Page 46 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Scotland

INTRODUCING SC O TLAND  45
044-045_EW_Scotland.indd
THE HISTORY
OF SCOTLAND
Scotland has been torn apart by religion and internal politics, coveted
by a richer and more powerful neighbour, and wooed and punished for
400 years as a vital partner in the power struggles between England,
France and Spain. She has risen and fallen through the ages, acquiring
romance from tragedy, produ cing genius out of poverty and demonstrating
an irrepressible spirit.
“They spend all their time in wars, and conquered Caledonia because their
when there is no war, they fight one resources were stretched too thin.
another” is a description of the Scots Instead, they built Hadrian’s Wall from
written in about 1500. For the visitor, Wallsend on the east coast to Bowness-
the chief delight in this turbulent on-Solway in the west, and later the
history is that so much is still tangible Antonine Wall, a shorter wall further
and visible. north, thereby endeavouring to shut
The earliest settlers in the country are out the Caledonians. Despite the
believed to have been Celtic-Iberians, country’s rel ative isolation from the rest
who worked their way north along the of Britain, however, it is believed that
coast from the Medi terranean, and the original form of the Scottish kilt
arrived in Scotland about 8,000 years derived from the Roman tunic, or toga.
ago. Around 2000 BC their descendants By AD 400 the Romans had abandoned
erected majestic stand ing stones, which their northern outposts, and Scotland
are found all over the coun try. The was divided between four races,
layout of those at Callanish in the each with its own king. These were
Western Isles shows an advanced the predom inant Picts, the Britons and
knowledge of astronomy. These people Angles in the south, and the smallest
also built underground round-houses group – the Scots – who originally
and an abundance of forts, indicating came from Ireland and occupied the
that they were no strangers to invasion southwest of the country.
and warfare. In the late 4th century AD a Scot,
In AD 82 the Romans penetrated deep St Ninian, travelled to Rome and,
into “ Caledonia”, as they called the upon his return, built a church at
country, and Tacitus recorded vic tories Whithorn, thereby introducing
against the Picts (the “painted people”) Christianity to “Dalriada”, the Kingdom
and other tribes. Yet the Romans never of the Scots.
AD 82–4 Romans invade but
do not conquer “Caledonia”
300 BC Iron Age begins;
weapons are improved
AD 121 Hadrian’s
Skara Brae Wall built
4000 BC 2500 BC 1000 BC AD 500
2900–2600 BC Callanish standing AD 400 Romans abandon
3100 BC Skara Brae
settlement on stones and others erected, showing Caledonian outposts. Picts,
Orkney buried by advanced astronomical knowledge Scots, Britons and Angles
a storm have separate kingdoms
Roman coin
Return of Mary, Queen of Scots to Edinburgh in 1561, by James Drummond (1816–77)
44 10/23/17 11:56 AM 044-045_EW_Scotland.indd 45 10/23/17 11:56 AM