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1
1
GIAN
REGIAM
MAIESTATE
π
F. Hayman del.
I. Taylor foulp
A
GENERAL HISTORY
OF
SCOTLAND,
}
FROM
THE EARLIEST ACCOUNTS
19.
THE PRESENT, TIM E.
By WILLIAM GUTHRIE, Efq.
VOLUME THE FIRST.
LONDON,
Printed for the AUTHOR, by A. HAMILTON;
And fold by ROBINSON and ROBERTS, in Paternofter-Row.
MDCCLXVII.
DA
760
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:
EXPLANATION
OF THE
FRONT IS PIECE.
ON one fide of an Altar, fuppofed to be in
the Temple of Concord, is an Engliſh Baron;
on the other, a Scotch Warrior; in the middle,
Britannia, with the Cap of Liberty and the
Union-Flag, in the action of reconciling the
two Chieftains. The Engliſhman holds the
Regiam Majeftatem, which is the oldeſt code
of the Scotch law; and the other Chief lays
his Hand upon Glanville, of the fame date in
the Engliſh law. ---- On the Altar, a Bas-relief,
of Boys, reprefenting UNITY.
1
:
}
骺
​1
t
INTRODUCTION
TO THE
GENERAL HISTORY
O F
SCOTLAND.
SHALL, without adopting any particular
fyftem hitherto publiſhed, lay before my
readers the earlieſt accounts which have
come to our hands of the inhabitants of
SCOTLAND.
Several hiftories of Scotland have advanced Conjectures
circumſtances, fome not only beyond all cre- the Celtic
dibility, but impoffible, in the nature of tongue,
things, fuppofing them to have happened,
that they could have come to the knowledge
of the writers who handed them down as
facts. A few glimmerings of ancient hiftory
appear, indeed, in the rude remains of anti-
quity; but they are faint, and matters rather of
VOL. I.
B
curi-
INTRODUCTION.
curioſity than information. The proof brought
from a fimilarity of ancient languages is
much more inftructive and certain, becauſe
founded upon facts which cannot be miſtaken.
It is to this fort of proof, and not to the wild
dreams of the Irish and Northern antiquaries,
that I muſt chiefly rely for all the lame infor-
mation I am able to give my reader of the ori-
gin of the Scots.
The language of the ancient Celts, while pure
and uncorrupted, feems to have been fpread
almoſt through the then known world; and
it is, perhaps, the mother-language of the
dead ones over all Europe, and the greateſt
part of Afia. But the pure Celtic appears to
have fuffered many alterations through the pro-
grefs of time and of letters; and above all, from
the intermixture of the inhabitants of feveral
countries, by which the provincial idiom of
one country was adopted by the people of an-
other; and every province or nation having a
different articulation, the fyftem of the living
and dead languages, as they now ftand, was
formed by the affiftance of grammar and rea-
foning; but on the whole, the radical language,
however diſguiſed or altered, is Celtic.
Wherever this language is fpoken in its
greateft fimplicity, we may fairly prefume that
the
INTRODUCTION.
the inhabitants of that country are the defcen-
dents of the primitive Celts, who lived there
before the provincial alterations I have already
mentioned, took place. The language of the
inhabitants of the Western ifles and coafts of
Scotland being more fimple than that of either
the Welch or Irifh, affords a ſtrong prefump-
tion that it approaches nearest to the ancient
Celtic.
lians.
The old inhabitants of Britain were called and the
Guydhe-
Guydhelians, and were, in fact, the aborigines
of the iſland, their language being the fame with
that of the Celts. For this information we are
obliged to the Welch antiquaries *, and I can
fee
"As for the inhabitants of Cornwal and Armoric Britain,
although they live among English and French, their language
fhews, as you fee plainly by this book, that they were anci-
ently Britons. But you will, doubtleſs, be at a loſs for that
infinite number of exotic words, which (befides the Britiſh )
you'll find in the Irish of Scotland and Ireland. There are for
this, as feems to me, two reafons: I fay, as feems, becauſe we
have no authorities of hiftories or other means, that may lead us
into the truth, but comparing of languages. In the first place,
I fuppofe that the ancient colonies of Ireland were two diſtinct
nations, co-inhabiting, Guydhels and Scots. That the Guydhels
were old inhabitants of this island, and that the Scots came out
of Spain. So far, therefore, as their language agrees, either
with us or the other Britons, the words are Guydhelian: and for
the reft, they muſt be alfo either Guydhelian, loft by our anceſtors,
or elfe ancient Scotifh. So the fecond reafon for their having fo
many unknown words is, for that the Welch, Cornifh, and Ar-
moric Britons, have loft fome part of their old language (in
regard they were for the space of almoſt five hundred years, viz.
from the time of Julius Cæfar to that of Valentinian III. under
the government of the people of Rome) as I have thewed more
parti.
B 2
INTRODUCTION.
fee no manner of reaſon to doubt that the
Welch made uſe of regiſters and letters long
before
particularly in the firſt ſection of this book. And thus 'tis poffible
a great many of thoſe words which feem to us exotic, may be
old British, though we do not know them; according to thoſe
examples I have inftanced in P. 7. C. I. Nor was it only North-
Britain that thefe Guydhelians have in the most ancient times
inhabited, but alfo England and Wales: whether before our
time, or co-temporary with us, or both, is what cannot be
determined. But to me it feems most probable, that they were
here before our coming into the iſland; and that our anceſtors
did, from time to time, force them Northward and that from
the Kintire (or Foreland) of Scotland, where there is but four
leagues of fea; and from the country of Galloway, and the Iſle
of Man, they paffed over into Ireland; as they have that way
returned, backward and forward, often fince. Neither was their
progrefs into this iſland out of a more remote country than
Gaul; now better known by the names of the kingdom of
France, the Low Countries, and the Low Dutch.
“८
Having now related what none have hitherto made mention
of, viz. Firft, That the old inhabitants of Ireland conſiſted of two
nations, Guydhelians and Scots. Secondly, that the Guydhelians
defcended from the most ancient Britons, and the Scots from
Spain. Thirdly, that the Guydhelians lived in the moſt ancient
times, not only in North-Britain (where they ftill continue
intermixed with Scots, Saxons, and Danes) but alfo in Eng-
land and Wales. And, Fourthly, that the faid Guydhelians of
England and Wales were inhabitants of Gaul before they came
into this iſland. Having been fo bold, I fay, as to write fuch
novelties, and yet, at the fame time, to acknowledge that I have
no written authority for them; I am obliged to produce what
reaſons I have; and that, as the extent of this letter requires, in
As few words as may be.
"I have already proved at large, in the firſt and ſecond ſec-
tions of this book, that our language agrees with a very great
part of their's; and in the Iriſh grammar, you'll alſo find that
the genius, or nature of their language, in their changing the
initial letters in the fame manner, &c. is alfo agreeable to the
Welch. And as, by collating the languages, I have found one
part of the Irish reconcilable to the Welch; fo by a diligent pe-
rufal
INTRODUCTION.
before they were known either to the Guyd-
helians, the Irifh, or the Scots: for, though
the
rufal of the New Teftament, and fome manufcript-papers I re-
ceived from the learned doctor Edward Brown, written in the
language of the Cantabrians, I have had a fatisfactory knowledge
to the affinity of the other part with the Old Spaniſh: for tho'
a great deal of that language be retained in the prefent, yet much
better preſerved do we find it amongst the Cantabrians. Now,
my reaſon for calling the Britiſh-Iriſh Guydhelians, and thofe of
Spain, Scots, is, becauſe the old British manufcripts call the Pits
Fitchid-Guydhelians; and the Picts were Britons without quef-
tion, as appears not only by the name of them in Latin and
Irish, but by the names of the mountains and rivers in the Low-
lands of Scotland, where they inhabited; and there, probably,
they are yet (though their language be loft) intermixed with
Scots, Strat-clyd Britons, old Saxons, Danes, and Normans. As
for the entitling the Spanish-Irish, Scots, there wants no autho-
rity; the Irith authors having conftantly called the Spaniſh colony,
Kin Skuit, or the Scotifh nation: no more therefore need be faid
to prove the Guydhelians ancient Britons. And as to the Scots,
'tis only neceſſary we ſhould produce examples of the affinity of
the old Spaniſh with the prefent Irith, which we have not room
to do here, but in thoſe few words following, where the Scotiſh-
Iriſh words lead, and the Cantabrian (which is the old Mountain
or Pyrenean-Spaniſh) are written after the Engliſh interpretation.
"A, acha, a dike or mound, a bank; acha, a rock. Ad-
hark, a horn; adarra, a horn, alſo a bough. Agharta, deaf;
gor gothor. Aile, fhame; ahal, chalque. Airneis (aivrneis)
cattle; avre, abrec. Alga, noble; algo (fee the IRISH Dicti-
onary). Aodhaire, a fhepherd. Arza; ardi, a fheep. Aoil,
the mouth; ahol, aholic. MAT. 4. 4. 12. 34. 15. 11.
Aon,
good, excellent; on. Ar, our; ure, gure. Ar, flaughter;
hara, heri. ACT. 8. 32. Arcoir, near, neighbouring; hurco.
Aras (atheras) a houſe, a building; etchera. Arfac, old; ga-
harrai. Arc, and arcan, a pig; urrum. MAT. S. 31. 32.
Afaith, enough; afco. Afhic, milk; ezne, eznec. Ahafc, a
wood; hitz, hitzac. Athair, a father; aita, aitac. Atticha,
to defire; efca. Avail, death; hivil, hil. Bacadh, baca, to
fee, to look. Baguft, bequia, the eye. Bal, arbal, if, if tờ
that; baldin. Balla, a fkull; bull, buil-hegar. MAT. 27. 33.
Banailte, a nurſe, banlitu, ballitu. Beach, beixin, a bee; abex-
On
INTRODUCTION.
the Welch call themſelves the ancient Bri-
tons, they can only be termed fo in contra-
diftinction
en, Hifp. Beas, a hand; bethe. Beat, a little; batzu. Bioghe-
rax, a two year old heifer. Bigawn, the ſecond, alſo a heifer.
HEB. 9. 13. Birtan, foon, quickly; bertan. Brek, pyed, mot-
ley. Bragado, a pyed ox. Hifp. Brog, a fhoe; abarca, a wood-
en fhoe. Hifp. Brugh, a town; burgua. Caill, injury, da-
mage; cailte. ACTS 27. 10. Cailleach, a cock. Oilloac, a
hen. Can, until; aiceno, Cruineacht, wheat; garia, garian.
Cealg (ceilgin) deceit; celaten. Cean, a head; gaine, in com-
pound words.
Ceard, a tinker; acetrero. Ceo, miſt. Hea,
and quea, fmoke. Cia (ciaan) who; ceinea, ceinec. Ciocar, a
ravenous cur; chacurra. Cioghar, wherefore; cerga, cergatic.
Çionas, how; kein. Cior, a jaw; cara, a face. Hifp. Colla
(codlah) fleep; loo. Comhar (o comhar, Lat. é regione) co-
marca, a country. E'as, not (in compound words) ez. Eaf
adh, a diſeaſe; eritas. Eafgar, a fall, eror. Fadadh (and `ada')
to ſtretch; heda, Fearrya, and ‘earrya, male, maſculine; arra.
Foeraich, wagers, foriac. Vid. F. S. p. 22. col. 1. Gach, all;
guizia, guzią. Gadaiche, a thief; gaichta. Gaoie, a lye; guo,
gue, guric. Ger, found; garraza. Thaire (yaire) laughter;
barri, iri. Ghearg, red; gorria. Gheunav, to make; equin.
Ghocar (docar) difficult; gogorra. Gigilt, to tickle.”—Preface
to Llhuyd's Gloffography, or his Archeologia Britannica.
Mr. Llhuyd mentions many other ftrong fimilarities between
the two languages; but the foregoing inftances are fufficient to
eftablish all I contend for,
† As a great part of what I have here advanced depends upon
the authority of the Welch antiquities, it is neceffary that they
should be eſtabliſhed before I proceed farther. About forty-five
or forty-fix years ago, Mr, Wanley and Dr. Hicks laid claim to
the characters in which the Welch antiquities are written, as
belonging to the Saxons and the other Northern nations. Was
this claim admitted to be true, the authority of the Welch antiqui-
ties must be brought very low; for it is certain that the Saxons had no
letters before the time of Auguftine the monk, about the year 600;
and that the Irish had not fo much as an alphabet till they re-
ceived it from St, Patrick, who went from Britain to Ireland in
the fifth century. The learned Mr. Llhuyd, in his letter to the
Weich, prefixed to his Archaologia Britannica, refuted both
thofe
INTRODUCTION.
diftinction to the Romans, the Saxons, the
Danes, the Normans, and the other nations
whoſe pofterities now people, by far, the greateſt
thofe opinions with great ftrength of evidence; but as they had
been maintained, and that pretty warmly, by two of his inti-
mate friends, Mr. Wanley and Dr. Hicks, when he tranflated
his preface from the Welch, he omitted all the part relating to
that controverfy which I fhall give to the reader.
"We having for feven or eight ages difufed thefe ancient
characters, and the Engliſh having of late printed fome old
Saxon books in them, they lay claim to thofe letters, and have
given them the name of Saxon. On the other fide, the Irifh
having in all ages, even to this day, ufed them, do pretend that
they were originally Irish letters; and fay, that feveral reli-
gious men of their nation having been fent to preach the goſpel to
the Saxons, taught them to write at the fame time: but no per-
fon of either nation has ever mentioned that the ancient Britons
alſo uſed the ſame letters till very lately. (Mr. Humphry Wan-
ley) the author of the catalogue of Northern books, in his Latin
preface, after having exchanged fome letters with me on this
fubject, and been informed that I had faid we had a better right
to thoſe letters than either the Saxons or Iriſh, all that he has
written thereon is, That the Saxons neither received thefe let-
ters from the Irish nor the ancient Britons, but from Auguftine
the monk :' which is as much as to fay, that the ancient Britons
and Irish learned them of the Saxons. And this, the gentleman
affirms (as if his word was fufficient) without vouchfafing either to
produce any ancient authority, or offer any reafons of his own to
prove it, taking no notice of what I had writ to him, that thofe
letters are at this day to be feen in St. Cadwallader's church in
Angleſey, on the tomb ftone of Cadvan, king of North-Wales,
who fought againſt the Saxons and Auguftine the monk, at the
battle of Bangor-Is-Coed.
C
•
"(Dr. Hicks) the author of the Thefaurus Linguarum Septen-
trionalium, has given an inſtance of the like ingenuity and im-
partiality, where he afferts, That the manufcripts in the Bod-
leian library, which I mentioned in p. 226 of this book, are
Saxon,' though it is impoffible but he must know them to be
British by the interlineated words; for though he underſtands
neither Welch nor Irish, yet he must know thofe words to be
neither Saxon, Gothic, nor Norman."
Ibid.
part
INTRODUCTION.
part of this ifland. The Celts, the Gauls, the
Cimbrians, and other nations upon the conti-
nent, fome time before the Incarnation invaded
Britain from the moft adjoining parts of the
continent; and driving the Guydhelians north-
ward, took poffeffion of the fouthern parts of
Britain, and were the Britons whom Julius
Cæfar found here at the time of his invafion.
This account is fairly deducible, not only
from the words of Cæfar, but from the au-
thority of the Welch themfelves, which, in
the prefent queftion, ought to have the greateſt
weight, efpecially as it is a teftimony which,
in fome degree, affects their own antiquity,
and nothing but the force of truth could have
brought to light.
We fhall therefore venture to lay it down as
a probable, if not certain, fact, that the Guyd-
helians, or the antient inhabitants of Britain,
were forced northward by invafions from the
continent, in the fame manner as thofe inva-
ders were afterwards driven northwards by
the Romans. Many veftiges of antiquity ferve
to eſtabliſh this opinion. The Belgic Britons
imported with them that horrid Druidiſm
which is deſcribed by Cæfar, and is no other
than a corruption of Pythagorifm, equally re-
pugnant to the principles of civil polity and
of common humanity. Their temples were
ftupen-
INTRODUCTION.
ftupendous, their religion bloody, and their
learning jargon, as appears from antiquity,
and the beft accounts we have of their confti-
tution and government. But the Guydheli-
ans, fo far as we know, were infected with
none of theſe circumftances. Their religion
feems to have been purely patriarchal. No
aſhes of human or brute facrifices are found
about their places of interment, or devotion ;
no ornaments of gold or filver are dug from
their graves; and the places which are fup-
poſed to have been facred to their devotions,
are diftinguiſhed only by a few rude ftones,
void of all that ftupendous oftentation dif
played in the monuments of their Belgic
fucceffors. Their pofterity, or the people
whom we may ſuppoſe to be their moft un-
mixed pofterity, ſpoke a language which either
was real Celtic, or more free from adulterati-
ons than that of the Belgic Britons.
At the time of the firft invaſion of Britain
by the Romans, under Caius Julius Cæfar, fif-
ty-four years before the birth of Chrift, the
Belgic Britons had great connections with the
continent, which fometimes furniſhed them
with princes; but no mode of fucceffion feems
then to have been eftablished. Though, during
the time of peace, they were divided into fe-
parate principalities, yet, in time of war, they
formed one political confederacy. At the head
VOL. I.
C
of
Govern-
Belgic Bri-
ment of the
tons,
}
INTRODUCTION.
of this they placed that prince among them,
who was moſt eminent for power, abilities, and
courage; and this diftinguiſhed lot fell, at the
time of Cæfar's fecond invaſion, upon Caf-
fibelan.
How far the inhabitants of Scotland were
concerned in this confederacy, does not, to me,
appear. It is certain, from the words of Cæfar,
that it was very extenfive, becauſe we per-
ceive the Britons excufing themfelves from
fending to Cæfar all the hoftages he demanded,
on account of the diſtance from whence they
were to be brought. I am inclined to believe
that common danger made a common caufe;
and that the Caledonians, who were the then
inhabitants of Scotland, fent their quota of
troops to ferve against the Romans. Notwith-
ftanding this, there is great reafon for fuppof-
ing the manners, the language, the arms, and
even the conftitutions of the Caledonians to
have been very different from thofe of the
Belgic, or Southern Britons. It feems from the
words of Tacitus to be unquestionable, that
thofe Caledonians, or by whatever name the
inhabitants of Scotland were then known,
were not of the fame original with the
Belgic, or Southern Britons; and, notwith-
ftanding all the
all the conjectures of modern
writers, I can fee no reafon for not believ-
ing them to have been the anceſtors of the
bulk
INTRODUCTION.
tions in
Caledonia;
bulk of the Highlanders of Scotland at this
day, and as fuch I will confider them. It is
true, the Caledonians themfelves might have
particular diftinctions of people among them,
arifing either from their fepts or families; and
nothing is more probable than that, as the Scy- Four na-
thians were part of the Celts, there might be
a particular fept among them, under the de-
nomination of Scyt, from whence the Belgic
Britons might form the word Skuit, and the
Roman writers Scoti. As to the Picts, their
denomination appears to have been entirely ac-
cidental, from their continuing (after they were
driven northward by the Romans) to paint
their bodies in the fame manner as they had
done among their countrymen, the Belgic
Britons.
Thus, it is mof reaſonable to believe, Caledo-
nia, or Scotland properly fo called, was compof-
ed of four different people. Firft, the Caledoni-
ans, who were the original inhabitants of the
country. Secondly, the Guydhelians, who
were the old inhabitants of the fouthern parts
of Britain, but were forced northwards by the
Belgic invafions, and were of the fame ori-
ginal with the Caledonians, whofe name is lo-
cal. Thirdly, the Kin-fkuit, or the Scots, who
were no other than foreign Celts, who came
from the northern parts of the European Scy-
thia, or, as Tacitus calls it, the Great Ger-
many,
Ca
INTRODUCTION.
many, and who were known by the name of
Scots upon the continent, as well as in the
Britannic ifles. Fourthly, the Picts, who were
the unfubdued part of the Belgic Britons, and
very different from the other three. Though
it is impoffible to fpeak with certainty of all
thofe people, at this diftance of time, yet I
think it is highly probable that the barbarous
cuſtom of painting their bodies was confined to
the Picts, or the Belgic Britons alone, tho', within
a century or two, the Caledonians did the fame;
and by this means the very name of Caledo-
nians was funk into that of Picts, as the name of
Guydhelians had been before funk into that of
Caledonians.
As to the Scots, it is in vain to feek for
any æra of their fettlement in Britain. Per-
haps, being better acquainted with the Ro-
man difcipline upon the continent, they ac-
quired fufficient power to make a fettle-
ment in Britain; and, by being fed with
continual fupplies from the continent, their
name at laſt ſwallowed up thofe of the other
three nations. As they are always mentioned
ſeparately from the Picts, there is reafon to be-
lieve thoſe two people to have differed from
one another in their manners, their drefs, and
in moſt other refpects, excepting that of lan-
guage, in which, as we have already obferved,
there was a ftrong affinity among all nations
of
INTRODUCTION.
of Celtic original, as the Scots undoubtedly
were.
Some learned men have, I know, been fond
of fuppofing Ireland to have been the native
country of the Scots; and this has been fo con-
fidently affirmed by the Iriſh who were vain
of their own country, and by fome English
writers who hated the Scots, that the latter
have acquiefced in that opinion, however defti-
tute of authority, or common fenfe, to fup-
port it. Ireland, undoubtedly, was peopled at
the time of Cefar's two invafions; but we have
no authority, from any writer of that time,
which directs us to the country from whence
thofe inhabitants came. Strabo, who wrote
under Auguftus and Tiberius Cæfar, and Pom-
ponius Mela, who wrote a few years after,
ſpeak of them as a people entirely wild and
barbarous; and it is highly abfurd to believe
thoſe writers who inform us, that the Scots, or
the old inhabitants of Ireland, came, many cen-
turies before the Incarnation, under the conduct
of Milefius, from Spain to Ireland, where they
lived under regulated government, and flou-
riſhed in learning, arts, and ſciences.
