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The Wars of Scottish Independence were a series of military campaigns fought between the Kingdom of Scotland and the Kingdom of England in the late 13th and early 14th centuries.

The First War (1296–1328) began with the English invasion of Scotland in 1296, and ended with the signing of the Treaty of Edinburgh-Northampton in 1328. The Second War (1332–1357) began with the English-supported invasion of Edward Baliol and the "Disinherited" in 1332, and ended in 1357 with the signing of the Treaty of Berwick. The wars were part of a great national crisis for Scotland and the period became one of the most defining moments in the nation's history. At the end of both wars, Scotland retained its status as an independent nation. The wars were important for other reasons, such as the emergence of the longbow as a key weapon in medieval warfare.

The First War of Independence: 1296–1328[link]

Background[link]

Edward I and Edward, Prince of Wales

King Alexander III of Scotland died in 1286, leaving his 4-year-old granddaughter Margaret (called "the Maid of Norway") as his heir. In 1290, the Guardians of Scotland signed the Treaty of Birgham agreeing to the marriage of the Maid of Norway and Edward of Caernarvon, the son of Edward I, who was Margaret's great-uncle. This marriage would not create a union between Scotland and England because the Scots insisted that the Treaty declare that Scotland was separate and divided from England and that its rights, laws, liberties and customs were wholly and inviolably preserved for all time.

However, Margaret, travelling to her new kingdom, died shortly after landing on the Orkney Islands around 26 September 1290. With her death, there were 13 rivals for succession. The two leading competitors for the Scottish crown were Robert Bruce, 5th Lord of Annandale (grandfather of the future King Robert the Bruce) and John Balliol, Lord of Galloway. Fearing civil war between the Bruce and Balliol families and supporters, the Guardians of Scotland wrote to Edward I of England, asking him to come north and arbitrate between the claimants in order to avoid civil war.

Edward agreed to meet the guardians at Norham in 1291. Before the process got underway Edward insisted that he be recognised as Lord Paramount of Scotland. During the meeting, Edward had his army standing by, thus forcing the Scots to accept his terms. He gave the claimants three weeks to agree to his terms. With no King, with no army ready, and King Edward's army at hand, the Scots had no choice. The claimants to the crown acknowledged Edward as their Lord Paramount and accepted his arbitration. Their decision was influenced in part by the fact that most of the claimants had large estates in England and, therefore, would have lost them if they had defied the English king. However, many involved were churchmen such as Bishop Wishart for whom such mitigation cannot be claimed.^[1]

On 11 June, acting as the Lord Paramount of Scotland, Edward I ordered that every Royal Scottish Castle be placed temporarily under his control and every Scottish official resign his office and be re-appointed by him. Two days later, in Upsettlington, the Guardians of the Realm and the leading Scottish nobles gathered to swear allegiance to King Edward I as Lord Paramount. All Scots were also required to pay homage to Edward I, either in person or at one of the designated centres by 27 July 1291.

There were thirteen meetings from May to August 1291 at Berwick, where the claimants to the crown pleaded their cases before Edward, in what came to be known as the 'Great Cause.' The claims of most of the competitors were rejected, leaving Balliol, Bruce, Floris V, Count of Holland and John de Hastings of Abergavenny, 2nd Baron Hastings, as the only men who could prove direct descent from David I.

On 3 August, Edward asked Balliol and Bruce to choose 40 arbiters each, while he chose 24, to decide the case. On 12 August, he signed a writ that required the collection of all documents that might concern the competitors' rights or his own title to the superiority of Scotland, which was accordingly executed.^{[note 1]} Balliol was named king by a majority on 17 November 1292 and on 30 November. He was crowned King of Scots at Scone Abbey. On 26 December, at Newcastle upon Tyne, King John swore homage to Edward I for the Kingdom of Scotland. Edward soon made it clear that he regarded the country as a vassal state. Balliol, undermined by members of the Bruce faction, struggled to resist, and the Scots resented Edward's demands. In 1294, Edward summoned John Balliol to appear before him, and then ordered that he had until 1 September 1294 to provide Scottish troops and funds for his invasion of France.

On his return to Scotland, John held a meeting with his council and after a few days of heated debate, plans were made to defy the orders of Edward I. A few weeks later a Scottish parliament was hastily convened and 12 members of a war council (four Earls, Barons, and Bishops, respectively) were selected to advise King John.

Emissaries were immediately dispatched to inform King Philip IV of France of the intentions of the English. They also negotiated a treaty by which the Scots would invade England if the English invaded France, and in return the French would support the Scots. The treaty would be sealed by the arranged marriage of Edward Balliol (John's son) and Jeanne de Valois (Philip's niece). Another treaty with King Eric II of Norway was hammered out, in which for the sum of 50,000 groats he would supply 100 ships for four months of the year, so long as hostilities between France and England continued. Although Norway never acted, the Franco-Scottish alliance, later known as the Auld Alliance, was renewed frequently until 1560.

It was not until 1295 that Edward I became aware of the secret Franco-Scottish negotiations. In early October, he began to strengthen his northern defences against a possible invasion. It was at this point that Robert Bruce, 6th Lord of Annandale (father of the future King Robert the Bruce) was appointed by Edward as the governor of Carlisle Castle. Edward also ordered John Balliol to relinquish control of the castles and burghs of Berwick, Jedburgh and Roxburgh. In December, more than 200 of Edward's tenants in Newcastle were summoned to form a militia by March 1296 and in February, a fleet sailed north to meet with his land forces in Newcastle.

The movement of English forces along the Anglo-Scottish border did not go unnoticed. In response, King John Balliol summoned all able-bodied Scotsmen to bear arms and gather at Caddonlee by 11 March. Several Scottish nobles chose to ignore the summons, including Robert Bruce, Earl of Carrick, whose Carrick estates had been seized by John Balliol and reassigned to John 'The Red' Comyn. Robert Bruce, Earl of Carrick had become Earl of Carrick at the resignation of his father earlier that year.

Beginning of the war: 1296–1306[link]

The dethroned King John, whom a Scottish chronicler dubbed 'toom tabard' ('empty coat')

The First War of Scottish Independence can be loosely divided into four phases: the initial English invasion and success in 1296; the campaigns led by William Wallace, Andrew de Moray and various Scottish Guardians from 1297 until John Comyn negotiated for the general Scottish submission in February 1304; the renewed campaigns led by Robert the Bruce following his killing of The Red Comyn in Dumfries in 1306 to his and the Scottish victory at Bannockburn in 1314; and a final phase of Scottish diplomatic initiatives and military campaigns in Scotland, Ireland and Northern England from 1314 until the Treaty of Edinburgh-Northampton in 1328.

The war began in earnest with Edward I's sack of Berwick in March 1296, followed by the Scottish defeat at the Battle of Dunbar and the abdication of John Balliol in July.^[3] The English invasion campaign had subdued most of the country by August and, after removing the Stone of Destiny from Scone Abbey and transporting it to Westminster Abbey, Edward convened a parliament at Berwick, where the Scottish nobles paid homage to him as King of England. Scotland had been all but conquered.

The revolts which broke out in early 1297, led by William Wallace, Andrew de Moray and other Scottish nobles, forced Edward to send more forces to deal with the Scots, and although they managed to force the nobles to capitulate at Irvine, Wallace and de Moray's continuing campaigns eventually led to the first key Scottish victory, at Stirling Bridge. Moray was fatally wounded in the fighting at Stirling, and died soon after the battle. This was followed by Scottish raids into northern England and the appointment of Wallace as Guardian of Scotland in March 1298. But in July, Edward invaded again, intending to crush Wallace and his followers, and defeated the Scots at Falkirk. Edward failed to subdue Scotland completely before returning to England.

