This started off as an exploration of why Huntly Castle played such an active role in several hundred years of Scottish History - and then it grew. The more you delve into what the aristocracy did to get where they were/are and maintain the status of privilege and exploitation, the more you have to hate them. And of course generally, royalty was the worst of the lot - though the church gave them a good run for their money at times. Their subjects were their just to keep them in their lavish lifestyles - and to fight and die for their country and/or religion when required. (Sadly something many modern leaders are all to happy to aspire to).
A Plague on All Your Big Houses
Whisky Cyclist has never been a fan of the aristocracy - robber barons, ruthless gangsters, careless with the lives of their serfs, while they lorded it above them in their grand castles and enormous houses, garnering vast lands and wealth. In the Highlands, when it dawned on them that sheep could be more profitable than people, brutally clearing their estates to make way for more sheep. In-breeding was rife, and marrying your daughter off for political advantage commonplace, but the son and heir - and a spare if possible - was what was important, otherwise your title might die out. If your political marriages and other plots and intrigues worked out right, you might even find yourself with a possible tilt at the crown. If so, and your murderous ways of achieving it succeeded, as a King you wielded absolute power and believed you were appointed by a mythical God that everyone was forced to believe in at the time, thus you had a divine right to rule. If you couldn't manage that, then you could at least suck up to the King and hope for the grant of more titles and estates.Then of course there was "droit du seigneur" your 'right' to rape the village girls before they were married - said to have been abolished in Scotland by Malcolm III in the late 11th century.
OK, not all aristocrats were guilty of all such outrages, and some even had their good points, but overall being born in the big house with a silver spoon in your mouth guaranteed an easy life, particularly in comparison with the peasants your family continued to exploit - so long as you didn't pick the wrong side in your insanely ambitious plots and murderous intrigues, in which case you might lose your head - or worse, your titles and estates! The downside, particularly at the very top, was protecting your back from the next plotter - and here your family could be a big problem - because they had 'royal blood' too. In the 16th century in particular, being married to the King or Queen was also not without its dangers. Generally you needed not to piss the Pope off too much, but by the 16th century, there were ways around this as well.
A Plague on All Your Big Houses
Whisky Cyclist has never been a fan of the aristocracy - robber barons, ruthless gangsters, careless with the lives of their serfs, while they lorded it above them in their grand castles and enormous houses, garnering vast lands and wealth. In the Highlands, when it dawned on them that sheep could be more profitable than people, brutally clearing their estates to make way for more sheep. In-breeding was rife, and marrying your daughter off for political advantage commonplace, but the son and heir - and a spare if possible - was what was important, otherwise your title might die out. If your political marriages and other plots and intrigues worked out right, you might even find yourself with a possible tilt at the crown. If so, and your murderous ways of achieving it succeeded, as a King you wielded absolute power and believed you were appointed by a mythical God that everyone was forced to believe in at the time, thus you had a divine right to rule. If you couldn't manage that, then you could at least suck up to the King and hope for the grant of more titles and estates.Then of course there was "droit du seigneur" your 'right' to rape the village girls before they were married - said to have been abolished in Scotland by Malcolm III in the late 11th century.
OK, not all aristocrats were guilty of all such outrages, and some even had their good points, but overall being born in the big house with a silver spoon in your mouth guaranteed an easy life, particularly in comparison with the peasants your family continued to exploit - so long as you didn't pick the wrong side in your insanely ambitious plots and murderous intrigues, in which case you might lose your head - or worse, your titles and estates! The downside, particularly at the very top, was protecting your back from the next plotter - and here your family could be a big problem - because they had 'royal blood' too. In the 16th century in particular, being married to the King or Queen was also not without its dangers. Generally you needed not to piss the Pope off too much, but by the 16th century, there were ways around this as well.
The Tudors and The Stuarts - how royalty and religion fucked up England and Scotland
In 1485 Richard III of England was killed at Bosworth Field and the English throne went to a Welshman, Henry Tudor, but Wales hadn't been considered a separate country, let alone Kingdom for centuries, so the controversy surrounding his accession to the throne was through his connection to the House of Lancaster. He sought to resolve such issues by marriage - he married Elizabeth of York; his sons married Catherine of Aragon; and his younger daughter Mary married Louis XII of France; and his eldest daughter Margaret married the King of Scotland (James IV) in 1503 which set in train a series of events that lead to a Scotsman (James VI of Scotland) ascending the throne of England 100 years later.
In 1485, James III was King of Scotland
In 1485 there had been rumblings of dissent within the almost all-powerful Roman Catholic Church, whose tentacles pervaded every part of European society, but of little consequence so far. John Wycliffe, who had outraged the Church by translating the Bible into English had been dead 100 years, but printing was not yet available, and Protestantism hadn't made too much of an impression in England or Scotland.
By 1603 both England and Scotland were officially Protestant. In the intervening years the slaughter attributable to religion probably outweighed that attributable to the general massacres in the name of rival aristocrats.and royals
In 1485, James III was King of Scotland
In 1485 there had been rumblings of dissent within the almost all-powerful Roman Catholic Church, whose tentacles pervaded every part of European society, but of little consequence so far. John Wycliffe, who had outraged the Church by translating the Bible into English had been dead 100 years, but printing was not yet available, and Protestantism hadn't made too much of an impression in England or Scotland.
By 1603 both England and Scotland were officially Protestant. In the intervening years the slaughter attributable to religion probably outweighed that attributable to the general massacres in the name of rival aristocrats.and royals
Background
The House of Stuart (originally spelt Stewart, or "Stiubhart" in Gaelic) - the name deriving from the family having been the High (or Great) Stewards of Scotland - the first to be given the role was Walter Fitz-Alan in c1150. The 3rd Steward, Walter adopted the Stewart surname. The office was the highest in the land, and would have acted on behalf of the King in the latter's absence or incapacity as Regent; the day job was looking after the King's household. Walter was clearly very useful to King David I, who appointed him to this position, also making it hereditary; and to Malcolm IV and William I who granted him (in modern terms) Inverclyde, Renfrewshire and much of North Ayrshire. Water wasn't the only Anglo-Norman nobles to receive lands on the edge of the early Kingdom of Alba - eg Annandale was granted to Robert de Brus. New Earldoms were not created - they were mere Lords, but their lands gave them power.
David II - son of The Bruce (1324 - 1371; King at age 5 in 1329; Exile 1334 - 1341; Captive 1346 - 1357)
Robert Stewart, 7th High Steward was born in 1316, his mother Marjorie was the daughter of Robert the Bruce. When Robert the Bruce's brother died, Stewart was next in line for the throne - but Bruce then had a son, David II, who had no children, so Robert Stewart was once again heir, and became King Robert II in 1371. With the Steward now having become King, the title has since been given to the eldest son of the monarch.