Which was
not peopled
from Ire-
land,
The truth is, navigation, in the times before
the fecond Punic war, was fo rude, that even the
moft polifhed nations would have found it dif-
ficult
گر
INTRODUCTION.
ficult to have performed a voyage from Spain
directly to Ireland. It is therefore, when we
confider the fimilarity of language between
the Irish and the old Scots, more reaſonable to
believe that Ireland was firſt peopled from Bri-
tain; but from what part of it is another con-
fideration. St. David's Head in South Wales,
and Holy-Head in North Wales, are the two
places in South Britain the nigheſt to Ireland;
but Ireland is very feldom difcernible from
either: whereas there is fome degree of proba,
bility in fuppofing Ireland to have been peo-
pled from Galloway, or from Cantyre, in Scot-
land, from both which places a fmall boat has
a clear fight of land all the way.
Though all this amounts to no more than a
ftrong prefumption, yet it is a prefumption
that infinitely outweighs thofe miferable au-
thorities brought by the Iriſh in fupport
of their chimerical antiquities; which
evidently appear to be void of all foun-
dation. Add to this, that the country of
Ireland lying neareſt to Scotland, is much
more rich and inviting than the oppofite
ſhore of Scotland. But whatever may be in
this, all authorities agree that Caledonia was
the name of the northern parts of Britain; that
it was inhabited by a brave and independent.
people; and that Liberty took there her laft re-
fuge,
INTRODUCTION.
fuge, from which not all the ambition and
power of Rome could entirely diflodge her.
It is foreign to my prefent undertaking to
be particular with regard to Cæfar's two firſt
expeditions; it is neceffary, however, to take
a general view of that hiftory.
After the invafion of Britain by the Belgic
Gauls, a frequent intercourfe was kept up be-
tween them and the continent; by which means
Julius Cæfar came to the knowledge of many
particulars which facilitated his defcent upon
Britain. It is certain, however, that he was
greatly deceived, and that he little expected
to meet with a warm reception from the
Britons. He imagined either to find, or to
render them, a difunited people; and that
his glorious conquefts of thofe countries, from
which they or their anceſtors came, would
ftrike them with terror. It is likewife certain,
from feveral paffages of Cicero, and other au-
thors, that he expected to find great treaſures
in Britain. But though he was difappointed in
his expectation, it is well known that the Bri-
tons had at that time, and long before, a trade
with the continent; and were poffeffed of mo-
ney or bullion, though, perhaps, they nei-
ther coined, nor palled it current in pay-
ments.
Julius
Deſcent of
Cæfar uport
Britain.
The
INTRODUCTION.
i
The first defcent of Cæfar upon Britain, is
with great reafon fixed to the twenty-fixth of
Auguſt, fifty-four years before the birth of
Chrift. The Britons bravely oppofed his land-
ing, and harraffed his army in fuch a manner
that he gladly accepted a fhew of fubmiffion,
to excufe his return to Gaul. In proportion
as the feveral ſtates of Britain had a connexion
with the continent, we may fuppofe them to
have been more or lefs in the intereſt of Cæfar;
but we have no room to believe that the hof-
tages and the fubmiffions which he receiv-
ed from the Britons, were the acts of the
whole ifland; on the contrary, they feem to
have been confined to a few ftates in South
Britain. This was far from compenfating Cæ-
far for the great lofs of ſhipping, if not of re-
putation, he fuffered, through the accidents of
weather, and from the refiftance of the Bri-
tons. From his own account, the latter kept
his legions in hourly alarms, till the feafon of
the year, and his own intereft at Rome, obliged
him to return to the continent and it is
doubtful, from his relation, whether he gain-
ed any thing by his expedition, but the
homage of a few ſtates of the Belgic Bri-
tons, who, perhaps, already depended upon
him or his friends on the continent. This is
the more probable, as Cæfar carried over with
him from Gaul to Britain one Comius, a crea-
ture of his own power, who had great intereſt
:
with
INTRODUCTION.
with the Belgic Britons, and was employed by
Cæfar in perfuading them into a ſubmiſſion:
but the Britons had too great a fenfe of liberty
to be thus deluded. So far from complying
with the ambition of Cæfar, no more than two
of their cities fent him the hoftages he had de-
manded, though he ordered them to furnish
double the number of what had been firft agreed
on.
But Cæfar's great credit in Rome at this
time obtained him from the fenate a thankf-
giving of twenty days, as if his vifiting Bri-
tain had been equal to victory.
While he was abfent, the Britons, foreſeeing
that he would make another attempt upon their
iſland, chofe Caflibelan to be the head of their
confederacy, preferably to Imanuentius, who
was killed in the difpute, and whofe fon took
refuge at Rome. So great an acceffion of in-
tereft among the Britons haftened Cæfar's pre-
parations for a fecond expedition against them.
He thought this a matter of fuch importance
to his glory, which, at Rome, was the fame
thing as intereft, that, to facilitate his defcent,
he altered the form of his fhips, on board of
which he put no fewer than five legions, be-
fides horfe; and thus he landed with fafety
and eaſe. The Britons, under Caflibelan, had
taken all imaginable precautions to harrafs his
VOL. I.
D
army.
INTRODUCTION.
army. They were encamped fo as not to be
attacked without great difadvantage on the
part of Cæfar; and the ftorm, which damaged
feveral of his fhips, would have made any
general but Cæfar defpair of fuccefs. He
acted, however, with that ſpirit and reſolution
which is fo peculiar to his character. He re-
paired and fortified his fleet; and refolving not
to be braved by the Britons, he drove them
from their advantageous camp into woods
and faſtneſſes, where their refiftance was fo
long and obftinate, that Cæfar, from his own
account of the expedition, feems to have been
defeated. He was in a great meaſure obliged to
the difunion among his enemies for the prefer-
vation of his glory, at this juncture. Caffibe-
lan had a powerful faction to oppofe him, which
was fo well fupported by the friends of Rome,
that in a few days that great man was deferted
by all the princes of the confederacy, and
obliged to defend his own dominions, which
were attacked by the Romans; but not fo to-
tally ruined as to prevent Cæfar from giving
concluded. him a fafe and honourable peace, and with-
drawing all his troops from the island.
A peace
We have no pofitive authority to affirm, that
the Caledonians, who are the principal objects
of this hiftory, had any fhare in this glorious
refiftance to the fortune of Cæfar and of Rome.
As their forefathers had been ſeparated from
the
INTRODUCTION.
the reſt of the world, it is probable that their
firft invaders found them as defencelefs, and as
ignorant in the arts of war, as the Spaniards
did the Americans; but we cannot well fuppofe
this ignorance to have ſubſiſted long after the
Scots and the Picts were incorporated with
them and the Guydhelians. It is reafonable
to think that the Scots, many of whom at this
time came from the continent to Ireland, as
well as to Caledonia, were acquainted with the
manner of fighting on the continent; and the
Picts certainly had the fame difcipline with the
Belgic Britons,
The reader is to obferve, that I am now
ſpeaking of times about or after the Incarnation,
when navigation was greatly improved, and
when it is no abfurdity to believe, that the
Scots might fall upon means to tranfport
themſelves from the continent to any of
the Britannic ifles. When I faid, that Ire-
land was moft probably peopled from Britain,
it is not to be underſtood that all the Scots who
fettled in Ireland went from Britain; it is poſ-
fible fome of them might come from Spain,
and other parts of the continent. But I am of
opinion that theſe were but a handful; that
they fettled in Ireland after the Incarnation;
and that they were enabled to make good their
footing there by the affiftance of their coun-
trymen, the Caledonian Scots.
D 2
We
INTRODUCTION.
Britain in-
dependent.
f
We now approach to a period that brings us
into the main thread of this hiftory. It is cer-
tain, that when Cæfar retired from Britain he
left no commander there, either civil or mili-
tary; and Britain was, at this time, confidered
as being fo independent, that neither the Ro-
man fenate, nor any of the powerful compe-
titors for empire after the death of Cæfar,
looked upon her as a Roman acquifition. She
paid no tribute; fhe furniſhed no quota, either
in men or money; and all the marks of fupe-
riority that Rome had over her, were a few
prifoners whom Cæfar had carried off, who
were fhewn about as curiofities, for the large-
nefs of their limbs, and the ftrength of their
bodies. Horace and Propertius, two poets in
the court of Auguftus, fpeak of Britain as be-
ing unfubdued by the Roman army; and Cæ-
far's army is mentioned in Lucan (who, it is
true, was no favourer of his caufe, though an ad-
mirer of his abilities) as having been beaten by
the Britons. Notwithſtanding all this, it is
certain, that after Cæfar's two defcents upon
Britain, their connections with the continent
were much greater than they had been before.
The Gauls, or their neighbours, looked upon
the Belgic Britons as their countrymen; and
the diſputes among the Britons themſelves, oc-
cafioned a large party to be formed in favour of
the court of Rome. At the head of this was
Mandu-
INTRODUCTION.
tory.
Mandubratius, the fon of Imanuentius, the ri-
val of the great Caffibelan.
This prince put
himſelf under the protection of the Romans,
and his father had reigned over the Trinovantes
(the people who inhabited Middlefex, and fome
of the adjacent counties) who probably con-
fidered him as their lawful fovereign. Upon
his death, he was fucceeded by Cynobelin,
who feems to have been entirely romanifed,
and to have been in peaceable poffeffion of his
paternal dominions in Britain. Notwithſtand- British hif-
ing this great advantage in favour of Rome,
even Auguftus Cæfar, then in full poffef
fion of the Roman empire, did not venture
to enforce the payment of the tribute which
had been claimed by his uncle the dictator.
He thought, indeed, that nothing but the
conqueft of Britain was wanting to complete
his glory; and he fet out three times at the head
of large armies for that purpoſe, and as often
dropt his defign. It is true, he pretended that
the fituation of his affairs on the continent did
not fuffer him to purfue it; but whoever con-
fiders the character of Auguftus, can never
imagine that any thing, but the improbability
of fuccefs, would have deterred him from at-
tempting a comqueft which he fo ardently de-
fired.
This conjecture is confirmed by the fenti-
ments he entertained of this expedition towards
the
INTRODUCTIO N.
the latter end of his reign, when he aban-
doned his defign of invading Britain, as a
meaſure inconfiftent with true policy. His
fucceffor Tiberius was of the fame opinion;
and the frantic Caligula, tho' his utmoſt am-
bition was to have fubdued Britain, did not at-
tempt it, Claudius Cæfar, fucceffor in the
empire to Caligula, found the ftate of Britain
very different from what it had been in the
days of his predeceffors. A great intercourfe
had been opened between Rome and Britain :
the more foutherly Britons had imported
into their country many of the Roman lux-
uries; and the Romans, without regarding
them as a people over whom they had any
claim of ſubjection, treated them as independ-
ent, and not only traded with, but viſited
them; infomuch that Strabo tells us the Britiſh
princes offered votive and other preſents in
the Capitol of Rome, and the Romans began to
grow familiar with the inland parts of Britain.
Thus much I have thought proper to premife,
in general, by way of introduction to the hif
tory of Scotland, without troubling the reader
with the hiftory of Gathelus, Scota, the
daughter of Pharaoh, and the fatal marble
ftone which ferved Jacob as a pillar. It is
next to certain, that the original framers of
the fable of Gathelus, fenfible that the Guyd-
helians, or Guithelians, were the old inhabit-
ants
1
INTRODUCTION.
ants of Britain, forged the name Gathelus, as
they did that of Scota, and manufactured their
high antiquities upon that plan.
I now proceed to the body of this hiſtory,
where I fhall infert, for reaſons the reader will
find, in his progrefs, an account of the firſt
forty-four kings, which later critics have con-
fidered as imaginary.
A GE-
!
T
B
A
GENERAL HISTORY
O F
SCOTLAND.
F
BOOK THE FIRST.
firſt.
ERGUS, commonly called the firft king Fergus the
of Scotland, faid to have reigned three
hundred and thirty years before the In-
carnation, is reported to have been by birth an
Irishman; and we are told, that the inha-
bitants of Ireland were then called Scots. Be
this as it may, the authors of thoſe accounts fay,
that the Caledonian-Scots fent for Fergus, the
fon of Ferchard, from Ireland, to affiſt them;
and accordingly Fergus landed on the iſlands of
Ebudæ, where he confederated with the Cale-
donian-Scots, whofe language and manners he
found to be the fame with thoſe of his own
countrymen. The Britons were a people,
diftinct from the Picts, who were called
Scythians, and the ancient Caledonians, as well
as the Irish-Scots; all whom they looked upon
VOL. I.
E
as
॥
26.
HISTORY
THE
Ferithar.
as being no better than intruders. Coilus was
then king of the Britons, and Fergus was placed
at the head of the other three nations to op-
poſe him. A battle was fought on the banks
of the Down, in which, Coilus was defeated
and killed; and from him the province called
Kyle receives its name. This victory gave Fer-
gus the fovereignty of the Scots and Picts; but
being recalled to Ireland, he was drowned in
his return, at a place ftill called after him Knock,
or Carrickfergus.
C
Though Fergus the firft left behind him
two fons, Ferleg and Mainus, yet both being
minors, his brother Ferithar was raiſed to
the crown. It must be acknowledged, that all
the Northern nations in early ages had a ſtrong
attachment to the collateral fucceffion by bro-
thers inſtead of fons. The Scots, however, to
fupport the hereditary right of deſcent, tell us,
that their anceſtors made a law ordaining, that
whilft the children of their kings were infants,
one of their kindred, who was judged moft
accompliſhed for the government, fhould fway
the fcepter in their behalf; and if he died,
then the fucceflion of the kingdom fhould
defcend to the former king's fons.' Ferleg,
impatient to fee his uncle mount the throne
of Fergus, and govern his fubjects with glory*
and moderation, demanded his crown. Fe-
rithar referred the difpute to an affembly of
the ftates, who confirmed him on the throne;
C
and
OF SCOTLAND.
27
and it was owing to the lenity of his uncle,
that they did not condemn Ferleg for fedi-
tion. He was, indeed, imprifoned, but find-
ing means to eſcape, he folicited, firſt, the
Picts, and then the Britons, for affiftance; but
failed with both. In the mean time, Ferithar
being ſtabbed in his bed, the blame was thrown
on Ferleg; upon which he was fet afide from
the fucceffion, and died in obfcurity.
Ferithar was fucceeded by his nephew Mainus, Mainus.
who is faid to have been a pious prince, and
to have reigned twenty-nine years. His fon
Dornadil was the Scotch Nimrod, and inſtituted Dornadil.
the laws of hunting among their Highlanders.
Fordun particularizes other princes befides
thoſe mentioned, who fucceeded Fergus, the
fon of Ferchard. He informs us, that Reuther Reuther.
or Rether was the fon of Dornadil, but being
a minor, that his uncle Nothat was acknow- Nothat.
ledged king; and that he was killed in a battle
with his nephew, who was immediately crown-
ed. The friends of Nothat raiſed a rebellion,
and were headed by one Ferchard, chieftain of
Kintyre and Lorn, who was routed by. Doval,
the leader of the Brigantes, or the Galloway-
men; upon which young Reuther married the
daughter of Getus, king of the Picts. A bloody
war enfued, the two chieftains were killed,
the young king was taken priſoner, and the
Picts were driven by the Britons to the Ork-
ney-iſlands. The latter then fell upon the
Scots,
E 2
28
HISTORY·
THE
Reutha.
Thereus,
Scots, and their king Oenus defeated Reuther,
whom he befieged in the caſtle of Berigone,
where he was fo ftraitly befet, that he was forced
to make his eſcape to Ireland; but all his faith-
ful followers were put to the fword. Being in-
vited over ſome years after, by a new genera-
tion of Scots and Picts, he put himſelf at their
head, and was joined by Getus, king of the
latter. In conjunction, they fought Syfil, king
of the Britons; but neither party had reaſon to
boaſt of the victory. Both, however, were fo
heartily tired of the war, that a peace was con-
cluded; and Reuther fettled in that part of
Scotland which is called from him Retherdale
or Reddefdale, We are told by Fordun, that
fome writers pretend he was killed in an action
with the Britons, in that province or diftrict.
Others fay, that he reigned twenty-fix years,
and died in peace in the year 187 before the
Incarnation, leaving behind him two fons, The-
reus and Jofina.
Thereus being a minor, the affairs of govern-
ment were adminiſtered by his coufin Reutha,
who is repreſented as an excellent prince, and
to have brought the Scots acquainted with
commerce and the arts. Thereus growing up,
Reutha refigned to him the fcepter; but he
proved a tyrant, and his fubjects rifing in arms
againſt him, he was forced to take refuge among
the Britons; while one Conan acted as a kind
of a temporary viceroy, with great applaufe.
Hear-
OF SCOTL A N D.
29
Hearing that Thereus was dead, he refigned the
government to his brother Joſina, who is faid to Jolina.
have been an excellent botanift, and a patron of
phyficians. He died after a reign of twenty-
four years, and was fucceeded by his fon Finnan, Finnan.
who proved a worthy prince, and made a de-
cree, "That kings fhould determine or com-
mand nothing of great concern or importance
without the authority of their great council."
He reigned thirty years, and was fucceeded by
his profligate fon Durftus; who, finding that Durus.
his noblemen intended to dethrone him for his
lewdneſs and wickednefs, pretended to be a fin-
cere convert to virtue; but having prevailed
with the heads of the confpiracy to put them-
felves into his hands, he murdered them all.
The furviving part of his fubjects took arms,
defeated, and killed him in battle; upon which
the infurgents proclaimed his coufin - german
Even, or Eiven, king of Scotland. In his time Even.
the Scots and Picts joined againſt the Britons,
and this brought on a war which difpofed all
parties to peace. Even is praiſed as a ſtrict
jufticiary, and an excellent fuperintendant of
the education of youth. After reigning nine-
teen years he left a natural fon called Gillus; Gillus.
but Dothan and Dougal, the twin fons of
Durftus, claimed the throne. Both of them
were murdered by Gillus, as were two of Do-
than's fons, and the third, Eder, was faved by
his nurfe. The murder of the royal family be-
ing
30
HISTORY
(7)
THE
cond.
ing known, the Scots and Picts united under
Cadval, the chieftain of the Brigantes, to re-
venge their death; upon which the tyrant fled
to Ireland. He was purfued, defeated, and
killed by Cadva. In the mean time, young
Even the fer Eder being a minor, Even or Eiven the fe-
cond, as being the first prince of the blood,
and nephew to Finnan, was choſen king, or
rather adminiftrator of the realm.
newed the league with Getus, king of the
Picts, and entirely fubdued Belus, king of the
Orkneys, who made a deſcent upon Scotland.
He is faid to have built Innerlochy and Inner-
nefs.
Eder.
He re-
Having quelled all domeftic commotions and
foreign enemies, Even, according to fome wri-
ters, refigned the throne to Eder; but Bu-
chanan fpeaks as if he died in poffeffion of it.
The tranquillity which Even the fecond had
reftored to Scotland, was interrupted by an
ifland chieftain, one Bredius, who was utterly
defeated by Eder. This reign is chiefly confpi-
cuous by falling in with Cæfar's defcent upon
Britain, which we have already mentioned.
Eder, if we are to believe fome writers, fent
his quota of troops to the affiftance of the
Southern Britons. Whatever may be in this,
it is by no means abfurd to fuppofe, that the
Caledonians, or by whatever name the inhabi-
tants of Scotland then went, affifted Caffibelan,
and the other Britiſh princes, againſt the Ro-
mans;
1
OF SCOTLAN D.
SI
mans; which may be prefumed from the Bri-
tons alledging to Cæfar, that they could not
make peace without taking the fentiments of
certain princes and people who lay at a vaft
diſtance. Even lived to a great age, and died
in the forty-eighth year of his reign.
The method in which Boece and Buchanan
have digeſted this period of their hiftory, affords
a ftrong prefumption that great part of it was
the work of invention. We find few of the
princes, who filled the Scotch throne by mere
hereditary deſcent, deferving of that honour,
unleſs they are trained up under princes who
inherit by election, founded on proximity of
blood. The name of the ſon of Eder, who im-
mediately fucceeds him, is called Even or Ei- Even the
ven the third, who is reprefented as a monfter
of nature. Not contented with having a hun-
dred noble concubines of his own, he made a law
that a man might marry as many wives as he
could maintain; that the king fhould have the
firſt night with every noble bride, and the no-
bles the like with the daughters of their tenants.
Theſe are ſhocking inftitutions. It is to be
hoped, for the honour of human nature, that
they are mifrepreſented. It is to be feared,
however, that they have fome colour from the
barbarous times of the feudal law, and that
the mercheta mulierum, by which is meant, the
mark or fum paid to fuperiors to exempt ladies
from proftitution, was in confequence of a fpe-
cies
third.
32
HISTORY
THE
cies of wardſhip which was not unknown to
other nations befides the Scots. It is, how-
ever, certain, that luft and luxury introduced
cruelty and rapacioufnefs, which ended in re-
bellion; and Even being dethroned, was con-
demned to perpetual impriſonment, where he
was murdered in the feventh year of his reign.
Even the third was fucceeded by Metellan,
who reigned when our Saviour was born, prov-
ed an excellent prince, and died in the thirty-
ninth year of his reign. Leaving no heirs of
his own body, the Scotch hiftorians have given
Caractacus. him for his fucceffor the famous Caractacus, who
Metellan.
