Founded as a BURGH by King DAVID I (between 1124 and 1132), Aberdeen (originally Brittonic, meaning ‘Mouth of the Don') became the principal port of NE Scotland, exporting hides, wool and fish to Continental Europe. After the local bishop's see was moved to Aberdeen (by 1132), a second burgh developed around the new cathedral. Universities were founded in 1495 (King's College) and 1593 (Marischal College) and united in 1860. SHIP‐BUILDING flourished in the late 18th century, and FISHING (cod‐trawling) from the 1880s to the late 20th century. The city expanded again from the 1970s as the principal centre of the oil industry. An institute of technology was upgraded as Robert Gordon University in 1992. See also NORTH SEA GAS AND OIL INDUSTRIES.
Est. popn: 1300, 2000; 1600, 10,000; 1800, 27,000; 1900, 153,000; 2000, 213,000.
ABERDEEN, 4TH EARL OF
(b. 28 Jan. 1784 at Edinburgh, Scotland; d. 14 Dec. 1860 at London, England, aged 76). Twice British foreign secretary; prime minister of a WHIG– PEELITE coalition 1852—5.
George Gordon was an orphan. His guardians, William PITT the Younger and Henry Dundas, arranged his education and introduced him to TORY politics. He inherited his earldom in 1801 and sat in the House of Lords as a Scottish representative peer from 1806.
As special ambassador to Austria (1813–14), Aberdeen was not conspicuously successful. He occupied himself with archaeology and estate management until called to be foreign secretary under the duke of WELLINGTON (1828–30), when he negotiated the borders of GREECE. Again foreign secretary (1841–6), in the ministry of Sir Robert PEEL, he conciliated the USA and improved relations with FRANCE.
When the Conservative Party split in 1846, Aberdeen supported Peel. A convinced ‘free trader’, he emerged as leader of the PEELITES (1850) and formed a coalition government (1852) with Lord RUSSELL, Lord PALMERSTON and W.E. GLADSTONE in key offices. The ministry lacked unity, Aberdeen appeared irresolute, and Great Britain drifted into the CRIMEAN WAR against his better judgement (1854). Mismanagement of the campaign forced his resignation in Jan. 1855. Succeeded by Palmerston.
ABERFAN DISASTERAccident on 21 Oct. 1966, when a coal tip (waste and sludge) at the village of Aberfan (near Merthyr Tydfil, Glamorgan, Wales) collapsed. The ensuing avalanche buried a school and neighbouring streets, killing 116 children and 28 adults. See also COAL INDUSTRY, WALES.ABERNETHY, TREATY OFThe submission (terms unknown), in autumn 1072 (at Abernethy, E Scotland), which was imposed on King MALCOLM III of Scotland by King WILLIAM I of England, who had invaded following Scottish raids. It was ineffective: Malcolm resumed raids. ROBERT CURTHOSE (1080) and King WILLIAM II (1091) tried to reimpose the agreement. Malcolm died while attacking N England in 1093. See also SCOTTISH–ENGLISH RELATIONS BEFORE 1290.ABJURATION ACTLegislation by the English Parliament, Jan. 1702, which required office‐holders and Church of ENGLAND clergy in England and Wales to take an abjuration oath (oath of renouncement) recognizing WILLIAM III as the rightful king and denying that the Stuart claimant ‘James III’ had any right. The Act was occasioned by the recent death of JAMES VII/II (Sept. 1701) and recognition of his son as king by Louis XIV of France. A modified oath was reimposed by later Acts, and replaced by a new oath of allegiance in 1858. See also JACOBITISM, IMPACT ON BRITISH POLITICS.ABLETT, NOAH(b. 4 Oct. 1883 at Ynys‐hir, Glamorgan, Wales; d. 3 Oct. 1935 at Merthyr Tydfil, Glamorgan, aged 52). Miners' leader; campaigner for confrontation between Capital and Labour (owners and employees). Ablett and colleagues wrote The Miners' Next Step (1912), a syndicalist manifesto which advocated the overthrow of coalowners by industrial action. See also TRADE UNIONISM, WALES; SYNDICALISM.ABORTION, GREAT BRITAINThe aborting (killing) of human foetuses was made illegal by the UK Parliament in 1861. Termination of pregnancies up to 28 weeks was permitted from 1968 under the 1967 Abortion Act (proposed by Liberal MP David Steel with support from the Labour government), and reduced to 24 weeks in 1990. Two doctors were required to certify that a woman would be harmed mentally or physically by giving birth. By end 2015, about 8.5 million foetuses had been aborted. Feminists have strongly opposed further restrictions on abortion, while the Catholic Church has consistently opposed its provision.ABORTION, IRELAND
Abortion was made illegal in Ireland by the UK Parliament in 1861. In the Republic of Ireland in 1983, in response to pressure for decriminalization and following a referendum, unborn children were also protected by a constitutional amendment. However, abortion remained contentious, with the Catholic Church strongly opposed.
