The so called 'Scottish Question' has always been surrounded by a sense of confusion. As James Mitchell argues in 'The Scottish Question' there is little consensus on exactly what the Scottish Question actually entails, and over time "it has involved a shifting mix of linked issues. These have included questions of national identity; Scotland's constitutional status and structures of government; party politics; and everyday public policy concerns" . What the Scottish Question consists of in the twentieth century is something very different to what it meant to people at the Treaty of the Union in 1707. The issues surrounding the question evolve over time, for example, very few people, before the late nineteenth and twentieth century argued for a Scottish parliament or even debated Scottish constitutional status but by the 1970s and into the very late twentieth century the issue of whether or not Scotland should have a devolved parliament was at the forefront of British politics. In fact The Claim of Right of 1989 which called for 'the sovereign right of the Scottish people to determine the form of Government best suited to their needs' to be recognised was signed by all Labour and Liberal Democrat MPs, with the exception of Tom Dalyell, which highlights that the call for a Scottish parliament was not a marginal issue rooted in one extreme political party but a major issue for almost all of those in Westminster.
This essay will attempt to examine how the Scottish Question came to be such a contentious issue in the 1970s. Although there was always a Scottish Question before this period, as evidenced by the 1906 Government for Scotland Bill and the various organisations set up with Scottish nationalism in mind before this period, this essay will attempt to argue that the right balance of social, political and cultural factors was not present until 1970 to fully push Scottish self-governance to the front of the political agenda. The essay will focus on the origins of Scottish nationalism, the effect the breakdown of the British empire had on Scotland, the consequences of Thatcher's rule on the rise of nationalism, and finally the influence of Irish Home Rule. Indeed, the essay will contest that rather than having its roots in one single event or historical period the Scottish Question came to be as a result of multiple different factors and the right cocktail of political and cultural events which all resulted in the culmination of the call for Scottish devolution in the 1970s.
To understand how the Scottish Question came to be we first must understand Scotland's place in the UK before and after the Treaty of Union in 1707. Much of the ambiguity which surrounded Scotland's place within the United Kingdom stems from way before the 1707 treaty. In 1603 when James VI of Scotland ascended to the English throne the Scots effectively lost their ruler. England and Scotland remained separate kingdoms, but the King resided in London and very rarely, if ever, visited Scotland. There was an unequal balance between the two states and James was insensitive to developments in Scotland and largely prioritised English interests. This feeling of discontentment in Scotland doesn't dissolve for a very long time and the divergence between Scotland and England is exemplified in the Darien Disaster of the late 1690s. The Darien mission was an attempt by the Scots to promote their footprint in the world and become a world trading nation by establishing a colonial mission in Central America. However, the site they chose for one of these expeditions was part of the Spanish colonial empire and William II sided with the Spanish. This meant that Scottish colonialists were forced to leave and return to Scotland having achieved very little. Many Scots largely blamed the monarch for this failure which only exacerbated English-Scottish relations and the feeling that Scotland was being overlooked. Scotland was diverging from England long before the Treaty of 1707 and although no clear and uniform nationalist movement existed in any way at this time it is clear Scotland felt its rights were largely ignored.
The Treaty of Union in 1707 did little to solve this. Many influential individuals and families in Scotland had been left bankrupt by the disaster and the Union seemed an unfortunate way to recover some of this money. In the words of Robert Burns Scotland was 'bought and sold for English gold' . It is clear that the Scots were largely forced into the Union of 1707 by the need to gain some of their losses back and were not excited by the prospect of becoming one with England. Therefore, it is obvious that there have been tensions regarding Scotland's relationship to England long before the 1970s and that the Scottish Question has existed in some form from this point onwards. However, no clear nationalist movement was even thought of in Scotland at this time because they were simply not in the financial situation where they could facilitate it and needed England's help to get back on their feet. And so, at this time the Scottish Question was merely an unanswerable grievance and never came to full fruition due to a lack of resources and a stable position from which to argue.
The breakdown of the British Empire largely represented a point of divergence between Scotland and the rest of Britain. As late as 1945 Britain's empire still spanned across the globe with a population of 700 million people. The empire had a huge impact on Scotland, in fact Dundee was an imperial city as much as Bengal and Lahore. Dundee's heavy connections to the empire through the jute industry is highlighted by the rise in population; in 1851 the population of Dundee was 80,000 and by 1875 it had risen to 120,000. This illuminates the effect the empire had on Scotland however, it was not long before it came crumbling down. Andrew Dewar Gibb argued that 'the existence of the empire has been the most important factor in securing the relationship of Scotland and England in the last three centuries [from 1900-1930]' and even implied that without the empire the political connection between Scotland and England may not last the test of time . Sir Reginald Coupland also worried that there may be a rise of Scottish and Welsh nationalism following the fall of the empire and that Ireland may not be the last to leave the United Kingdom . Furthermore, Hanham outlined that many Scots felt 'cramped and restricted at home' after the fall of the empire and that the solution to this seemed to be 'between emigration and re-creating the Scottish nation at home' . This shows an explicit link in the decline of the empire and a desire for Scottish nationalism taking root. There was a shared pride between Scotland and the rest of Britain during the age of empire at what they had accomplished but now that this was over it seemed as though Scotland wanted its nation back and to create its own legacy. And so, with the fall of the empire came a rise in Scottish nationalist thought and debate surrounding the Scottish Question and people began to wonder how to recreate the joys of the empire at home and the answer to this seemed to be Scottish self-governance to purport a stronger national identity.
