Front matter and Introduction - Journal of the Sydney Society for Scottish History, Volume 6 (1998)

Abstract

The Sydney Society for Scottish History arises from the passions of overseas born Scots for knowledge of the history of their ancestors, and the facts to flesh out the half-told tales of grandparents. While expanding our own knowledge we have sought to encourage students, undergraduate and postgraduate, to give papers on their research to stimulate the academic study of Scottish history beyond the disjointed tales of the people of 'North Britain', that has tended to be the character of the English view of Scottish history.

We had relatively little opportunity to encourage original research until Elizabeth Bonner was persuaded to take an active role in our Society. Elizabeth has been a member of the Society since her return from her long doctoral research to the European Archives and Libraries in June, 1986, at which time I co-opted her onto the committee as paper convenor for the Society's monthly meetings. After she had presented her first paper, 'Scotland between England and France, 1509-1558', to the Society in October 1986,1 she introduced a number of her postgraduate colleagues, former tutors and lecturers at Sydney University. Ultimately, after her Ph.D. was conferred in 1993, she has persuaded world-renowned scholars and professors of history to come to our meetings and deliver a wide variety of papers on Scottish history. Their topics have ranged from the ancient Picts to Scots in Australia. Many of the former students and scholars whom we have encouraged have become members of the Society and in turn have introduced others.