Dorothy Dunnett Society

Dorothy Dunnett Society

The Dorothy Dunnett Society is a charity set up by Dorothy Dunnett in 2001. It was originally called the Dorothy Dunnett Readers' Association. It is a Charity regulated under Scottish law and has the following aims:

  • To seek to advance the education of the public concerning the history, politics, culture and religion of the 11th, 15th and 16th centuries by promoting the study of and research into such subjects generally and into such subjects particularly as they relate to the works of Dorothy Dunnett and to disseminate to the public the results of such research.
  • To seek to foster the appreciation and recognition of the literary works of Dorothy Dunnett.
  • To seek to ensure that the manuscripts, letters, reference materials and research papers of Dorothy Dunnett are preserved and are accessible.[1]

Contents

Activities

In furtherance of these aims, the society:

  • Publishes a magazine Whispering Gallery for circulation to members and other interested parties;
  • Holds seminars and conferences for members and other interested parties to share knowledge and opinions of the works of Dorothy Dunnett and related subjects, and encourages others to hold them;
  • Arranges visits for members and other interested parties to places of interest connected with the period and her works;
  • Gives literary prizes and bursaries to encourage study and research into the periods about which Dorothy Dunnett wrote;
  • Organises the International Dorothy Dunnett Day to facilitate members and other Dunnett Readers meeting up in various locations. The first of these will he held on October 15th 2011 to celebrate 50 years of publication of Dorothy Dunnett's first novel 'The Game of Kings';
  • Arranges for occasional Literary Lunches (the first in 2009, the next due in 2012);
  • Makes small grants to other organisations (e.g. to preserve books in Timbuktu, to the National Library of Scotland and to Traquair House);
  • Promotes interest and research into the Historical Periods about which Dorothy Dunnett wrong by running an Essay Prize in Conjunction with James Gillespie's High School which Dorothy Dunnett attended, and a scholastic prize to encourage university level interest in history.


Dorothy Dunnett Memorial Stone

In 2006, the Dorothy Dunnett Society arranged for a memorial stone to be laid in the memory of Dorothy Dunnett in the Makars' Court by the entrance to the Scottish Writer's Museum at Lady Stair's Close on Edinburgh's Royal Mile. The unveiling ceremony was attended by Dorothy Dunnett's son, Mungo Dunnett and his family, the Lord Provost of Edinburgh, the Edinburgh Makar (Valerie Gillies), and the Ross Herald (Charles Burnett) as well as members of the Society and others. The stone contains Lady Dunnett's coat of arms, and a short quote from one of her books "Where are the links in the chain ... joining us to the past".

Membership

The Society has members in England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland, France, Germany, Spain, Canada, the USA, Australia, New Zealand and other countries around the world.

The Dorothy Dunnett Edinburgh Weekend

Each year the organisation meets annually in Scotland in the Spring for its annual conference, incorporating its Annual General Meeting.[2]

Regulation

The Society is regulated by the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator and its Charitable reference number is SC030649.

References

  1. ^ http://dunnettcentral.org/documents/constitution_4.02.pdf Dorothy Dunnett Society Constitution]
  2. ^ http://dunnettcentral.org/news Dorothy Dunnett Society News page

External links


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