Events from the year 1978 in

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

Incumbents

Secretary of State for Scotland The secretary of state for Scotland ( gd, Rùnaire Stàite na h-Alba; sco, Secretar o State fir Scotland), also referred to as the Scottish secretary, is a Secretary of State (United Kingdom), secretary of state in the Government of the Unit ...

and Keeper of the Great Seal –

Bruce Millan Bruce Millan (5 October 1927 – 21 February 2013) was a British Labour politician who served as a European Commissioner from 1989 to 1995. Early life He was born in Dundee and educated at the Harris Academy in that city. Parliamentary c ...

Law officers

Lord Advocate , body = , insignia = Crest of the Kingdom of Scotland.svg , insigniasize = 110px , image = File:Official Portrait of Dorothy Bain QC.png , incumbent = Dorothy Bain KC , incumbentsince = 22 June 2021 , appointer = Monarch on the advice ...

– Ronald King Murray *

Solicitor General for Scotland , body = , insignia = Crest of the Kingdom of Scotland.svg , insigniasize = 110px , image = File:Official Portrait of Ruth Charteris QC.png , incumbent = Ruth Charteris KC , incumbentsince = 22 June 2021 , department = Crown Office and ...

– Lord McCluskey

Judiciary

Lord President of the Court of Session The Lord President of the Court of Session and Lord Justice General is the most senior judge in Scotland, the head of the judiciary, and the presiding judge of the College of Justice, the Court of Session, and the High Court of Justiciary. The L ...

and

Lord Justice General Lord is an appellation for a person or deity who has authority, control, or power over others, acting as a master, chief, or ruler. The appellation can also denote certain persons who hold a title of the peerage in the United Kingdom, or are ...

– Lord Emslie *

Lord Justice Clerk The Lord Justice Clerk is the second most senior judge in Scotland, after the Lord President of the Court of Session. Originally ''clericus justiciarie'' or Clerk to the Court of Justiciary, the counterpart in the criminal courts of the Lord ...

– Lord Wheatley *

Chairman of the Scottish Land Court The Scottish Land Court is a Scottish court of law based in Edinburgh with subject-matter jurisdiction covering disputes between landlords and tenants relating to agricultural tenancies, and matters related to crofts and crofters. The Scott ...

– Lord Birsay, then Lord Elliott

Events

9 February Events Pre-1600 * 474 – Zeno (emperor), Zeno is crowned as co-emperor of the Byzantine Empire. *1003 – Boleslaus III, Duke of Bohemia, Boleslaus III is restored to authority with armed support from Bolesław I the Brave of Greater ...

–

Gordon McQueen Gordon McQueen (born 26 June 1952) is a Scottish former professional footballer who played as a centre-back for St Mirren, Leeds United and Manchester United. McQueen also represented Scotland. Playing career Club McQueen was a goalkeeper as a ...

, 25-year-old

central defender, becomes Britain's first £500,000 footballer in a transfer from

Leeds United Leeds United Football Club is a professional football club based in Leeds, West Yorkshire in England. The club competes in the Premier League, the highest level of England's football league system, and plays its home matches at Elland Road S ...

Manchester United Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...

. *

13 April Events Pre-1600 *1111 – Henry V is crowned Holy Roman Emperor. * 1204 – Constantinople falls to the Crusaders of the Fourth Crusade, temporarily ending the Byzantine Empire. 1601–1900 *1612 – In one of the epic samurai ...

– Glasgow Garscadden by-election:

Donald Dewar Donald Campbell Dewar (21 August 1937 – 11 October 2000) was a Scottish politician who served as the inaugural First Minister of Scotland and Leader of the Labour Party in Scotland from 1999 until his death in 2000. He previously served as ...

retains the seat for

Labour Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labour ...

with only a 3.6% swing to the

Scottish National Party The Scottish National Party (SNP; sco, Scots National Pairty, gd, Pàrtaidh Nàiseanta na h-Alba ) is a Scottish nationalist and social democratic political party in Scotland. The SNP supports and campaigns for Scottish independence from ...

. *

31 May Events Pre-1600 * 455 – Emperor Petronius Maximus is stoned to death by an angry mob while fleeing Rome. *1223 – Mongol invasion of the Cumans: Battle of the Kalka River: Mongol armies of Genghis Khan led by Subutai defeat Kieva ...

