History of Scotland
Our ongoing history of Scotland that chronicles the events in Scotland over the past million years with a special focus on the last thousand as you might expect. We have also digitised a copy of Patrick Tytler's History of Scotland which is an eccentric but wonderfully written history of the the mediaeval years in Scotland. The project of chronicling Scotland's history is ongoing, as is the process of organising and structuring and linking the pages together.
Troubled State of the kingdom
Previous to the report of the queen's death, a convention of the Scottish Estates had been held at Perth to receive Edward's answer to the refusal of delivering their castles. To this meeting of the Estates, Robert Bruce lord of Annandale refused to come; and a great part of the nobility made no concealment of their disgust at the arrogant and unprecedented demands of the English king. When the sad news was no longer doubtful, the miseries attendant on a contested throne soon began to show themselves. Bruce assembled a large force, and suddenly came to Perth. Many of the nobility declared themselves of his party, and the Earls of Mar and Athole joined him with all their followers. If the nation and its governors had been true to themselves, all might yet have gone well; but the money and power of England had introduced other councils.
One of the guardians, William Fraser bishop of St Andrews, who had embraced the interests of Baliol, addressed a letter to Edward upon the first rumour of the queen's death, informing him of the troubled state of the country, and the necessity of his interposition to prevent the nation from being involved in blood. "Should John de Baliol," says he, " present himself before you, my counsel is, that you confer with him, so that, at all events, your honour and interest may be preserved. Should the queen be dead, which heaven forefend, I entreat that your highness may approach our borders, to give consolation to the people of Scotland, to prevent the effusion of blood, and to enable the faithful men of the realm to preserve their oath inviolable, by choosing him for their king who by right ought to be so."
Edward's Measures
Edward's mind was not slow to take full advantage of this unwise application ; and the death of the young queen, the divisions amongst the Scottish nobility, and the divided state of the national mind as to the succession, presented a union of circumstances, too favourable for his ambition to resist. The treaty of Brigham, although apparently well calculated to secure the independence of Scotland, contained a clause which was evidently intended to leave room for the pretended claim of the feudal superiority of England over this country; and even before the death of the Maid of Norway, Edward, in writs which "he took care should be addressed only to persons in his own interest, had assumed the title of lord superior of the kingdom of Scotland.Fully aware of the favourable conjuncture in which he was placed, and with that union of sagacity, boldness, and unscrupulous ambition which characterized his mind, he at once formed his plan, and determined, in his pretended character of lord superior, to claim the office of supreme judge in deciding the competition for the crown. His interference, indeed, had already been solicited by the Bishop of St Andrews; there is reason also to suspect, from some mutilated and undated documents recently discovered, that Bruce and his adherents had not only claimed his protection at this moment, but secretly offered to acknowledge his right of superiority; but there is no authority for believing, that any national proposal was, at this time, made by the Scottish Parliament, requesting his decision as arbiter, in a question upon which they only were entitled to pronounce judgment. The motives of Edward's conduct, and the true history of his interference, are broadly and honestly stated, in these words of an old English historian: "The King of England, having assembled his privy council and chief nobility, told them, that he had it in his mind to bring under his dominion the king and the realm of Scotland, in the same manner that he had subdued the kingdom of Wales."
Conference at Norham
For this purpose, he deemed it necessary to collect his army, and issued writs to his barons and military tenants, commanding them to meet at Norham on the 3d June, 1291. J The sheriffs of the counties of York, Lancaster, Westmoreland, Cumberland, and Northumberland, were also directed to summon all within their jurisdiction who owed the king service, to repair to the rendezvous with their full powers; and, in the meantime, Edward requested the clergy and nobility of Scotland to hold a conference with him at Norham on the 10th of May, to which they consented.Edward's claim as Lord Paramount
The English king opened the deliberations in a speech delivered by his Justiciary, Roger Brabazon, in which, after an introductory eulogium upon the godlike and regal attribute of justice, and the blessings attendant on the preservation of tranquillity, "he observed, that the sight of the great disturbances, which on the death of Alexander the Third had arisen in the kingdom of Scotland, was highly displeasing to him; on this account, and for the purpose of satisfying those who had claims upon the crown, and for the confirmation of peace in the land, he had requested its nobility to meet him, and had himself travelled from remote parts, that he might do justice to all, in his character of Lord Paramount, and without encroaching upon the rights of any man. "Wherefore," concluded the Justiciary, "our lord the king, for the due accomplishment of this design, doth require your hearty recognition of his title of Lord Paramount of the kingdom of Scotland."This unexpected demand struck dismay and embarrassment into the hearts of the Scottish assembly. They declared their entire ignorance that such a right of superiority belonged to the King of England; and added, that at the present conjuncture, when the country was without its king, in whose presence such a challenge ought to be made, they could give no answer."By Holy Edward!" cried the King of England, "whose crown I wear, I will either have my rights recognised, or die in the vindication of them!"