Corbred.
was carried priſoner to Rome, where he made
the famous fpeech tranfmitted by Tacitus.
He reigned twenty years, and was fucceeded
by his brother Corbred, who fubdued the tur-
bulent iſlanders and robbers, and was the au-
thor of many ufeful inftitutions to his country.
We are told that he preferved an inviolable
friendſhip towards the Romans, till Didius, their
general, at the defire of queen Cartifmandua,
who had impriſoned her huſband, and raiſed
her flave Vellocad to her bed, invaded his do-
minions; upon which he took arms, fet Ve-
nutius at liberty, and carried on war againſt the
Romans with no inconfiderable fuccefs. His fif-
ter is faid have been the famous Boadicea, fo
renowned in the Britiſh hiſtory. After her de-
feat and death, Corbred retired to his own do-
minions, where he died in peace in the eigh-
A
teenth
OF SCOTLAND.
33
•
teenth year of his reign, leaving behind him
three fons, Corbred, Tulcan, and Brek, all
minors. Scotch writers pretend, that his death
happened in the year of our Lord feventy-one.
Dardan, who was nephew to Metellan, and
conſequently of the royal blood, was choſen to
fucceed him; but fome fay, that he was only
appointed guardian to prince Corbred till he
ſhould be of age, and this Corbred is fuppofed
to have been the famous Galgacus who fought
Agricola. His hiftory is undoubtedly, at this
period, connected with that of Scotland, and as
fuch we ſhall purſue it, after a flight review of
what relates to Scotland in the Roman Hiftory,
before Agricola invaded it.
Eutropius and Orofius inform us, that the
emperor Claudius not only fubdued a great
number of Britiſh princes, but difcovered the
Orcades or Orkney-Iflands; and an ancient in-
fcription † taken from the palace of Barberini
ſpeaks of his having been the original difco-
verer of feveral barbarous nations. Tacitus,
on the other hand, exprefsly fays, that the Or-
* Jam primum (fays he) Romana claffis circumventa infulam
effe Britanniam affirmavit, ac fimul incognitas ad id tempus in-
fulas, quas Orcadas vocant, invenit domuitque. Vit. Agric. C. 10.
† TI. CLAVDIO CÆS.
VOL. I.
AVGVSTO
PONTIFICI. MAX. TR. P. IX.
COSV. IMP. XVI. P. P.
SENATVS. POPVL. Q. R. QVOD.
REGES BRITANNIÆ ABSQ.
VLLA JACTVRA DOMVERIT.
GENTESQVE. BARBARAS.
PRIMVS. INDICIO. SVBEGERIT.
F
cades
Dardana
Corbred,
called Gal
gacus,
34
THE HISTORY
Hiftory of
Agricola.
cades never were diſcovered till the time of
Agricola. There is fome reaſon to believe the
teftimony of the two firft mentioned authors
are corroborated by the infcription; and that
the diſcoveries made by Claudius were ſo infig-
nificant that they had been abandoned, and
even the memory of them loft in Agricola's
time. We may likewife fairly prefume, that
the ſtate of Scotland, or rather the northernt
parts of the iſland, was very different in the
time of Claudius from what Agricola found
it. The intermediate wars had undoubtedly
driven great numbers of the Southern Britons
northward, to avoid the Roman yoke; ſo that
Scotland might have been an important object
for Agricola, though not for Claudius. The
hiſtory of thoſe wars is foreign to this place;
but we are to obferve, that at the time we now
treat of, the ninth legion was probably ſtation-
ed in Scotland; and that it was afterwards in-
corporated into the fixth. We have no reaſon,
excepting the doubtful Scotch authorities, to
believe, that from the time Claudius left Bri-
tain, where he ſtaid but fix months, to the in-
vafion of Agricola, any of the Roman generals
carried their arms into Scotland; nor can we
rank either the Brigantes or the Ordovices
among the inhabitants of that country.
Agricola, according to the noble hiftorian
Tacitus, was one of the moſt accompliſhed po-
liticians, as well as generals, that Rome had
!
ever
OF SCOTLAND.
35
ever ſeen, and in his own perſon the pattern of
temperance, moderation, and military virtue.
But Agricola at the fame time was a Roman;
that is, he ftudied the aggrandizement of his
country at the expence of juftice and huma-
nity. After introducing into Britain the Ro-
man arts, that he might foften the natives into
ſubjection, he relieved them from many oppref-
fions impofed upon them by his predeceffors,
merely with the infidious view of keeping them
quiet, and reconciling them to the Roman fway,
till he had totally reduced the island. Neither
Tacitus, who was his profeft panegyrift, nor
any of the old Roman hiftorians, inform us of
any provocation that Agricola had to induce
him to conquer Caledonia, but the unjuftifiable
glory of the conqueft. His capital maxim was
to bridle the Britons with forts; and in this he
faid to have been fo fuccefeful, that none of
them were ever taken, betrayed, or given up.
Having fecured all to the fouth, in the third
year of his command we find that he pene-
trated as far as the river Tay; but we know no
particulars of his progreſs. In his fourth year,
he built a line of forts between the Clyde and
the Forth, to exclude the Caledonians from the
fouthern parts; and thereby, in fome ſenſe, he
fhut them up in another ifland. This manner
of proceeding reflects honour upon the Cale-
donians, fince fo great a general as Agricola,
with all the fouthern parts of Britain at his
F 2
com-
36
THE HISTORY
command, and at the head of a powerful Ro-
man army, had recourfe to fuch expedients
againſt their incurfions.
There is reafon for believing, that in the
fifth year of Agricola's command, he took ſhip-
ping, and fubdued thoſe parts of Modern Scot-
land which lay to the ſouth and the weft of his
forts, and which now contain the counties of
Galloway, Cantire, and Argyle, then inhabited
by a people called Cangi. Some modern wri-
ters have been of opinion, that the Cangi inha-
bited Chefhire and the north part of Wales;
but that is very improbable, becauſe thoſe parts
were well known to the Romans; and Tacitus
exprefsly tells us, that the people Agricola then
conquered had never been difcovered before.
Add to this, that the Scotch counties we have
mentioned are equally (if not more) commo-
dious as Wales is for an invaſion of Ireland,
which Agricola then intended, and for which
purpoſe he left a body of his troops there.
Next year, his fleet failed to the north of Bodo-
tria, or the Frith of Forth, while he paffed it at
the head of his land army. It is to the glory of
the Caledonians, that the tremendous appear-
ance of a Roman fleet on their coafts, and of
Roman army in their territories, was fo far
from daunting, that it united them. Agricola,
from what he had experienced in the fouthern
parts, had depended greatly on the dif-union
of the Caledonians for fuccefs. Being difap-
pointed
OF
37
SCOTLAN D.
pointed in his expectation, he proceeded with
the utmoft caution. He ordered his mariners to
keep as near as poffible to the coaft; fo that fome-
times they landed and mingled with the land
troops. As ufual, he guarded all his acquifitions
by forts, and was particularly careful in founding
the fea-coafts. It appears plainly, from the no-
ble hiftorian's narrative, that his fituation re-
quired all thofe precautions.
The Roman hiftorian renders it more than
probable that Colbred, whom the Scotch hifto-
rians call Galdus, but whom we fhall (after
Tacitus) call Galgacus, had ferved his appren-
ticeſhip to war in South Britain againſt the Ro-
mans; but we are not to adopt the narratives
of Boece, Buchanan, and other Scotch hifto-
rians, as to the particulars; though it muſt be
acknowledged that he was a brave and ex-
perienced general, and feems to have been
well acquainted with the military difcipline of
the Romans. He accordingly made difpofitions
for attacking Agricola's forts between the
Clyde and the Forth. Agricola and the Ro-
mans had intelligence of his plan. Some of
his officers adviſed him to re-crofs the Forth;
but he, knowing that fuch a retreat would at
once difcourage his own foldiers, and give freſh
fpirits to the Caledonians and Britons, divided
his army into three parts; each divifion having
a communication with another. Upon this,
Galgacus, whofe original intention was to have
cut
38
HISTORY
THE
The Cale-
donians de-
feated.
cut off the communication of the Romans with
the fea, and their retreat to the fouthwards,
changed the plan of his operations, refolving
to attack the weakest of the three divifions,
which confifted of the ninth legion, and which
was then, very probably, lying at Lohore, two
miles from Loughleven, in Fife. The charge
of the Caledonians, who had united their forces
on the occafion, was in the night-time, and fo
furious, that Agricola, hearing of it by means
of the communications he had eſtabliſhed, dif-
patched his light troops to attack his enemies
in the rear, who were now making great
flaughter in the very heart of the Roman camp,
while he himſelf advanced with the legionary
forces to fupport them. The fhouts of the
light troops at once announced their arrival,
and difcouraged the Caledonians. The lat-
ter, unable to contend with the Roman diſci-
pline, ftrengthened by numbers, retired to
marshes and faſtneffes, to which their enemies
could not purſue them.
The hiftorian has magnified this eſcape
of the ninth legion into a victory of the Ro-
mans; but, by other teftimonies, the Britons,
part of whom were the Caledonians, were no
great fufferers; for, inftead of being difmayed,
they now thought that the Romans were not
invincible, and refolved to truft to their num-
bers and their courage, rather than their bogs
and woods. For this purpoſe, they placed
!
their
OF SCOTL A N D.
39
their wives and children in their moſt ſecure
faftneffes. They ftrengthened their confedera-
cy by folemn and religious rites, and brought
into the field all who were able to bear arms;
being perfuaded that it was accident and
fortune, and not valour and conduct, that ef-
fected the deliverance of the ninth legion. It
is no wonder if the Romans, fituated as they
were, and finding their general refolved not to
turn back, thought it fafer to advance than to
retreat. They demanded to be led to the ex-
tremities of Caledonia; and Agricola, accord-
ingly, next fummer led them to the foot of the
Grampian hills, where the Caledonians refolved
to make their laft ftand. Thofe hills divide
Old Caledonia into two, from eaft to weft.
Part of them run from Athol down to the
fouth fide of the river Dee to the Eaft-fea;
and another branch terminates at the Weftern-
fea from Athol down to Breadalbin. It is, how-
ever, extremely difficult, and would be foreign
to our purpoſe, to trace them more particularly
here. We are now fuppofed to follow Agri-
cola to the eighth year of his expedition; and
that he had reinforced his army by numbers of
the provinciated Britons, whom he difciplin-
ed, and whom he could truſt. He advanced
againſt the Caledonians (his fleet ftill keeping
pace with his army) and found them drawn up
with their firſt rank at the foot of a rifing-
ground, which was covered with their other
troops,
40
OF SCOTLAND.
Speech of
Galgacus.
troops, while the intermediate fpace between
them and the Romans was filled by their
horfes and chariots. Tacitus has given us a
fpeech which he fuppofes Galgacus to have
made on this occafion, and which is the moſt
animated of any we meet with in antiquity.
Though we are far from thinking it genuine,
yet as that great author undoubtedly makes
him ſpeak in the well-known character of a
Britiſh prince of thoſe days, it would be unpar-
donable in us entirely to omit it.
He begins with painting the fituation of his
ſubjects and that of the Romans, and endea-
vours to fire the former with the reflection that
they are ftill un-fubdued; that they are the no-
bleft of all the Britons; and that their fouthern
countrymen placed in them their laft hope and
reſource. He then defcribes the ambition, the
avarice, the pride, cruelty, and haughtineſs of
their enemies. "They are (fays he) the only
people ever known alike to affect wealth and
poverty. They pillage, they murder; under
falfe claims do they pilfer dominion; and
when they create folitude they term it peace."
He then proceeds to recount the various hor-
rors that muſt attend the Caledonians, fhould
they be fubjected to fo deteftable a race; and
fhews, that valour was now the only means of
their glory and fafety. He next reprefents the
Romans as far from being invincible, and the
difadvantages they were under from their army
being
OF SCOTLAN D.
41
being compofed of different nations, and even
Britons. 66 Every allurement of victory (con-
cludes he) is for us; the Romans have no wives
to enflame their courage; they have no parents
to reproach their cowardice: moft of them
have no country, or another country than
Rome. Their numbers are inconfiderable; they
are now trembling through their own igno-
rance, and are cafting their eyes upon ftrange
feas and woods; while the gods feem to have
delivered them over to us, as it were, pent up
and fettered. Let not their vain fhew frighten
you, nor the glittering of their gold and filver,
which are equally ufelefs for defending them-
felves, or attacking others. We fhall find
friends even in the enemy's army. The Bri-
tons will efpoufe their own caufe; the Gauls
will reflect upon their departed liberties; and
the other Germans will, as the Ufipians lately
did, abandon them. There is then an end of all
our fears. Their forts are empty, their colo-
nies compofed of old men, their lands and cor-
porations at variance, being divided betwixt
thoſe who command with injuftice, and obey
with reluctance. Here you have a general
and an army; there tributes and mines, with
the other penalties of flavery; and upon this
field, you are to determine whether you will
chufe eternal fubmiffion, or immediate revenge;
therefore advance to your ranks, and think
upon your progenitors, and your pofterity."
VOL. I.
G
The
42
THE HISTORY
and that of
Agricola.
The ſpeech of Agricola was that of a Roman
general intent upon conqueft alone. He encou-
raged his foldiers by pointing towards the ene-
my whom they had ſo often vanquished, and
reminding them, that, by beating them again,
all their toils and marches would be crowned
with conqueſt and glory. This ſpeech had all
the effect he could defire. He then drew up his
army in two lines; the first confifting of his
auxiliary foot, with three thouſand horfe dif-
poſed as wings; the fecond formed by his le-
gionary troops, the flower of his army, who
he pretended ought not to be expofed to the
fwords of.the barbarians without extreme ne-
ceffity. In the beginning of the battle the Bri-
tons had the advantage by the dexterous ma-
nagement of their bucklers; but Agricola or-
dered three Batavian and two Tungrian cohorts,
armed with fhort fwords and emboffed bucklers
which terminated in a point, to charge the Ca-
ledonians, who were armed with long fwords,
that were uſeleſs in a cloſe encounter. This
feems to have been the great fecret of the Ro-
man art of war against all the people whom
they ftiled barbarians. The Caledonians were,
in a manner, defencelefs when their enemies
got within the points of their ſwords, their
little bucklers covering but a very ſmall part of
their bodies. The moft forward of their caval-
ry and charioteers fell back upon their infan-
try, and difordered the center; but the Britons
endea-
OF
SCOTLAND.
43
endeavouring to out-flank their enemies, Agri-
cola oppoſed them with his horfe, and nothing
then remained but confufion and difmay among
the Caledonians, who, after lofing great num-
bers, retreated to the woods, to which the Ro-
mans followed them at firft with fo little pre-
caution, that the fugitives cut off many of the
moft forward; till Agricola forming his troops
a-new, ordered them to proceed more regular-
ly, by which the Britons were diſappointed in
their hopes of attacking, and cutting them off,
in feparate parties. In this battle, which feems
to have been fought near Fortingal-camp,
about
* Mr. Gordon offers very plauſible reaſons to prove, that the
place of the battle was in Strathern, half a mile fouth from the
Kirk of Comerie: for this, as he informs us, is upon or near a part
of the ridge of the Grampian mountains; whereas no Roman
camp has been diſcovered in Athol or Inernes, which looks as
if Agricola had never gone fo far, tho' there is a remarkable en-
campment here. The encampments Ardock and Innerpeffery
are between the Grampian and Ochel mountains, and not large
enough to contain the number of men which were in Galgacus's
army. Tacitus fays, the legionary foldiers were placed before
the vallum; that is, as I fuppofe, the trench of their camp. The
track of ground here, and the encampment and riſing-ground
about it, Mr. Gordon thinks, agrees furprizingly to Tacitus's
deſcription of it: and the moor in which this camp ftands, is,
as he affirms, called to this day Galgachan, or Galdachan Rofs
moor. But Tacitus's expreffions feem to imply, that they were
farther beyond the Tay than the place affigned by Mr. Gordon;
and a very ingenious gentleman informed me of a place called
Fortingal-camp, near which, he inclined to think, the place of
battle might have been. He told me alfo, that he had feen the
camp Gordon mentions; but could not learn the moor which
was called Galgachan Rofs moor. I am much of the opinion
of a very curious gentleman who lives upon the fpot, and is
well ſkilled in the Highland tongue, that the true name is
Dalgin Roís; that is, the dale under Rofs, as he explained it.
G 2
Rofs
44
HISTORY
THE
about fixteen miles from Dunkeld, the Caledo-
nians are faid to have loft ten thousand men;
and the Romans, about three hundred and
forty. It is furprizing, if we admit as true
all that Tacitus fays concerning this defeat,
that it was not more decifive than it proved to
be. Agricola, inftead of putting a period to
his labours, by conquering all Caledonia, was
contented to retire to the country of the Ho-
refti, which I apprehend to have been Fife-
fhire; though it is generally ſuppoſed to have
been Forfarfhire. Here he accepted of hoftages
from part of the Caledonians. He then retreated
fouthwards, by flow marches; and ordered
part of his fleet (for it was neceffary that fome
fhips fhould attend him with provifions) to fail
Rofs is a village near to this vale, and near the Roman encamp-
ment. The country people fometimes pronounce the word
Dalgin not unlike Galgin, which, very probably, has led Gordon
into his opinion concerning this name. Fortingal-camp is about
fixteen miles from Dunkeld. The middle fyllable is, as I under-
ftand it, the ſign of the genitive in the Highland tongue; and
gal fignifies a ftranger: fo that the word imports the fort of
ſtrangers; or, if gal be ſuppoſed the firſt fyllable of Galgacus,
then it is Galgacus's fort. I only farther add, that Gordon, in
his account of his Galgacan camp, takes no notice, I think, of a
ftone that is in the middle of it, a tumulus nigh it, and a mili-
tary way that goes from it: and, in computing its contents,
Omits the legions, as the four alæ, that were kept as a reſerve
for the auxiliaries alone were eight thouſand; and the horſe,
or the wings, were three thouſand. But the legions might
poffibly have been at Ardock, or Innerpeffery, before they march-
ed to the battle. ---See Horfeley's Britannia Romana, p. 44.
;
The lake Orraylor Horra, was known in the time of the
Romans. Many remains of their encampments are feen yet
mear Lochore, or the lake of Horra, in the county of Fife.
round
OF SCOTLAND.
45
:
round Britain, which they did, and found it to
be an ifland; for, at the end of their voyage,
they arrived at Queenborough, in England,
from whence they had fet fail.
It
Upon the whole, there is great reafon to fufpect
that Tacitus has concealed fome part of his
hero's adventures during the campaign; other-
wife his conduct is far from anfwering the
character he gives him. A great commander,
fuch as Galgacus is reprefented to be, could not
be ignorant of the fuperiority the Romans
had over the Caledonians, however brave the
latter might be in their own perfons.
was therefore natural for him to inftruct his
troops to take all advantage of their enemies,
by furprize or otherwife; but as foon as they
found them regularly formed, that they ſhould
retreat, with the greateſt expedition, to their
well-known faftneffes. It is not at all impro-
bable, at the fame time, that he might hope to
check the progreſs of the Romans, to the north
of the Grampians, where the fineft counties of
his dominions lay, by collecting his army into
one body; but it is againſt common fenfe to be-
lieve, that had the defeat been ſo complete, and
fo bloody, as Tacitus has reprefented it, ſo able
a commander and politician as Agricola, would
not have perfevered in his purpofe, and com-
pleted his propofed conqueft. Is it to be ima-
gined, that fuch a leader, at the head of a Ro-
man army, which conſiſted of above twenty
thou-
75
HISTORY
THE
thouſand regulars, and one half of them legion-
ary troops, would have ſpent ſeven campaigns,
without receiving a fingle check, before they
reached the foot of the Grampian mountains ?
or that thirty thoufand, almoft unarmed,
barbarians could, for a fingle hour, retard the
progrefs of fuch a general and fuch an army ?
We may, therefore, venture to ſay, that fome
circumſtances of thofe campaigns have not
been tranfmitted in the narrative given us by
the noble hiftorian.
This is rendered almoſt evident by the fate
of Agricola's forts, which he had conftructed
with fo much labour and judgment; for no
fooner did he return fouthwards, than they were
abandon'd, and the Caledonians demoliſh'd them.
The ſervices of Agricola rendered him eminent
at Rome; but raifing the envy of his maſter Do-
mitian, he was fent out of the world by a dofe
of poifon. Agricola was fucceeded in his go-
vernment of Britain either by Caius Trebellius,
or Saluftius Lucullus, whom the fame tyrant
put to death. In their lieutenancies, the Caledo-
nians made inroads upon the fouthern conquefts
of the Romans in Britain; but we are left in the
dark as to the particulars, for very near thirty-
five years. It is reaſonable, however, to prefume,
from the general accounts that have come to
our hands through the Roman hiſtorians, that
Galgacus refumed his arms the moment he
found Agricola retreating fouthwards. The
fouth-
OF SCOTLAN D.
47
fouthern Britons were not only fubjected to
the Romans, but fond of their chains, becauſe
they ſtill enjoyed fome appearances of their an-
cient government. The demolition, therefore,
of the Roman forts undoubtedly was owing to
Galgacus, or his fucceffor; for we are told,
he penetrated fo far into the provinciated part
of Britain, that he was joined by a few of the
fouthern Britains who had not been entirely
fubdued; that he invited their other country-
men to shake off the Roman yoke; and that he
even made war upon them, becauſe they refuſed
to recover their liberty. All this may be ga-
thered from the dark hints left us by the Ro-
man hiftorians themſelves. Thofe of Scotland
inform us, that Galgacus, after a triumphant
reign, both over the Romans and the enflaved
Britons, died glorioufly in the thirty-fifth year
of his reign, anfwering to the year of Chrift
103. We are here to obferve, that the Britiſh
word gal, or wal, without all doubt, fignifies a
ftranger; and that Galdus (for fo he is called
by Tacitus) is only the Roman manner of wri-
ting the fame word. This affords a ftrong pre-
fumption that Galdus was not, as fome writers
pretend, a Welch, or a Southern Briton, but a
Caledonian; for the former could not have
called their own countryman a ſtranger.
