Scotland

Scotland is dominated by a series of mountain ranges. In the south are the Southern Uplands, including the Cheviot Hills, which rise to about 600 meters and mark the border with England. Most of its nothern half is covered by the Highlands, comprising the Grampians, which include Ben Nevis (1343 meters), and the North West Highlands.

The longest rivers, the Tay and Spey, rise in the Grampians but the Clyde, flowing from the Southern Uplands through the Central Lowlands, is more important commercially. Glen More is a fault line cutting from one coast to the other, south of the North West Highlands. Lying to the west of the mainland are the Inner and Outer Hebrides; to the north are the Orkney and Shetland islands.

Presbyterianism has been the dominant religion since the sixteenth century. The Gaelic language is spoken by many, particularly in outlying and rural areas. Robert Burns and Sir Walter Scott are two of Scotland's most famous poets. Novelist Robert Louis Stevenson and philosopher David Hume were also Scots.

Scotland was first settled 6000 years ago, and 2000 years later the Beaker folk settled the area. The Celts, also from mainland Europe, invaded Scotland in about 300 BC.

The Romans, who conquered Scotland in the late first century AD, called the people Picts, and Rome ruled Scotland until the early fifth century. The Scots came from the north oflreland in about AD 500 and they and the Picts conducted a series of raids on England. In 844 a Scot, Kenneth MacAlpin, also became king of the Picts, thereby uniting Scotland for the first time.

In the eleventh century the throne frequently changed incumbents; Macbeth was one of the kings who killed and were killed during this period. For most of the period 1100-1600 Scotland was allied with France in wars against England. In 1320, after being led in battle by William Wallace and Robert Bruce, Scotland declared its independence. In the second half of the sixteenth century the Reformation, led by John Knox, converted most of Scotland from Roman Catholicism to Presbyterianism.

Mary, Queen of Scots, a Catholic, was executed by Elizabeth I. In 1603 James of Scotland also became King of England, and in 1707 the United Kingdom was formed.

However the Highland Scots rose up under the leadership of James Stuart in 1715 and later Bonnie Prince Charlie. The rebellion was finally crushed in 1746 at Culloden, a moor near Inverness.