England and Scotland Unite: Great Britain Is Born
The Act of Union merges the separate parliaments of England and Scotland into a single legislative body, creating the Kingdom of Great Britain. This political consolidation ends centuries of rivalry and establishes a unified state that dominates global trade and naval power for the next two centuries.
May 1, 1707
319 years ago
Key Figures & Places
What Else Happened on May 1
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Robert the Bruce got everything he wanted, but he'd been excommunicated for fourteen years when England finally signed. The Treaty of Edinburgh-Northampton in 1…
Three brothers commanded the rebel Douglas army at Arkinholm, and all three were dead or captured by sunset. Archibald Douglas, Earl of Moray, fell in the fight…
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