The brave Galgacus, or Galdus, was fucceed- Luctacus.
ed by his fon Lucacus, who, degenerating from
the virtues of his father, was put to death by
his
78
HISTORY
THE
Mogold,
his fubjects, together with the worthlefs minif
ters of his lewdnefs and tyranny. We find the
Caledonians and Picts, at this time, to have
been under feparate governments; for Mogold,
the grandfon of Galgacus by his daughter, hav-
ing fucceeded Luctacus, made a league with the
king of the Picts, who is called Unipane. We
have the authority of the Roman hiſtorians, par-
ticularly Spartian, for faying, that when this
league (if any fuch ever exifted) is fuppofed to
have been formed, the Roman affairs in Britain
were on the brink of ruin, which was prevent-
ed only by the indefatigable cares, and, at laſt,
the perſonal arrival, of the emperor Adrian.
Soon after his acceffion he fent over to Britain
the fixth legion, one of the fineft in his fervice,
which took up its ſtation in the North of Eng-
land; and the fecond legion was quartered
at or near Netherby, in Cumberland, which
was then the northern frontier of the Roman
part of the island: fo that the Caledonians
muſt have re-conquered from the Romans all
that tract of ground which lay between Agri-
cola's chain of forts and Carlifle on the weft,
and Newcastle, or Tinmouth-bar, on the eaſt;
which Adrian, upon his arrival, thought pro-
per to fix as his northern boundary. They,
probably, were affifted in their operations by
the Picts, the Galloway-men, and other inha-
bitants of modern Scotland, who were not Ca-
ledonians. It is certain that their progrefs
L
alarmed
OF SCOTLAN D.
49.
alarmed Adrian ſo much, that no prince was
ever at greater pains to difcipline the army he
brought over with him to Britain. All he could
do was to force them to the northwards of
the frontier I have already defcribed, for which
he affumed upon his coins, the title of Reftitu-
tor Britanniæ, or the Recoverer of Britain.
Arriving at York, he made difpofitions for
purfuing the plan of Agricola; but dropt
it upon the reprefentations of fome of Agri-
cola's old foldiers, concerning the difficulties
attending it. He therefore contented him-
felf with marking out a wall, which is called
the Second Prætenture (Agricola's forts being
the firſt) of Britain, and which ran from the
mouth of the river Tine to the Solway Frith,
about eighty miles, according to Spartian, quite
acroſs the iſland. As the defcription of this
wall belongs more properly to the hiftory
of England than Scotland, we fhall only ob-
ferve here, that it was built of turf, and in-
tended to fhut out the barbarians (for ſo the
Caledonians and other unprovinciated Bri-
tons were called) from the fouthern parts of
the island: a work erected on principles be-
traying an ignorance equal to barbariſm itſelf.
The names of Rome and Adrian have filenced
the cenfures of hiftorians upon thefe infane con-
ftructions of prætentures; but furely, nothing
could be more abfurd than to think that a turf
wall, feventy or eighty miles in length, could
VOL. I.
H
be
50
HISTORY
THE
be manned by their legions, confifting of, at moſt,
eighteen thousand men, which were all the
troops the Romans then had in Britain, fo as to
prevent an enemy from getting over any part
of it; and, indeed, Severus, one of Adrian's
fucceffors, feems to have been of the fame opi-
nion.
Mogold, at firft, proved an excellent prince;
and the Scotch hiftorians tell us, that after
his confederacy with the Picts, he gave the
Romans a fignal defeat, which was the rea-
fon of Adrian's paffing over to Britain. This is
by no means improbable; but we are unable
to account for the fources from which the
Scotch draw their information; as the pretend-
ed hiftories of Veremundus and Cambellus, men-
tioned by Boece, who is followed by Buchanan,
and other writers, are at beft doubtful authorities.
Notwithſtanding this, and tho' we are no ad-
vocates for the line of Scotch kings between
the firft and fecond Fergus, yet no writer can
fafely affert, that the Scots, in early times, might
not have had hiftorical records which have been
loft to their pofterity. That the Southern Bri-
tons were acquainted with the Roman arts and
learning, is paſt doubt; and why might they
not tranfmit to after-ages the tranfactions of
their own times, though their compofitions are
now loft? Neither is it abfurd to ſuppoſe, that
fome of the Southern Britons mingled with their
Northern brethren; and might have their pu-
{
pils,
OF
51
SCOTLAN D.
pils, whom they inftructed in reading and wri-
ting. We are even inclined to think, that the
abfurdity lies in not admitting fuch a fuppofi-
tion, though the records cannot now be pro-
duced. But to return to our history.
Upon the departure of Adrian out of Britain,
he left Julius Severus his proprætor in the iſland;
but according to others, Prifcus Licinius. Tho'
Severus was one of the greateſt captains of his
age, yet we do not find that either he, or Priſ-
cus Licinius, carried their arms to the north of
Adrian's prætenture. Mogold, therefore, lived
in fuch fecurity that he degenerated into a ty-
rant; and, to fupply his pleaſures, made a
law, "That the eftates of fuch as were condemn-
ed fhould be forfeited to his exchequer, no part
thereof being allotted to their wives or children."
Buchanan is fevere upon this tyrannical law, as
he calls it; but the fubftance of it is in force
in Great Britain, and the beft regulated govern-
ments in Europe, to this day. It was, however,
fo difpleafing to his noblemen, that they con-
ſpired together and murdered him. Antoninus
Pius fucceeded Adrian; and his proprætor in Bri-
tain was Lollius Urbicus. The Scotch hiftorians
inform us, that Conar, who fucceeded his fa-
ther Mogold, was one of the confpirators
againft his life; and that the Southern Bri-
tons, paffing Adrian's wall, laid wafte Conar's
territories; who, uniting with the Picts, drove
them fouthwards, and fought a bloody battle
with
H 2
Conar.
52
HISTORY
THE
with them and the Romans, which weakened
both fides fo much, that they agreed to a truce
for a year. Before the war expired, the pro-
prætor faw how uſeleſs Adrian's prætenture was;
yet we are told, he repaired it. The Scotch
hiftorians are countenanced by the Roman, in
their hiftory of this period; for they affert, that
Conar and the Picts were joined by the Brigan-
tes, or the inhabitants of Yorkſhire; and that
they invaded Genunia, or North Wales, where
they were defeated by Urbicus, who purſued his
victory, and drove the North Britons to the
northward of Agricola's prætenture. We have
already obferved, that this conſiſted of a chain of
forts, which was a ftronger frontier than a long
ineffectual turf wall. Lollius Urbicus finding
Defcription many of thofe forts ftanding, repaired and
of Urbicus, joined them together by turf walls, guarded by
of the wall
commonly
called that
of Anto-
nine.
mounds and ditches; fome parts of which are
ftill viſible. The whole was thus fortified by a
ferics of ftations, or forts, and certainly reach-
ed from Carron, upon the Frith of Forth, to
Dunglas, upon the Frith of Clyde; running by
Falkirk, Camelon, Dick's-houſe, Roughcaſtle-
fort, Caftlecary's-fort, Wefterwood-fort, Crowy-
hill, Barnhill-fort, Achindavy, Kirkentelloch,
Calder, Bemulie, New-Kirkpatrick, Caſtle-hill,
Duntocher, and Old - Kirkpatrick; the whole
being fomewhat more than thirty-feven Engliſh
miles in length. The foundation was ftone, and
it had conduits, which at once kept it dry, and
fupplied
OF SCOTLAN D.
53
fupplied the ditch that accompanied it with wa-
ter. The thickneſs of the wall, which inclined
towards the north, and was, as much as poffi-
ble, carried along the brows of eminences, was
about four yards. It probably had its exploratory
mounts, and the ditch was larger than that which
afterwards accompanied the wall of Severus.
The main agger, or rampart, lay on the ſouth
fide; and on the fouth of that ran a large well-
paved military way, which never leaves the
wall above a hundred and forty yards. We
learn from the inſcriptions on this wall, which
are ftill extant, that the whole of the legion
called Secunda Augufta, and the vexillations of
the twentieth and the fixth legions, were em-
ployed in completing this prætenture; which,
according to the fame infcriptions, extended to
thirty-nine thoufand feven hundred and twen-
ty-fix paces. It was built while Antoninus Pius
was the third time conful, anfwering to the
year of Chrift 140. Its defign was to prevent
the communication of the Caledonians and the
Picts with the Brigantes; but though much
better calculated for that purpoſe, becauſe
of its ſmall extent, than that of Adrian, yet it
was ineffectual againſt the Northern Britons. It
confined them, indeed, for fome time; and the
exploits of Urbicus procured for Antoninus, tho'
he never was in Britain, the epithet of Britanni-
Before we take leave of Antoninus Pius,
we cannot help expreffing our amazement, that
cus.
fo
54
HISTORY
THE
Ethod.
fo excellent a writer as Buchanan fhould not
mention the wall of Urbicus; who, he fays, only
repaired that of Adrian.
As to Conar, having degenerated into a ty-
rant, and wanting to opprefs his fubjects by
taxes, they ſhut him up in priſon, where he
died of grief, in the fourteenth year of his
reign. On his death Argad, faid to have been
prince of Argyleſhire, was chofen regent, who
proved, at firſt, an excellent jufticiary; but after-
wards difobliged the fubjects by marrying a Pic-
tiſh princeſs, and fomenting diffenfions among
the nobles, which raiſed a ſuſpicion that he in-
tendedto feize upon the crown. Being accuſed in
a public affembly of the ſtates of thofe practices,
he confeffed his guilt; but by humbling himſelf
before the people, he obtained his pardon, and
was continued in the government, which he ex-
ecuted with great virtue and ability; till Ethod,
nephew to Mogold, mounted the throne. We
have few authorities to direct us in our account
of this prince befides the Scotch hiſtorians, ex-
cepting the writer of the life of Marcus Anto-
ninus, who was then the Roman emperor; from
which it appears, that the Britiſh wars again
breaking out, he fent over, as his lieutenant,
Calphurnius Agricola. In the mean time, Ar-
gad was continued as general and prime minif-
ter; but was killed in an expedition againſt
the inhabitants of the Ebuda iflands, who, we
are told, were affifted by the Picts and Irish;
and
OF SCOTLAN D.
55
and were, in their turn, fubdued by Ethod in
perfon, who hanged two hundred of their
ringleaders. After this, Ethod applied himſelf
to the adminiftration of juftice all over his
kingdom. Boece, in this king's reign, has
taken notice of many particulars which, tho'
far from being improbable, are entirely omitted
by Buchanan. According to Boece, Victorinus,
a Roman general, or proprætor, invaded the do-
minions of the Scots and Picts, who were unit-
ed by their common intereft; and Ethod having
in vain demanded reparation, a battle was
fought, which weakened both parties fo much,
that they were at peace for a whole year. Then
Calphurnius Agricola took the command, who
proved a fucceſsful general, and obliged the
Northern Britons to keep within the præten-
ture of Urbicus. Commodus, who fucceeded
Antoninus in the Roman empire, recalled Cal-
phurnius Agricola; upon which, a fierce war,
and more dangerous to the Romans than any
of the preceding, broke out in Britain. The
Britons penetrated the Roman walls, and put
all who refifted them to the fword; but they
were foon checked by Marcellus Ulpius, a ge-
neral of confummate abilities, fent againſt them
by Commodus. That tyrant hated Ulpius for
his virtues; and upon his being recalled, the
Roman diſcipline in Britain ſuffered a vaſt re-
laxation. As to Ethod, there is nothing im-
probable in what the Scotch writers tell us, that
he
The Britons
theRomans,
checked by
కర
HISTORY
THE
Satrahel.
he took all advantages againſt the Romans,
and was at laft affaffinated by a mufician,
who, in all northern courts, were formerly iñ
high esteem, and admitted to be of the king's
bed-chamber. Ethod was fucceeded by his bro-
ther Satrahel, his own fons being under age.
Satrahel proved a tyrant; endeavoured to eſta-
bliſh the crown in his own family; and was
afſaffinated by one of his domeftics in the fourth
year of his reign, and of Chrift 197.
By this time a total alteration took place
in the military government of the Romans in
Britain. Perennis, firft minifter to the empe-
ror Commodus, had perfuaded his mafter to
give the command of his British armies to
knights, inftead of fenators. Hiftory is filent
as to the motives of this meafure; but it pro-
bably was in confideration of fums advanced
for the fupport of the emperor's pleafures (the
knights being the moneyed men of Rome) for
which they were to indemnify themſelves by pe-
culation. It is certain, however, the Roman fol-
diers in Britain mutiny'd under this innovation;
and their diſcontents rofe fo high, that the ar-
my deputed fifteen hundred of their number
to carry their complaints, and lay them be-
fore Commodus in perfon at Rome. The em-
peror met the deputics without the gates, and
they accufed Perennis of afpiring to place his
fon upon the Imperial throne. Commodus, upon
this, feeming to believe them, gave up Peren-
nis,
OF SCOTLAN D.
57
nis, whom he had now begun to hate, to the
foldiers, who put him to death. The mutiny
ftill continued, through the vaft relaxation
of difcipline that prevailed among the troops.
The foldiers even talked of electing a new em-
peror, and named Pertinax to the purple. He
was a brave general, and at that time command-
ed an army againſt the Parthians. Commodus,
however, was fo fully convinced of his honour,
that he acted in a manner very uncommon with
tyrants; for, to fecure the fidelity of Pertinax,
he ordered him to paſs over to Britain, and
there to take the command of the Roman army.
Pertinax obeyed; and, upon his arrival, the
troops acclaimed him emperor. He declined
the honour with fo much refolution, that the
foldiers, thinking they could now have no fafe-
ty but in his accepting it, proceeded to force,
and Pertinax was wounded in the tumult.
Perceiving, after this, that it was in vain
for him to think of retrieving military difci-
pline among fuch troops, he defired to be re-
called. Clodius Albinus, a perfon of great repu-
tation, and defcend edfrom the ancient Pofthu-
mi, was next fent by Commodus to command in
Britain. The reader is to underſtand that Scot-
land, or rather the northern neighbourhood of
the prætenture of Urbicus, feems to have been
the ſcene of action at this time in Britain. The
ſouthern parts were not only provinciated, but
governed by their native kings, who reigned
VOL. I.
I
as
58.
HISTORY
THE
as viceroys to the Romans, and generally were
fo firm to their intereft, that they had nothing
to apprehend from the inhabitants. The Ro-
mans were even fo indulgent to the provinci-
ated Britons, that they tolerated Chriſtianity
in the iſland, as appears from the hiſtory and
coins of Lucius, a Britiſh Chriftian king.
This was long before we have any certainty of
the introduction of Chriſtianity into Scotland,
where the inhabitants, or at leaft the bulk of
them, ftill continued brave independent Pa-
gans, and kept the Roman foldiery in perpetual
alarms.
Albinus was a man of ſuch high rank and con-
fideration, that he declined the honour of being
nominated Cæfar, or heir-apparent to the em-
pire, by Commodus. This he did, partly upon
prudential, and partly upon republican princi-
ples, as he thought that the imperial purple
would difhonour a defcendant of the Pofthumi.
He feems to have fucceeded in re-fettling the
military difcipline; but upon a falſe report of
the emperor's death being ſpread, he harangued
the foldiers to abolish the imperial tyranny, and
to return to their old form of government un-
der confuls. At the fame time, he informed them
that he had been offered the honour of being no-
minated Cæfar, which he had rejected with dif-
dain. Though this fpeech came to the emperor's
ears, yet his authority was at that time too weak
in Britain to refent it: and there is fſome reaſon
to
OF SCOTLAN D.
59
to believe, that he continued in a kind of in-
dependent command of the Roman army in
Britain, till the death of Commodus, who was
fucceeded by Pertinax. The licentioufnefs of
the Roman foldiery had always rendered them
at variance with the fenate, whofe feverity they
dreaded, but whofe authority was refolutely
fupported by Albinus. The fenators had conceiv-
ed the higheſt expectation from his abilities and
virtues, and even addreffed Pertinax to make
him his partner in the empire. Pertinax hated
Albinus, and had a little time before publifhed
a kind of circular letter, fent, or intended to
be ſent by Commodus, to all his governors of
provinces, accufing Albinus of courting the fe-
nate from motives of ambition. This publica-
tion was intended to ruin Albinus with the
troops; but he prevented his fate by perſuading
Didius Julianus to murder Pertinax, and to
raife himſelf to the imperial throne. Julianus
depended chiefly on the friendship of Albinus
for preſerving the government of Britain, and
was fucceeded by Septimius Severus, who found
a competitor in the perfon of Pefcennius Niger,
whom he foon diſpatched.
Albinus feems, by this time, to have been
fo much intoxicated with the great credit and
reputation he had acquired, as to have defied
the imperial power. Severus, who knew his
principles, at once hated and dreaded him; but
carried his diffimulation fo far as to affociate
I 2
him
60
THE HISTORY
Donald the
firft.
him with himſelf in the empire: a dignity,
which, though inconfiftent with his former
principles, Albinus thought proper to accept.
Upon the defeat and death of Pefcennius
Niger, there was no farther room for diffimu-
lation in Severus; and we are told, that he ſent
murderers into Britain to diſpatch Albinus,
who diſcovering this wicked intention from
the confeffion of the affaffins under torture,
immediately declared himſelf emperor. Under-
ftanding that Severus was marching againſt
him, he fhook off his indolence, and paffed
over to the continent of Europe, at the head of
fifty thouſand men, whom the hiftories of that
time, indifcriminately, call Britons. Being
met by Severus with an army of equal num-
bers, a moſt terrible battle enfued near Lyons,
in France. The Britons, at firſt, had the ad-
vantage, and Severus faved himſelf by throw-
ing away his diadem and imperial robes. He,
however, rallied his men, and being fupported
by Lætus, one of his generals, the battle was
renewed, when victory declared for Severus
on which Albinus put himſelf to death.
The king whom the Scotch hiftorians have
affigned to their country during theſe impor-
tant tranfactions, is called Donald the firft. He
was brother to Ethod and Satrahel, and is re-
corded as a prince of merit, both civil and mi-
litary. The Roman hiſtorians, at this period,
give great countenance to thoſe of Scotland. It
is
1
OF SCOTLAND.
61
is certain, that during the abfence of Albinus,
the Caledonians had made a very dreadful im-
preffion upon the Roman empire in Britain; and
that they had driven the mafters of the world
even beyond Adrian's prætenture. Severus,
though fixty years of age and full of infirmities,
ordered Virius Lupus to act as his proprætor in
the northern parts of Britain. Lupus found the
Romans ſo diſorderly and diſpirited, and their
affairs fo defperate, that he was obliged to in-
form Severus that nothing but his own prefence
could retrieve them. Donald, or whoever was
the prince of the Caledonians at that time, had
encouraged the Meatæ (for fo Xiphilin calls the
Britons who lived between the two præten-
tures) to take arms againſt the Romans; fo that
Severus was apprehenfive of lofing all Britain.
Upon his arrival there with his army, which Expedition
was far fuperior to any the Romans ever had in
the iſland, he immediately marched northwards
towards Adrian's wall. It was in vain for the
Caledonians and their allies, who knew they
were no match for his numerous and well-
difciplined troops, to endeavour, by their de-
puties, to deprecate his wrath; for he ftill pro-
ceeded northwards, and rejected all terms of
accommodation. He repaired the roads, and
removed all obftructions to his march; but he
found the Caledonians a more dangerous ene-
my than he had expected. They were armed
with a little fhield and fpear, and a fword de- the Caledo
pending
of Severus.
Armour of
nians.
62
HISTORY
THE
Progrefs of
Severus.
pending from their naked bodies, which were
painted with the figures of animals. Their difpo-
fitions were warlike, their perfons hardened by
fatigue; they could ſwim the moſt rapid floods,
and undergo the moſt difficult marches. They
followed the maxims of Caffibelan, the brave
Britiſh prince who oppoſed the Dictator. They
attacked the Romans by furprizes, and detached
parties; they laid baits of cattle and provifions,
that they might cut off the ftragglers from their
main body; but carefully avoided coming to
any pitched action. By this method of fighting
the Roman foldiers were perpetually engaged in
fkirmishes, and ſo much diſtreſſed in their march,
that they deſired each other to put an end to
their lives. The reader may form fome idea of
the original numbers of the Roman army, when
he is told, from undoubted authority, that tho'
Severus loft fifty thouſand men in his march,
he was ſtill in a condition to proceed.
The event of this expedition is not very
clear. Admitting, with Xiphilin, that he forced
the Caledonians and their allies to a peace, yet
that was no more than they had offered him when
he first landed on the island. Herodian makes
no mention of the peace. Xiphilin tells us, in-
deed, that he was carried in a ſedan to the ex-
tremities of the iſland; and that he obliged the
natives to cede to him ſome part of their coun-
try. The former circumftance may be a fact,
becauſe, as we have already feen, the Caledo-
nians
OF SCOTLAN D.
6.3
nians never ventured to oppofe him in a pitch-
ed battle, and undoubtedly the difficulties and
diftreffes of his army muſt have encreaſed as he
advanced northwards. It is likewiſe very pof-
fible, that he recovered to his fubjection the
country of the Meate between the two præten-
tures, or, rather, that he difpoffeffed the enemy
of all that they held fouth of Adrian's wall;
but it ſcarcely can admit of a doubt, that he per-
formed nothing worthy his great preparations,
and the almoft incredible loffes he fuftained.
