The Discovery of the Hebrides: Voyagers to the Western Isles, 1745-1883

This history tells of the exploration and exploitation of the Hebrides, using records of 18th and 19th century visitors. Travellers recorded include the scientist Joseph Banks, who revealed Fingal’s Cave to the public, and Johnson and Boswell, who nearly drowned off Ardnamurchan and whose writings encouraged many others to discover the Hebrides for themselves, including Sir Walter Scott and Queen Victoria. Dr Johnson was to observe of the Hebrides that “the state of the mountains and islands is equally unknown as that of Borneo or Sumatra”. When Bonnie Prince Charlie landed on Eriskay in 1745, it focused the attention of the English and Lowland Scots on the Hebrides for the first time, changing its way of life forever. The book also includes quotes from the people of the islands, and their poems and songs describing the changes endured by the Gaelic-speaking communities.