National Fasting and the Politics of Prayer: Anglo-Scottish Union, 1707

Abstract

From the early Reformation the Scottish Kirk had seen national public fasting as an essential exercise in furthering the spiritual, political and material well-being of the nation. For that reason fasts were held frequently, particularly at times of national crisis in Church and State. In 1706, with parliament about to deliberate on a treaty for an incorporating union with England, a national fast seemed an obvious step. The refusal of the Court party to grant a civil sanction to a fast therefore placed the issue to the forefront of national debate, providing the opposition with a major opportunity to disrupt the progress of the treaty.