Scottish King: Robert II

ROBERT II
Robert II (2 March 1316 – 19 April 1390) reigned as King of Scots from 1371 to his death as the first monarch of the House of Stewart. He was the son of Walter Stewart, 6th High Steward of Scotland and of Marjorie Bruce, daughter of Robert the Bruce by his first wife Isabella of Mar.

Robert II coin

Edward Bruce was named heir to the throne but he died without legitimate children on 3 December 1318 in a battle near Dundalk in Ireland. Marjorie by this time had died in a riding accident – probably in 1317. Parliament decreed her infant son, Robert Stewart, as heir presumptive, but this lapsed on 5 March 1324 on the birth of a son, David, to King Robert and his second wife, Elizabeth de Burgh. Robert Stewart inherited the title of High Steward of Scotland on his father's death on 9 April 1326, and a Parliament held in July 1326 confirmed the young Steward as heir should Prince David die without a successor. In 1329 King Robert I died and the six-year-old David succeeded to the throne with Sir Thomas Randolph, Earl of Moray appointed Guardian of Scotland.

Edward Balliol, son of King John Balliol, assisted by the English and Scottish nobles disinherited by Robert I, invaded Scotland inflicting heavy defeats on the Bruce party on 11 August 1332 at Dupplin Moor and Halidon Hill on 19 July 1333.

John Balliol

 Robert fought at Halidon, where his uncle and former guardian, Sir James Stewart, was killed. Following this battle, Robert's lands in the west were given by Balliol to his supporter David Strathbogie, the titular Earl of Atholl. Robert took refuge in the fortress of Dumbarton Castle in the Clyde estuary to join his uncle, King David. In May 1334 David escaped to France leaving Robert and John Randolph, 3rd Earl of Moray as joint Guardians of the kingdom. Robert succeeded in regaining his lands but following Randolph's capture by the English in July 1335, his possessions were once again targeted by the forces of Balliol and King Edward III of England.

This may have persuaded Robert to submit to Balliol and the English king and may explain his removal as Guardian by September 1335.

 Elizabeth Mure

 The Guardianship transferred to Sir Andrew Murray of Bothwell but following his death in 1338 Robert was re-appointed and retained the office until King David returned from France in June 1341.

Robert accompanied David into battle at Neville's Cross on 17 October 1346 but he and Patrick Dunbar, Earl of March escaped or fled the field and David was taken prisoner. In October 1357, the king was ransomed for 100,000 marks to be paid in installments over ten years.

Robert married Elizabeth Mure around 1348, legitimising his four sons and five daughters. His subsequent marriage to Euphemia de Ross in 1355 produced two sons and two surviving daughters and provided the basis of a future dispute regarding the line of succession. Robert joined a rebellion against David in 1363 but submitted to him following a threat to his right of succession. In 1364, David presented a proposal to Parliament that would cancel the remaining ransom debt if it was agreed that a Plantagenet heir would inherit the Scottish throne should he die without issue.

This was rejected and Robert succeeded to the throne at the age of 55 following David's unexpected death in 1371. England still controlled large sectors in the Lothians and in the border country so King Robert allowed his southern earls to engage in actions in the English zones to regain their territories, halted trade with England and renewed treaties with France. By 1384, the Scots had re-taken most of the occupied lands, but following the commencement of Anglo-French peace talks, Robert was reluctant to commit Scotland to all-out war and obtained Scotland's inclusion in the peace treaty.

Seal of Edward Bolliol

Robert's peace strategy was a factor in the virtual coup in 1384 when he lost control of the country, first to his eldest son, John, Earl of Carrick, afterwards King Robert III, and then from 1388 to John's younger brother, Robert, Earl of Fife, afterwards the first Duke of Albany. Robert II died in Dundonald Castle in 1390 and was buried at Scone Abbey. In May 1334, the situation looked dire for the house of Bruce and David II gained safety in France. Robert set about winning back his lands in the west of Scotland. Strathbogie came over to the Bruce interest after disagreements with his fellow 'disinherited' but his fierce opposition to Randolph came to a head at a Parliament held at Dairsie Castle in early 1335 when Strathbogie received the support of Robert.

David II & Joan

Strathbogie once again changed sides and submitted to the English king in August and was made Warden of Scotland. It seems that Strathbogie may also have persuaded Robert to submit to Edward and Balliol—Sir Thomas Gray, in his Scalacronica claimed that he had actually done so—and may explain his removal as Guardian around this time.

The Bruce resistance to Balliol may have been verging on collapse in 1335 but a turn-round in its fortunes began with the appearance of Sir Andrew Murray of Bothwell as a potent war leader at the Battle of Culblean. Murray had been captured in 1332, ransomed himself in 1334, and immediately sped north to lay siege to Dundarg Castle in Buchan held by Sir Henry de Beaumont, with the castle falling on 23 December 1334.

Murray was appointed Guardian at Dunfermline during the winter of 1335–6 while he was besieging Cupar Castle in Fife. He died at his castle in Avoch in 1338 and Robert resumed the Guardianship. Murray's campaign put an end to any chance of Edward III having full lasting control over the south of Scotland and Edward's failure in the six-month siege of Dunbar Castle confirmed this.

Balliol lost many of his major supporters to the Bruce side and the main English garrisons began to fall to the Scots—Cupar in the spring or summer of 1339, Perth taken by Robert also in 1339 and Edinburgh by William, Earl of Douglas in April 1341.

Edward III

John Randolph, released from English custody in a prisoner-exchange in 1341, visited David II in Normandy before returning to Scotland.

Just as Randolph was a favourite of the king, David II mistrusted Robert Stewart with his powerful positions of heir presumptive and Guardian of Scotland.

At the beginning of June 1341, the kingdom appeared sufficiently stable to allow the king to return to a land where his nobles, while fighting for the Bruce cause, had considerably increased their own power bases.

