A review of Poor Relief and the Church in Scotland 1560-1650

What is it about?

The book is about how the church in Scotland supported the poor through collecting money and other means between 1560 and 1650. It examines the extent to which the church was capable of providing relief, the degree to which it strictly applied criteria for relief and the degree to which it was flexible in its provision of relief, taking individual circumstances into account.

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Why is it important?

It challenges previous portrayals of the Scottish poor relief system as inadequate by taking the focus away from the statutory system towards the ecclesiastical system. By showing that the bulk of poor relief in early modern Scotland was provided by the latter rather than the former, it undermines previous assessments that were based on evaluations of the statutory system.

Perspectives