History of Scotland by Patrick Tytler 2
Edward treats Baliol with harshness
Irritated, however, by being reminded of the treaty of Brigham, he openly declared, by his justiciary Brabazon, that although, during the vacancy of the kingdom of Scotland, he had been induced to make promises which suited the time—now when the nation was ruled by a king, he did not intend to be bound by them, to the effect of excluding complaints brought before him from that kingdom, or of preventing him from dispensing justice and exercising the rights of his sovereign dominion, according to his power and pleasure. To give the greater weight to this imperious announcement, the King of England summoned Baliol and his principal prelates and nobles into his privy chamber at Newcastle, and there made Brabazon repeat his resolutions upon the matter in question; after which, Edward himself rose up, and, in the French language, spoke to the same tenor. "These are my firm determinations," said he, "with regard to all complaints or appeals brought before me from Scotland; nor will I be bound by any former promises or concessions made to the contrary. I am little careful by what deeds or instruments they may be ratified; I shall exercise that superiority and direct dominion which I hold over the kingdom of Scotland, when and where I please; nor will I hesitate, if necessary, to summon the King of Scotland himself into my presence within the kingdom of England.Baliol's Subjection
Baliors spirit sunk under this declaration; and he, and the Scottish nobility then in his train, pusillanimously consented to buy their peace with Edward by a renunciation of all stipulations regarding the laws and liberties of Scotland, which had been made in the treaty of Brigham, and which, so long as they continued in force, convicted the King of England of a flagrant disregard of his oath, formerly so solemnly pledged. On this being agreed to, Edward ordered the public records and ancient historical muniments of the kingdom, which had formerly been transmitted from Edinburgh to Roxburgh, to be delivered to the King of Scotland. He also, out of special favour, commanded possession of the Isle of Man to be given to him; and, softened by these concessions, Baliol returned to his kingdom. But it was only to experience fresh mortification, and to feel all the miseries of subjection.The policy of Edward towards Scotland and its new king, was at once artful and insulting. He treated every assumption of independent sovereignity with rigour and contempt, and lost no opportunity of summoning Baliol to answer before him to the complaints brought against his government; he encouraged his subjects to offer these complaints by scrupulously administering justice according to the laws and customs of Scotland; and he distributed lands, pensions, and presents, with well-judged munificence, amongst the prelates and the nobility. The King of Scotland possessed large estates both in England and Normandy; and in all the rights and privileges connected with them, he found Edward certainly not a severe, almost an indulgent, superior. To Baliol the vassal, he was uniformly lenient and just: to Baliol the king, he was proud and unbending to the last degree. An example of this soon occurred.
Summoned To England
The Earl of Fife died, leaving his son, Duncan, a minor, and the earldom to the protection of the Bishop of St Andrews. Macduff, the grand-uncle of Duncan, then seized it; but being ejected by the bishop, on complaining to Edward, was, at the king's command, restored to his estates by the sentence of the Scottish regents. When Baliol held his first parliament at Scone,-f Macduff was summoned to answer for his having taken forcible possession of lands, which, since the death of the last earl of Fife, were in the custody of the king. He attempted a defence; but being found guilty, suffered a short imprisonment. On his release, he was not slow to carry his appeal to the King of England; and Edward immediately summoned Baliol to answer in person before him, to the allegations of Macduff. To this order Baliol paid no regard, and Edward again commanded him to appear. This was not all. He procured his parliament to pass some regulations regarding the attendance of the King of Scots, which, from their extreme severity, seem to have been expressly intended to exasperate this monarch, who found that, in every case of appeal, he was not only to be dragged in as a party, but that his personal attendance was to be rigidly exacted. The first was a grievous, the last an intolerable burden, to which no one with even the name of a king could long submit.Meanwhile, dissembling his chagrin, he appeared in the English parliament held after Michaelmas, where Macduff was also present. When the cause of this baron noble came on, Baliol was asked what defence he had to offer. "I am," said he, "the King of Scotland. To the complaint of Macduff, or to any matters respecting my kingdom, I dare not make an answer without the advice of my people." " What means this refusal' cried Edward. "Are you not my liegeman,—have you not done homage to me," is it not my summons that brings you here?" To this impetuous interrogation the Scottish monarch firmly answered, "Where the business respects my kingdom, I neither dare, nor can answer, in this place, without the advice of my people."