"And to make this speech good," says Hemingford, "he had issued writs for the convocation of his army; so that, in case of his demand being resisted, he might conquer all opposition, were it to the death."
The representatives of the Estates of Scotland, who were well aware of hia, now found themselves placed in trying circumstances, and requested time to consult and deliberate with their absent members. Edward at first would give them only one day; but on their insisting that a longer interval was absolutely necessary, the king granted them three weeks, to prepare all that they could allege against his pretensions. This delay the king well knew would be productive of some good consequences towards his great scheme, and, at any rate, could not possibly injure his ambitious views. Before these three weeks elapsed, his army would meet him at Norham. He had already ensured the services of Fraser the regent ;and the money and promises which he judiciously distributed, had induced no less than ten competitors to come forward and claim the Scottish crown. In this way, by the brilliant prize which he held out to the most powerful of the nobility of Scotland, he placed their private ambition and their public virtue in fatal opposition to each other. All hoped that if they resigned to Edward this right of superiority, they might receive a kingdom in return; and all felt, that to rise up as the defenders of the independency of a country, which was then torn by mutual distrust and civil disorder; which was without a king, without an army, and with the most powerful of its nobility leagued against it, would be a desperate undertaking against so able a general, so profound a politician, and so implacable an enemy, as Edward. I do not say this to palliate the disgraceful scene which followed, nor to insinuate that any circumstances can occur which entitle the subject of a free country to sacrifice its independence; but to prove that the transaction, which was truly a deep stain upon our history, was the act not of the Scottish nation, or of the assembled states of the nation, but of a corrupted part of the Scottish nobility.
The competitors for the Crown assemble at Norham
To return to the story. On the 2d of June, eight of the competitors for the crown assembled, along with many of the prelates, nobles, and barons of Scotland, on a green plain called Holywell Haugh, opposite to Norham Castle. These competitors were,—Robert Bruce, Florence earl of Holland, John Hastings, Patrick Dunbar earl of March, William de Ross, William de Vescy, Walter Huntercombe, Robert de Pynkeny, and Nicholis de Soulis. The Bishop of Bath and Wells, then Chancellor of England, spoke for the king. He told them, that his master having on a former occasion granted them three weeks to prepare their objections to his claim of superiority, and they having brought forward no answer to invalidate his right, it was the intention of the King of England, in virtue of this acknowledged right, to examine and determine the dispute regarding the succession.