Scotland's Kings looked to help from France under the terms of the treaty of 1295 which came to be known as the Auld Alliance, which had been enacted due to the First War of Scottish Independence. David II's reign was troubled with the Second War of Scottish Independence - the efforts of the Balliol family to regain power, supported by Edward III of England. He became King at the age of 5, on the death of Robert the Bruce in 1329, having already been marriied to Jan Edward Balliol and Edward III saw the opportunity of an infant King weakening Scotland; this was exacerbated by the death of the Black Douglas on a campaign against Muslims in Spain in 1330; and of the Earl of Moray, David's first Regent, in 1332. Subsequent regents didn't last long - 3 more were killed in battle or taken prisoner by the English by July 1333. The death of Archibald Douglas at the Battle of Haildon Hill in July 1333, convinced the Scots that David needed to be sent to France for safety. He returned in 1341, and became King in his own right, but in line with the Auld Alliance, he invaded England and was wounded and captured at a heavy defeat at Neville's Cross in 1346 - the future Robert II is said to have fled the battlefield. David was held prisoner for 11 years, and eventually released for ransom. The ransom was to be paid annually, but Scotland could not afford it, and David offered to name one of Edward's sons as his heir. The Scottish Parliament repudiated this, but the agreed peace of 1357 lasted for the rest of David's reign.
Robert had at least 10 children with his mistress Elziabeth Mure, whom he married in 1336, his eldest son John, who became Robert III is believed to have been born between 1337 and 1340, but doubts were cast on the validity of the marriage, so after seeking a papal dispensation he remarried her in 1349; after her death in 1355, Robert married Euphemia of Ross, with whom he had 4 children including Walter, Earl of Atholl, born in about 1360.
Robert II - the first Stewart King (1316 - 1390; King at age 54 in 1371)
Robert II's reign didn't begin smoothly - his coronation was delayed by an armed uprising by William, Earl of Douglas - to resolve the problem, Robert gave his daughter to the Earl's son; another daughter was married off to the Lord of the Isles, whose territories included most of the Western Islands (except Skye) and much of the western seaboard of the mainland.He had also given his sons further territories - the Earldoms of Fife, Menteith, Buchan, Ross, Strathearn and Caithness. There were still however, English castles and territories in the South of Scotland, and the next few years saw raids on these.
A peace treaty involving France and England in 1384, in which Robert ensured Scotland was included, was not well accepted, and lead to Robert's loss of power to his eldest son John, Earl of Carrick, who was appointed Lieutenant of Scotland and from 1388, his younger brother Robert, Earl of Fife. Carrick (later Robert III) pursued an aggressive campaign against the remaining English-held areas. His brother was more cautious, seeking to curb the excesses of another brother Alexander, Earl of Buchan (aka the Wolf of Badenoch). He was relieved of his legal roles of Justiciar of the North and Sheriff of Inverness. He was also ordered to return to his wife by the Bishops of Ross and Moray. Shortly after Robert II's death in 1390, Buchan took advantage of the absence of the Earl of Moray to exact his revenge by burning Forres and Elgin. His destruction of all church possessions in Elgin (he may also have burnt Pluscarden Abbey) brought excommunication, and both lands and influence diminished in the early 1390s.
Robert III (1337 - 1406; King at age 53 in 1390)
On Robert II's death, John Earl of Carrick, became King Robert III - in name. His brother, whose name was confusingly Robert, was still lieutenant and continued to be the real power in the country until 1393. In February 1393 the Council ended the Earl of Fife's lieutenancy and gave power to the rightful King and his son David. This did not prevent Fife, retaining a considerable amount of power, and David, now the new Earl of Carrick, beginning to build up power of his own.
At a time when England was weakened by the feuding Houses of York and Lancaster, Scotland did make some forays into the North of England, but the Stewart family had problems of its own with various family members seeking to increase their influence and lands. David was imprisoned by his uncles and died, probaby at their hands in 1402. Robert III was sidelined until 1404 when he regained some control, and tried to establish a base for his remaining son James. However, by 1406 with the King's health getting worse, it was decided to send James to France for safety - but the journey did not go smoothly, and he had to take refuge on Bass Rock for a month, before being picked up by a France-bound ship, which was captured by English pirates and James was sent to England's Henry IV. News of this is said to have hastened Robert III's death in April 1406.
James I (1394 - 1437; King at age 11 in 1406; captive [on way to exile] 1406-24)
Once again, Scotland's King was a young boy, and held by the old enemy. Henry IV treated James well, but on his death in 1413 his successor, Henry V, initially treated James as a prisoner, he was held in the Tower of London and Windsor Castle, but things improved again by 1420 and soon he was alongside Henry campaigning in France against Scottish troops fighting for the Dauphin - indeed he was appointed joint commander at the successful Siege of Dreux in 1421. Henry V died in 1422 and England now had an infant King (Henry VI), whose regency council wanted to release James back to Scotland, but Scotland's rulers felt they were doing fine without him. Since Robert III's death, his brother Robert, now Duke of Albany, had ruled as Governor of Scotland, and his son Murdoch succeeded him in 1420. Eventually, after marrying Joan Beaufort, great-granddaughter of Edward III, via John of Gaunt, a ransom payment for James was agreed, partially mitigated by a dowry for his Queen, and he returned to Scotland in 1424 and was crowned in May. Taxes were imposed to help pay off the ransom, though not all the money raised was paid over to England - a lot of money being diverted to the building of a royal Palace in Linlithgow, after much of Linlithgow had been destroyed by fire in 1424.
Murdoch and his sons were still a threat to James, and after one attempted rebellion by James the Fat, Murdoch and three of his sons were found guilty of treason and executed in 1425. This didn't solve the Stewart family problems.
He did earn some popularity from seeking to curb the excesses of some of his nobles, and introducing a more
On the international front, James renewed the Auld Alliance with France in 1428, but was also able to extend the truce with England until 1436, but then with France requesting Scottish help, James sought to regain Roxburgh Castle from the English, but divisions in the Scottish ranks, and reinforcements from the Bishops of York and Durham, and the Earl of Northumberland, lead to a hasty retreat by James, leaving his expensive artillery behind him. This set back was the catalyst for a renewed assault on James from his family - Walter Stewart youngest son of Robert II, now the Earl of Atholl, had been close to his step-brother, the Duke of Albany, in the early 1400s, but they had fallen out before James returned to Scotland, and he allied himself with James - he was on the assize that found Albany guilty of treason. In the next 12 years however, Walter saw his position weakened, and the prospects for his grandson diminished. He sought to press his claim for the throne based on the controversy over Robert II's first marriage
After Roxburgh, James' position was weakened. In October 1436, James sought further taxation for his military intentions - this was resisted by the nobles, and Sir Robert Graham unsuccessfully tried to arrest the King. Instead Graham was arrested, but soon escaped from prison and then plotted with Atholl to assassinate the King. On 20 February 1437 the King was at the Dominican Friary in Perth when Graham and others were allowed into his lodgings, by Atholl's grandson Robert. The King attempted to hide, but was found and fatally stabbed. The assassins escaped before finding the Queen. News of the assassination did not go down well, and the plotters were soon found and executed in brutally imaginative ways. Graham himself somehow managed to survive public torture on the streets of Edinburgh, reportedly covered from head to toe in wounds and burns. The following day he watched his son being hung, drawn and quartered, before suffering the same fate himself.
