The Acts of Union

Prior to the Acts of Union, there had been three previous attempts (in 1606, 1667, and 1689) to unite the two countries by Acts of Parliament, but it was not until the early 18th century that both political establishments came to support the idea, albeit for different reasons.

The Acts took effect on 1 May 1707. On this date, the Scottish Parliament and the English Parliament united to form the Parliament of Great Britain, based in the Palace of Westminster in London.

Ireland was subordinate to the English Crown and Wales formed part of the kingdom of England, Scotland remained an independent sovereign state with its own parliament and laws. The Act of Settlement 1701, passed by the English Parliament, applied in the kingdoms of England and Ireland but not Scotland, where a strong minority wished to preserve the Stuart dynasty and its right of inheritance to the throne. Anne had declared it "very necessary" to conclude a union of England and Scotland in her first speech to the English Parliament, and a joint Anglo-Scots commission discussed terms in October 1702. The negotiations broke up in early February 1703 having failed to reach an agreement. The Estates of Scotland responded to the Act of Settlement by passing the Act of Security, which gave the Estates the power, if the Queen had no further children, to choose the next Scottish monarch from among the Protestant descendants of the royal line of Scotland. The individual chosen by the Estates could not be the same person who came to the English throne, unless England granted full freedom of trade to Scottish merchants. At first, Anne withheld royal assent to the act, but she granted it the following year when the Estates threatened to withhold supply, endangering Scottish support for England's wars.

In its turn, the English Parliament responded with the Alien Act 1705, which threatened to impose economic sanctions and declare Scottish subjects aliens in England, unless Scotland either repealed the Act of Security or moved to unite with England. The Estates chose the latter option; the English Parliament agreed to repeal the Alien Act, and new commissioners were appointed by Queen Anne in early 1706 to negotiate the terms of a union. The articles of union approved by the commissioners were presented to Anne on 23 July 1706 and ratified by the Scottish and English Parliaments on 16 January and 6 March 1707, respectively. Under the Acts of Union, England and Scotland were united into a single kingdom called Great Britain, with one parliament, on 1 May 1707. A consistent and ardent supporter of union despite opposition on both sides of the border, Anne attended a thanksgiving service in St Paul's Cathedral. The Scot Sir John Clerk, 1st Baronet, who also attended, wrote, "nobody on this occasion appeared more sincerely devout and thankful than the Queen herself".

Historian G.N. Clark says Scotland gained freedom of trade with England and the colonies as well as a great expansion of markets. The agreement guaranteed the permanent status of the Presbyterian church in Scotland, and the separate system of laws and courts in Scotland. Clark argued that in exchange for the financial benefits and bribes that England bestowed, what it gained was of inestimable value. Scotland accepted the Hanoverian succession and gave up her power of threatening England's military security and complicating her commercial relations. The sweeping successes of the eighteenth-century wars owed much to the new unity of the two nations.  

By the time Samuel Johnson and James Boswell made their tour in 1773, recorded in A Journey to the Western Islands of Scotland, Johnson noted that Scotland was "a nation of which the commerce is hourly extending, and the wealth increasing" and in particular that Glasgow had become one of the greatest cities of Britain.

Jacobite Risings

Jacobite ideology originated with James VI and I, first monarch of England, Scotland and Ireland in 1603. Its basis was divine right, which claimed his authority came from God, and the crown's descent by indefeasible hereditary right: James and his supporters emphasised his right to the throne by blood to forestall controversy over his appointment by Elizabeth I as her successor. Personal rule by the monarch eliminated the need for Parliaments, and required political and religious union, concepts widely unpopular in all three kingdoms. "Divine right" also clashed with Catholic allegiance to the Pope and with Protestant nonconformists, since both argued there was an authority above the king. The 17th-century belief that 'true religion' and 'good government' were one and the same meant disputes in one area fed into the other.

The Jacobite rising of 1715 was the attempt by James Edward Stuart (the Old Pretender, son of James II who died in exile 1701) to regain the thrones of England Ireland and Scotland for the exiled Stuarts. French support had been crucial for the Stuart exiles however they were later banished from France by the terms of the 1716 Anglo-French Treaty.

