Did you know Scotland isn’t really an independent nation?

I know, I was surprised too, so I did some research.

Scotland is a part of the United Kingdom. The U.K. consists of Wales, Northern Ireland, England and Scotland. It started out with just England and Scotland in 1707. England and Scotland have been tied to each other for 307 years. Today, after a two-year campaign, they are voting on whether or not to break that and become independent from the U.K.

This began when British Parliament gave the other countries in the U.K. additional powers. Scotland’s Parliament wanted to take a little more: a vote for independence. British Prime Minister David Cameron agreed to let the referendum (a vote on a single question) happen two years ago, when the argument for independence was still weak.

Since then, the votes in the ‘yes’ camp for independence have risen to 47 percent with 50 percent in the ‘no’ camp and 3 percent unsure.

Cameron has said he “empathetically” will not resign if Scotland secedes, but the prime minister will receive great pressure to do so from both political parties in England.

For the first time in Scotland, citizens from the ages 16 and up will be able to vote.

According to the U.K. Electoral Commission the ballot will look like this :

Scottish National Party leader Alex Salmond said an independent Scotland would be among the richest countries in the world. Evidence to back that up is a list of 200 businesses that wrote an open letter to The Herald newspaper in Scotland stating they would support the new independent nation.

If Scotland gains independence, it will not take effect until March 26, 2016.

Voting opened Thursday, Sept. 18, at 7 a.m. (1 a.m. CST) and closes at 10 p.m. (4 p.m. CST). Keep your eyes on The All State to see if Europe will gain a new independent nation.

Oh, I almost forgot an obligatory Braveheart gif.