|
|
Proud Scots
| Article
# : |
12487 |
|
|
Section : |
Culture
|
| Issue
Date : |
7 / 1987 |
3,593 Words |
| Author
: |
Andrew Shaughnessy
|
Scottish tradition and culture is vigorously alive in America. The massed pipe bands, Highland dancing, performances on fiddle and Celtic harp, various athletic events--to say nothing of the Highlander's distinctive attire--attest to untiring efforts on the part of Scottish societies to preserve and promote all aspects of Scotland's cultural heritage.
That the ancient customs and traditions of Scotland have survived to the present day is significant when we consider its historical experience. A small nation, about equal in area to South Carolina, Scotland has been exposed to the depredations of foreign invaders for most of its history, but despite poverty and a limited population, it has successfully resisted all attempts at subjugation. Due to the enduring nature of their character, Scots have preserved their cultural identity against overwhelming odds.
Reasons behind emigration
As the Scottish author and critic, Moray McLaren, has written, "No people can be understood without reference to its past--least of all the Scots who are themselves so deeply conscious of their past."
A common misapprehension is that the failed Jacobite rebellions of 1715 and 1745 caused Scottish emigration to America. Some Scots suffered forcible transportation following the uprisings but not many.
Compelling reasons prompted Scots to quit their native shores. The migration of Highland Scots did not begin in earnest until about 1732. Primarily economic reasons affected the Scots' decision to emigrate. Deteriorating conditions at home forced Scots to look beyond their immediate borders, and many saw in the English colonies in America better prospects for material improvement.
Though the mass of Scottish emigration to America occurred in the eighteenth century, Scots also arrived in the colonies during the seventeenth century. Many found themselves in America through no choice of their own: the governments in both Scotland and England employed the practice of transporting convicted felons and political undesirables to labor in the plantations. Hundreds of Scottish prisoners taken during the civil wars also shipped to the colonies.
But not all Scots were forced to take ship for America. A party of Lowland Scots--perhaps Presbyterians or Quakers--arrived in east New Jersey in 1683. In the following year, another party established themselves in South Carolina, but the venture was short-lived. Two years later, the settlement was attacked and destroyed by the Spanish.
The attraction of America was potent enough that some Scots who could not afford the cost of the voyage offered themselves as indentured servants to plantation owners who paid the price of their passage. The emigrant then labored for an agreed term of years, after which he was free.
Opportunities for Scottish commerce with the colonies were hampered by restrictive regulations imposed by the English government. English merchants were accorded trading privileges almost exclusively, though some Scottish merchants found ways to circumvent the barriers. Following the Union of Parliaments in 1707,
...
Read Full Article
|
|
