Macpherson the Historian

an outstanding scholarly study that enriches our understanding of this most complex of characters – a lifelong advocate for the Highlands, one of the foremost Enlightenment thinkers and writers, a key player within the British political establishment, and not least, a historian who helped lay the foundations of modern historical practice. -- David Taylor * West Highland Notes and Queries *
The MacPhersons’ documentation of sources is impressive, notably in the extensive use of primary and secondary sources in footnotes—more than 700 footnotes within the three central chapters. Their bibliography and index reflect an intense effort at gathering the essential sources and ensuring that future scholars will have a highly creditable resource. All academic libraries must add this book to their collection for those studying eighteenth-century history and thought, Scotland’s cultural and intellectual past, and eighteenth-century British literature. -- Paul J. deGategno, Penn State Brandywine * Eighteenth-Century Scotland *