On 17 October 1346, Robert accompanied David into battle at Neville's Cross, where many Scottish nobles including Randolph, died—David II was wounded and captured while Robert and Patrick, earl of March had apparently fled the field. With the king now imprisoned in England and Randolph dead, the Guardianship once again fell to Robert. In 1347 he took the important step of ensuring the legitimation of his four sons, John, Earl of Carrick (the future King Robert III), Walter, Lord of Fife (d. 1362), Robert (the future Duke of Albany) and Alexander, Lord of Badenoch (and future Earl of Buchan), and six daughters by petitioning Pope Clement VI to allow a canon law marriage to Elizabeth Mure.

coin of John of Gaunt

Even though an English prisoner, David retained influence in Scotland and Robert had his Guardianship removed by parliament and given jointly to the earls of Mar and Ross and the lord of Douglas—this did not last and Robert was once again appointed Guardian by the Parliament of February 1352. The paroled David attended this Parliament to present to Robert and the members of the Three Estates the conditions for his release. These contained no ransom demand, but required the Scots to name the English prince John of Gaunt as heir presumptive. The Council rejected these terms, with Robert opposed to a proposal that threatened his right of succession. The king had no option but to return to captivity

David was buried at Holyrood Abbey almost immediately but an armed protest by William, Earl of Douglas delayed Robert II's coronation until 26 March 1371.

Robert the Bruce Tomb

The reasons for the incident remain unclear but may have involved a dispute regarding Robert's right of succession, or may have been directed against George Dunbar, Earl of March and the southern Justiciar, Robert Erskine.

It was resolved by Robert giving his daughter Isabella in marriage to Douglas's son, James and with Douglas replacing Erskine as Justiciar south of the Forth. Robert's accession did affect some others who held offices from David II. In particular, George Dunbar's brother John Dunbar, the Lord of Fife who lost his claim on Fife and Sir Robert Erskine's son, Sir Thomas Erskine who lost control of Edinburgh Castle.

The Stewarts greatly increased their holdings in the west, in Atholl, and in the far north: the earldoms of Fife and Menteith went to Robert II's second surviving son Robert, the earldoms of Buchan and Ross (along with the lordship of Badenoch) to his fourth son Alexander and the earldoms of Strathearn and Caithness to the eldest son of his second marriage, David. King Robert's sons-in-law were John MacDonald, Lord of the Isles, John Dunbar, Earl of Moray and James who would become the 2nd Earl of Douglas.  Robert's sons John, Earl of Carrick, the king's heir, and Robert, Earl of Fife, were made keepers of the castles of Edinburgh and Stirling respectively, while Alexander, Lord of Badenoch and Ross, and afterwards Earl of Buchan, became the king's Justiciar and lieutenant in the north of the Kingdom.

David II coin

This build-up of the Stewart family power did not appear to cause resentment among the senior magnates—the king generally did not threaten their territories or local rule and where titles were transferred to his sons the individuals affected were usually very well rewarded. This style of kingship was very different from his predecessor's—David tried to dominate his nobles whereas Robert's strategy was to delegate authority to his powerful sons and earls and this generally worked for the first decade of his reign. Robert II was to have influence over eight of the fifteen earldoms either through his sons directly or by strategic marriages of his daughters to powerful lords.

Robert's son, John, Earl of Carrick, had become the foremost Stewart magnate south of the Forth just as Alexander, Earl of Buchan was in the north. Alexander's activities and methods of royal administration, enforced by Gaelic mercenaries, drew criticism from northern earls and bishops and from his younger half-brother David, Earl of Strathearn.

John Stewart, Seventh Earl of Galloway

These complaints damaged the king's standing within the Council leading to criticism of his ability to curb Buchan's activities. Robert's differences with the Carrick affinity regarding the conduct of the war and his continued failure or unwillingness to deal with Buchan in the north led to the political convulsion of November 1384 when the Council removed the king's authority to govern and appointed Carrick as lieutenant of the kingdom—a coup d’état had taken place.

With Robert sidelined, there was now no impediment in the way of war. In June 1385, a force of 1200 French soldiers joined the Scots in a campaign that involved the Earl of Douglas and two of Robert's sons, John, Earl of Carrick and Robert, Earl of Fife.

Robert II

 The skirmishes saw small gains but a quarrel between the French and Scottish commanders saw the abandonment of an attack on the important castle of Roxburgh.

The victory of the Scots over the English at the Battle of Otterburn in Northumberland in August 1388 set in motion Carrick's fall from power. One of the Scottish casualties was Carrick's close ally James, Earl of Douglas. Douglas died without an heir, which led to various claims upon the title and estate—Carrick backed Malcolm Drummond, the husband of Douglas's sister, while Fife sided with the successful appellant, Sir Archibald Douglas, lord of Galloway who possessed an entail on the Douglas estates.

Fife, now with his powerful Douglas ally, and those who supported the king ensured a countercoup at the December Council meeting when the guardianship of Scotland passed from Carrick (who had recently been badly injured from a horse-kick) to Fife. Many had also approved of Fife's intention to properly resolve the situation of lawlessness in the north and in particular the activities of his younger brother, Buchan. Fife relieved Buchan of his offices of lieutenant of the north and justiciar north of the Forth. The latter role was given to Fife's son, Murdoch Stewart.

Robert II toured the north-east of the kingdom in late January 1390, perhaps to reinforce the changed political scene in the north following Buchan's removal from authority. In March, Robert returned to Dundonald Castle in Ayrshire where he died on 19 April and was buried at Scone on 25 April.

Scottish King: David II

DAVID II
David II (Medieval Gaelic: Daibhidh a Briuis, Modern Gaelic: Dàibhidh Bruis; Norman French: Dauid de Brus, Early Scots: Dauid Brus; 5 March 1324 – 22 February 1371) was King of Scots from 1329 until his death, and the last male of the House of Bruce.

David II and Joan

 Although David spent long periods in exile or captivity, he managed to resist English attempts to annex his kingdom, and left the monarchy in a strong position.

