In the 1830s and 1840s the district of Glendale on the island of Skye
was swamped by immigrants cleared from other north Skye estates. The
resultant overcrowding and over-use of land caused simmering
discontent - not against the incomers, but against the landowners, who
regarded their tenants as no more than chattels. This book is a
definitive account of what happened when the powder-keg erupted and a
full-scale land-war ensued. Pitched battles with police, factors and
bailiffs, military intervention, arrests, trials, imprisonment and the
personal intervention of the Prime Minister were to have huge
consequences for crofters all over the Highlands, who, ultimately, were
the victors. At the heart of the rising was a man named John MacPherson
of Lower Milovaig in Glendale, a courageous, charismatic and articulate
crofter who was twice imprisoned for leading a rebellion against a
system which kept all but the wealthiest in a state of bitter servitude.
MacPherson quickly became known as 'the Glendale Martyr'. Martyrs tells
the story of John MacPherson, his comrades, his allies, his enemies and
his final success.