CLEARANCES CONTINUED

ABSTRACT:

Tourism in the Scottish Highlands and Islands during the nineteenth century was characterized by a romanticized depiction of the landscape and Celtic tradition. Outsider perspectives portrayed the region as wild, primitive, and rich in ‘ancient’ Celtic traditions, and thus it attracted visitors seeking both adventure and self-discovery. The establishment of the tourism industry in the Highlands and Islands of Scotland was grounded in Romantic literature, royal patronage, and socio-economic changes. In this paper, I engage with local perspectives on tourism in the Highlands and Islands by examining the voices of Highlanders themselves, as hosts, thereby providing a relatively unexplored narrative about tourism in the region.

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By examining local testimony provided to the Napier Commission, I engage with the topic of tourism through specific firsthand accounts provided by those living in rural communities and outline how they perceived the advent of sport tourism as an extension of the Clearances. Many crofters faced eviction threats for keeping dogs to deter game, while sportsmen enjoyed privileges that allowed them to use dogs for hunting without restriction. Testimonies from crofters revealed a systemic disregard for their welfare, with some landlords not honoring agreements related to crop protection. As a result, crofters resorted to makeshift solutions like staying awake to guard crops or using noise to scare away animals, which were often ineffective. 

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These accounts illustrate the struggles of crofters against exploitative practices tied to the sport tourism industry, emphasizing their fight for basic rights and respect. Sport tourism was seen as an extension of the Clearances as it furthered not only the displacement, but also the dehumanization and destitution, of small Highland and Island farming communities. The testimony found in the Napier Commission reveals the complex interactions between tourism, land ownership, economic transformation, and cultural identity that occurred in the nineteenth century. Despite the generally accepted fact that the Highland Clearances had concluded by the 1860s, this paper argues that the Clearances – in its effects if not in its name – continued into the late nineteenth century and was perpetuated by the sport tourism industry.  This paper contributes to a more comprehensive understanding of Highland tourism by engaging primarily with the voices of those directly impacted by its establishment and growth.