Issue 1 - Migration of Scots Flashcards
Push & Pull Factors
1
Q
The Potato Blight
A
- 1846
- Potato Crop Failed causing a Famine
- Put over 150,000 lives at risk
- E.g. The Island of Barra
- Most Highland Scots lived off the land and heavily relied on the potato crop to survive
- Many were forced to move to avoid starvation
Push Factor
Internal & External
2
Q
The Highland Clearances
A
- Landowners had rented out land to crofters who worked it to produce enough food to survive on
- However, new methods of farming came into use such as profitable sheep farming
- This made landlords move their tenants off the land so that they could make more money
- 70,000-150,000 Highland Scots were cleared during this period
- They evicted people from their homes and land
- E.g. Strathconon 1850 and Barra 1851
- Sometimes using brutal methods
- E.g. Patrick Sellar carried out clearances and used methods such as burning crofts, setting fire to houses and destroying fences
- Many Highlanders were forced to move to the cities or abroad as a result
Push Factor
Internal/External
3
Q
Demand for Cattle Decline
A
- Angus cattle were first imported into New Zealand in 1863 and began breeding
- Since the, foreign competition from places like New Zealand grew
- This resulted in Cattle farmers osing their income and possible their homes
- This forced families to move in order to find employment
Push Factor
Internal/External
4
Q
Living Conditions in the Highlands
A
- Living conditions were attrocious
- Lived in ‘blackhouses’ which had stone walls, no windows and no chimneys
- Walls were black with sout
- Animals also lived inside meaning diseases such as typhus spread easily
- This forced Highlanders to move to find healthier accomodation
Push Factor
Internal/External
5
Q
Mechanisation
A
- Early 19th century
- Threshing machines began to cut down the amount of time and manpower required to harvest crops
- By 1870, most hay and grain were harvested in this way
- This meant Scots working on farms were no longer needed
- This forced them to leave to find employment
Push Factor
Internal/External
6
Q
Improved Transport
In Scotland
A
- Railway boom in the 1840s
- Made it easier for Scots to move around the country
- More frequent trains and new routes around the country
Pull Factor
Internal
7
Q
Improved Transport
Out of Scotland
A
- The invention of the steamship made travel abroad easier, quicker and cheaper
- In the 1850s, it took over six weeks to cross the Atlantic
- By 1914, it only took one week
Pull Factor
External
8
Q
Education
A
- Many Scots in rural areas were poorly educated in the early 19th century
- The Education Act of 1872 gave everyone in Scotland between the ages of 5 and 13 the right to free education
- It was often easier to access schools in larger towns and cities in the Lowlands which caused many to migrate.
Pull Factor
Internal
9
Q
Bright Lights of the City
A
- In the rural lowlands, Scots often lived in basic conditions and lacked the varied social life that people enjoyed in the cities
- Many left their poor living conditions in the hope of enjoying city life
- This included football games e.g. Rangers and Celtic
- Music Halls e.g. Aberdeen Music Hall
- Cinemas and Theatres e.g. His Majesty’s Aberdeen
Pull Factor
Internal
10
Q
Decline of Industry
A
- Scotland’s fishing industry went into decline after the war
- Boats had been badly damaged
- Fuel costs were rising and foreing markets were no longer buying Scottish fish
- This forced many to migrate to look for other employment
Push Factor
Internal/External
11
Q
Decline in Demand for Skilled Workers
A
- There were many handweavers across Scotland
- E.g. in Calton, which was a community in Lanarkshire was home to a community of handweavers in the 18th century
- Many skilled workers in rural areas like Kirbrachan such as weavers lost their trade due to clothing factories being built in industrial centres such as Glasgow
Push Factor
12
Q
Employment Opportunities
A
- Between 1830 and 1911, many left rural lowlands as the population doubled meaning there were not enough jobs
- Rural workers quickly heard that they could earn around 50% more in industrial and urban centres in industries like cotton, iron, coal or manufacturing
Pull Factor
External
13
Q
Employment Opportunities
In Scotland
A
- Many temporarily migrated from the Highlands as crofters looked for work in between harvest seasons to support their incomes
- They did a variety of jobs such as working as Navvies in the railway construction boom in the late 1840s and working on farms in the Lowlands
- Temporary migration become more permanent for many due to the effects of the potato famine and the Highland Clearances
Pull Factor
Internal
14
Q
Employment Opportunities
Abroad
A
- There were many new opportunities for Scots to be employed in skilled jobs throughout the British Empire
- Many of the first to migirate from Scotand were highly skilled
- E.g. craftsmen, who knew that they could get higher wages in countries abroad.
Pull Factor
External
15
Q
Government Coercion
A
- The 1851 Emigration Act made emigration more accessible by providing them with financial help
- Landlords, such as the Duke of Sutherland often financed emigration schemes to help crofters move abroad
Pull Factor
External
