massive links between scotland and netherlands historically, my mother had been reading up on it recently, apparently the whole scottish court hung out there...
Historical alliances
It's said that the first people from the Low Countries to settle in Scotland came in the wake of Mathilda's marriage to the Scottish king, David I, during the Dark Ages. Craftsmen and tradesmen followed courtiers and in later centuries a brisk trade grew up between our two nations: Scotland's primary goods (wool, hides, salmon and then coal) in exchange for the luxuries obtainable in the Netherlands, one of the major hubs of European trade.
By 1600, trading colonies had grown up on either side of the well-travelled shipping routes: the Dutch settling along the eastern seaboard of Scotland; the Scots congregating first in Campvere ? where they were allowed to land their goods duty free and run their own affairs ? and then Rotterdam, where Scottish and Dutch Calvinism coexisted comfortably. Besides the thousands of local descendants with Scots ancestry, both ports still show signs of these early alliances. Now a museum, 'The Scots House' in Vere was the only place outside Scotland where Scots Law was practised. In Rotterdam, meanwhile, the doors of The Scots International Church have remained wide open ever since 1643.
When they weren't trading with each other, the Scots and Dutch were taking up arms together against a common enemy ? whoever that might be. Over 300 years ago, Scots mercenaries joined William of Orange in an invasion of Great Britain. 60 years ago, thousands of Scots were involved in the liberation of Holland. And only this June, the Dutch Navy were exercising in Scottish waters during NATO manoeuvres.
Exchange of ideas
The two countries traded in ideas as well as goods during these formative years. Scottish students in search of a professional education in Law or Medicine made a beeline for Leiden near Rotterdam. Among the most noteworthy was Sir Robert Sibbald, the first Professor of Physics at Edinburgh University. Returning from Leiden, he went on to create Edinburgh's Botanical Garden, based on a Dutch model. Years later, Edinburgh's world famous Medical Faculty was founded and staffed exclusively by Leiden graduates. Even Edinburgh's Royal Infirmary was based on a Leiden hospital and, in the world of finance, The Bank of Scotland followed the eminent example set by The Bank of Amsterdam.
The trade in ideas was two-way. Within the realm of philosophy, in particular, Scots made a major contribution. William MacDowell helped to found the University of Groningen in 1614, and no fewer than five Scots taught the subject at Leiden during the seventeenth century.