In the United Kingdom and Ireland, the English Kings of Arms, Scotland's Lord Lyon King of Arms, and the Chief Herald of Ireland continue making grants of arms.

" This particular line of criticism also misses the obvious parallels that existed between the story's background ( England conquered by the Normans in 1066, when they killed Saxon King Harold at Hastings, about 130 years previously ) and the prevailing situation in Scott's native Scotland ( Scotland's union with England in 1707 – about the same length of time had elapsed before Scott's writing and the resurgence in his time of Scottish nationalism evidenced by the cult of Robert Burns, the famous poet who deliberately chose to work in Scots vernacular though he was an educated man and spoke modern English eloquently ).

Stuart Hill claims that independence comes from an arrangement struck in 1468 between King Christian I of Denmark / Norway and Scotland's James III, whereby Christian pawned the Shetland Islands to James in order to raise money for his daughter's dowry.

* 1322 – Robert the Bruce of Scotland defeats King Edward II of England at Byland, forcing Edward to accept Scotland's independence.

* March 19 – King Alexander III of Scotland dies in a horse accident with only Yolande of Dreux, Queen of Scotland's unborn child and 3-year-old Margaret, Maid of Norway as heirs ; this sets the stage for the First War of Scottish Independence and increased influence of England over Scotland.

His successor, King Magnus the Lawmender gave up that claim in the treaty of Perth, but secured Scotland's recognition of Norwegian rule over Orkney and Shetland.

He was still involved in decision making and, in 1120, he agreed to King Alexander I of Scotland's suggestion that Eadmer become the next Bishop of St Andrew's.

Used historically by the King of Scots, the Royal Standard of Scotland differs from Scotland's national flag, The Saltire, in that its correct use is restricted by an Act of the Parliament of Scotland to only a few Great Officers of State who officially represent The Sovereign in Scotland.

However, on the death of King Henry I in 1135, the area was regained by Scotland's King David I.

King Edward was furious when David de Moravia, Bishop of Moray, joined Scotland's cause with Bruce, and Edward appealed to the Pope who excommunicated the bishop, thus removing papal protection, causing him to flee to Orkney, then to Norway, only to return after Robert Bruce's victories against the English.

In 1330 Scotland's standard unit of weight was brought in line with that of Thurso at the decree of King David II of Scotland, a measure of the town's economic importance.

Initially a static caption, an animated ident was introduced by 1965 in which the lion would spin inside a box, though this later modified as a simple zoom in following, according to some reports, a complaint from The Lord Lyon King of Arms, the man in charge of protecting Scotland's heraldry.

* Lord Lyon is Scotland's only " King of Arms ", or high heraldic officer.

In this time of violence and confusion, Scotland's leaders understandably turned for support to their nearest neighbour and brother-in-law of their former king, King Edward I of England.

Sir Andrew would twice be regent for King David II, the son of King Robert I, and would display a remarkably similar aptitude to that shown by his father for leading Scotland's armies.

* Robert I of Scotland ( 1274 – 1329 ), also named Robert the Bruce, King of Scotland, 1306 – 1329, helped achieve Scotland's independence

King Charles II was received in a visit to Earl Marischal in 1650 ; however, in 1651 the English General Overton began a siege of Dunnottar seeking the prize of Scotland's Regalia, the royal crown, sword and sceptre used in the coronation of Charles II at Scone Palace.

In Scotland, the Lord Lyon King of Arms, and the Lyon Clerk and Keeper of the Records control matters armorial within a strict legal framework not enjoyed by their fellow officers of arms in London, and the court which is a part of Scotland's criminal jurisdiction has its own prosecutor, the court's Procurator Fiscal, who is however not an officer of arms.

Scotland's only king of arms, the Lord Lyon, exercises the royal prerogative by direct delegation from the Crown and like the Chief Herald of Ireland and the old Ulster King of Arms needs no warrant from any other office bearer.

In 1999 King Tut's decided to branch out with the launch of a monthly comedy night where comedians, including the likes of Phil Kay, Lynn Ferguson and Fred MacAuley have taken to the stage, alongside some of Scotland's rising young comics.

King Tut's also runs a tent, aptly named King Tut's Wah Wah Tent, in Scotland's biggest annual music festival, T in the Park, hosting many big acts.

However, a Laird possessing a Coat of Arms registered in the Public Register of All Arms and Bearings in Scotland is a member of Scotland's minor nobility.

However, a Laird possessing a Coat of Arms registered in the Public Register of All Arms and Bearings in Scotland is a member of Scotland's minor nobility.

Years after Wallace's death, Robert the Bruce, now Scotland's king, leads a Scottish army before a ceremonial line of English troops on the fields of Bannockburn where he is to formally accept English rule.

It is in the form of a letter submitted to Pope John XXII, dated 6 April 1320, intended to confirm Scotland's status as an independent, sovereign state and defending Scotland's right to use military action when unjustly attacked.

Haggis is traditionally served as part of the Burns supper on the week of January 25, when Scotland's national poet, Robert Burns, is commemorated.

Irn-Bru is a Scottish carbonated soft drink, for long advertised as " Scotland's other national drink " ( next to Scotch whisky ).

He is Scotland's most capped player of all time with 102 appearances, and also Scotland's joint-leading goal scorer, with 30 goals.

Maggieknockater is situated in the heart of Scotland's Malt Whisky Trail, situated less than 4 miles from Dufftown, home of the world-famous Glenfiddich Distillery.

Malcolm's second wife, Margaret of Wessex, was later beatified and is Scotland's only royal saint.

Although Scott died at Abbotsford, he was buried in Dryburgh Abbey, where nearby there is a large statue of William Wallace, one of Scotland's many romanticised historical figures.

* 1513 – James IV of Scotland is defeated and dies in the Battle of Flodden Field, ending Scotland's involvement in the War of the League of Cambrai.

The University of Glasgow is the fourth-oldest university in the English-speaking world and one of Scotland's four ancient universities.

Edinburgh's Telford College, one of Scotland's largest colleges, is named in the honour of the famous engineer.

As Scotland's smallest historic county, it is often nicknamed ' The Wee County '.

* Scotland's national LGBT pride festival is named Pride Scotia and involves a March and a community based festival held in June.

Dunfermline Abbey is one of Scotland's most important cultural sites.

This makes it the smallest city in Scotland: indeed it is smaller than many of Scotland's larger towns.

Sometimes, a state wishing to achieve independence from a dominating power will issue a declaration of independence ; the earliest surviving example is Scotland's Declaration of Arbroath in 1320, with the most recent example being Azawad's declaration of independence in 2012.

A 2010 Scottish Government study of " public attitudes towards the Scots language " found that 64 % of respondents ( around 1, 000 individuals being a representative sample of Scotland's adult population ) " don't really think of Scots as a language ", but it also found that " the most frequent speakers are least likely to agree that it is not a language ( 58 %) and those never speaking Scots most likely to do so ( 72 %)".

It is Scotland's most-visited paid tourist attraction, with over 1. 3 million visitors in 2011.

The use of " Scots " and " Scottish " is not altogether consistent ; but in most words and phrases referring to Scotland's people one or the other is normally used: there is a certain tendency for " Scottish " to be used in more formal contexts.