In 2014, Scotland held an independence referendum; had it succeeded, Scotland would have become the first Western European region to formally, and peacefully, secede from its parent state. Spearheaded by the nationalist Scottish National Party, the referendum could have broken a union that has lasted for over three centuries. Though it did not pass, the relatively close results suggest Scots are dissatisfied with the union as it stands, and that the issue of Scottish sovereignty is yet to be resolved.

This thesis seeks to understand why and how Scotland's nationalist movement developed, I address whether Scotland was destined to eventually challenge the unity and sanctity of the United Kingdom. Exploring Tom Nairn's claim of Britain's inevitable decline and fracturing and Benedict Anderson's analysis of community and nationalism, I investigate the historical context of Scottish sovereignty and the Union of Parliaments, the cultural foundations of Scottish identity, and how the decline of the British Empire and resulting economic destitution in Scotland contributed to the development of Scottish nationalism. I also draw upon the works of David McCrone, Neil Davidson, T.M. Devine, and Christopher Harvie to further address the context of Scottish national development and its position within the UK. The main question this thesis raises and attempts to answer is whether Scottish nationalism is an anomaly or a logical development in British history that fits within Anderson's concept of nationalism, or if it supports Nairn's theory of the UK's decline and eventual dissolution.

To answer this question, I hone in on both the economic, cultural, and political contours and restructuration of Scotland and the British state. Though Scotland was a major component of the British state, as well as the British Empire, it maintained a distinct cultural identity within the United Kingdom. This identity might have been based on a romanticized reading of Scottish history, but it remained an important cultural identifier for the group, allowing them to remain unique despite Britain's dominant national identity. These cultural differences were the platform for nationalist development, but Scotland required motivation to politically mobilize and become as a nation. It was never inevitable that Scotland would emerge as a nation, nor that it would seriously challenge the unity of the British state. However, once Scots became dissatisfied with the British state, the emerging nation grew relatively quickly. Such development follows Anderson's framework for forming nationalism and establishing a fairly strong pro-independence movement.