Old Ways New Roads: Travels in Scotland 1720-1832

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.

Reviews of Old Ways New Roads: Travels in Scotland 1720-1832

'Just as we currently have to divert our wanderlust to virtual journeys with photos and videos, so the would-be traveller in 18th century London was able to marvel at the magnificent of Scotland from afar thanks to paintings and drawings by adventurous artists such as JMW Turner. Sound familiar?' * The Scotsman * 'A wonderful valance of art and history, as well as a fascinating insight into the experiences of travellers and tourists of the time' * Scottish Field * 'This book, magnificently illustrated… is the work of an inspired group of academics and curators, the zest and enjoyment of their collaboration vividly apparent' * Journal of the Scottish Society of Art History *