School of Divinity

The Breadalbane Collection

The Breadalbane Collection, an eclectic gathering of 16th century documents of the Campbells of Glenorchy, provides unique insight into Scottish life during the early modern period. The collection was edited by Prof Jane Dawson.

16th century context

In the 16th-century, documentation, letter-writing, and language choices all carried particular importance.

Historical background

These letters focus upon Colin Campbell, the sixth laird of Glenorchy who went by the nickname Grey Colin, and his wife Katherine Ruthven. Their main base was in Breadalbane, part of the Gaelic-speaking central Highlands.

The letters

You can download the full text of each of the 324 Breadalbane letters from this site.

Useful links

Additional resources on Clan Campbell and the 16th century.

Image acknowledgements

This is an entirely educational and non-commercial site.

Contacts, updates and corrections

All corrections received will be posted on this page.