There have been, however, several stories regarding Wallace and what he did after the Battle of Falkirk. It is said by some sources that Wallace travelled to France and fought for the French King against the English during their own ongoing war while Bishop Lamberton of St Andrews, who gave much support to the Scottish cause, went and spoke to the pope.

Wallace was succeeded by Robert Bruce and John Comyn as joint guardians, with William de Lamberton, Bishop of St Andrews being appointed in 1299 as a third, neutral Guardian to try and maintain order between them. During that year, diplomatic pressure from France and Rome persuaded Edward to release the imprisoned King John into the custody of the pope, and Wallace was sent to France to seek the aid of Philip IV; he possibly also travelled to Rome.

Further campaigns by Edward in 1300 and 1301 led to a truce between the Scots and the English in 1302. After another campaign in 1303/1304, Stirling Castle, the last major Scottish held stronghold, fell to the English, and in February 1304, negotiations led to most of the remaining nobles paying homage to Edward and to the Scots all but surrendering. At this point, Robert Bruce and William Lamberton may have made a secret bond of alliance, aiming to place Bruce on the Scottish throne and continue the struggle. However, Lamberton came from a family associated with the Balliol-Comyn faction and his ultimate allegiances are unknown.

After the capture and execution of Wallace in 1305, Scotland seemed to have been finally conquered and the revolt calmed for a period.

King Robert the Bruce: 1306–1328[link]

Bannockburn Monument plaque

On 10 February 1306, during a meeting between Bruce and Comyn, the two surviving claimants for the Scottish throne, Bruce quarrelled with and killed John Comyn at Greyfriars Kirk in Dumfries.^[4] At this moment the rebellion was sparked again.

Comyn, it seems, had broken an agreement between the two, and informed King Edward of Bruce's plans to be king. The agreement was that one of the two claimants would renounce his claim on the throne of Scotland, but receive lands from the other and support his claim. Comyn appears to have thought to get both the lands and the throne by betraying Bruce to the English. A messenger carrying documents from Comyn to Edward was captured by Bruce and his party, plainly implicating Comyn. Bruce then rallied the Scottish prelates and nobles behind him and had himself crowned King of Scots at Scone less than five weeks after the killing in Dumfries. He then began a new campaign to free his kingdom. After being defeated in battle he was driven from the Scottish mainland as an outlaw. Bruce later came out of hiding in 1307. The Scots thronged to him, and he defeated the English in a number of battles. His forces continued to grow in strength, encouraged in part by the death of Edward I in July 1307. The Battle of Bannockburn in 1314 was an especially important Scottish victory.

In 1320, the Declaration of Arbroath was sent by a group of Scottish nobles to the Pope affirming Scottish independence from England. Two similar declarations were also sent by the clergy and Robert I. In 1327, Edward II of England was deposed and killed. The invasion of the North of England by Robert the Bruce forced Edward III of England to sign the Treaty of Edinburgh-Northampton on 1 May 1328, which recognised the independence of Scotland with Bruce as King. To further seal the peace, Robert's son and heir David married the sister of Edward III.

The Second War of Independence: 1332–1357[link]

After Robert the Bruce's death, King David II was too young to rule, so the guardianship was assumed by Thomas Randolph, Earl of Moray. But Edward III, despite having given his name to the Treaty of Edinburgh-Northampton, was determined to avenge the humiliation by the Scots and he could count on the assistance of Edward Balliol, the son of John Balliol and a claimant to the Scottish throne.

Edward III also had the support of a group of Scottish nobles, led by Balliol and Henry Beaumont, known as the 'Disinherited.' This group of nobles had supported the English in the First War and, after Bannockburn, Robert the Bruce had given them a year to return to his peace. When they refused he deprived them of their titles and lands, granting them to his allies. When peace was concluded, they received no war reparations. These 'Disinherited' were hungry for their old lands and would prove to be the undoing of the peace.

The Earl of Moray died on 20 July 1332. The Scots nobility gathered at Perth where they elected Domhnall II, Earl of Mar as the new Guardian. Meanwhile a small band led by Balliol had set sail from the Humber. Consisting of the disinherited noblemen and mercenaries, they were probably no more than a few hundred men strong.

Edward III was still formally at peace with David II and his dealings with Balliol were therefore deliberately obscured. He of course knew what was happening and Balliol probably did homage in secret before leaving, but Balliol's desperate scheme must have seemed doomed to failure. Edward therefore refused to allow Balliol to invade Scotland from across the River Tweed. This would have been too open a breach of the treaty. He agreed to turn a blind eye to an invasion by sea, but made it clear that he would disavow them and confiscate all their English lands should Balliol and his friends fail.

The 'Disinherited' landed at Kinghorn in Fife on 6 August. The news of their advance had preceded them, and, as they marched towards Perth, they found their route barred by a large Scottish army, mostly of infantry, under the new Guardian.

At the Battle of Dupplin Moor, Balliol's army, commanded by Henry Beaumont, defeated the larger Scottish force. Beaumont made use of the same tactics that the English would make famous during the Hundred Years' War, with dismounted knights in the centre and archers on the flanks. Caught in the murderous rain of arrows, most of the Scots didn't reach the enemy's line. When the slaughter was finally over, the Earl of Mar, Sir Robert Bruce (an illegitimate son of Robert the Bruce), many nobles and around 2,000 Scots had been slain. Edward Balliol then had himself crowned King of Scots, first at Perth, and then again in September at Scone Abbey. Balliol's success surprised Edward III, and fearing that Balliol's invasion would eventually fail leading to a Scots invasion of England, he moved north with his army.

In October, Sir Archibald Douglas, now Guardian of Scotland, made a truce with Balliol, supposedly to let the Scottish Parliament assemble and decide who their true king was. Emboldened by the truce, Balliol dismissed most of his English troops and moved to Annan, on the north shore of the Solway Firth. He issued two public letters, saying that with the help of England he had reclaimed his kingdom, and acknowledged that Scotland had always been a fief of England. He also promised land for Edward III on the border, including Berwick-on-Tweed, and that he would serve Edward for the rest of his life. But in December, Douglas attacked Balliol at Annan in the early hours of the morning. Most of Balliol's men were killed, though he himself managed to escape through a hole in the wall, and fled, naked and on horse, to Carlisle.

Edward III invades Scotland, from an edition of Froissart's Chronicles

In April 1333, Edward III and Balliol, with a large English army, laid siege to Berwick. Archibald Douglas attempted to relieve the town in July, but was defeated and killed at the Battle of Halidon Hill. David II and his Queen were moved to the safety of Dumbarton Castle, while Berwick surrendered and was annexed by Edward. By now, much of Scotland was under English occupation, with eight of the Scottish lowland counties being ceded to England by Edward Balliol.

At the beginning of 1334, Philip VI of France offered to bring David II and his court to France for asylum, and in May they arrived in France, setting up a court-in-exile at Château Gaillard in Normandy. Philip also decided to derail the Anglo-French peace negotiations then taking place (at the time England and France were engaged in disputes that would lead to the Hundred Years' War), declaring to Edward III that any treaty between France and England must include the exiled King of Scots.

