Rothesay Rant

Scottish Country Dance Instruction

ROTHESAY RANT (J4x32) Sq.Set Anna Holden Guide To SCD (ex-Collins)

1- 8 All ½ turn partners RH, retain hold and give LH to next person and all set (M facing out), ½ turn next person LH and all set end Ladies turning inwards
9-16 1s+3s (in 2nd and 4th places) dance ½ Ladies' Chain and ½ R&L
17-24 2s+4s dance ½ Ladies' Chain and ½ R&L
25-32 All circle 8H round and back. 4123

(MINICRIB. Dance crib compiled by Charles Upton, Deeside Caledonian Society, and his successors)

Rothesay Rant
Anna C Holden 12 Scottish Country Dances, Birmingham RSCDS
Jig 4 x 32 bars 4 Couple Repeat 4 Couple Set Square Set

1-2 All turn partners by the right halfway on the sides, finishing in a circle, Mn facing out, Ls in;

3-4 retaining hold with partners and taking left hands with second corners, all balance;

5-6 all turn second corners by the left halfway on the sides, finishing 4L2M 1L3M 2L4M 3L1M in the square set, Ls facing out, Mn in;

7-8 retaining hold with second corners and taking right hands with opposite, all balance, turning on the spot to finish Ls facing in, Mn out;

9-12 1s3s half ladies' chain across the set;

13-16 1s3s half rights and lefts;

17-20 2s4s half ladies' chain up and down the set;

21-24 2s4s half rights and lefts, finishing 4s1s2s3s;

25-32 8 hands round and back, finishing 4s1s2s3s.

(MAXICRIB. Scottish country dancing instructions compiled by Reuben Freemantle)

Dance Notes

3-8 Balance with straight arms, as in double triangles, to form a zig-zag circle.

9-12 On the second and fourth times through, the previous 2s and 4s start the first half ladies' chain.

9-24 All very quick.

Keith Rose's Crib Diagrams

Rothesay Rant - Full Size And Key To Symbols

Dance Instruction Videos

Rothesay Rant - Scottish Country Dancing Instruction Video

Dance Information

There is also a version Rothesay Rant (Revised) which is popular with those for whom Flow of the Dance is an obsession.

Every summer as a little lad in the Midlands of England, I spent a week or so on holiday with my parents at the "seaside", a generic term for any number of holiday venues around the coast such as Torquay, Ramsgate, Rhyl, or Skegness.

Had my family been Glaswegian, it would have been a different story. We would more likely have been going "doon the watter". After taking a tram to the Broomielaw and boarding a paddle steamer, the Waverley perhaps, we would have steamed west between the banks of the Clyde until we reached Dunoon, Largs or, better still, Rothesay. The aforementioned "watter" was, of course, the Firth of Clyde.

Rothesay is a Scottish equivalent to those English seaside resorts I mentioned. It became a popular destination in Victorian times for all those Scots desperate to escape the grime and squalor of industrial Glasgow. Located on the Isle of Bute, Rothesay was a busy resort community with pleasant beaches, music hall entertainment at the Winter Gardens, and the requisite waterfront pavilion, causing boatloads of steamer trafﬁc to arrive daily every summer.

While he owns no Duchy around Bute, there has existed a Duke of Rothesay for centuries. The heir apparent to the British throne has held this additional Scottish title since King Robert III conferred it on his son David in 1398. The current Duke is, of course, HRH Charles, the Prince of Wales, a royal title which would have little cachet in Scotland.

The Barry Pipes Canon 022- September, 2008.

Rothesay is the principal town on the Isle of Bute, in the council area of Argyll and Bute, Scotland, along the coast of the Firth of Clyde.

It can be reached by ferry from Wemyss Bay, which offers an onward rail link to Glasgow. At the centre of the town is the 13th-century ruin Rothesay Castle, unique in Scotland for its circular plan.

During the Victorian era, Rothesay became a popular tourist destination. In particular, it was hugely popular with Glaswegians going "doon the watter" (literally "down the water" – a reference to the waters of the Firth of Clyde). Its wooden pier was busy with steamer traffic.

The heir to the British throne (currently (2023) William, Prince of Wales) is known in Scotland as the Duke of Rothesay.

This practice was begun in the late 14th century by Robert III of Scotland, who regularly resided at Rothesay Castle, and first granted the title to his son David in 1398. At that time, the name Rothesay referred to the whole island of Bute, rather than to the town (which was then known as Bute-town).

Rothesay - Information Video

Rothesay Pier

Dance information licensed under this Creative Commons Licence 3.0.
Text from this original Rothesay Bute article on Wikipedia.
Text from this original Rothesay article on Wikipedia.
Image copyright William Craig under this Creative Commons Licence 2.0.

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