29 July 2004

University academic to unravel parliament's role

With Scotland's new Parliament building due to open its doors later this year a University of Dundee historian has just been awarded over £14,000 to examine the role of the parliament in Scotland's past. Dr Alan MacDonald's research, 'The Burghs and Parliament in Scotland, c.1550 - c.1650' will culminate in the publication of a book on the subject in 2006.

Dr MacDonald's project, the first of its kind, seeks to enhance understanding of parliament in early modern Scotland. Scottish parliamentary history tends to concentrate on high politics but Dr MacDonald's research examines the parliamentary activities of the towns whose representatives did not have such a prominent political role. Ultimately, Dr MacDonald's publication should demonstrate that the parliament in early modern Scotland could be responsive to the nation at large.

Dr MacDonald received the award as part of the Arts and Humanities Research Board's (AHRB) Research Leave scheme, which funds replacement teaching costs for periods of research leave.

Alan's parliamentary research is also contributing to a local project of a collection of essays on Dundee. His aim is to trace the parliamentary activities of Dundee in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries when it was Scotland’s second wealthiest town and an important international trading port.

Notes to editors

The AHRB funds postgraduate training and research in the arts and humanities, from archaeology and English literature to design and dance. The quality and range of research supported not only provides social and cultural benefits but also contributes to the economic success of the UK.

Each year the AHRB provides approximately £70 million to support research and postgraduate study in the arts and humanities. In any one year, the AHRB makes approximately 600 research awards and almost 2,000 postgraduate awards. Awards are made after a rigorous peer review process, to ensure that only applications of the highest quality are funded. Arts and humanities researchers constitute nearly a quarter of all research-active staff in the higher education sector.

For further information please contact Dr Alan MacDonald on 01382 344518

By Angela Durcan, Press Officer 01382 344910, out of hours: 07968298585, a.durcan@dundee.ac.uk