL • Stuart Wilson takes us through the discoveries made during excavations at 17th-century Saughton Hall in Edinburgh, with finds providing vital clues about the mansion’s time as a manor house, asylum and Women’s Land Army base

WOMEN AND WORK IN MEDIEVAL TOWNS • While the importance of male labour to Scottish towns has long been recognised, the work performed by women is often forgotten. But, as Professor Elizabeth Ewan shows, women worked in a wide array of roles, and their labour was just as crucial to the smooth functioning of the medieval town.

MUSIC & MIGRATION IN EDINBURGH • An exhibition showing at The Georgian House reveals a remarkable chapter in Scottish musical history, and shines a light on the vital role of migration in shaping our cultural heritage

SAINTS, RELICS AND PROCESSIONS • Medieval Scots lived in fear of disease, especially the dreaded plague, but lacked the medical knowledge to keep themselves safe. Instead, as Professor Richard Oram explains, they turned to religious rites and rituals for protection

ESTABLISHING PATERNITY IN 17TH-CENTURY SCOTLAND: • Ashlyn Cudney presents the story of Nance Throw, a woman accused of fornication with five men in 17th-century Rothesay, and the torrent of testimony, gossip and heresay that this case – and others like it – unleashed

ORDINARY SCOTS IN BARBOUR’S BRUCE • Although focused on the deeds of ‘great men’, John Barbour’s epic 14th-century poem The Bruce is unusual among medieval chivalric literature in lavishing approving attention on ordinary Scots. Dr Callum Watson explores what the poem can tell us

Pre-Reformation Scottish churches: • For ordinary Scots, the parish church was not simply a place to worship on Sundays; it was a space crammed with dazzling art intended to awe worshippers and bring them closer to the wonders of heaven. Dr Lizzie Swarbrick explains

DIARY DATES • EVENTS AROUND THE COUNTRY, PLUS SELECTED ONLINE EVENTS TO ENJOY FROM ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD

BOOK REVIEWS

Victorian...