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An Abbreviated Timeline of Scottish History and Records

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Abbreviated Timeline of Scottish History and Records The entries below in italics had a major impact on migration 1034 Duncan I becomes the King of Scotland 1296 Annexation of Scotland by England. Scotland's Coronation Stone - the "Stone of destiny" or "Stone of Scone" - was removed to Westminster Abbey (in London) by the English King Edward I. The stone was temporarily returned to Scotland in 1950 and permanently returned in 1996. 1297 William Wallace defeats the English army of Edward I at Stirling Ridge 1306 Robert the Bruce is declared king of Scotland 1314 Robert the Bruce’s army defeats Edward II’s army at the Battle of Bannockburn 1424 James I becomes King of Scotland 1502 King Henry VII of England gave his daughter in marriage to James IV of Scotland. This gave rise to the Union of the Crowns in 1603. 1513 Scottish army loses Battle of Flodden, the largest battle fought between England and Scotland 1530 Retours begin. Records of inheritance of heritable property, written in Latin until mid-19th century except for a brief period in the 1600s 1542 Mary (Stuart), Queen of Scots becomes Queen of England 1552 General Provincial Council (Catholic Church) orders all parishes to keep baptism registers and marriage banns. 1560 Catholicism abolished; Reformation begins to teachings of Calvin 1564 Commissary courts established and one of functions was to confirm testaments. Prior to this time, church courts handled confirming testaments. 1584 Episcopalians gain control of church 1587 Elizabeth I orders Mary, Queen of Scots’ execution 1592 Presbyterians gain control of church 1600 Scotland adopts Gregorian Calendar. “Even following the Union of the Crowns, in 1603, the two [England and Scotland] countries continued on different calendars Abbreviated Timeline for more than 150 years. Thus there was a difference of ten days until 1700 and eleven days thereafter between Scotland and England. This sometimes results in ambiguity in the dates of historical events… Prior to 1600 the start of the year was regarded as the 25th March (which was the beginning of Spring). After that date the 1st January was adopted as the start of the year. This gave rise to the curious result that the year 1599 was only just over nine months long, running from the 25th March to the 31st December.” England did not change until 1752, so if you are reading an English history beware that the dates used for events will be different. 1600s on Scots-Irish Emigration – Beginning in the 1600s, after James VI came to the throne, at least 200,000 Presbyterians migrated from Lowland Scotland to Ulster (in Northern Ireland). Over 2 million of their descendants (Scots-Irish or Ulster Scots) would immigrate to North America. That includes 250,00 who came to the American colonies from 1717-1775 (mainly Carolinas, Pennsylvania, and Virginia). 1603 James VI of Scotland (son of Mary Queen of Scots) becomes King James of England and Ireland 1610 Episcopalians gain control of church 1617 Sasines registers begin to record transfer of ownership of land and houses. There is a General Register of Sasines for all of Scotland until 1868 when people could create wills to transfer land and houses. 1638 Presbyterians gain control of church 1642-1651 English Civil Wars, aka “Great Rebellion” pitted Royalists loyal to King Charles I against the Puritan supporters (roundheads) of Oliver Cromwell. During the Scottish campaign 1650-1651 thousands of Scottish soldiers were transported to the Americas 1661 Episcopalians gain control of church 1681-1687 The “killing time” persecution against the Covenanters 1690 Presbyterian Church becomes the Established Church of Scotland. Episcopalians break away to form Episcopal Church of Scotland. 1707 Act of Union joins Scotland and England as United Kingdom of Great Britain. Scots settled in colonial seaports. Lowland artisans and laborers left Glasgow to become indentured servants in tobacco colonies and in New York. Laura W. Carter Athens-Clarke County Library 2 Heritage Room Librarian http://www.clarke.public.lib.ga.us/hqdepts/heritage/index.html 07 February 2009 [email protected] Abbreviated Timeline 1715 Thousands of Scots support James Edward Stuart as King of Great Britain in the first Jacobite rebellion (known as The Fifteen) 1733 Associate Presbytery formed 1743 Reformed Presbyterian Church formed 1745 Scots support Charles Edward Stuart, aka “Bonnie Prince Charlie,” in the second Jacobite rebellion (known as The Forty-five). Scottish rebels transported to America 1746 English defeat Bonnie Prince Charlie in the Battle of Culloden 1759 National poet Robert Burns is born in Ayrshire 1760 – 1830 Lowland Clearances – tenant farmers were forcibly removed from their farms, tens of thousands of Scots left for Canada and what is now the U.S. 1761 Relief Church formed 1778 Andrew Meikle invents the threshing machine 1783 Stamp Act requiring three-penny tax to record an event in the parish register 1793 Catholic Relief Act 1794 Stamp Act abolished Late 1700s – 1870s – Highland Clearances – Highland Scots were forcibly displaced to the lowlands and coastal areas. Large numbers of Highland Scots immigrated to the Carolinas, Nova Scotia, and elsewhere in Canada. 1801 Decennial censuses begin and continue to today (1901 is most recent open to the public for Scotland) 1911 is now online for England and Wales. 1809 Deeds were to be registered in Court of Session, Sheriff’s Court or Royal Burgh Courts. Prior to this they could be registered in any court 1818 Liverpool becomes the main port for people departing Ireland, Scotland and England 1820 Parishes required to keep registers 1823 Sheriffs courts began the duties of confirming testaments. Laura W. Carter Athens-Clarke County Library 3 Heritage Room Librarian http://www.clarke.public.lib.ga.us/hqdepts/heritage/index.html 07 February 2009 [email protected] Abbreviated Timeline 1829 Catholic emancipation. (Church records usually begin here.) 1840 The Cunard Line began transporting passengers between Europe and the U.S. via steamship 1841 U.K. Census names every member of household, gives each person’s age, relationship to head of household, occupation and place of birth. Taken night of June 6-7. Ages were rounded – a 39 year old female would be listed as 35. 1843 Free Church formed 1847 United Presbyterian Church formed 1851 U.K. Census adds marital status. Taken night of March 30-31 1855 Civil Registration begins (records of birth, death, and marriage) in the General Register Office for Scotland(GROS) 1861 Census taken night of April7-8 1868 Wills could be written allowing transfer of land, houses and heritable property to person or persons chosen by the owner instead of the legal heir designated under Scottish law. These records were recorded in the retours, or services of heirs. 1871 Census taken night of April 2-3 1874 Patronage abolished 1881 Census taken night of April3-4 1883 Robert Louis Stevenson publishes Treasure Island 1891 U.K. Census indicates Gaelic speakers. Taken night of April 5-6 1901 Census taken night of March 31-April 1 1903 Scottish immigrant David Dunbar Buick forms Buick Motor Car Co. 1975 Scotland’s changes to its county boundaries went into effect 1999 Queen Elizabeth II opened the new Scottish Parliament which controls domestic issues in Scotland. Parliament in London controls defense, foreign affairs, and macro economic policy. Laura W. Carter Athens-Clarke County Library 4 Heritage Room Librarian http://www.clarke.public.lib.ga.us/hqdepts/heritage/index.html 07 February 2009 [email protected] Abbreviated Timeline Reference List Hendrickson, Nancy. “Scot Free.” Family Tree Magazine, 9 no 6, (November 2008). Jonas, Linda and Paul Milner. A Genealogist’s Guide to Discovering Your Scottish Ancestors. Cincinnati, Ohio: Betterway Books, 2002. Laura W. Carter Athens-Clarke County Library 5 Heritage Room Librarian http://www.clarke.public.lib.ga.us/hqdepts/heritage/index.html 07 February 2009 [email protected] .
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