29. Land Agitation in Portree in the 1880s
by Grace Wright
Synopsis
In the 1880s, an intense period of unrest saw crofters and cottars across the Highlands and Islands engaged in a movement to protect and expand traditional land rights which had been increasingly marginalised and disregarded. Modes of protest were often illegal, such as land raids, rent strikes, and deforcements, causing mounting tensions between law enforcement and agitators. This period, which has become known as the “Crofters’ War”, will be the subject of this talk, with a focus on Portree in the Isle of Skye. It will explore an alternative cartography of the town based on the political and social networks at play, with the aim of deepening understanding of how land agitation was organised and policed.
Image caption: 1878 map of Somerled Square and its surrounds in the village of Portree, Isle of Skye. Source: Ordnance Survey, Inverness-shire – Isle of Skye, sheet 23.16, 1878, 25:1.
About the speaker
Grace Wright is a SGSAH-funded PhD researcher based at the University of Glasgow. Originally from the Isle of Skye, her thesis focuses on women’s participation in land agitation in the 1880s Highlands and Islands of Scotland, emphasising the voices and actions of those living on the land. Her research interests span Gael women’s history, resistance against the Highland Clearances, and Gaelic culture and language in the nineteenth century.
How to participate
This talk will begin at 7.30 pm (GMT) and last up to one hour, followed by questions. As the audience for each talk will be limited to 100, please register in plenty of time by e-mailing us (click either on the ‘Register for Events’ button above, or click here click here ). You will then be sent a code to allow you to join the talk.
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