50 fascinating facts you should know about Scotland by https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection Scotland has been part of the United Kingdom for more than three hundred years, but it is unlike anywhere else in Britain. Here are 50 facts you should know about the country en-us 2019-12-10 14:06:22 UTC 2026-02-17 13:44:15 UTC hello@padlet.com https://padlet.net/icons/png/1f913.png 1. The official animal of Scotland is the Unicorn. vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423339263 2019-12-12 15:51:42 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423339263 2. The shortest scheduled flight in the world is one-and-a-half miles long from Westray to Papa Westray in the Orkney Islands of Scotland. The journey takes 1 minute 14 seconds to complete. vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423342702 2019-12-12 15:56:23 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423342702 vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423342993 2019-12-12 15:56:45 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423342993 4. The Neolithic settlement of Skara Brae , on the island of Orkney, is the oldest building in Britain, dating from 3100 BC. vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423343208 2019-12-12 15:57:00 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423343208 5. The Hamilton Mausoleum in South Lanarkshire has the longest echo of any man-made structure in the world; a whole 15 seconds. vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423346482 2019-12-12 16:01:39 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423346482 6. Scotland has more than 600 square miles of freshwater lakes, including the famous Loch Ness. vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423346728 2019-12-12 16:01:59 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423346728 7. The capital of Scotland, Edinburgh, is only its second largest city, after Glasgow. vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423352422 2019-12-12 16:10:04 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423352422 8. Edinburgh was the first city in the world which had its own fire brigade. vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423352745 2019-12-12 16:10:32 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423352745 9. Like Rome, Edinburgh was built on seven hills and the capital has more listed buildings than anywhere in the world. vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423354255 2019-12-12 16:12:38 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423354255 10. Scotland had its own monarch until 1603. After Elizabeth I died, James VI of Scotland also became James I of England, ruling both countries. vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423355735 2019-12-12 16:14:49 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423355735 11. St Andrews Links is considered the "home of golf"; the sport has been played there since the 15th century. vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423355918 2019-12-12 16:15:07 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423355918 12. Queen Victoria is reputed to have smoked cigarettes during her visits to the Highlands of Scotland to keep away midges. vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423356433 2019-12-12 16:15:56 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423356433 13.Edinburgh was home to Skye terrier Grey Friar’s Bobby, who captured the hearts of the nation by sitting on the grave of his dead owner for 14 years. vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423356632 2019-12-12 16:16:13 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423356632 14.Scotland is currently the second largest country in the UK, after England. vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423356811 2019-12-12 16:16:28 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423356811 15. The highest point in Scotland is Ben Nevis, at 4,406ft (1343m) vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423357016 2019-12-12 16:16:45 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423357016 16.The motto of Scotland is “Nemo me impune lacessit”, or: "No one provokes me with impunity". It is used by the Order of the Thistle and on later versions of the Royal coat of arms. vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423358060 2019-12-12 16:18:14 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423358060 17. The country is a favourite with the Royal family, who holiday at Balmoral castle in Royal Deeside. vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423358189 2019-12-12 16:18:27 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423358189 18. In the north east of the country, girls are called “quines” and boys “louns”. vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423358584 2019-12-12 16:18:58 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423358584 19. The very first recorded appearance of the elusive Loch Ness Monster occurred in 565 AD, when a " water beast " attacked one of St. Columba's followers in the loch. vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423359122 2019-12-12 16:19:41 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423359122 20. Scottish city Aberdeen is known as Europe’s oil capital, or the “Granite City”. vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423360154 2019-12-12 16:21:04 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423360154 21. The deepest loch in Scotland, Loch Morar, reaches 1,077ft (328m) down and is ranked the seventeenth deepest lake in the world. vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423360384 2019-12-12 16:21:22 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423360384 22. Scotland’s smallest distillery, Edradour in Pitlochry, has 100,000 visitors per year but produces just 90,000 litres of malt whisky. vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423360618 2019-12-12 16:21:41 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423360618 vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423361068
23. It is home to the oldest tree in Europe, a twisted yew which has stood in Fortingall for 3,000 years. According to local legend, Pontius Pilate was born in its shade and played there as a child

]]> 2019-12-12 16:22:17 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423361068 24. The raincoat was invented in1824 in Scotland by Charles Macintosh, a chemist born in Glasgow. In Great Britain, the garment is still called a “Mac”. vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423362508 2019-12-12 16:24:12 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423362508 vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423362848
25. The most common
religion of Scotland is Christianity, with churches traditionally being called “kirks”. 

