Thread: country or what?

Originally Posted by forunna

can anyone please explaine the relationship of UK to Scotland England Wales ?
are they counted as seperate countries? or is the actual country UK? Im not sure any more. We seem to see the names seperate sometimes.

If you live in either England, Wales or Scotland, they are separate countries. For everyone else, they are one country.

The Acts of Union 1707 cover it I think.

Originally Posted by Groggy

If you live in either England, Wales or Scotland, they are separate countries. For everyone else, they are one country.

The Acts of Union 1707 cover it I think.

But they have separate governments and Rugby teams!!???

Cheers,

P

hmm, so they are actually still distinct countries but have been integrally joined into the UK so they act as one country for all practical purpses.
kind of like different species of wood dovetailed into a box.

They pretend they're seperate so they've got three times the chance of beating us at something

Richard

Don't let an irishman, welshman or scot hearing you say that...
England, Ireland, Wales and Scotland each have their own parliaments
And they can enact their own laws...
But they don't have Home Rule... as such
They still have to bow to London - to some extent
And QEII is ruler of all
So that's where the United Kingdom (Queendom) comes into it...
Here in Aus - even more complicated
QEII
Governer General
Federal Parliament
State Parliaments & Territory "parliaments" (recently confirmed that the Federal Parliament has the 'real' say in the territories...
Jedo

Tongue partially in cheek. Replace them with Poland, romania, and Russia, you get the idea

Originally Posted by Jedo_03

But they don't have Home Rule... as such
They still have to bow to London - to some extent
And QEII is ruler of all

Hmmm and Ireland do have a different currency.

P

I"ve still got a UK passport somewhere (getting an Australian one soon too!) and I'm sure on the front it says something like: The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Great Britain is England, Scotland and Wales. Although England, Scotland and Northern Ireland are individual countries, Wales isn't, its a principality (but don't tell the Welsh that). The southern part of Ireland is a republic, a country entirely in its own right with no political or legislative connection to the UK, the Republic of Ireland. However, England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are part of one country, the United Kingdom.

Clear as mud...

SO, the country is the United Kingdom. Which is made up of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland - but not the Republic of Ireland (which is often given its Gaelic name, Eire).

Its very similar to Australian states and territories, in that each has different government stuctures, but also share National (ie Federal) government, responsible for some things (defence, economy, etc)

Forunna, I like your idea of "like different species of wood dovetailed into a box". If only it was as effective in reality!

I think I get the idea now. thanks you lot.
was for my 14 y/o daughter having an argument at school but not officiallyso wont ask a teacher.

Scotland used to have its own money, same currency, different markings on the notes/coins.
Used to be fun present a one pound note with the Forth Bridge emblazened on the front to a London shopkeeper, most didn't have a clue.
When I first arrived in Oz I was told that England, Wales and Scotland were all part of England, my argument cost me a detention.

http://www.rampantscotland.com/know/blknow10.htm

Originally Posted by Jedo_03

They still have to bow to London - to some extent
And QEII is ruler of all

I was in Scotland in 1956 and was told there was quite a controversy over Queen Elizabeth taking the throne of England in 1952. (crowned in 1953) On the mail boxes in the UK, including Scotland, they all had the EIIR insignia on them but in fact Queen Elizabeth the first was never Queen of Scotland so therefore our current Queen is really Queen Elizabeth the first of Scotland and not QEII. Some of the mail boxes with the EIIR on them were actually destroyed by the Scots themselves. I left Scotland shortly afterwards so don't know the outcome of the mail box situation and how it was resolved. Would be interested to know if they changed the insignia on their mail boxes to EIR.

Originally Posted by Iain

Scotland used to have its own money, same currency, different markings on the notes/coins.
Used to be fun present a one pound note with the Forth Bridge emblazened on the front to a London shopkeeper, most didn't have a clue.

I lived in Edinburgh for a while in the late 60s. There was a shopkeeper on Princes Street (my memory is that he was a tobacconist but I might be wrong about that) who refused to take English banknotes from me on two occasions.

"Ah dinnae tak Sassenach money!" was the line. I was compelled to pay him with a variety of Scottish legal tender. All the Scottish banks printed their own banknotes.

I thought he was just a cranky Scottish isolationist until I saw him happily doing a deal with a Yank tourist for US dollars - at a disproportionately high exchange rate.

I think he just didn't like me because I was born in England. (Of course, the fact that I called him a bloody hypocritical git may have been the real reason he threw me out of his shop).

Aye...
and scotland has it's own currency... the scottish pound is purported to be worth slightly less than the english pound... some of the scottish notes aren't even accepted in england...
and the welsh have their own language - yakki daa...
Jedo
Ooops - stand corrected - they USED to have their own currency...

Originally Posted by bitingmidge

Hmmm and Ireland do have a different currency.

P