The Church of Scotland separated from the Roman Catholic Church with the Scottish Reformation in 1560, and the split from it of the Scottish Episcopal Church began in 1582, in the reign of James VI of Scotland, over disagreements about the role of bishops.

Later 16th century Scottish chronicles, written after the Reformation, shape history according to Catholic or Protestant viewpoints.

The Scottish Reformation took place only days later when the Scottish Parliament abolished the Roman Catholic religion and outlawed the Mass.

The eventual Reformation of the Scottish Church followed a brief civil war in 1559 – 60, in which English intervention on the Protestant side was decisive.

A legacy of the Reformation in Scotland was the aim of having a school in every parish, which was underlined by an act of the Scottish parliament in 1696 ( reinforced in 1801 ).

* Ryrie, Alec, The Origins of the Scottish Reformation ( Manchester: Manchester University Press, 2006 ) ISBN 0-7190-7105-4

Thereafter, the seat of the Bishopric of the Isles was relocated to the north, firstly to Snizort on Skye and then Iona, a state of affairs which continued until the 16th century Scottish Reformation.

* 1559 – John Knox returns from exile to Scotland to become the leader of the beginning Scottish Reformation.

Modern Presbyterianism traces its institutional roots back to the Scottish Reformation.

John Knox, a Scotsman who studied with Calvin in Geneva, Switzerland, took Calvin's teachings back to Scotland ( see Scottish Reformation ).

** Scottish Reformation, in 1560, part of the wider Protestant Reformation

* Scottish Reformation, 1560

Somerset aimed to unite England and Scotland by marrying Edward to the young Scottish queen Mary, and aimed to forcibly impose the English Reformation on the Church of Scotland.

The result is inconclusive but Kennedy is fighting a losing battle against the Reformation, which had been confirmed by the Scottish government in 1560.

John Knox ( c. 1514 – 24 November 1572 ) was a Scottish clergyman and a leader of the Protestant Reformation who brought reformation to the church in Scotland.

On his return to Scotland he led the Protestant Reformation in Scotland, in partnership with the Scottish Protestant nobility.

* May 2 – John Knox returns from exile to Scotland to become the leader of the beginning Scottish Reformation.

The church occupies the site of the ancient chancel and transepts of a large medieval Benedictine abbey, which was sacked in 1560 during the Scottish Reformation and permitted to fall into disrepair.

During the Scottish Reformation, the abbey church was sacked in March 1560.

The Scottish Reformation also played a big role in the town with the sacking of the Houses of the Greyfriars and Blackfriars, after a sermon given by John Knox in St John's Kirk in 1559.

In the mid-16th century, John Knox instigated the Scottish Reformation at grass-roots level with a sermon against ' idolatry ' in the burgh kirk of St. John the Baptist.

It is strongly associated with French, Dutch, Swiss and Scottish Reformation movements, and the Reformed and Presbyterian churches.

He only went to war twice, once in 1489 during the Breton crisis and the invasion of Brittany, and in 1496 – 1497 in revenge for Scottish support of Perkin Warbeck and for their invasion of Northern England.

* May 10 – Scottish nobles recognize the authority of King Edward I of England in mediating resolution of the succession crisis created by the death of King Alexander III of Scotland five years earlier.

Problems arose only with the Scottish succession crisis of the early 1290s.

Nominally friendly lords and even his own fortresses closed their gates to him, and John was forced to flee into Scotland with a handful of retainers and throw himself on the charity of the Scottish King Robert II until the crisis was over.

The " Lennox crisis " refers to the political dilemma in England which arose from the dynastic ambition of the Lennoxes: Matthew Stewart, 4th Earl of Lennox, was third in line to the Scottish throne, and his wife Margaret Douglas was niece to Henry VIII and granddaughter of Henry VII.

Although Cleutin seems to have been universally popular, the resentment of the Scottish nobility at these appointments fuelled the coming crisis.

Jim Hacker will return to head a coalition government, dealing with an economic crisis, his coalition partner having a leadership crisis, and Scottish independence ..

In attempting to force the Scots to accept a new Prayer Book in 1637, Charles sparked a crisis that led to the compilation and subscription of the National Covenant in early 1638, a document which rejected all innovations in worship that had not been subject to the approval of both the Scottish Parliament and the General Assembly of the church.

When Scotland consolidated under Kenneth MacAlpine ( crowned at Scone in 844 ), Galloway did not form part of the kingdom ; but in return for the services rendered to him at this crisis Kenneth gave his daughter in marriage to the Galloway chief, Olaf the White, and also conferred upon the men of Galloway the privilege of marching in the van of the Scottish armies, a right exercised and recognized for several centuries.

The bank also took the lead in establishing the security and stability of the entire Scottish banking system, which became more important after the collapse of the Ayr Bank in 1772, in the crisis following the collapse of the London house of Neal, James, Fordyce and Down.

* Highland Potato Famine, a major agrarian crisis in the Scottish Highlands from 1846 to 1857

Some analysts considered this post to be a " poisoned chalice ", as he would be required to resolve both a crisis in the Scottish Qualifications Authority over exam marking, and pay disputes with the teaching unions.

* 7 August 2002-Players ' Union chairman Gordon Taylor calls for the Football League, currently in a financial crisis following the collapse of ITV Digital, to combine with the 12 Scottish Premier League clubs to form an expanded Football League.

Another argument for retaining the three verdict system was brought up by Scottish rape crisis centres, who lobbied for this among the members of the Scottish parliament.

In 1999, in response to the escalating crisis in Kosovo, the Scottish Refugee Council worked with the Refugee Action, UNHCR and other partners to set up reception centres as part of a humanitarian evacuation programme.

During the crisis of the Scottish Reformation the castle was surrendered by negotiation to James Hamilton, Duke of Châtellerault as leader of the Lords of the Congregation.

A crisis point was reached in 1641, when the Scottish Covenanters and English Long Parliament threatened to invade Ireland to finally subdue Catholicism there.

However, it was not until a severe economic crisis, on account of harvest failure and the economic adventure in Panama where the Scots tried to establish a colony ( an attempt which failed utterly due to fever, hostile natives and lacking English co-operation ), that the Scottish Parliament did agree to a union of Parliaments.

As James had not been present in Scotland during the crisis and had not fled from Scottish territory in December, it would be highly dubious to claim that he had ' abdicated ' the Scottish throne.

The novel touches on several issues, including the nature of Scottish national identity, and the " peasant crisis " i. e. the coming of modernisation to traditional farming communities.