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The English Navigation Acts of 1660 and 1663 had prohibited Scotland from trading with English colonies and for a while this curtailed the Scots` activities. Undaunted, a huge proportion of the country`s capital was invested in setting up a Scottish colony in Darien in Central America but for numerous reasons this ended in complete disaster in 1701, leading to the loss of one quarter of the country`s liquid assets. Scotland was greatly weakened by what has been called `The Darien Disaster` and the English were blamed for this severe blow to the home economy. Scotland was thus in a poor bargaining position when it discussed possible union with England, but the union took effect in 1707 and one benefit it brought was the ending of discrimination against Scottish traders.
This article is based on the guidebook "The Glasgow Guide". |
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This is Spiers Wharf on the Forth and Clyde Canal, just a short distance from the centre of the city. These huge warehouses were built in the second half of the nineteenth century in what was then an exceptionally busy part of Glasgow. In the late 1980s they were converted into offices and houses. | |
Glasgow`s population grew steadily during the eighteenth century and by 1801 it reached 48,256 (83,769, including the suburbs). The city grew in a westward direction to accommodate the incomers and many new and important streets were laid out such as Miller Street (1762), Queen Street (1777) and Buchanan Street (1786). While the better-off inhabitants moved westwards into these newly-developed areas, the old centre of the city around High Street crumbled into decay, producing some of Europe`s worst slums. The grossly overcrowded East End became a centre for new industries such as cloth-making and many people were involved in producing linen and cotton goods which were exported all over the world by merchants such as David Dale. The weavers became one of the earliest groups of workers to organise themselves and the Weavers` Memorial in Calton is testament to one of the city`s most bloody labour disputes. By this time a number of other industries had also become successful, such as sugar refining and rum making, and new industries such as potteries and breweries were also being established. |
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