David II was the elder and only surviving son of Robert I of Scotland and his second wife, Elizabeth de Burgh. He was born on 5 March 1324 at Dunfermline Abbey, Fife. His mother died in 1327.

In accordance with the Treaty of Northampton's terms, David was married on 17 July 1328 to Joan of the Tower, daughter of Edward II of England and Isabella of France, at Berwick-upon-Tweed.

They had no issue. David became King of Scots upon the death of his father on 7 June 1329, aged 5 years, 3 months, and 3 days. David and his wife were crowned at Scone on 24 November 1331.

During David's minority, Sir Thomas Randolph, 1st Earl of Moray was appointed Guardian of Scotland by the Act of Settlement of 1318. After Moray's death, on 20 July 1332, he was replaced by Donald, Earl of Mar, elected by an assembly of the magnates of Scotland at Perth, 2 August 1332.

Only ten days later Mar fell at the Battle of Dupplin Moor. Sir Andrew Murray of Bothwell, who was married to Christian (or Christina), the sister of King Robert I, was chosen as the new Guardian. He was taken prisoner by the English at Roxburgh in April 1333 and was thence replaced as Guardian by Archibald Douglas (the Tyneman), who fell at Halidon Hill that July.

Sir Archibald seal

Meanwhile, on 24 September 1332, following the Scots' defeat at Dupplin, Edward Balliol, a protégé of Edward III of England, and a pretender to the throne of Scotland, was crowned by the English and his Scots adherents.

By December, however, Balliol was forced to flee to England; he returned the following year as part of an invasion force led by the English king. Following the victory of this force at the Battle of Halidon Hill in July 1333, David and his wife were sent for safety into France, reaching Boulogne on 14 May 1334.

They were received very graciously by King Philip VI. Little is known about the life of the Scottish king in France, except that Château Gaillard was given to him for a residence, and that he was present at the bloodless meeting of the English and French armies in October 1339 at Vironfosse, now known as Buironfosse, in the Arrondissement of Vervins. Meanwhile, David's representatives had once again obtained the upper hand in Scotland, and the king was able to return to his kingdom, landing at Inverbervie in Kincardineshire on 2 June 1341, when he took the reins of government into his own hands.

Edward III (1312-1377), king of England, paying homage to Philip VI of Valois (1294-1350), king of France, 1330. Miniature from 'Les Grandes Chroniques de France' by Jean Fouquet (1420-1481), 15th century. BN, Paris, France

In 1346, under the terms of the Auld Alliance, David invaded England in the interests of the French, who were at war with the English in Normandy. After initial success at Hexham, David was wounded, and his army soundly defeated at the Battle of Neville's Cross on 17 October 1346. David was captured and taken prisoner by Sir John de Coupland, who imprisoned him in the Tower of London.

David was transferred to Windsor Castle in Berkshire upon the return of Edward III from France. The depiction of David being presented to King Edward III in the play The Reign of King Edward the Third is fictitious. David and his household were later moved to Odiham Castle in Hampshire.

David II coin

 His imprisonment was not reputed a rigorous one, although he remained in England for eleven years. On 3 October 1357, after several protracted negotiations with the Scots' regency council, a treaty was signed at Berwick-upon-Tweed under which Scotland's nobility agreed to pay 100,000 marks (to be paid at the rate of 10,000 marks per year) as a ransom for their king. This was ratified by the Scottish Parliament at Scone on 6 November 1357.

David returned at once to Scotland; but, after a few years, owing to the poverty of the kingdom, it was found impossible to raise the ransom instalment of 1363. David then made for London and sought to get rid of the liability by offering to bequeath Scotland to Edward III or one of his sons in return for a cancellation of the ransom. David did this with the full awareness that the Scots would never accept such an arrangement. In 1364, the Scottish parliament indignantly rejected a proposal to make Lionel, Duke of Clarence, the next king; but over the next few years, David strung out secret negotiations with Edward III, which apparently appeased the matter.

The Black Prince, Edward III's Son

He remarried about 20 February 1364, Margaret Drummond, widow of Sir John Logie, and daughter of Sir Malcolm Drummond. He divorced her about 20 March 1370.

They had no issue. Margaret, however, travelled to Avignon and made a successful appeal to the Pope to reverse the sentence of divorce which had been pronounced against her in Scotland.

She was still alive in January 1375. From 1364, David governed with vigour, dealing firmly with recalcitrant nobles and wider baronial revolt, and continued to pursue the goal of final peace with England.

By the time of his death, the Scottish monarchy was stronger, and the kingdom and royal finances more prosperous than might have seemed possible.

David II died unexpectedly and at the height of his power in Edinburgh Castle on 22 February 1371. He was buried in Holyrood Abbey. At the time of his death, he was planning to marry his mistress, Agnes Dunbar (niece of Agnes Randolph, also known as "Black Agnes of Dunbar"). He left no children and was succeeded by his nephew, Robert II, the son of David's half-sister Marjorie Bruce. He was the last male of the House of Bruce.

Scottish King: Robert I Bruce

ROBERT I THE BRUCE
Robert I (11 July 1274 – 7 June 1329), popularly known as Robert the Bruce (Medieval Gaelic:

Head of Robert the Bruce at St Duthac Kirk

Roibert a Briuis; modern Scottish Gaelic: Raibeart Bruis; Norman French: Robert de Brus or Robert de Bruys; Early Scots: Robert Brus; Latin: Robertus Brussius), was King of Scots from 1306 until his death in 1329.

Robert was one of the most famous warriors of his generation, and eventually led Scotland during the First War of Scottish Independence against England. He fought successfully during his reign to regain Scotland's place as an independent country and is today revered in Scotland as a national hero.

Descended from the Anglo-Norman and Gaelic nobilities, his paternal fourth-great grandfather was King David I. Robert's grandfather, Robert de Brus, 5th Lord of Annandale, was one of the claimants to the Scottish throne during the "Great Cause". As Earl of Carrick, Robert the Bruce supported his family's claim to the Scottish throne and took part in William Wallace's revolt against Edward I of England.

