This Day in Scottish History

More Events on This Day - https://bagtownclans.com/index.php/thisday/february-23/ Welcome back to This Day in Scottish History . I'm your host, Colin MacDonald. Today, we turn back the pages to the year 664, when St. Boisel, the revered prior of Melrose Abbey, passed away. His name might not be as widely known as some other figures in Scottish history, but his influence echoes through time, partic...

More Events on This Day - https://bagtownclans.com/index.php/thisday/february-22/ Welcome back to This Day in Scottish History . I'm your host, Colin MacDonald. Today, we travel back to February 22, 1452, to witness one of the most shocking and treacherous acts in Scotland’s medieval history—the brutal murder of William Douglas, 8th Earl of Douglas, at the hands of King James II. This act of royal...

More Events at - https://bagtownclans.com/index.php/thisday/february-21/ Welcome back to This Day in Scottish History . I'm your host, Colin MacDonald. Today, we journey back to the dark night of February 21, 1437—a night of treachery, betrayal, and bloodshed that would change the course of Scottish history forever. This was the night King James I of Scotland was assassinated in one of the most br...

More Events on this day - https://bagtownclans.com/index.php/thisday/february-20/ Welcome back to This Day in Scottish History . I'm your host, Colin MacDonald. Today, we travel back to February 20, 1472, a day that forever changed the map of Scotland. It was on this day that the islands of Orkney and Shetland were officially annexed by Scotland under an Act of Parliament, ending centuries of Nors...

More events from this day - https://bagtownclans.com/index.php/thisday/february-19/ Welcome back to This Day in Scottish History. I'm your host, Colin MacDonald. Today, we journey back to a cold February night in 1314, when a cunning and fearless Scottish knight, Sir James Douglas—better known as the "Black Douglas"—executed one of the most audacious attacks of the Wars of Scottish Independence: t...

Welcome back to This Day in Scottish History. I'm your host, Colin MacDonald. Today, we look back to February 18, 1688, when James Renwick, a steadfast Covenanter minister, met his fate in Edinburgh’s Grassmarket. His execution marked the final chapter in the long and bloody struggle of the Scottish Covenanters, earning him the distinction of being the last of their martyrs. To understand Renwick’...

Welcome back to This Day in Scottish History . I'm your host, Colin MacDonald. Today, we journey back to the 17th of February, 1818, when a remarkable discovery was made at Dunfermline Abbey—the final resting place of one of Scotland’s greatest heroes, King Robert the Bruce. Robert the Bruce, or Roibert a Briuis in Scots Gaelic, is a name that stirs the hearts of Scots everywhere. His leadership d...

Welcome back to This Day in Scottish History. I’m your host, Colin MacDonald, and today, we’re taking a journey back to the night of February 16, 1746, to a dramatic episode of the Jacobite Rising— The Rout of Moy. Picture the Scottish Highlands in the dead of winter. The Jacobite rebellion, led by Prince Charles Edward Stuart—better known as Bonnie Prince Charlie —was reaching its final and most...

Welcome back to This Day in Scottish History . I’m your host, Colin MacDonald. Today, we remember a tragic and controversial moment in Scotland’s military past. On the 15th of February, 1916, Private John Docherty, a soldier of the Black Watch regiment, was executed at dawn on the Western Front. His crime? Desertion. His fate? A bullet from his comrades. And with that, he became the first voluntee...

Welcome back to "This Day in Scottish History." I'm your host, Colin MacDonald. Today, we delve into a pivotal moment in Scottish football history that unfolded on February 14, 2012. On this day, Rangers Football Club, one of Scotland's most storied institutions, effectively declared bankruptcy—a financial collapse that placed the club under the control of court-appointed administrators in an effo...

Welcome back to This Day in Scottish History. I'm your host, Colin MacDonald. Today, we turn our attention to one of the darkest and most infamous events in Scottish history: the Glencoe Massacre, which took place on this day, February 13, 1692. At the heart of this tragedy was a brutal act of betrayal, one that left an indelible mark on Scotland’s history and reinforced the deep-seated animositie...

Welcome back to This Day in Scottish History. I'm Colin MacDonald, and today, we turn our attention to a fiery and destructive episode from the Second War of Scottish Independence—an event that became known as "Burnt Candlemas." It was on this day, February 12, 1356, that Edward III’s invasion of Scotland failed, but not before leaving a scorched path of destruction across the Lothians. To set the...

