Newsletter - Autumn 2019
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Internationally renowned for our research and teaching in Highland, Scottish and wider world history Newsletter - Autumn 2019 Student graduations in Inverness. Left to right: Andrew Bowie, Feargus Mur- ray, Fraser Williams, Dr Jim Macpher- Welcome to our Autumn 2019 newsletter which son, Jay Hannah, Rachael Macdonald, again celebrates the achievements of our students Tracy McNaught, Victoria Whiteford. and the creativity and hard work of our staff. We are especially proud of our graduating students whose success shows that our department is making Contents a big difference to lives across the Highlands and Student graduations…………………… 2 Islands. We’re also proud of the number of talks and Student satisfaction……………………..3 events our staff and students organise - from local Teenage pregnancy article…………..4 lectures to full-blown conferences – helping our Runrig and Highland history ……….5 research and teaching to underpin and engage with Land settlement and history………...5 public understanding of heritage. We hope you enjoy this round-up of our activities over the last six Rogart historian honoured…………..5 months. Contact us…………………………………....6 1 STUDENT NEWS the Highlands and Islands at a university based in the region has Bumper BA Hons graduations meant so much.” Our 2019 graduating student numbers continue to Congratulations also to rise across our undergraduate and postgraduate Mary Souter, who student bodies. This summer we were delighted to passed her viva with see 28 undergraduate students receive single and minor corrections this joint Honours degrees in History. There were four summer and is looking students graduating BA Hons History and forward to graduating Archaeology, two graduating BA Hons History and next year. Dr Jim Politics, and 22 BA Hons History. Macpherson was Dr Linda Ross (left) with su- Mark Stirling was the director of studies for pervisor, Dr Jim Macpherson first of our students to Mary’s doctoral thesis graduate and is the ‘A Peculiar Diversity’: proud holder of a First Public Health in Inverness County 1845-1912, which Class Honours degree in was co-supervised by Dr Elizabeth Ritchie. History. Mark told us ‘I’ve really enjoyed studying with the Centre Tiree triumph for History… the tutors Meanwhile, current MLitt student James Petre has always went the extra just published Tiree and the Dukes of Argyll, 1674- mile for their students.’ 1922. The book began as an essay for our postgraduate module Contemplating the Clearances, and the leader of that module, Dr Elizabeth Ritchie, Mighty masters also advised on the manuscript. We are also extremely pleased at the success of our nine postgraduate MLitt students who were awarded Exceptional undergraduate work masters degrees in the last academic year. The standard was extremely high with more than half the BA Hons Scottish History and Theology graduate, students being awarded distinctions for their work. Victoria Whiteford, has been awarded the James Hunter Dissertation Prize for 2019. Her dissertation We also celebrated a masters by research graduation. ‘”We are not inclined to surrender historical truth”: an Melanie Manwaring Mckay is only our second analysis of the treatment of Thomas Mulock and his graduating student to be awarded an MLitt by book The Western Highlands, within Scottish research. Her thesis examined Charles Fraser historiography’, was considered exceptional by the Macintosh and his collection of 5,000 rare books, examiners. Victoria is now working towards a masters held at Inverness Library. degree at the University of Edinburgh. PhD success Two of our PhD students successfully completed Victoria Whiteford their doctoral research this year. Dr Linda Ross holding her prize- graduated with a PhD on ‘Nuclear fission and social winning dissertation. fusion’: the impact of the Dounreay Experimental Research Establishment on Caithness, 1953-1996. Linda, from Tain, said “it was a pleasure to do this PhD at UHI’s Centre for History, located nine miles from where I grew up. A sense of place runs through everything I do and being able to study the history of 2 STAFF NEWS Student satisfaction guaranteed In two recent UK higher education student satisfaction surveys our postgraduate students Public engagement champion expressed an extraordinary level of satisfaction with We’re delighted that Dr Elizabeth Ritchie has been the Centre for History. PhD students declared awarded a Senior Lectureship for her work in themselves to be 85% satisfied with their learning teaching, research and public engagement at the and teaching experience within the University as a Centre for History. In public engagement she has whole, while taught postgraduates said they were been integral to the development of positive 89% satisfied – that’s 9% higher than the Scottish relationships with local communities across the average. Students on our MLitt History, MLitt History Highlands and Islands, working with heritage groups of the Highlands and Islands, and MLitt History and and providing professional historical