Appointed in 1298 as a Guardian of Scotland alongside his chief rival for the throne, John Comyn, Lord of Badenoch, and William Lamberton, Bishop of St Andrews, Robert later resigned in 1300 due to his quarrels with Comyn and the apparently imminent restoration of King John Balliol. After submitting to Edward I in 1302 and returning to "the king's peace", Robert inherited his family's claim to the Scottish throne upon his father's death.

Coin of Robert the Bruce

In February 1306, Robert the Bruce killed Comyn following an argument, and was excommunicated by the Pope (although he received absolution from Robert Wishart, Bishop of Glasgow). Bruce moved quickly to seize the throne and was crowned king of Scots on 25 March 1306. Edward I's forces defeated Robert in battle, forcing him to flee into hiding in the Hebrides and Ireland before returning in 1307 to defeat an English army at Loudoun Hill and wage a highly successful guerrilla war against the English. Bruce defeated his other Scots enemies, destroying their strongholds and devastating their lands, and in 1309 held his first parliament.

Seal of Edward II

A series of military victories between 1310 and 1314 won him control of much of Scotland, and at the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314, Robert defeated a much larger English army under Edward II of England, confirming the re-establishment of an independent Scottish kingdom. The battle marked a significant turning point, with Robert's armies now free to launch devastating raids throughout northern England, while also extending his war against the English to Ireland by sending an army to invade there and by appealing to the native Irish to rise against Edward II's rule.

Edward III as head of the Order of the Garter, drawing c. 1430–40 in the Bruges Garter Book

Despite Bannockburn and the capture of the final English stronghold at Berwick in 1318, Edward II refused to renounce his claim to the overlordship of Scotland.

In 1320, the Scottish nobility submitted the Declaration of Arbroath to Pope John XXII, declaring Robert as their rightful monarch and asserting Scotland's status as an independent kingdom.

In 1324, the Pope recognised Robert I as king of an independent Scotland, and in 1326, the Franco-Scottish alliance was renewed in the Treaty of Corbeil.

In 1327, the English deposed Edward II in favour of his son, Edward III, and peace was concluded between Scotland and England with the Treaty of Edinburgh-Northampton, by which Edward III renounced all claims to sovereignty over Scotland. Bruce, like all his family, had a complete belief in his right to the throne. However, his actions of supporting alternately the English and Scottish armies had led to a great deal of distrust towards Bruce among the "Community of the Realm of Scotland".

 His ambition was further thwarted by John Comyn, who had been much more resolute in his opposition to the English. Comyn was the most powerful noble in Scotland and was related to many more powerful nobles both within Scotland and England, including relatives that held the earldoms of Buchan, Mar, Ross, Fife, Angus, Dunbar, and Strathearn; the Lordships of Kilbride, Kirkintilloch, Lenzie, Bedrule, and Scraesburgh; and sheriffdoms in Banff, Dingwall, Wigtown, and Aberdeen.

Comyn

 He also had a powerful claim to the Scottish throne through his descent from Donald III on his father's side and David I on his mother's side. Comyn was the nephew of John Balliol.

According to Barbour and Fordoun, in the late summer of 1305, in a secret agreement sworn, signed, and sealed, John Comyn agreed to forfeit his claim to the Scottish throne in favour of Robert Bruce upon receipt of the Bruce lands in Scotland should an uprising occur led by Bruce.

Whether the details of the agreement with Comyn are correct or not, King Edward moved to arrest Bruce while Bruce was still at the English court.

Fortunately for Bruce, his friend, and Edward's son-in-law, Ralph de Monthermer learnt of Edward's intention and warned Bruce by sending him twelve pence and a pair of spurs. Bruce took the hint, and he and a squire fled the English court during the night. They made their way quickly for Scotland. According to Barbour, Comyn betrayed his agreement with Bruce to King Edward I, and when Bruce arranged a meeting for 10 February 1306 with Comyn in the Chapel of Greyfriars Monastery in Dumfries and accused him of treachery, they came to blows. Bruce stabbed Comyn before the high altar.

The Scotichronicon says that on being told that Comyn had survived the attack and was being treated, two of Bruce's supporters, Roger de Kirkpatrick (uttering the words "I mak siccar" ("I make sure")) and John Lindsay, went back into the church and finished Bruce's work.

Elizabeth de Burgh, wife of Robert I

 Barbour, however, tells no such story. Bruce asserted his claim to the Scottish crown and began his campaign by force for the independence of Scotland.

Six weeks after Comyn was killed in Dumfries, Bruce was crowned King of Scots by Bishop William de Lamberton at Scone, near Perth, on 25 March 1306 with all formality and solemnity.

The royal robes and vestments that Robert Wishart had hidden from the English were brought out by the Bishop and set upon King Robert. The bishops of Moray and Glasgow were in attendance as well as the earls of Atholl, Menteith, Lennox, and Mar. The great banner of the kings of Scotland was planted behind his throne.

Isabella MacDuff, Countess of Buchan and wife of John Comyn, 3rd Earl of Buchan (a cousin of the murdered John Comyn) arrived the next day, too late for the coronation. She claimed the right of her family, the MacDuff Earl of Fife, to crown the Scottish king for her brother, Donnchadh IV, Earl of Fife, who was not yet of age, and in English hands.

So a second coronation was held and once more the crown was placed on the brow of Robert Bruce, Earl of Carrick, Lord of Annandale, King of the Scots.

In June 1306 Bruce was defeated at the Battle of Methven. His wife and daughters and other women of the party were sent to Kildrummy in August 1306 under the protection of Bruce's brother Neil Bruce and the Earl of Atholl and most of his remaining men. Bruce fled with a small following of his most faithful men, including Sir James Douglas and Gilbert Hay, Bruce's brothers Thomas, Alexander, and Edward, as well as Sir Neil Campbell and the Earl of Lennox.

