Set Adrift Upon the World
£9.99
Set Adrift Upon the World—The Sutherland Clearances
The devastating story of the Sutherland Clearances
Access Your Content in Seconds
- Complete your purchase on our store.
- Download The Grey Hill App (free).
- Log in using the same email from checkout.
- Your ebook will appear instantly in your library.
All content is securely delivered through our app and not offered as a Shopify download.
About the Ebook
Winner of Saltire Scottish History Book of the Year
They would be better dead, they said, than set adrift upon the world. But set adrift they were - thousands of them, their communities destroyed, their homes demolished and burned.
Such were the Sutherland Clearances, an extraordinary episode, involving the deliberate depopulation of much of a Scottish county. What was done in the course of that episode was planned and carried out by a small group of men and one woman. Most of those involved wrote a great deal about their actions, intentions and feelings, and much of it has been preserved. There are no equivalent collections of material from those whose communities ceased to exist. Their feelings and fears are harder to access, but they are by no means irrecoverable.
In this book James Hunter tells the story of the Sutherland Clearances. His researches took him to archives in Scotland, England and Canada, to the now deserted straths of Sutherland, to the frozen shores of Hudson Bay. The result is a gripping, moving, definitive account of a people's struggle for survival in the face of tragedy and disaster which includes experiences which have not featured in any previous such account.
Why You'll Love This Ebook
- Discover the devastating story of the Sutherland Clearances
- Explore one of the most painful chapters of Highland history
- Engage with detailed and moving social history
- Read another celebrated title from Origin - an imprint of Birlinn Ltd
Reviews
'A moving, gripping, definitive account of a struggle for survival' Scots Magazine
'Rarely have the clearances been written about so evocatively — Hunter's method and his empathy with those involved speaks to us with elegant restraint in an account that sweeps from the Sutherland straths to the struggles of those forced to seek new lives in North America' Saltire Society
'Hunter unravels and leads us through the clearances with the sharpest of eyes for telling details — detailed and unsparing, his fellow-feeling for the cleared people unmistakable' London Review of Books
'Hunter's scholarship is breathtaking' The Herald
'The best Scottish book I've read, not just in 2016, but probably in recent years — a very compelling narrative underpinned by the authority of meticulous research' Bottle Imp, Best Book of 2016
'Winner of the Saltire Society Scottish History Book of the Year'
About the Author
James Hunter is Emeritus Professor of History at the University of the Highlands and Islands. He has written extensively about the north of Scotland and about the region's worldwide diaspora. In the course of a varied career Hunter has been, among other things, director of the Scottish Crofters Union, chairman of Highlands and Islands Enterprise and an award-winning journalist. His book Set Adrift upon the World (Birlinn 2016) was Saltire History Book of the Year in 2016.Publication Details
Publisher: Origin (an imprint of Birlinn Ltd)
Publication Date: 15 October 2015
Print Length: 496 pages (Ebook edition)
ISBN (Ebook): 9780857902627
Format: Ebook
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I access my ebook?
Download The Grey Hill App and log in using the same email you used at checkout. Your ebook will appear instantly in your library.
Can I read it online?
Yes — you can also access your purchases via our online reader at reader.thegreyhill.com.
I can't see my ebook — what should I do?
Tap the refresh button in the app or online reader. If it still doesn't appear, ensure you're logged in with the same email used at checkout. If issues continue, contact us and we'll help right away.
Can I gift this ebook?
Yes — you can purchase a Grey Hill Gift Card here: Buy a Gift Card. The recipient can redeem it on our store, and the ebook will appear in The Grey Hill App.