It is during this march that Buchanan has fixed
the building of the celebrated Roman temple,
which, he fuppofes, was dedicated to the god
Terminus, on the banks of the river Carron.
That it was a Roman work, there is no reaſon
to doubt; but fome antiquaries, with great
probability, think it was erected by Agri-
cola; and fome believe it to have been a mau-
foleum, fuch as that erected to the memory of
Cæcilia Metella, at Rome. This noble monu-
ment of antiquity was demoliſhed in 1742 by a temple of
more than Gothic knight, in order to repair a
mill-dam with its ſtones.
Fate of the
Terminus.
verus.
Upon the return of Severus fouthward, he Wall of Se-
faw the neceffity of raifing a ftronger barrier
againſt the invafions of the Caledonians than the
prætentures either of Antoninus or Adrian; and
he accordingly built a wall which has the fame
direction with that of Adrian, but extended
farther at each end. The defcription of this
wall
64
HISTORY
THE
wall fhews that it was intended by the founder
as a regular military fortification: but the rea-
der, in the notes, will find a confutation of
Buchanan's opinion that it was erected between
the firths of Forth and Clyde *. The mention
of
Having defcribed the other prætentures, I ſhall likewiſe give
fome account of this. Notwithstanding what has been ſaid by
fome eminent writers, it is certain this wall was quite diffe-
rent from that of Adrian, though, in the main, it ran near the
fame ground; but, according to Mr. Horfley's account, it
extended farther at each end than Adrian's. It has,' all along on
the fouth, a paved military way, though not always running pa-
rallel, in breadth about ſeventeen foot, and fometimes coincides
with Adrian's north agger; but where the latter is too diſtant or
inconvenient, it proceeds feparately. Mr. Horfley believes there
might have been likewiſe a ſmaller military way, for the conveni-
ency of ſmall parties paffing from one turret to another. This
wall has alſo a large ditch at the north; but there is no direct
proof that ever an agger belonged to it. It had caftella, or
towers placed upon it at proper diſtances, generally lefs than a
mile one from another. Thefe, excepting one, which was per-
haps older than the wall, were fixty-fix foot ſquare; the wall it-
felf forming the north fide of each. It likewife had turrets, pro-
bably four betwixt every two caftella, at the diftance of three
hundred and eighteen yards from each other; which, by the few
remains of them, appear to have been four yards ſquare at the
bottom. Thus the centinels placed upon them, being within call
of each other, a ready communication was kept up through the
whole extent of the wall. Upon, or near, this wall were feventeen
forts or ſtations, each confiderably larger than the caftella:
theſe ſtood at uncertain diſtances one from another; and were
thickeſt and ſtrongeſt at the two extremities, and in the middle.
The wall was generally on the top of high ground, both for
ftrength and profpect; often built in places, through which
it would have been impracticable to have carried Adrian's vallum
and extends, in the whole, fixty-eight miles one hundred and
fixty nine paces. The thickneſs of it appears not to have
been every where equal; fometimes it meaſures ſeven foot four
inches at the foundation; but where the fea-water has come
up to it, as at Boulnefs, nine foot. The wall itself was built of
freeftone,
;
OF SCOTLAN D.
65
of this wall makes it likewiſe probable, that all
the ceffions of territory made by the Caledo-
nians
freeftone; the ſtones in the heart of it being broad and
thin, fet edge-ways, and cemented by pouring upon them liquid
mortar. The foundation fometimes is ſtrengthened with oaken
piles. The breadth and depth of its ditch is uncertain; but
ſeem to have been about ten foot deep, and twelve foot or more
over. The whole was begun at Segedunum, or Coufins-houfe on
the Tine, and carried weftward to Timocelum or Boulneſs.
This wall is neither mentioned by Xiphilin nor Herodian, tho'
the former mentions that the Meatx dwelt near the wall which
divides the iſland into two parts. It is, however, mentioned by
Spartian in the following words: "Arabos in deditionem acce-
pit. Adiabenos in tributarios coegit. Britanniam (quod maxi-
mum ejus imperii decus eft) muro per tranfverfam infulam ducto,
utrinque ad finum oceani; unde etiam Britannici nomen acce-
pit."
"He received the fubmiffion of the Arabians; he com-
pelled the Adiabeni to become tributary; and fortified Britain
(which is the greateſt glory of his reign) with a wall drawn crois
the island from fea to fea; where alfo he took the name of Bri-
tannicus." And Aurelius Victor ſays, "Ob hæc tanta Arabi-
cum, Adiabenicum, et Parthici, cognomina paties dixere. His
majora aggreffus, Britanniam quæ ad ea utilis erat, pulfis hofti-
bus muro munivit, per tranfverfam infulam ducto utrinque ad
finem oceani." "For theſe great exploits, the fenate com-
plimented him with the furnames Arabicus, Adiabenicus, and
Parthicus. He ftill proceeding to greater things, repelled the
enemy in Britain, and fortified the country, which was fuit-
ed to that purpoſe, with a wall drawn crofs the iſland from fea to
fea." The fame author, in an abridgment, makes the extent of
this wall to be but thirty-two miles, as Eutropius makes it
only thirty-five. "But as to that abridgment of the Roman hif-
tory, under the name of Aurelius Victor (fays Mr. Innes in his
Critical Eflay) the author is uncertain, as well as the time he
lived in; and the genuine and undoubted work of Aurelius Vic-
tor, as we ſhall fee prefently, gives much the fame account of
Severus's wall as Spartian; that it was bounded on each fide by
the ocean, without any farther account of its dimenfions. As to
Eutropius, though the vulgar editions give but thirty-two miles
to Severus's wall, there is juft ground to believe, that the an-
cient copies had a Cor L before the numerical letters XXXII;
VOL. I.
fince
K
66
HISTORY
THE
nians and the Meatæ, confifted of lands to the
fouth of Adrian's wall; and that he meant it as
the barrier of his empire in Britain, ſeems to be
plain, from his giving to his officers and foldiers
the Meatian lands in the neighbourhood, to be
held by a kind of military tenure, that they
might protect their own poffeflions. We fhall
not however prefume to affirm, that fome of
thoſe lands did not lie in the country of the
Meatæ, between the prætentures. From the
words of Spartian, a Roman hiſtorian, we are
inclined to think that Severus erected this
wall, while he was at peace with the Caledo-
nians.
It is certain, that, notwithstanding the vi-
gour of his mind ftill fubfifted, he was now
diſabled by age and infirmities; and that he
committed the carrying on the wall, and his
other great works, to his worthlefs fon Anto-
ninus, afterwards better known by the name of
the emperor Caracalla, who had more than
fince St. Hierome, near Eutropius's time, who follows him, hath
CXXXII. Orofius, about the fame time, gives the fame dimen-
fion; and, after them, Caffiodorus, Ado, Nennius, and others,
who give all CXXXII miles to Severus's wall in which it is
highly probable, that the numerical letter L hath been, by er-
ror of the tranflator, altered into that of C, theſe two letters be-
ing eafily confounded in ancient MSS. and there being no place
in Britain that hath CXXXII miles of breadth; which have ap-
parently given occaſion to critics to cut off the C in Eutropius,
whereas there is no likelihood of St. Hierome's adding C to the
number he found in Eutropius."
once
OF SCOTLAND.
67
once attempted his life and for the fame rea-
fon he was obliged to relinquish to him the com-
mand of the army.
The brutality of Antoninus was fuch, that
the Caledonians and the Meatæ again took
{ arms, and the old emperor was once more called
to the field. Being carried in a fedan to the camp,
he was fo exafperated with this renewal of
hoftilities, that he gave directions to his foldiers.
from a verſe of Homer, " That they fhould not
ſpare even the child in the mother's belly.'
Notwithſtanding this, we are intirely igno-
rant of the confequence; whether the empe-
ror continued in the field, or left the pro-
fecution of his revenge to one of his fons. It
is even uncertain whether any hoftilities fol-
lowed, and whether the emperor did not chuſe
to conclude a peace; for he died foon after, and
boafted upon his death-bed, that he had left
Britain in tranquility. His greateſt ambition
was to deferve, and obtain, the name of Britan-
nicus, which both he and his fon Geta affumed;
but the father took the additional title of
Major. Before we clofe the hiftory of Severus,
we must mention the interview between the em-
prefs Julia and the wife of a Caledonian chief
Argentocoxus. The Britiſh lady was among
her other countrywomen of quality, who, after
the conclufion of the peace, paid a vifit to the
Roman camp, where he was entertained by the
empreſs for fome time; till growing familiar, the
K 2
latter
1
68
THE HISTORY
Caledonian
lady.
latter upbraided the Britiſh ladies, becauſe, tho'
married, they abandoned themſelves to the em-
Anfwer of a braces of feveral men. "It is true (replied the
fprightly Caledonian) we are proud to pleaſe
men of merit; and we commit avowedly with
the braveft of our countrymen, what the Ro-
man ladies act in corners with the meaneft and
moft fcandalous of theirs."
Remark,
We have this ftory from Xiphilin, who takes
it from Dio, and therefore we can fcarcely quef-
tion its credibility; but it leads to fome reflec-
tions. If the two ladies converfed together
without an interpreter, it is highly probable
that the Caledonian understood the Latin lan-
guage, unless we are to fuppofe, that the Ro-
man understood the Gaelic or Caledonian. In
cither cafe, we muft conclude that there was a
very confiderable intercourſe between the two
people. Our next obfervation is, that the word
Argentocoxus, or Silver-hip, is evidently of
Roman coinage; and very poffibly alludes to
a filver fword-belt worn by the Caledonian.
Had Xiphilin or Dio known the Caledonian
name of the chief, it might have thrown fome
light on the hiftory of Scotland at this period;
and it is furprizing, that the manufacturers of
the hiftory of the first forty kings, who certain-
ly were well acquainted with this anecdote (if
the whole of the work was a forgery) did not
avail themfelves of it, to coin a name fome-
what fimilar to the Roman term. The third,
and
OF
SCOTLAND.
69
and chief obſervation we ſhall make, is upon
the indecency and proftitution of the Caledo-
nian ladies. We cannot, however, fee with
what confiftency a princefs of a people whofe
patriots and philofophers uſed to lend their
wives to each other, and then take them back,
could upbraid a Britiſh lady with the want of
delicacy in her amours. If we examine the
cuſtoms of other nations who were far from
being barbarous, the ancient Egyptians, for in-
ftance, the Athenians, and the Spartans, we
fhall find, in matters of concubinage, ufages
as grofs as that with which our Caledonian is re-
proached. The truth is, there was a commu-
nity of wives among the ancient Britons, but
of a very fingular kind; for it was confined to
fmall circles of friends and acquaintances. Ten
or twelve men, perhaps, efpoufed each of them
a virgin, and after cohabitation, every one of
their wives was at his friend's fervice; but the
iſſue was always regarded as belonging to the
man who originally married the mother. That
this cuftom was barbarous, we fhall not dif
pute; but the Britons, perhaps, thought (as
Sir William Temple fays) "that by fuch a cuf-
tom they avoided the common miſchiefs of jea-
loufy; the injuries of adultery; the confine-
ment of fingle marriages; the luxury and ex-
*See Sir William Temple's Introduction to the Hift. of Eng-
land.
pence
70
HISTORY
THE
Donald, first
Chriftian
king of
Scotland.
pence of many wives or concubines; and the
partiality of parents in the education of all
their own children: all which are confidera-
tions that have fallen under the care of many
law-givers."
Though Donald the firft, the prince I now
treat of, is fuppofed to have been the firſt
Chriſtian king of Scotland, or rather Caledo-
nia, yet it ſcarcely admits of a doubt that Chri-
ftianity, before his time, had penetrated into
that country. Tertullian, who wrote about
the year 209, plainly afferts, that Chriftianity
had fubdued thofe places in Britain that were
inacceffible to the Roman arms. We ſhall not
however pretend that Chriftianity was then the
national religion of the Caledonians. From the
ftory we have juft now related we may in-
fer the contrary; we muft notwithſtanding
obferve, that many people who actually em-
braced Chriſtianity both in Europe and Afia,
for fome centuries after its introduction, re-
tained many of their Pagan ufages, efpecially
with regard to marriage and concubinage. One
of the compliments paid by Martial to Claudia
Ruffina, a Britiſh lady and a Chriftian, was his
wiſhing the might be always happy in one huf-
band. As to Donald himſelf, we know little
more of him than that he died in peace, accord-
ing to the old hiftorians, about the year 216.
* Ut conjuge gaudeat uno.
He
1
OF SCOTLAND.
71
He was fucceeded by Ethod, fecond fon of
Ethod the firft, who being a prince of narrow
abilities, at the defire of his fubjects, for the
better diftribution of juſtice, conftituted lieu-
tenants through the different provinces of his
dominions. We know little of the Roman af-
fairs in Britain during the fuppofed reign of
this prince, which is faid to have been tranquil,
and to have lafted for twenty-one years, when
he was killed as he was endeavouring to ap-
peaſe a tumult among his fubjects.
The fubfequent account given by the Scot-
tiſh writers is conſiſtent with the Roman hiſto-
rians. Severus was fucceeded by Caracalla and
Geta, who, after ratifying the peace with the
Caledonians, returned to Rome about the year
2ΙΙ.
E
The Roman hiftorians are filent as to the
affairs of Britain till the year 2 59. Some infcrip-
tions, however, dug up near the prætentures
have preferved the names of certain of their
prefects who fucceeded Virius Lupus. Mæci-
lius Fufcus, about the year 238, repaired the
barracks and arfenals, which had fallen into de-
cay. Cneius Lucilianus, about the year 240,
built a bath, with an exchange or portico; and
Nonius Philippus was the Roman proprætor or
legate in Britain, about two years after. The
Hiftory of the Southern Parts of Britain, written
by the famous Geoffrey of Monmouth, has fup-
plied this chafm in hiftory with the imaginary
exploits of one Fulgentius, who, he fays, was
conful
Ethod II.
72
HISTORY
THE
conful of the Albanian Britons, and defcended
from one of their ancient kings. Fordun has
adopted Geoffrey's fables, concerning this
Fulgentius, and makes Severus drive him into
Scotland, meaning, we fuppofe, Scythia; from
whence he returned by fea with an army of
Scots and Picts, befieged York, and killed Se-
verus. Dr. Stillingfleet, an eminent English
antiquary, has reproached our old hiftorian
Fordun for having been mifled in following
this fable of Geoffrey. The right reverend
author, however, ought to have mentioned,
that though Fordun does indeed lay before his
readers Geoffrey's narrative, yet he gives them
at the fame time that of the venerable Bede,
which is agreeable to the truth of hiftory; and
that when Fordun mentions the emperor Baf-
fianus' being killed by Caraufius, which is ano-
ther of Geoffrey's abominable fictions, he does
it with a mark of reprobation, and alleges very
found reafons for his adhering to the Roman
hiftorian. Hector Boece is more inexcufable in
building upon Geoffrey's foundation.
Upon the whole, we think it indifputable,
that during this long interval after the death
of Severus, the Romans remained to the fouth
of Adrian's prætenture; though very poffibly
they might have a few exploratory towers on
its north. We may, therefore, very fairly pre-
fume that the Caledonians, and their allies the
Meatæ, had frequent intercourfes with their
Roman
OF SCOTLAN D.
73
}
Roman neighbours. As to the ftory of Fulgen-
tius, though the whole of it is evidently forged
by Geoffrey; yet there is fufficient reafon for
believing, that the war between the Romans on
the one part, under Severus, and the Caledo-
nians, Meatæ, and Picts, on the other, might
be full of very intereſting events and adven-
tures, though they are fuppreffed by the Ro-
man hiftorians, perhaps for the honour of their
own country.
Under Publius Licinius Gallienus, Porphyry,
the Roman philofopher, termed Britain a land
fruitful in tyrants; and we are told that no few-
er than thirty at one time claimed the imperial
purple. The names of fome of them appear ftill
upon their coins, which have been found in the
fouthern parts of Britain; but we know not
whether any laid claim to Caledonia. In
276 Proculus and Bonofus claimed Britain,
Spain, and Gaul; but they were defeated by the
emperor Probus: neither does it appear that
the Caledonians had any concern in theſe dif-
putes.
Ethod the ſecond was fucceeded by his fon Athirco.
Athirco; who, proving a tyrant, was defeated
and purſued by his ſubjects; and, fearing to fall
into their hands, put himſelf to death. Natha-
locus, whofe daughters Athirco is faid to have Nathalocus,
deflowered, headed this infurrection, and
ufurped the throne; but Dorus, Athirco's bro-
ther, fled with his three nephews, Findoc, Ca-
VOL. I..
L
rantius,
74
HISTORY
THE
rantius, and Donald, to the court of the king
of the Picts. Notwithstanding the air of ro-
mance which infects the Scotch hiftory at this
period, we have no reafon to doubt that fuch a
Pictish king then exifted; as it is probable that
the Picts, who were the defcendants of the
Southern Britons, and the Caledonians, might
live under ſeparate governments; and becauſe
we know for a certainty, that the Pictish king-
dom flouriſhed many years after this date. Na-
thalocus having fent affaffins to diſpatch Dorus
and his nephews, they killed a Pict, by mistake,
for Dorus. Nathalocus having miffed his aim,
and perceiving that Dorus had a ſtrong party in
his kingdom, ordered all the noblemen whom
he thought to be in the royal intereft, to
be ftrangled. This cruelty produced an infur-
rection; and the ufurper, according to the man-
ner of the times, fent to Colmkiln, the famous
Jona of the ancients, to confult a woman who
was reputed to be a weird fifter, about his fate.
She told him that the king was to be fhort-liv-
ed; but that he would fall by the hand not of
an enemy, but a domeftic. The meſſenger de-
manding the name of the affaffin, "Thou art the
man,” replied the weird fifter. Her declara-
tion determined him to the act; which, up-
on his return, he perpetrated for his own fafety.
The name of this domeftic is faid to have been
Murray, and the ftory is far more probable than
many others of the fame kind we meet with
in
OF SCOTLAND.
75
in later ages, and among the moſt polite
people.
Findoc, Athrico's eldeſt fon, received intel- Findoc.
ligence of the tyrant's fate from Murray him-
felf, and was immediately proclaimed king. He
poffeffed all the perfections of body and mind;
and fubdued the iſlanders, who, under Donald
their chieftain, attempted to revenge the death
of Nathalocus. Another Donald, fon of the
former, who was drowned, being driven in-
to Ireland, received, afterwards, Findoc's par-
don; and returning home, he ſent two ruffians,
who gained the ear of Carantius the king's bro-
ther, and his permiffion to affaffinate the king,
which they acordingly did while he was hunt-
ing: but they were overtaken and put to death,
and Carantius took refuge among the Romans.
We think it neceffary to inform our readers, that
all theſe facts are omitted by the honeſt hiſto-
rian Fordun, though related by Boece and Bu-
chanan.
the Illes.
Donald, the youngest of Athirco's fons, be- Donald,
ing raiſed to the throne, was, in the first year
of his reign, defeated and killed by Donald
of the Ifles; who, thereupon, ufurped the Donald of
crown, but was defeated and killed by Cra-
thilinth, the fon of Findoc. This prince, Crathilinth.
after his acceffion, proved a ftrict jufticia-
ry, and renewed his family - leagues with the
Picts. A trifling accident at a hunting-match is,
however, faid to have coft the lives of three
thou-
L 2
76
HISTORY
THE
thouſand of his own fubjects, and two thou-
fand of the Picts: upon which hoftilities com-
menced between the two nations. About this
time, the famous Caraufius appeared. It muſt
be acknowledged, to the reproach of literature,
that notwithſtanding all the pains taken by Dr.
Stukeley, and other antiquaries, to clear up the
hiftory of this Britiſh emperor (for fuch he cer-
tainly was) it ſtill remains obfcure; and we are
likewiſe to obferve, that about the time we now
treat of, the name of the Caledonians began to
wear out among the Romans, who fubftituted
that of Picts in its room. We muft, notwith-
ftanding, be of opinion, that they lived un-
der diftinct governments, and in this we are
countenanced by the earlieſt records. The un-
Conjecture certainty of the hiftory of Caraufius proved too
great a temptation for Boece to refift, and ac-
cordingly he makes him the fame perſon with
the exiled Caledonian prince Carantius.
is certain that Caraufius, who is faid to have
been by birth a Menapian, had about this time
begun to make a great figure at fea. The em-
peror Probus had carried over to Britain, large
colonies of Vandals and Burgundians, to whom
he had affigned land there. The Roman pre-
fect, whom fome call Lælianus, and fome Sa-
turninus, at this time, affumed the imperial
purple; but was foon cruſhed by Victorinus,
the imperial general; and Britain experienced a
fucceffion of tyrants, till Dioclefian and Maxi-
about Ca-
taulius;
It
mian
OF SCOTLAND.
77
mian were raiſed to the empire. About the
time of their acceffion, the coafts of Gaul and
Britain were fwarming with Saxon, or German,
free-booters; and the charge of fuppreffing
them was committed to Caraufius, who winked
at their frequent defcents, that he might take
their fhips when returning home and full of
booty, which he entirely appropriated to his
own ufe. His practices, in fhort, became fo
glaring, that he was fentenced to be put to death.
To avoid this fate, he affumed the imperial pur-
ple, and carried his fleet to Britain, where the Ro-
man army fubmitted to his authority. Thus far
hiſtory is clear as to Caraufius; nor do we fee
any abfurdity in fuppofing, that after his land-
ing, he entered into a treaty with the Picts and
Caledonians, efpecially as Maximian was then at
fea with a fleet and army to fupprefs him; but
there can be no foundation for faying with fome
writers, that he affigned Scotland to the Picts
for the affiftance they gave him.
