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Scotland’s people may be few in number, but their influence and contribution have been enormous. This is a fresh and stunning look at 200 years between 1750 and 1950 when the inventiveness and genius of the Scots was seen throughout the world.

In 1750 Scotland had emerged from half a century of civil strife. Its parliament was subsumed by Westminster, English troops kept an eye open for any signs of Jacobite rebellion, and the kilt was forbidden. But despite all this, Scotland was to enjoy an unprecedented period of resurgence and influence which lasted 200 years. This book is the story of that period and the people who dominated it with their ideas and their entrepreneurial skills, explorers in every area of human thought.

It is the story of a people who thrived on the Union and the Empire, and exercised influence far beyond their numbers and their position on the fringes of north-western Europe. The Calvinist system of church/state concordat enabled the frustrations which elsewhere resulted in revolution to pass Scotland by and her energies to be sublimated into creative enterprises.

This fascinating portrait of the golden age of Scottish history includes:
• the seedbed of the “democratic intellect” – Adam Smith, David Hume, etc
• writers including Robert Burns, Walter Scott, Robert Louis Stevenson, etc
• scientists – many names, culminating in Logie Baird, Watson, Watt and Fleming.
• engineers of the Empire
• missionaries and explorers (David Livingstone was the most famous, but there were others)
• medical men – pioneers of surgery and medicine

Print length

256 pages
Language

English
Publisher

HarperCollins
Publication date

2 July 2001
Dimensions

15.88 x 2.54 x 24.13 cm
ISBN-10

0007100019
ISBN-13

978-0007100019
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Product details

Publisher : HarperCollins (2 July 2001)
Language : English
Hardcover : 256 pages
ISBN-10 : 0007100019
ISBN-13 : 978-0007100019
Dimensions : 15.88 x 2.54 x 24.13 cm

Best Sellers Rank: 1,515,041 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- 3,187 in History of Scotland
- 44,803 in World History (Books)
- 74,930 in Travel & Tourism (Books)

Customer reviews:
4 ratings

Product description

Synopsis

Scotland's people may be few in number, but their influence and contribution have been enormous. This text takes a look at 200 years between 1750 and 1950 when the inventiveness and genius of the Scots was seen throughout the world. In 1750 Scotland had emerged from half a century of civil strife. Its parliament was subsumed by Westminster, English troops kept an eye open for any signs of Jacobite rebellion, and the kilt was forbidden. But despite all this, Scotland was to enjoy an unprecedented period of resurgence and influence which lasted 200 years. This book is the story of that period and the people who dominated it with their ideas and their entrepreneurial skills, explorers in every area of human thought. It is the story of a people who thrived on the Union and the Empire, and exercised influence far beyond their numbers and their position on the fringes of north-western Europe. The Calvinist system of church/state concordat enabled the frustrations which elsewhere resulted in revolution to pass Scotland by and her energies to be sublimated into creative enterprises.

From the Back Cover

'From Civil War to backbone of the British Empire'

During the eighteenth century Scotland underwent an amazing transformation. Demoralised by economic failure and civil wars, it somehow managed to turn defeat into glorious opportunity, its brightest minds leading a Renaissance which has lasted over two hundred years. Their achievements outside Scotland led Winston Churchill to say "Of all the small nations of this earth, perhaps only the ancient Greeks surpass the Scots in their contribution to mankind."

This small nation at the edge of Europe, gave the inventors of the steam engine, the telephone, radar, and television. Scotsmen explored the globe, expanding our understanding of the world, while medical discoveries like penicillin changed our view of disease. It was due in no small part to the ingenious and indefatigable Scots that England's colonies became an Empire at all.

Edinburgh was a leading centre in the Age of Enlightenment, the Athens of the North. Scotland's writers can look back on a tradition which takes in everyone from Robert Burns to Adam Smith, Sherlock Holmes to Peter Pan.

In this wonderfully readable book, Stewart Lamont celebrates the people who made Scotland great during two golden centuries. At the very time when the kilt was banned, Scotland produced a string of scientific and literary giants who have made their mark not simply on British history but on the history of the world.

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Amazon Customer

Small country, major contribution

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 22 June 2002

Stewart Lamont sets out to prove his contention that the Scots have made a unique contribution to Western civilisation. He does so, not by producing a general intellectual history, but by offering a series of scores of biographies of Scots who have been influential in science, the arts, politics, medicine, and the social sciences, describing these as 'driven men'.
The biographical approach is instructive. Scotland is a tiny nation, small enough to feel you could get to know a lot of its people.
There is certainly a partisan assumption within Scotland that we've offered the world a lot. It's an assumption which is becoming more dynamic as Scotland enters a new era with its new parliament and a feeling that the Scottish identity is being reinvented. An entertaining and stimulating book which does what any good piece of history writing should do - encourage you to go and read some more.

14 people found this helpful

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Captain Corse

Excellent

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 7 June 2011

A most enjoyable and informative book which every Scot should read. It would fill them with pride and determination. Unfortunately too many Scots are too busy wingeing about their past and the present. Instead they should just quietly stand proud and get on with improving the lot of Scotland and its part in the United Kingdom and the world.

2 people found this helpful

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When Scotland Ruled the World: The Story of the Golden Age of Genius, Creativity and Exploration Hardcover – 2 July 2001