You have probably heard the term cultural diversity lately. You probably
know that it means a lot of different cultures living side by side, people who
speak different languages, and they have different customs and they might have
been born in different countries. Well that's exactly what the early days of
the Georgia Colony were like.
This is a math class at the Atlanta International
School. The students here are from all over the United States, from all over the world.
My name is Marie Jackman and I come from France.
My name is Enrique Pollak and I come from Spain.
My name is Cliff Tran and I'm from France.
My name is Christopher and I come from England.
My name is Dana Helmplum from West Virginia.
I'm Christian Mamalofe from Germany.
My name is Alexander Shebostes and I'm from Canada.
My name is Alison Copes and I'm from Georgia.
My name is Kyle Weetlie and I'm from st. Thomas.
Hi i'm Melina de Graaff and I'm from Holland.
My name is Oliver Louis and I'm from Michigan.
My name is Ashley Harding and I'm from the United States.
The cultural diversity of our state now
is a lot like the early days of the Georgia Colony. There were people from
France, Germany, England, Spain, Portugal, Africa, and of course there were Native
Americans. One of the most colorful groups settled on the coast in a town
they called Darien and they came from the highlands of Scotland.
They came to Georgia because general Oglethorpe promised what they didn't
have back home, land.
They were sharecroppers so to speak. They lived on
land belonging to a lord. They farmed and tended this land but they never owned it.
And they were willing to defend that
land. They were fierce in battle and they had their own way of fighting.
They would use a musket to begin the battle but after firing their single shot they
would lay the musket aside. At that point they would take their shield, which they
called a Targ, and then draw their dirt, which is the Scottish fighting knife, or
dagger. The dirt would be held inside the arm
with the shield like this and then they would draw their broadsword. Swords were
never sharp anywhere but right on the point. Main reason being that these are a
weapon of considerable weight, four and a half pounds. If it was sharp and I did
manage to pierce an enemy, it would get caught in his bones. What you wanted a
broadsword, to do was to break bones. When he was down on the ground you then used
the sharp point to dispatch the enemy or to kill him.
The Scottish men wore kilts which looked like skirts. That may seem like strange
clothing for soldiers but the Indians were also good warriors and they didn't
wear pants either. Both Indians and Highlanders felt they could run faster
and fight better in their traditional clothes and the Highlanders had
something else in common with the Indians, soft shoes like Indian moccasins.
Indians and Highlanders looked on each other as nature's people. They were part
of the land, they lived with the land, they died with the land, they stayed with
the land. They saw no reason to separate themselves from the land. A soft-shoe ment
you could feel the land. You can feel the sand, you could feel the rocks. You knew
what the spirit of your land was.
Clearly the Scots were rugged independent people,
capable of defending the Georgia colony, and this includes the Highlander women.
Margaret Macintosh, for example, her husband was leader of the settlement and
was held for two years in a Spanish prison. While he was gone
Margaret was in charge.
The Scottish Highland women were not fragile in any
way shape or form. They could carry any responsibilities that a man could carry.
When most of the men were off at war with the Spanish, the women had to be
able to fight.
The women had monthly cannon and musket drills, at least
monthly. Our Margaret was in charge of the cannon and musket drills during the
time her husband was gone. Women were very very proficient because
they were under a constant threat of attack from the Spanish.
There were a hundred and ten women at the fort at one time and only seven men.
These women were not going to sit by idly and wait to be trampled by the
Spanish. They were prepared to defend the walls of their fort.
At one time because
there were only seven men and 110 women, Oglethorpe continued to write in his
journals that the fort was manned. It was more like womaned because there weren't
men here to protect it.
Once they were given this land, the Highland Scots
defended it and it became their home.
Darien is still there. The Highlanders
put the roots down deep and they stayed.
And today, if you look in the Darien
phonebook, you'll find the names McIntosh, Makai, Campbel,l and Popple. They're still here.
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