About the conference

Seventeenth-century Scotland experienced a series of dramatic events: two political revolutions; mobilisation for war on an unprecedented scale; government by the covenanters in defiance of the king in the 1640s; a decade of English occupation in the 1650s; repeated strife over religion; and the deposition of a monarch, James VII, in 1689. These events changed forever the nature of the monarchy, the role of the church, and Scotland's relationship with England and the wider world.

The history of seventeenth-century Scotland is often seen as framed by the union of crowns at one end and the union of parliaments at the other. This conference is primarily about what happened in between. However, the legacy of the union of crowns affected many of its early themes. Later events - especially the revolution of 1689 - can be seen in retrospect as moving towards the debates about union. On the other hand, England does not always provide a useful point of comparison for Scotland, and the latest research often shows how difficult it is to draw simple causal links from one event to the next. Scotland itself was a diverse place, especially with the Highlands to consider. The shape of the seventeenth century in Scotland was a complex one.

This conference aims to capture some of the flavour of this exciting century, drawing together new work on a period whose study has undergone something of a renaissance in recent years. The conference will address themes as diverse as the mental and spiritual world of Scottish presbyterianism; the Scottish Revolution; the Scots' attempt to acquire overseas colonies; religious and political radicalism; and noble power in Highlands and Lowlands.

The conference organisers are Dr Sharon Adams and Dr Julian Goodare.
  Sharon Adams is Publication Secretary of the Scottish History Society, and tutors at the University of Edinburgh. She is currently revising for publication her PhD thesis on south-west Scotland and the Scottish revolution.
  Julian Goodare is Senior Lecturer in Scottish History at the University of Edinburgh. His most recent book is The Government of Scotland, 1560-1625 (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004).

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