 He recognises the virtues of the Highlanders and deplores the brutality of the English reprisals under the Duke of Cumberland, but towards the end of the book suggests that this is Divine retribution for the atrocities committed on the Low Church Covenanters of southern Scotland in the 17th century.The notorious Highland Clearances were in full swing in the period of action of 'Love', but are peripheral to its action, set in Edinburgh and the Borders.However Daniel's comment that he could make Highland estates profitable echoes the Clearances, in which small tenants were evicted to make way for large-scale sheep farming.