Plague Ships The Price of Trade in a Time of Pestilence. Professor Richard Oram. One of the most enduring images of the early weeks of the Covid-19 pandemic is of cruise-ships and their fear-filled passengers attempting to enter port to secure medical assistance but kept away from docking by local authorities who were equally…
Plague Prevention, Social Isolation and Social Control. Policing and Breach. Professor Richard Oram. As we are seeing in the midst of the current Covid-19 pandemic, the extraordinary conditions created during such times of societal crisis brought out the best and worst in people, as lawmakers and communities struggled to keep people safe and disease-free…
‘…And the Poor Died of Their Poverty’ Food Security Dearth and Famine in Medieval Scotland. Professor Richard Oram. Amidst all the detail of the extravagant, conspicuous consumption of exotic food and fine wines in the court of King James I, it is easy to lose sight of the harsh realities of daily life for…
Housing Scotland’s Parliaments in the Reign of James I. Professor Richard Oram. When we talk of parliament buildings, most folk nowadays would have a mental image of something akin to the Palace of Westminster in which the British Houses of Parliament meet, or the Capitol Building in Washington DC or the Great Hall of…
A Tale of Two Burghs: How King James’s Death Changed the Destinies of Two Scottish Cities. Professor Richard Oram. The events of the night of 21/22 February 1437 had repercussions that changed the destinies of two Scottish cities and set in motion developments that transformed the political shape of the kingdom. Amongst the many…
A True Representation? Depictions and Portrayals of James. Who Ate All the Pies? Professor Richard Oram. Amongst the very many things that we do not know about King James I is his actual physical appearance. Apart from the stylised kingly head on his coins and the equally stylised enthroned royal figure from his great seal,…