independence of scotland

[55], The BBC website announced the final result of the referendum at 06:24 on 19 September 2014: the "No" vote prevailed with 55% (2,001,926) of the votes from an overall voter turnout of 84.5%. In the SNP, there was division between those who saw devolution as a stepping stone to independence and those who feared it might detract from that ultimate goal. Ahead of that referendum, the Scottish Government stated in its white paper proposing independence that voting Yes was a "once in a generation opportunity to follow a different … Continue There was an extremely high turnout and there was a resounding result in favour of Scotland remaining in the UK". All of the other aforementioned pro-independence parties want Scotland to become an independent republic. After Falkirk, Wallace went on the run. [160][161][162][163][164][165][166] Professor John Curtice stated in January 2012 that polling had shown support for independence at between 32% and 38% of the Scottish population. Brexit. The alternative, a Scottish departure from the United Kingdom, would be a shock to a union that has existed for more than 300 years. Scotland “joined England just at the time, or just before, England takes off with the Industrial Revolution,” says Curtice. In protest, the SNP withdrew their support from the government. For those hoping to preserve the United Kingdom, says Curtice, devolution was “an attempt to stymie the demand for independence.” But for the SNP, devolution was simply a “stepping stone” on the path to a fully autonomous Scotland. Given the “material change of circumstance” since the 2014 vote, the argument goes, Scots are likely to arrive at a new consensus. Though pro-devolution voters just edged out the competition, only 32.8 percent of the electorate turned out for the referendum, rendering the verdict null and void. A motion of no confidence was then tabled by the Conservatives and supported by the SNP, the Liberals and Ulster Unionists. Handed over to the incoming Labour government and classified as secret because of Labour fears over the surge in Scottish National Party popularity, the document came to light only in 2005, when the SNP obtained the report under the Freedom of Information Act 2000.[22][23]. Nuclear disarmament: with control over defence and foreign policy, an independent Scotland could demand the removal of Trident nuclear weapons, which are based in the. Scottish Jacobite resistance to the union, led by descendants of James VII/II including Bonnie Prince Charlie, continued until 1746. Keep up-to-date on: © 2021 Smithsonian Magazine. Scotland’s first minister Nicola Sturgeon has claimed that the Covid crisis may have boosted support for Scottish independence. [21], In January 1974, the Conservative government had commissioned the McCrone report, written by Professor Gavin McCrone, a leading government economist, to report on the viability of an independent Scotland. Reasons that have been cited in favour of independence include: The Conservative Party, Labour Party and Liberal Democrats, who all have seats in the Scottish Parliament, oppose Scottish independence. The treaty passed by both nations’ parliaments lent Scotland economic security and access to England’s colonial trade network; meanwhile, a provision that excluded all Catholics—namely, James’ exiled descendants—from the royal succession gave England a safeguard against the Jacobites and Catholic France. Independence group Business for Scotland compiled an image of the country using data taken from recent polls, which illustrates the extent to which the No majority in most regions has now been replaced with Yes voters. The Unionist Party subsequently suffered a steady decline in support. Website: meilansolly.com. [39] The three main parties opposed to independence instead formed a Commission on Scottish Devolution, chaired by Kenneth Calman. A 1997 devolution referendum proved more successful, with Scotland overwhelmingly voting in favor of a decentralized legislature; the new governing body met in Edinburgh for the first time on May 12, 1999. Scotland retained its legal, religious and educational systems but joined the main British Parliament, albeit with a disproportionately low number of representatives. “That longer-term context of the union of crowns not working very well applies, but it had gotten particularly bad in the last ten years before 1707, so it’s in response to quite short-term pressures.”, While the formation of the United Kingdom yielded “great fruitfulness” in many areas, including the development of a shared British identity, the historian adds, “There’s nothing immutable or inevitable about it.”, Says Bowie, “This is probably the fundamental moral. Privacy Statement [48] In January 2012, the UK Government offered to provide the Scottish Parliament with the specific powers to hold a referendum, providing it was "fair, legal and decisive". Promoting the ideology that Scotland should be a free and independent country. With the passage of the Acts of Union, coinage, taxes and trade were standardized across Great Britain. [167] Curtice stated in April 2014 that support for independence had increased since December 2013, although there was disagreement between the polling companies as to the true state of public opinion. Interestingly, Renwick notes, the latter of these has actually been weakened by Brexit, as Scotland would be “leaving [the U.K.], a market that is much more important […] in terms of Scottish exports,” for an E.U. 