ABSTRACT
Scotland is a country within a larger state. Along with England and Wales it forms Great Britain, which is itself the major part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. In terms of numbers, just over five million Scottish people form less than one tenth of the entire population of Great Britain, but this minority position does not mean that the distinctiveness of Scotland has been submerged by the larger partner. Partner is the appropriate description, as, unlike Wales, Scotland was never conquered by the English. The two crowns were united in 1603 when King James VI of Scotland also became King James I of England, but it was not until 1707 that the Scots actually united with the English in a voluntary Act of Union. Part of the bargain struck at the time was that Scotland should retain its own social institutions and not have those of England thrust upon it.
