The Anvil of Scottish History
Stories of Stirling
Published on 30. November 2020
Book
Paperback/Softback
154 pages
978-1-9996962-5-2 (ISBN)
Description
Stirling was Scotland's ancient capital, and it remains its best preserved medieval city with its remarkable city walls and late medieval hospital, the oldest royal park, as well as one of the most striking Renaissance palaces in all of Europe. It is home to the world's oldest football and curling stone - and the home of tartan. Stirling was the grounds for the two most important battles in Scottish history as well as having fought Romans, Angles, Picts, Vikings, the English, other Scots, Oliver Cromwell, Jacobites and the Hanoverians, and it even played a key role in the preparations for D-Day. It is the place where our identity and indeed our very existence has been forged and repeatedly tested: the anvil of Scottish history.
This beautiful city sits at the lowest crossing point of the River Forth. This means that every army that ever invaded or resisted invasion had to cross the river at Stirling. So, for the last 2000 years, blood and treasure were lost and heroes and villains created in a perpetual struggle for the control of this key location. This means that almost every single aspect of Scotland's history either impacts, or is impacted by, this amazing place.
Take a fascinating journey through the centuries with Stirling's Burgh Archaeologist, Dr Murray Cook, as he considers the complex and lively history of this unique royal city. From the mists of prehistory through to the Home Guard, he charts the changing face of Stirling over the course of millennia, detailing some extraordinary archaeological finds and many little-known historical facts. Prepare to discover Stirling's secrets and mysteries for yourself!
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
Stirling
United Kingdom
Illustrations
109 x colour and monochrome illustrations
Dimensions
Height: 234 mm
Width: 156 mm
Thickness: 9 mm
Weight
245 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-9996962-5-2 (9781999696252)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
Dr Murray Cook is Stirling Council's Archaeologist and is from Leith originally, though he also lived and went to school in Edinburgh. He lives in Stirling with a long-suffering wife, three teenage girls and two pesky but loveable cats. He has undertaken numerous excavations across the region and published over 40 books and articles. He won a Stirling's Provost Award in 2018 for his work for the Council, where he has helped raise over £300,000 to be spent on community archaeology and research and has even got invited to see the Queen at Holyrood Palace, along with a few hundred others! He has appeared on several TV programmes, and has sometime even been paid! He writes a regular column in the Stirling Observer and runs Stirling Archaeology, a Facebook page dedicated to Stirling's fantastic heritage!: https://www.facebook.com/Stirling-Archaeology-176144165815143/Murray studied at Edinburgh University worked first for AOC Archaeology, rising from subcontractor to Commercial Director. His PhD, which has a rather long and boring title, was based on 10 years of research in Aberdeenshire on settlement patterns between 2000 BC and AD 1000: https://www.scottishheritagehub.com/content/case-study-kintore-aberdeenshire-shining-light-black-holeHe is an Honorary Research Fellow at Stirling University, a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, runs an occasional course at Forth Valley College on Stirling and likes to do it in ditches (archaeology, that is!). He also co-runs regular training digs open to all under the name Rampart Scotland: http://www.rampartscotland.co.uk/Archaeology is at first glance an off-putting word, easy to say but hard to spell and Murray has been called the Council's Archivist and Architect before. But he believes that archaeology should be open to all, it is our shared past and it belong to everyone, so barriers should be removed. On this basis Murray runs a series of free walks, lectures and digs through the year to allow people to explore their past and it's open to everyone... email Murray to join: cookm@stirling.gov.uk