Maximian, perceiving that Caraufius was too
ftrong to be fubdued, agreed to a treaty which
left him in full poffeflion of the fovereignty of
the provinciated Britain, as appears by many
undoubted medals, and other monuments, in
the cabinets of the curious, where Caraufius is
reprefented as Auguftus or emperor. He reign-
ed as fuch for ſeven years; and was likewife in
poffeffion of Gefforiacum, now called Boulogne,
by which he had the command both of the Ar-
moric
78
HISTORY
THE
his fate!
moric and the Britiſh coafts. He is faid to have
repaired, or rather rebuilt, the wall of Anto-
ninus, or Urbicus, between the friths of Forth
and Clyde, in the year 289; and we are told,
that he had an interview with Crathilinth
(whom the Scotch hiſtorians call his nephew)
near the river Carron. There is reafon for be-
lieving that he repaired part of the wall of Se-
verus, though, in reality, we know little of his
true history befides what is to be found on coins
and medals; but theſe prove him to have been
one of the moft illuftrious perfonages of that
agc. It is an undoubted fact, that Conftan-
tius, Cæfar to Maximian, was the only general
of the age, thought to be a match for Ca-
raufius; and that the fleet of the latter was com-
pofed of failors from all nations, who, accord-
ing to the Roman hiftorians, were paid by the
plunder of the neighbouring countries.
This drew on a war between Caraufius and
the Roman empire; and Conftantius befieged
Gefforiacum, which was very ftrongly fortified.
The death of the emperor is one of the moſt ob-
fcure events in hiſtory. It is faid, that when Con-
ftantius laid fiege to Gefforiacum, or Boulogne,
Caraufius was murdered by Alectus, one of
his general officers, who fucceeded him in the
empire of Britain, and reigned three years. If
this account can be depended upon, we may
preſume that Alectus was fuborned to the affaf-
fination by the Romans, who were at that time
far
OF SCOTLAND.
79
far from being delicate in fuch cafes. The hif-
tory of Alectus is equally obfcure and uncer-
tain with that of Caraufius, and, as related by
the Roman hiftorians, inconfiftent with their
own chronology. Conftantius undoubtedly land-
ed in Britain, and burnt his fhips, to take from
his foldiers all hopes of return without victory.
Alectus had by this time become unpopular
among the Britons; his fleet, after the landing
of the Romans, was of no farther ſervice to him
for preventing an invafion; and he was defeated
and killed by Afclepiodotus, a general officer
under Conftantius. The reft of the hiſtory of
Conftantius, at that time, is foreign to this
work.
Upon the divifion of the empire between the
two Cæfars, after the refignations of Dioclefian
and Maximian, Britain fell to the lot of Con-
ftantius. It is highly probable that Caraufius
was fo far from being a free-booter, as he is re-
preſented by the Roman hiftorians, that he in-
troduced feveral arts among the Britons, by
means of the Franks, and other foreigners,
whom he took into his pay; becauſe Conftan-
tius, at the time of his acceffion, found Britain
fo much improved, that he made it the feat of
empire, and is faid to have taken a Britiſh lady,
the famous Helena, to be the partner of his bed.
What the fituation of the Caledonians and Picts
was during the reigns of Caraufius and Alectus,
is uncertain; but there is great reafon to be-
lieve,
and merits.
80
HISTORY
THE
lieve, that they had extended themſelves to the
fouthward of Adrian's prætenture. It is more
than probable, that Conftantius undertook an
expedition against them; but we are igno-
rant of its particulars, except that he re-
inforced the garrifons upon the frontiers *,
and then eſtabliſhed a general peace. Thus we
may prefume, that the Caledonians and Picts
were in poffeflion of all the country of the
Meata; unleſs (which is highly improbable)
the garrifons mentioned by Eufebius were
thofe belonging to the prætenture of Urbicus.
The peace between him and the Caledonians
was fomewhat difturbed upon the arrival of
his fon Conftantine at York, which happened
but a fhort time before the death of Conftan-
tius. The firſt care of Conſtantine, after his ac-
ceffion to his father's empire, was to repel the
inroads of the Caledonians; but, contrary to the
maxims of the preceding emperors (his father
in particular) he withdrew the Roman garri-
fons from the frontiers. We have already given
our opinion, which is confirmed by events, that
the Roman prætentures were huge magnificent
erections, but never proved of any effectual fer-
vice againſt the Caledonians and Picts: it is
however probable, that Conftantine ftill left one
or two garriſons upon the frontiers. He cer-
tainly added to the three divifions of Southern
* See Eufebius.
Britain,
OF SCOTL A N D.
81
Britain, that of the Maxima Cæfarienfis. Accord-
ing to fome antiquaries, this divifion included,
befides the northern counties of England, the
whole country of the Meata; and if fo, the
prætenture of Antoninus, or Urbicus, muft have
been the boundary of the Roman empire in
Britain, towards the north, at the time of Con-
ftantine's death: but we know of no medals,
infcriptions, or ftones, relating to Conftantine,
which confirm this conjecture: though we are
far from affirming that fuch may not have been
diſcovered. During thofe tranfactions Crathi-
linth died, after a reign of twenty-four years,
about the year 313.
the Scots,
The hiftory of Scotland, at this period, is Origin of
again corroborated by the Roman and foreign
writers. We have no reaſon to doubt, that,
during Dioclefian's perfecution, great numbers
of Chriftians took refuge among the Caledo-
nians and Picts; and that, before that time, the
Scots were actually fettled in Britain. Hiftori-
ans and antiquaries have given themſelves great
trouble concerning the origin of the name of
Scots, and the country from whence they came.
I think the enquiry is not deferving the pages
it has employed, and that the difpute has hi-
therto been mif-ftated. I have no manner of
difficulty in admitting with bishop Stillingfleet,
and the moſt rational antiquaries, that the word
Scot is no other than the word Scyt, or Scythi-
an, the native country of many people. I am,
VOL. I.
how-
M
82
HISTORY
THE
however, of opinion that they quitted (but at
what period, we are entirely ignorant) their ori-
ginal feats in feveral bands, and at feveral times;
that they marched, or failed, in feparate bodies,
into various countries (for that the northern ná-
tions had then a rude navigation is unqueftion-
able); that wherever they went they were called
Scots, or Scyts; that their chief fettlements
were in Spain and Ireland; and that confider-
able bodies of them landed on the weftern
coafts of Scotland: but I fee no reaſon for
believing, that they were fent over thither from
Ireland. It is, on the contrary, highly pro-
bable that the Irifh coafts, immediately op-
pofite to Scotland, were peopled from thence
by the Guydhels, or whoever were the old in-
habitants of thofe parts, for this plain and
natural reaſon, becaufe the country of Ireland
is, there, a far more inviting foil, than the
oppofite coafts of Scotland *. Add to this, that
Carrickfergus in Ireland, may be eafily feen
from Scotland; that a fmall boat can row
over to it in three or four hours; and confe-
quently, that it has been always acceffible to the
rudeft navigation. Such, abſtracted from the
wild dreams of the Scotch writers concerning
Gathælus and Scota, a daughter of Pharaoh,
is the moft probable account of the origin of the
Scots, and the beſt adapted to remove the dif-
Į
* See Sir William Petty's Political Anatomy of Ireland, p. 103.
Lond. Edit. 1691.
ficulties
OF SCOTLAND.
83
ficulties which occur among antiquaries and old
hiftorians. As to arguments drawn from a fimi-
larity of languages, they prove nothing more
than that the language of all thofe ancient nations
was the fame, that is, Celtic; and that their
words, to this day, retain an affinity; but of
this matter we have already treated.
adventurers,
Upon the whole, I am warranted in fuppof- who were
ing that the country now called Scotland, at
the time I treat of, was inhabited by diffe-
rent nations; that the Caledonians were the
aboriginal natives; that the Guydhelians were
the defcendants of the old Britons, whom
the Belgic Britons forced northwards before
the defcent of Julius Cæfar upon the island;
that the Picts, who lived in Scotland, were the
defcendants of thofe Belgic Britons; that the
Scots were adventurers, who originally came
from the northern countries; and that more po-
lite nations termed them Scythians, becauſe of
their uncouth, barbarous appearance; from
whence the Britons first named them Skuits,
and the Romans, from them, called them
Scoti. That a colony of thofe Skuits, or Scots,
might be brought under Miletius, or fome
other leader, from Spain to Ireland, where they
fettled, from whence Ireland formerly had
the name of Scotia, by no means claſhes with
my account. The truth is, antiquaries have be-
wildered themſelves in their conjectures and
M 2
dif-
84
HISTORY
THE
Fincor-
machi.
difputes, by not attending to the univerfality
of the Celtic language.
Though we have fuppofed the Scots, at this
time, to have inhabited the weſtern parts of
Scotland, yet I am far from thinking, that par-
ties of them might not have landed on other
parts of the coafts; and it feems to be more
than probable, that about the year 330, they
might have found means to collect themfelves
into one body, fo as to make head againſt the
Romans. I cannot even perceive any abſurdity
in thinking, that many of them, before their
arrival in Scotland, might have ſerved as mer-
cenaries in the frequent wars which then de-
folated the empire. It is well known, the
Roman armies, at that time, were compofed of
difciplined provincials and barbarians; and that
no fet of adventurers could ever be without
employment in the field. The ſuperiority
which the Scots foon acquired, and afterwards.
maintained, over the Picts and Caledonians,
though, probably, greatly inferior in numbers
to both, render this opinion the more pro-
bable.
The fucceffor affigned to Crathilinth by the
Scotch writers is Fincormach, who is reprefent-
ed as performing many glorious exploits againſt
the Romans, and as a prince of great Chriftian
piety. Conftantine died in the year 337; and
we know little or nothing from the Roman hif-
torians
OF SCOTLAN D.
85
•
torians of the affairs of Britain for fome years af-
ter his death. According to the Scotch and Bri-
tifh hiftorians, Trahern, brother to the emprefs
Helena, was left by Conſtantine his lieutenant in
Britain; and defeated Octavius, whom the South
Britons had chofen for their king. Octavius, af-
ter his defeat, fled to Fincormach, from whom
Trahern demanded him. Fincormach had fpirit
enough, not only to refufe to give Octavius up,
but to raiſe an army to reftore him to his
throne; which he actually did, after defeating
Trahern, and forcing him to fly to Gaul. We
are told that Octavius, in return for Fincor-
mach's fervices, ceded to him the counties of
Cumberland and Weftmoreland; by which,
perhaps, we are to underſtand the country of
the Meatæ, Octavius foon repented of his ge-
neroſity; but as he was preparing to diſpoſſeſs
Fincormach of his new acquifition, Trahern re-
turned at the head of twenty thouſand men,
and defeated Octavius, who fled to Norway.
Upon the death of Trahern, he mounted his
throne a third time, and ever after lived upon
amicable terms with the Scots and the Picts;
the name of the Caledonians being now almoft
difufed. Fincormach is faid to have died in
358. Whatever truth may be in the above re-
lation, it is certain, that under the emperor
Conftans, the nations to the north of the Ro-
man prætentures made fo confiderable an impref-
fion upon South Britain, that he was obliged
to
86
HISTORY
THE
Romach.
Eneas.
Fethel-
mach.
to go over in the middle of winter to fupprefs
them. He was attended by his brother Con-
ftantius. Whether they were fuccefsful, does
not appear, which gives fome countenance to the
Scotch accounts of this period. They are, in-
deed, omitted by Buchanan, which is the more
extraordinary, as they arc admitted by For-
dun.
Three coufin germans, begotten by three
brothers of Crathilinth, whofe names were Ro-
mach, Fethelmach, and Angus, or Æneas, dif-
puted for the crown after the death of Fincor-
mach; though he left two minor fons, Ethod
and Eugene, who were carried to the Ifle of
Man, then fubject to the crown of Scotland.
Romach being defcended from the elder bro-
ther, was favoured by the Picts, mounted the
throne, and forced the other two competitors
to leave the kingdom: but proving a tyrant, his
nobles put him to death, and, by way of deri-
fion, carried his head about upon a pole. His
death was reſented by Nectan, king of the Picts,
his kinſman, who being defeated by Æneas, this
laft fucceeded Romach. Nectan, however, again
took the field, and, after a bloody battle, Æneas
being defeated and killed, was fucceeded by
Fethelmach, the third competitor above-men-
tioned, who ravaged the counties of Fife and
Angus, part of the Pictiſh dominions, and killed
their king; but was himſelf afterwards ftabbed
by his harper, who had been fuborned for that
pur-
OF SCOTLAND.
87
purpoſe by the Picts. Fethelmach was fuc-
ceeded by Eugene the firft, fon of Fincor- Eugene L
mach. Under him, the Roman and Pictiſh
forces were united againſt the Caledonians and
Scots. The name of the Pictish king was
Herguft, and that of the Roman præfect Maxi-
mus. The Roman and Pictish forces joined
againft Eugene, whom they defeated in the
county of Galloway; but Maximus, unable to
improve his victory, by being obliged to return
to the fouth, where an infurrection had happen-
ed, feparated from the Picts, who were there-
upon defeated by the Scots. Next year, Maxi-
mus, whofe fecret intention was to root out
both the Scots and Picts, marched against the
former, on pretence of revenging the wrongs
done by them to the latter. The Scots, ſeeing
their extermination was intended, brought in-
to the field, not only the men capable of bear-
ing arms, but their women likewife.
In an
engagement which enfued, they would have
beaten the Pics and Britons, had not the latter
been fupported by the diſciplined Romans; but
Eugene being killed, with the greateſt part of
his nobility, the Scots were completely defeat-
ed, the furvivors reduced to a ſtate of flavery;
and finally expelled the country. Some of
them took refuge in the Ebude iflands, and
others in Scandinavia and Ireland. From
thence they made frequent defcents upon Scot-
land, with good, bad, and indifferent fuccefs.
Maxi-
88
THE HISTORY
Maximus afterwards affumed the imperial
dignity; but was killed in Italy. The Britons
chofe Conftantine to fucceed him; and upon
his death Gratian, who being likewiſe killed,
Victorinus was fent as proprætor from Rome,
to govern Britain. The Picts had hitherto ap-
peared as allies of the Romans; but Victorinus
commanded them to adopt the Roman laws,
and to chufe no king who was not fent them
from Rome. The Picts looking upon thofe in-
junctions as tending to a ftate of flavery, re-
pented of their having contributed to the ex-
pulfion of the Scots, who had made ſeveral un-
fucceſsful attempts to reſettle themſelves.
Durftus, fon of Herguft the Pictifh king, re-
belled againſt the Romans, but was defeated,
and ſent priſoner to Rome. The royal family
of Scotland at that time refided in Denmark.
The heads of it were Ethod, and his fon Erth :
both of them died in exile; but the latter mar-
ried a Daniſh princefs, by whom he had a fon,
Fergus II. Fergus, who followed the fortunes of Alaric
the famous Goth, and was prefent at the fack
of the city of Rome in the year 410, by the nor-
thern barbarians. Here the firft divifion of our
hiſtory of Scotland ends; but we muſt preſerve
our propoſed method, by accompanying it with
what we learn from the Romans.
Magnentius was, by the Roman Britons, de-
clared emperor in oppofition to Conftantius,
the furviving fon of Conftantine the Great.
The
OF SCOTLAN D.
89
•
The father of Magnentius was a Briton, and his
claim was favoured by Gratianus Funarius, the
imperial general upon the iſland; but, after a
difpute of three years, Magnentius was fo much
reduced that he killed himſelf at Lyons in
France. Conftantius becoming thereby the fole
poffeffor of the empire, fent over one Paul, a
Spaniſh notary, as an inquifitor, to confifcate the
eftates of fuch Britons who had joined Mag-
nentius. Paul proceeding with great feverity in
the exerciſe of this infamous office, was op-
poſed by one Martin, a generous Roman, who
attempted to kill him; but miffing his blow, he
plunged his fword into his own bofom. The
cruelties and rapacioufnefs of Paul had then no
check; however, in the time of Julian the Apof-
tate, he met with a deſerved fate, by being burnt
alive. All this time the Northern Britons were
continuing their ravages to the fouth of the Ro-
man prætentures. Julian fent over Lupicinus,
an abandoned monfter of avarice and cruelty,
to reſtrain them; but, though he landed with
a large army, compofed of different nations, he
performed nothing memorable. Alypius is the
next Roman governor we meet with in Britain;
and when Valentinian came to the imperial
throne, the Roman intereft in Britain was al-
moſt extinguiſhed by the irruptions of the nor-
thern nations. They defeated and killed Nec-
toridus, count of the fea-coaft, one of the great-
eft men under the Roman government, and Bu-
VOL. I.
N
lehobaudes,
Ji
THE HISTORY
lehobaudes, another general of great diftinction.
Valentinian fent Severus to repel the invaders,
and he, being foon recalled, was fucceeded by
Jovinus. This laft, when he arrived, found
the Roman affairs fo defperate that he follicited
a fupply from the imperial court; and Theodo-
fius, efteemed the beſt general of the age,
was fent with a large army from the conti-
nent against the Picts, who appear to have
been, at this time, the leading people in the
north of Britain. They were divided into two
nations, the Dicaledonii and the Vecturiones,
who were no other than the fouthern and the
northern inhabitants. The former had been con-
verted to Chriſtianity by St. Ninian, a Briton,
and were ſeparated from the latter by the
Grampian mountains. For this information we
are indebted to the unexceptionable authorities
of Ammianus Marcellinus and the venerable
Bede. Mention is likewife made of the Atta-
cotti, a moft warlike race, who we believe, were
a tribe of Scythians or Scots, inhabiting Caith-
nefs and the northern counties; and even the
Scots are mentioned as making war at this time
upon the Romans.
When Theodofius landed, he found the Ro-
man empire in Britain in a manner cooped up
in the fouthern parts; the Picts and the Scots
having penetrated almoft as far as the Britannia
Prima, which lay to the fouth of London. The
northern invaders being chiefly intent upon
plun-
OF SCOTLAND.
91
plunder, and, as we may fuppofe, poorly difci-
plined, it was no difficult matter for ſuch a gene-
ral as Theodofius, at the head of a numerous
army, to repel them. He formed his troops in-
to three diviſions; and, having ftript the inva-
ders of their plunder, reftored it to the ori-
ginal proprietors. He then returned to Lon-
don, to confult in what manner the Reman in-
tereſt could be revived and preferved. This he
found a far more difficult confideration than he
had foreſeen. The Caledonians and Picts had
infpired their fouthern brethren with a ſpirit of
revolt; and the accounts which the Roman ge-
neral received of their courage and fiercenefs,
gave him every thing to apprehend, if he fhould
receive the leaft check in the field. It was, how-
ever, neceffary for him to drive the northern
invaders beyond the prætentures; accordingly
Theodofius, committing the charge of the civil
affairs to a Roman lawyer, and the military to
one Dulcitius, took the field, and with great
difficulty forced his enemies to the north of
Adrian's wall; and, at laſt, compelled them to
agree to a peace. He then applied himſelf to the
ftrengthening of the frontiers, which he found in
a moft miferable fituation. The Roman hiftorian
is lavish in his praiſes of the care Theodofius
took to repeople the cities, and recruit the gar-
rifons, that lay towards the North. He obferved.
that the prætentures were an infignificant barrier
againſt the northern nations; and he, therefore,
erected
N 2
7
92
HISTORY
THE
erected into a feparate province (which, from
the name of the emperor Valens, was called
Valentia) all the lands lying between the
prætentures of Adrian and Urbicus, and
which is known by the name of the country of
the Meatæ. This meaſure was founded on
found policy; as we may well ſuppoſe that the
province was, in a manner, new-peopled by
Roman fubjects. In fact, Theodofius entirely
altered and regulated the fyftem of the Roman
government in Britain, by reducing it to a re-
gular order.
This appears by the celebrated Notitia,
published by Pancirollus, which contains a
lift of the civil and military officers of the Ro-
man empire in Britain, and was probably writ-
ten in the time of Theodofius the Younger;
but the particulars are foreign to this hiftory, as
the eſtabliſhment was confined to South Bri-
The Areani. tain. Mention is made of the Areani, a ſet of
men employed as lookers - out upon the præ-
tenture, and whoſe buſineſs it was to give
warning of the motions of the northern nations.
Thefe not only neglecting their duty, but even
confederating with the enemy, Theodofius
moved them from their poſts, and then re-
turned to the continent with as great a cha-
racter as any of the ancient Romans ever bore,
Upon the whole, there is reaſon to believe this
campaign of Theodofius in Britain to have
been the most glorious of any made by the Ro-
mans
¿
OF
SCOTLAND.
93
mans fince the days of Agricola. That the
Scots were then fettled in the northern parts of
the iſland, appears unquestionably from the
teftimony of Claudian, and other writers. It
feems likewife certain, that Theodofius carried
his arms into lerne, the inhabitants of which
he fubdued but antiquaries are divided in
opinion, whether by that Ierne was fignified
Ireland, or Strathern, which lies on the banks
of the river Ierne, or Ern, in Scotland.
point has been warmly agitated between the
Scotch and English antiquaries. For my own
part, I can fee no acquifition gained by the
Scots, either in point of antiquity or dignity, in
admitting that their forefathers had the honour
of being put to the fword by the Romans. Nei-
ther is it very eafy to aſcertain the glory which
can refult to England, by fuppofing that the
Romans carried their victorious arms into Ire-
land.
