Anniversary of Glencoe, Febuary 13. 1692.

[Jock Scot]

And I'd bet that a lot of folk under 50 or 40 don't know their own history in either the UK or US. I saw that young brits today, in a survey, most think Churchill is a fictional character. ***? I am not a tradition freak at all, but at least understand where you came from. Even funnier are the man on the street videos in the US where they show people pictures of politicians alive or dead and people don't know who they are. Like vice presidents or even presidents. Amazing.

I am sure you are right. Although the younger generation often have the internet easily to hand by iPhone, or some such, should they ever(?)feel the need to investigate their history.

[macmanjim]

I am sure you are right. Although the younger generation often have the internet easily to hand by iPhone, or some such, should they ever(?)feel the need to investigate their history.

My kids have that and they still ask me everything. I tell them if I had Google when I was their age, I wouldn't have had to ask anyone anything.

[Terry Searl]

My kids have that and they still ask me everything. I tell them if I had Google when I was their age, I wouldn't have had to ask anyone anything.

I would say appreciate the verbal questionings...At least they are attempting to communicate with you on a personal level. .....from what I see looking at society is everybody young, middle, and old, all have their noses stuck to these little hand held computer devices and are oblivious to all around them......the art of verbal communication is quickly disappearing and to me that is sad because it is the pleasant interaction between people that make us a society that feels something towards the other people in our environment.........EGADS!!! I'm waxing philosophical.......forgive me

[Tarheel]

.........EGADS!!! I'm waxing philosophical.......forgive me

My good man, Mr. Miyagi Kesuke promotes the "Wax on - Wax off" philosophy when dealing with young folks. You and I are just students of the sensei.

[macmanjim]

I would say appreciate the verbal questionings...At least they are attempting to communicate with you on a personal level. .....from what I see looking at society is everybody young, middle, and old, all have their noses stuck to these little hand held computer devices and are oblivious to all around them......the art of verbal communication is quickly disappearing and to me that is sad because it is the pleasant interaction between people that make us a society that feels something towards the other people in our environment.........EGADS!!! I'm waxing philosophical.......forgive me

Yeah, I'm a regular oracle of delphi. I usually have a discussion at dinner as to what they've learned today. Then the tangents begin.

[Terry Searl]

Yeah, I'm a regular oracle of delphi. I usually have a discussion at dinner as to what they've learned today. Then the tangents begin.

Good on ya' for having proper verbal discussions.......you don't have to agree with everything said...the important issue in Talking....pure and simple ......and teaching respect for the opinions of others

[Damion]

Sorry, but in the grand scheme of things it was a non-event. I don't know why it gets the press it does, far more were killed in the battles and persecutions of that era and Glencoe was just one. Sort of like talking at great importance about a murder but largely ignoring the greater number killed during war.

In 1688 the protestant establishment in Scotland and England, with help from the Dutch rose up in rebellion and betrayed their king because he was catholic. Glencoe, Culloden, the Boyne all flow from that treason. It was a very important time in the history of the UK. You had the failed Darien expedition which bankrupted Scotland requiring them to be bailed out by England, catholic Ireland was finally defeated and the Irish nobility fled to Europe, thousands of Scots and Irish were sent as slaves to the Caribbean where they blended with the black slaves to create the modern Caribbean culture.

I've read Prebble's book on the events surrounding it which is worth a read, but Glencoe was a symptom of a wider culture shift in the Highlands as a result of the close ties between the convenanter clans and their ideological allies amongst the lowland Scots and by extension the English.

If you want to commemorate a big massacre than the McDonalds of Eigg in 1577 is a good one. 200-400 of them were suffocated to death in a cave they'd sought refuge in when McCleod raiders set on revenge for a previous event set a fire at the mouth of the cave.

[CollinMacD]

Sorry, but in the grand scheme of things it was a non-event. I don't know why it gets the press it does, far more were killed in the battles and persecutions of that era and Glencoe was just one. Sort of like talking at great importance about a murder but largely ignoring the greater number killed during war.

