Union of the Parliaments of England and Scotland (1707).— We refer to the union of England and Scotland into a single kingdom, under the name of Great Britain (1707). It was only the two crowns that were united when James I. came to the English throne: now the two Parliaments were united. From this time forward the two countries were represented by one Parliament, and in time the name "British" becomes the common designation of the inhabitants of England, Wales, and Scotland. The union was advantageous to both countries; for it was a union not simply of hands, but of hearts.
Death of Queen Anne: the Succession.—Queen Anne died in the year 1714, leaving no heirs. In the reign of William a statute known as the Act of Settlement had provided that the crown, in default of heirs of William and Anne, should descend to the Electress Sophia of Hanover (grandchild of James I.J, or her heirs, " being Protestants." The Electress died only a short time before the death of Queen Anne; so, upon that event, the crown descended upon the head of the Electress's eldest son George, who thus became the founder of a new line of English sovereigns, the House of Hanover, or Brunswick, the family in whose hands the royal sceptre still remains.
Literature under Queen Anne.—The reign of Queen Anne is an illustrious one in English literature. Under her began to write a group of brilliant authors, whose activity continued on into the reign of her successor, George I. Their productions are, many of them, of special interest to the historian, because during this period there was an unusually close connection between literature and politics. Literature was forced into the service of party. A large portion of the writings of the era is in the form of political pamphlets, wherein all the resources of wit, satire, and literary skill are exhausted in defending or ridiculing the opposing principles and policies of Whig and Tory.
The four most prominent and representative authors of the times were Alexander Pope (1688–1744), Jonathan Swift (1667–1745), Joseph Addison (1672–1719), and Daniel Defoe (1661–1731).