His reply
An artful proposal was then made by Edward, that in order to consult with his people, he should adjourn giving his final reply to a future day; but this he peremptorily declined, declaring that he would neither name a day, nor consent to an adjournment. Under these circumstances, the English parliament proceeded to pronounce judgment. They declared that the King of Scotland was guilty of open contempt and disobedience. He had, they said, offered no defence, but made a reply which went to elude and weaken the jurisdiction of his liege lord, in whose court as a vassal he had claimed the crown of Scotland. In consequence of which they advised the King of England, not only to do full justice to Macduff, and to award damages against Baliol; but, as a punishment for his feudal delinquency, to seize three of his principal castles in Scotland, to remain in the hands of the English monarch until he should make satisfaction for the injury offered to his lord superior.f Before this judgment of the parliament was publicly made known, Baliol presented himself to Edward, and thus addressed him: "My lord, I am your liegeman for the kingdom of Scotland; and I entreat you, that as the matters wherewith you now are occupied concern the people of my kingdom no less than myself, you will delay their consideration until I have consulted with them, lest I be surprised from want of advice; and this the more especially, as those now with me neither will, nor dare, give me their opinion, without consulting with the Estates of the kingdom. After having advised with them, I will, in your first parliament after Easter, report the result, and perform what is my duty."It was evident that the resolutions of the parliament were unnecessarily violent, and could not have been carried into effect without the presence of an army in Scotland. The King of England, aware of this, and dreading to excite a rebellion, for which he was not then prepared, listened to the demand of Baliol, and delayed all proceedings until the day after the Feast of the Trinity, in 1294.
Not long after this, Edward, who was a vassal of the King of France for the duchy of Aquitaine, became involved with his lord superior, in a quarrel similar to that between himself and Baliol. A fleet of English vessels belonging to the Cinque Ports, had encountered and plundered some French merchant ships; and Philip demanded immediate and ample satisfaction for the aggression. As he dreaded a war with France, Edward proposed to investigate, by commissioners, the causes of quarrel; but this seemed too slow a process to the irritated feelings of the French king; and, exerting his rights as lord superior, he summoned Edward to appear in his court at Paris, and there answer, as his vassal, for the injuries which he had committed. This order was, of course, little heeded; upon which Philip, sitting on his throne, gave sentence against the English king; pronounced him contumacious, and directed his territories in France to be seized, as forfeited to the crown. Edward soon after renounced his allegiance as a vassal of Philip; and, with the advice of his parliament, declared war against France.
Parliament at Scone
To assist him in this war, he summoned Baliol, and others of the most powerful of the Scottish nobles, to attend him in person with their armed vassals; but his insolent and overbearing conduct had entirely disgusted the Scots. They treated his summons with scorn; and, instead of arming their vassals for his assistance, they assembled a parliament at Scone. Its first step was, under the pretence of diminishing the public charges, to dismiss all Englishmen from Baliol's court; and having thus got rid of such troublesome spies upon their measures, they engaged in a treaty of alliance with France, and determined upon war with Edward. Many estates in Scotland were at this time held by English barons, and many also of the most powerful of the Scottish nobility possessed lands in England. Anxious for a general union against the common enemy, the Scottish estates in the hands of English barons were forfeited, and their proprietors banished; while those Scottish nobles who remained faithful to Edward had their lands seized and forfeited.In this way Robert Bruce lost his rich lordship of Annandale. It was given to John Comyn earl of Buchan, who instantly assumed the rights of a proprietor, and took possession of its castle of Lochmaben —an injury which, in that fierce age, could never be forgotten.
Edward, although enraged at the conduct of the Scottish parliament, and meditating a deep revenge, was at this time harrassed by a rebellion of the Welsh, and a war with France. Dissimulation and policy were the weapons to which he had recourse, whilst he employed the interval which he gained in sowing dissension among the Scottish nobles, and collecting an army for the punishment of their rebellion. To Bruce, the son of the competitor for the crown, whose mind was irritated by the recent forfeiture of his estates, he affected uncommon friendship; regretted his decision in favour of the now rebellious Baliol; declared his determination to place him on the throne, of which the present king had shown himself unworthy; and directed him to inform his numerous and powerful friends in Scotland of this resolution.
Baliol confined by the Scots and a Regency appointed
Bruce either trusted to the promises, or was intimidated by the power of Edward. Besides this, Comyn earl of Buchan, who now mainly directed the Scottish councils, was his enemy, and held violent possession of his lordship of Annandale. To join with him was impossible; and accordingly this powerful baron and his son, afterwards king, with Dunbar earl of March, and Umfraville earl of Angus, repaired to Edward, and renewed to him their oaths of homage. The undecided character of Baliol was ill calculated to remove this disunion amongst the Scottish nobles; and the party who then ruled in the Scottish parliament, dreading a submission upon the part of their king, secluded him from all power, confined him in a mountain fortress, and placed the management of affairs in the hands of twelve of the leading nobles.The measures adopted by these guardians were decided and spirited. They, in the name of the King of Scots, drew up an instrument, renouncing all fealty and allegiance to Edward, on account of the many and grievous injuries committed upon his rights and property as King of Scotland.