Charity and Conflict: Poor Relief in Mid-Seventeenth-Century Dundee

Abstract

This article addresses the poor relief provided in Dundee during the 1640s and 1650s, years of particular upheaval in the burgh. Contrary to some assumptions, some unusually rich archival evidence on this subject survives and offers rich insight into the collection and distribution of welfare by the kirk treasurers. The article argues that significant fundraising activities took place and survived the disasters of the late 1640s and early 1650s, pointing to the resilience of the town and its charitable structures. This relief was effectively administered and carefully recorded, and drew on a variety of additional sources such as voluntary gifts, as well as regular church-door collections. The article also analyses the recipients of regular and exceptional relief payments and considers the much more limited care provided by Dundee's hospital. As well as suggesting further opportunities for the study of poor relief in pre-modern Scotland, the article also helps to shed new light on the seventeenth-century experiences of one of the less well-studied of Scotland's leading early modern burghs.