THE REIVERS: THE STORY OF THE BORDER REIVERS FREE DOWNLOAD Alistair Moffat | 272 pages | 01 Jun 2008 | Birlinn General | 9781841586748 | English | Edinburgh, United Kingdom The History of the Border Reivers The recent use of war as an instrument of policy by the West now appears all the more negligent. The Reiver came from every The Reivers: The Story of the Border Reivers class from labourer to peer of the realm. By full force we may mean the inevitability of reigns of terror like that perpetrated in the first decade or so of the seventeenth century by James I of England and VI of Scotland who finally captured control of both sides of the border and then squeezed it hard. It is also noted that, ina descendant of the Borderers, Neil ArmstrongThe Reivers: The Story of the Border Reivers the first person to set foot on the moon. Border surnames can also be found throughout the major areas of Scotch-Irish settlement in the United States, and particularly in the Appalachian region. At one time the most numerous family on the West Border, with riders in 13 towers inThe Reivers: The Story of the Border Reivers were savagely persecuted in the reign of James VI and I. It was a time when people owed their tribal or The Reivers: The Story of the Border Reivers loyalty to their blood relatives or families. The whole range of the Cheviot Hills, its watershed ridges and the river valleys which flowed out of them became the landscape of larceny while Maxwells, Grahams, Fenwicks, Carletons, Armstrongs and Elliots rode hard and often for plunder. On his head the Reiver would typically wear a steel bonnet and a quilted jacket of stout leather sewn with plates of metal or horn to protect his body. The term is obsolete but lives on in words like bereave. Martin Clegg rated it it was amazing Jan 23, This is of its time but it is significant that, in a catalogue of killings sometimes of women and childrenarson and dispossession, there is no mention of rape. They usually held the Scottish East Wardenship, and although frequently in trouble with the Crown they never lost their eminence and influence. Scot pillages Scot and Englishman robbed Englishman just as readily as they both raided across the frontier; feuds were just as deadly between families on the same side of the Border as they were when the frontier lay between them; Scots helped English raiders to harry north of the line, and Englishmen aided and abetted Scottish inroads. When raiding, or riding, as it was termed, the reivers rode light on hardy nags or ponies renowned for the ability to pick their way over the boggy moss lands see: Galloway ponyHobelar. Only narrow arrow slits provided light and ventilation. And up yours, John. There was no social stigma attached to reiving, it was simply an accepted way of life. Very good overview, oddly organized but imbued with Fraser's fighting man's insight. Born and raised in Carlisle, he appreciates the peculiar character of the land and its time. The march wardens also had the duty of maintaining such justice and equity as was possible. They weren't Robin Hood and his merry men though. An interesting look at political conditions and people of this region in what is now Great Britain in mostly the 16th century. Someone who stole cattle, sheep, horses, grain, corn, and so on, from others, often wounding or killing, often burning down houses and farms as they The Reivers: The Story of the Border Reivers. List of tartans. Cattle rustling, feuding, murder, arson and pillaging were all common occurrences. Illegality creates its own violent rules and codes of conduct but also its own economic and trading logic. They might use a sleuth hound also known as a "slew dogge" to follow raiders' tracks. The historian David Hackett Fischer has shown in detail how the Anglo-Scottish border culture became rooted in parts of the United States, especially the Upland South. To what I imagine was their immeasurable relief, I did clear off whenever the mood struck me. Probably the most famous raid of them all was the raid that broke Kinmont Willie Armstrong out of Carlisle Castle itself, which at the time was considered damn near impregnable-- it sent Kinmont Willie into the realms of legend and songs are still sun about him today. The Armstrongs were the most feared riding clan on the frontier. They almost invariably showed favour to their own kindred, which caused jealousy and even hatred among other Scottish border families. Mar 21, Christopher rated it liked it Shelves: nonfiction. Return to Book Page. Originally Scottish. During periods of nominal peace, a special body of customary lawknown as March law or Border law, grew up to deal with the situation. The rest of the story is now history, Clark became the sensation of the season in British club racing. At one time the most powerful in Redesdale they were hated and feared on both sides. Mar 16, J. Apparently there was beaten zone miles on either side of the border, where raiders attacked any settlement worth raiding- and I loved this book. Enlarge cover. Croser Crosar, The Reivers: The Story of the Border Reivers. Someone who stole cattle, sheep, horses, grain, corn, and so on, f The Border Reivers have been romanticised over the centuries. Reiving was simply a way of earning a living. Powerful interests quickly emerge who understand how the new system works, how to corrupt officials, how to use terror and how to create alliances. From a realistic point of view, I suppose they were simply glad to be rid of me for a few hours. Beyond this, he was a grandmaster of exploiting visually oriented male geeks; easily the most diseased evolutionary dead-ends of all. The borders rarely affected the core of England, sometimes Scotland, only because of weak communications. Get A Copy. Details if other :. Paperbackpages. Wanted to give it four stars but it jumps around do much it was hard to follow although it's packed with the history and insights of the Reivers. .