Marjorie Bruce, daughter of Robert the Bruce

Edward I marched north again in the spring. On his way, he granted the Scottish estates of Bruce and his adherents to his own followers and had published a bill excommunicating Bruce. Bruce's queen, Elizabeth, his daughter Marjorie, his sisters Christina and Mary, and Isabella MacDuff were captured in a sanctuary at Tain and sent to harsh imprisonment, which included Mary and Isabella being hung in cages at Roxburgh and Berwick castles respectively for about four years, while Bruce's brother Neil was executed by being hanged, drawn, and quartered. On 7 July, King Edward I died, leaving Bruce opposed by the king's son, Edward II.


By 1314, Robert I had recaptured most of the castles in Scotland once held by the English, and was sending raiding parties into northern England as far as Carlisle. In response, Edward II planned a major military campaign with the support of Lancaster and the barons, mustering a large army between 15,000 and 20,000 strong. In the spring of 1314, Edward Bruce laid siege to Stirling Castle, a key fortification in Scotland whose governor, Philip de Mowbray, agreed to capitulate if not relieved before 24 June 1314.

In March, James Douglas captured Roxburgh, and Randolph captured Edinburgh Castle, while in May, Bruce again raided England and subdued the Isle of Man. News of the agreement regarding Stirling Castle reached the English king in late May, and he decided to speed up his march north from Berwick to relieve the castle. Robert, with between 5,500 and 6,500 troops, predominantly spearmen, prepared to prevent Edward's forces from reaching Stirling.

Edward II Penny

The battle began on 23 June as the English army attempted to force its way across the high ground of the Bannock Burn, which was surrounded by marshland. Skirmishing between the two sides broke out, resulting in the death of Sir Henry de Bohun, whom Robert killed in personal combat. Edward continued his advance the following day, and encountered the bulk of the Scottish army as they emerged from the woods of New Park.

Coin of Robert the Bruce

The English appear not to have expected the Scots to give battle here, and as a result had kept their forces in marching, rather than battle, order, with the archers − who would usually have been used to break up enemy spear formations − at the back of the army, rather than the front. The English cavalry found it hard to operate in the cramped terrain and were crushed by Robert's spearmen. The English army was overwhelmed and its leaders were unable to regain control.

Edward II was dragged away from the battlefield, hotly pursued by the Scottish forces, and only just escaped the heavy fighting. The historian Roy Haines describes the defeat as a "calamity of stunning proportions" for the English, whose losses in the battle were huge.

In the aftermath of the defeat, Edward retreated to Dunbar, then travelled by ship to Berwick, and then back to York; in his absence, Stirling Castle quickly fell.

Pope John XXII 

 The reign of Robert Bruce also included some significant diplomatic achievements.

The Declaration of Arbroath of 1320 strengthened his position, particularly vis-à-vis the Papacy, and Pope John XXII eventually lifted Bruce's excommunication. In May 1328 King Edward III of England signed the Treaty of Edinburgh-Northampton, which recognised Scotland as an independent kingdom, and Bruce as its king.

In 1325 Robert I exchanged lands at Cardross for those of Old Montrose in Angus with Sir David Graham. It was to be here that Robert would build the manor house that would serve as his favoured residence during the final years of his reign.

The extant chamberlain's accounts for 1328 detail a manor house at Cardross with king's and queen's chambers and glazed windows, a chapel, kitchens, bake- and brew-houses, falcon aviary, medicinal garden, gatehouse, protective moat and a hunting park. There was also a jetty and beaching area for the 'king's coble' (for fishing) alongside the 'king's great ship'.

As most of mainland Scotland's major royal castle had remained in their razed state since around 1313–14, Cardross manor was perhaps built as a modest residence sympathetic to Robert's subjects' privations through a long war, repeated famines and livestock pandemics.

Pope John XXII 

 Before Cardross became habitable in 1327, Robert I's main residence had been Scone Abbey.

Robert died on 7 June 1329, at the Manor of Cardross, near Dumbarton. He died utterly fulfilled, in that the goal of his lifetime's struggle—untrammelled recognition of the Bruce right to the crown—had been realised, and confident that he was leaving the kingdom of Scotland safely in the hands of his most trusted lieutenant, Moray, until his infant son reached adulthood. Six days after his death, to complete his triumph still further, papal bulls were issued granting the privilege of unction at the coronation of future Kings of Scots.

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Scottish King: John Bolliol

JOHN BOLLIOL
John Balliol (c.?1249 – 25 November 1314) was King of Scots from 1292 to 1296.

John Balliol and his wife Isabella de Warenne

 Little is known of his early life. After the death of Margaret, Maid of Norway, Balliol was chosen as the new King of Scotland by a group of auditors. Edward I of England constantly tried to undermine his reign and demanded that Balliol treat Scotland as a vassal state.

As a result, the Scots grew tired of him and appointed a council of twelve to rule instead. This council signed a treaty with France known as the Auld Alliance.

In retaliation, Edward invaded Scotland, starting the Wars of Scottish Independence. After a Scottish defeat in 1296, Balliol abdicated and was imprisoned in the Tower of London.

Eventually, Balliol was sent to France, and made no effort to help the Scots. Scotland was then left without a monarch until Robert the Bruce ascended in 1306.

In Norman French his name was Johan de Bailliol, in Middle Scots it was Jhon Ballioun, and in Scottish Gaelic, Iain Bailiol.

In Scots he was known by the nickname Toom Tabard, usually understood to mean "empty coat", with the word coat referring to coat of arms.[disputed – discuss] Little of Balliol's early life is known. He was born between 1248 and 1250 at an unknown location; possibilities include Galloway, Picardy and Barnard Castle, County Durham.

He was the son of John, 5th Baron Balliol, Lord of Barnard Castle, and his wife Dervorguilla of Galloway, daughter of Alan, Lord of Galloway and granddaughter of David, Earl of Huntingdon. From his mother he inherited significant lands in Galloway and claim to Lordship over the Gallovidians, as well as various English and Scottish estates of the Huntingdon inheritance; from his father he inherited large estates in England and France, such as Hitchin, in Hertfordshire.

