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Scotland (CHURCH OF the origitimes)

CHURCH OF, the origitimes the Roman Catholic Church was, times the Roman Catholic Church was, to a certain extent, the national church in Scotland, not merely as having within its pale at least by profession all the people, but as maintaining its independence of its powerful S. neighbor. The church resisted the claims of supremacy over it put forth at one time by the Archbishop of York, at another by the Archbishop of Canterbury; and in 1176 in self-defense cast itself into the arms of the Roman pontiff. When the Reformation struggle began, the crown remained adherent to the old faith, while the nobility tended to adopt the new. pendence Scotland had considered it good From the war of indeon the part of England by a close allipolicy to guard against any aggression mation began there were actually French ance with France, and when the Refortroops in Scotland. On these the crown rested to resist the religious movement which had been begun, but the Protestant "Lords of the Congregation," who had taken up arms to defend their cause, applied for aid to Queen Elizabeth, who plied for aid to Queen Elizabeth, who French. By a treaty signed on July 7, French and the English troops should withdraw from Scotland. On Aug. 24 of the same year the Scotch Parliament ited the celebration of the mass, and rescinded all the laws made in favor of Roman Catholicism. The reformers adopted what is now called PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH (q. v.) government, though certain superintendents with the sanction of John Knox, the great Scotch reformer, whose offices after a were appointed, time were swept away. The first General Assembly was held on Dec. 20, 1560.

When the victory over the Church of Rome was complete, the alliance between the nobility and the Protestant preachers which had effected the triumph showed symptoms of dissolving, and a large secwhich had effected the triumph showed and even active hostility, what they regarded as the too democratic measures which Knox aimed at carrying out. But garded as the too democratic measures of parish schools.

Church, which became more marked after The semi-republican constitution of the the office of superintendent had been swept away, and the second book of dis SCOTS cipline published (the latter event in 1578), created jealousy in the minds of regents and of sovereigns, and four or five generations of Stuart kings put forth long and determined efforts to transform Presbyterian into Episcopal government.

The project cost the lives and liberties of far more people than the short, sharp Reformation struggle had done, and ended at last in failure. The Revolution settlement of 1690, re-established Presbyterianism, and the General Assembly, which had been interrupted for nearly 40 years, began again to sit and has done so annually from that time till now. Prior to the union with England in 1707, an Act of Security was passed, designed to preserve the Scotch national Church from being overthrown by S. votes.

In 1712 an Act of Parliament reintroduced patronage which had been swept away. The operation of this enactment was one main cause of these secessions; that of the Secession, pre-eminently socalled, in 1733; the Relief in 1752; and, the greatest of all, that which created the Free Church in 1843.

The Church of Scotland leads the Presbyterian denomination with a membership of over 700,000. It has missions in India, Africa, and elsewhere. In 1784 the Patronage Act of 1712 was repealed, and each congregation now elects its own pastor. Its chief rivals, the United Presbyterian and the Free Church of Scotland, were amalgamated as the United Free Church of Scotland. A small number of the old Free Church members declined to join the union and remain an independent body. The United Free Church membership (1919) was 522,028.

SCOTS. See PICTS.