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The Scottish Government has proposed holding a second referendum on Scottish independence from the United Kingdom (UK). In the wake of the referendum, the supporters of the bill conducted a protest campaign under the slogan "Scotland said yes". The Wars of Scottish Independence were a series of military campaigns fought between the Kingdom of Scotland and the Kingdom of England in the late 13th and early 14th centuries. Still, the Vikings’ intentions weren’t entirely noble, and in the mid-ninth century, a tribal leader named Kenneth MacAlpin united the famously fragmented Scottish clans in the fight against the foreign invaders. [45], The SNP won an overall majority in the Scottish Parliament at the 2011 Scottish election. James’ son Charles I showed even less foresight than his father, and his tyrannical tendencies eventually cost him both the crown and his head. ", "How would you vote in a Scottish independence referendum if held now? Uncertainty could be brought in the immediate aftermath of independence, particularly disagreement as to how Scotland would be treated in relation to the, This page was last edited on 29 March 2021, at 06:04. SNP focus on Scottish independence is 'wrong debate', says Starmer Published: 11 Mar 2021 Scottish Labour leader criticised over pro-independence candidate sacking With the discovery of oil off Scotland’s North Sea coast during the 1970s, however, the party’s message started to resonate with more voters, and in 1974, the SNP won 11 seats in Parliament. Following the Irish War of Independence (1919–21) and the Anglo-Irish Treaty that ended the war, Ireland was partitioned into two states: Southern Ireland, which opted to become independent (and is now known as Ireland), and Northern Ireland, which - due its creation along the lines of ensuring a unionist-majority - chose to remain within the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Although the Scottish tribes suffered a devastating defeat at the Battle of Mons Graupius in 83 A.D., the skirmish marked the Romans’ furthest advance into Scotland, and over the next several centuries, Rome failed to secure additional territory in the region. Outmatched by the Romans’ “highly disciplined […] war machine,” writes Ben Johnson for Historic U.K., the locals, called Caledonians by the Romans, resorted to guerrilla tactics like carrying out night-time raids on unsuspecting Roman forts. As poet Robert Burns later observed, many Scots believed their representatives had been “bought and sold for English gold.”. The UK had already suffered the international humiliation of the 1956 Suez Crisis, which showed that it was no longer the superpower it had been before World War II. Scottish perspective on news, sport, business, lifestyle, food and drink and more, from Scotland's national newspaper, The Scotsman. It is instead about the right of people to decide the form of government best suited to their needs. [32], The Scottish Parliament has legislative authority for all non-reserved matters relating to Scotland, and has a limited power to vary income tax, nicknamed the Tartan Tax, a power it did not exercise and which was later replaced by wider tax-varying powers. "[73] However, the application of the principle of parliamentary sovereignty to Scotland has been disputed. [25][26] The SNP group was reduced from 11 MPs to 2 at the 1979 general election, while devolution was opposed by the Conservative governments led by Margaret Thatcher and John Major. Following the revolt’s failure, the British government implemented harsh policies aimed at dismantling the Highlands’ clan system and eliminating the Jacobite cause once and for all. [24] It was therefore incorrect to conclude that the relatively low turnout was entirely due to voter apathy. [174] As of December 2020, fifteen consecutive opinion polls had shown a lead for "Yes". A Scottish independence supporter at a rally in Bannockburn in August. Advertising Notice Darling stated in his post-result speech, "The silent have spoken", while Salmond stated, "I accept the verdict of the people, and I call on all of