In David's absence, a series of Guardians kept up the struggle. In November, Edward III invaded again, but he accomplished little and retreated in February 1335 due primarily to his failure to bring the Scots to battle. He and Edward Balliol returned again in July with an army of 13,000, and advanced through Scotland, first to Glasgow and then to Perth, where Edward III installed himself while his army looted and destroyed the surrounding countryside. At this time, the Scots followed a plan of avoiding pitched battles, depending instead on minor actions of heavy cavalry – the normal practice of the day. Some Scottish leaders, including the Earl of Atholl, who had returned to Scotland with Edward Balliol in 1332 and 1333, defected to the Bruce party.

Following Edward's return to England, the remaining leaders of the Scots resistance chose Sir Andrew Murray as Guardian. He soon negotiated a truce with Edward until April 1336, during which, various French and Papal emissaries attempted to negotiate a peace between the two countries. In January, the Scots drew up a draft treaty agreeing to recognise the elderly and childless Edward Balliol as King, so long as David II would be his heir and David would leave France to live in England. However, David II rejected the peace proposal and any further truces. In May, an English army under Henry of Lancaster invaded, followed in July by another army under King Edward. Together, they ravaged much of the north-east and sacked Elgin and Aberdeen, while a third army ravaged the south-west and the Clyde valley. Prompted by this invasion, Philip VI of France announced that he intended to aid the Scots by every means in his power, and that he had a large fleet and army preparing to invade both England and Scotland. Edward soon returned to England, while the Scots, under Murray, captured and destroyed English strongholds and ravaged the countryside, making it uninhabitable for the English.

Although Edward III invaded again, he was becoming more anxious over the possible French invasion, and by late 1336, the Scots had regained control over virtually all of Scotland and by 1338 the tide had turned. While "Black Agnes," Countess-consort Dunbar and March, continued to resist the English laying siege to Dunbar Castle, hurling defiance and abuse from the walls, Scotland received some breathing space when Edward III claimed the French throne and took his army to Flanders, beginning the Hundred Years' War with France.

In the late autumn of 1335, Strathbogie, dispossessed Earl of Atholl, and Edward III set out to destroy Scottish resistance by dispossessing and killing the Scottish freeholders. Following this, Strathbogie moved to lay siege to Kildrummy Castle, held by Lady Christian Bruce, sister of the late King Robert and wife of the Guardian, Andrew de Moray. Her husband moved his small army quickly to her relief although outnumbered by some five to one. However, many of Strathbogie's men had been impressed and had no loyalty to the English or the usurper, Balliol. Pinned by a flank attack while making a downhill charge, Strathbogie's army broke and Strathbogie refused to surrender and was killed. The Battle of Culblean was the effective end of Balliol's attempt to overthrow the King of Scots.

So, in just nine years, the kingdom so hard won by Robert the Bruce had been shattered and had recovered. Many of her experienced nobles were dead and the economy which had barely begun to recover from the earlier wars was once again in tatters. It was to an impoverished country in need of peace and good government that David II was finally able to return in June 1341.

David II (lower left) captured at Neville's Cross, from an edition of Froissart's Chronicles

When David returned, he was determined to live up to the memory of his illustrious father. He ignored truces with England and was determined to stand by his ally Philip VI during the early years of the Hundred Years' War. In 1341 he led a raid into England, forcing Edward III to lead an army north to reinforce the border. In 1346, after more Scottish raids, Philip VI appealed for a counter invasion of England in order to relieve the English stranglehold on Calais. David gladly accepted and personally led a Scots army southwards with intention of capturing Durham. In reply, an English army moved northwards from Yorkshire to confront the Scots. On 14 October, at the Battle of Neville's Cross, the Scots were defeated. They suffered heavy casualties and David was wounded in the face by two arrows before being captured. He was sufficiently strong however to knock out two teeth from the mouth of his captor. After a period of convalescence, he was imprisoned in the Tower of London, where he was held prisoner for eleven years, during which time Scotland was ruled by his nephew, Robert Stewart, 7th High Steward. Edward Balliol returned to Scotland soon afterwards with a small force, in a final attempt to recover Scotland. He only succeeded in gaining control of some of Galloway, with his power diminishing there until 1355. He finally resigned his claim to the Scottish throne in January 1356 and died childless in 1364.

David II pays homage to Edward III

Finally, on 3 October 1357, David was released under the Treaty of Berwick, under which the Scots agreed to pay an enormous ransom of 100,000 merks for him (1 merk was ⅔ of an English pound) payable in 10 years. Heavy taxation was needed to provide funds for the ransom, which was to be paid in instalments, and David alienated his subjects by using the money for his own purposes. The country was in a sorry state then; she had been ravaged by war and also the Black Death. The first instalment of the ransom was paid punctually. The second was late and after that no more could be paid for.

In 1363, David went to London and agreed that should he die childless, the crown would pass to Edward (his brother-in-law) or one of his sons, with the Stone of Destiny being returned for their coronation as King of Scots. However, this seems to have been no more than a rather dishonest attempt to re-negotiate the ransom since David knew perfectly well that Parliament would reject such an arrangement out of hand. The Scots did reject this arrangement, and offered to continue paying the ransom (now increased to 100,000 pounds). A 25-year truce was agreed and in 1369, the treaty of 1365 was cancelled and a new one set up to the Scots benefit, due to the influence of the war with France. The new terms saw the 44,000 merks already paid deducted from the original 100,000 with the balance due in instalments of 4,000 for the next 14 years.

When Edward died in 1377, there were still 24,000 merks owed which were never paid. David himself had lost his popularity and the respect of his nobles when he married the widow of a minor laird after the death of his English wife. He himself died in February 1371.

By the end of the campaign, Scotland was independent and remained thus, until the unification of the Kingdom of England and the Kingdom of Scotland to create the single Kingdom of Great Britain was completed in the Treaty of Union of 1707.

Major battles and events[link]

Important figures[link]

Scotland[link]

England[link]

Other important figures[link]

See also[link]

• First War of Scottish Independence
• Second War of Scottish Independence
• Anglo-Scottish Wars

References[link]

Notes

1. ^ The writ required the collection of ".... all the charters instruments rolls and writs whatsoever that might concern the rights of the competitors, or his own pretended title to the superiority of Scotland, to be carried off and placed where he should appoint; and these to be put into the hands of five persons, two Scots and three English; and these last to act by themselves, if the two first happened to be hindered."^[2]

Citations

External links[link]

• [http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/scottishhis

ory/independence/features_independence_arbroath.shtml Wars of Independence]

• http://www.historynet.com/historical_conflicts/3036606.html
• Battles: Dupplin Moor; Halidon Hill; Neville's Cross
• http://kingcrest.com/sinclair/timeline.html-ssi

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Scottish independence (Scots: Scots unthirldom,^[1] Scottish Gaelic: Neo-eisimeileachd na h-Alba) is a political ambition of political parties, advocacy groups and individuals for Scotland, which is a country of the United Kingdom, to become an independent sovereign state.

Supporters of Scottish independence claim that Scotland's inability to fully control its own affairs, both nationally and internationally, is detrimental to Scottish interests. They argue that, as the Government of the United Kingdom acts primarily in the interest of the entire United Kingdom (of which England is by far the most populated part), it is to the detriment of Scottish interests to remain in the United Kingdom. Those who oppose Scottish independence and endorse the continuation of a form of union believe being part of the United Kingdom to be in the Scottish national interest, and argue that there are benefits enjoyed by Scotland as part of a great power, which do not compromise its distinctive national identity.

