After its union with England in 1707, Scotland retained its own law, education and church systems. It was integrated into the United Kingdom political structure, represented in 1915 by 72 members of parliament (MPs) in Westminster, London, out of a total of 670 including all of Ireland. The Secretary for Scotland was Thomas McKinnon Wood (Liberal), MP for Glasgow St Rollox, born in London to Scottish parents.
Scotland was a Liberal Party stronghold, with the Conservatives in distant second place. Dundee was unusual in that it had two MPs for the same constituency, including one of the first Labour MPs in Scotland (Alexander Wilkie); the other was Winston Churchill, Liberal.
The Scottish economy was based primarily on shipbuilding, iron and steel production, coal mining, textile manufacturing, farming and fishing. The Clyde valley in the Glasgow area was an industrial powerhouse and was a vital source of ships and munitions.
Although the overall population of Scotland grew from 1.8 million to 4.8 million in the hundred years to 1911, it declined in north-west Scotland as people left to look for opportunities elsewhere. There was also significant emigration from southern Scotland, although not to the same extent.
See also