On May 1, 1707, the Act of Union went into effect, solidifying the union of England and Scotland and creating Great Britain. In voting for this treaty, the parliament of Scotland voted to dismantle their own organization, deciding that the two nations would furthermore be ruled by only one governing body. What would prompt Scotland to voluntarily give up its independence?
In truth, the process of unification between England and Scotland began in 1603, almost one hundred years before the Act of Union came into effect. In 1603, Queen Elizabeth I died with no heirs. The next in line for the English throne was her cousin, James Stuart, who was the King of Scotland. He took upon himself the mantle of both crowns, uniting the two nations under one monarchy, though both countries maintained their own parliament.
The Stuart line ruled until the Glorious Revolution of 1688-1689. During this revolt, King James II was deposed and exiled. King James II, a staunch Catholic was seen as showing favoritism to his Catholic subjects. In addition, he believed that as God’s chosen ruler, his word superseded that of Parliament. In fact, James II dissolved parliament in 1687, planning to replace it with one that might be more disposed to blindly obey. The revolutionaries put James’s daughter, Mary, a protestant, on the throne, and parliament declared any Catholics from the Stuart line would be skipped in the order of succession. It was also written, as Mary and her sister Anne did not have any children, that in the event that the Stuart line end with them, succession would move to the Hanovers, another protestant line. There were those who weren’t happy with the results of the Glorious Revolution and desired to see the Stuart line restored to the throne. These people were referred to as Jacobites.
By 1701, Scotland was struggling financially. Though they shared a monarch, the Scots were excluded from trade with England’s colonies, which they sorely needed. On their part, England was terrified of a Jacobite rebellion. Scotland fed their fears by passing the 1703 Act of Security, which declared that Scotland was not required to support the Hanover succession. In the same session, the Scottish Parliament passed the Act anent Peace and War, which said that following Queen Anne’s death, Scotland would resume control of its own foreign affairs, refusing to continue to fight in England’s wars without receiving any of the resulting financial benefits. In response, English Parliament passed the Alien Act of 1705, making Scottish citizens unable to trade with England. This pushed the Scottish Parliament to acquiesce to a union with England. The Union was passed in January 1707 and went into effect on May 1, 1707.
Learn more here:
- https://scottishhistorysociety.com/the-union-of-1707-the-historical-context/
- https://www.britannica.com/place/Great-Britain-island-Europe
- https://www.britannica.com/story/acts-of-union-uniting-the-united-kingdom
- https://www.britannica.com/event/Glorious-Revolution