Never mind Russian Civil War, we should be teaching more Scottish history in schools

Scotland in the 17th century was a fascinating period of history that saw the beginning of the modern era

Our 17-year-old has just completed his Advanced Higher history dissertation, on the topic of the Russian Civil War. It is a subject I can remember covering briefly in school myself a generation before. The names of the various White and Red Russian generals were always confusing enough to try and distinguish, but at least now there are some more accessible published histories of the period, from writers such as Antony Beevor and Evan Mawdsley.

The Russian Revolution has been a solid fixture on the history syllabus in Scottish schools for many decades, lining up with other constants such as the Industrial Revolution, and Britain between the two World Wars. What does continue to concern me, however, is the lack of specific Scottish content, and in particular the manner in which key periods in our own history are ignored entirely.

The Advanced Higher history course provides an option of ten different fields of study. Only three relate specifically to Scotland: Northern Britain from the Iron Age to 1034, Independence and Kingship 1249-1334, and The Treaty of Union to the Enlightenment 1707-1815.

Other topics available relate to the American Civil War, the Modernisation of Japan, Germany between the Wars, South Africa in the 20th century, Russia 1914-45, and the Spanish Civil War, with one specifically British topic covering the Second World War and its aftermath.

A painting of King Charles I on his way to be executed on January 30, 1649 (Picture: Culture Club) | Getty Images

Bruce and the Bonnie Prince, again

It is certainly not my contention that the teaching of history in Scottish schools should be restricted only to episodes from our own past. It is essential that young people have a knowledge of the events that shaped the development of the world around them. But it continues to intrigue me that what is taught about Scottish history is so limited, and narrowly focussed.

Once again, Wallace, Bruce and the Wars of Independence, and Bonnie Prince Charlie and the Jacobite Risings, feature prominently. But there is not a single mention of the crucial events of 17th century Scotland, which laid the foundation for the modern state in which we now live.

Scottish pupils can learn about the Russian Revolution and the American, Spanish and Russian civil wars, but of the Scottish Revolution of 1637-44, the Bishops’ Wars, and the War of Three Kingdoms, there is not a mention. We had plenty wars of our own, but their causes, development, and consequences, are not deemed worthy of examination.

The 17th century matters. It is the period which historians class as the start of the modern era, when the great questions about how our country should be governed were debated – and fought over. Parliament and the Kirk challenged the king for an overreach of his authority, a bloody conflict followed which engulfed these islands, and the king lost his head whilst a de facto republic was established.

That was not, of course, the end of the story. We had the Restoration and the return of a king, then another Revolution – that of 1688 – and the establishment of something akin to a constitutional monarchy, laying the foundations for our present day settlement where parliament reigns supreme.

Radical times

For Scotland there is an added dimension, in that the century between 1603 and 1707, from the Union of the Crowns to the Union of the Parliaments, is one of a developing relationship with our southern neighbour with evolving political, religious and economic ties.

For the young historian, there is more than enough civil unrest, warfare and bloodshed to retain interest, whilst the social developments of the period, and in particular the popular support amongst the Scottish people for radical initiatives such as the National Covenant of 1638, deserve greater study.

The neglect of this period in history teaching in our schools has always been a mystery to me, given the importance of the time to the development of our modern nation. It forms the focus of a new Scottish history podcast that my friend and colleague James Bundy and I have launched this week.

Embodiment of evil

A Thistle With Thorns, available on the Apple and Spotify podcast platforms, will bring weekly episodes on aspects of our history, starting with a series on the 17th century. Our first episode features the murder in 1679 of James Sharp, the Archbishop of St Andrews, by nine assassins who considered him to be the embodiment of evil because of his persecution of the Covenanters.

Future episodes will feature the relationship of Charles I to Scotland, the battle victories of the 1st Marquis of Montrose, Cromwell in Scotland, the mystery of the Wigton Martyrs, and Scotland’s role in the Glorious Revolution of 1688. All of them interesting and engaging topics, but not a single one featuring on a school syllabus anywhere in the country.

Books on history continue to sell well, and we have seen over the last few years an upsurge of interest in history podcasts, with the likes of The Rest is History by Dominic Sandbrook and Tom Holland proving hugely popular with the public. I would not dare to predict a similar response to our own venture, but I hope it will make a contribution to better knowledge of what are sometimes forgotten, yet important, periods in our nation’s story.

In the meantime, my sympathies go out to all Scottish pupils struggling with the spelling of Russian surnames as they complete their dissertations and revise for exams in a few weeks’ time. I am sure that their knowledge of the twists and turns of the Russian Civil War, of the ups and downs of the White and Red armies, will help them get the pass marks they need for their SQA qualification, but I cannot help thinking that we might all be better off if they were able to learn more about their own country’s past.

Murdo Fraser is a Scottish Conservative MSP for Mid-Scotland and Fife