The
The brave Theodofius was fucceeded by Fra-
omarius, as legate of Britain; but we know lit-
tle or nothing of his exploits there. The em-
peror Gratian made the younger Theodofius,
fon to the conqueror of the Picts, his affociate
in the empire. Maximus, a general of great
merit, reſenting the preference given to Theo-
dofius, affumed the imperial purple in Bri-
tain; and his ufurpation falls in with the
period which the most authentic accounts of
the
94
HISTORY
THE
the Scots fix as the commencement of their
monarchy.
We
To conclude, the reader is to judge for him-
felf as to the credit due to the narrative which
I have taken from the Scotch hiftorians. It is
not, I acknowledge, eafy to aſcertain the au-
thorities upon which Boece founds his hif-
tory; but I dare not reject the whole. Some
part of it may be true, becauſe it is countenan-
ced by Roman and co-temporary writers.
know of no difability that the inhabitants
of the northern parts of the iſland, who had
fo great an intercourſe with the Romans, were
under, from recording the actions of their
own times nor do we think that the high
antiquities of many countries, which have been
adopted by hiftory, reft upon a more folid
foundation than that of the Scots. The proba-
bility of the facts recorded, is, perhaps, the
ſtrongeſt evidence which can be brought, that
the hiſtory of the firſt forty kings, here given, is
the compofition of later times; becauſe thoſe
coined in more early ages, teem with marvellous
and miraculous incidents.
A GE-
A
GENERAL HISTORY
O F
SCOTLAND.
BOOK THE SECOND.
From the Eſtabliſhment of that Monarchy,
under FERGUS, the Son of ERTH,
to the Death of KENNETH MAC-
ALPIN, in 855.
N &ceptionable
ENNIUS, the oldeft and most unex-
ceptionable hiftorian of Britiſh affairs,
as confined to this iſland, gives fufficient
evidence that the Irish and the Britiſh Scots
were a diftinct people, while the iſland was un-
der the power of the Romans; and this, we
think, admits of no doubt. The teftimonies
produced by the Scots for their antiquities as
high as the year of our Lord 400 (though fall-
ing far fhort of their pretended antiquity) are
full and ftrong, becauſe they are taken from
records which time has providentially preferved
from the ravages which their archives under-
went
Irish and
Scots diffe-
rent people.
96
HISTORY
THE
Maximus.
went from Edward the firſt of England. From
them it appears, that fuch a perfon as Fergus,
the fon of Erth, was king of the Scots at the
period I have mentioned; but who this Fergus
was, or what was the extent of his dominions,
are matters of hiſtorical difquifition; nor can
they be cleared up but by probable deductions.
Maximus, whom I have already mentioned,
having affumed the imperial purple in Britain,
grew fo popular by the checks which he gave
to the Scots and Picts, that he carried over
with him to the continent a confiderable army
of Britons, with which he fubdued and killed
Gratian. Were I to hazard a conjecture, I fhould
be of opinion, that Maximus found means to
tranſport with him a large body of the Scots, who
were then confeffedly the moft warlike part of
the inhabitants of Caledonia; and that this
gave rife to the fuppofed evacuation of Britain
by the Scots, at this time. Be that as it may,
it feems to be certain, that upon Maximus
leaving the island, the northern inhabi-
tants renewed their incurfions, and again
pierced the prætentures, about the time that
Theodofius defeated Maximus. When the lat-
ter was dead, the Britons who ferved under him
difperfed themfelves, and the bulk of them fet-
tled in Armorica in France, now called, fron
them, Britany. Thofe facts being eſtabliſhed,
we can ſee no manner of abfurdity in fuppofing,
that the Scots, who ſerved under Maximus, fe-
parated
Miller joulp.
Ⅲ。
FERGUS II.
3
{
1
}
OF SCOTLAND.
97
parated themfelves from the Southern Britons,
and returned to the iſland. The oldeft monument
we now have, previous to the deftruction of
their archives by Edward the firft, expreſsly
mentions Fergus as reigning in Argylefhire;
and from his time, the fucceffion of the Scotch
kings is uninterrupted. We fhall, however,
confiftently with our plan, relate his hiftory, as
given by Scotch writers.
We have already ſeen how the Scots were Fergus II.
expelled the ifland at the inftigation of the
Picts; but we are told by their hiftorians, that
Maximus would willingly have protected them,
which is a ſtrong confirmation of our conjec-
ture that he carried numbers of them over to
the continent. Upon the death of Alaric, Gal-
la Placidia, fiſter to the emperor Honorius, per-
fuaded Adaulphus, who had fucceeded Alaric,
to ſend Fergus with a body of troops to Bri-
tain; and he accordingly arrived there in 421.
He was immediately joined by the Picts, who
being now fenfible of their impolitic animofities
againſt the Scots, joined with them in attack-
ing the Britons and in this the Scotch hifto-
ry is fupported by the Roman. The younger
Theodofius having left his empire to his fons
Arcadius and Honorius, Britain fell under
the dominion of the latter, who employed the
famous Stilico as his general; by whofe means
the Scots and Picts were driven to the north
of the prætentures. Some have thought that
VOL. I.
Stilico
O
9.8
THE HISTORY
Stilico never was in Britain; but I am inclined
to the oppoſite opinion; tho' it is certain, that in
his time Nictorinus likewife commanded there.
The following paffage, in Claudian, gives ſome
countenance to the Scots landing in Argyle
from Ireland:
"Me quoque vicinis pereuntem gentibus, inquit,
Munivit Stilico, totam quum Scotus Hybernem
Movit, et infefto fpumavit remige Thetis :
Illius effectum curis, ne bella timerem.
Scotica, nec Pictum timerem, nec littore tote
Profpicerem dubiis venientem Saxona ventis."
TRANSLATED.
"Me when of peace a barbarous foe bereav'd,
His cares protected, and his courage ſav'd :
Propp'd by his hand, when Ireland's hoftile tide
Bore all her youth to wound my fencelefs fide;
Fearleſs, the fight of Scots and Picts I bore,
And all the ſwarms of Saxons on my fhore.”
This tranquility of Britain was of no long
continuance; for the progrefs which the Goths
made in Italy obliged Stilico to recal the Ro-
man troops, who had repelled the Scots and
Picts. No fooner were thofe orders executed
than the fame incurfions were renewed; and
we learn from Zofimus the hiftorian, that the
emperor Honorius wrote a letter to the pro-
vinciated Britons, exhorting them to exert their ·
own courage in repelling the northern invaders.
The
OF SCOTLAND.
99
in Britain.
The Britons, on receiving this letter, confidered Revolutions
it as their emancipation from the Roman govern-
ment, and immediately raiſed one Marcus to the
fovereignty. Marcus being in a fhort time put
to death, was fucceeded by Gratian, who expe-
riencing the like fate, Conftantine, a brave able
general, affumed the purple. This prince carried
an army of Britons over to the continent; but
he was put to death in the year 411. In the
mean while, the Britons being deſerted by their
new-raiſed emperor, returned to their duty un-
der Honorius, and humbly applied to him for
afliftance againſt the Scots and Picts. A legion
was accordingly fent them about the year 414,
who fupported the Roman intereft till the year
419, and then they were recalled. Thofe events
bring our hiſtory near the time fixed by the
Scots for the eſtabliſhment of their monarchy,
under Fergus, the fon of Erth. The Roman
government was, at that time, fo preffed by the
Goths and other barbarous nations, that the
emperors could not conveniently afford the Bri-
tons farther fuccours; but they exhorted them
to repair, and garrifon the prætentures. Theſe
were but feeble barriers againſt the Scots, who
were furniſhed with fmall fhips, in which they
made frequent defcents on South Britain.
Again the Britons made the moft lamenta-
ble complaints to the Roman emperor, and
Gallio, of Ravenna, was fent to their relief.
This general adviſed them to give up to the
02
Scots
100
HISTORY
THE
Graham, or
Græme.
Piflrels of
the Britons,
Scots all the territory to the north of Adrian's
wall; and after giving them directions how to
fortify it, the Romans took their final leave of
the island. We are therefore to return to the
Scotch hiftorians.
One Graham, or Græme, is affigned as the
general and father-in-law of Fergus, and is faid
to have been by birth a Dane. I take the name
to be the common defignation of the northern
tribes, who lived in tents without any fixed ha-
bitation; and the Græmes are, even in the reign
of Edward the fixth, mentioned in the English
records as a people who lived between the two
prætentures. All our writers agree that Graham
was a profeft enemy to the provinciated Britons,
and demolished great part of one of the præten-
tures, which, from him, is called Graham's-
Dike. Three independent kings are mentioned
as reigning at this time in Britain: Fergus,
king of the Scots; Durftus, king of the Picts;
and Dioneth, a Britiſh prince. The two former
are faid to have fallen in battle, againſt the Ro-
mans, in 430, about five years before the Ro-
mans evacuated the island. In all this narrative,
there is no ftriking incongruity between the
Roman and Scotch hiftorians.
Fergus left behind him three fons, Eugene,
Dongard, and Conftantius, who, being minors,
were put under the guardianship of Graham.
This nobleman retaining his implacable enmity
to the Britons, brought into the field all the Scots
who
t
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Adam Smith sc.
EUGEN.V
OF SCOTLAND.
ΙΟΣ
who were capable of bearing arms; and the
Britons were ſo much diftreft, that they appli-
ed to Etius the Roman general in Gaul, for
affiftance. Their complaints were extremely pa-
thetic. They reprefented that their diftreffes
were brought upon them by the aids they had
fent to the Romans upon the continent, which
had fo greatly impoverished their country, and
occafioned fuch a ſcarcity of hands, that they
were then afflicted by a famine. "The barba-
rians (fay they, in their letter to Etius) drive
us to the fea; the fea repels us upon the barba-
rians: thus, we have the alternative of two deaths,
either of being put to the fword, or periſhing
in the waves, without any profpect of relief."
Ætius gave them no fuccour; but they obtain-
ed a ſhort reſpite from the famine and mortality
which then reigned among their enemies, as well
as themſelves. The truth is, the Romans had
kept the Britons, for fome years before their
departure out of the iſland, in fuch a ftate of
fubjection, that they were ignorant of all the
arts of life, and even of agriculture.
ther their enemies were lefs barbarous, admits
of difpute; but they certainly were more brave.
They carried with them hooks and grappling-
irons, with which they pulled the unhappy
Britons from their walls, part of which they
thirled or perforated. By this time Eugene, Eugene,
the eldest fon of Fergus the fecond (as the Scots
commonly call him) having, in conjunction
Whe-
with
102
HISTORY
THE
A revolu-
tion.
with the king of the Picts, reduced the Britons
to the moſt deplorable condition, granted them
peace upon the following terms: "That they
ſhould not fend for any Roman or other foreign
army to affift them; that they ſhould not ad-
mit them, if they came voluntarily or unfoli-
cited, nor allow them to march through their
country; that the enemies of the Scots and Picts
fhould be theirs alfo; that, without their per-
miffion, they ſhould not make peace or war,
nor ſend aid to any who defired it; that the
limits of their kingdom fhould be the river
Humber; that they fhould alſo make preſent
payment of a certain ſum of money, by way of
mulct, to be divided among the foldiers, which
alſo was to be paid yearly by them; and that
they ſhould give an hundred hoftages, fuch as
the confederate kings ſhould approve of.”
Upon Eugene's return to his own country, a
great revolution happened in the ſouthern part
of Britain. A number of petty tyrants fet up
for themſelves; of whom Vortigern proved the
moft fortunate. Being a pufillanimous, tyranni-
cal prince, and finding himſelf threatened with
a freſh invafion from the North, he invited the
Saxons to his affiftance. The hiftory of the
Saxons, who afterwards fubdued all England,
is foreign to this work. It is fufficient to ſay
here, that they were attended by the Jutes and
the Angles, two Daniſh tribes, from the latter
of whom England has her name. This happen-
ed
!
5. Taylor jõulp.
DONGARDUS.
OF SCOTLAN D.
103
ed in the year 458, and the fact is recorded by
Bede, who lived in 677; but the hiftory of
Vortigern is confufed and uncertain. There
is reafon to believe that the Scots and Picts
had made, at that time, a great progrefs in
South Britain; and that a battle was fought be-
tween theſe nations on the one fide, and the Sax-
ons and Britons on the other, near Stamford, in
Lincolnshire. The Scots were armed with darts
and lances, and their enemies with axes and
ſcymetars, by which the latter obtained the vic-
tory. As to Eugene, it is uncertain whether he
was drowned in the Humber, or died a natural
death; but it is univerfally allowed that he
was a moft excellent prince, and reigned thirty
years.
Eugene was fucceeded by his brother Don- Dongard
gard, a prince likewiſe of great merit, who en-
deavoured to propagate the Chriftian religion in
his dominions, when they were invaded by the
Britons in the fifth year of his reign. Accord-
ing to fome hiftorians, he and his allies, the
Picts, fought a great battle on the banks of the
Humber with the Britons, in which the latter
loft fixteen thousand men, and the former four-
teen thoufand, together with their king Don-
gard. Buchanan makes no mention of this bat-
tle, and Fordun leaves it uncertain. It feems
to be an undoubted fact, that Vortigern the Bri-
tish prince was perfuaded to call in an addi-
tional fupply of Saxons to his aid; and that they
made
104
THE HISTORY
State of
Britain.
made a defcent upon Scotland, and afterwards
fettled in Northumberland, from whence they
drove the Scots. Hengift the Saxon leader, be-
ing preffed by the Britons under Vortimer, fon
to Vortigern, clapped up a peace with the Scots
and Picts, and by their affiftance fought a
bloody, but indecifive battle, with the Britons,
in Kent, of which we find Hengift king in 458.
Next year another battle was fought near Folk-
ftone, and foon after Vortimer died. It does
not appear from the Saxon Chronicle (the moſt
authentic record we have of that age) that the
Scots and Picts were prefent at the battle of
Folkſtone; but it gives us room to think that
the Britons were defeated in both engagements;
and we are told by the English ecclefiaftical
hiftorians, that the Picts had joined the Saxons,
and were prefent at the battle in which the lat-
ter were defeated by the Britons under biſhop
Germanus. The death of Dongard is fixed to
the year 465. At this time Ambrofius was king
of the Southern Britons; but we learn from hif-
tory, that the Scots and the Picts now purſued
oppofite interefts. The former were the allies
of the Britons, as the latter were of the Saxons.
Ochta, Hengift's fon, and Abifa, his nephew,
brought from Germany the new recruits who
peopled the northern parts of England, and
were, at one time, in poffeffion of all the coun-
try of the Meatæ between the prætentures. Thus
this new colony ferved for a barrier to prevent
the
2
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A Bannerman palp:
CONSTANTINE,I.
OF SCOTLAND.
105
;
the Scots from penetrating to the affiftance of
the Britons. Though we are ignorant as to the
particulars, yet it is certain, that, at the time we
now treat of, the Meatæ had formed themſelves
into a kingdom, the capital of which was Al-
cluyd or Areclud, now Dumbarton. This king-
dom was called Regnum Cambrenfe, or Cum-
brenfe; but the frequent ravages of the Picts,
Scots, Caledonians, and Britons, feem to have
rendered their territory a ſcene of defolation,
and they were perpetually changing their maf-
ters. It is not improbable, that they at laſt
found their fafety in uniting under a leader,
whom they called their king; and that they
maintained a kind of independence, both upon
the Picts, Britons, and Saxons, fo late as the
time of the Norman invafion of England. Ma-
ny chartularies and lives of faints, written be-
fore that time, mention the names of their
kings, with a few incidents of their reigns;
and that the people were Britons appears from
their being called, in the year 875, Strath-clyde
Welch. We fhall have an opportunity of men-
tioning the time and manner in which they be-
came fubject to the Scots.
Conftan-
Dongard was fucceeded by his brother, Con-
ftantine the firft; and here it is fafeft for us to tine.
rely upon the Britiſh and Saxon hiftorians. Am-
brofius was well ferved by the Scots, to whom he
gave a fettlement between the two prætentures.
It is highly probable, and it appears indeed almoft
VOL. I.
P
con
106
HISTORY
THE
confirmed by hiftory, that the Southern Britons
beheld this fettlement with a jealous eye, and
thought it an encroachment upon their coun-
trymen the Strath-clyde Welch, who were pent
up in Dumbarton, and the weſtern parts. They
accordingly prefented feveral remonftrances to
Ambrofius, who was, at laft, obliged to re-de-
mand the lands he had granted; but the Scots
were fo far from yielding to this requifition,
that they prepared to maintain their fettlement
by force of arms; and the terror of the Saxons,
then intimately connected with the Picts, had
fuch an influence on Ambrofius and the Britons,
that they confirmed their grant of the difputable
lands to the Scots, and entered into a freſh league
with them, which continued till the Saxons efta-
bliſhed their heptarchy in South Britain. We
are told by the fame authorities, that the Scots
proved of infinite fervice to the Britons on this
occafion; for being lightly armed, they were
more quick, both in their attacks and retreats,
than the Saxons, whoſe armour was heavy. All
the affiftance which the Scots afforded to their al-
lies could not, however, prevent the latter from
being at laſt ruined, by the freſh fhoals of Sax-
ons which every day poured in from the conti-
nent. As to Conftantine, his perfonal hiſtory
is very doubtful. Buchanan, after Bocce, repre-
fents him as a degenerated prince, and that his
fubjects rebelled against him, for having aban-
doned himself to every fpecies of luft and vice.
They
Bannerman fculp
CONGAL US.
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A Smith
CONGALLUS.
OF SCOTLAND.
107
They alfo cenfure him for making fome ceffions
to the Britons; and it is not improbable that he
might give up part of his territory upon the re-
eſtabliſhment of the late peace. Bosce particu-
larly mentions feveral caſtles ftanding upon the
river Humber; and fays, that one Dougal of
Galloway, who was undoubtedly a nobleman
of the Meatæ, preferved Conftantine from the
rage of his fubjects; but that he was afterwards
killed by a chief of the Ebuda Ifles, whoſe
daughter he had debauched. Fordun, whofe
authority is preferable to Boece and Buchanan,
takes no notice of Conftantine's vicious courfe
of life, and intimates that he died in peace in
479, after reigning twenty-two years.
•
We are told that Congal, fon of Dongard, Congal I.
who fucceeded Conftantine, was the true heir
to the crown; that he ratified the peace with
the Britons; and in conjunction with them
-carried on war againſt the Picts. He con-
quered the latter, but the former were van-
quifhed by the Saxons, notwithstanding the
moft vigorous efforts of the Scots to fupport
them. The incidents related of this prince by
Boece, are deftitute of all foundation in con-
temporary hiftories; neither is it ſafe to adopt
the fabulous accounts of fome authors concern-
ing the famous Britiſh worthy king Arthur. If
that hero actually invaded the Scotch territories,
and penetrated as far as Edinburgh (which we
have fome reafon to believe he did) it was, pro-
bably,
P 2
108
HISTORY
THE
Gonran.
Gildas the
Briton.
bably, in purſuit of the Picts, or their Saxon al-
lies, whom he defeated more than once in Lin-
colnshire: but the moft ancient hiftorians give no
countenance to an invaſion of Scotland by Ar-
thur; on the contrary, both William of Malm-
fbury, as well as the venerable Bede, mention
the Britons and Scots as making war upon the
Saxons and Picts. Upon the death of Congal,
in 501, he was fuccecded by his brother Gon-
ran, who had commanded a body of Scots
against the Saxons. In his time Uther Pendra-
gon is faid to have reigned over the Britons. Ac-
cording to Fordun, this prince attempted to
take Weftmoreland from the Scots; but was at
laft compelled, by the incurfions of the Saxons,
to renew the ancient league with Gonran, who
proved a virtuous prince, as well as great jufti-
ciary, and had credit enough to perſuade the king
of the Picts (named Lothus) to break his league
with the Saxons, who were now become too for-
midable to all the inhabitants of Britain. If we
may believe the Scotch writers, king Arthur,
the fucceffor of Uther Pendragon, owed his
principal victories to Gonran, who was mur-
dered, with his chief jufticiary Tonfet, at
Lochaber (Fordun fays, Innerlochy) by a High-
land chief, whom he had exafperated by his too
great feverity. Contemporary with Gonran was
Gildas the Briton, ſon to the king of the Mea-
tæ, and born at Dumbarton. His father's name
is faid, by fome writers, to have been Caunus,
and
5. Taylor feulp.
GORANUS.
?
7
1
A Imith
th joulp.
EUGENIUS I
D
OF SCOTLAND.
109
and by others Navus; and he was fucceeded by
his fon Hoel. The Scotch have, therefore, con-
fidered him as their countryman, though, I
think, with little propriety, unleſs they can
prove his father and brother to have been
Scotchmen, which I apprehend to be impoffible.
Gonran's death is fixed to the year 535, being
the thirty-fifth of his reign. He was buried
with his predeceffors in the iſland of Hy, now
called Icolmkill, and, according to Fordun,
within the church of St. Oran, or Owran.
Eugene the third, fon to Congal, fuccecued Eugene III,
his uncle Gonran. Though he was preffed by
his nobles to revenge his uncle's death, he not
only neglected their advice, but even took the
affaffin into his fervice and favour, which occa-
fioned his people to fufpect him of being privy
to the murder. It is furprizing, that neither
Boece or Buchanan take any notice of Fordun's
account of this reign. The laft-mentioned hifto-
rian tells us plainly, that Gonran was murder-
ed by Eugene, or Eothod Hebdir, his nephew,
who fucceeded him; and that Gonran's wife
fled to Ireland, with her two fons, Rogenan
and Aidan, where the remained during the
reigns of Eugene and his brother. Eugene,
like his predeceffors, affifted Arthur and, the
Britons againſt the Saxons; but could never be
perfuaded to encounter them in a pitched battle.