James II (1430 - 1460; King at age 6 in 1437; captive within Scotland 1437-49)
Queen Joan's revenge had been swift and merciless, and now she acted as Regent for her six year old son James II, but only for about three months, as the prospect of an Englishwoman ruling Scotland wasn't tolerable. The next few years saw struggles between rival factions, though many of the high ranking earls had been executed, murdered or stripped of their titles. The Livingston family first managed to put James and his mother under house arrest in Stirling Castle and ruled by virtue of having the King "in their possession"; but the Douglas clan were still extremely powerful. By 1440 Sir William Crichton, Sir Alexander Livingston and James Douglas, Earl of Avondale shared the rule of Scotland. Avondale's role was on behalf of his great-nephew, the 16 year old 6th Earl of Douglas - so he had him and his younger brother murdered, and became 7th Earl (known as James the Gross - he was a son of the 3rd Earl, Archibald the Grim - there had been a rapid turnover in Earls of Douglas, since Archibald's death in 1400). The 7th Earl died in 1443 at the age of 71, and was succeeded by his 18yo son William, 8th Earl of Douglas.
In 1449, James II assumed power, but Douglas was still a force to be reckoned with - William out-manoeuvring his former allies Crichton and Livingston. But in 1451 he went on a pilgrimage to Rome and in his absence James seized and destroyed a number of Douglas strongholds. Back in Scotland, WIlliam conspired with the Earl of Crawford and the Lord of the Isles against the King - he even sought assistance from the Yorkist faction in England. In 1452 James summoned WIlliam to Stirling Castle, and when he refused to renounce his co-conspirators the King murdered him, reportedly stabbing him 26 times, and threw his body from the window.
Not surprisingly this didn't end the fued, and there was an intermittent civil war with the Douglases until 1455, culminating in the Battle of Arkinholm, near Langholm, where James had a decisive victory. The 9th Earl had gone to England to seek support; of his younger brothers, Archibald was killed during the battle; Hugh captured and executed; John escaped to England. The 9th Earl had his lands and titles forfeited, and remained in England to assist their cause against Scotland. This marked the end of the Black Douglas family, with much of their lands being given t the Red Douglases, who had sided with James at this time.
James then appears to have been a fairly popular King, despite reportedly banning football and golf, as they were distractions from archery practice, and in 1460 felt it was time to do what his father had failed to do and get Roxburgh Castle back from the English, but on 3 August 1460, he was standing next to a cannon which exploded, the King was seriously injured and died from blood loss.
James III (1451 - 1488; King at age 9 in 1460)
Another boy King, another Regent or 3. Firstly his mother, Maria van Gelre (Mary of Guelders) until 1463; then James Kennedy, Bishop of St Andrews and Gilbert, Lord Kennedy (1463-66); then Robert, Lord Boyd (1466-69). Maria won back Berwick from the English - in return for help against the Yorkists. In 1469 James married Margaret of Denmark, largely it seems because it solved the problem of Scottish debt to Denmark (which at the time included Norway and Sweden) for the Hebrides. In lieu of paying a dowry the Orkneys and Shetlands were offered until Denmark was able to pay, so they became part of Scotland for the first time.The deal with was supposed to last for the duration of the marriage or until Denmark paid the dowry, but in 1470 James offered William Sinclair, Earl of Caithness and Jarl of Orkney, the castle and lands of Ravenscraig, near Kirkcaldy in exchange for him renouncing his claims on Orkney and Shetland - the offer was accepted, and as there was no prospect of the dowry being paid, the Islands were officially annexed by Scotland in 1472. Sinclair was also Baron of Roslin and had founded the (in)famous Rosslyn Chapel in 1446.
In 1462, the Lords of the Isles still ruled the Western Isles and Highlands, and the former Earl of Douglas, and his surviving brother John approached the Lord of the Isles on behalf the Yorkist regime of England - the Treaty of Westminster-Ardtornish was signed by Edward IV. Though the Scottish Crown later did enter into alliances with Edward IV, the earlier alignment of the Lord of the Isles with the discredited Black Douglases, was later used to help James forfeit the Lords of the Isles, when John of Islay, Earl of Ross and Lord of the Isles failed to appear for trial in Edinburgh in 1475. Though the forfeit was rescinded when he turned up in Edinburgh in 1476, the independence of the Lords of the Isles was compromised.
The House of Stuart (originally spelt Stewart, or "Stiubhart" in Gaelic) - the name deriving from the family having been the High (or Great) Stewards of Scotland - the first to be given the role was Walter Fitz-Alan in c1150. The 3rd Steward, Walter adopted the Stewart surname. The office was the highest in the land, and would have acted on behalf of the King in the latter's absence or incapacity as Regent; the day job was looking after the King's household. Walter was clearly very useful to King David I, who appointed him to this position, also making it hereditary; and to Malcolm IV and William I who granted him (in modern terms) Inverclyde, Renfrewshire and much of North Ayrshire. Water wasn't the only Anglo-Norman nobles to receive lands on the edge of the early Kingdom of Alba - eg Annandale was granted to Robert de Brus. New Earldoms were not created - they were mere Lords, but their lands gave them power.
David II - son of The Bruce (1324 - 1371; King at age 5 in 1329; Exile 1334 - 1341; Captive 1346 - 1357)
Robert Stewart, 7th High Steward was born in 1316, his mother Marjorie was the daughter of Robert the Bruce. When Robert the Bruce's brother died, Stewart was next in line for the throne - but Bruce then had a son, David II, who had no children, so Robert Stewart was once again heir, and became King Robert II in 1371. With the Steward now having become King, the title has since been given to the eldest son of the monarch.
Scotland's Kings looked to help from France under the terms of the treaty of 1295 which came to be known as the Auld Alliance, which had been enacted due to the First War of Scottish Independence. David II's reign was troubled with the Second War of Scottish Independence - the efforts of the Balliol family to regain power, supported by Edward III of England. He became King at the age of 5, on the death of Robert the Bruce in 1329, having already been marriied to Jan Edward Balliol and Edward III saw the opportunity of an infant King weakening Scotland; this was exacerbated by the death of the Black Douglas on a campaign against Muslims in Spain in 1330; and of the Earl of Moray, David's first Regent, in 1332. Subsequent regents didn't last long - 3 more were killed in battle or taken prisoner by the English by July 1333. The death of Archibald Douglas at the Battle of Haildon Hill in July 1333, convinced the Scots that David needed to be sent to France for safety. He returned in 1341, and became King in his own right, but in line with the Auld Alliance, he invaded England and was wounded and captured at a heavy defeat at Neville's Cross in 1346 - the future Robert II is said to have fled the battlefield. David was held prisoner for 11 years, and eventually released for ransom. The ransom was to be paid annually, but Scotland could not afford it, and David offered to name one of Edward's sons as his heir. The Scottish Parliament repudiated this, but the agreed peace of 1357 lasted for the rest of David's reign.
Robert had at least 10 children with his mistress Elziabeth Mure, whom he married in 1336, his eldest son John, who became Robert III is believed to have been born between 1337 and 1340, but doubts were cast on the validity of the marriage, so after seeking a papal dispensation he remarried her in 1349; after her death in 1355, Robert married Euphemia of Ross, with whom he had 4 children including Walter, Earl of Atholl, born in about 1360.
Robert II - the first Stewart King (1316 - 1390; King at age 54 in 1371)
Robert II's reign didn't begin smoothly - his coronation was delayed by an armed uprising by William, Earl of Douglas - to resolve the problem, Robert gave his daughter to the Earl's son; another daughter was married off to the Lord of the Isles, whose territories included most of the Western Islands (except Skye) and much of the western seaboard of the mainland.He had also given his sons further territories - the Earldoms of Fife, Menteith, Buchan, Ross, Strathearn and Caithness. There were still however, English castles and territories in the South of Scotland, and the next few years saw raids on these.
