Great Scots of Note: Scotland on Britannia

Gateway to the British Isles since 1996

Scots Who Made A Difference

by Peter N. Williams, Ph.D.
© 2007 Britannia.com

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ABERDEEN ANGUS
Not a person, but well known throughout the world, the Aberdeen Angus is a breed that originated in Scotland when Britain led the world in the development of beef cattle. The Aberdeen Angus, made popular by a chain of restaurants now proliferating all over North America and Europe (and no doubt in many countries in Asia and Africa as well), originated from the naturally hornless aboriginal cattle of the counties of Aberdeen and Angus. The animals are solid black sometime with a white streak underneath; they are noted for the smoothness, freedom from waste and high quality of their meat. The first of the breed to reach the US were four bulls imported by retired London silk merchant George Grant in 1873.

ABERDEEN, GEORGE HAMILTON-GORDON, 4th Earl (1784-1860)
Edinburgh-born, Hamilton-Gordon served twice as British foreign secretary and prime minister. He was head of the government when Britain went to war with Russia over the Crimea in 1853. His inclusion here, however, has to do with his tenure as foreign secretary in the government of Robert Peel. It was in 1842 and 1846 respectively that he helped finally settle the long-standing disputes between the United States and Canada over their eastern and western boundaries.

ADAIR, JOHN (1655-1722)
Before the time of John Adair, there had been very little effective surveys done of Scotland. Surveyor and cartographer, Adair completed maps of the counties adjoining the River Forth and other major Scottish rivers as well as the west of the country. In 1703, he published part one of his Descriptions of the Seacoast and Islands of Scotland, with Large and Exact Maps, for the Use of Seamen. Such works established a standard of excellence for the time and inspired others to complete surveys of Scotland in the 18th century.

ADAM, ROBERT (1728-92)
Many of Britain's neo-classical architectural treasures were repeated in colonial America, especially in the building of colleges and universities. They owe much to the inspiration of Robert Adam, one of the finest, if not the greatest of the neo-classical architects and designers. In England, Robert and his brother James developed what came to be called the Adam style that greatly influenced both architecture and interior design. Their furniture designs also had a great influence upon Hepplewhite and Sheraton.

The Adams brothers, sons of architect William, both travelled to Rome to gain ideas and experience as architects. When Robert returned, his classically inspired style came to dominate British architecture for decades. He was in great demand for remodeling the great country houses of the nobility, including his masterpieces at Syon House, Alnwick Castle, Hulne Abbey and Northumberland House in London. In Edinburgh, his work can be seen in Charlotte Square, the Register House and Edinburgh University. At Culzean Castle, in Ayrshire, Adam combined the Classical and Gothic to create his own unique style.

AFFLECK, THOMAS (1745-95)
During the 18th century, a great deal of wonderful furniture was produced in the American Colonies, especially in Philadelphia, the largest English-speaking city in the world outside London. One of the outstanding cabinetmakers working in the Chippendale style in Philadelphia was Aberdeen-born Thomas Affleck, who provided furniture for Governor John Penn and other leading citizens of Pennsylvania. Some examples of Affleck's craftsmanship are found in Art Museums of Philadelphia, Boston and New York. He had a profound influence on future furniture design in the United States.

AITKEN, JACK (1921-98)
From the mining village of Lasswade, near Edinburgh, Jack Aitken was one of a long line of important Scottish lexicographers. During World War ll, Aitken served in the Royal Artillery, returning to the University of Edinburgh to continue his teaching career and to research the origins of the Scottish and Celtic languages. He assisted Sir William Craigie in the compilation of The Scottish National Dictionary and The Dictionary of the Older Scottish Tongue. Aitken took over from Craigie to complete the first of these immense projects in 1976. It has been pointed out that one example of the project's complexity is shown by the word "lord," which is shown to have had 34 senses. Aitken was also responsible for instigating a new reading program of ancient manuscripts and historic papers to increase the reach and accuracy of the dictionary, which will be dedicated to him in the year 2000 upon its completion.

ALEXANDER III, KING OF SCOTS (1241-86)
Of the three royal Alexander's who were kings of Scotland from 1107 until 1286, when he was killed riding his horse, Alexander III was the most influential, for it was under his autocratic rule that Scotland became a united, independent kingdom. Until his reign, the western isles of Scotland had been ruled by Norway, but Alexander not only repulsed attempts by King Haakon to extend his rule onto the Scottish mainland, but defeated the Norwegian fleet at the Battle of Largos and forced Haakon's son Magnus V to cede the Hebrides and the Isle of Man to Scotland. In retrospect, many historians have called the reign of Alexander III a golden age for Scotland, for it was one of peace and prosperity, in great contrast to the usual state of affairs in that troubled kingdom.

ALLAN, SIR HUGH (1810-82)
Much of Canada's commercial success in the 19th century is owed to Hugh Allan, knighted for his services by the Canadian government in 1871. Born in Saltcoats, Ayrshire, financier and shipbuilder Allan with his brother Andrew, founded the Allan Line that operated steamships between Montreal, Glasgow and Liverpool. Unfortunately, Allan's transcontinental charter for the Canadian Pacific Railroad, granted by the government in 1872, was revoked when it was revealed that Allan had subsidized Sir John MacDonald's Conservative Party election campaign. In the subsequent scandal, the government was forced to resign and Allan's railway company was dissolved. The disgrace, however, does not diminish Allan's influence on trans-Atlantic shipping during the latter part of the century, the development of Canadian seaports, and the bringing to Canadian shores the huge influx of immigrants (mainly Scottish and Irish) during those years.

