Bagpipers Play 'Ode to Joy' Outside Scottish Parliament in Final Hours Before Brexit
Bagpipers played Beethoven’s “Ode to Joy” – used as the anthem of the European Union – outside of the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh on January 31, the day of the United Kingdom’s withdrawal from the EU.
A crowd of onlookers waving both EU and Scottish flags gathered outside the parliament building on Friday, as seen in this footage captured by Sophie Mullins, who wrote that the sight made her finish her run in tears.
Britain was due to leave the union at midnight in Brussels – 11 pm in London – marking an end to its 47 years of membership in what would become the European Union. The exit begins a transition period, scheduled to end on December 31, wherein Britain’s future relationship with the union is to be decided. In 2016, Scotland voted by 62 percent to 38 percent to remain in the union.
Ahead of Brexit, Scotland’s Parliament voted 64 to 54 on January 29 to hold a new referendum on Scottish Independence later in 2020, with First Minister Nicola Sturgeon arguing that Scotland “has the right to choose its own future.” Credit: Sophie Mullins via Storyful