experience to Archaeology of the Highlands and Islands support local people in developing the skills and programmes all gave 100% satisfaction scores in the confidence to research and present their own recent Postgraduate Taught Experience Survey history. (PTES). Amongst other activities, Dr Ritchie is a board member Postgraduate research day for Historylinks Museum in We welcomed Centre for History postgraduate Dornoch and runs a blog on local history which research students to Dornoch for two days of highlights the work of discussion in June. Dr Philippa Woodcock led the event, helping new students to get to know each academics, students and other in a stimulating and informative environment. members of the public. It’s a The Centre currently supervises nine PhD students. fascinating insight into the history of the Dornoch area, and well worth a read at https:/ historylinksdornoch.wordpress.com/ Staff changes Dr Nicola Martin and Dr Linsey Hunter, who already work part-time for the Centre, will be covering two staff maternity leaves and will be based in Dornoch. Meanwhile, Dr Lucy Dean will be taking on the role SGSAH Discipline+ Catalyst event of undergraduate Programme Leader on an interim The Centre for History also led the first ever Scottish basis from November onwards. Graduate School for Arts and Humanities Discipline + Catalyst workshop. The SGSAH provides world- leading support for doctoral researchers in Scotland so it was a great pleasure to host a workshop on the themes and challenges facing historians of the Highlands and Islands. 23 attendees, including 14 doctoral researchers from universities around Scotland and cultural and heritage practitioners, discussed public history and engagement in an excellent day in Perth Museum and Archives. Right: researchers from seven different universities gathered in Perth for the event. 3 PUBLICATIONS AND TALKS Teenage pregnancy 200 years ago The latest volume of Northern Scotland journal A call to Insurrection! includes a free article by Dr Elizabeth Ritchie on ‘The Township, the Pregnant Girl and the Church: The latest book by James Community Dynamics, Gender and Social Control in Hunter, the Centre’s first Early Nineteenth-century Scotland’, a fascinating case director and current Professor study of one small community in south-east Emeritus of History, deals with Sutherland and how it reacted to a teenage hunger, riots and the pregnancy and death of a baby. repercussions of insurrection in the Highlands. Events centre You can read the chapter at http://bit.ly/Pregnant-Girl around the failure of the potato crop in autumn 1846. As Salmon tales and the hydro oatmeal prices soared and a bitter winter set in, towns and Our PhD student, Jane Thomas, gave a talk on the villages from Aberdeen to Wick and Thurso rose up in history of early modern salmon barriers and traps in protest. In an era of anger and foodbanks, the story Scottish rivers at an inter-disciplinary research event told in ‘Insurrection: Scotland’s Famine Winter’ is in Glengarry Heritage Centre in September. The event dramatic, inspiring – and very timely. was organised by the UHI Rivers and Lochs Institute to examine all aspects of river culture and ecology in The book was launched with two events in Inverness, Glengarry, before and after the Great Glen Hydro both chaired by the Centre’s Dr David Worthington. If Scheme. you missed these, James Hunter will be speaking about the book at festivals and events across the Highlands. Check our website for dates and locations. Sugar and slavery in Suriname Dr David Worthington has been researching links A right royal achievement between the Highlands and the international slave trade and has uncovered the region’s earliest-known Dr Lucy Dean was one of a small overseas slave-owning circle, which had links with the team of editors who worked on Dutch Empire. His research was published in Dutch the monumental Routledge Crossing: The, Journal of Low Countries Studies and History of Monarchy published was followed by an article on ‘Sugar and Slavery’ in this summer. At 736 pages the The Scotsman newspaper. ‘big red book’ draws together current research across the field of royal studies and gives an in- Medieval history and Game of Thrones depth understanding of Dr Iain MacInnes has had two articles published. ‘“A monarchy from many different somewhat too cruel vengeance was taken for the perspectives, including blood of the slain”: Royal Punishment of Rebels, a chapter by the Traitors, and Political Enemies in Medieval Scotland, c. Centre’s Dr Philippa 1100-c.1250’ appeared in ‘Treason; Medieval and Woodcock on early Early Modern Adultery, Betrayal and Shame’ (edited modern monarchy and by Larissa Tracy, Brill 2019). And ‘Brienne of Tarth, foreign travel. Jaime Lannister and the Chivalric Other’ appeared in ‘Queenship and the Women of Westeros: Female Holyrood lecture agency and advice in Game of Thrones and A Song of Ice and Fire’ (edited by Zita Rohr and Lisa Benz). Dr Dr Lucy Dean also gave a lunchtime talk to a sell-out MacInnes has been invited to give the keynote crowd at Holyrood Abbey.