Knowledge Organiser –Glencoe, Darien and Union.

Key Ideas Seven ill years Darien Darien The seven ill years was a period of national In the tried to start a colony in William Paterson, from near Dumfries, famine (extreme food shortages) in Darien , in Central was the brains behind Darien. He had me Scotland in the 1690s. It resulted from an America. Some a young man called Lionel wafer who had economic slump created by the French Scots hoped to convinced him Darien was the answer to reducing the amount of goods they bought profit from using Scotland’s desire to have an empire. from Scotland, and was followed by four years of failed harvests (1695, 1696 and the colony to 1698–99). control all trade with the Americas and from 'Darien', said Paterson, would be the the fact that it would short-cut the long and 'door of the seas, the key of the The result was severe famine and dangerous sea routes to the East around Cape universe' depopulation, particularly in the north. The Horn or the Cape of Good Hope. They also The small fleet departed from the port famines of the 1690s were seen as believed that they would be able to sell some of particularly severe, partly because famine of Leith, near Edinburgh, on the 14th the riches, like gold and fruits, expected to be had become relatively rare in the second July 1698 with around 1,200 settlers on found there.Others saw it as a chance to start half of the seventeenth century, The board.In November 1698 the voyage was a new life away from Scotland, which was a very shortages of the 1690s would be the last of completed and the Scots established a their kind. poor country at that time. capital, New Edinburgh, in the land they The Company of Scotland now called New Caledonia. During this period, starvation probably killed 5–15 per cent of the Scottish Although the Scots had been prepared population, but in areas like Aberdeenshire The Scottish Parliament set up the Company of for difficulties, they had not realised death rates reached 25 per cent. Scotland to trade with other parts of the world and to raise money from the public. By August the extent of the hardships they would face. Many men, women and children had As people moved to find food it led to 1696 the target sum of £400,000 had been migration between different parts of raised. This was around half of all the money already died of ‘distempers or accidents’ Scotland and emigration to England, Scotland had. If this scheme failed then and with the colony in urgent need of Europe, the Americas and particularly Scotland would be penniless. more supplies it was decided to send a Ireland. second expedition.

Key Idea Darien Union Union In August 1699 another expedition set off On May 1st, 1707, the United Kingdom of Scotland’s financial difficulties for Darien with 1300 settlers and supplies Great Britain came into existence. Scotland was a small country with a for those already there. population of about a million. It was difficult Union in 1700 seemed unlikely and there is for the country to support itself financially and When they arrived they found the place little evidence that the Union of the the Darien Adventure had cost the nation deserted and when they tried to set up a Parliaments was the result of long term between 1/4 and 1/2 of its wealth. By joining with England, Scotland was promised a sum of second settlement the Spanish , who wanted plans by both countries. Rather it was the £400 000 to help pay the cost of Darien. Darien for themselves, attacked the Scots result of a combination of factors that the and forced them to leave. union helped solve.

Reasons for the Union of the The attempts to make Scotland more Of the 3000 who set off 2000 died in total Parliaments. independent from the English crown - The either on the voyage across, the voyage Acts of Security, and Peace and War- actually created a situation that made union away from Darien or in the mosquito The succession crisis during Anne’s reign infested Isthmus itself. Together with the more likely rather than less likely as the loss of the £500,000 investment the English realised that they could not have a The main driving force behind union was the Scottish economy was almost bankrupted. fully independent Scotland with a separate need to solve the problem of who was to be monarch as a neighbour. These laws led to Reasons for failure of Darien the next king or queen of both Scotland and the Alien Act of 1705 which began the England when childless Queen Anne died. The Spanish -If the Spanish had allowed process of Union in 1706 and 1707. the Scots into Darien then the Spanish It was English fear of a monarch in Empire would have collapsed. The attraction of the English Empire Scotland that supported England’s enemies In return for union Scotland was allowed to Lack of support from the English such as France that really forced England trade not only with the English but with its colonies- The Scots received absolutely no to use the Union of 1707 to ensure this did growing world empire. support from the English colonies which had not happen. been ordered not to aid them.

Key Numbers 1. 1603 – The 2. February 1692 – 3. 78- the number of people killed in Glencoe Massacre 4. 14th July 1698 – First expedition to Darien 5. August 1699 – The second expedition sets off for Darien 6. March 1700 – The Scots surrender to the Spanish in Darien 7. 8. 1704 – Act of Security – Scots declared they would choose their own king or Queen when Anne died. This made England begin to think of the benefits of Union. 9. 1705 Alien Act passed which stopped Scots trading with England and encouraged Scotland to think of Union. 10. May 1st 1707 – Political Union of Scotland and England.

Key vocabulary 1. Isthmus An Isthmus is a narrow strip of land with sea on either side forming a link with two pieces of land. 2. Colony Foreign lands controlled by a richer nation for the rich country’s benefit. 3. Political union The joining together of countries under one parliament. 4. Empire A group of colonies controlled by ta richer more powerful country”

Mixed Quizzing 1. When was the union of the Crowns? 2. How much money did Scotland spend on the Darien adventure? 3. What dates did the two expeditions for Darien set off? Essential questions 4. When did Scotland join together in Union with England? 5. How many people in total died on the two expeditions to Darien? Longer answers 6. Which local man was responsible for the idea of the Darien Adventure? 7. What is meant by the word empire? a) Describe the seven ill 8. What was the name of the Company set up to organise the Darien Adventure? 9. What does the word isthmus mean? years 10. Where in the world is Darien? b) Why did the Darien

adventure fail?