3+-+Scottish+symbols

 ﻿Scottish Symbols



toc = = = = = = =__**Introduction**__=

Many symbols represent the basic patriotism of Scotland. From the great Stone of Scone, also known as the stone of destiny, used for many years in Scotland for the coronation of their monarchs ("Scotland's History"), to the thistle, the national emblem of Scotland with its spiky outer coat acting as a natural defendant and aid in many wars for the Scottish ("Historic- UK.com"). These symbols not only represent the patriotism of the Scottish but also instill a sense of kinship among the many generations, old and young. Each Scottish symbol represents a portion of their history which helped to build their country's strength and shape their lives into what they are today. When the younger generations look at these symbols they will be able to establish a connection with their Scottish heritage and that is what makes these symbols so important and relevant for yesterday, today, and for the future.

=**__Hadrian's Wall__ - Bianca B.**=

Hadrian’s Wall was originally made when Emperor Hadrian made a visit to Britain in 122 AD (“Hadrian’s Wall- history”). The purpose of the wall was to serve as a military barrier to separate the Romans from the barbarians, but now it has become a tourist attraction (“Hadrian’s Wall- history and archeology”). The wall stretches a total of 117 kilometers, crossing from the western side of Britain to the eastern coast of Cumbria (“Hadrian’s Wall- history”). The wall originally was built with stone on the east side and stacked turf on the western side (Wake). Roman forts were built along the wall where around 30 soldiers would live at a time (Wake).  Most of the roman soldiers weren’t even of roman decent. The majority of them where from countries like Holland, Belgium, France and Spain (Wake). The constructions of the wall were by skilled roman legionaries (Wake). The wall also had an economic role in taxing trade between Barbarian tribes and Romanized British (Wake). But mostly the wall was used for defense. It was also said that Emperor Hadrian built the wall not only as defense but as a way to show boundaries instead of expanding (Wake).

=**__Iona (as the place of High Scotland & Scotland)__** - Amanda C.=

 When St. Columba came to Iona, he wanted to get away from Ireland because of clout (Maclean, 19). He brought twelve followers when he came to Iona (Noonan, 110). He picked Iona because he was not able to see Ireland from its shores (Cabasin, 326). Columba was abbot of the abbey from 563 to 597 (Fisher, 238). Iona was a burial place for the high kings of Scotland, Ireland, and Picts. There are some Norwegian rulers (Cabasin, 326).

King Kenneth MacAlpin (834 - 859) was that first king that was buried at the Abbey, which has been recorded due to the markers have been worn off over time ("British Royal Family History"). In the 11th century, King Duncan of Scotland (1034 - 1040) ruled then died and King Macbeth was crowned ("British Royal Family History"). Then the eldest son of Duncan, Malcolm III became king, but was not buried at Iona. When Donald III was king, he was replaced by his nephew, Duncan II, and then Duncan II was killed a few months, thus made Donald III become king again ("British Royal Family History").Donald III was the last King of Scots to have been buried at the Abbey (Magnusson, 57). Donald III was the youngest son of former king Duncan ("British Royal Family History").



=**__Stone of Scone__ - Lauren R.**=

The Stone of Scone**,** also known as the Stone of Destiny ,was used for the crowning of Scottish kings for centuries. Weighing 336 pounds,the Stone of Scone is rectangular and made out of yellow sandstone ("Stone of Scone"). The last time the stone was used in a coronation was 1292 with the crowning of John Balliol as King (McAlister). The reason for that is, in 1296 it was dragged over to England by the English Monarch Edward I (McAlister). Later, the English decided to stick it under their Coronation Chair ("Stone of Scone").

According to one Celtic legend, in biblical times the Stone of Scone was a pillow that Jacob, chosen by God to continue the patriarchal line that became Israel,was resting on when he saw visions of angels at Bethel (Palmgren). It is said to have traveled from the Holy Land to Egypt, Sicily, and Spain ("Stone of Scone"). It finally reached Ireland in about 700 B.C ("Stone of Scone"). There, it was placed on the hills of Tara, where the ancient kings of Ireland were crowned ("Stone of Scone"). In around 840 A.D., Kenneth MacAlpin took it to the village of Scone where it got its name, the Stone of Scone ("Stone of Scone").



=**__Scottish Crown Jewels__ - Chris G.**=



The Scottish Crown Jewels, also known as the Honours of Scotland, are comprised of three different objects: a crown, a sword, and a scepter (The Honours of Scotland). Each piece is decorated with magnificent jewels. For example, the crown is decorated with pearls, diamonds, amethysts and garnets; the scepter with gold, silver and rock crystal; the sword, along with the scabbard and belt, with beautiful drawings of Christian symbols (Loreto). These three items have been undercover for over 700 years (The 'Honours' of Scotland).

During the English Civil War, the Honours were in of being destroyed by Oliver Cromwell (The 'Honours' of Scotland). Charles II was afraid that they would be obtained by Cromwell, so they were sent to Dunnottar Castle after his coronation in 1651 (Loreto). Despite Charles’s II efforts, the castle was seized by the Cromwell. However, two brave women risked their lives to save the Honours, relocating them to Kineff Church in 1668 (Loreto). In 1707, the Honours were moved to Edinburgh Castle, and remained forgotten there until 1818 when Sir Walter Scott uncovered the crown, scepter, and the sword (The Honours of Scotland). The Scottish Crown Jewels are still kept in Edinburgh Castle to this day, safe from the dangers it once experienced.