However, it could be argued that the fall of the empire didn't have as much of an effect on the people of Scotland as previously suggested. Indeed, it seems to have been overlooked that the empire did not always have positive consequences for Scotland. The empire exacerbated class tensions in Dundee specifically, with the jute industry being dominated by very rich families and the majority of workers living off of very low wages which lead to high poverty rates. Devine argues that "some Scots had grown wealthy, but the majority, despite modest gains in the later nineteenth century, remained mired in poverty and endured a hard daily struggle to make ends meet" and so it can be seen that although for some Scots the fall of the empire was tragic, it was not a major issue for everyone. Devine also argues that by the time the empire had actually fallen the Scots had already lost faith in it and this explains the 'apparent equanimity with which Scotland accepted decolonisation in the middle decades of the twentieth century' . Therefore, although many Scots were disappointed by the end of the empire, the breakdown of the colonies was not felt by everyone as a tragic event. Regardless of how the empire affected individuals though, the fall did inspire nationalist sympathies in Scotland, with a desire to reflect the opportunities of the empire within their own country and with this came a wish for self-governance to fulfil these ideas. Scotland saw itself as a powerful anchor for the creation of the empire and the power they held here inspired a feeling of importance which led to the Scottish Question being considered by many Scots. According to Tom Nairn 'Scottish nationalism started in the 1920s after the anti-imperialist revolt and third world nationalism, rather than of those European movements which it superficially resembles' which highlights that without the fall of the empire there may have been no Scottish nationalist movement whatsoever.
The influence of Irish Home Rule on the rise of the Scottish Question cannot be undermined. Indeed, Walker has contested that the model of Irish Home Rule influenced debate on Scotland following the Second World War much more than previously thought by other historians . The period following the war saw a considerable rise in the debate surrounding the Scottish Question as the government addressed grievances surrounding national identity . As the British government implemented policies after the war with deep rooted centralising ideals, such as the creation of the National Health Service, a comprehensive welfare state and the nationalisation of heavy industry, railways and coal mining, many Scots began to feel as though their unique position within the United Kingdom was being threatened. Westminster began to suggest a centrifugal response to economic planning which "seemed to lock Scotland into the British economy in a way that allowed little or no room for arrangements for special Scottish needs" according to Walker and many Scots began to turn to inspiration from Irish Home Rule in influencing their attempts to reassert Scotland's place within Britain and its right to be listened to. The Scottish Question debate after the Second World War was immeasurably influenced by the model of Irish Home Rule. Scotland began to feel even more left out of British politics as the unifying ideal left behind after World War II influenced Westminster policy making more than ever before and with this came a fear that Scotland would lost its distinct identity and nationality. Scotland felt trapped and looked towards Ireland as a model of freedom in terms of self-governance which influenced the Scottish call for devolution in the 1970s.
The tenure of Margaret Thatcher as Prime Minister from 1979-1990 had devastating consequences on relations between Scotland and the rest of the United Kingdom. Thatcher herself described her impact on Scotland 'as economically successful while politically a failure' . Throughout her time as Prime Minister Thatcher was largely apathetic in her approach to Scottish politics and indeed she largely managed to coalesce many Scots against her and 'this oppositional unity eventually turned into turned into a case for home rule' as Mitchell has argued. Many Scots felt disaffected with politics during Thatcher's time in parliament and felt as though Scotland was completely overlooked in Westminster.. In fact, anti-Thatcherism even came to represent nationalism in the way that the majority of Scotland came to hate her which created a sense of union among people that would otherwise not have arisen. Jackson has contested that the Scottish struggle against the deindustrialisation of Thatcher interjected a class element into the fight for Scottish nationalism as the working class now also advocated Scottish nationalism on the basis that it would end Thatcher's onslaught against mining, shipbuilding and steel making industries where they were largely employed . The effect of Thatcher on the prominence of Scottish nationalism is summed up perfectly in an interview for The Telegraph with Nicola Sturgeon, the current First Minister of Scotland and the leader of the Scottish National Party, who says:
When I was growing up Margaret Thatcher was Prime Minister and the policies she was implementing were doing real damage to the kind of communities I was growing up in … It just seemed to me wrong that this Prime Minister that Scotland didn't vote for was able to implement policies that were leading to high unemployment, devastating communities
If the rule of Thatcher had such an effect on Sturgeon herself to the point where she became inspired to run for the SNP party leadership and then First Ministership it is clear that Thatcher had a massive impact on the growth of nationalism in Scotland. During this period of time the Scots became largely disaffected with British politics as a whole and lost faith in the system meaning there was a substantial increase in debate surrounding the Scottish Question and the wish for Scottish self-governance and is a key reason why the Question became so debated in the 1970s.
In conclusion, the questions surrounding self-governance and the constitutional place of Scotland within the UK have been prominent in some form or another from way before the Treaty of Union in 1707. However, there was not a clear and organised call for Scottish nationalism before the breakdown of the British empire which weakened Scottish pride in the union and gave birth to a desire to create a better nation within Scotland. The period following World War II exacerbated this desire with centralising policies from Westminster making Scots felt trapped and at risk of losing their national identity and with this they looked towards Irish Home Rule as a basis for the Scottish campaign for self-governance. Thatcher only served to aggravate the debate surrounding the Scottish Question with her lack of consideration and empathy towards Scotland. This meant that even loyal unionists began to lose faith in Westminster and looked towards devolution as a solution. Therefore, it is not with one event that the Scottish Question came to play a prominent role in British politics in the 1970s but rather it is with groundings far back in history brought up again by the fall of the empire, the centralising policies after WWII and Irish Home Rule and the apathy with which Thatcher viewed Scotland that created a strong, unified campaign for Scottish devolution and brought the Scottish Question to the forefront of British politics. The Scottish Question exploded in the 1970s as a result of the perfect cocktail of political, social and cultural issues to dig up the deep-seated desire for Scottish nationalism within the Scottish people.