Seal of John Balliol, c. 1249 – 1314

In 1284 Balliol had attended a parliament at Scone, which had recognised Margaret, Maid of Norway, as heir presumptive to her grandfather, King Alexander III. Following the deaths of Alexander III in 1286 and Margaret in 1290, John Balliol was a competitor for the Scottish crown in the Great Cause, as he was a great-great-great-grandson of David I through his mother (and therefore one generation further than his main rival Robert Bruce, 5th Lord of Annandale, grandfather of Robert the Bruce, who later became king), being senior in genealogical primogeniture but not in proximity of blood.

Dervorguilla of Galloway

He submitted his claim to the Scottish auditors with King Edward I of England as the arbitrator, at Berwick-upon-Tweed on 6 June 1291.

The Scottish auditors' decision in favour of Balliol was pronounced in the Great Hall of Berwick Castle on 17 November 1292, and he was inaugurated accordingly King of Scotland at Scone, 30 November 1292, St. Andrew's Day.

Edward I, who had coerced recognition as Lord Paramount of Scotland, the feudal superior of the realm, steadily undermined John's authority.

He demanded homage to be paid towards himself, legal authority over the Scottish King in any disputes brought against him by his own subjects, contribution towards the costs for the defence of England, and military support was expected in his war against France. He treated Scotland as a feudal vassal state and repeatedly humiliated the new king. The Scots soon tired of their deeply compromised king; the direction of affairs was allegedly taken out of his hands by the leading men of the kingdom, who appointed a council of twelve—in practice, a new panel of Guardians—at Stirling in July 1295.

They went on to conclude a treaty of mutual assistance with France – known in later years as the Auld Alliance. In retaliation, Edward I invaded, commencing the Wars of Scottish Independence.

King Edward I

The Scots were defeated at Dunbar and the English took Dunbar Castle on 27 April 1296. John abdicated at Stracathro near Montrose on 10 July 1296. Here the arms of Scotland were formally torn from John's surcoat, giving him the abiding name of "Toom Tabard" (empty coat).

John was imprisoned in the Tower of London until allowed to go to France in July 1299. When his baggage was examined at Dover, the Royal Golden Crown and Seal of the Kingdom of Scotland, with many vessels of gold and silver, and a considerable sum of money, were found in his chests.

Edward I ordered that the Crown be offered to St. Thomas the Martyr and that the money be returned to John for the expenses of his journey. But he kept the Seal himself.

John was released into the custody of Pope Boniface VIII on condition that he remain at a papal residence. He was released around the summer of 1301 and lived the rest of his life on his family's ancestral estates at Hélicourt, Picardy.

Over the next few years, there were several Scottish rebellions against Edward (for example, in 1297 under William Wallace and Andrew Moray). The rebels would use the name of "King John", on the grounds that his abdication had been under duress and therefore invalid.

John de Balliol

This claim came to look increasingly tenuous, as John's position under nominal house-arrest meant that he could not return to Scotland nor campaign for his release, despite the Scots' diplomatic attempts in Paris and Rome. After 1302, he made no further attempts to extend his personal support to the Scots. Effectively, Scotland was left without a monarch until the accession of Robert the Bruce in 1306.

John died around 25 November 1314 at his family's château at Hélicourt in France. On 4 January 1315, King Edward II of England, writing to King Louis X of France, said that he had heard of the death of 'Sir John de Balliol'[10] and requested the fealty and homage of Edward Balliol to be given by proxy. A John de Bailleul is interred in the church of St. Waast at Bailleul-sur-Eaune. This may or may not be the Scottish King. John was survived by his son Edward Balliol, who later revived his family's claim to the Scottish throne, received support from the English, and had some temporary successes.

Queen Margaret of Scotland

MARGARET OF SCOTLAND
Margaret, Maid of Norway (9 April 1283 – 26 September 1290) was a Norwegian princess who reigned as Queen of Scots from 1286 until her death.

Coronation of Margaret, Maid of Norway, as Queen regnant of the Scots.

Her death while travelling to Scotland sparked off the disputed succession which led to the Wars of Scottish Independence.

She was the daughter of King Eric II of Norway and Margaret, daughter of King Alexander III of Scotland. Margaret was born in Tønsberg.

Her mother died in childbirth. When the treaty arranging the marriage of Margaret and Eric was signed at Roxburgh on 25 July 1281, Alexander III's younger son David had already died, in June 1281, leaving the King of Scots with only one legitimate son, Alexander.

Consequently, the treaty included a provision for the children of Margaret and Eric to succeed to the kingdom of the Scots:

If it happens that the king of Scotland dies without a lawful son, and any of his sons does not leave lawful issue [not sons] and Margaret has children [not sons] by the king of Norway, she and her children shall succeed to the king of Scotland ... or she, even if she is without children, according to Scottish law and custom. Alexander III made similar provisions when arranging the marriage of his son Alexander to Margaret, daughter of Guy de Dampierre, Count of Flanders, probably also in 1281. The treaty arranging the marriage, signed in December 1281, included a lengthy and complex document setting out the customs and usages which determined the succession.

Alexander III coin

As well as general statement of principles, the annex includes specific examples of the rights of "A and M" and their children in particular cases. The document, while confusing in places, appears to favour primogeniture for male heirs, or their descendants, and proximity of blood for female heirs and their descendants. The younger Alexander died on 28 January 1284, leaving only the king's granddaughter Margaret living out of his descendants. Alexander III summoned all thirteen earls of Scotland and twenty-four barons. At Scone on 5 February 1284, the signatories agreed to recognise Margaret as "domina and right heir" if neither Alexander had left a posthumous child and the king had left no children at the time of his death.

Seal of Eric II in known use 1289–98, with obverse (left).

However, it is unlikely that this was intended to allow Margaret to rule alone as queen regnant, but rather jointly with her future spouse, whoever he might be.

