The Scottish Highland Clearances and their Place in History and in the World Imagination

Abstract

This article considers the policy of genocide known as the Scottish Highland Clearances. The cultural uses of this memory are then traced across the nineteenth century, the Scottish diaspora found congenial places elsewhere in the world, while paradoxically the English found new interest in Scotland itself. The Clearances are then traced through their appearance in twentieth century memory and imagination, including the continuity of Scottish passion and the renewal of distinctively Scottish practices.