Welcome back to This Day in Scottish History. I'm your host, Colin MacDonald. Today, we journey to a remote and windswept outcrop in the North Atlantic Ocean—Rockall. On this day, February 11, 1972, the United Kingdom formally annexed Rockall, integrating it into Scotland’s jurisdiction. This marked the climax of a long and intriguing history surrounding one of the most isolated and mysterious pla...

Welcome back to This Day in Scottish History. I'm your host, Colin MacDonald. Today, we journey back to one of the most pivotal and dramatic moments in Scotland’s turbulent past. On this day, February 10, 1306, Robert the Bruce, the man who would become Scotland’s legendary king, committed an act that would change the course of Scottish history forever. In the heart of Dumfries, inside the Church...

Welcome back to This Day in Scottish History. I’m your host, Colin MacDonald, and today we turn our attention to an important milestone in Scottish publishing history. On this day, the 9th of February 1739, the first edition of The Scots Magazine was published. It was established as a journal of current affairs, literature, and news, and it would go on to become one of the longest-running periodic...

Welcome back to This Day in Scottish History. I’m Colin MacDonald, and today we revisit one of the most dramatic and tragic moments in Scotland’s royal history. On February 8, 1587, Mary, Queen of Scots, was executed at Fotheringhay Castle. It was the final chapter in a life filled with political intrigue, betrayal, and relentless struggle for power. Mary had been a prisoner in England for nearly...

Welcome back to This Day in Scottish History. I'm your host, Colin MacDonald. Today, we turn our attention to a dramatic and bloody clash that unfolded on February 7, 1603—the Battle of Glen Fruin. This battle, fought near Loch Lomond, was a brutal encounter between Clan Gregor and Clan Colquhoun, and it would have far-reaching consequences for the defeated and, ironically, for the victors as well...

Welcome back to This Day in Scottish History. I'm your host, Colin MacDonald. Today, we travel back to the turbulent early 17th century, to February 6, 1615, when Patrick Stewart, the 2nd Earl of Orkney, met his grim fate on the executioner's block in Edinburgh. His crime? Treason—though his downfall was as much the result of his own tyranny as it was of his son's ill-fated rebellion in Orkney. To...

Welcome back to This Day in Scottish History. I’m Colin MacDonald, and today we’re sailing back to February 5, 1941, when the SS Politician —a cargo ship carrying 264,000 bottles of whisky—ran aground on the rocky shores of Eriskay in the Western Isles. What followed was a tale of island ingenuity, government intervention, and a whisky-laden legend that would inspire one of Scotland’s most famous...

Welcome back to This Day in Scottish History . I’m your host, Colin MacDonald. Today, we turn our attention to an extraordinary moment in Scotland’s past—an event that intertwined history, literature, and national pride. On this day, February 4, 1818, the Honours of Scotland, the nation’s Crown Jewels, were placed on public display in Edinburgh Castle after being rediscovered by none other than th...

Welcome back to This Day in Scottish History ! I’m your host, Colin MacDonald. Today, we turn our attention to a devastating event that struck the heart of Edinburgh on February 3, 1700— The Lesser Great Fire of Edinburgh . Though it may not be as well-known as the Great Fire of London, this inferno wreaked havoc in the historic Parliament Close area, leaving 400 families homeless and forever alte...

Welcome back to This Day in Scottish History. I'm your host, Colin MacDonald. Today, we set sail into one of the most remarkable survival stories in history—a tale that would later inspire one of the greatest adventure novels ever written. On this day, February 2, 1709, Scottish sailor Alexander Selkirk was rescued after spending over four years as a castaway on the uninhabited Juan Fernández Isla...

Welcome back to This Day in Scottish History. I’m your host, Colin MacDonald. Today, we journey back to the 1st of February, 1856, when a fierce storm swept across Scotland, bringing down two legendary trees tied to one of Scotland’s greatest heroes—William Wallace. These trees, an oak and a yew, stood at his reputed birthplace in Elderslie, serving as silent witnesses to the legend of Wallace and...

Welcome back to This Day in Scottish History. I'm your host, Colin MacDonald. Today, we turn our attention to one of the most dramatic moments in Glasgow’s history—an event that shook the British establishment and highlighted the growing tensions between the working class and the government. On this day, January 31, 1919, riots erupted in Glasgow, culminating in what became known as the Battle of...

Welcome back to This Day in Scottish History. I'm your host, Colin MacDonald, and today, we’re stepping onto the ice to revisit a moment of Scottish sporting glory at the 1924 Winter Olympics. From the 28th to the 30th of January 1924, at the inaugural Winter Olympic Games in Chamonix, France, a group of Scotsmen made history by securing the first-ever Olympic gold medal in curling. Representing G...