· Constitutional change
Union of Scotland and England, 1707
The Kingdoms of Scotland and England were united as Great Britain, with one Parliament, from 1 May 1707.
Dated events from published cases, in chronological order. Dates keep their real precision; a period filter includes any event whose date range overlaps it.
64 events.
· Constitutional change
The Kingdoms of Scotland and England were united as Great Britain, with one Parliament, from 1 May 1707.
In: Scotland
· Administrative change
After the War of the Spanish Succession, Philip V abolished Catalonia’s own public law and institutions.
In: Catalonia
· Agreement
The peace treaty with the Ottoman government provided for Kurdish local autonomy and a conditional route to independence; it never took effect.
· Declaration
Sheikh Mahmud Barzanji declared a Kingdom of Kurdistan around Sulaimaniyah under British-administered Iraq; it was unrecognised and suppressed.
· Declaration
A Kurdish republic proclaimed in Soviet-occupied north-western Iran collapsed within a year after Soviet withdrawal.
· Constitutional change
A Danish constitutional amendment ended Greenland’s colonial status and made it an integral part of the Realm; the UN accepted this in 1954.
In: Greenland
· Agreement
An autonomy agreement ended a revolt that began in 1961; it collapsed in 1974.
· Conflict episode
After FLQ kidnappings, the federal government invoked the War Measures Act; Pierre Laporte was killed and hundreds of people were detained.
In: Quebec
· Declaration
Bougainville’s Interim Provincial Government declared independence unilaterally shortly before Papua New Guinea became independent; the national parliament suspended it.
In: Bougainville
· Legal decision
The International Court of Justice found ties of allegiance and rights between the Territory and Morocco and the Mauritanian entity, but no tie of territorial sovereignty.
In: Western Sahara
· Other
A Moroccan march into Western Sahara went ahead despite the Security Council’s appeal to halt it; the Council deplored it and called for the participants’ withdrawal.
In: Western Sahara
· Agreement
Spain, Morocco and Mauritania agreed that Spain’s administration would pass to a temporary tripartite administration and that Spain would leave by February 1976.
In: Western Sahara
· Declaration
After Portugal’s administration withdrew, FRETILIN declared East Timor independent; Indonesia invaded nine days later.
In: Timor-Leste
· Conflict episode
Indonesian forces invaded East Timor, beginning an occupation that lasted until 1999.
In: Timor-Leste
· International resolution
The Security Council recognised East Timor’s right to self-determination and independence and called on Indonesia to withdraw its forces.
In: Timor-Leste
· Administrative change
Indonesia made East Timor its 27th province; the United Nations never recognised the integration.
In: Timor-Leste
· Administrative change
Spain formally ended its presence and disclaimed further international responsibility for administering the Territory.
In: Western Sahara
· Legislation
Quebec’s Charter of the French Language affirmed French as the official language of Quebec.
In: Quebec
· Constitutional change
A Spanish decree-law provisionally re-established the Generalitat of Catalonia before the new Constitution.
In: Catalonia
· Referendum or popular consultation
A majority of voters backed the Scotland Act 1978, but the Yes vote fell short of the 40% of the electorate the Act required, and the Act was repealed.
In: Scotland
· Referendum or popular consultation
Voters refused the Quebec government a mandate to negotiate sovereignty-association, by 59.56% to 40.44%.
In: Quebec
· Recognition
The Organization of African Unity admitted the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, proclaimed in 1976.
In: Western Sahara
· Conflict episode
An armed conflict that began around the Panguna mine, closed it in 1989 and lasted until a truce in 1997.
In: Bougainville
· Declaration
After the PNG withdrawal, the BRA and the Bougainville Interim Government declared Bougainville independent as the Republic of Me’ekamui.
In: Bougainville
· International resolution
The Security Council created a mission to organise a self-determination referendum; a ceasefire took effect, but the referendum was never held.
In: Western Sahara
· Election
After the 1991 uprising and the Iraqi administration’s withdrawal, the Kurdistan Front held elections that created a regional assembly and government.
· Referendum or popular consultation
Quebec voters rejected renewing the Canadian Constitution on the basis of the Charlottetown agreement, by 56.68% to 43.32%.
In: Quebec
· Referendum or popular consultation
Voters rejected sovereignty with a partnership offer to Canada by 50.58% to 49.42%, on a turnout of 93.52%.
In: Quebec
· Referendum or popular consultation
Voters approved a Scottish Parliament (74.3%) and tax-varying powers (63.5%), leading to the Scotland Act 1998.
In: Scotland
· Legal decision
The Supreme Court of Canada held that Quebec cannot secede unilaterally, but that a clear majority on a clear question would oblige all parties to negotiate.
In: Quebec
· Agreement
Indonesia and Portugal asked the UN to consult the East Timorese on special autonomy within Indonesia, and agreed in advance what would follow either result.
In: Timor-Leste
· Referendum or popular consultation
In a UN-run ballot, 78.5% of voters rejected special autonomy within Indonesia, opening a transition towards independence.
In: Timor-Leste
· Conflict episode
Militia violence followed the result; Indonesia accepted international assistance and an Australian-led multinational force was authorised.
In: Timor-Leste
· Administrative change
The Security Council placed East Timor under a UN transitional administration with full legislative and executive authority.
In: Timor-Leste
· Legislation
Parliament gave the House of Commons the task of judging whether a secession question and result are clear before Canada negotiates.
In: Quebec
· Agreement
The Government of Papua New Guinea and Bougainville leaders agreed on autonomy, a deferred referendum on Bougainville’s future political status and weapons disposal.
In: Bougainville
· Independence
East Timor became an independent state as UN administration ended.
In: Timor-Leste
· Recognition
The General Assembly admitted the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste as a UN member state.
In: Timor-Leste
· Constitutional change
Under a constitution adopted in 2004, Bougainville elected its first autonomous government, led by President Joseph Kabui.
In: Bougainville
· Constitutional change
Iraq’s federal constitution recognised the region of Kurdistan and its existing authorities as a federal region.
· Negotiation
Morocco proposed autonomy under its sovereignty; the Frente POLISARIO proposed a referendum including independence as an option.
In: Western Sahara
· Referendum or popular consultation
Voters backed the introduction of self-government by 75.5% of votes cast.
In: Greenland
· Legislation
The Act on Greenland Self-Government came into force, recognising Greenlanders as a people with the right of self-determination and setting out a route to independence.
In: Greenland
· Legal decision
The Constitutional Court ruled that the 2006 Statute’s references to Catalonia as a nation have no interpretative legal effect and annulled several provisions.
In: Catalonia
· Agreement
The UK and Scottish Governments agreed the terms for a legal, single-question independence referendum to be held by the end of 2014.
In: Scotland
· Referendum or popular consultation
Voters rejected independence by 55.3% to 44.7% on a turnout of 84.6%.
In: Scotland
· Other
A consultation on whether Catalonia should become a state, and an independent one, went ahead as a volunteer-run “participation process” after court suspensions.
In: Catalonia
· Referendum or popular consultation
Voters in the Kurdistan Region and some disputed areas voted on independence; Baghdad rejected the vote and the federal Supreme Court later cancelled its results.
· Referendum or popular consultation
The Catalan government held a referendum on independence that the Constitutional Court had suspended; it reported 90.18% Yes on 43.03% participation.
In: Catalonia
· Constitutional change
The Senate authorised direct measures under article 155; the Spanish government dissolved the Parliament of Catalonia and called elections, and the Constitutional Court suspended the Parliament’s declaration.
In: Catalonia