How significant was the division between the Scottish Highlands and Essay

How significant was the division between the Scottish Highlands and Lowlands - Essay Example It is interesting to note, that the topic of Highlands-Lowlands division is closely connected with the discussion of the British imperialism and its impact on the development of Scottish nationalism (or national identity), as it is a historical fact, that the development of imperialism had already reached rather significant level, but its spreading onto the Highlands territory was prevented by the division between Highlands and Lowlands; although the connection between the division and the Scottish nationalism is seen, the work will not make special accent on this topic, but we will here look at the general impact on people, their culture and the whole future history of Scotland which was made by this division. The division of the Highlands and Lowlands has created a major impact on the fact that Scottish people didn't feel like entire nation and the notion of nation has ceased to exist for them. However, this impact was created through the number of factors, which are to be consider ed separately in this work. The feudal movement, which existed in Scotland, was one of the major engines, making the division of the Scotland closer. The roots of the division lay in the fact, that King David, being active supporter of the feudalism and making everything possible to spread it over the country, has unconsciously divided Scotland into two parts: the estates, which he often granted to his lords, were mainly situated in the southern part of the country, making it more bourgeois and developed, and thus closer to Britain - not physically, but in economic development and culture. It is already by that time, that Scottish nation was characterized by two different languages spoken, and two different political preferences - while the Highlands was closer to Ireland, the Lowlands at the moment tended to speak Teutonic (modern English) and thus culturally to be closer to England. The manners and customs of the Scots vary with the diversity of their speech. For two languages spoken amongst them, the Scottish and Teutonic, the latter of which is the language of those who occupy the seaboard and plains, while the race of Scottish speech inhabits the Highlands and outlying islands. The people of the coast are of domestic civilized habits; the Highlanders and people of the islands, on the other hand, are savage and untamed race, rude and independent, given to rapine, ease-loving, hostile to English people and language - and exceedingly cruel.'1 This extract makes it evident, that though the division between Highlands and Lowlands is mostly discussed through the period, starting with the 17th century, the roots of the problems were already apparent in the 14th century. Knowledge and understanding of these roots is essential for defining the significance of this division both for the history and for the people. Though the later period became a mark of more equal feudal development of both Scottish parts, but the discrepancies, planted earlier, remained to grow into more serious forms, which later turned into huge cultural, religious and attitudinal division between the people of one state. Closer to the beginning of the 18th century, it has become apparent that the division betw