Family/Travel/Christmas Posts

The Most Interesting Thing About Scotland – Part 2

In my last post I never really got round to revealing what – in my opinion – is the most interesting thing about Scotland. I got sidetracked with all that stuff about tartans and driving and bagpipes.

So now I can finally get around to it.

But wait – a couple other things just popped into my head. Wanna get these down before I forget.

I grew up in NE Kansas on an acerage a few miles outside of Topeka. There were farms all around us, and one of the most hated invaders of the fields was the thistle. In Kansas and all across the Great Plains, millions of dollars are spent annually to fight this noxious pest.

Which, as it turns out, is the national flower of Scotland.

Thistles – where I grew up – were a weed. They’d take over a field if you didn’t fight them with herbicides each and every year. The Scots, however, apparently revere them.

Why? The story – as it was related to me – goes like this. Thistles (invaders where I come from) are actually revered because they repelled an invading horde, aka The Vikings. Irony.

Not really sure how we know this, but apparently the Vikings wore sandals. During at least one of their uninvited visitations, the Vikings came ashore and encountered vast fields of thistles. Their planned invasion was thwarted as the spiky plant scratched up their ankles, feet & legs as they advanced inland. At some point they decided to turn back, go home, put on some long pants and get better shoes.

So the mighty thistle repelled an invasion. Scots remain appreciative to this day and have made it their national flower. (My own theory about the Viking about face is that the Vikings landed and heard some lone serf playing the bagpipes. Having been sufficiently repulsed by the sound, decided they wanted nothing to do with Scotland, altered course and headed for Ireland).

So next time you see a farmer/rancher spraying fields for thistles remember – he is unwittingly inviting a Viking invasion. Unintended consequences. Because thistles are the only thing between you and being forced to wear a horned helmet.

(I have not independently researched all this to discover if there is any truth to this thistle/Viking thing. I don’t want the facts to get in the way of a good story. And the fact remains, the thistle IS the national flower of Scotland).

So anyway, while we’re talking about Scottish national emblems, here’s another thing.

The unicorn is Scotland’s national animal.

If you ask me, if you’re going to have a national animal, I’d think that you’d at least want it to be a real creature. But, then again, this is the land of the Loch Ness Monster. So it makes perfect sense.

That said, you should visit Historic UK’s site about Scotland’s long association with unicorns – written by a real historian named Jessica Brain (so you know it has to be legit). She writes:

Scotland’s deep connections with the unicorn stem from its Celtic culture. Celtic mythology believed unicorns to represent innocence and purity whilst also being associated with chivalry, pride and boldness.

Jessica Brain

Starting with William I, the noble unicorn began to be integrated into the Scottish Coat of Arms. Brain continues:

This emblem thus became ubiquitous and would remain so even when the momentous union of the crowns occurred in 1603. King James VI of Scotland became King of England and Ireland on the 24th March and reigned until his death in 1625.

Jessica Brain

So one can easily see how the unicorn was adopted by the Royals – paragons of innocence and purity. Anyway,

When he [James] inherited the English and Irish thrones, the Royal Arms of England became merged with that of Scotland and the Royal Coat of Arms of Ireland was also added. Thus, the symbol of the majestic English lion was incorporated side by side with the Scottish unicorn.

jessica brain

And here you see it:

So anyway, you can read a lot more about the unicorn thing at the linked site. It’s pretty interesting.

I’d also add here that you can hear a much more entertaining version of unicorn story if you take the Edinburgh tour bus. Take the green bus – not the orange one – as they have live guides. (The orange bus relies on pre-recorded messages as you tour about the city). I’d tell you the story here, but I’m not going to do all the work for you. You’ll have to go and see for yourself.

In an especially gratifying convergence of the two threads discussed on this post so far (thistles and unicorns), Brain’s post includes the following photo with this caption: Unicorn of Scotland, Red Lion Rampant and Thistle: heraldic panel at Holyroodhouse.

Note: we were unable to tour Holyrood Palace. An official representative of the King was in residence, so the palace was closed to the public. This same representative also serves as the official head of the Church of Scotland. This same representative showed up to attend Sunday services at St Giles Cathedral the same day we planning to attend. Upon arrival, we were asked to attend worship services elsewhere, lacking the requisite credentials to worship with a representative of the King. Now if I would have been riding a unicorn, things may have turned out differently….

So there you have it. Thistles and unicorns.

And now I’m out of time once again. As I hinted in my last post, the most interesting thing about Scotland is a law enacted in 2003. But you’ll have to wait a wee bit longer for Part 3 of this series.

But here’s a tease: Why are there no “No Trespassing” signs in Scotland?

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