– Hamilton by-election: George Robertson retains the seat for Labour, thwarting a strong challenge from the SNP. * 16 July – the Strathspey Railway opens for regular tourist traffic, the oldest continuously operating steam-worked

heritage railway A heritage railway or heritage railroad (US usage) is a railway operated as living history to re-create or preserve railway scenes of the past. Heritage railways are often old railway lines preserved in a state depicting a period (or periods) i ...

in Scotland, from

Boat of Garten Boat of Garten ( gd, Coit a' Ghartain; originally: Garten) is a small village and post town in Badenoch and Strathspey, Highland, Scotland. In 1951, the population was less than 400; in 1971, it was almost 500; in 1981, it was almost 700, and the ...

Aviemore Aviemore (; gd, An Aghaidh Mhòr ) is a town and tourist resort, situated within the Cairngorms National Park in the Highlands of Scotland. It is in the Badenoch and Strathspey committee area, within the Highland council area. The town is popul ...

. * 31 July – the

Scotland Act 1978 The Scotland Act 1978 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom intended to establish a Scottish Assembly as a devolved legislature for Scotland. At a referendum held in the following year, the Act failed to gain the necessary level ...

, to establish a

Scottish Assembly The Scottish Assembly was a proposed legislature for Scotland that would have devolved a set list of powers from the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The Labour Government led the Scotland Act 1978 through Westminster which provided for the ...

, receives the Royal Assent. * August – first production from the Dunlin oilfield in the North Sea. *

17 October Events Pre-1600 * 690 – Empress Wu Zetian Wu Zetian (17 February 624 – 16 December 705), personal name Wu Zhao, was the ''de facto'' ruler of the Tang dynasty from 665 to 705, ruling first through others and then (from 690) ...

– a cull of

grey seal The grey seal (''Halichoerus grypus'') is found on both shores of the North Atlantic Ocean. In Latin Halichoerus grypus means "hook-nosed sea pig". It is a large seal of the family Phocidae, which are commonly referred to as "true seals" or " ...

s in the

Orkney Orkney (; sco, Orkney; on, Orkneyjar; nrn, Orknøjar), also known as the Orkney Islands, is an archipelago in the Northern Isles of Scotland, situated off the north coast of the island of Great Britain. Orkney is 10 miles (16 km) north ...

and Western Islands is reduced after a public outcry. *

26 October Events Pre-1600 *1185 – The Uprising of Asen and Peter begins on the feast day of St. Demetrius of Thessaloniki and ends with the creation of the Second Bulgarian Empire. * 1341 – The Byzantine civil war of 1341–1347 formally beg ...

– Berwick and East Lothian by-election: Labour retains the seat with a swing of 0.8% from the

Conservatives Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

. *

25 November Events Pre-1600 *571 BC – Servius Tullius, king of Rome, celebrates the first of his three triumphs for his victory over the Etruscans. * 1034 – Máel Coluim mac Cináeda, King of Scots, dies. His grandson, Donnchad, son of Beth� ...

– first

North Sea oil North Sea oil is a mixture of hydrocarbons, comprising liquid petroleum and natural gas, produced from petroleum reservoirs beneath the North Sea. In the petroleum industry, the term "North Sea" often includes areas such as the Norwegian Sea and ...

comes ashore at the

Sullom Voe Terminal The Sullom Voe Terminal is an oil and gas terminal at Sullom Voe in the Shetland Islands of Scotland. It handles production from oilfields in the North Sea and East Shetland Basin and stores oil before it is transported by tanker. Construction ...

Shetland Shetland, also called the Shetland Islands and formerly Zetland, is a subarctic archipelago in Scotland lying between Orkney, the Faroe Islands and Norway. It is the northernmost region of the United Kingdom. The islands lie about to the no ...

via the Brent System pipeline. * The

ultranationalist Ultranationalism or extreme nationalism is an extreme form of nationalism in which a country asserts or maintains detrimental hegemony, supremacy, or other forms of control over other nations (usually through violent coercion) to pursue its sp ...

group

Siol nan Gaidheal Siol nan Gaidheal (, meaning "Seed of the Gaels") is a minor Scottish ultranationalist and ethnic nationalist group which describes itself as a "cultural and fraternal organisation". The first incarnation of the group was founded by Tom Moore in ...

is formed.

Births

16 March Events Pre-1600 * 934 – Meng Zhixiang declares himself emperor and establishes Later Shu as a new state independent of Later Tang. *1190 – Massacre of Jews at Clifford's Tower, York. * 1244 – Over 200 Cathars who refuse to re ...