A peace treaty involving France and England in 1384, in which Robert ensured Scotland was included, was not well accepted, and lead to Robert's loss of power to his eldest son John, Earl of Carrick, who was appointed Lieutenant of Scotland and from 1388, his younger brother Robert, Earl of Fife. Carrick (later Robert III) pursued an aggressive campaign against the remaining English-held areas. His brother was more cautious, seeking to curb the excesses of another brother Alexander, Earl of Buchan (aka the Wolf of Badenoch). He was relieved of his legal roles of Justiciar of the North and Sheriff of Inverness. He was also ordered to return to his wife by the Bishops of Ross and Moray. Shortly after Robert II's death in 1390, Buchan took advantage of the absence of the Earl of Moray to exact his revenge by burning Forres and Elgin. His destruction of all church possessions in Elgin (he may also have burnt Pluscarden Abbey) brought excommunication, and both lands and influence diminished in the early 1390s.
Robert III (1337 - 1406; King at age 53 in 1390)
On Robert II's death, John Earl of Carrick, became King Robert III - in name. His brother, whose name was confusingly Robert, was still lieutenant and continued to be the real power in the country until 1393. In February 1393 the Council ended the Earl of Fife's lieutenancy and gave power to the rightful King and his son David. This did not prevent Fife, retaining a considerable amount of power, and David, now the new Earl of Carrick, beginning to build up power of his own.
At a time when England was weakened by the feuding Houses of York and Lancaster, Scotland did make some forays into the North of England, but the Stewart family had problems of its own with various family members seeking to increase their influence and lands. David was imprisoned by his uncles and died, probaby at their hands in 1402. Robert III was sidelined until 1404 when he regained some control, and tried to establish a base for his remaining son James. However, by 1406 with the King's health getting worse, it was decided to send James to France for safety - but the journey did not go smoothly, and he had to take refuge on Bass Rock for a month, before being picked up by a France-bound ship, which was captured by English pirates and James was sent to England's Henry IV. News of this is said to have hastened Robert III's death in April 1406.
James I (1394 - 1437; King at age 11 in 1406; captive [on way to exile] 1406-24)
Once again, Scotland's King was a young boy, and held by the old enemy. Henry IV treated James well, but on his death in 1413 his successor, Henry V, initially treated James as a prisoner, he was held in the Tower of London and Windsor Castle, but things improved again by 1420 and soon he was alongside Henry campaigning in France against Scottish troops fighting for the Dauphin - indeed he was appointed joint commander at the successful Siege of Dreux in 1421. Henry V died in 1422 and England now had an infant King (Henry VI), whose regency council wanted to release James back to Scotland, but Scotland's rulers felt they were doing fine without him. Since Robert III's death, his brother Robert, now Duke of Albany, had ruled as Governor of Scotland, and his son Murdoch succeeded him in 1420. Eventually, after marrying Joan Beaufort, great-granddaughter of Edward III, via John of Gaunt, a ransom payment for James was agreed, partially mitigated by a dowry for his Queen, and he returned to Scotland in 1424 and was crowned in May. Taxes were imposed to help pay off the ransom, though not all the money raised was paid over to England - a lot of money being diverted to the building of a royal Palace in Linlithgow, after much of Linlithgow had been destroyed by fire in 1424.
Murdoch and his sons were still a threat to James, and after one attempted rebellion by James the Fat, Murdoch and three of his sons were found guilty of treason and executed in 1425. This didn't solve the Stewart family problems.
He did earn some popularity from seeking to curb the excesses of some of his nobles, and introducing a more
On the international front, James renewed the Auld Alliance with France in 1428, but was also able to extend the truce with England until 1436, but then with France requesting Scottish help, James sought to regain Roxburgh Castle from the English, but divisions in the Scottish ranks, and reinforcements from the Bishops of York and Durham, and the Earl of Northumberland, lead to a hasty retreat by James, leaving his expensive artillery behind him. This set back was the catalyst for a renewed assault on James from his family - Walter Stewart youngest son of Robert II, now the Earl of Atholl, had been close to his step-brother, the Duke of Albany, in the early 1400s, but they had fallen out before James returned to Scotland, and he allied himself with James - he was on the assize that found Albany guilty of treason. In the next 12 years however, Walter saw his position weakened, and the prospects for his grandson diminished. He sought to press his claim for the throne based on the controversy over Robert II's first marriage
After Roxburgh, James' position was weakened. In October 1436, James sought further taxation for his military intentions - this was resisted by the nobles, and Sir Robert Graham unsuccessfully tried to arrest the King. Instead Graham was arrested, but soon escaped from prison and then plotted with Atholl to assassinate the King. On 20 February 1437 the King was at the Dominican Friary in Perth when Graham and others were allowed into his lodgings, by Atholl's grandson Robert. The King attempted to hide, but was found and fatally stabbed. The assassins escaped before finding the Queen. News of the assassination did not go down well, and the plotters were soon found and executed in brutally imaginative ways. Graham himself somehow managed to survive public torture on the streets of Edinburgh, reportedly covered from head to toe in wounds and burns. The following day he watched his son being hung, drawn and quartered, before suffering the same fate himself.
James II (1430 - 1460; King at age 6 in 1437; captive within Scotland 1437-49)
Queen Joan's revenge had been swift and merciless, and now she acted as Regent for her six year old son James II, but only for about three months, as the prospect of an Englishwoman ruling Scotland wasn't tolerable. The next few years saw struggles between rival factions, though many of the high ranking earls had been executed, murdered or stripped of their titles. The Livingston family first managed to put James and his mother under house arrest in Stirling Castle and ruled by virtue of having the King "in their possession"; but the Douglas clan were still extremely powerful. By 1440 Sir William Crichton, Sir Alexander Livingston and James Douglas, Earl of Avondale shared the rule of Scotland. Avondale's role was on behalf of his great-nephew, the 16 year old 6th Earl of Douglas - so he had him and his younger brother murdered, and became 7th Earl (known as James the Gross - he was a son of the 3rd Earl, Archibald the Grim - there had been a rapid turnover in Earls of Douglas, since Archibald's death in 1400). The 7th Earl died in 1443 at the age of 71, and was succeeded by his 18yo son William, 8th Earl of Douglas.
In 1449, James II assumed power, but Douglas was still a force to be reckoned with - William out-manoeuvring his former allies Crichton and Livingston. But in 1451 he went on a pilgrimage to Rome and in his absence James seized and destroyed a number of Douglas strongholds. Back in Scotland, WIlliam conspired with the Earl of Crawford and the Lord of the Isles against the King - he even sought assistance from the Yorkist faction in England. In 1452 James summoned WIlliam to Stirling Castle, and when he refused to renounce his co-conspirators the King murdered him, reportedly stabbing him 26 times, and threw his body from the window.
Not surprisingly this didn't end the fued, and there was an intermittent civil war with the Douglases until 1455, culminating in the Battle of Arkinholm, near Langholm, where James had a decisive victory. The 9th Earl had gone to England to seek support; of his younger brothers, Archibald was killed during the battle; Hugh captured and executed; John escaped to England. The 9th Earl had his lands and titles forfeited, and remained in England to assist their cause against Scotland. This marked the end of the Black Douglas family, with much of their lands being given t the Red Douglases, who had sided with James at this time.