]]> 2019-12-12 16:24:40 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423362848 26. Scotland gained independence in 1314, after Robert the Bruce defeated the English army at the Battle of Bannockburn. vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423365063 2019-12-12 16:27:38 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423365063 27. The Kingdom of Scotland remained as an independent state until 1 May 1707, when the Acts of Union joined it with England, in the United Kingdom of Great Britain. vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423774074 2019-12-13 13:40:04 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423774074 vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423774204
28. Since July 1, 1999, Scotland has its own parliament, for the first time since 1707. 

]]> 2019-12-13 13:40:24 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423774204 29. The country has an area of 30,414 square miles (78,772 km²) vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423774364 2019-12-13 13:40:47 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423774364 30. The total population is around 5.2 million, around 8.5 per cent of the UK’s population. vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423774518 2019-12-13 13:41:09 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423774518 31. The country has approximately 167.5 people living per square mile. vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423774634 2019-12-13 13:41:26 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423774634 32. There are as many Scottish people living in North America as in Scotland, with censuses in the United States and Canada identifying around five million people claiming Scottish ancestry. vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423774752 2019-12-13 13:41:42 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423774752 33. The country still has its own legal system, separate from England, Wales, and Northern Ireland. Juries can return verdict of “guilty”, “not guilty” and “not proven.” vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423774882 2019-12-13 13:42:01 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423774882 34. The Bank of Scotland, founded in 1695, is the oldest surviving bank in the UK. It was also the first bank in Europe to print its own bank notes. vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423775012 2019-12-13 13:42:18 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423775012 35. Famous Scottish inventions include the television, developed by John Logie Baird in 1925, the telephone by Alexander Graham Bell (pictured below) in 1876 and penicillin, by Alexander Fleming in 1928. vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423775321 2019-12-13 13:42:58 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423775321 36. The first teaching hospital in America, the Baltimore Infirmary was founded by a Glasgow surgeon, Granville Sharp Pattison, in 1816. vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423777035 2019-12-13 13:46:04 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423777035 37. Scotland has three officially recognised languages: English, Scots and Scottish Gaelic, with just one per cent of the population using the last. vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423777153 2019-12-13 13:46:20 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423777153 38. It is home to 19 universities and institutes of higher education, including St Andrews, where the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge met. vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423777308 2019-12-13 13:46:38 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423777308 39. Scotland has about the same land area as the Czech Republic, the United Arab Emirates, Panama, the US state of Maine, or the Japanese island of Hokkaido. vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423777488 2019-12-13 13:47:01 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423777488 40. The first two Prime Ministers of Canada, John A. Macdonald (1815-1891) and Alexander Mackenzie (1822-1892), were Scottish. vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423777698 2019-12-13 13:47:25 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423777698 41. One of Scotland’s most famous products, whisky, was actually invented in China. It was first distilled by monks in Ireland in the early 15th century, before reaching Scotland 100 years later. vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423778106 2019-12-13 13:48:11 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423778106 The most famous Scottish dish is haggis normally made with the heart, liver, and lungs of a sheep, traditionally boiled in the animal's stomach. It is not known where it originated, but a similar dish was mentioned in Greece 2,500 years ago. vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423778411 2019-12-13 13:48:44 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423778411 43. Scotland has spawned some of the greatest thinkers of the modern age, including Adam Smith, James Watt, David Hume and John Stuart Mill. vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423779257 2019-12-13 13:50:10 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423779257 44. Notable Scottish inventions include the method of logarithms (1614), tarmac (1820) and the pneumatic tyre (1887). vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423779409 2019-12-13 13:50:27 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423779409 45. Many of Scotland’s most famous inventions – kilts, tartans and bagpipes - were actually developed elsewhere. Kilts originated in Ireland, tartans have been found in Bronze Age central Europe and bagpipes are thought to have come from ancient central Asia. vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423779688 2019-12-13 13:50:56 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423779688 46. Famous names from Scottish literature include: Sir Walter Scott, Lord Byron and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423779960 2019-12-13 13:51:28 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423779960 47. The flag of Scotland is known as the saltire or St. Andrew's Cross. vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423780237 2019-12-13 13:51:55 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423780237 48. The flower of Scotland is the thistle. vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423781312 2019-12-13 13:53:56 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423781312 49. Scotland has the highest proportion of redheads in the world. Around 13 per cent of the population has red hair, with 40 per cent carrying the recessive gene. vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423782339 2019-12-13 13:55:38 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423782339 50. The first official international football match was played at the West of Scotland Cricket Club in Partick in 1872, between Scotland and England vgeneau https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423783109 2019-12-13 13:56:59 UTC https://padlet.com/vgeneau/EUROsection/wish/423783109