–

Anneliese Dodds Anneliese Jane Dodds (born 16 March 1978) is a British Labour and Co-operative politician and public policy analyst serving as Shadow Secretary of State for Women and Equalities, and Chair of the Labour Party since 2021. She was Shadow Chancel ...

Labour and Co-operative Labour and Co-operative Party (often abbreviated Labour Co-op; cy, Llafur a'r Blaid Gydweithredol) is a description used by candidates in United Kingdom elections who stand on behalf of both the Labour Party and the Co-operative Party. Candidat ...

Member of Parliament (United Kingdom) In the United Kingdom, a member of Parliament (MP) is an individual elected to serve in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Electoral system All 650 members of the UK House of Commons are elected using the first-past- ...

Chair of the Labour Party (UK) The Chair of the Labour Party is a position in the Labour Party of the United Kingdom. The Chair is responsible for administration of the party and overseeing general election campaigns, and is typically held concurrently with another position ...

30 March Events Pre-1600 * 598 – Balkan Campaign: The Avars lift the siege at the Byzantine stronghold of Tomis. Their leader Bayan I retreats north of the Danube River after the Avaro- Slavic hordes are decimated by the plague. *1282 – ...

–

Chris Paterson Christopher Douglas Paterson, MBE (born 30 March 1978) is an ambassador and specialist coach for the Scotland and Edinburgh rugby union teams. He is a former professional rugby union player who played for Scotland and, for the most part of hi ...

, rugby player *

3 May Events Pre-1600 * 752 – Mayan king Bird Jaguar IV of Yaxchilan in modern-day Chiapas, Mexico, assumes the throne. *1481 – The largest of three earthquakes strikes the island of Rhodes and causes an estimated 30,000 casualties. ...

–

Lawrence Tynes Lawrence James Henry Tynes (born May 3, 1978) is a Scottish-born former American football placekicker. After playing soccer for Milton High School a coach suggested he try out for the football team as a kicker. He played college football at Troy ...

, American football player *

14 May Events Pre-1600 *1027 – Robert II of France names his son Henry I as junior King of the Franks. * 1097 – The Siege of Nicaea begins during the First Crusade. *1264 – Battle of Lewes: Henry III of England is captured and force ...

–

Emma Rochlin Emma Rochlin (born 14 May 1978 in Glasgow) is a female field hockey defender from Scotland. She plays club hockey for Glasgow Western, and made her debut for the Women's National Team in 1999. Rochlin works as a trainee solicitor In the United ...

, field hockey defender *

20 June Events Pre-1600 * 451 – Battle of Chalons: Flavius Aetius' battles Attila the Hun. After the battle, which was inconclusive, Attila retreats, causing the Romans to interpret it as a victory. * 1180 – First Battle of Uji, starti ...

–

Julie Fowlis Julie Fowlis (born 20 June 1978) is a Scottish folk singer and multi-instrumentalist who sings primarily in Scottish Gaelic. Early life Fowlis grew up on North Uist, an island in the Outer Hebrides, in a Gaelic-speaking community. Her mothe ...

, Gaelic folk singer *

21 July Events Pre-1600 * 356 BC – The Temple of Artemis in Ephesus, one of the Seven Wonders of the World, is destroyed by arson. * 230 – Pope Pontian succeeds Urban I as the eighteenth pope. After being exiled to Sardinia, he became the ...

–

Gary Teale Gary Stewart Teale (born 21 July 1978) is a Scottish professional football player and coach. Teale started his career in Scotland in 1995 with Clydebank and Ayr United. He moved to England in 2001 when he signed for Wigan Athletic and played a ...

, footballer *

25 October Events Pre-1600 * 285 (or 286) – Execution of Saints Crispin and Crispinian during the reign of Diocletian, now the patron saints of leather workers, curriers, and shoemakers. * 473 – Emperor Leo I acclaims his grandson Leo II ...

–

Russell Anderson Russell Anderson (born 25 October 1978) is a Scottish former professional footballer who played as a centre back. He played in the Scottish Premier League for Aberdeen, the Premier League for Sunderland, and the Football League for Plymouth ...

, footballer *

10 November Events Pre-1600 * 474 – Emperor Leo II dies after a reign of ten months. He is succeeded by his father Zeno, who becomes sole ruler of the Byzantine Empire. * 937 – Ten Kingdoms: Li Bian usurps the throne and deposes Emperor Yang ...

