The Lubeck letter William Wallace, 1297, addressed the Hanseatic ports of Hamburg and Lubeck - that Scotland was open for business again, having defeated the English army at Battle of Stirling Bridge.
Many Scots in the 16th and 17th centuries travelled to the Baltic lands, north Germany, Prussia, Poland, Russia – The Scottish brotherhoods were set up in the Provinces and Polish-Lithuania Commonwealth.
Scotland is a northern island with close links and ties to northern Europe. The Orkney and Shetland islands are much closer to Norway than to London – both physically and culturally.
At Stromness museum, there are many relics from all the centuries of seafaring far and wide across the world. And the ancient Bogdnar of Ness, which brought people to Orkney many centuries ago.
Scots merchants funded Marischal Aberdeen college. As did Danzig merchant Robert Gordon. Craigevar castle, built with wealth by William Forbes. Scots pedlars, to ports in Danzig and Konigsberg (30K Scots families), they sold directly to people in the countryside.
Later Scots soldiers of fortune, travelled from north east Scotland and these soldiers were encouraged by James IV.
After the world famous Ossian poems 1700s – German aristocrats flocked to Loch Katrine And also after Walter Scott’s novels our Scottish Tourist industry started. Also the composition of Mendelsohn’s Fingals cave.
BOOK: The Scottish World by Billy Kay
