Who Built Scotland: A History of the Nation in Twenty-Five Buildings facts for kids
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Cover of hardback edition
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| Author | Alexander McCall Smith, Alistair Moffat, James Crawford, James Robertson, Kathleen Jamie |
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| Subject | Scottish architecture and history |
| Publisher | Historic Environment Scotland |
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Publication date
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14 September 2017 |
| Pages | 336 |
| ISBN | 9781849172240 (hardback) |
Who Built Scotland: A History of the Nation in Twenty-Five Buildings is a fascinating book. It was first published in 2017 by Historic Environment Scotland. The book contains 25 essays about buildings in Scotland. These buildings show Scotland's history, from ancient times to today.
Five Scottish writers contributed to the book. They are novelist Alexander McCall Smith, history writer Alistair Moffat, publisher James Crawford, novelist James Robertson, and poet Kathleen Jamie. People generally liked the book. Some thought it missed a few important buildings, but overall it was well received.
About the Book's Release
The first hardback version of the book came out on September 14, 2017. A softer paperback version was released in 2018. This paperback has a slightly different title on its cover: 25 Journeys in Search of a Nation.
Exploring Scotland's Buildings
The book features 25 different buildings. Each of the five authors wrote about five of them. The essays are arranged by how old the buildings are. The oldest sites are from prehistoric times. Two other buildings are even older than 1000 AD.
Many of the chosen places are in Scotland's busy central areas. Four are in Glasgow and three in Edinburgh. Seven buildings are on Scottish islands. Only a few are in the Highlands or southern Scotland. One main idea in the book is how tourism affects these historic places.
Buildings and Their Stories
Here is a list of some of the amazing buildings and sites covered in the book:
| Date | Building | Author | What Makes It Special |
|---|---|---|---|
| 8000 BC | Geldie Burn, Cairngorms | Jamie | This area has many ancient sites and a long history. |
| 3500 BC | Cairnpapple Hill, Midlothian | Moffat | An old religious and burial site on a small hill. |
| 3000 BC | Calanais, Isle of Lewis | Robertson | A famous group of prehistoric standing stones used for rituals. |
| 100 BC | Mousa Broch, Shetland | Jamie | An ancient Iron Age tower, home to storm petrels. |
| 563 AD | Iona Abbey | McCall Smith | An early Christian community linked to St Columba. |
| 600s AD | Glasgow Cathedral | Jamie | Focuses on the skilled builders who worked on this grand cathedral. |
| 1100s | Edinburgh Castle | Moffat | One of Britain's oldest forts, always in use, now a big tourist spot. |
| 1503 | The Great Hall, Stirling Castle | Crawford | Explores its big restoration in 1999, including a new roof. |
| 1600s | Innerpeffray Library, near Crieff | Robertson | Scotland's very first public library where people could borrow books. |
| 1723 | Mavisbank House, near Loanhead | Crawford | A beautiful country house that is now in ruins. |
| 1791 | Auld Alloway Kirk, Alloway | Robertson | Looks at ruined churches and how churches were built in Scotland. |
| 1791–1820 | Charlotte Square, Edinburgh | McCall Smith | A stunning square in Edinburgh's New Town, designed by Robert Adam. |
| 1800s | Glenlivet Distillery, Moray | Moffat | Scotland's oldest legal whisky distillery. |
| 1807 | Bell Rock Lighthouse | McCall Smith | A lighthouse built on a reef that disappears at high tide. |
| 1811 | Abbotsford House, near Melrose | Robertson | The country home of famous writer Walter Scott. |
| 1830s | Surgeons' Hall, Edinburgh | McCall Smith | The impressive headquarters of the Royal College of Surgeons. |
| 1881 | Forth Bridge | Robertson | Focuses on how this famous railway bridge was built. |
| 1896–1909 | Glasgow School of Art | Moffat | Shares memories of its famous architect, Charles Rennie Mackintosh. |
| 1903 | Hampden Park, Glasgow | Crawford | Once the world's largest football stadium when it was finished. |
| 1940s | Italian Chapel, Lamb Holm | McCall Smith | Built and decorated by Italian prisoners of war during WWII. |
| 1948 | Inchmyre Prefabs, Kelso | Moffat | A personal story about growing up in a post-war prefab home. |
| 1968 | Anniesland Court, Glasgow | Jamie | A tall block of flats, the only one of its kind protected in Scotland. |
| 1974 | Sullom Voe, Shetland | Crawford | A large terminal for storing oil. |
| 2006 | Maggie's Centre, Kirkcaldy, Fife | Jamie | A special center for cancer patients, designed by Zaha Hadid. |
| 2014 | Sweeney's Bothy, Eigg | Crawford | A small, off-grid cabin for artists to stay and work. |
The book also includes many full-page color pictures of the buildings. There are also black-and-white photos within the text. A map shows where all the buildings are located.
 | Emma Amos |
 | Edward Mitchell Bannister |
 | Larry D. Alexander |
 | Ernie Barnes |
