Britishness is symbolized by the Union Jack. This is the most potent symbols of Britishness. Britishness is the state of being British or having characteristics that are similar to British culture. It has got qualities that help to distinguish the people of Britain from the other population and form their unity base. The authenticity of Britishness is related to power and political relations. The origin of the term Britishness is dated back in 1707 to the formation of the Kingdom of Great Britain. Britishness became directly associated with the desire of the people to identify themselves as British and offer their allegiance to Britain. This term brought debates as the Life in the United Kingdom test was controversial. By the UK Independence Party, the term Britishness was associated with Civic nationalism while the Commission for Racial Equality felt like the minority ethnic groups had been left out from Britishness because of English dominance. It was decided that Britishness was a synonym for Englishness and was used to identify with both the British Empire and the UK. It was, however, agreed that Britishness was something that could not be taught since a British nation doesn’t even exist.
In terms of the island nations, Britishness was used to describe the distinctiveness in terms of culture and history. This was enhanced by the fact that Britain is an island that has been cut off from Europe. The fact that they see themselves as not part of Europe enhances Britishness. In terms of its topography, Britain has got very distinctive landscapes. The specific features include the lochs, glens, mountains, and highlands in Scotland; daffodils, valleys, and mountains in Wales; lakes, white cliffs, and rolling hills in England. These distinctive features have been used in identifying Britishness as a result of the unique features.
The national symbols that have been used in identifying the richness of Britishness are the Union Jack and the royal family. The Union Jack was seen as a wheel that steered them towards unity. The royal family is also another symbol of Britishness. Their representation of the monarchy is unique with the inclusion of the Queen, Prince Charles and Lady Diana. The houses of parliament, the Beefeaters, and the bulldog have also been used as national symbols for Britishness. In terms of the population, there is a definition of different types of British people. This includes the British as English, Scottish, and as Welsh people; the British as entirely White people and as multicultural and diverse people. All these various forms were all united by the feeling of Britishness.
Question Two
The Scottish government is a devolved Scotland government that has the responsibilities of economy, transport, taxation, housing, consumer advocacy, health, education, rural affairs, justice, and equal opportunities. The independent Scottish government such as the UK government has got the powers of defence, constitution, immigration, and foreign policy.
Question Three
Home rule can be considered as the creator of the current devolved parliament of Scotland. This is because the home rule movement became significant in the mid-20th century as it was campaigning for a Scottish assembly. The world war outbreak changed the history of Scotland since the Scottish home rule bill had been passed but intervened by the war. The powers of the Scottish government would have included pensions, labour exchanges and entirely Scottish affairs. The second bill of home rule was read in parliament in 1914, but due to the shooting of Archduke Franz Ferdinand in Sarajevo, the events that led to the First World War began and home rule was forgotten.
Question Four
When James VI of King Scotland became James 1st King of England, the crowns of England and Scotland were united in 1603. A year later in October 1604, he decreed the Royal Title and named it Great Brittaine to refer to “one imperial crown” made up of Scotland and England.
Question Five
The union of England and Scotland under the same government and parliament was done in 1707 following the Acts of Union. This union was first addressed by Queen Anne, who recommended in her speech in 1702 that the two kingdoms should be merged. The Scottish parliament passed an act of union on 6th January 1707, and the Commons of England followed the trend on 28th February. Queen Anne gave the assent for the merge on 6th March. This assent brought the Treaty of Union into effect. The treaty dictated that the two kingdoms would dissolve their parliaments. Then there would be the formation of a single government for both that involves 16 peers and 45 members from Scotland that are elected. From England, there would be 190 peers and 513 members that are elected. They two nations were united to form one kingdom that was named Great Britain. There was a creation of a monetary union a customs union. England came up with an Episcopal church and Scotland came up with the Presbyterian Church. The union flag that was formed thereafter was a combination of the Cross of St. Andrew that had white diagonals on a blue ground and the Cross of St. George that was red. Scottish voters were told in a referendum on 18th September 2014 to leave the United Kingdom. They, however, declined this nationalist call and stayed in the United Kingdom.