Plantation and Civility in the North Atlantic World: The Case of the Northern Hebrides, 1570-1639

599 Pages·2015·9.905 MB·English

by  Aonghas MacCoinnich

Plantation and Civility in the North Atlantic World
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The Northern World
North Europe and the Baltic c. 400–1700 ad.
Peoples, Economies and Cultures
Series Editors
Jón Viđar Sigurđsson (Oslo)
Ingvild Øye (Bergen)
Piotr Gorecki (University of California at Riverside)
Steve Murdoch (St. Andrews)
Cordelia Heß (Gothenburg)
VOLUME 71
The titles published in this series are listed at brill.com/nw
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Plantation and Civility in the
North Atlantic World
The Case of the Northern Hebrides, 1570–1639
By
Aonghas MacCoinnich
LEIDEN | BOSTON
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Cover illustration: (front) detail from a map of Scotland by Willem Janszoon Blaeu, Scotia Regnum
(Amsterdam, 1635). This shows a Dutch response to the attempt by Charles I to impose sovereignty over his
seas by placing a ship flying a Dutch flag between the Isle of Lewis and the Scottish mainland. Pointedly
these were the waters denied Seaforth’s Dutch partners by the Association for British fishing from 1631. A
detail from the same map at the rear of the book shows a scene with Dutch herring boats fishing adjacent
to the Scottish coast. Reproduced by permission of the Trustees of the National Library of Scotland. nls,
shelfmark: Marischal 21.
MacCoinnich, Aonghas.
Plantation and civility in the North Atlantic world : the case of the northern Hebrides, 1570-1639 / by
Aonghas MacCoinnich.
  pages cm. -- (The northern world, ISSN 1569-1462 ; volume 71)
 Includes bibliographical references.
 ISBN 978-90-04-22628-9 (hardback : acid-free paper) -- ISBN 978-90-04-30170-2 (e-book) 1. Plantations--
Scotland--Hebrides--History--16th century. 2. Plantations--Scotland--Hebrides--History--17th century.
3. Hebrides (Scotland)--Commerce--History. 4. Hebrides (Scotland)--Politics and government.
5. Courtesy--Political aspects--Scotland--Hebrides--History. 6. McLeod family. 7. Mackenzie family.
8. Hebrides (Scotland)--Biography. 9. Lowlands (Scotland)--Relations--Scotland--Highlands. 10. Highlands
(Scotland)--Relations--Scotland--Lowlands. I. Title.
 HD1471.G72H325 2015
 941.1’4061--dc23
2015024972
issn 1569-1462
isbn 978-90-04-22628-9 (hardback)
isbn 978-90-04-30170-2 (e-book)
Copyright 2015 by Koninklijke Brill nv, Leiden, The Netherlands.
Koninklijke Brill nv incorporates the imprints Brill, Brill Hes & De Graaf, Brill Nijhoff, Brill Rodopi and
Hotei Publishing.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, translated, stored in a retrieval system,
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that the appropriate fees are paid directly to The Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive,
Suite 910, Danvers, ma 01923, usa.
Fees are subject to change.
This book is printed on acid-free paper.
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Gu Màiri agus Alasdair Tormod
∵
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Contents
Acknowledgements xi
List of Illustrations xiv
List of Maps xv
Abbreviations xvi
Conventions xx
1 The Conditions for Plantation. The Scottish Context Pre 1598 1
Introduction 1
Highlands and Lowlands – Cultural and Linguistic Divergence 3
From Barbarity to Civility 11
Hume et al & Civility 16
Winning Hearts and Minds 17
Tribalism vs Civility? The Example of the Adventurers 19
Personal Qualities 20
Civilitie and the Mackenzie Clan 23
Fisheries 25
Conclusion 27
2 The Lordship of the Macleods of Lewis 30
Introduction 30
Macleod’s Family 32
The Ewill Trowbles of the Lewis 34
The Macleods of Lewis and the Old Order 37
Rebellion, 1502–1538 45
The Extension of Royal Control and its Consequences 47
A Dysfunctional Family? Three Torcaills, 1566 and all that 57