The Scottish Government has expressed its intention to hold an independence referendum in late 2014.^[2]

History[link]

Scotland was an independent country from its foundation in the Early Middle Ages (traditionally 843) until 1707 with the Act of Union.

Scottish home rule[link]

The Visit of King George IV to Scotland in 1822 and the subsequent rise in tartanry did much to reinvigorate a sense of a specifically Scottish national identity, which had been split between the Episcopalian and Roman Catholic-dominated Highlands and the Presbyterian-dominated Lowlands since the Glorious Revolution in 1688, and continued during the 18th century through the Jacobite risings, the Act of Proscription and subsequent process of Highland Clearances by landlords.

From the mid-19th century, calls for the devolution of control over Scottish affairs began to be raised, but support for full independence remained limited. The "home rule" movement for a Scottish Assembly was first taken up in 1853 by a body close to the Conservative Party, complaining about the fact that Ireland received more support from the British Government than Scotland and soon began to receive Liberal Party backing,^[3] In 1885, the Post of Secretary for Scotland and the Scottish Office were re-established to promote Scotland's interests and voice its grievances to the British Parliament. In 1886, however, William Ewart Gladstone introduced the Irish Home Rule Bill. When many Scots compared what they had to the Irish offer of Home Rule, this was considered inadequate. It was not an immediate constitutional priority however, especially after the Irish Home Rule Bill was defeated in the House of Commons, and by the time a Scottish home rule bill was first presented to parliament in 1913, its progress, along with that of the Irish Home Rule Act 1914, was interrupted by World War I and subsequently became overshadowed by the Easter Rising and Irish War of Independence, although the Scottish Office was relocated to St. Andrew's House in Edinburgh during the 1930s.^[3][4]

In 1921, the Scots National League formed as a body primarily based in London seeking Scottish independence, largely influenced by Sinn Féin. They established the Scots Independent newspaper in 1926 and in 1928 they helped the Glasgow University Scottish Nationalist Association form the National Party of Scotland, aiming for a separate Scottish state. One of the founders was Hugh MacDiarmid, a poet who had begun promoting a Scottish literature, while others had Labour Party links. It cooperated with the Scottish Party, a home rule organisation formed in 1932 by former members of the Conservative Party, and merged in 1934 to form the Scottish National Party, which at first supported only home rule but later changed to supporting independence.

At first, the SNP did not support all-out independence for Scotland, but rather the establishment of a devolved Scottish Assembly, within the United Kingdom^{[citation needed]}. This became the party's initial position on the constitutional status of Scotland as a result of a compromise between the NPS, who did support independence, and the Scottish Party who were devolutionists. However, the SNP quickly reverted to the original NPS stance of supporting full independence for Scotland. The interwar period proved difficult years for the SNP, with the rise of undemocratic nationalist forces in Europe in the shape of fascism in Italy and Spain and national socialism in Germany. The alleged similarity between SNP and foreign nationalists, combined with other factors such as a lack of profile in mainstream media, made it difficult for the SNP to grow.^[5] Unlike the ethnic or ultra-nationalist groups on mainland Europe, however, the nationalism of the SNP was based more on civic nationalism.^[6]

The concept of full independence, or less controversial home rule, did not re-enter the Scottish mainstream until the 1960s, with the famous Wind of Change speech by Harold Macmillan, which marked the high point of decolonisation and the decline of the British Empire, which had already suffered the humiliation of the 1956 Suez Crisis. For many in Scotland, this served to undermine one of the principal raisons d'être of the United Kingdom and also symbolised the end of popular imperialism and imperial unity which had united the prominent Scottish Unionist Party, which subsequently entered a steady decline in support.^[7][8] The SNP won a Parliamentary seat in 1967, when Winnie Ewing was the surprise winner of the Hamilton by-election, 1967. This brought the SNP to national prominence, leading to Edward Heath's 1968 Declaration of Perth and the establishment of the Kilbrandon Commission.^[9]

1970s resurgence[link]

The discovery of North Sea oil off the east coast of Scotland further invigorated the debate over Scottish independence.^[10] The Scottish National Party organised a hugely successful campaign entitled "It's Scotland's oil", emphasising the way in which the discovery of oil could benefit Scotland's then-struggling deindustrialising economy and its populace.^[11] In the February 1974 general election seven SNP MPs were returned. The failure of the Labour Party to secure an overall majority prompted them to quickly return to the polls. In the subsequent October 1974 election, the SNP performed even better than they had done earlier in the year, winning 11 MPs and managing to garner over 30% of the total vote in Scotland.^[12]

In 1974, the Conservative government commissioned the McCrone report, written by professor Gavin McCrone, a leading government economist, to report on the viability of an independent Scotland. He concluded that oil would have given an independent Scotland one of the strongest currencies in Europe. The report went on to say that officials advised government ministers on how to take "the wind out of the SNP sails". Handed over to the incoming Labour administration and classified as secret because of Labour fears over the surge in Scottish National Party popularity, the document came to light only in 2005, when the SNP obtained the report under the Freedom of Information Act 2000.^[13][14]

The Labour Party under Harold Wilson had won the election by a tiny majority of only three seats. Following their election to parliament, the SNP's MPs pressed for the creation of a Scottish Assembly, which was given added credibility after the conclusions of the Kilbrandon Commission. However, opponents demanded that a referendum be held on the issue. Although the Labour Party and the Scottish National Party both officially supported devolution, support was split in both parties. Labour was divided between those who favoured devolution and those who wanted to maintain a full central Westminster government. In the SNP, there was division between those who saw devolution as a stepping stone to independence and those who feared it might actually detract from that ultimate goal.^[10]

The resignation of Harold Wilson brought James Callaghan to power, however his small majority was eroded with several by-election losses and the government became increasingly unpopular during the Winter of Discontent, although an arrangement was negotiated in 1977 with the Liberals known as the Lib-Lab pact and a succession of deals with the Scottish National Party and Plaid Cymru to hold referendums on devolution in exchange for their support, had helped to prolong the government's life.

The result of the referendum in Scotland was a narrow majority in favour of devolution (52% to 48%),^[10] but a condition of the referendum was that 40% of the total electorate should vote in favour in order to make it valid. Thus, with a turnout of 63.6%, only 32.9% had voted "Yes". The Scotland Act 1978 was consequently repealed in March 1979 by a vote of 301-206 in parliament. In the wake of the referendum the supporters of the bill conducted a protest campaign under the slogan "Scotland said yes". They argued that the 40% rule was undemocratic and that the referendum results justified the establishment of the assembly. Campaigners for a "No" vote countered that voters had been told before the referendum that failing to vote itself was as good as a "No".^[15] It was therefore incorrect to conclude that the 36.4% who did not vote, was entirely down to voter apathy.

In protest, the Scottish National Party MPs withdrew their support from the government. A motion of no confidence was then tabled by the Conservatives and supported by the SNP, the Liberals and Ulster Unionists. It passed by one vote on 28 March 1979, forcing the May 1979 general election, which was won by Margaret Thatcher, effectively ending the post-war consensus. The Labour Prime Minister, James Callaghan, famously described this decision by the SNP as that of 'turkeys voting for Christmas'.^[16][17] The SNP returned only two MPs in the 1979 election, leading to the formation of the controversial 79 Group within the SNP.

