Nowadays it seems as if the concept “Independence” had spread over the world more than ever before and was in everybody’s mouth. TV and newspapers are echoing people’s will to reach their own competences in several areas without depending on a central government.
These
days Scotland is on the news. On September, 18 the country of bagpipes hold the
so called Referendum which claimed Scotland’s independence from its old enemy,
England and the rest of nations comprising the U.K.
Two
years ago Prime Minister David Cameron and the Scottish First Minister signed
the “Edinburgh Agreement” where they placed the milestone for the Scottish
Independence. Some people have called this search for autonomy, “the
break of a family of Nations.” These nations were some time a kingdom and
British History is an excellent reflection of this. Let’s then read what time
tells about the U.K. History of union and disunion.
-Vth-XVIth centuries---
The two islands of Ireland and Great Britain were divided into four territories
or nations (Kingdom of England, Wales, Kingdom of Scotland and Kingdom of
Ireland).
-In 1535 England
and Wales joined. Between 1535 and 1542 the Tudor Dynasty (from a Welsh origin)
introduced the English law in Wales and ended in annexing the territory to
England.
-In 1707 England
and Scotland joined. They had shared the same king from 1603, signed the Union
Act which ended up in the United Kingdom of Great Britain. The Scottish
Parliament broke up.
-In 1801 Ireland
joined England. The kingdom of Ireland depended on Great Britain and now the
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was born.
-In 1922 Ireland
was split up into two: the free Eire in the south of the island became
independent, while the north counties (Ulster) were still part of the United
Kingdom. Nowadays, we talk about the UK of Great Britain and Northern
Ireland.
-From 1998 the
UK started a process where all its nations, except for England, have got back
their Parliaments and own competences.
SO,
nowadays, we can talk about:
THE UK
OF GREAT BRITAIN AND NORTHERN IRELAND vs THE REPUBLIC OF IRELAND (Free Eire)
It also
meant the constitution of a flag…
1707: the
formation of the Union Jack (England and Scotland making up the kingdom of
Great Britain)
1801: the
kingdom of Ireland joins the kingdom of GB making the UK.
1922:
Ireland separates from the UK (Ireland secession) but the colours of the Union
Jack remain unchanged because Northern Ireland remains attached to the U.K.
What would have happened if the YES votes had won the Referendum?
- The loss of the British pound since if it had remained as
the national coin, some power should have been given to London.
- Immediate exit from the European Union. Otherwise, its
admission into the European Union would have been left in the hands of the rest
of EU members.
-The main banks would have fled from Scotland and the main stock
markets would have rejected to work for the nation.
What are the current competences in
Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland?
In 1998 the U.K. carried out a devolution process in which all nations,
except for England, were given back their Parliaments. Now then, its
nation has its own competences in several areas:
SCOTLAND: its
Parliament was restored in 1998. Its current competences are: health,
education, social services, living, financial local development, tourism,
transport, environment, culture, politics and justice.
WALES: its
Assembly was created in 1999. Its current competences are: agriculture, health,
education, living, social services, tourism, environment, financial local
development, culture and language, among others.
