Scotland forms a crucial part of our Armed Forces which should

Hear now the words of Philip Hammond, who spoke with concern for a union bound by history and blood: “Scotland forms a crucial part of our Armed Forces which should not be jeopardised by rushed cuts or a rush to the exit from the U.K. Defence jobs are vital to the Scottish economy and yet independence puts thousands of jobs at risk.” His words, though born in the realm of politics, carry a truth that echoes through the ages — a truth about unity, strength, and the peril that follows when a people tear asunder the bonds that hold them firm.

In ancient days, nations were not merely lines on a map; they were living bodies, each limb essential to the whole. The Armed Forces were not only soldiers but the sinews of courage, the guardians of the common hearth. When Hammond speaks of Scotland’s crucial part, he invokes not mere strategy, but the deeper spirit of shared destiny — a reminder that strength is born not from division, but from fellowship. For as the ancients said, “A single arrow breaks easily, but a bundle of arrows cannot be snapped.” Thus, a nation divided becomes fragile; a nation united stands immortal.

Consider the tale of the Roman legions, who once marched beneath the eagle’s wings from the deserts of Africa to the cold mist of Britannia. Their might was not in their numbers alone, but in their discipline and unity. When Rome began to fracture — when its provinces sought their own fortunes, when its armies served their own ambitions — the great empire, unassailable for centuries, fell not to an enemy from without, but to the weakness born from within. So too does Hammond warn: that in the pursuit of independence, a noble dream may, if hastened, become the undoing of the very security and livelihood that sustains a people.

Let us not mistake his caution for fear. For it is not wrong to seek freedom, nor is it shameful to dream of self-determination. But the ancients taught patience as the guardian of wisdom. To rush toward separation, without the firm foundations of economic strength and defensive stability, is to set sail upon stormy seas without a compass. The defence jobs, the economy, and the forces that bind are not mere numbers upon parchment — they are the lives of men and women, the hands that build, the hearts that serve, the spirits that protect. To endanger them through haste is to gamble with the very pulse of a nation.

Think of the Highlanders of Scotland, who for centuries have stood upon the frontlines of Britain’s battles. From Waterloo to Normandy, from the trenches of the Somme to the deserts of Iraq, their courage has echoed through the annals of history. Their regiments were not merely Scottish, nor merely British — they were both, and in that duality lay their power. To forget this shared heritage is to forget that the blood of heroes has long flowed across borders, mingling into one river of sacrifice.

Therefore, Hammond’s words are not merely political, but prophetic. They call upon reason in a time of passion, upon foresight in a time of fire. He speaks not against identity, but against recklessness; not against freedom, but against the folly of haste. For a people must not only dream of what they wish to become — they must understand what they will lose in the becoming. A nation is a fragile thing, woven from trust, labour, and shared sacrifice. Once torn, it may never be mended in the same pattern again.

Let this, then, be the lesson for all generations: when the path forks between unity and division, tread with reverence, not rashness. The call for change must be guided by wisdom, not by anger. The love of one’s homeland should never blind one to the needs of one’s neighbours. Build your future not by breaking old ties, but by strengthening the bonds that have endured through trial and war. For even the fiercest independence is hollow if it leaves the people unguarded, their livelihoods uncertain, and their hearts estranged.

And so I say to all who hear: cherish the power of togetherness. When you are tempted to leave in haste — whether it be a union, a friendship, or a cause — pause, reflect, and ask: does the flame I carry burn brighter alone, or with others beside me? For in that question lies the heart of Hammond’s warning — that in unity, there is might; in division, there is peril. Let your choices, then, be worthy of the generations who built the peace you now hold in your hands.