Category Archives: CONSTITUTION
Acts of Union 1
Scotland’s journey to Union
On 18 September 2014, voters in Scotland were asked in a referendum whether they want the nation to become independent from the rest of the United Kingdom. We thank God that they chose to remain part of the United Kingdom making it a stronger better place. There has always been a tension at the heart of our Union since it contains four separate nations, three of which have had a long history of self governance. To fully understand the difficult marriage between England and Scotland it is useful to look back over its development. We draw upon a BBC resource to be found at http://www.bbc.co.uk/timelines/zypbgk7
The road to Union spanned centuries. Monarchy, religion, wars and money all played a part in an intriguing and often bloody story. This timeline will guide you through the key events leading to the signing of the Act of the Union in 1707.
1237
The Treaty of York
The border lands changed allegiance many times prior the 13th century. Image: Paris map of Britain detail, British Library Board.
For the first time, the border between Scotland and England is established.
In an attempt to consolidate his kingdom, Alexander II of Scotland signs the Treaty of York with Henry III of England. The Treaty officially defines the border and remains in place with only the ownership of Berwick-upon-Tweed being contested over the following years. This is finally settled in 1482 when the town is captured and held by English forces.
1295
Edward I, invasion and the ‘Auld Alliance’
Edward I strips Scotland of its symbols of sovereignty. Clip: A History of Scotland
After the sudden deaths of Alexander III of Scotland in 1286, and his daughter Margaret in 1290, there are many claimants to the throne.
England’s Edward I agrees to adjudicate but requires the claimants to accept him as their superior lord. In 1292, he selects Scottish nobleman John Balliol. In 1295, the Scots sign a treaty of alliance with France; the ‘Auld Alliance’. Edward invades Scotland. His army rampages through Berwick, then Dunbar, overpowering the Scots. Balliol is imprisoned and exiled. Scots lords are forced to pledge allegiance to Edward.
1297
Scotland revolts
Scots forces win a striking victory at Stirling. Clip: A History of Scotland
Local revolts against English rule turn into a national rebellion in 1297 under the leadership of William Wallace and Andrew Moray.
Higher taxes and the threat of war with France lead many ordinary Scots to join the rebel army. English control of Scotland is weakened but armed conflict continues as Balliol remains in exile. In 1305, Wallace is captured and executed by Edward in London.
1314
Battle of Bannockburn
Key to victory at Bannockburn was the ‘schiltron’ formation. Clip: The Quest for Bannockburn
Robert the Bruce murders John Comyn, a rival claimant to the Scottish throne, and has himself crowned king in 1306.
Bruce leads a guerrilla war against English occupation, slowly building support in Scotland for his kingship. On 23-24 June 1314, the armies of Robert the Bruce and Edward II meet at Bannockburn, near Stirling. Bruce’s army is greatly outnumbered. But with the twin advantages of local knowledge and military cunning, the English are overwhelmed. Edward’s army is forced into a humiliating retreat.
1320
The Declaration of Arbroath
Prof Ted Cowan discusses the legacy of the Declaration of Arbroath. Clip: Scotland’s History Top Ten
Baronial supporters of Robert I sign a letter to the Pope asking for papal backing in their fight against English overlordship.
The letter, prepared at Arbroath Abbey in 1320, announces that Bruce has freed the country but, if he ever submits to the English he will be driven out and replaced as king. The declaration states “…for, as long as but a hundred of us remain alive, never will we on any conditions, be brought under English rule”. In 1328, Edward III agrees to recognise the independence of the Scottish throne. Scotland’s alliance with France leads to intermittent fighting as part of the Hundred Years War.
It is in truth not for glory, nor riches, nor honours that we are fighting, but for freedom alone, which no honest man gives up but with life itself.
1502
Treaty of Perpetual Peace
A long dynastic conflict in England, the Wars of the Roses, leads the first Tudor king, Henry VII, to make peace overtures to Scotland.
A treaty intended to end over 200 years of enmity is signed by Henry and James IV of Scotland. The following year James marries Henry’s daughter, Margaret Tudor. The terms of the treaty are broken in 1513 when war between England and France is renewed and the Scots invade England in defence of the Auld Alliance. James is killed at the Battle of Flodden. His son takes the throne as James V.
Margaret Tudor: Scotland’s forgotten queenHow James IV met his death at the Battle of Flodden
1542
Mary, Queen of Scots
The infant Queen of Scots, becomes a pawn in an Anglo-French power struggle. Clip: A History of Scotland
Mary, the only child of James V and his French wife, Mary of Guise, is born. James dies six days later and Mary becomes queen.