Devolution[link]

Debating chamber of the Scottish Parliament

Supporters of Scottish independence continued to hold mixed views on the Home Rule movement which included many supporters of union who wanted devolution within the framework of the United Kingdom. Some saw it as a stepping stone to independence, while others wanted to go straight for independence.^[18]

In the years of the Conservative government after 1979, the Campaign for a Scottish Assembly was established, eventually publishing the Claim of Right 1989. This then led to the Scottish Constitutional Convention. The convention promoted consensus on devolution on a cross-party basis, though the Conservative Party refused to co-operate and the Scottish National Party withdrew from the discussions when it became clear that the convention was unwilling to discuss Scottish independence as a constitutional option.^[10] Arguments against devolution and the Scottish Parliament, levelled mainly by the Conservative Party, were that the Parliament would create a "slippery slope" to Scottish independence and provide the pro-independence Scottish National Party with a route to government.^[19] John Major, the Conservative prime minister before May 1997, campaigned during the 1997 general election on the slogan "72 hours to save the union".^[20]

The Labour Party won the 1997 general election and Donald Dewar as Secretary of State for Scotland agreed to the proposals for a Scottish Parliament. A referendum was held in September and 74.3% of those who voted approved the devolution plan (44.87% of the electorate).^[21] The Parliament of the United Kingdom subsequently approved the Scotland Act 1998 which created an elected Scottish Parliament with control over most domestic policy.^[10] In May 1999, Scotland held its first election for a devolved parliament and in July the Scottish Parliament held session for the first time since the previous parliament had been adjourned in 1707.

The Scottish Parliament is a unicameral legislature comprising 129 Members, 73 of whom represent individual constituencies and are elected on a first past the post system; 56 are elected in eight different electoral regions by the additional member system, serving for a four year period. The Queen appoints one Member of the Scottish Parliament, on the nomination of the Parliament, to be First Minister with the convention being that the leader of the party with the largest number of seats is appointed First Minister although any member which can command the confidence of the chamber could conceivably be appointed First Minister. All other Ministers are appointed and dismissed by the First Minister and together they make up the Scottish Government, the executive arm of government.^[22]

The Labour Party's Donald Dewar became the First Minister of Scotland, while the Scottish National Party became the main opposition party. With the approval of all parties, the egalitarian song "A Man's A Man for A' That", by Robert Burns, was performed at the opening ceremony of the Scottish Parliament.

The Scottish Parliament has legislative authority for all non-reserved matters relating to Scotland, and has a limited power to vary income tax, nicknamed the Tartan Tax, a power it has yet to exercise. The Scottish Parliament can refer devolved matters back to Westminster to be considered as part of United Kingdom-wide legislation by passing a Legislative Consent Motion if United Kingdom-wide legislation is considered to be more appropriate for certain issues. The programmes of legislation enacted by the Scottish Parliament since 1999 have seen a divergence in the provision of public services compared to the rest of the United Kingdom. For instance, the costs of a university education, and care services for the elderly are free at point of use in Scotland, while fees are paid in the rest of the UK. Scotland was the first country in the UK to ban smoking in enclosed public places.^[23]

Scotland is also represented in the British House of Commons by 59 MPs elected from territory-based Scottish constituencies.

Proposed referendum[link]

Survey of the importance of holding a referendum, carried out by the BBC in April 2011.

In its manifesto for the 2007 Scottish Parliament election, the SNP pledged to hold an independence referendum by 2010.^[24][25] After winning the election,^[26] the SNP-controlled Scottish Government published a White Paper entitled Choosing Scotland's Future, which outlined options for the future of Scotland, including independence.^[27][28]

At the time, Scottish Labour, the Scottish Conservatives and Scottish Liberal Democrats opposed a referendum offering independence as an option. Then Prime Minister Gordon Brown also publicly attacked the independence option.^[29] Based on a subsequent debate in the Scottish Parliament,^[30] the three main parties opposed to independence formed the Calman commission.^[31][32] This reviewed devolution and considered all constitutional options bar independence.^[33]

In August 2009, the SNP announced that the Referendum (Scotland) Bill, 2010 would be part of its third legislative programme for 2009-10, which would detail the question and conduct of a possible referendum on the issue of independence. The Bill was to be published on 25 January 2010, Burns Night, with the referendum proposed for on or around 30 November 2010, St. Andrew's Day. The Bill was not expected to be passed, because of the SNP's status as a minority government, and the opposition of all the major parties in the Parliament.^[34][35] In September 2010, the Scottish Government announced that no referendum would occur before the 2011 elections.^[36]

Following the SNP's victory in the 2011 election,^[37][38] which gave the party an overall majority in the Scottish Parliament, First Minister Alex Salmond stated his desire to hold a referendum "in the second half of the parliament" which would place it in 2014 or 2015.^[39] On 10 November, David Cameron considered plans for a UK-led referendum "to prevent the Scottish Nationalists from setting the terms, question and timing to suit themselves".^[40]

In January 2012, politicians clashed over whether the Scottish Parliament has the power to hold a referendum on independence. A referendum seeking to change the constitutional status of Scotland would not be legally binding on the UK Parliament because referendums in the United Kingdom are advisory only.^[41] The UK Government claimed that the mandate, vested in Westminster by the Act of the Union 1707, had not been devolved to the Scottish Parliament since the constitution is one of the reserved matters for the UK Parliament under the Scotland Act 1998.^[42][43][44] At any time Westminster could amend the Scotland Act, changing the powers of the Scottish Parliament; it has previously amended the Act to maintain the number of MSPs, which would otherwise have been reduced in line with the reduction of Scottish MPs in the 2005 UK general election. In January 2012, Secretary of State for Scotland Michael Moore and Prime Minister David Cameron indicated that they were willing for the UK Parliament to devolve the power to hold a binding referendum,^[45] but disagree with the SNP over its timing and composition. Alex Salmond and the SNP assert that the Scottish Parliament already has the right to implement a referendum without receiving any further powers from Westminster.^[45]

A campaign for Scottish independence was launched on 25 May 2012 by the Scottish National Party. First Minister Alex Salmond urged one million Scottish people to sign a declaration supporting independence before the referendum at the launch of the Yes Scotland campaign in Edinburgh. The proposal was backed by celebrities such as Sean Connery and Alan Cumming.^[46] Poet Liz Lochhead read a poem regarding English-Scottish rivalry in the 16th century. Salmond declared that "We want a Scotland that is fairer and more prosperous."^[47]

Legality[link]

The UK Parliament retains parliamentary sovereignty over the United Kingdom as a whole.^[48][49][50] This claim was endorsed by Lord Bingham of Cornhill in Jackson v Attorney General who argued that "[t]hen [in 1911], as now, the Crown in Parliament was unconstrained by any entrenched or codified constitution. It could make or unmake any law it wished"^[51] and by the Supreme Court in AXA General Insurance Ltd and others v HM Advocate and others. The Deputy President, Lord Hope of Craighead, stated that "the sovereignty of the Crown in Parliament ... is the bedrock of the British constitution. Sovereignty remains with the United Kingdom Parliament."^[52] However, the application of the principle of parliamentary sovereignty to Scotland has been disputed. In MacCormick v The Lord Advocate, the Lord President of the Court of Session, Lord Cooper of Culross stated obiter dicta that "the principle of the unlimited sovereignty of Parliament is a distinctively English principle which has no counterpart in Scottish Constitutional Law."^[53] It has been suggested that the doctrine of popular sovereignty,^[54] proclaimed in the 1320 Declaration of Arbroath and reasserted by the Claim of Right 1989,^[55][56] is of greater relevance to Scotland.