James then appears to have been a fairly popular King, despite reportedly banning football and golf, as they were distractions from archery practice, and in 1460 felt it was time to do what his father had failed to do and get Roxburgh Castle back from the English, but on 3 August 1460, he was standing next to a cannon which exploded, the King was seriously injured and died from blood loss.
James III (1451 - 1488; King at age 9 in 1460)
Another boy King, another Regent or 3. Firstly his mother, Maria van Gelre (Mary of Guelders) until 1463; then James Kennedy, Bishop of St Andrews and Gilbert, Lord Kennedy (1463-66); then Robert, Lord Boyd (1466-69). Maria won back Berwick from the English - in return for help against the Yorkists. In 1469 James married Margaret of Denmark, largely it seems because it solved the problem of Scottish debt to Denmark (which at the time included Norway and Sweden) for the Hebrides. In lieu of paying a dowry the Orkneys and Shetlands were offered until Denmark was able to pay, so they became part of Scotland for the first time.The deal with was supposed to last for the duration of the marriage or until Denmark paid the dowry, but in 1470 James offered William Sinclair, Earl of Caithness and Jarl of Orkney, the castle and lands of Ravenscraig, near Kirkcaldy in exchange for him renouncing his claims on Orkney and Shetland - the offer was accepted, and as there was no prospect of the dowry being paid, the Islands were officially annexed by Scotland in 1472. Sinclair was also Baron of Roslin and had founded the (in)famous Rosslyn Chapel in 1446.
In 1462, the Lords of the Isles still ruled the Western Isles and Highlands, and the former Earl of Douglas, and his surviving brother John approached the Lord of the Isles on behalf the Yorkist regime of England - the Treaty of Westminster-Ardtornish was signed by Edward IV. Though the Scottish Crown later did enter into alliances with Edward IV, the earlier alignment of the Lord of the Isles with the discredited Black Douglases, was later used to help James forfeit the Lords of the Isles, when John of Islay, Earl of Ross and Lord of the Isles failed to appear for trial in Edinburgh in 1475. Though the forfeit was rescinded when he turned up in Edinburgh in 1476, the independence of the Lords of the Isles was compromised.
James IV (1473 - 1513; King at age 15 in 1488)
Margaret Tudor Queen of Scots 1493, James took the lands ansd titles of the Lords of the Isles 1502 James IV concluded the Treaty of Perpeual Peace with England's Henry VII, and the following year married Henry's eldest daughter, Margaret. The marriage lasted longer than Perpetual Peace. Margaret gave birth to the future James V in 1512. Despite the treaty and marriage, France was also an ally of James IV, due to the Auld Alliance, who asked for his help in their ongoing conflict with Henry VIII, who was by then King of England. James invaded England and took a number of castles including Norham, Etal and Ford. Even though Henry was engaged in a battle in France, his wife Catherine of Aragon, acting as Regent ordered the raising of an army in the Midlands. Medieval chivalric code was still adhered to in those days, so James had given England a month's notice of invasion, and when it came to battle, the respective heralds agreed the time and place of battle - so as the battle was not due to start until noon, the Scots artillery were not allowed to fire on the English when they were in a vulnerable position at 11.00. When the Battle of Flodden Field, near Coldstream, was engaged, James appears to have forfeited his good position on the high ground and marched downhill to face the English with disastrous consequences - besides the King most of the Scottish leaders - the Earls of Montrose, Bothwell, Lennox and Argyll were killed in battle, among up to 17,000 Scottish casualties. English casualties were light in comparison. James V (1512 - 1542; King at age 1 in 1513) James IV's will named Margaret as Regent, as long as she remained unmarried, this wasn't too popular in Scotland as she was English, and under her, peace was concluded between England, Scotland and France in 1514. However, she had grown close to Arichbald Douglas, Earl of Angus - and secretly married him. Those opposed to her were now able to remove her as Regent and replace her with James Stewart, Duke of Albany, third in line for the throne, born and raised in France, seen as the embodiment of the Auld Alliance. Albany's priority was to ensure that as Regent he had custody of the King and his brother, after some resistance from their mother accepted this inevitability. Maragret's marriage to the powerful Douglas Family was a potential problem, and she was fearful of her safety. Pregnant, she accepted her brother's offer to return to the English Court. As Dowager Queen though she couldn't simply leave the county, but after some negotiations she was allowed to cross the border. Angus soon returned to Scotland; and Henry's propagandists sought to sow seeds of doubt over her children's safety, particularly when the younger boy Alexander died in 1515, that Albany wanted her sons dead so that he could become King. Margaret didn't accept this, and in fact Albany never appeared to want the monarchy. Margaret remained in London at Scotland Yard (which was so named as it was the palace for Scottish royalty visiting London), but Henry wanted her in Scotland, preferably as Regent, she wanted to return to see her son, so an agreement was reached for her to return. Back in Scotland she found that Angus had been living with another woman. Albany had returned to France leaving a deputy in charge of Scotland. By 1524 when James was 12 he was declared King in his own right, but the following year was effectively kidnapped by his step-father Angus, who then exercised power on his behalf. Margaret and other nobles sought to free James from Angus to no avail, a number of battle being fought principally Melrose and Linlithgow Bridge. James finally escaped from the 'care' of Angus in 1528, and promptly exiled Angus and the Douglas Family to England, though they had managed to fortify themselves in Tantallon Castle near North Berwick, for a few months. He was only able to return to Scotland after James V's death in 1542. Mary (1542 - 1587; Queen at age six days in 1542;
exile 1548 -1561; abdicated 1566; imprisoned in England 1568 - 1587) Mary is known as Queen of Scots, though she personally ruled Scotland for barely 7 years, but she was also Queen of France, even more briefly; and in the eyes of many, the legitimate Queen of England. Her convoluted life was pivotal to all three countries. James V died shortly after the disastrous Battle of Solway Moss and the disappointment of the birth of a daughter, Mary, rather than a son in 1542. At six days old, Mary became Queen of Scots, with the country being run by Regents. By this time England was Protestant, but in Scotland, there was still a fair bit of Catholic influence - including Mary's mother Marie de Guise and Cardinal Beaton. The latter claimed he should be Regent based on a will of James V. However, the will was regarded as a forgery and James Hamilton, Earl of Arran, a Protestant and next in line for the throne (he was a great-grandson of James II) was appointed Regent. The infant Mary was considered a hot property in the Royal marriage market of the mid-16th Century - when she was six months old she was betrothed to Henry VIII's son Edward who was 5 at the time, this was agreed in the Treaty of Greenwich, which Hamilton had helped draw up. But an alliance with England wasn't popular, and many including Beaton favoured the Auld Alliance with France. The Regent had him committed to prison for the alleged forgery of James V's will, which didn't please the Pope, who ordered the closure of all churches in Scotland. Popular opposition to the Treaty of Greenwich continued to grow, and Beaton was released from prison and shortly appointed Lord Chancellor - Hamilton met up with him and converted to Catholicism - together they ensured the rejection of the Treaty by the Scottish Parliament in December 1543; Beaton was appointed Lord Chancellor and then agreed the promise of the marriage of Mary to the future French Dauphin François. For this, Hamilton was awarded the Duchy of Châtellerault, and Henry VIII declared war on Scotland - this 8 year war was later called the Rough Wooing - Edinburgh and many other towns and villages in the Lowlands were burned in 1544. The Battle of Ancrum Moor, near Jedburgh, in 1545 however, saw a decisive Scottish victory. Meanwhile England (the Holy Roman Empire and Spain) had also been involved in a war against France and the Ottoman Empire. Though England's involvement was mainly in the defence of Boulogne, the Treaty of Ardres in 1546 which brought peace between England and France also included a clause bringing a pause in the Anglo-Scottish conflict. |
Margaret Tudor's Coat of Arms, the Fleurs de Lys represent England's claim to the throne of France
By Sodacan (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0], via Wikimedia Commons
Mary's Controversial Coat of Arms as Queen of France
By Endrick Shellycoat [GFDL], via Wikimedia Commons |
Meanwhile, Beaton overstretched himself. Already the poster boy for the corrupt wing of the Church - his many mistresses having provided him him with some 20 bastards, he now abused his power even more. Already hated by the increasing number of Protestants in Scotland for his ordering - since 1528 he had been ordering the burning of Protestants.He had inherited the Archbishopric of St Andrews in 1939 from his uncle, who had fortified the Castle there, in 1545 he arrested and murdered an alleged heretical Friar. In December he had George Wishart, a Protestant preacher, arrested alleging him to be an English spy - after a show trial Wishart was burned at the stake. In retaliation the Castle was breached, the porter murdered, and the Cardinal was then stabbed, his body was mutilated and then hung from a window. Protestants then occupied the castle which was put under siege by forces of the Regent - it finally surrendered to French bombardment in 1547, who took the occupiers to France as galley slaves. These included John Knox, the notorious Protestant extremist, who some have suggested may also have been involved in the death of Beaton.