In 1543 Scotland’s Regent, the Earl of Arran, agrees a marriage alliance with England, now a Protestant realm under Henry VIII. Mary is to wed Henry VIII’s son Edward. Scotland’s parliament rejects the treaty and Henry invades Scotland in what becomes known as ‘the Rough Wooing’. Scotland turns to France, agreeing a marriage between Mary and France’s crown prince. Mary lives in France from 1548 becoming its queen in 1558. She returns to govern Scotland in 1561 after the death of Francis II.
1560
The Reformation
Historian Jenny Wormald outlines the legacy of the Reformation in Scotland. Clip: Scotland’s History Top Ten
The religious reformation sweeping across Europe takes hold in Scotland.
In Scotland, a Protestant uprising in 1559 combines with discontent over the nation’s status as a French satellite state. Queen Elizabeth of England sends troops to aid the Protestant rebels. In 1560, the Scottish parliament accepts a Protestant confession of faith. A treaty requires the removal of both English and French troops from Scottish soil. Mary maintains links with Catholic France but leading Protestant nobles in Scotland are now more open to alliance with Protestant England.
1566
The birth of James VI
Dr Clare Jackson discusses James’s very royal bloodline. Clip: The Stuarts
Mary, Queen of Scots marries a Scottish noble, Lord Darnley and has a son, James.
As a great-grandson of Margaret Tudor, James is the nearest heir to England’s unmarried Queen Elizabeth. In 1567, Darnley is murdered. There are suspicions about Mary’s involvement and, when she marries the chief suspect, the Earl of Bothwell, she is forced to abdicate in favour of James. Mary flees to England and never sees James again. She is imprisoned by Elizabeth I and executed in 1587 for plotting to overthrow the English queen.
1603
The Union of the Crowns
After claiming the English throne, James rarely returned to Scotland and boasted that he ruled it “with a pen”. Clip: A History of Scotland
England’s Queen Elizabeth dies childless, ending the Tudor reign.
Elizabeth’s cousin, James VI of Scotland, inherits the crowns of England, Wales and Ireland. From his reign in Scotland James is known to be an effective and accomplished king. James VI, now James I of England, styles himself the King of Great Britain, but the English and Scottish parliaments resist proposals for formal union. Each country remains a separate sovereign realm.
I will govern according to the common weal, but not according to the common will
1637
Charles I’s prayer book and the Covenanters
Covenanter dissent threatens to tip Scotland into war against its king. Clip: The Sword and the Cross
With the Scottish king now in London, consultation with Scotland declines and discontent builds.
In 1637, James’s son, Charles I, introduces a prayer book for the Scottish church that many consider to be insufficiently Protestant. A revolt leads to the swearing of the National Covenant in 1638, creating a rebel movement in defence of the church. Armed rebellion follows and the Covenanters invade England to force the king to agree terms. A treaty is agreed, but by 1641 conflict is rising between Charles and the English parliament and a revolt begins in Ireland.
1643
The Solemn League and Covenant
In return for military assistance the Scots seek religious union. Clip: The Sword and the Cross
Civil war in England leads parliamentarian rebels to ask for armed assistance from Scotland.
The Covenanters in Scotland agree to help in return for promises that the churches of England and Ireland will be reformed on Presbyterian lines. The Solemn League and Covenant envisions a British Protestant union with the kingdoms united under the same monarch with similar, though not united, churches. The Solemn League has strong popular support in Scotland but much less in England and Ireland.
1652
Cromwellian Union
Hundreds of Scottish war prisoners were sent to the colonies as slaves by Cromwell
To Scotland’s outrage, Charles I, the son of James VI, is executed in 1649. England abolishes the monarchy but Scotland names Charles’s son as king.
Cromwell invades Scotland in response, inflicting a bloody defeat at Dunbar. By 1652 and under military occupation, Scotland accepts a Tender of Union leading to the formation of the united Commonwealth of England, Scotland and Ireland. Representatives from Scotland serve at Westminster. But with the death of Cromwell, Charles II is restored to his British crowns in 1660.
1688-90
Revolution and the Jacobites
How did a lullaby warn of an impending revolution? Clip: A History of Scotland
In 1685, the Catholic brother of Charles II takes the British thrones as James II and VII.
By 1688 English peers unhappy with his rule invite William of Orange, Protestant leader of the Netherlands, to invade. James flees to France and the parliaments of England and Scotland each offer the crown to William and his wife Mary. The Scottish parliament re-establishes Presbyterianism when bishops back James as the legitimate king of Scotland. Refusing to accept William, John Graham of Claverhouse leads a revolt – the first of many Jacobite attempts to restore James and his descendants.
1695
Company of Scotland Act
The isthmus of Panama was controlled by Spain and as such the Scottish plan risked Spanish hostility and aggression.