The legality of any British constituent country attaining de facto independence (in the same manner as the origins of the Irish Republic) or declaring unilateral independence outside the framework of British constitutional convention is uncertain. Some legal opinion following the Supreme Court of Canada's decision on what steps Quebec would need to take to secede is that Scotland would be unable to unilaterally declare independence under international law if the British government permitted a referendum on an unambiguous question on secession.^[57][58] Rather, the SNP claims that a positive vote for independence in a referendum would have "enormous moral and political force... impossible for a future [Westminster] government to ignore",^[59] and hence would give the Scottish Parliament a mandate to negotiate the passage of an act of the UK Parliament providing for Scotland's secession, in which Westminster renounces its claims to sovereignty over Scotland.^[60]

Legitimacy[link]

The United Nations Charter enshrines the right of peoples to self-determination, and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights also guarantees peoples' right to change nationality; the UK is a signatory to both documents. Politicians in both the Scottish and British parliaments have endorsed the right of the Scottish people to self-determination, including former UK Prime Ministers John Major and Margaret Thatcher.^[61] The Claim of Right 1989 was signed by every then-serving Scottish Labour and Scottish Liberal Democrat MP, with the exception of Tam Dalyell. Johann Lamont stated in her December 2011 acceptance speech for the Scottish Labour leadership that "sovereignty lies with the people of Scotland".^[62]

Support for independence[link]

Groups[link]

Both political and apolitical groups have supported Scottish independence.

Political parties[link]

Scottish independence is supported most prominently by the Scottish National Party, but other parties also have pro-independence policies. Those who have had elected representatives in either the Scottish Parliament or local councils in recent years are the Scottish Green Party, the Scottish Socialist Party and Solidarity.

Seventy-two of the seats in the Scottish Parliament are now held by parties/members who have expressed pro-independence sentiments, over 55% of the total. These are the 69 Scottish National Party members, the two Green members and Margo MacDonald, an independent politician.^[63][64]

Other organisations[link]

The Independence Convention seeks "Firstly, to create a forum for those of all political persuasions and none who support independence; and secondly, to be a national catalyst for Scottish independence."^[65] Independence First is a pro-referendum pressure group which has organised public demonstrations.

Reasons[link]

Reasons in favour of independence include:

• Principle of self-determination: the Scottish people will be making decisions for Scotland themselves.^[66]
• Control over defense and foreign policy means Scotland can choose for example to no longer have nuclear weapons in its seas and no longer be part of NATO.^[67]
• Access to oil funds means greater funds directly to Scotland. In the 1970s a slogan used for this was It's Scotland's oil.^[68]

Difference over form of government[link]

The independence movement is a disparate one that covers varied political standpoints. While many are republican, this is not Scottish National Party policy. The SNP styles itself as an inclusive institution, subordinating ideological differences to the primary goal of securing independence, with Scotland becoming a Commonwealth realm, similar to Canada or Australia, if independence should occur. This would effectively return Scotland to its previous constitutional state of dynastic union, after the Union of the Crowns in 1603. Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom is not only the descendent of the Kings and Queens of England but also of the Kings and Queens of Scotland, before the two nations' union in 1707. The situation would become like between 1603 and 1707 where the countries were separate yet shared the same monarch. Proportional representation has led to the election to the Scottish Parliament of smaller parties with various political positions but which have independence as a goal; in the 2003 Scottish Parliament election the gains made by the Scottish Green Party and the Scottish Socialist Party boosted the number of pro-independence MSPs. The Scottish Socialist Party has led republican protests and authored the Declaration of Calton Hill, calling for an independent republic.^[69]

Organisations that wish for Scotland to become an independent republic include the Scottish Socialist Party, Scottish Republican Socialist Party, Scottish Workers Republican Party and Solidarity.

Opposition to independence[link]

There is also a mainstream body of opinion opposed to Scottish independence and in favour of the continuation of the union with England, Wales, and Northern Ireland.

Political parties[link]

This is represented by the three main British political parties. Within the Scottish Parliament, the Union is supported by the Scottish Labour Party, Scottish Conservative Party and Scottish Liberal Democrats. Opposition to Scottish independence is also held by many individual figures such as George Galloway and minor political parties such as the Scottish Unionist Party and the United Kingdom Independence Party.

Reasons[link]

Many unionists^[who?] emphasise the historical and contemporary cultural ties between Scotland and the rest of the UK, from the Reformation and Union of Crowns, to Scottish involvement in the growth and development of the British Empire and contribution of the Scottish Enlightenment and Industrial Revolution. Contemporary popular culture is also shared, primarily through the prevalence of the English language. Almost half of the Scottish population have relatives in England, almost a million Scoto-English live and work in England and 400,000 Anglo-Scots now live in Scotland.^[70] There are also significant economic links with the Scottish military-industrial complex^[71] as well as close links within the financial sector.^[72]

Opponents of independence believe Scotland is economically stronger as a part of the UK economy and that Scotland is better able to prosper in a globalised economy with the international influence and stability derived from being part of a larger state.^[73] David Maddox, writing for The Scotsman claims that Scotland's levels of public spending (higher in relation to the rest of the UK^[73]) would be difficult to sustain after independence, without raising taxes, as North Sea oil revenues will decline in the longer-term.^[74] Some^[who?] wish to reduce public spending and devolve more fiscal powers to the Scottish Parliament in order to address this issue within the broader framework of the Union.^[75][76][77]

Difference over form of government[link]

Unionism ranges from those who support a centralised unitary state governed exclusively by the Parliament of the United Kingdom, to those who support varying degrees of devolution to the Scottish Parliament, including federalism. This was relevant to the Scottish Conservative Party leadership election, 2011 where the winner, Ruth Davidson, was in favour of the status quo and the second most voted candidate, Murdo Fraser, was in favour of greater devolution.

Other issues[link]

International influence[link]

Those in favour of a continued union also claim that as part of a unitary British state, Scotland has more influence on international affairs and diplomacy, both politically and militarily, as part of NATO, the G8 and as a permanent member of the UN Security Council. Opponents of further integration of the European Union claim that independence within Europe outside the EU three would, paradoxically, mean that Scotland would be more marginalised because, as a relatively small independent country, Scotland would be unable to resist the whims and demands of larger member nations.^[78] More influence on world affairs by being represented independently. As an example, Scotland currently has six MEPs. Independent countries with a similar population to Scotland, such as Ireland or Denmark, have approximately twice as much representation. Every EU member state is represented in the Council of Europe. Scotland, as part of the UK doesn't have a dedicated representative, while as an independent nation would have one.^[79]

European Union[link]

It has also been argued that an independent Scotland would need to apply to join the EU,^[80] although the SNP argue that Scotland would have almost automatic membership as an existing part of the EU, subject only to a majority vote in the European Council.^[81] It was reported in The Spectator and The Independent that Spain, which has regions that may also seek independence, may object to Scottish membership of the EU,^[82][83] although this has been specifically denied by the Spanish Government.^[84]

Accusations of Anglophobia[link]

Bruce Anderson, writing for The Independent, claimed that a desire for independence is symptomatic of the so-called parochial "Scottish cringe" and assert that some nationalists are Anglophobic in their attitude towards England.^[85] This has been opposed by SNP MSP Ian McKee who has pointed out, as an SNP MSP born and brought up in England, that the SNP is not Anglophobic or racist.^[86]

Currency[link]

The Scottish National Party is in favour of an independent Scotland retaining the Pound sterling as its currency,^[87] which Scottish Secretary Michael Moore suggested would be legal.^[88]

However, opponents suggest that Scotland's retention of the British currency would devalue sterling and impact negatively on the economies of England, Wales and Northern Ireland.^[89][90]

Public opinion[link]

There have been a large number of polls conducted on support levels for Scottish independence.^{[91][92][93][94][95][96][97]} Professor John Curtice stated in January 2012 that polling shows support for independence at between 32% and 38% of the Scottish population.^[98] This has fallen somewhat since the SNP were first elected to become the Scottish Government in 2007.^[98] The research also shows, however, that the proportion of the population strongly opposed to independence has fallen significantly in recent years.^[98]

Polls show consistent strong support for a referendum, including amongst those who support the continuation of the union. Most opinion polls performed have a figure of in-principle support for a referendum around 70–75%.^[99]

See also[link]

Scotland portal

• List of active autonomist and secessionist movements

Notes[link]

References[link]

• Murkens, Jo Eric (2002). Scottish Independence: A Practical Guide. Edinburgh University Press. ISBN 0-7486-1699-3. 
• Keating, Michael (2009). The Independence of Scotland: Self-Government and the Shifting Politics of Union. Oxford: Oxford University Press. 