ANDERSON, JOHN HENRY (1814-74)
Craigmyle-born John Anderson's attempt to dispel drunken revellers by lowering the gaslights at Covent Garden Theatre, London, in 1856 ended in disaster when the ceiling caught fire and the theatre burned down. This event only helped Anderson's career, for it added to his fame as "Professor Anderson, Wizard of the North."

The magician's inclusion here, however, is not based on his theatrical exploits, magical or otherwise; it is solely based on his being perhaps the first magician to demonstrate and to exploit the value of advertising. His collection of magical apparatus and his famous gun-trick were made famous by his massive distribution of handbills and posters, and thus he had an enormous influence on the building-up and successful exploitation of the careers of so many future entertainers, good, bad and mediocre.

ANDREW, SAINT (1st Century, AD)
The national flag of Scotland is the Cross of St. Andrew, a white diagonal (X-shaped) cross on a blue background. By having its own patron saint and its own flag, Scotland can assert its pride in its independence from England, though an integral and proud part of the United Kingdom. St. Andrew was one of the original Twelve Apostles and a brother to St. Peter, both former fisherman called to follow Christ. He is the patron saint of Greece as well as Scotland. In early Byzantine tradition, he is known as "first called." St. Andrew is reputed to have been crucified on an X-shaped Cross. His feast day is celebrated on November 30.

There are two reasons why Andrew was adopted as the patron saint of Scotland. One is that St. Regulus (or St. Rule), a fourth century monk, after being instructed by an angel to take Andrew's relics to a place in the far northwest, was told to stop at a site on the Fife coast of Scotland, where he founded the settlement of St. Andrew. The other explanation is that the seventh century abbot of Hexham, St. Wilfrid (some sources give Acca as the bishop) brought back some of the saint's relics from a trip to Rome and they landed in the hands of the Scots King Angus MacFergus who installed them at St. Andrew's to enhance the prestige of the new bishopric.

One legend concerning St. Andrew is that when the Pictish King Angus, faced with a large invading army, prayed for divine guidance, a saltire (the diagonal cross) appeared in the shape of a white cloud against the blue sky. Angus won a decisive victory and decreed that Andrew would be the patron saint of his country. It was not until after Robert Bruce's victory at the Battle of Bannockburn (1314) however, that the Declaration of Arbroath named St. Andrew the patron saint of Scotland forever and the Saltire became the national flag in 1385.

ARBUTHNOT, JOHN (1667-1735)
Just as Uncle Sam symbolizes the United States of America, the character John Bull has become the permanent symbol of England in cartoon and literature. He is the creation of Kinkardineshire-born John Arbuthnot, mathematician and physician, but best remembered as a satirist. Physician to Queen Anne, Arbuthnot also wrote political allegories and caricatures. In these, collected as The History of John Bull in 1727, the character John Bull first appears: "an honest plain-dealing fellow, choleric, bold, and of a very unconstant temper" who is contrasted with the duplicities and vanities of such as Lord Strutt (representing Spain), Lewis Baboon (of France), Nicholas Frog (of the Netherlands), and so on.

Arbuthnot also contributed a great deal to the Memoirs of Martinus Scriblerus, a mocking exposure of pedantry, published in 1741, and thus laid the foundation for our own modern (but often futile) attempts to root out verbiage and official gobbledy-gook from the halls of government as well as academia.

ARCHER, WILLIAM (1856-1924)
If London is today regarded as one of the foremost cities in the world in which to find serious drama, a great deal of the credit must be given to Scotsman William Archer in the earlier part of this century. Born in Perth, Archer studied law at Edinburgh where he began his journalistic career at the Edinburgh Evening News. In 1879, Archer's career took a sharp upturn when he became drama critic on the London Figaro and later the World, before moving to the influential Nation, the Tribune and the Manchester Guardian. Archer became famous with his translations of the pioneering Norwegian dramatist Ibsen, which heavily influenced the direction that English (and American) drama was to take. Along with that of Harley Granville-Barker, Archer's support was instrumental in the later formation of an English national theatre.

ARGYLL, ARCHIBALD CAMPBELL, 1st Marquis and 8th Earl (1607-61)
If any latent feelings of hostility towards the integration of the Scottish kingdom into that of England in 1707 with the Act of Union are still to be found, they owe a great deal to the attempts of Archibald Campbell to keep his nation free from political and religious domination by England (and thus anticipate the events of 1997 when the Scots people opted for a renewal of their separate Parliament).

Campbell led the Scottish anti-Royalist party during the English Civil War (1642-51) during which King Charles I unwisely defied his parliament. Under Campbell's guidance, Scotland was able to enjoy at least a few years of independence. He called for the abolition of episcopacy in Scotland (that is religious dominance by the established Church of England); and signed the National Covenant pledged to defend Scottish Presbyterianism against the foolish English king's attempts to force Anglican forms of worship.

In 1645, Campbell defeated an army of Royalists led by Montrose at Philiphaugh and formed an alliance with the victorious Oliver Cromwell in 1648, establishing a new government at Edinburgh. Sadly, when the English monarchy was restored under Charles II, Campbell was executed for his support of the Commonwealth. But his legacy lives on in the free, independent spirit of the Scottish people.

AYATOUN, WILLIAM EDMONDSTOUNE (1813-65)
A leading figure in the development and expansion of Scottish humorous satire in the latter part of the 19th century, William Ayatoun was another heir to Edinburgh's fine literary traditions. From his mother, William learned to love Scottish ballads and history, and his parodies and light verse had great influence on the style and content of later humorists. In 1848, he published Lays of the Scottish Cavaliers, a set of Jacobite ballads, followed by the Ballads of Scotland in 1858. He helped keep alive the romantic picture of the heroic, defeated Jacobites as well as the poetical and musical traditions of the Highlands.

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