Standing Up for Scotland: Nationalist Unionism and Scottish Party Politics, 1884-2014 - Paperback

by David Torrance (Author)

David Torrance reassesses the relationship between 'nationalism' and 'unionism' in Scottish politics, challenging a binary reading of the two ideologies with the concept of 'nationalist unionism'. Scottish nationalism did not begin with the SNP in 1934, nor was it confined to political parties that desired independent statehood. Rather, it was more dispersed, with the Liberal, Conservative and Labour parties all attempting to harness Scottish national identity and nationalism between 1884 and 2014, often with the paradoxical goal of strengthening rather than ending the Union. The book combines nationalist theory with empirical historical and archival research to argue that these conceptions of Scottish nationhood had much more in common with each other than is commonly accepted.

Back Jacket

A history of 'hidden' nationalism in Scottish party politics This book reassesses the relationship between 'nationalism' and 'unionism' in Scottish politics, challenging a binary reading of the two ideologies with the concept of 'nationalist unionism'. Scottish nationalism did not begin with the SNP in 1934, nor was it confined to political parties which desired independent statehood. Rather it was more dispersed, with the Liberal, Conservative and Labour parties all attempting to harness Scottish national identity and nationalism between 1884 and 2014, often with the paradoxical goal of strengthening rather than ending the Union. The book combines nationalist theory with empirical historical and archival research to argue that these conceptions of Scottish nationhood had much more in common with each other than is commonly accepted. David Torrance is a constitutional specialist at the House of Commons Library. He completed a PhD in history and political science in 2017, before which he was a journalist and broadcaster for almost 20 years. He is the author or editor of more than a dozen books on Scottish politics.

Author Biography

David Torrance is Devolution and Constitution Specialist at the House of Commons Library. He was formerly a freelance writer, broadcaster and journalist, reporting on the Scottish Parliament for STV, and contributing political commentary to a wide range of publications including The Scotsman, The Herald and The Times. He is the author of several books on Scottish politics, the best known being his unauthorised biographies of Nicola Sturgeon and Alex Salmond. He is the author of Standing up for Scotland: Nationalist Unionism and Scottish Party Politics, 1884-2014 (Edinburgh University Press, 2020) and the editor of Ruth Davidson's Conservatives: The Scottish Tory Party, 2011-19 (Edinburgh University Press, 2020) and Whatever Happened to Tory Scotland (Edinburgh University Press, 2012).