SNP MSP for Edinburgh East Kenny MacAskill tweets:, external 1.6 million people when told No they can't by the establishment and their business and international friends said Yes we can. Proud of them.

Elizabeth: Feel totally humiliated that, as a country, there are people still happy to let Westminster decide what happens with our revenue. Scotland, I thought, was a strong nation! Unfortunately not. Don't think Scotland could have got any worse than what it is now had we got independence. Disappointed we never got a YES!

Alistair: The union has been given one last chance. If we, including all on the Yes side, are honest, all of the problems what we need to fix can be fixed inside the UK. The question is, will they be? We know that we will be together, time will prove whether or not we will be better. The powers that need to be devolved are those that can make Scotland more prosperous and fairer. If, in a decade or two we are not more prosperous, and we do not have a fairer society, because the powers needed to achieve these things are not devolved, the union will finally end.

Lorna, Glasgow: I'm deeply depressed that the old voted No while the young voted Yes. So, the retired will lunch out while young working families depend on food banks.

Anon: England should vote to decide if the ungrateful Scots should stay in Britain.

The weekly newspaper The Economist tweets, external: By shifting the debate to the West Lothian Question, David Cameron cannily puts Labour in a very sticky position.

BBC News School Reporters have been giving their reaction to the No result.

Students at Hermitage Academy in Helensburgh felt the result was a positive thing locally as it protected the future of the Faslane Royal Navy base.

Kirsten, 17, said: "I think it is quite good for Helensburgh as it is a safeguard for the base which will keep local businesses afloat."

The first-time voters at the school had the experience of going to the polling station for the first time. Ryan, 17, said: "It wasn't as exciting as I expected," while Jonathan said: "It was exciting but bland at the same time, although just putting an X meant a lot to me."

There is plenty of praise among Persian-speaking Twitter-users for Scotland opting to remain in the UK, BBC Monitoring observes.

User "mohebatre, external" says it is Britain's destiny to "maintain its greatness".

According to "shahohoseni, external", there are three winners in the referendum: the people, democracy and the right of self-determination.

But a few people, including blogger "imanbrando, external" say Scots "are not brave enough to be independent because its men wear skirts".

A notable number of Persian-language tweets question whether the referendum took place at all, calling it a BBC "plot" to spark separatism in other parts of the world.

Joy Ball: A clear and overwhelming mandate for the status quo! Let's put this NO vote into perspective... a clear and large majority of votes (55.303%) responded NO to independence - this represents a differential of over 10%; yet a margin of 1000 times smaller in favour of YES (50.005% vs 49.995%) would have been sufficiently large mandate for Scotland to have been independent this morning! That is why the Quebecois advised the Scottish Government not to go with a simple absolute majority vote on this issue.

Geoff James: Looking at the map of how people in the 32 Scottish councils voted, those opposed to independence nearly ended up being dominated by those voters living in a very centralised area of the country based around Glasgow... not unlike the situation the pro-independence supporters complain about when they talk about London.

S. Saffin: Alex Salmond must be over the moon today. A Yes vote and he had to make good on a number of unlikely promises. Now, anything positive in Scotland he will claim as a result of his obtaining concessions; anything negative wouldn't have happened if the vote had been Yes. It was said a Yes vote should result in Cameron resigning. I bet the thought of resignation will not enter Salmond's mind even though he's lost.

Robert Peston
Economics editor

The big question about the Prime Minister's plan to hand more control over taxes, spending and welfare to the four nations is how far this would end the subsidy of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland by England, and especially by London and the South East.

For all that it may sound attractive to the Scots, Welsh and Northern Irish to have greater influence over their respective economic destinies, presumably that would be less desirable if at a stroke they became poorer.

The point is that as and when there is an English Parliament for English people - of the sort that the former Tory minister John Redwood has been demanding, and David Cameron seemed to concede today - the financial transfer from England to the rest of the UK may be harder to sustain.

Read Robert's full blog.

John Sweeney from Airth: I am disappointed. I accept it is a democratic vote and I have to get on with my life now. I hope the promises of the British government do actually transpire. That worries me. And I don't think the idea of independence is going to go away in Scotland.

James Beaven, a student in Edinburgh: I am relieved rather than ecstatic. It is not a resounding vote either way, 10 points is good but we were looking at a 20-point lead earlier in the campaign. I also feel that the rhetoric in the campaigns took a nationalistic tone in the sense that both sides of the debate took Scotland to be a differentiated group to the rest of the UK, rather than looking at what unites us as part of the UK. I don't think the aftermath is going to rumble on for too long. I think people will try to embrace the result rather fight it.

Patricia Smith, Dundee: Gutted. I just feel like we've let the country down. A Yes vote to me meant an awakening, it would have been like waking up and embracing a new chance to do something for ourselves and future generations. We could have had belief in ourselves and not just blame Westminster for everything. I feel like we had a chance to change things and we've blown it. I hope that Catalonia get a chance to do what we have failed to do. We have to respect that is what people have voted for. I just don't see that we are going to get what we have been promised. I'm so upset that we didn't have the bottle to go for it. We lost an opportunity.

About 04:30 in the morning is the time even the liveliest parties tend to wind down.

The guests - some of them looking the worse for wear - begin to leave; the plates and champagne bottles are cleared away; the party balloons begin to shrink and sag.

