This thesis has been submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for a postgraduate degree (e.g. PhD, MPhil, DClinPsychol) at the University of Edinburgh. Please note the following terms and conditions of use: • This work is protected by copyright and other intellectual property rights, which are retained by the thesis author, unless otherwise stated. • A copy can be downloaded for personal non-commercial research or study, without prior permission or charge. • This thesis cannot be reproduced or quoted extensively from without first obtaining permission in writing from the author. • The content must not be changed in any way or sold commercially in any format or medium without the formal permission of the author. • When referring to this work, full bibliographic details including the author, title, awarding institution and date of the thesis must be given. THE CATTLE TRADES OF SCOTLAND, 1603-1745 by Alexander J. Koufopoulos Ph.D. Thesis The University of Edinburgh 2004 ABSTRACT THE CATTLE TRADES OF SCOTLAND, 1603-1745 The cattle trade of Scotland is generally considered as a very important element of early modem Scottish economy and society. After peace was established in the Borders, and along with the gradual pacification of the Highlands, a regular trade in livestock developed over the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, the principal component of which consisted of large-scale cattle exports to England. A number of obstacles stood in the way of the fledging industry. The credit economy was not sufficiently developed to accommodate the droving trade or to minimise the risk of dishonest dealers, bankruptcies and defaults. Also, smugglers and thieves regularly disrupted the trade, and the Privy Council repeatedly tried to curb illegal activities, especially in the Highlands. Yet, despite difficulties and regional differences, most of Scotland's territories appear to have engaged in the cattle trade. Previous research has often referred to the cattle trade. The few studies of the subject though, are either too concise to adequately explore the topic or lack the perspective of an economic history. In this thesis, wider economic factors such as the credit economy, lawlessness and Irish competition are discussed and related to price trends, export figures and general costs and profits. Present assumptions have been re-examined, and new research data has been collected and analysed along with existing evidence, in an effort to fill the gap in the secondary literature. It has been found in this thesis that both livestock trade and cattle prices followed similar trends. After decades of modest growth or stagnation in the first half of the 1ih century, a market infrastructure developed by the 1660s, which allowed the cattle business to reach unprecedented levels. The growth was unevenly distributed in geographic and social terms, and was mainly accounted for by a small number of rich landowners/businessmen in the Southwest. Trade and prices stabilised to this new equilibrium for more than 80 years (with many fluctuations), until the mid-18th century when they grew significantly further. iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank the staff at the National Archives of Scotland for their polite and efficient service, assistance and advice. I am also thankful to the members of staff in the department of Economic and Social History, Edinburgh University and in particular to Dr. Alex Murdoch in the department of Scottish History. Fellow postgraduate student Philipp Roessner has provided valuable advice and feedback, and Martin Rorke, former postgraduate in the department, has also been extremely helpful and generous with his experience. I am fortunate to have received the supervision of Professor Ian Blanchard, who has been a source of valuable advice and support as well as enthusiasm and encouragement, all throughout. Finally, I would like to thank Maria-Helen Peridis, Clare Moore, Kostas Rekleitis, and especially Jennifer Watson, for their eagerness to provide support and advice, not only on this thesis, but on various other occasions. iv The Cattle Trades of Scotland, 1603-1745. TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter 1. The Borders: The Establishment of Peace after 1603 ................ 1 Background King James and Change in Administration and Policy (1603) Relentless Pursuits and Punishment of Thieves (1603-161 0) Harsher Policies and Punishment of Potential Thieves (1603-161 0) Tidying Up the Borders, and Dying Flickers of Lawlessness before the King's Visit (1611-161 8) Normality and Peace with Rare Incidences of Thieving (After 1618) Scotland: Lawlessness, Banditry and the Cattle Trade in the Seventeenth Century Chapter 2. General Social Background, Practices and Local Control ...... 