Highland Clearances
The Highland Clearances (Scottish Gaelic: Fuadaichean nan Gàidheal [ˈfuə̯t̪içən nəŋ gɛː.əl̪ˠ], the "eviction of the Gaels") were the evictions of a significant number of tenants in the Scottish Highlands mostly during the 18th and 19th centuries. They resulted from enclosures of common lands and a change from farming to sheep rearing, largely carried out by hereditary aristocratic landowners who previously had status as Scots Gaelic clan chiefs. The Clearances were a complex series of events occurring over more than a hundred years. A Highland Clearance has been defined as "an enforced simultaneous eviction of all families living in a given area, such as an entire glen".The Clearances relied on the insecurity of tenure of most tenants under the Scottish legal system.