Scotland Local Custom Tips by MalenaN

The Scottish flag

The Scottish flag dates back to a story from 832. The Scottish army was going to fight an English army and before the battle the Scottish king prayed to St Andrew for help. St Andrew was the first Christian missionary and the Romans sentenced him to death in 60AD. He then chose another cross then Jesus had been crucified on, as he didn’t think he was worthy to have the same shape. Well, it is said that the Scots saw white clouds formed as St Andrew’s cross against a clear blue sky. The king swore that if they beat the English army St Andrew would from then be the patron saint of Scotland. And they won!

The flag is also called the Saltier.

Thistel

In one of the souvenir shops at Edinburgh Castle I bought a tapestry cushion cover with a thistle on it. The thistle is a symbol of Scotland and has been so for many centuries.
The stories are many of how the thistle became the symbol of Scotland. One story is about how the army of king Hakon IV of Norway attacked the Scots. In 1263 king Alexander III wanted to buy back the Western Isles and Kintyre, which had been a Norwegian territory for a long time. The Norwegians had shown little interest in the region, but after king Alexander’s request the interest re-awoke. The Norwegians landed on the coast of Largs and wanted to surprise the Scots during night. To approach silently they removed their footwear. But the ground was covered in thistles and one of the men cried out loud. This warned the Scots of the Norwegian attack and in the end the Scots won.

Scottish Money

While in Edinburgh I withdrawed money from an ATM. To my surprise I did not recognise the money and realised Scotland have their own banknotes. There are actually three Scottish banks that issue their own banknotes today. The pictures on the notes are of Scottish Castles, famous Scottish people like Adam Smith and Robert de Bruce, and more.
Not sure I could change these money back to Swedish crowns too easily in Sweden I spent them before any with Queen Elisabeth II on it.

Bagpipes and kilts

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