20th Century History of Scotland
Twentieth Century Scotland Chronology of Events
A List of important and/or interesting events in Scotland in the twentieth century listed in chronological order.
You can move up and down the timeline using the date bands: the bottom band moves you along centuries quickly and the middle bank moves along decades. Click on individual events to see more details and description.
A List of important and/or interesting events in Scotland in the twentieth century listed in chronological order.
Stone of Destiny
Like the Great War before it, the Second World War pulled Scotland and England together in a fight against a common enemy - Germany.
Old rivalries and tensions between the two countries were put aside as the whole of Britain put its shoulder to the wheel to defeat the Nazis.
It was during the war, however, that the seeds of the idea of Scottish independence were quietly being sewn - seeds which, just over half a century later, would germinate in the country once again winning home rule.
Notoriously poor slum in the centre of Glasgow that has now been knocked down. Remains a byword for poverty.
The Sixties may have been swinging in places like London, Paris and San Francisco - but in Scotland, there wasn't much to smile about.
High unemployment, shipyard closures and the troubles of traditional industries all contributed to a mood that the country was sinking, and little could be done to stop the slow death.
It was the war to end all wars - and it very nearly put an end to the entire flower of Scotland's manhood too.
The Great War was one of the most awesome, bitter and ultimately destructive conflicts in Scottish history. It wiped out a generation of young men and meant the nation had to practically rebuild itself from the ground up.
Of course, Scots had been dying in wars for centuries, generally against England. This conflict, though, was different. The country's brightest and ablest youngsters were not dying fighting the English, but alongside them.
A Scottish Parliament at Last
Many Scots still see the 1980s and much of the 1990s as one of the darkest periods in modern history.
They regard the Conservative years as a wilderness era during which industries were destroyed, hundreds of thousands of people thrown onto the dole and the entire country used as an experimental zone for unpopular policies such as the poll tax.
Margaret Thatcher's time in Downing Street caused Scots to slip into a deep depression as the country found itself having to adjust to a massively painful economic upheaval.
The story of Glasgow after 1918 and especially the Red Clydeside movement. The Red Clydeside remains an iconic moment in Scottish political history and a cornerstone of Scottish labour psychology.
Second World War & Scotland
No event in modern history has caused as much upheaval in Scotland as the Second World War.
The battle against Hitler once again saw Scots in the front line of the fighting - only this time, civilians at home suffered as much as the soldiers, sailors and airmen who were confronting the enemy directly.
Scotland's changes after the second world war
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