So, you think you know Scotland?
Learn more about our scotland through weekly questions
1.Who led the Jacobite Uprising in 1745?
- William of Orange
- James Francis Stuart
- King James VII
- Prince Charles Edward Stuart
Prince Charles Edward Louis John Casimir Silvetser Maria Stuart – also known as “Bonnie Prince Charlie” or “The Young Pretender” – raised his standard at Glenfinnan, at the head of Loch Shiel on August 19 1745, thus starting the second Jacobite Uprising. Like Mary Stuart, Queen of Scots, the spelling “Stuart” was used because there was no letter “w” in the French alphabet and “Stewart” became “Stuart”.
2.Who won the Battle of Stirling Bridge in 1297?
- Robert the Bruce
- William Wallace
- Mel Gibson
- Malcolm Canmore
A Scots army led by William Wallace and Andrew Murray defeated the English army led by John de Warenne, Earl of Surrey, at the Battle of Stirling Bridge on September 11 1297.
3.Who discovered that a by-product of coal-tar could be used to make waterproof clothing??
- Charles Macintosh
- John Loudon McAdam
- James “Paraffin” Young
- Joseph Black
While trying to find uses for waste products generated by gasworks, Charles Macintosh (1766-1843) used naptha, a by-product of the distillation of coal-tar, as a solvent for rubber. Despite early problems with the strong smell of rubber, his invention of waterproof clothing added his name to the English dictionary.
4.Where is Darien, the colony which Scotland attempted to create in 1695?
- West Africa
- Nova Scotia
The Darien Scheme in Panama was pushed forward by William Paterson who had earlier successfully proposed the establishment of the Bank of England. The scheme collapsed within two years and many Scots lost all their money. It was this which precipitated the Act of Union (merging of the Scots and English Parliaments) in 1707.
5.Who was the first husband of Mary Queen of Scots?
- Lord Darnley
- Earl of Bothwell
- King Henry VIII
- Dauphin of France
Henry VIII invaded Scotland during the “Rough Wooing” as he attempted to persuade the Scots that Mary should marry his son. But Mary Queen of Scot’s first husband was the Francis, Dauphin of France, the heir to the French throne. They married in Paris in 1558 – she was 16 and he was 14. When he died in 1560, Mary returned to Scotland (and later married Lord Darnley and, after his death, Lord Bothwell).
6.When did Prince Henry St Clair sail from Orkney and reach Nova Scotia?
- 15th Century
- 13th Century
- 14th Century
- 16th Century
There is strong evidence that Prince Henry St Clair reached Nova Scotia in 1398, nearly 100 years before Columbus reached the West Indies.
7.Who or what is “Mons Meg”?
- A Scottish mountain
- Queen Margaret
- A cannon
- A castle
Mons Meg was a cannon made in Mons in Belgium in the 15th century. It fired missiles weighing 330lbs (150kg) over two and a half miles. It is now preserved in Edinburgh Castle.
8.Where is the “Stone of Destiny” kept?
- Edinburgh Castle
- Westminster Abbey
- Stirling Castle
The kings of Dalriada in Argyll were crowned on the Stone of Destiny. King Kenneth I, 36th king of Dalriada, moved it to Scone in 840AD. King Edward I removed it to Westminster Abbey in 1296 where it remained underneath the Coronation Throne. It was returned to Scotland on 30 November 1996 and is housed beside the other Honours of Scotland in Edinburgh Castle.
9.Where is Robert the Bruce buried?
- Melrose Abbey
- Paisley Abbey
- Dunfermline Abbey
Robert the Bruce died in 1329. While his body is buried in Dunfermline Abbey, his heart is buried in Melrose Abbey.
10.Who was the last monarch crowned in Scotland?
- King James VI
- Queen Elizabeth II
- King James VII
- King Charles II
Charles II was crowned King of Scots at Scone, on January 1 1651, the last coronation on Scottish soil.