Shortest History of Scotland

From Columba to The Corries, the Picts to Paisley, Doggerland to Devolution – here is the unmissable story of Scotland. Scotland is one of the oldest nations in Europe. Its territory remains fundamentally unchanged since the fifteenth century, and its southern border with England has barely altered since 1237. And yet Scotland – a country with its own law, education and church – is not a state at all. In The Shortest History of Scotland, Murray Pittock argues that this very ambiguity has helped make the nation a central part of the global story. From first tribes to Scotland’s multicultural present, Pittock unpicks the myths from the reality. He explores the glories – real and imagined – of Scottish history, from the Bruce to Balmoral, William Wallace to Walter Scott, Enlightenment to Devolution. And he asks what this rich past can tell us about what may lie ahead.