The Drove Roads of Scotland

by A.R.B. Haldane

One of the great classics of Scottish history, The Drove Roads of Scotland interweaves folklore, social comment and economic history in a fascinating account of Scotland's droving trade and the routes by which cattle and sheep were brought from every corner of the land to markets in central Scotland. In pastoral Scotland, the breeding and movement of livestock were fundamental to the lives of the people. The story of the drove roads takes the reader on an engrossing tour of Scottish history, from the lawless cattle driving by reivers in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries to the legitimate movement of stock which developed after the Union of the Crowns, by which time the large-scale movement of stock to established markets had become an important part of Scotland's economy, and a vital aspect of commercial life in the Empire. Haldane's work is one of the great classics of Scottish history.

Genres: Scotland, History, Nonfiction, European History

266 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1952

About the author

Archibald Richard Burdon Haldane CBE was a Scottish social historian and writer. He was the son of Edith (née Nelson) and Sir William Haldane, and grandson of James Alexander Haldane.

Like his father and uncles, he attended the Edinburgh Academy, after which he went up to Balliol College, Oxford to read history. He returned to Scotland to enter his father's legal firm and acted for a time as Fiscal to the Society of Writers to the Signet. He then became involved in the Savings Bank movement and was at one stage vice-chairman of the Savings Bank Association. In 1982, he was appointed a CBE in recognition of his work for the bank.

He was principally known, however, as a social historian and author, and for his seminal work on the drovers' roads of Scotland. In recognition for his work in this field, he was awarded the honorary degree of D Litt from the University of Edinburgh in 1952. He published two further books in this field, New Ways through the Glens and Three centuries of Scottish posts, as well as several on his favourite pastime of trout fishing, of which he was passionately fond.

Reviews

[Fiona · Rating 5 out of 5]

Picture the scene. From the 16th - 19th centuries, in late summer and autumn, tens of thousands of black cattle were driven from the Western Isles, the Inner Hebrides, the far North, Argyll, the Central and Western Highlands. Some were ferried, some swam between the islands and the mainland. The drovers and their dogs drove the beasts across rough country, through high mountain passes and across lochs and deep rivers. Along the way, they stopped overnight at recognised stances where the cattle could graze and the drovers and their dogs could eat and sleep. These were long, hard journeys but Scotland’s economy was initially based on cattle. From the 14th - 17th centuries, ownership of cattle was the measure of a man’s wealth. It’s why reiving (thieving) was so popular. The value of the booty was worth the risk.

It took me some time to read this book as I read it with a map constantly open, following the journeys from all airts towards the markets. Some of the biggest markets were in places that now seem remote from anywhere, far less centres of trade, e.g. Kilmichael-Glassary, north of Lochgilphead in Argyll; Kirkmichael, east of Pitlochry; Aikey in Aberdeenshire. The markets became known as trysts, a word deriving from trust as transactions were often conducted on that basis in the early years. For decades, the biggest of all was Crieff Tryst. To the south of Perth, it was an ideal location as so many of the drove roads led there. By 1770 however, its importance had been overshadowed by Falkirk Tryst, again ideally placed geographically. There are many colourful descriptions of these events.

...’from May to October in all parts of the country men met, argued, quarrelled and bargained, for, as a writer of last (19th) century has said: ‘If there’s ocht in this warl’ the farmer breed prides itself in, its in ha’en ta’en in somebody most desperately wi’ a beast.’

Not only cattle was sold at the Tryst. It was an opportunity for pedlars, packsmen and craftsmen to sell and buy wares. Horse dealers, sellers of sweetmeats and spirituous liquors, gypsies, pickpockets and smugglers were all to be found there. A large proportion of the cattle traded was driven on into England, much of it heading for Norfolk where it would be fattened for the London market. In the early years of the 19th century, in excess of 100,000 cattle were driven to England every year. Industrialisation and urbanisation increased demand as did the expansion of the Navy and its need for fresh and salted beef. Around this time, there was an increase in the demand for mutton and wool which led to tens of thousands of sheep also being driven to market and on into England.

In the later 19th century, beasts were increasingly transported south by rail and steamer, or were bred for consumption in the rapidly expanding towns and cities of Central Scotland. The introduction of turnips as a crop meant that stock could be fed over the winter so didn’t need to be sold before it set in. Increased urbanisation and the modernisation of agricultural processes interfered with the course and management of droving journeys as stances were enclosed and roads improved. These, together with many other factors, led to the eventual demise of droving in the early years of the 20th century.

This detailed and painstakingly researched account of the history of drove roads in Scotland has made me see my country differently. The empty wildernesses I’ve driven through were once main thoroughfares and thriving marketplaces. I now have a much better understanding of how Scotland’s economy has shaped the landscape and vice versa. It was the cattle trade that was the catalyst for the founding of the national banks. This is such a well written book, full of interest and colour, and I strongly recommend it to anyone with an interest in Scottish history. It was first published in 1937 and Haldane updated it for the final time in 1952 at which time he was still able to speak to eyewitnesses and see the remains of the drove roads himself. I’ll let Haldane himself end this review.

