Scotland

Scotland

"The first thing to know about Scotland is that it is not part or England, although it is joined to it. It is part of Great Britain, or the United Kingdom, or the British Isles" (Sutherland 7). The great culture out numbers the size and the population exceeds five million. Scotland is located to the north of England and has a very green landscape. First I will tell you about Scottish people, then the government, followed by the products and resources, and ending with the land.

In the 12th century, Scotland was divided into clans, each clan had their own unique design for their tartans (Scotland Eyewitness Travel Guide 26). Each clan had a chief. "The chief summoned his clan to do battle by sending a runner across his land bearing a burning cross" (Scotland Eyewitness Travel Guide 26). "After the Battle of Culloden, all the clan lands were forfeited to the Crown, and the wearing of tartan was banned for nearly one hundred years" (Scotland Eyewitness Travel Guide 26).

"Scotland's national game was pioneered on the sandy links around St. Andrews. The earliest record of the game being played dates from 1457, when golf was banned by James II because it was interfering with his subjects' archery practice. Mary, Queen of the Scots was berated in 1568 for playing immediately after her husband Darnley had been murdered" (Scotland Eyewitness Travel Guide 123). Currently, there is still a noticeably large tradition of golf in Scotland. The British Open, a major golf tournament is often held at one of Scotland's historical golf courses.

"The Scots are great walkers and have plenty of beautiful country to explore" (Sutherland 90). They enjoy climbing and Scotland also offers skiing and sailing. Or you could just fish at one of Scotland's scenic lochs or rivers, maybe even the coast. You could also hunt if you'd like. Overall Scotland has many things to entertain at all levels

(Sutherland 90).

The Scottish Educational Department is in charge of Scotland's education (Sutherland 115). "Schooling is compulsory for children between the ages of five and sixteen. There are different options for courses to study. Some schools, for example, take students at eleven and graduate them at eighteen" (Sutherland 115).

"There are eight universities in Scotland: Aberdeen, Stirling, Dundee, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Heriot-Watt (Edinburgh), Strathclyde, and St. Andrews. Another option for higher education is the "Open University." It offers courses on a part-time basis via radio, TV, correspondence courses, and summer school" (Sutherland 115).

Scots enjoy strength and stamina contests. Even though Scotland's major language is English, about fifty-thousand people speak Gaelic. Scots aren't very healthy, they eat red meat and greasy fish, and this leads to heart problems. Scotland also had the highest tobacco and alcohol rates in the UK (Scotland Eyewitness Travel Guide 12).

Scottish culture is partly made up by a major contribution of poetry. Robert Burns, national poet of Scotland, is best known for "To a Mouse" (Sutherland 113). Sean Connery, the first James Bond of the popular James Bond series of movies, was born in Scotland (Sutherland 113).

"The church of Scotland, the kirk, is also known as the Presbyterian church. But while Scotland has a national church, religious freedom is guaranteed. There are Protestants of other denominations, Roman Catholics, Jews, and many Indians and Pakistanis who have settled in Scotland practice their own religions" (Sutherland 111).

Ever since Scotland and England signed a treaty in 1707 that made them one governing body (Scotland Eyewitness Travel Guide 12). "The Scottish National Party campaigns for complete independence" (Scotland Eyewitness Travel Guide 12). In the past one hundred or so years the economy has been great due to some great contributors. The coal mining and oil found in the North Sea have played a major part in the economy. Other contributors are shipbuilding and steel productions (Scotland Eyewitness Travel Guide 12).

Most of the products and resources of Scotland were stated in the preceding paragraph, this included shipbuilding, oil, and steel making. Others are coal mining, zinc,