Throughout the world there are many sites of great historical tragedy. These places, with their heralding plaques and striking monuments, impose the necessity of tears and silent reflection; as well they probably should. However, there are certain places that require no verbal or physical expression of grief and the unfortunate end of those who tread its ground before us. Rather, emotion is implicit, gleaned from the crushing sense of stillness, pervasive shadow, and the delicate curve of earth that once was full of life. My first experience with such a place was in Glen Coe, a sliver of a valley between the winding roads and rough mountains of the Scottish Highlands. The eerily reverent silence of nature in the Coe is interrupted only by the hushed bubbling of a mountain spring. There is little indication remaining of the horrors this valley has seen, for what has not been washed away by the spring has been lost due to the indifference of the outside world. But the Scots have not forgotten what occurred at Glen Coe; nor will they ever.
Three hundred years ago, in the early hours of a cold February morning, the snowy hills of Glen Coe were red with the blood of innocent and unsuspecting MacDonalds; executed according to the orders of King William III after a backhanded deal motivated by greed and jealousy. At the end of August 1691, King William III issued a proclamation offering amnesty to the highlanders who had fought for James VII of England, conditional upon their swearing an oath of allegiance before New Year’s Day. The punishment for tardiness was execution. The Highlanders, ingrained with honor and pride, could not bring themselves to sign such a document, as the clans had already sworn an oath of allegiance to King James (exiled to France). Although James released the clans from their oath, word did not reach Alexander MacDonald (also known as MacIain), chieftain of the MacDonalds of Glen Coe, until the 29th of December. The following morning, to save his clan from English wrath, MacIain embarked on a daylong journey to Fort William to sign the oath. Upon arrival, he was informed the necessary magistrate was conveniently not present to administer the oath, and he would have to make the seventy-four mile journey to Inverary if he was to sign. After a near impassable trek through the mountains, British officials seized MacIain. Despite learning of MacIain’s mission and its urgency, the Captain of the regiment detained him for twenty-four hours – purposely ensuring he could not complete the journey by the oath deadline. MacIain finally arrived in Inverary on January 2nd, albeit the magistrate had not yet returned from the New Year’s Festivities. He waited for three more days to meet the magistrate, and though protestations that he had clearly failed to miss the deadline, the magistrate relented and the oath of allegiance was administered to MacIain. He returned home to Glen Coe, confident that his people were free from any danger.
Unfortunately, the sheriff-clerk of Edinburgh, Colin Campbell, who received the letter explaining the context of MacIain’s late oath, like most Campbells, abhorred the MacDonalds. Seeking to thwart his enemy clan’s efforts, Campbell suggested the Privy Council review MacDonald’s oath. After furtive discussions, the MacDonald name was removed from the record. Upon the official confirmation that MacDonald had not sworn allegiance, King James II ordered: "You are hereby ordered to fall upon the rebels, the MacDonalds of Glencoe, and put all to the sword under seventy. You are to have a special care that the old fox and his sons do upon no account escape your hands. You are to secure all the avenues that no man escape." The militia entered Glen Coe surreptitiously, asking for Highland Hospitality from the brutal cold (no Highlander would deny the law of Highland Hospitality: the unquestioned provision of shelter and food for however long was needed; this was granted to even the deepest of enemies). For twelve days, the militia was hosted and entertained by the MacDonalds, even sleeping in their beds as they lay on the floor. On February 12th, 1692 the men snuck out of the MacDonalds’ homes, meeting outside the village to plan their attack. The massacre of Glen Coe began at five o’ clock. As the sun crept up the back side of the mountains, men, women, and children were dragged from their beds; then they were either shot, thrown out of windows, burned inside their barricaded homes, or left to freeze to death. Over forty lay dead in the morning, it is unknown has many died in their attempts to escape through the hills. To some, these numbers may seem small, but to the Highlanders, these unjust and innocent deaths have had exponential impact that reverberates throughout their history into the present.
As our Scottish tour guide finished this tale, the bus grew silent and remained in this hushed state until our arrival in Glen Coe. Before I got off the bus I realized that without hearing its story, Glen Coe would have been just another pretty view and picture from my trip. I would have been blissfully ignorant of its past events and the people who once resided in it hills. However, upon alighting from the bus, a gust of wind swept the mist from off the mountaintops and the sun broke over the ridge, and instantly, the feeling of the valley’s lamentable history was palpable. It was clear that although the marks of civilization had been wiped from the land and the outside world had long forgotten, the people and the story of Glen Coe would live on in the minds and hearts of every Scotsman who tells its story. This is because pride and respect for their nation’s history within the Scottish culture will not allow for the disregard of past events and injustices – after all, it is a common history that composes and unifies the Scotland we know today.
Like the Catholic and Protestant populations of Ireland we have studied in Ethnic Conflict, the people of Scotland have a strong recollection of their conflict-ridden history with England that resulted in many other tragedies similar to the massacre of Glen Coe. Similar to Irish attitudes, the Scots maintain a great amount of resentment towards the English over both their past and present status as a part of the United Kingdom under British rule. However, unlike the Irish, we have not seen a highly publicized and violent Scottish campaign against British influence and rule in Scotland. Behind the scenes, however, there are rising expressions of Scottish nationalism and increasing English resentment for their lack of gratitude for Britain’s generosity. There is an increasing amount of speculation as to the possibility of dissolving the union between Britain and Scotland, thus creating the independent nation of Scotland. It can only be hoped that in these modern times of democracy and freedom, that the extreme sense of reverence of Scotland’s cultural traditions among the Scottish people will be respected and admired enough to allow for such a dissolution. Allowing the Scots to rule themselves would not only serve in guaranteeing the protection their rich history, but also the memories and feelings of places like Glen Coe; such that future generations will be privy to its legends and the breath-taking beauty of its natural splendor.
All images and text in this essay copyright Lauren Cook