Following Henry VIII's death in January 1547, Edward VI's uncle Edward Seymour was appointed Lord Protector, as Edward was only 10. He gave himself the title Duke of Somerset - his main interest was to resume the war against Scotland. An invasion in September 1547 lead to the Battle of Pinkie Cleugh near Musselburgh, where his forces massacred between 6-13,000 Scots, and set up garrisons as far North as Boughty Castle near Dundee. His ruthless actions forced Scotland to seek assistance from France - and ensured that Mary was betrothed to the new Dauphin (François I has died a couple of months after Henry VIII) - she was sent briefly to Inchmahome Priory on an island in the Lake of Menteith and thence to Dumbarton Castle before, in July 1548 the Scottish Parliament agreed the Treaty of Haddington, which promised that Mary would marry Dauphin François - and the French would assist Scotland in attempts to regain Haddington. Mary was sent to France the following month. Keeping the garrisons in Scotland was becoming untenable for the English, especially in the face of French help for Scotland. The English still held Haddington, and burnt Musselburgh and Dunbar in June 1548, but French help had arrived to fortify Edinburgh Castle and begin a siege of Haddington.
By 1549 things were beginning to change - there were revolts in England over religious and agrarian grievances, and Somerset's popularity waned. After problems with supplies, disease and Scottish/French raids, Haddington was abandoned by the English on 19 September, and soon the Earl of Somerset was under siege - he effectively kidnapped the King and holed up in Windsor Castle. But 10 days later Somerset was arrested - he was beheaded in 1552. The Rough Wooing was finally over, confirmed in treaties between England and France - the Treaty of Boulogne in 1550, in which France bought Boulogne back, and the Treaty of Norham in 1551 confirmed the withdrawal of the last English troops from Scotland.
Mary's mother, Marie de Guise became Regent in 1554, Hamilton conceding it to her on the promise of him being heir should the Queen die childless. He later unsuccessfully tried to get his son married to Elizabeth of England or Mary herself after she was widowed.
Mary meanwhile grew up in France, and grew tall. Sources differ as to her height, from 1.8m (5'9") to 5'11" - whichever is correct - she was extremely tall for a 16th century woman; and all reports speak to her personal charm. Unusually the two betrothed royals were reportedly actually in love - they were married in April 1558, so François became King Consort of Scotland - Mary had also signed a secret agreement bequeathing Scotland and her claim to England to the French crown if she died without issue. The following year Henri II, died in a jousting accident (!) and François was King of France, at the age of 15 and Mary, Queen of France as well as Scotland at the age of 16. The Coat of Arms adopted by Mary as Queen of France controversially incorporated her claim to the throne of England, by including the 3 lions of England - in Catholic eyes she was legitimately Queen of England, as the Pope did not recognise Henry VIII's divorce from Catherine of Aragon, Elizabeth was illegitimate. Though Queen of Scotland, Mary remained in France, with Marie de Guise,continuing to rule Scotland, despite this Catholic influence in Scotland was waning in the face of an aggressive campaign lead by the
Until 1559 France had been at war again with the Spanish and the Holy Roman Empire over the control of Italy. England were marginally involved, under the peace Treaty of Cateau-Cambrésis, France conceded their interest in Italy, and England conceded Calais to the French. A further Treaty of Edinburgh
Mary had married her first cousin Lord Darnley in 1565 and it's fair to say that the Scottish monarchy was somewhat chaotic at this time. Elizabeth of England was nervous too, as both Mary and Darnley, had possible claims to the English throne (both being grandchildren of Henry VIII's sister Margaret - and Catholic). The marriage upset Protestant lords in Scotland, including Mary's half-brother the (new) Earl of Moray - this lead to a phoney war called the Chaseabout Raid where it seems the opposing armies chased each other around the Lowlands without ever engaging in battle. Moray was declared an outlaw and fled to England. George Gordon was now seen as a potential ally, so his lands and titles were restored and he became 5th Earl of Huntly, and he along with other lords, both Catholic and Protestant were added to her privy council.
But Darnley wasn't content with being king consort, he wanted to become co-sovereign with Mary. She was having none of that and by October 1565 was pregnant, but who was the father? Darnley accused her private secretary David Rizzio of being Mary's lover. By March the following year, Darnley had ganged up with the Protestant lords and murdered Rizzio in front of Mary at a dinner party. Despite this, Mary and Darnley were back together a couple of days later. Moray returned to Scotland and with other previous rebels was restored to the council.
Mary's son, James was born in June 1566. Huntly was right back now and appointed Lord Chancellor. In October Mary visited the Earl of Bothwell - later allegations were made that they had become lovers. Shortly thereafter Mary became seriously ill, at one point she was thought to be dying, she recovered, returned to Edinburgh and was soon discussing the 'problem of Darnley' with leading nobles allegedly plotting his demise. Darnley was worried, and headed off for his father's estates in Glasgow in December - he had a fever on his departure, possibly caused by poison, and did not recover for some time. He was recuperating back in Edinburgh in February, with Mary visiting him daily. In the early hours of 10 February, there was an explosion, and Darnley's body was found in the garden - he had apparently been smothered.
- and in 1566 Lord Chancellor.
