Patriotism and Partisanship in Post-Union Scotland, 1724–37

Abstract

This article examines the rise of the Scottish Patriot movement in the 1720s and 1730s, asserting that Patriotism provided a partisan channel for Scots who supported the British union, but took issue with the English Whig ministry and its disregard for their nation's political and economic needs. It traces three events critical to the development of Scottish Patriotism: the malt tax crisis of 1724–5, the election of 1734 and the Porteous crisis of 1736–7. These moments of political confrontation gave Scottish Patriots an opportunity to advance a platform that included the reform of Britain's tax structure, investment in Scottish manufactures and an interventionist American-focused foreign policy. First and foremost, Scottish Patriots sought to create a more equitable British political system, in which Scotland's rights and institutions were accorded the same value as England's. The Patriots' message proved attractive to Scotland's political elite and urban commercial classes, giving rise to new partisan alignments and new ideas about Scotland's future within the British state.