274
VOII
Zustand
Schottland
Macht langsam aber fortdauernd gesunken war, konnte den
Engländern nicht widerstehen und schien in der That eher geneigt
sich ihnen anzuschliessen, um an der Unterdrückung und Plün-
derung des eigenen Vaterlandes seinen Antheil zu erhalten. F")
56) Als Jacob I. den Thron von England bestieg, begleitete ihn „the principal
native nobility"; und "the very peace which ensued lupon the nnion of the crowns,
may be considered as the commencement of an era in whieh many of our national
strongholds were either transformed into simple residences 01' utterly deserted." IwingÖs
History of Dumlwartonshire, 4to, 1860, p. 137, 1613. The nobles "had no further
occasion to make a iigure in war, their power in vassalage was of little use, and their
inüuence of course decayed. They knew little of the arts of peace, and had no dis-
position to cultivate them." 17m Interest of Scotland camsidered, Edinburgh, 1733,
p. 85. Unter Karl I. setzte sich die Bewegung fort; "which fell out, partly through
the giddiness of the times, bnt more by the way his Majesty had taken at the be-
ginning of his reign; at which time he clid recover from divers 01' them their heredi-
tary ofiices, and also pressed them to quit their tithes (which formerly had kept the
gentry in a dependance upon them), whereby they were so weaken'd, that now when
he stood most in need of them (exeept the chief of the clans) they could command
none but their vassals." Guthrgfs Mcmoirs, edit. 1702, p. 127, 128. Dann kamen
die Bürgerkriege, und Oromwells Herrschaft, wo sie an Person und Eigenthum litten.
Vergl. ÖhmnÖWs' Anmzls, II, 225, mit Laingß History of Scotlund, III, 515, 516.
Im Jahr 1654 schreibt Baillie (Leiters zmd Journals, III, 249): „Our nobilitie, weell
near all, are wraeked." lm Jahr 1656, „0ur nobles lying np in prisons, and under
forfaultlies, or debts, private or publiet, are for the most part either broken or brea-
king." Ibid, p. 317. Und 1658 schreibt derselbe Beobachter (III, 387): „Our noble
families are almost gone: Lennox hes little in Scotland unsold; Hamiltofs estate,
except Arran and the Barontie of Hamilton, is sold; Argyle can pay little annuelrent
for seven or eight hundred thousand merks; and he is no more drowned in (lebt than
publiet hatred, almost of all, both Scottish and English; the Gordons are gone; the
Douglasses little better; Eglintoun und Glencairn on the brink of breaking; many of
our -chief families estates are cracking; nor is there any appearance of any human
relief for the tyme."
Die Folge von alledem wird so beschrieben von Wodrow unter dem Jahr 1661:
„Our nobility and gentry Were remarkably changed to the worse: it was but few of
such, who had been active in the former years, were now alive, and those few were
marked out for ruin. A young generation harl sprung up under the English govern-
ment, educate under penury und oppression; their estates were under burden, and
many of them had little other prospect of mending their fortunes, but by the king's
favour, and so were ready to act that part he was best pleased with." Wodrow's
History of the Ulmrch of Scotlanol, I, S9.
57) „At the Restoration, Charles II. regained full posseggign Qf the mya1 prem.
gative in Scotland; and the nobles, whose estates were wasted, o1- their spirit broken,
by the ealamities to which they had been exposed, wem lass able und less willing
than ever to resist the power of the erown. During his reign, and that of James VII.,
the dictutcs of the monarch were received in Scotland with most abject submission.