External links[link]

Wikinews has related news: Scottish independence

Wikisource has original text related to this article: Scottish independence

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Scottish independence

• Scottish Independence Convention
• Scottish North Sea Oil and the Union
• Precious Few Heroes: The Case For Scottish Independence (Documentary Film)

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Look up scottish in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Scottish may refer to something of, from, or related to Scotland, a country in northern Europe, part of the United Kingdom since 1707.

Scottish may also refer to:

Languages[link]

• Scottish English, the varieties of English spoken in Scotland
• Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic language native to Scotland
• Scots language, a language variety spoken in Lowland Scotland and parts of Ulster

People[link]

• Scottish people
• List of famous Scottish people

Culture[link]

• Scottish American
• Scottish national identity

Other uses[link]

• Scottish cuisine
• Schottische, a dance
• Scottish (card game), a Shedding-type card game, also known as shirts and boots
• Scottish Crofting Foundation
• Scottish Reformation, 1560
• "Scottish" Symphony, Mendelssohn's third symphony
• Scottish Television, currently known as STV, the ITV licensee for Central and Northern Scotland
• Scottish Terrier dog breed

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The Right Honourable David Cameron MP
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom
Incumbent
Assumed office 11 May 2010
Monarch	Elizabeth II
Deputy	Nick Clegg
Preceded by	Gordon Brown
Leader of the Opposition
In office 6 December 2005 – 11 May 2010
Monarch	Elizabeth II
Prime Minister	Tony Blair Gordon Brown
Preceded by	Michael Howard
Succeeded by	Harriet Harman
Leader of the Conservative Party
Incumbent
Assumed office 6 December 2005
Preceded by	Michael Howard
Shadow Secretary of State for Education and Skills
In office 6 May 2005 – 6 December 2005
Leader	Michael Howard
Preceded by	Tim Yeo
Succeeded by	David Willetts
Member of Parliament for Witney
Incumbent
Assumed office 7 June 2001
Preceded by	Shaun Woodward
Majority	22,740 (39.4%)
Personal details
Born	David William Donald Cameron (1966-10-09) 9 October 1966 (age 45) London, England
Political party	Conservative
Spouse(s)	Samantha Sheffield (1996–present)
Children	Ivan Reginald Ian (Deceased) Nancy Gwen Arthur Elwen Florence Rose Endellion
Residence	10 Downing Street
Alma mater	Brasenose College, Oxford
Religion	Church of England (Anglican)
Website	Party website

David William Donald Cameron (pronunciation: /ˈkæmərən/; born 9 October 1966) is the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, First Lord of the Treasury, Minister for the Civil Service and Leader of the Conservative Party. He represents Witney as its Member of Parliament (MP).^[1]

Cameron studied Philosophy, Politics and Economics (PPE) at Oxford, gaining a first class honours degree. He then joined the Conservative Research Department and became Special Adviser to Norman Lamont, and then to Michael Howard. He was Director of Corporate Affairs at Carlton Communications for seven years.

He was defeated in his first candidacy for Parliament at Stafford in 1997, but was elected in 2001 as the Member of Parliament for the Oxfordshire constituency of Witney. He was promoted to the Opposition front bench two years later, and rose rapidly to become head of policy co-ordination during the 2005 general election campaign. With a public image of a youthful, moderate candidate who would appeal to young voters, he won the Conservative leadership election in 2005.^[2]

In the 2010 general election held on 6 May, the Conservatives won 307 seats in a hung parliament. After five days of intense negotiations, Cameron formed a coalition with the Liberal Democrats. The 43-year-old Cameron became the youngest British Prime Minister since the Earl of Liverpool 198 years earlier.^[3] Cameron leads the first coalition government of the United Kingdom since the Second World War.

Family[link]

David Cameron is the younger son of stockbroker Ian Donald Cameron (12 October 1932 – 8 September 2010)^[4] and his wife Mary Fleur (née Mount, born 1934,^[5] a retired Justice of the Peace, daughter of Sir William Mount, 2nd Baronet).^[6] His father, Ian, was born with both legs deformed and underwent repeated operations to correct them. Cameron's parents were married on 20 October 1962.^[5] He was born in London, and brought up in Peasemore, Berkshire.^[7] Cameron has a brother, Allan Alexander (born 1963, a barrister and QC)^[8] and two sisters, Tania Rachel (born 1965) and Clare Louise (born 1971).^[5][9] His father was born at Blairmore House, a country house near Huntly, Aberdeenshire, and died near Toulon in France on 8 September 2010.^[10] Blairmore was built by his great-great-grandfather, Alexander Geddes,^[11] who had made a fortune in the grain trade in Chicago, and returned to Scotland in the 1880s.^[12]

King William IV, one of Cameron's ancestors

Through his paternal grandmother, Enid Agnes Maud Levita, Cameron is a direct descendant of King William IV by his mistress Dorothea Jordan. This illegitimate line consists of five generations of women starting with Elizabeth Hay, Countess of Erroll, née FitzClarence, William and Jordan's sixth child,^[13] through to Cameron's grandmother (thereby making Cameron a 5th cousin of Queen Elizabeth II).^[14] Cameron's paternal forebears also have a long history in finance. His father Ian was senior partner of the stockbrokers Panmure Gordon, in which firm partnerships had long been held by Cameron's ancestors, including David's grandfather and great-grandfather,^[9] and was a Director of estate agent John D. Wood. David Cameron's great-great grandfather Emile Levita, a German-Jewish financier (and descendant of Renaissance scholar Elia Levita) who obtained British citizenship in 1871, was the director of the Chartered Bank of India, Australia and China which became Standard Chartered Bank in 1969.^[14] His wife, Cameron's great-great grandmother, was a descendant of the wealthy Danish Jewish Rée family on her father's side.^[15][16] One of Emile's sons, Arthur Francis Levita (died 1910, brother of Sir Cecil Levita),^[17] of Panmure Gordon stockbrokers, together with great-great-grandfather Sir Ewen Cameron,^[18] London head of the Hongkong and Shanghai Bank, played key roles in arranging loans supplied by the Rothschilds to the Japanese Central Banker (later Prime Minister) Takahashi Korekiyo for the financing of the Japanese Government in the Russo-Japanese war.^[19]

Cameron's maternal grandfather was Sir William Mount, 2nd Baronet, an Army officer and the High Sheriff of Berkshire, and Cameron's maternal great-grandfather was Sir William Mount, 1st Baronet, CBE, Conservative MP for Newbury 1918–1922. Cameron's great-great grandmother was Lady Ida Matilda Alice Feilding. His great-great-great grandfather was William Feilding, 7th Earl of Denbigh, GCH, PC, a courtier and Gentleman of the Bedchamber.^[20] His mother's cousin, Sir Ferdinand Mount, was head of 10 Downing Street's Policy Unit in the early 1980s. Cameron is the nephew of Sir William Dugdale, brother-in-law of Katherine, Lady Dugdale (died 2004) Lady-in-Waiting to HM The Queen since 1955,^[21][22] and former Chairman of Aston Villa Football Club. Birmingham born documentary film-maker Joshua Dugdale is his cousin.^[23]

Education[link]

Eton College chapel.

