The people of St Kilda lived under their own form of democracy with an informal meeting held every weekday morning in the village street. It was known as the `St Kilda Parliament' and consisted of all the adult males on the island. There were no set rules, no chairman and the 'members' arrived in their own time. Once assembled the 'parliament' considered the work to be done that day according to each family's abilities and divided up the resources according to their needs. Everything was done for the common good. Women had their own informal meeting.
In 1889, John Ross, the islands' schoolmaster wrote that the parliament 'very much resembles our Honourable British Parliament in being able to waste any amount of precious time over a very small matter while on the other hand they can pass a Bill before it is well introduced'.
Beyond the reach of the laws that govern this realm they made their own laws. The solitary minister on the island might advise on certain matters, but it was their Parliament that fixed matters beyond appeal. This Parliament met daily to discuss the weather and the state of the sea in a few Gaelic phrases; and by a majority the order of the day was fixed. No individual took it upon himself to arrange his own business until after they had decided what was best.
Click to enlarge the image, read the text then answer the following questions.
Questions
- Describe the street and the men.
- How could you argue that the St. Kilda Parliament was the nearest thing to a democracy you could get?
- How did the St. Kilda Parliament compare with the British Parliament?
- What about the women; did they have any say?