Scotland to follow suit in accepting the democratic verdict". If Scotland votes for independence on 18 September, what would it actually mean for the rest of the UK? But the question of independence, or at the very least devolution of power, remained of interest to Scots. [169] Twenty-five polls were conducted in the year after the referendum, with seventeen of them having "No" as the predominant answer, seven having "Yes", and one having an equal proportion of respondents for each opinion. Prime Minister Gordon Brown also publicly attacked the independence option. [91][92] Another group, the Radical Independence Campaign, described itself as "fighting for an independent Scotland that is for the millions not the millionaires". [40][41] This reviewed devolution and considered all constitutional options apart from independence. [168] Polls in the run-up to the referendum vote showed a closing of the gap, with one YouGov poll giving the Yes campaign a 51–49 lead. The Auld Alliance of Scotland and France against English interests was first invoked at this time and remained active through to the 1500s. A watershed in the Scottish kingdom's history was a succession crisis that erupted in 1290 where Edward I of England claimed the right of succession to the Scottish throne. [60] In the Brexit vote of 23 June 2016, 62% of Scottish voters voted to remain (38% of voters voted to leave the EU). The union of these two oft-warring countries proved predictably unpopular. All other Ministers are appointed and dismissed by the First Minister, and together they make up the Scottish Government, the executive arm of government. The SNP wants Scotland to keep the monarchy (see personal union) and become an independent Commonwealth realm, similar to Canada, Australia or New Zealand. Terms of Use [86] At the 2016 Scottish Parliament election, 69 of the 129 seats available were won by pro-independence parties (63 SNP and 6 Greens). These Scandinavians didn’t venture to new lands solely in search of plunder. In 2011, the pro-independence SNP won the Scottish parliament’s first majority government, paving the way for the 2014 referendum. In northern Scotland, meanwhile, a tribe known as the Picts gained traction and started carrying out border raids at the far reaches of Hadrian’s Wall. It passed by one vote on 28 March 1979, forcing the May 1979 general election, which was won by the Conservatives led by Margaret Thatcher. Land. [61][62] First Minister of Scotland Nicola Sturgeon said that she was looking at all options to "secure our place in the EU", and that a second referendum was "highly likely". According to the U.K. Parliament portal, the Jacobites painted themselves as “defenders of Scottish liberties,” pledging to repeal the union and restore Scotland’s parliament, but remained chiefly concerned with restoring the crown to the descendants of James II. Ian Grant told The National: “There have been at least six elections since the referendum of 2014, and Scottish independence has figured highly in each. Following years of fighting, most famously at the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314, Bruce convinced England to recognize Scotland’s independence, bringing the First War of Scottish Independence to a close in 1328. 56 members (43 pc) are elected in eight different electoral regions by the additional member system. The legality of any British constituent country attaining de facto independence or declaring unilateral independence outside the framework of British constitutional convention is debatable. He concluded that oil would have given an independent Scotland one of the strongest currencies in Europe. When the Roman Empire’s armies, emboldened by their successful conquest of southern Britain, arrived in Scotland during the first century A.D., they were met by tribes who quickly “turned to armed resistance on a large scale,” according to Roman historian Tacitus. [citation needed] It was not regarded as an immediate constitutional priority however, particularly when the Irish Home Rule Bill was defeated in the House of Commons. [138], There are strong historical and contemporary ties between Scotland and the rest of the UK from the Reformation and Union of Crowns, to Scottish involvement in the growth and development of the British Empire and contribution of the Scottish Enlightenment and Industrial Revolution. [49][50] Negotiations continued between the two governments until October 2012, when the Edinburgh Agreement was reached. [167] The research also showed, however, that the proportion of the population strongly opposed to independence had also declined. A NEW map has revealed how support for independence has surged across most of Scotland since 2014.. Plagued by infighting and policy differences, the nationalist SNP nevertheless gained momentum during World War