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.

Welcome…

History Scotland

Guardian O’ the Borders gets a makeover

Funding to investigate Orcadian shipwreck

Bronze Age Hoard acquired for the nation

Thatching project underway at historic Burns landmark

Storm Éowyn damages historic landmarks and trees

NEWS IN BRIEF

Time to make your DNA DISCOVERIES • CELEBRATE, EXPLORE & DISCOVER DNA FOR FAMILY HISTORY

Why did Margaret of England marry Malcolm III of Scotland? • Three historians explore a marriage that joined two royal families, but not their kingdoms.

(Re)assessing JAMES VI • James VI was undoubtedly one of the most consequential monarchs in Scottish history, but also one of the most complex and controversial. Setting the scene for this special issue, Dr Alan R. MacDonald provides an overview of the achievements and shortcomings of Scotland’s longest-reigning monarch.

The coinage of KING JAMES VI & I • James VI & I generated one of the richest, most varied coinages of any British monarch, using it to send political messages and reinforce his vision not just for Scotland, but for all three of his kingdoms. Cameron Maclean explores the monarch’s money

Painful past of SCOTLAND’S GYPSY-TRAVELLERS • Author Mark Baillie explains the little-known scandal of child removals that provided the basis for his debut novel, Salvage

James VI & I and the POLITICS OF PORTRAITURE • Despite a long-established reputation as an artistic pygmy, James VI & I in fact made extensive, sophisticated use of portraiture as a was of sending messages and curating his image, both in Scotland and in England. Charlie Spragg explains.

‘MY DEAREST LADY BLANCHE…’ The courtship and marriage of James Maitland Balfour and Lady Blanche Cecil. • Archivist Veronica Schreuder tells the story of the blossoming romance between James Maitland Balfour and Lady Blanche Cecil in the summer of 1843, leading to their marriage later that year on 15 August.

ORGANISING YOUR FAMILY HISTORY RESEARCH: Choosing Between Paper Records and Computer Programs • Before choosing a family tree program, it’s essential to first organise your research process, decide on your scope, and establish a reliable system for recording and storing information. Ken Nisbet takes us through the process

MATERIALISING JAMES VI at the National Museum of Scotland • Dr Anna Groundwater explores the materiality of James and his reign as seen through the collections of the National Museum of Scotland, revealing a monarch who cultivated his image carefully, and who used objects and images for clear propaganda purposes.

James VI, the English succession and covert communications • Throughout his adult reign in Scotland, James VI’s greatest ambition was the secure the English succession. Dr Beth Cowen uncovers the range of covert networks he used in an effort to attain that goal without provoking the ire of Elizabeth I.

‘What needs his Majesty so many books?’ The Scottish library of James VI • James VI was the most learned of all British monarchs, and these scholarly habits were fed by an insatiable appetite, acquired in childhood, for collecting books. Alexandra Plane considers the growth of James’s library prior to his removal to London in 1603.

The ‘Scottish Soprano’ and the ‘Voice of Scotland’ The Importance of Nationality to Flora Woodman and...