SCOTLAND. 



order to render their fate more exemplary. Here the king 

 was aflaflinated by the governor and his wife, who had vainly 

 interceded to fave fome of the criminals, their relations. 



Culenus, the fon of Indulfus, now mounted the throne ; 

 and immediately inttituted an inquiry into the murder of his 

 predecefTor, and vifited with condign punifhment all who 

 were concerned in that tragical event. But with thefe afts 

 the merits of his reign ceafe, for fcarcely had the executioner 

 performed his duty, before the king abandoned himfelf to 

 every fpecies of vice, and gave equal licence to the younger 

 nobility. Having been, in confequence, fummoned to anfwer 

 for his conduft in an aflembly of tlie dates convened at 

 Scone, he was aifadinated en his journey thither by the 

 thane of Methyen, whofe daughter he had injured. Culenus 

 was fucceedcd by Kenneth, the brother of Duffus, a man 

 in every relpetl the reverfe of him in charafter and conduft. 

 His firft objeft was to put an end to the abufes of the former 

 reign ; which he had fcarcely accomplithed, when the Danes, 

 made a defccnt on Aberdeenihire, and pillaged the country 

 as far as the town of Perth, to which they laid fiege. The 

 king haftened to give them battle, and after an obftinate and 

 bloody contelt, was defeated and put to flight. This 

 difafter being perceived by the chief of the clan. Hay, he, 

 and his fons and vallaU, placed themfelves in a narrow pafs, 

 through which the main body of the Scots fled, and by 

 their exhortations and courageous conduit, fucceeded in 

 changing the fortune of the day. The Scots turned upon 

 their conquerors, and after a fecond rencounter, ftill more 

 furious than the firft, gained a complete vidory. The gal- 

 lant Hay was rewarded with extenilve eltates, and raifedto 

 the dignity of nobility, which is ftill enjoyed by his defcend- 

 ants. From that time peace continued for feveral years, 

 during which period Kenneth attempted to regulate the fuc- 

 ceflion to the royal dignity, fo as to render it hereditary in 

 his own family. In the purfiiit of this objeft he committed 

 the only crime with whicli his reign is ftained, the murder of 

 Malcolm, the fon of king Duffus, who was confidered by 

 the nobility as the next hicceilor to the throne. All liis 

 efforts, however, proved unfuccefsful ; for though he ob- 

 tained a vote of the ftates in favour of his views, yet when 

 the throne became vacant by his death, which happened in 

 the year 994, Conftantine the Bald was proclaimed king. 

 Malcolm, Kenneth's fon, coUefted a large body of troops 

 to aflert the preference of his rights, but on the approach 

 of the royal troops he difmiiied his army, and retired into 

 Cumberland. Kenneth, his natural brother, regarding tliis 

 conduft as difhonourable, prevailed on moft of the foldiers 

 to join his ftandard and continue the war. A battle foon 

 afterwards enfued, in which both Conftantine and Kenneth 

 fell, each by the hand of the other, at the very moment 

 when victory had declared for the latter. 



In this critical emergency, the nobles elected Grimus, 

 the fon of Duffus, ti> the lovereign authority. This prince 

 feems to have poffefTed greater popularity than his prede- 

 celFor, for he was no fooner declared king than moft of his 

 opponert's partizans deferted to his caufe. Malcolm's 

 party therefore deemed it advifeable to ncgociate for peace, 

 and accordingly a treaty was conclnded. by which it was 

 agreed thai Grimus (liould retain the kingdom till his death, 

 when it (hould revert to Malcolm and his lieirs, according to 

 the intentions of Kenneth. This peace was fcrupuloufly 

 obferved during eight years ; hut after that period, Grimus 

 having begun to evince a m< ft tyrannical diipofition, Mal- 

 colm thought himfelf jnftilied in again taking up arms. He 

 accordingly marched mto Scotland, and as the tide of popu- 

 larity was now decidedly in his favour, he foou acquired a 



large army. Grimus marched to oppofe him, but bein^ 

 betrayed by his foldiers, he was feverely wounded in the 

 firft battle, and foon after terminated his exiftence. 



Malcolm, on aduming the fceptre, laboured to compofe 

 the various factions which agitated the ftate, and to deftroy 

 the numerous banditti of robbers who had taken advantage of 

 the laxity of the old government, to infeft almoft every 

 diftrift of the kingdom. He renewed, in his capacity of 

 king of Scotland, the league which he had formed with the 

 Englifh, as governor of Cumberland, and m virtue of its 

 conditions fent a corps of troops to afiift them in oppofing 

 the Danes. This meafure fo roufed the indignation of the 

 Danifti monarch, that he difpatched a large fleet and army 

 to invade the Scottilh territories, under the command of 

 two of his beft generals, Olave and Euceus. A landing 

 was effedted in the province of Moray, which being fub- 

 dued, the invaders laid fiege to the fortrefa of Nairn. Mal- 

 colm, who, during thefe operations, had been bufily engaged 

 in levying forces, amved while the garrifon yet continued a 

 gallant defence ; but being defeated, they were compelled 

 to furrender ; and the fortreffes of Elgin and Moray were 

 evacuated without refiftance. 



Upon thefe fucccfl'es the Danes refolved to fix their 

 habitation in Moray, and with this view fent home their 

 fhips to bring over their wives and children. In the mean 

 time Malcolm re-organized his army, and made head againft 

 the enemy again at Mortlich, in the diftridt of Marr. At 

 firit the Scots, difcouraged by the fall of three of their com- 

 manders, retreated to their camp, where they made a vigorous 

 ftand, and changed their flight into a glorious viftory. Mal- 

 colm, however, did not deem it prudent to advance far in 

 purfuit, nor to attempt the expulfion of the whole Danifh 

 colony before he had recruited his forces with new levies. 

 This cautious policy afforded time to king Swein to dlfpatch 

 a fecoad body of troops to the afTiftance of their country- 

 men. They were commanded by Camus, a general of tried 

 courage and abilities, and difembarked near Aberbrothick, 

 in Angus, whence they marched forward to the village of 

 St. Bride, near which the Scots lay encamped, and ready to 

 receive them. The aftion that followed terminated in the 

 total rout of the Danes, who, finding their retreat to their 

 fliips cut off, difperfed in different diredtions. Camus and 

 the moft confiderable party fled towards the mountains, with 

 the intention of penetrating to Moray; but before they had 

 proceeded far from the field of battle, they were overtaken, 

 and either flam or made prifoners. A finiilar fate attended 

 all the other fugitive bands. 



This fecond difcomfiture, though more fignal than the 

 firft, did not yet difcourage the Danifh king. Immediately 

 on being apprized of it, he fent a third armament under his 

 own fon, Canute, which landed in Buchaii without oppo- 

 fition, and plundered the furroundiiig country. Malcolm, 

 who had fcarcely recovered the loffes fuflaip.ed in former 

 battles, neverthelefs haftened to oppofe this new invafion. 

 At firft he declined rifkiiig a general engagement, but when 

 he had afcertained that his opponents were lefs ftrong than 

 was originally fuppofed, he feized a favourable opportunity 

 to fall upon them with his whole forces. The battle was 

 the moft dreadful hitherto fought againft the Danes ; the 

 Scots remained mafters of the field, but were unable to purfue 

 the enemy, who retreated without moleftation. Next day 

 both parties, equally afraid to hazard another conteft, eagerly 

 liftened to the interpofition of the clergy, and concluded a 

 peace, in which it was ftipulated that all the Danes fhould 

 leave Scotland, and that neither Swein nor Malcfclm ftiould, 

 in future, wage war againft one another. 



Malcolm 