While unexceptional in the circumstances, this would appear to show that Alexander III had decided on remarriage. He did remarry, to Yolande de Dreux, but died shortly afterwards as the result of an accident on 19 March 1286 without any children by her.

After King Alexander III was buried at Dunfermline Abbey on 29 March 1286, the magnates and clerics of the realm assembled at Scone in parliament to select the Guardians of Scotland who would keep the kingdom for the right heir. At this time it was thought that Queen Yolande was pregnant, so that Margaret was not yet the obvious successor. It is uncertain what happened to Yolande's child--most likely she had a miscarriage, although other accounts say that her child was still-born at Clackmannan on St. Catherine's Day (25 November 1286) with the Guardians in attendance to witness the event; just possibly she had a false pregnancy, and there was even one dubious English claim that she was faking pregnancy.

This, according to the oaths taken, made Margaret the heir at three years of age, but that same year Robert Bruce, 5th Lord of Annandale had rebelled with the aid of his son the Earl of Carrick. The Bruces captured strongholds in Galloway, and as well as bolstering their position in the south-west where their rivals the Balliols also had influence, may have been making a bid for the Crown.

Seal of John Balliol, c. 1249 – 1314 AD

However, Robert Bruce seems to have overestimated his chances of successfully pressing his claim, as further support does not appear to have been forthcoming.

And it is difficult to prove that even Bruce allies such as the Stewarts decided to back them, in spite of what some historians have inferred from the Turnberry Band of September 1286.

The rebellion thus quickly fizzled out, though no drastic action was taken against the Bruces after they had handed back the castles they had seized. In this way, the Guardians possibly hoped to maintain the peace in Scotland between the competing claims of Robert Bruce and John Balliol, without jeopardising their ultimate loyalty to the realm, and probably to Margaret as the more generally accepted heir.

Far from the Scots displaying any desire to bring Margaret to Scotland, it was Margaret's father Eric who raised the question again. Eric sent official ambassadors to Edward I of England, then in Gascony, in May 1289, with papers referring to Margaret as "queen".

Robert I the Bruce's coin

Negotiations from this time forward were between Edward, who returned to England later in the year, and Eric, and excluded the Scots until Edward met with Robert Bruce and some of the Guardians at Salisbury in October 1289.

The Scots were in a weak position since Eric could arrange his daughter's marriage to Edward I's son Edward or anyone else without reference to the Guardians.

Accordingly, the Guardians signed the Treaty of Salisbury, which agreed that Margaret would be sent to Scotland before 1 November 1290, and that any agreement on her future marriage would be deferred until she was in Scotland.

That marriage of Edward, Prince of Wales, was in King Edward's mind is clear from the fact that a papal dispensation was received from Pope Nicholas IV ten days after the treaty was signed. Thought to show bad faith on Edward's part, the Papal Bull did not contract a marriage, only permit one should the Scots later agree to it. Edward, like Eric, was now writing of Queen Margaret, anticipating her inauguration and the subsequent marriage to his son.

Alexander III 

Edward and the Guardians continued their negotiations, based on the collective assumption that Margaret would be queen and the young Edward king, but all these plans, including those of King Alexander, were brought to nothing as Margaret died of the effects of sea-sickness in the Orkney Islands on 26 September 1290 while sailing to Scotland.

Her remains were taken to Bergen and interred beside her mother in the wall on the north side of the choir in Christ Church, Bergen.

Her death left no obvious heir to the Scottish throne and the matter of succession was resolved in the Great Cause of 1291–2. Although derived from a text written more than a century later, it is thought by some historians that the earliest Scots verse written in Scotland dates from this time.

Scottish Negroid King: Alexander III

ALEXANDER III of SCOTLAND
Alexander was born at Roxburgh, the only son of Alexander II by his second wife Marie de Coucy. Alexander III was also the grandson of William the Lion. Alexander's father died on 8 July 1249 and he became king at the age of seven, inaugurated at Scone on 13 July 1249. The years of his minority featured an embittered struggle for the control of affairs between two rival parties, the one led by Walter Comyn, Earl of Menteith, the other by Alan Durward, Justiciar of Scotia. The former dominated the early years of Alexander's reign.

Alexander III coin

At the marriage of Alexander to Margaret of England in 1251, Henry III of England seized the opportunity to demand from his son-in-law homage for the Scottish kingdom, but Alexander did not comply.

In 1255 an interview between the English and Scottish kings at Kelso led to Menteith and his party losing to Durward's party. But though disgraced, they still retained great influence, and two years later, seizing the person of the king, they compelled their rivals to consent to the erection of a regency representative of both parties.

Coronation of King Alexander on Moot Hill, Scone. He is being greeted by the ollamh rígh, the royal poet, who is addressing him with the proclamation "Benach De Re Albanne" (= Beannachd Dé Rígh Alban, "God Bless the King of Scotland"); the poet goes on to recite Alexander's genealogy. By Alexander's side is Maol Choluim II, Earl of Fife holding the sword.

On attaining his majority at the age of 21 in 1262, Alexander declared his intention of resuming the projects on the Western Isles which the death of his father thirteen years before had cut short. He laid a formal claim before the Norwegian king Haakon iv. Haakon rejected the claim, and in the following year responded with a formidable invasion. Sailing around the west coast of Scotland he halted off the Isle of Arran, and negotiations commenced. Alexander artfully prolonged the talks until the autumn storms should begin.

Alexander III coin

At length Haakon, weary of delay, attacked, only to encounter a terrific storm which greatly damaged his ships. The Battle of Largs (October 1263) proved indecisive, but even so, Haakon's position was hopeless. Baffled, he turned homewards, but died in Orkney on 15 December 1263. The Isles now lay at Alexander's feet, and in 1266 Haakon's successor concluded the Treaty of Perth by which he ceded the Isle of Man and the Western Isles to Scotland in return for a monetary payment.

By Alexander's side is Maol Choluim II,
Earl of Fife holding the sword

 Norway retained only Orkney and Shetland in the area. Alexander had married Margaret, daughter of King Henry III of England and Eleanor of Provence, on 26 December 1251. She died in 1275, after they had three children.