The Wars of the ‘Bastards’? The ‘Ewill Trowbles’ of Lewis 65
The Macleods of Lewis and the Wider World 71
Trained for War? The Irish Dimension 74
Forfeiture and Plantation 80
Niall Odhar, the Brieves, Forts and Dùin 83
Dùin – Contexts 87
Conclusion 90
3 The Fife Adventurers and the Plantation of Lewis, 1598–1609 91
Introduction 91
The Lead-up to Plantation: From 1587 to 1598 95
‘Natives’ and their Relations with the Planters 106
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viii Contents
‘Articlis to be Contracted amongst the Societie of the Lewis’ 108
Ministers, Religion and the Sabbath 112
Building a Civil Town 118
Buildings and Fortifications in the Plantation 124
1607–1609, Highland Policy & the Third Attempt 132
The Planters and the Mackenzies 137
The Working Plantation: The Potential for Success 141
Victuals, Grain and the Vulnerable Supply Line 145
Agricultural Potential 149
Relations with the Natives: Divide and Rule? 151
The Aftermath for the Planters 164
Plantation: Transferrable Skills 170
Participation, Identity and Casualty Rates? 171
Conclusion 174
4 The Mackenzies and Their Plantation of Lewis 176
Introduction 176
Civility, Plantation, Royal Policy and Clan Mackenzie 176
The Acquisition of Lewis 185
The Wider Gaelic World and the Broader Hebridean Context 188
The Mackenzies and the Settlement of the Northern Hebrides 194
The Financial Implications of Plantation 202
The Costs of Accommodation with the New Regime 209
The Last of the Free 213
Fir Innse Gall 214
Backs to the Wall – The End of the Macleods of Lewis 218
The New Order 224
Handling the Land 229
Building a Plantation 236
The Church 238
Winning Hearts and Minds? 244
Eirthir nan Iasg – the Mackenzies in Lewis after 1610 248
Conclusion 254
5 The Mackenzie and the Dutch, 1628–1631 258
Introduction 258
Highland Contacts and Networks 260
Mackenzie Commercial Initiatives & Dutch Contacts 262
Scottish Opposition to Seaforth’s Dutch Enclave 279
Lord Lorne and Scottish Opposition to Seaforth’s Schemes 283
Conclusion 287
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Contents ix
6 The English in the Isles and the British Fishery Company 290
Introduction 290
English Antecedence in the Hebrides 291
King James and English in the Isles, 1603–1610 294
Monson, Mason and their Early Experiences in the Hebrides 298
Captain Mason and the Assize Fishing of the North Isles 299
Mason’s Career: Piracy, Plantation and Naval Procurement 302
Building a Fleet: Timber and Iron 308
The Emergence of the English interest and the British Fishery 310
Mare Liberum? 310
Ideology or Prejudice? Sir William Monson and Civility 312
English Mercantile Connections with the Netherlands? 316
English Plantation in Stornoway: Maps and Descriptions 321
The Earls of Seaforth and the English 327
Anglo-Scottish Tension in the Hebrides from 1634 329
Conclusion 334
7 Conclusion 336
Appendices 365
A1 A Description of the Lewis Fisheries, c. 1631 (Part 1) 365
A2 A Description of the Lewis Fisheries, 1631 (Part 2) 367
B1 Some Sìol Torcaill Family Relationships, 1572 369
C1 The Principal Adventurers in Lewis, 1598–1609 370
C2 The Minister’s Account of the Plantation of Lewis, c. 1607 370
C3 Contract Signed by the Portioners of Lewis, 1600 381
C4 Non-‘Native’ Persons, Stornoway, 1598–1609 386
C5 The Known un-Knowns in Lewis, 1598–1609 399
C6  Some Financial Transactions of the Forrets of Fingask,
1598–1609 401
C7  Associates of and Witnesses for the Forrets of Fingask,
1598–1609 403
C8  Some Financial Transactions of James Spens of Wormiston,
1598–1609 405
C9  Witnesses and Sureties for James Spens of Wormiston,
1598–1609 407
C10  Some Debts Owed by the Learmonths of Balcomie,
1599–1606 409
C11  Some Debts of Robert Lumsden of Airdrie, 1599–1606 410
C12  Some Debts Owed by the Anstruther Family, 1598–1609 412
C13  Fish and the Economy of ‘Cost Syde’ Towns of Fife, 1569–1599 413
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