But Mary was forced to abdicate in favour of her one year old son James in 1567, Huntly was loyal to Mary
James VI (1566 - 1625; King at age 1 in 1567)
Following Henry VIII's death in January 1547, Edward VI's uncle Edward Seymour was appointed Lord Protector, as Edward was only 10. He gave himself the title Duke of Somerset - his main interest was to resume the war against Scotland. An invasion in September 1547 lead to the Battle of Pinkie Cleugh near Musselburgh, where his forces massacred between 6-13,000 Scots, and set up garrisons as far North as Boughty Castle near Dundee. His ruthless actions forced Scotland to seek assistance from France - and ensured that Mary was betrothed to the new Dauphin (François I has died a couple of months after Henry VIII) - she was sent briefly to Inchmahome Priory on an island in the Lake of Menteith and thence to Dumbarton Castle before, in July 1548 the Scottish Parliament agreed the Treaty of Haddington, which promised that Mary would marry Dauphin François - and the French would assist Scotland in attempts to regain Haddington. Mary was sent to France the following month. Keeping the garrisons in Scotland was becoming untenable for the English, especially in the face of French help for Scotland. The English still held Haddington, and burnt Musselburgh and Dunbar in June 1548, but French help had arrived to fortify Edinburgh Castle and begin a siege of Haddington.
By 1549 things were beginning to change - there were revolts in England over religious and agrarian grievances, and Somerset's popularity waned. After problems with supplies, disease and Scottish/French raids, Haddington was abandoned by the English on 19 September, and soon the Earl of Somerset was under siege - he effectively kidnapped the King and holed up in Windsor Castle. But 10 days later Somerset was arrested - he was beheaded in 1552. The Rough Wooing was finally over, confirmed in treaties between England and France - the Treaty of Boulogne in 1550, in which France bought Boulogne back, and the Treaty of Norham in 1551 confirmed the withdrawal of the last English troops from Scotland.
Mary's mother, Marie de Guise became Regent in 1554, Hamilton conceding it to her on the promise of him being heir should the Queen die childless. He later unsuccessfully tried to get his son married to Elizabeth of England or Mary herself after she was widowed.
Mary meanwhile grew up in France, and grew tall. Sources differ as to her height, from 1.8m (5'9") to 5'11" - whichever is correct - she was extremely tall for a 16th century woman; and all reports speak to her personal charm. Unusually the two betrothed royals were reportedly actually in love - they were married in April 1558, so François became King Consort of Scotland - Mary had also signed a secret agreement bequeathing Scotland and her claim to England to the French crown if she died without issue. The following year Henri II, died in a jousting accident (!) and François was King of France, at the age of 15 and Mary, Queen of France as well as Scotland at the age of 16. The Coat of Arms adopted by Mary as Queen of France controversially incorporated her claim to the throne of England, by including the 3 lions of England - in Catholic eyes she was legitimately Queen of England, as the Pope did not recognise Henry VIII's divorce from Catherine of Aragon, Elizabeth was illegitimate. Though Queen of Scotland, Mary remained in France, with Marie de Guise,continuing to rule Scotland, despite this Catholic influence in Scotland was waning in the face of an aggressive campaign lead by the
Until 1559 France had been at war again with the Spanish and the Holy Roman Empire over the control of Italy. England were marginally involved, under the peace Treaty of Cateau-Cambrésis, France conceded their interest in Italy, and England conceded Calais to the French. A further Treaty of Edinburgh
Mary had married her first cousin Lord Darnley in 1565 and it's fair to say that the Scottish monarchy was somewhat chaotic at this time. Elizabeth of England was nervous too, as both Mary and Darnley, had possible claims to the English throne (both being grandchildren of Henry VIII's sister Margaret - and Catholic). The marriage upset Protestant lords in Scotland, including Mary's half-brother the (new) Earl of Moray - this lead to a phoney war called the Chaseabout Raid where it seems the opposing armies chased each other around the Lowlands without ever engaging in battle. Moray was declared an outlaw and fled to England. George Gordon was now seen as a potential ally, so his lands and titles were restored and he became 5th Earl of Huntly, and he along with other lords, both Catholic and Protestant were added to her privy council.
But Darnley wasn't content with being king consort, he wanted to become co-sovereign with Mary. She was having none of that and by October 1565 was pregnant, but who was the father? Darnley accused her private secretary David Rizzio of being Mary's lover. By March the following year, Darnley had ganged up with the Protestant lords and murdered Rizzio in front of Mary at a dinner party. Despite this, Mary and Darnley were back together a couple of days later. Moray returned to Scotland and with other previous rebels was restored to the council.
Mary's son, James was born in June 1566. Huntly was right back now and appointed Lord Chancellor. In October Mary visited the Earl of Bothwell - later allegations were made that they had become lovers. Shortly thereafter Mary became seriously ill, at one point she was thought to be dying, she recovered, returned to Edinburgh and was soon discussing the 'problem of Darnley' with leading nobles allegedly plotting his demise. Darnley was worried, and headed off for his father's estates in Glasgow in December - he had a fever on his departure, possibly caused by poison, and did not recover for some time. He was recuperating back in Edinburgh in February, with Mary visiting him daily. In the early hours of 10 February, there was an explosion, and Darnley's body was found in the garden - he had apparently been smothered.
- and in 1566 Lord Chancellor.
But Mary was forced to abdicate in favour of her one year old son James in 1567, Huntly was loyal to Mary
James VI (1566 - 1625; King at age 1 in 1567)
Civil War in England
No not the one everybody knows about - that was the fault of the evils of religion; the earlier ones, like those in Scotland were about power - rivalries between the privileged classes, dragging their followers (coerced and otherwise) into senseless battles where they could be maimed and slaughtered, though at least at this time the aforesaid scumbag lords and kings lead their troops into battle, and were frequently themselves killed.
The first recognised King of England was Alfred - initially of just one of the Anglo-Saxon Kingdoms - Wessex in 871. By 878 the other kingdoms had fallen to the invading Vikings - and Wessex had had some reversals, but by 886 he was king of Wessex which with its dependencies covered the whole of the country south of the Thames, and area north of the the Thames bounded by the River Lea in the east, and Mercia a narrow strip up as far as the Ribble estuary. The Danelaw was still in control of most of the east as far as the Tees, so a much smaller area than England today. His son conquered the eastern Danelaw, and his grandson conquered Northumbria by 927. The kingdom would then have extended as far north as Edinburgh in the East, but not included Cumbria, still part of the Kingdom of Strathclyde.
A further Danish invasion in 1013 left some areas in dispute for a couple of years, but by 1016 Cnut was king of what would be roughly recognisable as England today.
From then until 1066, England's capital was Winchester. In that year England faced twin invasions. Edward the Confessor had died childless in January, he was succeeded by his brother-in-law Harold Godwinson. As ever with childless monarchs, particularly 1000 years ago, there were deep disputes over the succession - and Edward's brothers had pre-deceased him too.