= __**The Thistle**__ - **Jasmine C.** =



The Scottish Thistle, the national emblem of Scotland, was first used on silver coins issued back in 1470 by King James III (Duncan). The Scottish Thistle was later added to the Scottish Royal Arms in 1687 ("The Thistle"). The Scottish Royal Arms which established the noble order of the Thistle, truly gave the Thistle its lasting significance by adding it to the Scottish order of Chivalry ("Thistle"). In the Scottish Order of Chivalry, knights wore a golden collar with their links made of golden thistles to represent their loyalty to Scotland (Duncan). The knights and ladies of the Scottish Order of Chivalry also wore a star with the thistle emblem on their left breast establishing allegiance (Duncan).The star not only featured the Thistle emblem but also a motto for Scottish knights to abide by ("Thistle"). This motto, "Nemo Me Impune Lacessit", which means"No one provokes me with impunity", is used to represent the Scottish Thistle and the Scottish in general by encouraging the Scots to prevail without distraction (Duncan).

This makes even more sense when considering the historical Scottish legend surrounding the establishment of the Thistle as the national emblem of Scotland. The legend of the Thistle is definitely a heroic story of the underdog victory in battle. In the legend, during the 13th century when King Haakon of Norway planned to conquer the Scots, an army of King Haakon decided to launch a surprise attack on the Scots ("The Thistle"). On the night of the surprise attack, when the army of King Haakon landed on the coast of Scotland, one soldier of King Haakon stepped on a sharp and prickly thistle and screamed out in pain (Duncan). The scream inevitably alerted the Scots just in time to respond and the Scots felt as if the Thistle was responsible for this miracle victory ("The Thistle"). Although this tale provides the Scots with much pride in their country, it doesn't have enough historical evidence to fully become accepted as fact and so for right now this legend still remains a tale.With that being said, although the Thistle has no established heroic story, the Scottish Thistle is still seen as the national symbol of Scotland, and as an encouragement for Scots of all ages to preserve Scottish history.

=**Works Cited**=

Cabasin, Linda, and Mark Sullivan. //Fodor's ... Scotland//. 21st. New York, NY: Random House INC., 2008. 326. Print.

Duncan, John. "The Scottish Thistle, Emblem of Scotland." //http://www.scotshistoryonline.co.uk//. N.p., n.d. Web. 3 Jun 2011. < [] >. Fisher, Andrew. //Traveller//. 6th. Northampton, MA: Interlink Books, 2009. 22,34,238. Print.

"Hadrian's Wall - History and Archaeology ."//Northumberland Nation Park//. N.p., n.d. Web. 4 Jun 2011. .

"Hadrian's Wall - History ." //www.Roman-Britain.org//. N.p., 2011. Web. 4 Jun 2011. .

Loreto, Monica. "The Scottish Crown Jewels." // scotlandinargentina.com //. N.p., n.d. Web. 4 Jun 2011. < __ [] __ >.

Maclean, Fitzroy. //Scotland : a concise history//. New York, NY: Thames & HudsonLtd, 1983. 19. Print.

Magnusson, Magnus. //Scotland : the story of a nation//. New York, NY: Atlantic Monthly Press, 2000. 57. Print.

McAlister, Neil."The Stone of Destiny." N.p., 2001. Web. 2 Jun 2011. <[|http://www.durham.net/~neilmac/stone.htm]>.

Noonan, John. //The castles & ancient monuments of Scotland//. New York, NY: Welcome Rain Publishers, 2000. 110. Print.

Palmgren, Henrik. "Stone of Scone- Stone of Destiny - Jacob's Pillow/Pillar Stone - BabyLon(don) & Rennes Le Chateau." N.p., 2005.Web. 4 Jun 2011. .

"Stone ofScone." //Encyclopædia Britannica. EncyclopædiaBritannica Online//. Encyclopædia Britannica, 2011. Web. 02 Jun.2011. <[]>.

//Symbols of Scotland- Thistles//. Web. 3 Jun 2011. < [] >.

"The 'Honours' of Scotland." //historic-uk.com//. HUK, n.d. Web. 4 Jun 2011. < __ [] __ >.

"The Honours of Scotland." //visitscotland.com//. N.p., 2011. Web. 4 Jun 2011. < __ [] __ >.

//The Saltire//. Web. 3 Jun 2011. < [] >.

"The Scottish Thistle." The Scottish Thistle. Web. 2 May 2011. < [] >.

"The Stone of Scone." //Scotland's History//. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 May 2011. < []>.

"The Thistle." //http://www.visitscotland.com//. visitscotland.com, 2011. Web. 3 Jun 2011. < [] >.

"The Thistle- National Emblem of Scotland." //Historic- UK.com//. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 May 2011. < [] >.

Uinted Kingdom. //British Royal Family History//. , Web. 4 Jun 2011. .

Wake, Heather. "Hadrian's Wall." //Etrusia - Roman History//. N.p., n.d. Web. 4 Jun 2011. .

=**Related Links**=

**Scottish Symbols (General)**

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 * Scottish Symbols (Specific)**

[|http://www.durham.net/~neilmac/stone.htm]
 * __Stone of Scone__** -
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 * __Tartan__** -

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 * __Bagpipes__** -

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 * __Thistle__** -

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__**Scottish Crown Jewels**__ - []

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 * __Hadrian's Wall__** -

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__**Iona (as the place of High Scotland & Scotland)**__ - []

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[|http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/iona-the-graves-of-the-kings/]