From the age of seven, Cameron was educated at two independent schools: at Heatherdown Preparatory School at Winkfield, in Berkshire, which counts Prince Andrew and Prince Edward among its alumni. Due to good academic grades, Cameron entered its top academic class almost two years early.^[24] At the age of thirteen, he went to Eton College in Berkshire, following his father and elder brother.^[25] Eton is often described as the most famous independent school in the world,^[26] and "the chief nurse of England's statesmen".^[27] His early interest was in art. Cameron was in trouble as a teenager, six weeks before taking his O-Levels, when he was named as having smoked cannabis.^[2] He admitted the offence and had not been involved in selling drugs, so he was not expelled, but was fined, prevented from leaving school grounds, and given a "Georgic" (a punishment which involved copying 500 lines of Latin text).^[28]

Cameron passed 12 O-levels, and then studied three A-Levels in History of Art, History and Economics with Politics. He obtained three 'A' grades and a '1' grade in the Scholarship Level exam in Economics and Politics.^[29] The following autumn he passed the entrance exam for Oxford University, where he was offered an exhibition.^[30]

After leaving Eton in 1984,^[31] Cameron started a nine month gap year. He worked as a researcher for Tim Rathbone, Conservative MP for Lewes and his godfather. In his three months he attended debates in the House of Commons.^[32] Through his father, he was then employed for a further three months in Hong Kong by Jardine Matheson as a 'ship jumper', an administrative post.^[33]

Returning from Hong Kong he visited the then Soviet Union, where he was approached by two Russian men speaking fluent English. Cameron was later told by one of his professors that it was 'definitely an attempt' by the KGB to recruit him.^[34]

Cameron then began his Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics (PPE) at Brasenose College, Oxford.^[35] His tutor, Professor Vernon Bogdanor, described him as "one of the ablest"^[36] students he has taught, with "moderate and sensible Conservative" political views.^[9] Guy Spier, who shared tutorials with him, remembers him as an outstanding student; "We were doing our best to grasp basic economic concepts. David - there was nobody else who came even close. He would be integrating them with the way the British political system is put together. He could have lectured me on it, and I would have sat there and taken notes.."^[37] When commenting in 2006 on his former pupil's ideas about a "Bill of Rights" to replace the Human Rights Act, however, Professor Bogdanor, himself a Liberal Democrat, said, "I think he is very confused. I've read his speech and it's filled with contradictions. There are one or two good things in it but one glimpses them, as it were, through a mist of misunderstanding".^[38]

While at Oxford, Cameron was a member of the elite student dining society the Bullingdon Club, which has a reputation for an outlandish drinking culture associated with boisterous behaviour and damaging property.^[39] A photograph showing Cameron in a tailcoat with other members of the club, including Boris Johnson, surfaced in 2007, but was later withdrawn by the copyright holder.^[40] Cameron's period in the Bullingdon Club is examined in the Channel 4 docu-drama When Boris Met Dave broadcast on 7 October 2009.^[41] Cameron graduated in 1988 with a first class honours degree.^[42]

Early political career[link]

Conservative Research Department[link]

After graduation, Cameron worked for the Conservative Research Department between September 1988^[43] and 1993. A feature on Cameron in The Mail on Sunday on 18 March 2007 reported that on the day he was due to attend a job interview at Conservative Central Office, a phone call was received from Buckingham Palace. The male caller stated, "I understand you are to see David Cameron. I've tried everything I can to dissuade him from wasting his time on politics but I have failed. I am ringing to tell you that you are about to meet a truly remarkable young man."^[44]

In 1991, Cameron was seconded to Downing Street to work on briefing John Major for his then bi-weekly session of Prime Minister's Questions. One newspaper gave Cameron the credit for "sharper [...] despatch box performances" by Major,^[45] which included highlighting for Major "a dreadful piece of doublespeak" by Tony Blair (then the Labour Employment spokesman) over the effect of a national minimum wage.^[46] He became head of the political section of the Conservative Research Department, and in August 1991 was tipped to follow Judith Chaplin as Political Secretary to the Prime Minister.^[47]

However, Cameron lost to Jonathan Hill, who was appointed in March 1992. He was given the responsibility for briefing Major for his press conferences during the 1992 general election.^[48] During the campaign, Cameron was one of the young "brat pack" of party strategists who worked between 12 and 20 hours a day, sleeping in the house of Alan Duncan in Gayfere Street, Westminster, which had been Major's campaign headquarters during his bid for the Conservative leadership.^[49] Cameron headed the economic section; it was while working on this campaign that Cameron first worked closely with Steve Hilton, who was later to become Director of Strategy during his party leadership.^[50] The strain of getting up at 4:45 am every day was reported to have led Cameron to decide to leave politics in favour of journalism.^[51]

Special Adviser[link]

The Conservatives' unexpected success in the 1992 election led Cameron to hit back at older party members who had criticised him and his colleagues, saying "whatever people say about us, we got the campaign right," and that they had listened to their campaign workers on the ground rather than the newspapers. He revealed he had led other members of the team across Smith Square to jeer at Transport House, the former Labour headquarters.^[52] Cameron was rewarded with a promotion to Special Adviser to the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Norman Lamont.^[53]

Cameron was working for Lamont at the time of Black Wednesday, when pressure from currency speculators forced the Pound sterling out of the European Exchange Rate Mechanism. At the 1992 Conservative Party conference, Cameron had difficulty trying to arrange to brief the speakers in the economic debate, having to resort to putting messages on the internal television system imploring the mover of the motion, Patricia Morris, to contact him.^[54] Later that month Cameron joined a delegation of Special Advisers who visited Germany to build better relations with the Christian Democratic Union; he was reported to be "still smarting" over the Bundesbank's contribution to the economic crisis.^[55]

Lamont fell out with John Major after Black Wednesday and became highly unpopular with the public. Taxes needed to be raised in the 1993 Budget, and Cameron fed the options Lamont was considering through to Conservative Central Office for their political acceptability to be assessed.^[56] However, Lamont's unpopularity did not necessarily affect Cameron: he was considered as a potential "kamikaze" candidate for the Newbury By-election, which includes the area where he grew up.^[57] However, Cameron decided not to stand.

During the by-election, Lamont gave the response "Je ne regrette rien" to a question about whether he most regretted claiming to see "the green shoots of recovery" or admitted "singing in his bath" with happiness at leaving the ERM. Cameron was identified by one journalist as having inspired this gaffe; it was speculated that the heavy Conservative defeat in Newbury may have cost Cameron his chance of becoming Chancellor himself, even though as he was not a Member of Parliament he could not have been.^[58] Lamont was sacked at the end of May 1993, and decided not to write the usual letter of resignation; Cameron was given the responsibility to issue to the press a statement of self-justification.^[59]

Home Office[link]