History

The history of King Robert the Bruce and his quest for the throne of Scotland could perhaps be seen as beginning with the untimely death of King Alexander lll of Scots in 1286. alexander lll was descended from King David l – find out more on our lineage page

Alexander was married to Margaret of England, daughter of the English king Henry lll. She was sister to Edward l known as Longshanks. The marriage produced three children: Margaret in 1261, Alexander in 1264 and David in 1272.. Alexander’s wife died in 1275 aged only 34 years. Alexander’s younger son died in 1281, his daughter who was married to Eric of Norway died following childbirth in 1283 and his only surviving son died aged 20 years in 1284. This left Alexander (and Scotland) without an heir and he set off to find a new bride who would produce more children. His choice fell on a young French noble woman named Yolande of Dreux and they were married in 1285.

Alexander was in Edinburgh in March 1286 and decided to head home to his manor house and new bride, across the stormy Forth. He was advised to wait until morning but pressed ahead and crossed the firth at Dalmeny. He was found dead in the morning with his neck broken. His bride did not produce an heir and so his little granddaughter Margaret was named as the new queen of Scots. Little Margaret left Norway for Scotland in 1290 but she never made it past Orkney. She had become ill and died en route and her little body was returned to her father. Scotland was now seeking a new monarch…and more than a dozen contenders for the throne came forth, one of whom was Robert Bruce Earl of Carrick, grandfather of King Robert the Bruce. The two main contenders were Robert of Carrick and John Balliol, son of Deveorguilla of Galloway. Both were descended from David l, King of Scots.

Deciding who should become king proved impossible for the Scots who decided to ask Edward l of England to arbitrate. Edward Longshanks saw himself as overlord of Scotland and had hoped to marry his son Edward of Caenarven to the young maid of Norway thereby gaining Scotland for himself; however her untimely death scuppered his plans. His choice fell upon John Balliol who might well be the easier to manipulate. Balliol was duly crowned at Scone in 1292 however his reign was short lived. In 1296 following a battle at Berwick, the Scots were defeated and King John was stripped of his kingship and sent into exile. Edward planned to take over Scotland just as he had done with Wales!

From the death of King Alexander lll in March 1286 to the coronation of king Robert the Bruce in March 1306, some 20 years had past. What happened in between came to be known as the First War of Scottish Independence.