II, with politician Robert McIntyre winning the party’s first seat in Parliament during an April 1945 by-election. The "Yes" vote received 45% (1,617,989) support—the winning total needed was 1,852,828. As Alan Renwick, deputy director of University College London’s Constitution Unit, explains, proponents of independence offer two main arguments. This includes Scottish-based newspapers The Scotsman,[124] Scotland on Sunday,[125] The Herald,[126] the Sunday Post,[127] the Daily Record, the Sunday Mail,[128] the Scottish Daily Mail,[129] The Scottish Daily Express,[130] The Scottish Sunday Express,[131] and Daily Star of Scotland;[128] as well as UK-wide newspapers The Daily Telegraph,[132] Sunday Telegraph,[132] The Guardian,[133] The Independent,[134] The Economist,[135] Financial Times,[136] The Spectator,[137] and The Sunday Times. The Wars of Scottish Independence ended in a renewed kingdom under Robert the Bruce (crowned 1306), whose grandson Robert II of Scotland was the first Scottish king of the House of Stuart. [7][8], Since six weeks after the 2014 referendum, opinion polls have asked how people would vote in a proposed second referendum. By the late 18th century, the issue of Scottish versus English identity had been largely subsumed by the countries’ shared conflicts with other members of the British Empire, including the American colonies and Ireland. In the ensuing English Civil War, Scots fervently backed the forces of Charles II, who upon retaking the throne after the 1660 death of Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell, was hailed as king of England, Scotland and Ireland. The result of the referendum in Scotland was a narrow majority in favour of devolution (52% to 48%),[19] but a condition of the referendum was that 40% of the total electorate should vote in favour in order to make it valid. The deceased monarch’s distant cousin James VI of Scotland, son of Mary, Queen of Scots, took the English and Irish thrones as James I, becoming the first monarch to unite the three nations under one crown. [114][115][116] However, 'Scotland in Union' has been the subject of controversy, after leaked records indicated that most of their money came from wealthy donors rather than the campaign's own members. On May 1, 1707, England and Scotland officially united, becoming “One Kingdom by the Name of Great Britain.” According to Bowie, two main factors precipitated the arrival of this long-portended union: Scots were dissatisfied with “how they were being governed within the union” of crowns, and the monarchy created by the Glorious Revolution was “precarious,” under constant threat of rebellion by the Jacobite supporters of the deposed James II. A key element in this movement was the comparison with Ireland. Results were compiled from 32 council areas, with Glasgow backing independence—voting 53.5% "Yes" to 46.5% "No" (turnout in the area was 75%)—and Edinburgh voting against independence by 61% to 39% (turnout in the area was 84%). [173] In October 2020, an Ipsos MORI/STV News poll saw support for independence at its highest ever level, with 58% saying they would vote "Yes". [140] There are also significant economic links with the Scottish military-industrial complex[141] as well as close links within the financial sector.[142]. The pro-independence Scottish National Party first became the governing party of the devolved parliament in 2007, and it won an outright majority of seats at the 2011 Scottish Parliament election. [90] It was responsible for organising a mock referendum held at the University of Glasgow in February 2013. (As the Catholic king of a largely Protestant country, James, whose Latin name inspired his supporters’ classification as Jacobites, alienated his subjects by prosecuting Anglican bishops and suspending the Scottish and English Parliaments after they refused to repeal anti-Catholic legislation.) [28] Prime Minister John Major campaigned during the 1997 general election on the slogan "72 hours to save the union". Polling conducted by What Scotland Thinks reflects a rise in support for independence but suggests the “Yes” side is still just shy of a majority. This speech marked the start of a rapid decolonisation in Africa and the end of the British Empire. The "Home Rule" movement for a Scottish Assembly was first taken up in 1853 by the National Association for the Vindication of Scottish Rights, a body close to the Conservative Party. Access to Trading Markets. [20] At the February 1974 general election, seven SNP MPs were elected. [139] At the time of the 2011 census, approximately 700,000 adults who were born in Scotland lived in the rest of the UK, while about 470,000 adults who were born elsewhere in the UK had moved to live in Scotland. Which newspaper will be next?
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