–

Ruth Davidson Ruth Elizabeth Davidson, Baroness Davidson of Lundin Links (born 10 November 1978), is a Scottish politician who served as Leader of the Scottish Conservative Party from 2011 to 2019 and Leader of the Scottish Conservative Party in the Scottish ...

, leader of the

Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party The Scottish Conservative & Unionist Party ( gd, Pàrtaidh Tòraidheach na h-Alba, sco, Scots Tory an Unionist Pairty), often known simply as the Scottish Conservatives and colloquially as the Scottish Tories, is a centre-right political par ...

and

Member of the Scottish Parliament Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP; gd, Ball Pàrlamaid na h-Alba, BPA; sco, Memmer o the Scots Pairliament, MSP) is the title given to any one of the 129 individuals elected to serve in the Scottish Parliament. Electoral system The ad ...

Neil Forsyth Neil Forsyth (born 1978) is a Scottish author, television writer and journalist. Early life Forsyth grew up in Dundee, Scotland where he attended the High School of Dundee and his first writing appeared in a Dundee United fanzine. He gradu ...

, writer *

J. O. Morgan J. O. Morgan (born 1978) is an author from Edinburgh, Scotland. The his seventh of his volumes of verse, ''The Martian's Regress,'' is set in the far future, when humans "lose their humanity." He has also published two novels: ''Pupa'' (2021) a ...

, poet

Deaths

16 May Events Pre-1600 * 946 – Emperor Suzaku abdicates the throne in favor of his brother Murakami who becomes the 62nd emperor of Japan. * 1204 – Baldwin IX, Count of Flanders is crowned as the first Emperor of the Latin Empire. *136 ...

–

Diana Hay, 23rd Countess of Erroll Diana Denyse Hay, 23rd Countess of Erroll (5 January 1926 – 16 May 1978, Oban, Scotland) was a British noblewoman. Early life Diana was the only child of Josslyn, Earl of Errol and his first wife Lady Idina Sackville. She was born in Kenya. T ...

, noblewoman (born 1926 in Kenya) * 23 July –

Tommy McLaren Thomas McLaren (1 June 1949 – 23 July 1978) was a Scottish footballer who played as a midfielder. He moved from Berwick Rangers to Port Vale in November 1967. He spent ten years at Vale Park, racking up 369 league and cup appearances. He he ...

, footballer (born

1949 Events January * January 1 – A United Nations-sponsored ceasefire brings an end to the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947. The war results in a stalemate and the division of Kashmir, which still continues as of 2022. * January 2 – Luis ...

) *

30 July Events Pre-1600 * 762 – Baghdad is founded. *1419 – First Defenestration of Prague: A crowd of radical Hussites kill seven members of the Prague city council. *1502 – Christopher Columbus lands at Guanaja in the Bay Islands ...

– John Mackintosh, Labour politician and advocate of devolution (born

1929 This year marked the end of a period known in American history as the Roaring Twenties after the Wall Street Crash of 1929 ushered in a worldwide Great Depression. In the Americas, an agreement was brokered to end the Cristero War, a Catholic ...

) *

9 September 9 (nine) is the natural number following and preceding . Evolution of the Arabic digit In the Brahmi numerals, beginning, various Indians wrote a digit 9 similar in shape to the modern closing question mark without the bottom dot. The Kshat ...

–

Hugh MacDiarmid Christopher Murray Grieve (11 August 1892 – 9 September 1978), best known by his pen name Hugh MacDiarmid (), was a Scottish poet, journalist, essayist and political figure. He is considered one of the principal forces behind the Scottish Rena ...

, poet (born

1892 Events January–March * January 1 – Ellis Island begins accommodating immigrants to the United States. * February 1 - The historic Enterprise Bar and Grill was established in Rico, Colorado. * February 27 – Rudolf Diesel applies for ...

)

The arts

17 January Events Pre-1600 *38 BC – Octavian divorces his wife Scribonia and marries Livia Drusilla, ending the fragile peace between the Second Triumvirate and Sextus Pompey. * 1362 – Saint Marcellus' flood kills at least 25,000 people on ...

– Rock band

Simple Minds Simple Minds are a Scottish rock band formed in Glasgow in 1977. They have released a string of hit singles, becoming best known internationally for "Don't You (Forget About Me)" (1985), which topped the '' Billboard'' Hot 100 in the United St ...

make their first live performance at Glasgow's Satellite City. * July – First Edinburgh Jazz and Blues Festival.

References

{{Years in Scotland

Years of the 20th century in Scotland 1970s in Scotland