The chancellor then turned to Robert Bruce, and demanded whether he was content to acknowledge Edward as Lord Paramount of Scotland, and willing to receive judgment from him in that character; upon which this baron, expressly answered, that he recognised him as such, and would abide by his decision. The same question was then put to the other competitors, all of whom returned the same answer. Sir Thomas Randolph then stood up, and declared that John Baliol lord of Galloway, had mistaken the day, but would appear on the morrow; which he did, and then solemnly acknowledged the superiority of the English king. At this fourth assembly, the chancellor protested in the name of the king, that although with the view of giving judgment to the competitors, he now asserted his right of superiority, yet he had no intention of excluding his hereditary right of property in the kingdom of Scotland, but reserved to himself the power of prosecuting such right at whatever time, and in whatever way, he judged, expedient
Recognise Edward as Superior
The king in person next addressed the assembly. He spoke in Norman-French; recapitulated the proceedings; and, with many professions of affection for the people of Scotland, declared his intention not only to pronounce a speedy decision in the controversy, but to maintain the laws and re-establish the tranquillity of the country. John Comyn lord of Badenoch, called the Black Comyn, who had married a sister of Baliol, now came forward as a competitor for the crown, and acknowledged the superiority of Edward; after which, the claimants affixed their signatures to two important instruments. The first declared, that, "Forasmuch as the King of England has evidently shown to us that the sovereign seignory of Scotland, and the right of hearing, trying, and terminating our respective claims, belongs to him—we agree to receive judgment from him, as our Lord Paramount. We are willing to abide by his decision; and consent that he shall possess the kingdom to whom he awards it.By the second deed, possession of the whole land and castles of Scotland was delivered into the hands of Edward, under the pretence, that the subject in dispute ought always to be placed in the hands of the judge; but on condition that Edward should find security to make a full restitution within two months after the date of his award, and that the revenues of the kingdom should be preserved for the future sovereign. It was next determined, after grave consultation with the prelates and earls, that, in order to prepare the point in dispute for an ultimate decision, Baliol and Comyn for themselves, and the competitors who approved of their list, should choose forty " discreet and faithful men" as commissioners; that Bruce, for himself, and the competitors who abided by his nomination, should choose other forty; and that Edward, the king, should select twenty-four commissioners, or, as he thought fit, a greater or lesser number. These commissioners were to meet in a body, to consider the claims of the competitors, and to make their report to the king.
Proceedings at Norham
On the 11th of June, the four regents of Scotland delivered the kingdom into the hands of Edward; and the captains and governors of its castles, finding that the guardians of the realm, and the most powerful of its nobility, had abandoned it to its fate, gave up its fortresses to his disposal. And here, in the midst of this scene of national humiliation, one Scottish baron stood forward, and behaved worthy of his country. The Earl of Angus, Gilbert de Umfraville, who commanded the important castles of Dundee and Forfar, declared, that having received these, not from England, but from the Estates of Scotland, he would not surrender them to Edward. A formal letter of indemnity was then drawn up, which guaranteed the Earl of Angus from all blame; and, in name of the claimants of the crown, and of the guardians of the realm, enjoined him to deliver the fortresses of which he held the keys.
This removed the objection of Umfraville, and Dundee and Forfar were placed in the hands of Edward. The King of England, satisfied with this express acknowledgement of his rights as Lord Paramount, immediately redelivered the custody of the kingdom into the hands of the regents, enjoining them to appoint Alan bishop of Caithness, an Englishman, and one of his dependants, to the important office of chancellor; and to nominate Walter Agmondesham, another agent of England, as his assistant. To the four guardians, or regents, Edward next added a fifth, Bryan Fitz-Alan, an English baron; and having thus secured an effectual influence over the Scottish councils, he proceeded to assume a generous and conciliating tone. He promised to do justice to the competitors within the kingdom of Scotland, and to deliver immediate possession of the kingdom to the successful claimant; upon the death of any king of Scotland who left an heir, he engaged to wave his claim to those feudal services, which, upon such an occasion, were rigidly exacted by lords superior in smaller fiefs, with the exception of the homage due to him as Lord Paramount; but he stipulated, that, in the event of a disputed succession occurring, the kingdom and its castles were to be again delivered into his hands.
The first act of this extraordinary drama now drew to a conclusion. The great seal, which had been brought from Scotland for the occasion, was delivered to the joint chancellors, the. Bishop of Caithness and Walter Agmondesham. The four guardians, in the presence of a large concourse of English and Scottish nobility, swore fealty to Edward as lord superior; while Bruce lord of Annandale, with his son the Earl of Carrick, John de Baliol, the Earls of March, Mar, Buchan, Athole, Angus, Lennox, and Menteith,'the Black Comyn lord of Badenoch, and many other barons and knights, followed them in taking the oaths of homage. A herald then proclaimed the peace of King Edward as Lord Paramount; and the monarch added a protestation, that his consent to do justice in this great cause within Scotland, should not preclude him from his right of deciding in any similar emergency within his kingdom of England. The assembly then broke up, after an agreement that its next meeting should be at Berwick on the 2d of August, on which day the King of England promised to deliver his final judgment upon the succession to the crown of Scotland.