Though Scots are allowed to hold property in England as natives, they are denied access to England’s lucrative overseas colonies.
The Scottish Parliament launches a bold initiative to set up a national trading company, which in 1698 founds a colony at Darien, in Panama. Pressure from English traders prevents the Scots from raising capital in London, Amsterdam and Hamburg. But the Scottish public embraces the scheme, investing about a quarter of Scotland’s liquid capital in this high-risk venture.
1698
The Darien Scheme
The Darien trading scheme predates the Panama Canal by hundreds of miles. Scotland’s Empire: North America
The Darien Scheme is a disaster.
Many of the settlers die during the voyage and, on arrival, survivors face disease, revolt, sabotage by England and attacks from Spain. King William refuses to support the colony, creating huge discontent in Scotland and a feeling that Scottish sovereignty has been lost. Coming after several years of harvest failures due to extreme weather, the Darien failure worsens a serious credit crunch. Scotland’s financial losses are great.
1702-1706
Succession Crisis & Union
Anne’s father, James II, forfeited the throne due to his Catholicism
A succession crisis prompts Queen Anne to pursue a complete union between Scotland and England.
Leading English Tories sink a first attempt in 1702. In 1703 and 1704 the Scottish Parliament demands reform before it will name Anne’s successor. A Whig Parliament in 1705 forces the Scots into treaty talks by threatening to cut off trade. In 1706 terms are set for a united kingdom of Great Britain with 45 Scottish MPs in the House of Commons and 16 nobles in the House of Lords. It offers free trade across the nations and all colonies but under higher English customs and excise rates.
Neither our sovereignty nor our antiquity are lost in an incorporating union with England
1707
The Act of Union
Despite being unpopular, the signing of the Act did not result in widespread civil unrest. Clip: Scotland’s Empire: North America
The Scottish Parliament passes the treaty amidst great debate.
Unionists argue the treaty will create a strong Protestant realm able to counter the growing problem of Catholic France, supporter of James Stuart. Parliamentary supporters are secretly paid £20,000 by the government. Opponents express concern for the loss of the ancient Scottish kingdom and parliament. Presbyterian opposition in Scotland leads to an act preserving the Presbyterian church. The treaty is passed in England and on 1 May 1707, the United Kingdom of Great Britain comes into being.
Why should I be so sad on my wedding day?
Where next?
ReadFind out more about Scotland’s history
Feed your curiosity
ReadThe early Stuarts: marriage is power
Why Stirling Castle is the bloody heart of Scotland
WatchSix key moments during the Battle of Bannockburn
17072011
Scotland’s road to referendum
Remember Remember
Today we mark the Great Protestant Anniversary of 5th November which marks both the birth on the 4th as well as the landing of William of Orange and the preservation of the Crown and Parliament against the Catholic terrorist plot known as the Gunpowder Plot.
Members of McNeillstown ILOL 46 joined with other lodges at Lisnagaver Installation Night, Rasharkin to mark the traditional Thanksgiving Day when our Protestant Crown and Parliament were saved from the greatest act of religious terrorism the world has ever seen. Forget ISIS the Gunpowder plotters planned to topple the government of the day in a 5/11 Plot.
REMEMBERING OUR DELIVERANCE
Such was the miraculous deliverance of the government that they passed a law to annually mark the day with acts of religious devotion and thanks giving. This developing into a national day of celebration and thanksgiving, know more commonly as Guy Fawkes night or Bonfire night.
Sadly in the last century in Ireland the event which also marked the landing of William of Orange, has been forgotten by both church and state. While it remains popular in England we wish to see its revival here in Ireland. It is a day unlike any other in a nations history. While America and other new nations can look to an Independence day when their state was created or secured, we in the UK can llok to this this day on which not once but twice in history God saw fit to deliver this nation from its greatest foe.
The day is still marked by the Independent Orange institution, and an act of devotion was carried out when the Worshipful Master of Lisnagaver Bro. William Fenton read from our Laws and Ordinances the decree to remember and give thanks. Sadly a nation which forgets so marvelous a deliverance will be forced to repeat the peril from which it was once preserved. Today as terrorism still threatens democracy we remember that it was the Church of Rome which first created the concept of political terrorism in Europe. Sadly we see that while in those days such Catholic terrorists were punished as traitors, today they appear to be rewarded.
Tonight our Grand Master spoke of the significance of this great memorial and announced that we would be making special efforts to mark it in the years to come with plans already in motion to make next years event a bigger and more prominent event. We intend to see how the Day is marked in England and how historically it was used as a holiday for the entire community.
McNeillstown True Blues ILOL No. 46 