In March 1992 the Republic’s Supreme Court ruled that abortion was allowed when a mother’s life was in danger, including by risk of suicide. This prompted referendums on three further amendments (Nov. 1992). Two were accepted, allowing procurement of abortions abroad and distribution of information about services in other jurisdictions. (The rejected amendment would have prohibited abortion for risk of suicide.) In 2002 another referendum sought prohibition of abortion for risk of suicide, and proposed new penalties for performing or assisting an abortion. It was narrowly rejected (50.42% to 49.58%).
In 2010 the European Court of Human Rights accepted that there was no right to an abortion in the Republic, but advised that clarification was needed about permissible medical circumstances for abortions. That judgment and the death (2012) of a woman denied an abortion on medical grounds resulted in legislation (2013) specifying allowable medical circumstances, including risk of suicide.
After the 2016 election the FINE GAEL‐led government of Enda KENNY held a Citizens’ Assembly to consider changes to the 1983 amendment. Its report (June 2017) recommended liberalization. A referendum, held under Kenny’s successor Leo VARADKAR, approved replacement of the amendment with authorization for abortion (May 2018). Legislation in Dec. 2018 repealed the 2013 Act and allowed abortions up to 12 weeks’ gestation.
In NORTHERN IRELAND, abortion was permitted from 1945 if a mother’s life was at risk. In 2017–18 there were 44 legal abortions. In July 2019, while Northern Ireland’s devolved ASSEMBLY and EXECUTIVE were suspended, the UK Parliament decriminalized abortion in Northern Ireland and required regulations for abortion to be implemented by April 2020. See also CHURCH–STATE RELATIONS, SOUTHERN IRELAND FROM 1922; WOMEN’S MOVEMENT FROM 1960S, IRELAND.
ABRAHAM, WILLIAMsee MABONABSOLUTISM
A form of government in which a ruler theoretically has unlimited power. European monarchies developed in this direction in the 16th–18th centuries. Certain features were considered characteristics of absolutism: a standing army, a compliant bureaucracy, the capacity to levy taxes without legislative approval, and the ability to pursue policies without consent from representative institutions.
In England such features were most apparent in the reigns of CHARLES I (1625–49) and JAMES VII/II (1685–8), and to a lesser extent in the reign of CHARLES II (1660–85). But these kings were restrained by a relatively strong legal and political culture. The increased strength of Parliament, resulting from the GLORIOUS REVOLUTION, ended absolutist developments. See also BALANCED CONSTITUTION; CHARLES I, PERSONAL RULE; STANDING ARMY, ENGLAND; KINGSHIP AND MONARCHY, ENGLAND 1066 TO 1680S.
ACADEMIES OF ARTA Royal Academy of Arts was founded in England in 1768 to raise the status of art and artists. Located in London, its first patron was King GEORGE III. The first president was Joshua REYNOLDS. It has run a school and has held an annual summer exhibition since 1769. A Royal Hibernian Academy was founded in Ireland in 1823 (in Dublin), and a Scottish Academy in 1826 (in Edinburgh; granted royal charter 1838). See also VISUAL ARTS, BRITAIN/IRELAND.ACRE, FALL OFThe capture, on 18 May 1291, of the most important remaining Latin (or European) stronghold in Syria by Muslim forces under al‐Ashraf, sultan of Egypt. It led to the evacuation of the remaining Christian forts in the Middle East, effectively ending two centuries of European crusading involvement in the Holy Land. See also CRUSADES.ACT
