Picts, Gaels and Scots: Early Historic Scotland

by Sally M. Foster

Early historic Scotland - from the fifth to the tenth century AD - was home to a variety of diverse peoples and cultures, all competing for land and supremacy. Yet by the eleventh century it had become a single, unified kingdom, known as Alba, under a stable and successful monarchy. How did this happen, and when? At the heart of this mystery lies the extraordinary influence of the Picts and of their neighbours, the Gaels - originally immigrants from Ireland. In this new and revised edition of her acclaimed book, Sally M. Foster establishes the nature of their contribution and, drawing on the latest archaeological evidence and research, highlights a huge number of themes, including the the origins of the Picts and Gaels; the significance of the remarkable Pictish symbols and other early historic sculpture; the art of war and the role of kingship in tribal society; settlement, agriculture, industry and trade; religious beliefs and the impact of Christianity; how the Picts and Gaels became Scots.

Genres: History, Scotland, Nonfiction, Medieval, Archaeology, Historical, Ancient History

Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1996

About the author

Dr. Sally Foster is a Lecturer in History at the University of Stirling. Her research interests include Scottish prehistory, the Picts and their north European neighbours and European early medieval sculpture.

Reviews

[The Lost Dreamer · Rating 4 out of 5]

I got this book at some Scottish bookshop by the end of a road trip in which I had been astonished by the Pitctish stones of the East coast of the country. Wanting to know more and fearing that finding any literature about such a specific and obscure topic outside its own country, I decided to bring this home. The result is pretty close to what I was expecting: this is a highly academic text that often feels like an academic review more suitable for a specialized journal than for a broad-public book. That feeling is particularly acute when one tries to follow the figures that accompany the text: they are helpful and without them, a non-technical person like myself, would be utterly lost. But in many cases, the figures could be much clearer or better related to the ideas exposed beside them.

Apart from this, being highly technical, this has still been a pretty enjoyable reading. I have learned new stuff almost on any page, not only about the early history of Scotland but also about archaeology and early medievalist research. Some clearer maps or any sort of organized chronology might be helpful to make the material more accessible but overall, this book provides a perfect starting point for anyone seeking a deeper understanding of the forces that shaped the Scottish nation.

Of course, my ability to provide any further opinion about the contents of this book is very limited, as I'm not even sure that people like me are the target audience for it. I can only say that I have enjoyed it and that the piece has been much easier to read and to follow than I had anticipated.

[James Taylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Foster has provided an excellent introduction to the formation of the kingdom of Scotland. This is a period in which very little is known for certain as there is a lack of surviving sources in Scotland. Foster manages to mesh all of the existing scholarship on this period to provide a highly-accessible, but nevertheless rigorous, account of the forces which meshed together to bind the Picts and Gaels into the Scots. Recommended.

[Gary Hefkin · Rating 2 out of 5]

Wasn't what I expected.

[Janis · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the only book at my library about the Picts. I didn’t find it to be very readable. It’s scholarly; more like somebody’s thesis. Quite a few terms I didn’t understand. I think the intended audience is people a little better educated than I am. Especially the section discussing archaeology. 99 illustrations/diagrams. I got very little out of the diagrams. Too small to see. The black and white photos suffered from the same problem. The text would talk about it in detail, but I could seldom see what she was talking about and I really wanted to, because they sounded fascinating. There are a few color photos in the book, and they are glorious! I stuck with it to the end, because I’m interested in Scottish history, but I didn’t really enjoy reading this one.

[Brian Turner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fairly interesting and comprehensive, but I couldn't shake the feeling that it was really about an Iron Age British culture that the Romans had simply termed "Picts" for convenience, creating thousands of years of misunderstanding.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I always found it amazing how I could fall asleep so easily while riding a history textbook. I didn't know this book would be like that but it definitely is that type of book. I reserved it for bed time reading. Very historically interesting but not enough pictures although there are some good ones. There are many pages of sources at the end if the book which would be helpful if I choose to read another book like this.

[Erin · Rating 4 out of 5]

A well-researched and comprehensive view of early historic Scotland. Based in archaeological, linguistic, and written historical records, the author has presented a well-developed look at the beginnings of the Scottish nation. Though written with plenty of sources and discussing complex topics, the supplemental inclusion of illustrations/photographs was helpful for comprehension (particularly, I assume, if you’ve never read an archaeological or historical paper/book before).

[mairifhada · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful! I used this for an independent research project while doing my A-Levels and absolutely recommend for anyone who finds books about early Scotland to be generally lacking.
This has it all, politics, agriculture, art, and religion. It's very comprehensive and useful to a scholar, student, or beginner in understanding the veiled lives of the Picts particularly.

[Adeptus Fringilla · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a very good introduction into the early history of Scotland and its people(s). Some of the information might be out of date now because this book was published in 1996. But nevertheless, it provides a short-ish guide to the early beginnings of what we now know as Scotland.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was somewhat disappointed after I began reading this book. I would say it is more of a reference book than something that an average person would read prior to going to Scotland. I did learn a few things, but I will use the book more as a reference when I have a question.

[Karen Koppy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tough to read because it's very detailed and really meant for a scholarly approach rather than a casual reader. However, I did learn a lot about the living conditions and religious background of the early people from northern Scotland.

[David Parker · Rating 3 out of 5]

Too scholarly for me

Way too much detail for me to consume.
I did the ancient history through the Roman conquest. Interesting that there are still so many sites in studied.

[Alasdair Allan · Rating 5 out of 5]

A scholarly but accessible way in to Scotland's early history, and to learn about how that understanding is changing.

[Dionne · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not very readable.

[Joyce Grenis · Rating 2 out of 5]

To many "could have beens", "might have beens".

[Tracy Hudson · Rating 2 out of 5]

Historically relevant to the region but very stale academic textbook style to present.