One Queen, 70 years of tumultuous history

Queen Elizabeth II was crowned at Westminster Abbey on June 2, 1953 and, less than three weeks later, the honours of the Scottish crown followed at a ceremony in St Giles’ Cathedral, writes Stevie Gallagher.

It was a momentous occasion for The Queen, and the nation and in the seven decades her reign would span Scotland has endured and enjoyed seismic nation-changing events.

For Ewen Cameron, professor of Scottish History at the University of Edinburgh, modern Scotland has emerged gradually during this second Elizabethan Age.

“In the 1950s, Scotland was still a smoky, industrial place with coal mines, shipyards, steel mills, cotton, linoleum and jute factories,” said professor Cameron. “That’s largely gone now. The old class boundaries have changed, as has the racial make-up of Scotland. In 1953, Scotland was quite a white, Protestant, Presbyterian place. Whereas these days we’re modestly diverse.”

Here, Professor Cameron speaks to a few of the momentous staging posts on that journey.

European Capital of Culture. 1992

Ravenscraig steelworks is demolished.

1996

The movie Trainspotting wins international acclaim. “The year previously, Mel Gibson’s Braveheart came out to much critical acclaim, and won several Oscars, and this was followed by Danny

Boyle’s Trainspotting. You can see the two visions of Scotland here, the classic tale of William Wallace’s fight for freedom versus the dystopian tale of heroin users in 1980s Edinburgh, with a terrific soundtrack. And it’s interesting both visions were lapped up.”

1996

The Stone of Destiny is permanently returned to Scotland and housed in Edinburgh Castle. It will go back to London for the new King’s Coronation.

1999

The Scottish Parliament meets for the first time.

2006

Establishment of the National Theatre of Scotland.

2007

Terrorists attack Glasgow Airport. “Although the attack itself was very serious there seemed to be a very Scottish attitude with regards to how we dealt with it. John Smeaton and a number of other bystanders helped stopped the attack, and Smeaton became a national celebrity as a result.”

2011

The Scottish National Party gain an overall majority of the Scottish Parliament.

2013

Andy Murray, below, is Wimbledon champion.

2014

Scots vote 55-45 against independence in the referendum. “Prior to the referendum there was a hardcore of around 25%-30% who backed independence, but that rose to 45% in the final vote. The genie was out of the bottle.”

2016

Brexit referendum – UK votes Yes while Scotland votes No.

2022

The Queen dies at Balmoral.

“The fact the Queen died in Scotland gave the royal family a chance to demonstrate their inherent Scottishness; the Queen Mother came from the Strathmore family, it was common to see King Charles in a kilt, Princess Anne is the chancellor of my university. In my opinion, the Queen seemed very aware of all things Scottish, as does King Charles. Are Princes William and Harry? I’m not so sure.”