- Statutes of Iona
The Statutes of Iona, passed in Scotland in
1609 , required thatHighland chief s send their heirs toLowland Scotland to be educated in English-speakingProtestant schools. As a result some clans, such as theMacDonalds of Sleat and theMacLeods of Harris , adopted the new religion. Other Clans, including theMacDonalds of Clanranald , Keppoch, Glengarry, and Glencoe, renamed resolutelyRoman Catholic . Amongst the provisions of the statutes were:The provision and support of protestant ministers to Highland Parishes; The establishment of hostelries;The outlawing of beggars;The prohibition of traditional hospitality and strong drink;The education of chiefs’ heirs in Lowland schools where they “may be found able sufficiently to speik, reid and wryte Englische"Limitations on the bearing and use of arms, The outlawing of bards and other bearers of the traditional cultureThe prohibition on the protection of fugitivesIn the view of some writers, this enaction was "the first of a succession of measures taken by the Scottish government specifically aimed at the extirpation of the Gaelic language, the destruction of its traditional culture and the suppression of its bearers" ["Gaelic - A past and Future Prospect". MacKinnon, Kenneth. The Saltire Society 1991, Edinburgh. P 46]
References
External links
* [http://www.bbc.co.uk/voices/multilingual/scots_gaelic_history.shtml History of Scottish Gaelic]
* [http://www.scottishhistory.com/articles/highlands/politics/highland_page1.html Were the Highlands Politically unstable 1660 - 1700]
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