At Braemar, Aberdeenshire, local landowner the Earl of Mar raised the Jacobite standard on 27 August 1715. In northern Scotland, the Jacobites were successful. They took Inverness, Gordon Castle, Aberdeen and Dundee, although they were unable to capture Fort William. By October, Mar's force, numbering nearly 20,000, had taken control of all Scotland above the Firth of Forth, apart from Stirling Castle.

Mar marched on Stirling Castle and his forces (4000) outnumbered Argyll's Hanoverian army (1000) by three to one. On 13 November the two forces met at the Battle of Sheriffmuir. The fighting was indecisive however Argyll had lost 660 men, three times as many as Mar. On the same day as the Battle of Sheriffmuir, Inverness surrendered to Hanoverian forces.

Amongst the leaders of a Jacobite conspiracy in western England were three peers and six MPs. The government arrested the leaders on the night of 2 October and sent reinforcements to defend Bristol, Southampton and Plymouth. Oxford, famous for its monarchist sentiment, fell under government suspicion, and on 17 October General Pepper led the dragoons into the city and arrested some leading Jacobites without resistance.

Though the main rising in the West had been forestalled, a planned secondary rising in Northumberland went ahead on 6 October 1715, which included two peers of the realm, James Radclyffe, 3rd Earl of Derwentwatter and William Widdrington, 4th Baron Widdrington. A future English peer, Edward Howard, later 9th Duke of Norfolk joined the rising later in Lancashire as did other prominent figures, including Robert Cotton, one of the leading gentlemen in Huntingdonshire.

The English Jacobites joined with a force of Scottish Borderer Jacobites, led by William Gordon, 6th Viscount Kenmure, and this small army received a contingent from Mackintosh of Borlum. They marched into England, where the Government forces caught up with them at the Battle of Preston on 12–14 November. The Jacobites won the first day of the battle, killing large numbers of Government forces, but Government reinforcements arrived the next day and the Jacobites eventually surrendered.

On 22nd December James landed at Peterhead but by the time he reached Perth the Jacobite forces numbered fewer than 5000. Argyll’s forces had acquired heavy artillery and on 5th February James abandoned the rising and left Scotland.

The 1745 Jacobite Rising, known as the 45 was an attempt by Charles Edward Stuart to regain the British throne for his father the old Pretender. It was launched on 19th August 1745 at Glenfinnan. Edinburgh was captured and the Jacobite’s won the Battle of Prestonpans on 21st September. The battle lasted less than 30 minutes.

The English had to bring reinforcements back from the continent where they were fighting in Flanders. The Jacobite’s argued about strategy with Charles advocating an invasion of England arguing it would garner substantial English and French support. By 5TH December they had reach Derby but had gained only limited support. On the 6th they returned north. The rising ended with defeat at Culloden on 16th April 1746. Government forces were commanded by Prince William Augustus, Duke of Cumberland (second son of George II). It was the last pitched battle fought on British soil. The battle lasted about an hour with 1500 – 2000 Jacobite’s killed or wounded versus about 300 government soldiers killed or wounded. Efforts were subsequently made to further integrate the Scottish Highlands into the Kingdom of Great Britain; civil penalties were introduced to undermine the Scottish clan system, which had provided the Jacobite’s with the means to rapidly mobilise an army.

House of Hanover

George I – George and Anne were second cousins as both were great grandchildren of James VI.

1^st Aug 1714 – 11^th June 1727

12yrs 315days

George II

11^th Jun 1727 – 25^th Oct 1760

33yrs 126days

George III

25^th Oct 1760 – 29^th Jan 1820

59yrs 97days

George IV

29^th Jan 1820 – 26^th Jun 1830

10yrs 149days

William IV

26^th Jun 1830 – 20^th Jun 1837

6yrs 360days

Victoria

20^th Jun 1837 – 22^nd Jan 1901

63yrs 217days

House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha

Edward VII

22^nd Jan 1901 – 6^th May 1910

9yrs 105days

George V

6^th May 1910 – 20^th Jan 1936

25yrs 260days

Edward VIII - Abdicated

20^th Jan 1936 – 11^th Dec 1936

327days

George VI

11^th Dec 1936 – 6^th Feb 1952

15yrs 58days

Elizabeth II

6^th Feb 1952 – 8^th Sept 2022

70yrs 215days

King Charles III

8^th Sept 2022 –