Wee Free

The term Wee Free was an epithet commonly used to distinguish two Scottish Presbyterian Churches after the union of 1900: The Free Kirk and The United Free Kirk. Since the United Free were approximately 25 times larger, but hard to distinguish without some knowledge of Scottish history and theology, the rhyming Scottish diminutive became used as an epithet of the post 1900 Free Kirk. The epithet Wee Free was also applied to a small group in the 1918 Liberal Party who on principle did not want to go into coalition with the Conservative Party. The Wee Free Liberals either did not get, or refused, the coupon signed by David Lloyd George of the Liberals and Bonar Law of the Conservatives. The Wee Free in modern usage is used, usually in a pejorative way, of any small group who because of their, arguably obscure, religious principles choose to remain outside or separate from a larger body. Terry Pratchet’s Wee Free Men is an epithet for his Nac Mac Feegles who appear in some of his Discworld novels. He denied they are caricatures of Scots or churchmen saying “The Nac Mac Feegle are not Scottish. There is no Scotland on Discworld. They may, in subtle ways, suggest some aspects of the Scottish character as filtered through the media, but that's because of quantum.".

In 1900 the Free Church was the second largest Presbyterian church in Scotland after its exit from the Auld Kirk in 1843 known as the Disruption. In the years leading up to 1900 the Free Kirk and the more theologically liberal United Presbyterian Church aligned themselves with each other with full union as the goal. This led to Declaratory Articles being passed by their General Assemblies, changing or clarifying their doctrine so that there would be no barrier to union. The Free Kirk’s Declaratory Act of 1892 was objected to by a minority some of whom formed the Free Presbyterian Church of Scotland, which continues to this day. Eight years later when Scotland’s second and third largest Presbyterian denominations formally unified, a small group chose to stay outside the union. They were given the epithet the Wee Free Church (or Wee Frees) and, since they appealed to Caesar through the Scottish Courts and right up to the House of Lords, they became well known and the phrase passed into common usage. The Lords decision in the case of Bannatyne v Overtoun was in favour of the small body, a decision which surprised many.

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