13 Clan Conflict and Lawlessness Disorder, Attitudes and Practices Local Watches, Blackmail and Protection Rackets Official Watches of the Eighteenth Century Places, Centres of Lawlessness V Chapter 3. Cattle Thefts Recorded with the Privy Council ..................... 24 The Privy Council as a Historical Source; Prevalence of Thefts Cattle Thefts and the Diverse Range of Cases Rebellions, Personal and Political Attacks Bandits and the Chiefs' and Landowners' Responsibilities The Declining Cases of Large Scale Disorder in the Second Half of the Seventeenth Century Chapter 4. Bandits, Cattle Thieves, and Justice .................................... 36 Administration, Policies and Justice Changes Accounting to Peak of Arrests ( 1624-7) Exiles; Repeated Offenders A Theft of an Englishman's Cattle Oaths and the Limited Capacity of the Privy Council Privy Council Evidence: Discussion and Limitations Lawlessness in the Eighteenth Century Scotland: Building the Commercial Infra-structure in the Seventeenth and Early Eighteenth Centuries Chapter 5. Evidence on Trysts and Local Markets by Region ..................49 The Trysts The Southwest Skye and Hebrides Argyll The North Aberdeenshire, Angus and Moray vi Chapter 6. Sources of Finance ....................................................... 58 Background: Sales, Purchases, Farmers and Drovers Promissory Notes and Bank Notes Scottish Bankers and Investment in the Cattle Trade Competition Between the "Old" and the "New" Bank The Financial Problems of the Process Tentative Markets and Unreliable Drovers Dishonest Traders Contemporary Discussions, Concerns, and Suggestions Chapter 7. The Droving Journey, and Costs ....................................... 70 Tolls, Roads and Bridges Safety, Passes, and the Disarming Acts The Journey's General Costs Estimates and Accounts of Total Journey Costs Conclusions Market Structures and Price Movements in the Seventeenth and Early Eighteenth Centuries Chapter 8. Cattle Prices: Methodological Problems, the Advantages and Limitations of the Sources ................................................. 79 The Difficulty in Determining Long-term Price Trends within Markets Grain and Sheep as Unreliable Indicators of Cattle Prices vii Chapter 9. Conclusions and Discussion on Cattle Prices ........................ 87 Stability and Increase of Prices: the Seventeenth Century Fluctuation and Steady Increase of Prices (During Pre-Union Years) Continuation of the Pre-existing Pattern in the Early Eighteenth Century Geographic Variations POSTSCRIPT. The Great Leap in Prices from Mid-Eighteenth Century Scottish Cattle Exports to England, 1603-1745 Chapter 10 From Hides and Beef to Live Animals .................. .............. 99 The Export of Hides until the Seventeenth Century: Background, Bans and Figures The Export of Hides in the First Half of the Seventeenth Century The Trade in Flesh/Beef The Background of the Cattle Trade: Pre-Seventeenth Century Chapter 11 The English Demand .................................................... I 08 Background, Estimates and Exports to England Cattle Destinations in England Welsh and Local Competition for English Demand Chapter 12 Scottish Exports to England, 1610-1691: The Scottish Port-books .................................................................. 114 The Early Seventeenth Century Scottish Cattle Exports to England Banned ( 1615, 1626-1627, 1646) viii The Crisis of 1625-1627: Protectionism, Survey of Prices, Arguments and Discussions The Debate; King, Privy, Lairds and Local Authorities The Survey Reports Hides: Free Trade vs. Protectionism Smuggling to England and Evasion of Duty Illegal Cattle Exports to England during the Ban Years Adverse Weather, Lent and the Prohibition of Slaughter of Animals (1615-7, 1633) The King's Visit and Consumption of Cattle Scottish Exports to England, 1666-1691 Results and Discussion The Concentration of Revenue from the Cattle Trade Places of Exporters, Cattle Origins Limitations of the Sources Chapter 13 Scottish Exports to England: Other Sources ........................ 143 The English Ledgers ( 1696-1707) Scotland's Total Exports Chapter 14 Irish Exports: the English and Scottish Ban ........................ 149 Background of the Irish Cattle Trade: From Development to Crash (War) to Full Recovery ( 1614-1664) Estimates of Volume of Cattle Trade from Ireland to Scotland before the Bans England's Acts Prohibiting Irish Traffic (1662-1670) Subsequent Scottish Ban on Irish Cattle and Attempted Enforcement The Prohibition and the Scottish Economy: The Arguments Consequences of the Ban in Ireland and England and the Eventual Repeal (1670- 1750) ix POSTSCRIPT Irish Economy Transformed and Later Developments, after the mid­ eighteenth Century Chapter 15 Scottish Administration and Policy: The Privy Council and