In 1688 the protestant establishment in Scotland and England, with help from the Dutch rose up in rebellion and betrayed their king because he was catholic. Glencoe, Culloden, the Boyne all flow from that treason. It was a very important time in the history of the UK. You had the failed Darien expedition which bankrupted Scotland requiring them to be bailed out by England, catholic Ireland was finally defeated and the Irish nobility fled to Europe, thousands of Scots and Irish were sent as slaves to the Caribbean where they blended with the black slaves to create the modern Caribbean culture.

I've read Prebble's book on the events surrounding it which is worth a read, but Glencoe was a symptom of a wider culture shift in the Highlands as a result of the close ties between the convenanter clans and their ideological allies amongst the lowland Scots and by extension the English.

If you want to commemorate a big massacre than the McDonalds of Eigg in 1577 is a good one. 200-400 of them were suffocated to death in a cave they'd sought refuge in when McCleod raiders set on revenge for a previous event set a fire at the mouth of the cave.

I respect your post, and do agree with you to a certain point about the event's significance in the overall British/Scottish History. However, so much turmoil, social and religion reformation, and political issues either were going on, or was starting to emerge during this period. Let's face it, education was increasing in Scotland, especially in the Lowlands, and even in the Highlands, causing more and more to broaden their horizons. A new class was emerging from the lower and middle classes, the scholars started to question so much of the current Scottish political and cultural way of life, both in the Lowlands and Highlands. The Glencoe incident took direct assault on the Highland Culture in so many ways. First, an outside influence used or should I say pitted Highlander against Highlander. No secret the MacDonalds and Campbells, had some long standing history, for the MacDonalds there were others, but the Highland Culture was one of friends and foes, changing almost overnight. In this case, the Highland culture was assaulted. Hospitality, that was known in the Highlands was assaulted, trust even among enemies was gone. Agreements broken, and the wounds went much deeper, as from that point we can agree the serious start of degradation of the Highland Culture changes, the rise religious differences increased the political sensitiveness, and the isolation of Highlanders from Lowlanders and British rule feed into the Jacobites rising again, reaching out overseas to Bonnie Prince Charles, the Polish, the French and the Dutch. Glencoe was a catalyst for the next several decades, that eventually cause the complete collapse of the Clans, and Highland Culture.
So Glencoe, at least for a MacDonald, and I would say Campbell was the beginning of the end and so many other clans took note of what happened, the snowball on the top of the hill started to roll downhill, that is what Glencoe did. I am not a scholar of British or Scottish History, but for an American know much more about my heritage and living in Oxford for four years gave me a great base of knowledge.

[Jack Daw]

My kids have that and they still ask me everything. I tell them if I had Google when I was their age, I wouldn't have had to ask anyone anything.

Your kids know enough to not believe everything they read from Google, so they get confirmation from their father.

[Macseobang]

I attended a Glencoe Memorial even that lasted a whole weekend (Feb 2-4) just a few weeks ago in northern California, put on by the Clan Donald Central Pacific Region. I had made a post about what I should wear to the dinner portion of the event a few weeks ago so Glencoe was mentioned on the forums in some capacity. I think the our event (which is held annually) does mean something and serve a purpose in both educating more people about what happened and paying our respects to those who were lost in such an egregious event.

I also would like to mention that I would be classified as of the "younger" generation, so some of us know our history. I've even been to Glencoe, Scotland where they have an erected memorial.

1st pic: March during this year's Glencoe gathering in a city named Glencoe in northern California
2nd pic: Map and retelling of massacre posted in the gathering hall
3rd pic: Me and my wife next to one of the cairns surrounding the hall where the story was re-told and the group sang "The Massacre of Glencoe". Excuse my smiling, this was after the memorial.
4th pic: The cairn/cross erected in the city of Glencoe, Scotland from when I visited last November.