Margaret (28 February 1261 – 9 April 1283), who married King Eric II of Norway. Alexander, Prince of Scotland (21 January 1264 Jedburgh – 28 January 1284 Lindores Abbey); buried in Dunfermline Abbey. David (20 March 1272 – June 1281 Stirling Castle); buried in Dunfermline Abbey
According to the Lanercost Chronicle, Alexander did not spend his decade as a widower alone: "he used never to forbear on account of season nor storm, nor for perils of flood or rocky cliffs, but would visit none too creditably nuns or matrons, virgins or widows as the fancy seized him, sometimes in disguise."

Towards the end of Alexander's reign, the death of all three of his children within a few years made the question of the succession one of pressing importance. In 1284 he induced the Estates to recognise as his heir-presumptive his grand-daughter Margaret, the "Maid of Norway". The need for a male heir led him to contract a second marriage to Yolande de Dreux on 1 November 1285.

Maol Choluim II & Alexander III

Alexander died in a fall from his horse while riding in the dark to visit the queen at Kinghorn in Fife on 18 March 1286 because it was her birthday the next day. He had spent the evening at Edinburgh Castle celebrating his second marriage and overseeing a meeting with royal advisors.

He was advised by them not to make the journey to Fife because of weather conditions, but he travelled anyway. Alexander became separated from his guides and it is assumed that in the dark his horse lost its footing. The 44-year-old king was found dead on the shore the following morning with a broken neck. Some texts have said that he fell off a cliff. Although there is no cliff at the site where his body was found, there is a very steep rocky embankment, which "would have been fatal in the dark." After Alexander's death, his strong realm was plunged into a period of darkness that would eventually lead to war with England. He was buried in Dunfermline Abbey.

Alexander III

As Alexander left no surviving children, the heir to the throne was his unborn child by Queen Yolande. When Yolande's pregnancy ended, probably with a miscarriage, Alexander's seven-year-old granddaughter Margaret, Maid of Norway, became the heir. Margaret died, still uncrowned, on her way to Scotland in 1290.

The inauguration of John Balliol as king on 30 November 1292 ended the six years of the Guardians of Scotland governing the land. The death of Alexander and the subsequent period of instability in Scotland was lamented in an early Scots poem recorded by Andrew of Wyntoun in his Orygynale Cronykil of Scotland.

Quhen Alysandyr oure kyng was dede,
That Scotland led in luve and le,
Away was sons of ale and brede,
Of wyne and wax of gamyn and gle.

Oure gold was changed into lede,
Cryst, born into vyrgynyte,
Succoure Scotland and remede,
That stat is in perplexyte.

Scottish King: Alexander II

ALEXANDER II
Alexander II (Mediaeval Gaelic: Alaxandair mac Uilliam; Modern Gaelic: Alasdair mac Uilleim; 24 August 1198 – 6 July 1249) was King of Scots from 1214 until his death in 1249.

Alexander II (1214-1249), Short Cross and Stars coinage, Sterling.

He was born at Haddington, East Lothian, the only son of the Scottish king William the Lion and Ermengarde of Beaumont. He spent time in England (John of England knighted him at Clerkenwell Priory in 1213) before succeeding to the kingdom on the death of his father on 4 December 1214, being crowned at Scone on 6 December the same year.

Alexander II coin

In 1215, the year after his accession, the clans Meic Uilleim and MacHeths, inveterate enemies of the Scottish crown, broke into revolt; but loyalist forces speedily quelled the insurrection. In the same year Alexander joined the English barons in their struggle against John of England, and led an army into the Kingdom of England in support of their cause. This action led to the sacking of Berwick-upon-Tweed as John's forces ravaged the north.

The Scottish forces reached the south coast of England at the port of Dover where in September 1216, Alexander paid homage to the pretender Prince Louis of France for his lands in England, chosen by the barons to replace King John. But John having died, the Pope and the English aristocracy changed their allegiance to his nine-year-old son, Henry, forcing the French and the Scots armies to return home.

King John's coin

Peace between Henry III, Louis of France, and Alexander followed on 12 September 1217 with the treaty of Kingston. Diplomacy further strengthened the reconciliation by the marriage of Alexander to Henry's sister Joan of England on 18 June or 25 June 1221.

The next year marked the subjection of the hitherto semi-independent district of Argyll. Royal forces crushed a revolt in Galloway in 1235 without difficulty; nor did an invasion attempted soon afterwards by its exiled leaders meet with success. Soon afterwards a claim for homage from Henry of England drew forth from Alexander a counter-claim to the northern English counties.


The two kingdoms, however, settled this dispute by a compromise in 1237. This was the Treaty of York which defined the boundary between the two kingdoms as running between the Solway Firth (in the west) and the mouth of the River Tweed (in the east).

Joan died in March 1238 in Essex. Alexander married his second wife, Marie de Coucy, the following year on 15 May 1239. Together they had one son, the future Alexander III, born in 1241.

Henry III coin

A threat of invasion by Henry in 1243 for a time interrupted the friendly relations between the two countries; but the prompt action of Alexander in anticipating his attack, and the disinclination of the English barons for war, compelled him to make peace next year at Newcastle.

Alexander now turned his attention to securing the Western Isles, which still owed a nominal allegiance to Norway. He repeatedly attempted negotiations and purchase, but without success.

The English chronicler Matthew Paris in his Chronica Majora described Alexander as red-haired:
"[King John] taunted King Alexander, and because he was red-headed, sent word to him,
saying, 'so shall we hunt the red fox-cub from his lairs." Alexander attempted to persuade Ewen, the son of Duncan, Lord of Argyll, to sever his allegiance to Haakon IV of Norway. When Ewen rejected these attempts, Alexander sailed forth to compel him, but on the way he suffered a fever at the Isle of Kerrera in the Inner Hebrides. He died there in 1249 and was buried at Melrose Abbey