The brown sails of the cattle boats have gone from the Minch. On slipways and jetties from Skye to Kintyre thrift grows undisturbed in the crannies of stones once smooth and polished with the tread of hooves. The hills around Loch Ainort look down on lonely saltings where the Uist droves once grazed, while throughout the Highlands, in hill passes, moorland and upland valley, as in the minds of men, the passing years increasingly dim and obscure the mark and the memory of men and the beasts that once travelled the drove roads of Scotland.

[Martin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked this book up after enjoying Robert Macfarlane’s the Old Ways, hoping for an insight into Scotland’s oldest walking routes and how they came into being. The opening pages felt a bit anachronistic to our modern sensibilities, and I was feeling the patriarchal cringe. Fortunately this was short-lived and I was soon fully immersed in cattle-droving with the ghosts of my 17th Century ancestors.

There is so much more to this book than the title suggests. It’s an almost-perfect blend of history, geography, economic analysis and social comment. It teaches you Scottish history on the sly and giving proper context to pre and post Union. The landscape comes alive as different chapters follow different areas of Scotland and their paths to markets, how trade flourished before currency was a thing and how this helped give rise to the development of the Royal Bank and Bank of Scotland.

The actual detail of the routes followed across Scotland is incredibly well-researched and detailed. My only complaint here is I would have liked a comprehensive map to accompany each section to solidify the names and geography in my head. There is a Scotland-wide map at the beginning but to be honest it just gives a general flavour. Maybe later editions do provide more detail but my 1995 copy didn’t.

In summary, this book gives an excellent all-round grounding in the defining moments of Scottish history, a sound overview of her geography and an insightful analysis of trade development across the nation. The routes come alive by virtue of its excellent research, not simply focusing on one aspect. If you are interested in any of these topics you could do no wrong in reading this book. If you want to explore or re-tread some of the routes mentioned here, this book will accompany and simultaneously transport you, back through time.

[Peg Lotvin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am conflicted about my rating. On one hand this was fascinating from the first page, on the other my knowledge of Scottish geography is so poor I usually had no idea where in Scotland the author was talking about. This was combined with nearly 400 years of cattle (and sheep) droving where names and places have changed or disappeared. I can't remember reading a book that is so densely written. Every page had footnotes, some quite long, but necessary to the telling of the story.

[Michael Bishop · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is a valuable resource for anyone with an interest in the Drove Roads of Scotland. Not an easy read by any means but it is well researched, comprehensive, and covers an important era in Scottish economic and social history.

[James Anderson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A suberb piece of work, very well researched and presented. The extent of the bibliography alone gives you an idea of the amount of work which went into creating this book and also provides for lots of follow up work. Given than many of the cited works are from the 17th and 18th centuries, the effort involved in composing a coherent and contiguous story line is a real credit to the author. Perhaps this is not to everyone's liking (as I see from some of the reviews on this platform) as it is a very fact-intense piece of work. However, if you are a knowledge hungry type of reader with an interest in social history (ignore the fact that this is about moving livestock), then this is a must-read.

[Peter Harrison · Rating 4 out of 5]

Despite my family finding it highly amusing that I was reading a book about cows in Scotland, I found this really enjoyable. It's an insightful complement to some of the reading I've done in the past about Scotland in the 18th century and the Jacobite rebellions, covering one of the key aspects of the economy of the highlands. Haldane glosses the pain of the change from a densely populated Highlands exporting cattle to a depopulated one with enclosed land based on 'modern' agriculture. Even so, for giving a sense of life in the Highlands before that change, this is a great book.

[SP · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book paints like no other the harsh life and conditions that came with cattle farming in the highlands and what it really took to make a living out of it. It was fascinating to read how cattle markets developed, how calendars of markets determined the life rhythm of the highlands and the harsh life cattle drivers faced crossing the unforgiving Scottish Highlands.

[Katy Owen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Picked this up in the West Highland Museum and read it in a day. It's incredibly detailed, taken direct from source material, written 75 years ago, and somehow still highly readable

[Robert Ballantyne · Rating 2 out of 5]

Don't get me wrong, it was incredibly informative. But it was far too dry. The facts were interesting about such an important part of Scottish history but it was basically a 200 page list of facts.

[Lesley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dry but informative and makes me look at my surroundings with new eyes.

[Patricia Tomlin]

I wanted this book for research and, (together with a TV program!)j it was very helpful. Parts of Scotland are very difficult to research as they are so remote. Very few roads even now and I depend on Google maps to 'walk' the areas I write about to describe them. This book included quite a bit of description as well as droving details which were most helpful.
My book is finished now but I'll keep the book in case I write about this area and time again.