Donna Scott Blog (Archives)

The Glencoe Massacre—Who’s to Blame?

The Glencoe Massacre—Who’s to Blame?

By: Donna Scott

July 31, 2023
The Glencoe Massacre may have occurred more than three hundred years ago on February 13th, 1692, but it remains a very sensitive subject for MacDonalds and Campbells even today. For twelve days, soldiers—both English and Scottish—billeted in Glencoe and were provided...
Hanging and Gibbeting

Hanging and Gibbeting

By: Donna Scott

January 9, 2021
Death by hanging was used as a form of capital punishment in England as early as the fifth century. Other methods of execution found their way into history over the years as well, yet never managed to maintain the longevity of death by hanging. Castration, blinding,...
The London Lock Hospital

The London Lock Hospital

By: Donna Scott

According to many historiographers, 18th century London marked a high point in sexual liberation. Thousands of prostitutes—both men and women—offered their services either within brothels or molly houses, or on the street in areas notoriously known for being rife with...
London Monster

London Monster

By: Donna Scott

November 27, 2020
Almost everyone has heard of Jack the Ripper, the villain who wandered the streets of London in 1888, killing prostitutes in the dead of night. Few people are aware, however, that he had a predecessor, a sexual miscreant who terrorized those same streets exactly one...
The Buggery Act and Homosexuality in the 17th Century

The Buggery Act and Homosexuality in the 17th Century

By: Donna Scott

October 26, 2020
In Shame the Devil, Alston suffers horribly. As a young boy, he is confronted with feelings that are deemed unnatural and sinful. His Puritan upbringing insists that everything he thinks, feels, and knows about himself is the product of evil. However, once he meets...