Image source, Getty Images

But at the Marriott Hotel in Glasgow, 04:40 BST was the time people started to stand up, fill (or re-fill) their glasses and turn their attention to the giant TV screens on the wall.

Read Political Correspondent Ben Geoghegan's take on the celebrations of the Better Together campaign.

Norman Smith
BBC Assistant Political Editor

I'm in the centre of Glasgow, one of the few cities to actually vote Yes but where people are coming to terms with a really quite decisive defeat - a defeat brought about it seems by the shy Nos. The silent majority, people who didn't put up posters, didn't wear badges, didn't talk to us journalists, but in the privacy of the polling booth finally expressed their true support for the Union.

Image source, Reuters

For so long, politics in Scotland has been dominated by the issue of independence and it has hung over relations between London and Edinburgh, even soured relations between the two capitals. Now, all sides accept that is over and is over for a generation and maybe even longer.

But if the referendum is over, its aftermath could yet prove as protracted, as difficult, because David Cameron will now not only have to live up to his promise to hand more powers to the Scottish Parliament, he has coupled that with a promise to devolve more powers to the rest of the UK and to the same timetable as handing over further powers to Scotland.

What that means is he wants a new deal for England Wales and Northern Ireland by January of next year. That is an extraordinarily daunting, difficult and potentially divisive process.

Respect MP George Galloway tweets: , externalLabour in Scotland and everywhere must become real Labour again. We are ready to help them with that. To get the Tories out and the SNP too.

The German Foreign Minister believes the No result in the independence referendum is "a good decision for Scotland".

Frank-Walter Steinmeier said: "People in Germany have followed with great interest the lively debate about independence in Scotland and in other parts of the United Kingdom. I have great respect for Great Britain's exemplary democratic culture as it was displayed in this referendum.

Image source, Getty Images

"The vote is clear: People want a strong Scotland within a strong Great Britain. I believe this a good decision for Scotland, Great Britain and for Europe.

"We wish that the United Kingdom stays an powerful and engaged partner in Europe, and we are looking forward to the continuation of a close and trusting close partnership."

The number of tweets about the Referendum has dropped to under 55,000 between 12pm and 1pm. The figure is down 7% on the previous hour.

A top tweet , externalin the last hour is from William Hague: "PM @David_Cameron has asked me to draw up plans for a fair settlement for the rest of the UK alongside new powers for Scotland." which was retweeted 148 times.

Lots of broadcasters, including CNN, the BBC and ABC, are topping the influencer chart.

You can join the conversation via #indyref, external, tweet @BBCPolitics, external or go to the BBC News page on Facebook, external.

SNP deputy leader Nicola Sturgeon tweets:, external Scotland has changed forever as a result of #indyref. There is no going back to business as usual. The demand for change must be heeded.

Image source, Getty Images

Tom Watson tweets: , externalAm I right in saying #indyref is the 1st time Scotland has got 2 teams to an international final?

Josephine Patmore tweets: , externalPlease stop! If I wasn't bored before the vote I certainly am now, Scotland has decided, let's move along now pls.

Defence Secretary Michael Fallon has said the government hopes to get agreement on both Scottish devolution and a new deal for England and Wales and Northern Ireland before the next election.

Mr Fallon told the Daily Politics: "Our aim is to get agreement on these things before the general election and that's what we're doing urgently now."

Tracey, Edinburgh: Heartbroken today. But this was not a fair fight. The self-serving Westminster government encouraged banks and businesses and the media to strike fear into the heart of the Scots. But we fell for it.

Nigel Ashworth: What the UK now needs is a real northern powerhouse city to rival London and the south east. This referendum has been as much about Scotland versus the south east of England, which is creating so much unbalance in our island. I want to see all mainstream parties agree to a long-term plan to build a creative, manufacturing, scientific and entrepreneurial city in the North, Manchester or Glasgow would be good candidates for the UK to have a second world-class city.

Darren, Kilmarnock: I cannot understand all the frustration from the Yes campaigners about people voting No because they are too risk-averse. These people complaining are probably the same ones who were up in arms when the banks were taking massive risks a few years ago. Voting No didn't mean that I think things are perfect - far from it. However, I think being in the UK and the EU is better economically and we are stronger as a result. Some of the hatred and abuse on social media today is despicable. It's time to move on and upwards Scotland!

Alex Salmond has been a source of fascination for the world's media during the Scottish referendum campaign. But what makes the Scottish National Party leader tick?

The BBC's Brian Wheeler has been finding out...

Image source, Getty Images

Mike, Perth: This is a 1979 moment. If we have another Poll Tax fiasco there will be another referendum & a 1997-style landslide for Yes. 2014 is a warning shot across the bows of the Establishment. One big opportunity now to make devolution work.

Stuart Montgomery, Edinburgh: "I just want to dance all the way down the street."

Elaine, Aberdeenshire: To Kevin in Dundee: this was not an election, it was a referendum and by the same token you cannot win a referendum by shouting down your opponents and not acknowledging the risks and uncertainties that may have resulted from a Yes vote. But, make no mistake, Westminster will not be given the benefit of the doubt in future if they back away or fail to deliver a better deal for the Scottish people.

Image source, EPA

Lord Smith of Kelvin has been appointed to oversee the process of devolving more powers to Scotland. But who is he?