588 



SCOTLAND. 



"Death of 



Robert 



Bruce. 



A.D. 13?9. 

 David the 



Second , 

 King of 



History, plenipotentiaries met at Newcastle, and drew up ar- 

 l v- -J tides, which were ratified by a parliament at North- 

 A.D. 1328. ampton. In this treaty, Edward renounced all claims 

 of superiority over Scotland, acknowledged Bruce as 

 the king of Scots, and promised to employ his good 

 offices at the papal court for obtaining a revocation of 

 the spiritual censures, and Robert agreed to pay 30,000 

 merks to the king of England. He had at length 

 emancipated his country, and secured its independence, 

 when he died in the fifty-fifth year of his age, and was 

 A.D. 1329. buried at Dunfermline. He left one son, David the 

 Second, and two daughters. 



David the Second was five years old when he suc- 

 ceeded to the throne ; and Randolph assumed the au- 

 thority of regent. 



Edward of England had taken Edward Baliol, the 

 son of the exiled king, under his protection ; and, sup- 

 ported by the Lords Wake and Beaumont, with others 

 who had been disinherited by Robert Bruce, he re- 

 solved to invade Scotland and vindicate their rights. 

 In consequence of these preparations, Randolph as- 

 sembled an army, and advanced to the frontier of East 

 A.D 1332. Lothian ; but learning that the enemy had prepared 

 to invade Scotland by sea, he returned northwards to 

 provide for the defence of the interior of the king- 

 dom, where he died. Donald, earl of Mar, was elect- 

 ed his successor, destitute of political abilities, and in- 

 experienced in war. A naval armament under Ba- 

 liol appeared in the Frith of Forth, and disembarked 

 in the neighbourhood of Kinghorn. They routed the 

 earl of Fife, and advanced to Dunfermline, whence 

 they proceeded to Forteviot, on the south banks of the 

 Erne. 



The regent Mar encamped on the opposite bank, 

 while another army, commanded by the earl of March, 

 had advanced through the districts of Lothian and Stir- 

 ling to Auchterarder. Baliol took the resolution of cross- 

 ing the river in the night, and attacking them by sur- 

 prise, the Scots were routed and slaughtered, and the 

 next day Perth was delivered up to Baliol. He was af- 

 terwards crowned at Scone, met Edward at Roxburgh, 

 and acknowledged himself his liegeman, as his father 

 had done. Edward, in return, engaged to support the 

 rights and titles of Baliol to the Scottish crown. Many 

 of the nobles submitted to the conqueror. 



The Earl of March, and Archibald Douglas, with 

 Simon Fraser, assembled a body of horse, and surprised 

 him at Annan. His followers were overpowered, and 

 he himself escaped, and took refuge in England. 

 A.D. 1333. As he had ceded Berwick to the English, Edward 

 resolved to besiege it without delay. He was assisted 

 by Baliol, who vigorously prosecuted the siege. The 

 Scots made an obstinate defence, and burned a great 

 part of the English fleet. The regent immediately pro- 

 posed to give battle to the enemy. Edward opposed 

 them in person, and repulsed them with great slaugh- 

 ter, and so complete was the discomfiture, that few of 

 the Scots escaped. On the side of the English scarce- 

 ly twenty were killed ; and the town and castle of Ber- 

 wick immediately surrendered. It was now believed 

 that the Scottish war was ended. The castles of Dum- 

 barton, Loch'even, Urquhart, and Kildrummy, were 

 commanded by the faithful friends of David* That 

 prince and his consort were conveyed to France, until 

 Surrender a more favourable season should arrive to assert his 

 of Scotland claims. Baliol, with the concurrence of the Scottish 

 parliament, surrendered, by a solemn instrument, a 

 A D1334' & reat P art of l ^ e Scottish dominions, to be annexed for 

 ' ever to the crown of England, did homage, and swore 



fealty for the kingdom of Scotland and the isles ad- History. 

 jacent. * "~ V"* * 



Many of the nobles, disgusted by Baliol's submis- 

 sions, retired to their castles, or abjured their allegiance. 

 Baliol concluded a treaty with the Lord of the Isles, 

 who consented to be his liegeman, and who received in 

 return the islands of Mull, Sky, and Isla, with the lands 

 of Kintyre and Knapdale. 



Sir Andrew Moray, having been liberated from Eng- 

 land, was acknowledged as regent, and was indefati- 

 gable in harassing the partisans of Baliol. Edward, re- 

 solved to overrun the country, led an army into the 

 north, wasted Moray, and penetrated to Inverness ; A.D. 1336. 

 but he had scarcely departed, when the regent travers- 

 ed the kingdom, surprising and discomfiting his ene- 

 mies. Edward, busied in preparing for war with France, 

 relaxed his military operations against the Scots ; and 

 Sir Andrew Moray having died, was succeeded in that 

 office by Robert, the Steward of Scotland. The new 

 regent dispatched the knight of Liddesdale into France, A.D. 1338. 

 to implore the aid of the French king, and to acquaint 

 king David with the state of affairs. Meantime the 

 regent prepared to besiege Perth, which had been the 

 head quarters of the English for many years. Liddes- 

 dale, who had returned from France with some sh*ips, 

 contributed to the reduction of the town, which was 

 surrendered by capitulation. Stirling castle, after a 

 feeble resistance, was likewise surrendered to the re- 

 gent. Having thus expelled the enemy from every 

 post to the north of the Frith of Forth, he made a pro- 

 gress through Scotland, to administer justice, redress 

 grievances, and establish good order. 



Edinburgh castle was taken by surprise, as was Rox- 

 burgh castle. King David returned to Scotland, and 

 during these transactions the English monarch was 

 prosecuting an unsuccessful war in France. A treaty 

 of peace was concluded between England and France, A.D. 1343, 

 in which the Scots were included by their French ally. 

 But the Scots renewed their incursions into England. 

 Edward complained that the French monarch had se- 

 cretly encouraged the faithless Scots, and ordered hos- 

 tilities to be recommenced. 



To embarrass the operations of Edward, David re- 

 solved to invade England at .the solicitation of the 

 French monarch. He entered England with a body of 

 two thousand men, and a multitude of light armed in- 

 fantry, and penetrated into Durham, wasting the coun- 

 try, and plundering the ecclesiastics. The English 

 issued a proclamation of array to the northern parts of 

 England. 



Nevils' Cross, near Durham, was the scene of con- j^ at ,i e O f 

 flict. Having routed the right wing of the Scots, the Devils' 

 English attacked the centre, commanded by the king Cross. 

 in person, and he was made prisoner with upwards of 

 fifty barons. The left wing, commanded by the Stew- 

 ard and the Earl of March, retired, though not with- , ^ 

 out loss. The captive monarch was conducted to Lon- 

 don, and confined in the Tower ; and the English en- 

 tered Scotland, took Roxburgh castle, and being joined 

 by Baliol with a body of Gallowaymen, wasted the 

 southern counties. 



A truce was concluded between England and France, ^.j 

 in wh'.cii the Scots were included ; and, in the ensu- 

 ing year, negotiations were opened for the release of 

 the captive monarch. 



This treaty was at last concluded at Newcastle. His A.D. 1354. 

 ransom was fixed at ninety thousand merks sterling, to 

 be paid at the rate of ten thousand annually. The 

 king, the clergy, the nobles, the merchants, and bur- 



JU47 



