In the 1600s, Scotland had two distinct cultures: The Lowlands and the Highlands.
The Lowlands were fertile with growing urban centres and economic developments. The Highlands, however, were defined by tribal Clans led by powerful men and tenant-based agriculture. Clan leaders controlled who received the agricultural land.
Some Clans began to adopt the new religion and speak English rather than the Gaelic language.
Many clan chiefs increased their wealth and became detached from their kinsmen.
Between 1750 to 1860 (mostly), about 70,000 Highlanders and Islanders were evicted from clan territory -the land where their families had lived for generations.
Overcrowding and small plots of overused land led to the desperate poverty of the tenants.
The defeat of the Highland Jacobite Clans at Culloden in 1745 resulted in the banning of Highland dress, playing of bagpipes and the carrying of weapons, further eroding the clan system and warrior culture within a few generations.
These Highland Clearances (Scottish Gaelic: Fuadaichean nan Gàidheal) were a great blow to the Highland Clan system.
Changing farming methods, excessive lifestyles and changing farming and economic methods, led to the actions of the chief landlords.
The potato famine of 1846 was the final blow, leading to evictions and forced or coerced emigrations.
"Fermtouns" or "farm settlements" disappeared, landscapes changed, and many became landless.
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| The Last of the Clan, 1865, Thomas Faed |
Many people relocated to the lowlands or immigrated to places like Australia, Canada and the United States.
