In 1725 an extensive military road and bridge-building programme was implemented by the British crown that would transform 18th-century Scotland. Aimed at pacifying some of her more inaccessible regions and containing the Jacobite threat, General Wade's new roads were designed to replace 'the old ways' and 'tedious passages' through the mountains. Over the next few decades, the laying out of these routes opened up the country to visitors from all backgrounds. After the 1760s, soldiers, surveyors and commercial travellers were joined by leisure tourists and artists, eager to explore Scotland's antiquities, natural history and scenic landscapes, and to describe their findings in words and images.In this book a number of acclaimed experts explore how the Scottish landscape was variously documented, evaluated, planned and imagined in words and images. As well as a fascinating insight into the experience of travellers and tourists, it also considers how they impacted on the experience of the Scottish people themselves.
For over 560 years the University of Glasgow has acted as a remarkable patron of architecture. Each generation has sought to maintain and adapt the University's buildings to the ever-changing needs of a world-class teaching and research institution. Often the University has turned to the finest architects, designers and craftsmen to realise its ambitions. Recent survey work undertaken by Historic Scotland in collaboration with the University has unearthed an extraordinary record of these partnerships. Now, for the first time, the story of the University and its buildings can be told through a wealth of never-before-published archive material, ranging from photographs, plans and drawings, to contracts, accounts and personal letters. Building Knowledge traces the development of the institution from its founding in 1451 right up until the present day - including the latest chapter in its architectural history, about to be written with the expansion of the main campus.The University's fascinating buildings - which continue to inspire thousands of students, residents and visitors - have much to tell us about Scotland's enduring role as a centre of learning and culture in both Europe and the wider world. In this lavish new book, the story of a thriving University - and the people who built and shaped it - is brought to life in vivid detail.
The dramatic story of Scotland - by charismatic television historian, Neil Oliver. Scotland is one of the oldest countries in the world with a vivid and diverse past. Yet the stories and figures that dominate Scottish history - tales of failure, submission, thwarted ambition and tragedy - often badly serve this great nation, overshadowing the rich tapestry of her intricate past. Historian Neil Oliver presents a compelling new portrait of Scottish history, peppered with action, high drama and centuries of turbulence that have helped to shape modern Scotland. Along the way, he takes in iconic landmarks and historic architecture; debunks myths surrounding Scotland's famous sons; recalls forgotten battles; charts the growth of patriotism; and explores recent political developments, capturing Scotland's sense of identity and celebrating her place in the wider world.
Elias John Wilkinson Gibb (1857-1901) was a Scottish Orientalist who was born and educated in Glasgow. After studying Arabic and Persian, he developed an interest in Turkish language and literature, especially poetry, and in 1882 he published Ottoman Poems Translated into English Verse in the Original Forms. This was a forerunner to the six-volume classic presented here, A History of Ottoman Poetry, published in London between 1900 and 1909. Gibb died in London of scarlet fever at the age of 44, and only the first volume of his masterpiece appeared before his death. His family entrusted to his friend Edward Granville Browne (1862-1926), a distinguished Orientalist in his own right who had made a special study of Babism, the task of posthumously publishing the five remaining volumes. Browne characterized the work as "one of the most important, if not the most important, critical studies of any Muhammadan literature produced in Europe during the last half-century." The first volume contains a long and compelling introduction by Gibb on the entire subject, in which he argues that Ottoman poetry often rose and fell in tandem with Ottoman power. Gibb divides Ottoman poetry into two great schools, the Old or Asiatic (circa 1300-1859), which generally was characterized by its deference to Persian influences; and the New or European (from 1859 onward), which was influenced by French and other Western poetry. According to Gibb, the Old or Asiatic School went through a four periods: a formative period (1300-1450); a period (1450-1600) in which works were modeled after the Persian poet Jami; a period (1600-1700) dominated by the influences of Persian poets Urfi Shirazi and SaŹ¼ib Tabrizi; and a period of uncertainty that lasted until 1859. The European school that followed was inaugurated by Ibrahim Sinasi (1826-71), who in 1859 produced a small but momentous collection of French poetry translated into Turkish verse. The influence of the collection was far-reaching and eventually changed the course of Ottoman poetry. Gibb is known for his masterful translations that brilliantly render into English both the meaning and the form of Ottoman, Persian, and Arabic poetry. For almost a century after his death, a family trust financed the Gibb Memorial Series of editions and translations into English of Arabic, Persian, and Turkish texts.
