From a letter written by actor Sean Connery to the Los Angeles Times, published April 5, 2008:
"There are few more cherished American ideals than independence. As we prepare to celebrate Tartan Day, established as April 6 by a U.S. Senate resolution in 1998 to commemorate one of the inspirations for the Declaration of Independence -- Scotland's Declaration of Arbroath -- it is as good a time as any to tell the uniquely Scottish story of independence.
In 1320, Scots penned the Declaration of Arbroath. In lines that would echo through the ages, they wrote, "It is in truth not for glory, nor riches, nor honors that we are fighting, but for freedom -- for that alone, which no honest man gives up but with life itself."
Many Americans are familiar with that part of the story -- of the patriot William Wallace and the Scots who stood up for independence. What is understandably less familiar is that in 1707, a group of Scottish noblemen sold Scotland's independence and joined with England to become the United Kingdom of Great Britain.
It wasn't a popular move. In fact, Daniel Defoe wrote that "for every Scot in favor, 99 is against."
So it is not surprising that some people have been working ever since to change it.
More interesting than the past, though, is the national conversation going on in Scotland now. What is so special about it is that the world has an example of a completely democratic process in which the people are considering their future, and in which their voice will be the final word.
In 1997, Scots spoke loudly when they voted to reinstate their Parliament. When Scottish National Party President Winifred Ewing was able to say, "The Scots Parliament, adjourned on 25th March 1707, is hereby reconvened," she touched hearts across the country.
The Scottish Parliament has authority for health, education, courts and the environment. The British Parliament retains control over most taxes and foreign affairs.
The question now is, what next? The current Scottish government is the first one in modern times that wants to see Scotland reclaim its independence.
The best part of this debate is that it is based on ideas, not ethnicity. Conversations about the best future for the country are happening in the Scottish Parliament and in homes and workplaces across the country.
The Scottish government wants Scotland and England to become independent and equal nations, with the queen and her successors continuing as the common head of state of both -- similar to what happened in Canada and Australia in the 20th century. In other words, we would move toward becoming united kingdoms, rather than the United Kingdom.
Debating their constitutional future does not stop Scots from contributing to today's important international issues. This week, the Scottish government, with the support of the National Geographic Society, announced the Saltire Prize -- a $20-million award for innovation in renewable energy -- as a challenge to the world's scientists. The message that Scotland is open for business came across clearly this week as Scotland dropped its business taxes to be even more internationally competitive. And you might not think Scotland when you think football, but today, the New York Giants' own Greenock-born Lawrence Tynes will be leading the Tartan Day parade down 6th Avenue.
Independence is something Americans inherently understand. My whole adult life, I have waited and worked for the day that Scots are able to decide democratically if they wish to rejoin the community of nations as an independent and equal member. A recent poll showed that two-thirds of Scots would welcome that opportunity under certain circumstances.
I believe that day -- Scotland's independence day -- is closer than ever."
The letter can be seen here as posted online by the Los Angeles Times.
More information about the Act of Union (1707) mentioned in this article can be found here.
Slainte,
Dianne
Monday, May 12, 2008
A View of Scottish Independence
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
For Freedom Alone
It has been said that the men who drafted the American Declaration of Independence were mostly Presbyterians of Scottish ancestry. Thomas Jefferson was a descendant of Thomas Randolph, a blood nephew of King Robert the Bruce. Randolph had signed the Declaration of Arbroath in 1320. Almost half the signatories of the Declaration of Independence were of Scottish descent, and as US President Woodrow Wilson said, “every line of strength in American history is a line colored with Scottish blood”.
The Declaration of Arbroath, also known as Scotland’s Declaration of Independence, was the first formal declaration of independence by any nation and asserted Scotland’s right to self-government and to be free of England’s dominion. The American Declaration of Independence was our formal declaration asserting our right to self-government and freedom from England’s dominion.
A comparison of the language of the two documents shows the influence of the Scottish Declaration upon the American Declaration:
Declaration of Independence
All men are created equal
Declaration of Arbroath
…nor distinction of Jew or Greek, Scots or English
Declaration of Independence
…certain unalienable rights, among these are life, liberty
Declaration of Arbroath
We fight for liberty alone which no good man loses but with his life
Declaration of Independence
We mutually pledge…our lives
Declaration of Arbroath
We will maintain even to the death
Declaration of Independence
The history of the present King of Great Britain in a history of repeated injuries
Death
Desolation
He has sent hither swarms of officers to harass our people
He has plundered our seas…burnt our towns
Declaration of Arbroath
The mighty King of the English …perpetrated…injuries
Slaughters
Deeds of violence
In most unfriendly wise harassed our Kingdom
Plunderings, burnings
Declaration of Independence
That these United Colonies are absolved from all allegiance to the British Crown
Declaration of Arbroath
For so long as a hundred remain alive, we never will in any degree be subject to the dominion of the English
Our Constitution shares language with another important Scottish document; the National Covenant, drawn up in Edinburgh in 1638:
US Constitution
We…Do…Solemnly…Declare
National Covenant
We…Do…Solemnly Declare
US Constitution
…usurpations, all having in direct Object the Establishment of an absolute tyranny
National Covenant
…usurped authority of…all his tyrannous laws
US Constitution
That these United Colonies are and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States
National Covenant
That the aforesaid Confessions are to be interpreted and ought to be understood
US Constitution
We mutually pledge to each other
National Covenant
To the mutual defence and assistance every one of us of another
US Constitution
Our live, our Fortunes
National Covenant
With our means and lives
Certain conclusions may be drawn:
Scotland was the first country to declare independence. This declaration stated clearly the principles of equality under the law, the obligation to defend liberty with life, and the right of the people to change an unjust government. All of this in a document written 456 years before 1776.
Our forefathers who drafted the American Declaration of Independence drew heavily upon the tenets of Scottish philosophy as it applied to the theory and practical application of government.