As ever the ruling families of the main contenders inter bred. Two former English Kings, Æthelred the Unready and Cnut were both married to Emma of Normandy - their sons Edward the Confessor and Hrathacnut may have ruled jointly with Emma between 1041-42, when Hrathacnut drank himself to death at a wedding (some believe he was poisoned by Edward). Godwin of Wessex had become the new big cheese - appointed Earl of Wessex by Cnut, but he wasn't royal by birth. He married Gytha Thorkeldóttir, a relative of Cnut; together they had at least six sons, Sweyn (died 1052); King Harold I; Tostig; Gyrth; Leofwine; Wulnoth; but for now their daughter Edith who married Edward the Confessor is the main interest. This brings Harold into the royal family, who by now are searching far and wide for a successor to the Confessor - Harald Hardrada was an even more remote prospect than Harold Godwinson or Guillaume le Bâtard (better known later on as William the Conqueror). However, Guillaume had at least as good a claim to the throne, and also claimed that the Confessor had chosen him as heir in 1051 - this was at a time when Edward and Godwin had fallen out temporarily; by 1056 there was another candidate, a very promising one from Edward's point of view - Edward the Exile, son of previous King Edmund Ironside, who had been in exile in Hungary for most of his life, and when it was realised that he was still alive, Edward the Confessor declared him his heir and recalled him to England. However he died shortly after his return in 1057, though he had brought with him his son - Edgar Ætheling born in 1051. The Exile's death theoretically made Edgar heir to the English throne, but by the time of the Confessor's death, he was only 14, and wasn't thought by many to be old enough to stand up to the likes of Harald, Harold, Sweyn II of Denmark and Guillaume, so the Witenaġemot which was an assembly of the ruling class, decided that Harold should be King. Harold and his brother Tostig had had a big falling out in 1065, when Tostig had refused the commands of Edward and been outlawed. After a failed invasion on his own, Tostig sought an ally, some reports suggest he first tried Guilaume, who was not yet ready to invade England, so he went to Norway (or possibly Scotland) where he met up with Harald Hardrada who was more keen to invade. They defeated a northern army at the Battle of Fulford, near York, on 20 September and sought to consolidate their foothold, taking many hostages. However, they had not reckoned with Harold, who marched his army north in only four days, who then surprised and routed the invaders at Stamford Bridge, where both Harald and Tostig were killed
But now Harold had to march his troops rapidly south again and on 14 October engaged in a battle 7 miles from Hastings with Guillaume. The battle was deadlocked when William's men feigned retreat, and Harold's army made the blunder of pursuing them, Harold was killed, and the story continued in tapestry. There really wasn't any doubt now that Guillaume would become William I - as well as Harold, two of his younger brothers Gyrth and Leofwine were also killed at Hastings, the remaining brother Wulfnoth appears to have spent most of his life as a hostage and then prisoner. Though the Witenaġemot elected Edgar as King, he was never crowned; his elder sister married Malcolm III of Scotland in 1070 and was mother to three Scottish Kings: Edgar, Alexander I, David I; and Matilda of Scotland, who married Henry I of England in 1100.
History
No not the one everybody knows about - that was the fault of the evils of religion; the earlier ones, like those in Scotland were about power - rivalries between the privileged classes, dragging their followers (coerced and otherwise) into senseless battles where they could be maimed and slaughtered, though at least at this time the aforesaid scumbag lords and kings lead their troops into battle, and were frequently themselves killed.
The first recognised King of England was Alfred - initially of just one of the Anglo-Saxon Kingdoms - Wessex in 871. By 878 the other kingdoms had fallen to the invading Vikings - and Wessex had had some reversals, but by 886 he was king of Wessex which with its dependencies covered the whole of the country south of the Thames, and area north of the the Thames bounded by the River Lea in the east, and Mercia a narrow strip up as far as the Ribble estuary. The Danelaw was still in control of most of the east as far as the Tees, so a much smaller area than England today. His son conquered the eastern Danelaw, and his grandson conquered Northumbria by 927. The kingdom would then have extended as far north as Edinburgh in the East, but not included Cumbria, still part of the Kingdom of Strathclyde.
A further Danish invasion in 1013 left some areas in dispute for a couple of years, but by 1016 Cnut was king of what would be roughly recognisable as England today.
From then until 1066, England's capital was Winchester. In that year England faced twin invasions. Edward the Confessor had died childless in January, he was succeeded by his brother-in-law Harold Godwinson. As ever with childless monarchs, particularly 1000 years ago, there were deep disputes over the succession - and Edward's brothers had pre-deceased him too.
As ever the ruling families of the main contenders inter bred. Two former English Kings, Æthelred the Unready and Cnut were both married to Emma of Normandy - their sons Edward the Confessor and Hrathacnut may have ruled jointly with Emma between 1041-42, when Hrathacnut drank himself to death at a wedding (some believe he was poisoned by Edward). Godwin of Wessex had become the new big cheese - appointed Earl of Wessex by Cnut, but he wasn't royal by birth. He married Gytha Thorkeldóttir, a relative of Cnut; together they had at least six sons, Sweyn (died 1052); King Harold I; Tostig; Gyrth; Leofwine; Wulnoth; but for now their daughter Edith who married Edward the Confessor is the main interest. This brings Harold into the royal family, who by now are searching far and wide for a successor to the Confessor - Harald Hardrada was an even more remote prospect than Harold Godwinson or Guillaume le Bâtard (better known later on as William the Conqueror). However, Guillaume had at least as good a claim to the throne, and also claimed that the Confessor had chosen him as heir in 1051 - this was at a time when Edward and Godwin had fallen out temporarily; by 1056 there was another candidate, a very promising one from Edward's point of view - Edward the Exile, son of previous King Edmund Ironside, who had been in exile in Hungary for most of his life, and when it was realised that he was still alive, Edward the Confessor declared him his heir and recalled him to England. However he died shortly after his return in 1057, though he had brought with him his son - Edgar Ætheling born in 1051. The Exile's death theoretically made Edgar heir to the English throne, but by the time of the Confessor's death, he was only 14, and wasn't thought by many to be old enough to stand up to the likes of Harald, Harold, Sweyn II of Denmark and Guillaume, so the Witenaġemot which was an assembly of the ruling class, decided that Harold should be King. Harold and his brother Tostig had had a big falling out in 1065, when Tostig had refused the commands of Edward and been outlawed. After a failed invasion on his own, Tostig sought an ally, some reports suggest he first tried Guilaume, who was not yet ready to invade England, so he went to Norway (or possibly Scotland) where he met up with Harald Hardrada who was more keen to invade. They defeated a northern army at the Battle of Fulford, near York, on 20 September and sought to consolidate their foothold, taking many hostages. However, they had not reckoned with Harold, who marched his army north in only four days, who then surprised and routed the invaders at Stamford Bridge, where both Harald and Tostig were killed
But now Harold had to march his troops rapidly south again and on 14 October engaged in a battle 7 miles from Hastings with Guillaume. The battle was deadlocked when William's men feigned retreat, and Harold's army made the blunder of pursuing them, Harold was killed, and the story continued in tapestry. There really wasn't any doubt now that Guillaume would become William I - as well as Harold, two of his younger brothers Gyrth and Leofwine were also killed at Hastings, the remaining brother Wulfnoth appears to have spent most of his life as a hostage and then prisoner. Though the Witenaġemot elected Edgar as King, he was never crowned; his elder sister married Malcolm III of Scotland in 1070 and was mother to three Scottish Kings: Edgar, Alexander I, David I; and Matilda of Scotland, who married Henry I of England in 1100.
History
Photos on this page were taken by me. Click on photo to enlarge. Full size versions and my other pictures of Huntly are available at:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/martynjenkins/sets/72157633389907120
http://www.flickr.com/photos/martynjenkins/sets/72157633389907120