The hiftories of Scotland, at this period, teem
with the exploits of Arthur, and other Britiſh
kings;
ΙΙΟ
HISTORY
THE
Conval.
Kinnatil.
Aydan.
kings; but they are fo confuſed and interlarded
with the fictions of Geoffrey of Monmouth,
that we can affign them a very inconſiderable
degree of credit; tho' there is fufficient founda-
tion for the friendſhip we have recorded be-
tween the Britons and the Scots. Eugene the
third is reported to have died in 568, in the
thirty-third year of his reign, and is commend-
ed for many excellent civil inftitutions which
he introduced into Scotland. The famous St.
Mungo, or Kentigern, fo highly celebrated
in the ecclefiaftical hiftories of that time,
is thought to have been a natural fon of Eu-
gene, by a princefs, daughter to Lothus, king
of the Picts.
Eugene the third was fucceeded by his bro-
ther Conval, who is extolled at the mirror of all
princely qualities, chiefly, perhaps, on account
of his extravagant liberality to St. Columba,
and other prelates, who attended him from Ire-
land to Scotland. He died in 578, in the tenth
year of his reign, and was fucceeded by his
brother Kinnatil, who poffeffed a fimilar cha-
racter. As this prince did not reign much above
a year, ſome of the old hiftorians, according
to Buchanan, have not admitted him into
the lift of kings, and fuppofe that Conval was
fucceeded by Aydan.
This prince appears with diftinguiſhed luftre ·
in hiftory, his actions being recorded by the
Saxons, as well as Scots. The reader may re-
member
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5. Taylor feulj.
CONGALLUSI.
;
4
4
OF SCOTLAN D.
III
member that upon the death of Gonran, his
wife fled to Ireland with his two fons, of whom
this Aydan was the youngeft. The hiftory of
his acceffion to the throne would be too ridicu-
lous and trifling, was it not a pregnant inftance
of the impoftures practifed by the churchmen
of thoſe days in matters of ftate. St. Columba,
whom we have already mentioned, was not on-
ly the apoſtle of the Weſtern Scots, but the
firſt miniſter of their kings. Upon Aydan's re-
turn to Scotland, he put himſelf under the
tuition of the pious Columba, and refided in the
Hle of Hy; but as Aydan had an elder brother,
Rogenan, a miraculous interpofition was ne-
ceffary to aſcertain Aydan's right to the crown.
An angel accordingly appeared with a pellucid Pretended
book in his hand, in which Columba read an
order to himſelf that he fhould inaugurate Ay-
dan in the throne. The faint offering fome ob-
jections in favour of Rogenan, the angel cut
him with a whip, the mark of which was vifi-
ble all his life. Columba continuing refractory,
the flagellation was repeated for two nights.
At laſt the ſmart overcame his obftinacy; he
went over to Hy, where he ordained Aydan
king, by benediction and impofition of hands.
Columba could not have made a more fortunate
choice. Malgo, by fome called Magoclunus,
being then king of the Britons, renewed the
ancient league between his people and the
Scots; in confequence of which, Aydan com-
miracles
mitted.
112
HISTORY
THE
Affairs of
mitted the command of a body of auxiliaries,
who were to join Malgo, to his fon Griffin, and
his nephew, Brendin, king of Man. Being
joined by a body of Northern Britons, whom
I fufpect to have been the Cumbri, or the Mea-
tæ, they were attacked on their route by Cu-
tha, fon of Ceaulin the Saxon king, whom
they defeated; but were, in their turn, con-
quered by Ceaulin, who was marching againſt
them with another body of troops. This victo-
ry obliging the Britons to retire croſs the river
Severn, the Saxons took poffeffion of great part
of their dominions.
Cadwallo, Malgo's fucceffor, encouraged by
the Britons, the diffenfions which began to prevail among
the Saxon princes, to oppofe Ceaulin, was join-
ed by Ethelbert, king of Kent. Aydan being
required by Cadwallo to furnish his quota,
marched with an army to join him, which he
did at Cheſter. The Saxons, defpifing an
enemy whom they had fo lately repuifed, at-
tacked them at Wodenfburg, a fmall town in
Wiltſhire, where they were completely defeat-
ed, and Ceaulin loft not only the battle, but his
crown. Of the Scots, we are told, no more
than three hundred and three were killed.
and the
brians;
Edelfrid, king of the Northumbrian Saxons,
Northum efpoufed the cauſe of his Southern countrymen
againſt the Scots and Britons. Eleven years
after the defeat of Ceaulin, Aydan, jealous of
the growing power of this prince, invaded Nor-
thumber-
OF SCOTLAND.
113
thumberland; but while his troops were in-
tent upon plunder they were attacked at Deg-
ſaſtan, by the Saxons, and after a bloody
battle received fuch a complete overthrow,
as difabled them from giving any diſturbance
to the Saxons for many years after. Thus far
the Scotch hiſtory is in general corroborated by
Bede, and other Saxon authors. The more mo-
dern Scotch hiftorians, however, have intro-
duced a number of other particulars, unnoticed
even by Fordun. They tell us (and their ac-
count is partly confirmed by the Saxon writers)
that a quarrel happened, at a hunting-match,
between the Scots and Picts, which was accom-
modated by Columba; but that Brude, king of
the Picts, affifted Edelfrid with his troops at
the battle of Degfaftan, where it is certain, the
Saxon king loft his brother Theobald. Next and Gallo-
year Edelfrid, in conjunction with the Picts, in-
vaded Galloway, the inhabitants of which were,
from being allies, now become fubjects, to the
Scotch kings. Aydan marched to their affif-
tance, and repelled the invaders; but, after
fome other hoftilities, a truce of eleven years
was concluded. As fome of thofe accounts carry
marks of confuſion and modern impofture, it is
moft prudent to follow Fordun, Bede, and the
Saxon hiftorians. According to Fordun, Ay-
dan was fo deeply affected by his defeat at Deg-
faftan, that he died of grief at Kintire, when
he was almoft eighty years of age.
VOL. I.
Q
The
vidians.
114
STORY
HISTORY
THE
Kenneth
Kere.
The Scots, Northumbrians, and Britons, ſeem
to have been fo greatly weakened at this period,
that they gave each other no diſturbance during
the thort reign of Kenneth Kere, fon to Conval,
and the fucceffor of Aydan, who is faid by For-
dun to have reigned only three months. On
Eugene IV. his demife, in 606, Eugene the fourth, or Ethod'
Buyd, afcended the throne. The elevation of
this prince affords another proof of Columba's
influence in the affairs of government; for, ac-
cording to the above-mentioned author, he was
chofen king by the faint, though he was Ken-
neth's fourth fon, during the life-time of his elder
brothers, who were killed foon after in battle.
Before we take our leave of Aydan's family, we
think it neceſſary to obſerve, that an ingenious
critic has combated the chronology of Fordun,
becauſe he fixes the beginning of the reign of
Fergus, fon of Erth, to the year 403; and he en-
deavours to prove from records written before
the year 1291, now extant, that the fettlement
of Fergus was a hundred years later than the
before - mentioned writer has placed it. The
reader in the notes will find his reafons*, Up-
<<
on
* According to the genealogy of our kings received by
Fordun and all our other writers, there are but two generations,
or perfons, betwixt this Fergus and king Aydan, his great-
grand-child; to wit, Dongard, who was fon to Fergus; and
Gonran, who was fon to Dongard, and father to king Aydan.
Now, according to Fordun's account, Fergus began his reign
A. D. 403, and died A, D. 419; and king Aydan, his great-
grand-child, died A. D. 605; fo there would be only three gene-
rations
2. Tayler Soup.
EUGENE IV.
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;
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1
Bannerman
foulp.
KENETH I.
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OF
115
SCOTLAN D.
on the whole, the reign of Aydan, and the
rations to take up near two centuries, viz. one hundred and fixty-
eight years from the death of king Fergus, to that of king Aydan;
which, in the firſt place, would be againſt the common received
rule of counting three generations to one hundred years, or of
allowing thirty years to each generation: in the fecond place, it
would be abfolutely contrary to the experience of all that hath
ever happened in Scotland fince, where there have always been
in the genealogy of our kings, at least fix generations for every
two centuries. And from the death of king Aydan, A. D. 605,
till that of the late king James VII. A. D. 1701, there are thirty-
fix generations, and only one thouſand ninety-fix years, or about
eleven centuries, which is more than three generations for every
century: which fhews, that there can be no more than one hundred
years allowed for the three generations of Dongard, Gonran, and
of Aydan; and by confequence, that according to the genealogy
owned by all, as well as the fixed epoch of king Aydan's death,
A. D. 605, and conformable to the experience of all fucceeding
ages, the beginning of the reign of king Fergus II. can be placed
no higher than the beginning of the fixth century, or about the
year 500 of Chrift: but all this will appear by the Genealogical
Table fubjoined.
"It would feem that Fordun, or thoſe who furnished him
with memoirs, had been aware of this difficulty; and therefore,
to obviate it, or rather to hinder it from being taken notice
of, care is taken to intermix, with the real kings, in the inter-
val betwixt Fergus and Aydan, the names of three fupernu-
merary kings, befides one Kinatell, viz. Eugenius, Conftantin,
and Ethodius (of all whom there is not the leaft mention in the
more ancient chronicles or catalogues of our kings) and to each
of them are given long reigns, to help to fpin out the two centu-
ries; for which reafon, there are alfo feveral years added to the
reigns of fome of the real kings: but this cobweb device is eaſily
diffipated, and can be of no ufe to the purpoſe, as long as the
old genealogy (which could not be fo eaſily altered) remains ſtill
the fame, even in Fordun's account, and in that of all our wri-
ters; and king Aydan, being but in the third degree from king Fer-
gus, the intermixing thefe new kings, with the additional num-
ber of years of the reigns (which ferves only for a blind, that is
eaſily ſeen through) will in no manner mend the matter; and ſtill
the fame difficulty remains of making three generations fill up
two centuries, which in all fucceeding ages have required at
leaſt double that number of generations, as it were eaſy to prove
by induction, or example of every two ages or centuries fince
king Aydan's, till the prefent times.
σε Το
116
HISTORY
THE
time of his death, as we have fixed it, forms
an unquestionable period in the Scottish hifto-
ry.
"To render this yet more evident, there needs only to lay
afide the ſeventy-nine years of reign, which Fordun, or thoſe
that helped him with memoirs, thought fit to affign to the three
fupernumerary kings (Eugenius, Conftantin, and Ethodius) and
cut off the twenty-four years which they have added to length-
en the reigns of Fergus and Gonran beyond what the ancient
catalogues give them. Theſe two numbers of years (feventy-
nine and twenty-four) put together, make up above one hun-
dred years now retrenching them, and reckoning back from
king Aydan's death, A. D. 605 (which is a fixed epoch on which
all parties, Fordun as well as the others, agree) there will not
remain one full century from the death of king Aydan, A.D.
605, till the beginning of Fergus's reign, which therefore muft
neceffarily be placed after the year 500, or the beginning of the
fixth century, and about one hundred years after the year 403;
to which Fordun had fixed it.
"It is no leſs evident, by all the ancient abftracts of our chro-
nicles, written before the year 1291, that king Fergus's reign.
can be placed no higher than about the year 500; for according
to the three ancient catalogues of our kings, to wit, that of the
Chronica Regum Scotorum; that of the Register of St. An-
drew's; that of the Chronicle in Latin verfe, and thofe of Win-
ton and Gray, counting all the years of the king's reigns, from
the death of king Aydan, A. D. 605, up to the beginning of
king Fergus's reign, it will be found, according to thoſe chroni-
cles or catalogues, that the firft king Fergus amounts no higher
than to the year 503 for thefe catalogues or chronicles (allow-
ing a few faults in the numbers, ordinary to copyifts) bear una-
nimously that, 10 Fergus, fon of Erc, reigned three years; 20
Dongard, fon of Fergus, five years; 3° Congal, fon of Dongard,
twenty-four years; 4º Conran, fon of Dongard, twenty-two
years; 5° Conal, fon of Congal, fourteen years; 6º Aydan, fon
of Gonran, thirty-four years, and died A. D. 605. Now, count-
ing up the years of the reigns of theſe fix kings, they amount
to one hundred and two years, which being deduced from fix
hundred and five, the fixed epoch of the death of king Aydan,
there remain jutt five hundred and three, as another fixed
epoch of the beginning of the reign of king Fergus, fon of Erc;
and by conſequence of the monarchy of the Scots in Britain: and
this juft aufwers the calculation of the Irish chronicles (Üffer.
Brit. Eccleſ. Antiq. p. 320.) whoſe conformity in this, to the moſt
Ancient monuments that we have, mutually confirms one another.”
Innes's Crit. Effay, vol. II. p. 690.
GE-
OF SCOTLA N D.
117
GENEALOGICAL and CHRONOLOGICAL SERIES of the Kings of SCOTS,
from FERGUS, Son of ERC, to AYDAN, Son of GAVRAN,
According to more ancient MS. Chronicles, or Catalogues.
Began to
reign.
A. D.
Order of Succeffion.
503
Years.
Reigned
on
A.D. Generations.
506 Fergus
Began to
reign.
Died
Series of
A. D.
403
5
511 Dongard
I
419
24.
535
452
557 Gabhran
2
457
$
557
14
57
571 6 Aydan, ſon of Gabhran,
34
605 Aydan
3
1 Fergus, ſon of Erc,
506 2 Dongard, ſon of Fergus,
511 3 Congal, ſon of Dongard,
535 4 Gabhran, ſon of Dongard, 22
5 Conal, fon-of Congal,
479
According to John Fordun, and his followers.
Order of Succeffion.
■ Fergus, ſon of Erch,
Years.
Reigned
Died
Series of
A. D. Generations.
419 Fergus
16
34
452
5
457 Dongard 1
2. Eugenius, ſon of Fergus,
3 Dongard, ſon of Fergus,
4 Conftantin, fon of Fergus, 22
5 Congal, fon of Dongard, 22
6 Gonran, ſon of Dongard, 34
535 7 Ethod, fon of Congal,
958 8 Conál, fon of Congal,
$67 9 Kynatel, fon of Congal,
569 10 Aydan, fon of Gonran,
501
23
10
35
months.
479
501
535 Gonran
558
567
13 569
2
605 Aydan 3
118
THE HISTORY
Remark.
ry. We' cannot difmifs this doubtful part of the
Scottiſh annals without obferving, what has
been omitted by the antiquaries of that nation,
that Nennius, the oldeft of the Britiſh hiſto-
rians, who has been confounded with Gildas
himſelf, has informed us, that he compiled his
hiſtory from the Roman annals, the Chronicles
of the Holy Fathers, the writings of the Scots
and Engliſh, and from the tradition of the
antient Britons, which had been reduced to
writing by many learned men and librarians,
and were then become very ſcarce, either thro'
frequent deaths, or the devaftations of war *.
This confirms my fufpicion, that the Scots (for
it will be proved hereafter that Nennius does.
not here mean the Irish) had certain records
from whence they tranfcribed their high anti-
quities, the veracity of which, however, I pre-
tend not to afcertain. If we may credit Bucha-
nan, who copies from the Black Book of Paiſley,
one of the beft Scotch records, Eugene the
fourth was a very warlike prince; and Fordun
fays, that he harraffed the Saxons and Picts with
perpetual incurfions; that he was fevere to all
who refifted him; but meek, merciful, and forgiv-
*
Ego autem coacerfavi omne quod inveni, tam de annalibus
Romanorum quam de chronicis fanctorum patrium, & defcriptis
Scotorum Anglorumque, & ex traditione veterum noftrorum ;
quod multi doctores atque librarii fcribere tentaverint; nefcio
quo pacto difficilius reliquerint, an propter mortalitates frequen-
tiffimas vel clades creberrimas bellorum. --- Nennii Hift. Britan.
Ed. Gale, p. 94.
ing
Matter Soulp
८.
FERQUHARDI.
OF SCOTLAND.
119
ing to thoſe he ſubdued. Boece, on the con-
trary, tells us that he lived in peace, by che-
riſhing the divifions among his enemies. It is,
however, agreed by all the oldeft hiftorians
that after Edelfrid was defeated and killed by
Redwald, his two fons, Ofwald and Ofwy, fled to
Scotland; and Fordun afferts, that no fewer than
ſeven of Edelfrid's fons, with a daughter, as
well as many of the nobility, took refuge at the
Scotch court, where they were affectionately
received by Eugene. This prince, when on
his death-bed, ordered, that after his deceaſe
his right hand fhould be feparated from his bo-
dy, and buried with his fword and armorial
bearings in the fouthern parts of his dominions,
as a kind of charm againſt the invaſions of their
enemies. He died after a reign of fixteen years,
in the year 622, leaving his crown and domi-
nions to his fon,
Ferchard the firft, who reigned ten years, and Ferchard I.
had the misfortune to entertain fome fingular
notions in matters of religion (having been
educated in a monaftery under Conan biſhop
of the Ifle of Man) for which his memory has
fuffered among the clergy. We are even told
that his ſubjects committed him to priſon for
favouring the Pelagian herefy; and that after
having confulted together on the moſt proper
methods to fupply his place, they at laft refolv-
ed to invite Fiacre, his brother, who led a re-
clufe life in France, to fill the throne. Meffen-
gers
120
HISTORY
THE
Argylefhire,
the Scots.
gers were accordingly diſpatched to Fiacre's
hermitage, where they found him a leper, as
well as totally unqualified for the affairs of
go-
vernment. That ſuch a perfon as Fiacre, a bro-
ther, or very near relation to the king of Scot-
land, lived at that time, and that he likewiſe
received fuch an invitation, appears from un-
queſtionable authority; but the writers of his
life have abfurdly afcribed his leprofy to the ef-
fect of his fervent prayers to God, that it might
protect him from being compelled to quit his
fanctimonious retirement. Perhaps the real
caufe of Ferchard's confinement may be imput-
ed to the partiality this unhappy monarch difco-
vered in favour of Pelagius (who probably was of
Britiſh extraction, and a Cumbrian) and the Bri-
tifh clergy, who compofed the major part of his
followers, which might difguft his fubjects,
from an apprehenfion that thofe foreign favou-
rites would feduce the king into fome un-
conftitutional meaſures. Whatever truth there
may be in this conjecture, Ferchard is faid to
have put an end to his own life in the four-
teenth year of his reign, and in the year of our
Lord 632.
The feat of the Scotch government feems,
the feat of at this time, to have been ftill confined to Ar-
gyleſhire, and the western parts, where their
leaders met and elected Donald the third, fon
of their late king Eugene, to fill the throne.
This prince was likewife a favourite of St. Co-
lum-
OF SCOTLAND.
121
lumba, who (according to Fordun) had fore-
told his elevation to royalty, when he was but
a boy, with the additional, and almoft wonder-
ful, circumftance, that he would die a natural
death. Edwin, then king of Northumberland,
was univerfally acknowledged to be the moft
powerful prince in the ifland. His greatnefs,
however, giving offence to Cadwallo, or Cead-
wallo, king of the Britons, and Penda, king
of the Mercians, they joined their arms against
him; and a bloody battle being fought between
them at Hatfield, in Yorkſhire, in which Ed-
win and his fon were killed, Cadwallo gaye a
looſe to all his innate hatred of the Saxons, and,
though a Chriftian, behaved far more tarba-
roufly than Penda, who was ftill a heathen. An-
fred, fon of Edelfrid, whom we have already
mentioned, with other Saxon noblemen of the
old royal blood, continued to be protected by the
kings of the Scots; but they no fooner receiv-
ed intelligence of Edwin's overthrow, than
they petitioned Donald to affift them in reco-
vering their rights. Donald accordingly com-
plied with their requeft; though with an ex-
prefs reftriction, that the troops he lent them
fhould not be employed againft Cadwallo, or
the Britons, who were Chriftians, and the an-
cient allies of his crown. Northumberland was
at this time divided into two provinces, or king-
doms; one called Deira, and the other Berni-
cia; the latter fell to Anfred; and Ofric, who
VOL. I
R
was
Hiftory of
Northum
berland,
122
HISTORY
THE
was related to Edwin, fucceeded to the former.
Both princes, however, renounced Chriftianity, in
which they had been carefully educated. That this
great revolution was effected by the affiftance of
Donald, feems indifputable; though Bede is fi-
lent as to the particulars. Cadwallo was then at
York, where he was befieged by Ofric, who was
afterwards defeated and killed in a fally made
by the Britons. Anfred, upon this, furrendered
himſelf to Cadwallo, who ungenerously put him
to death. Such was the fate of thofe apoftate
princes! Anfred's brother Ofwald was ſtill
alive, and continued to profefs the Chriſtian re-
ligion, having been baptized in Scotland. This
prince claimed his brother's crown, and collect-
ing a handful of men, all Chriftians, and many
of them, probably, Scots, he attacked Cadwal-
lo, who had now rendered himſelf deteſtable by
his cruclties, at Cockley, or, according to For-
dun, at Thirlwall, near the Roman prætenture,
where Cadwallo, though at the head of a nu-
merous, well-difciplined army, was defeated,.
and killed; upon which Ofwald fucceeded
peaceably to the united kingdoms of Northum--
berland. The fame hiftorian informs us, from
Bede, that Ofwald fent to Scotland for priefts;
and that St. Aydan, who was the firft bishop of
Lindisfarn, arrived foon after at the Northum-
brian court. Unfortunately this pious prelate
did not underſtand the Saxon tongue; but
this lofs was fupplied by Ofwald himſelf, whofe
long
A Bannerman faulp.
DONALDIV.
1
}
}
Bannerman
sculp.
MALDUINUS.
1
T
{
+
:
:
;
S. Taylor sculp.
FERQUHARDII.
OF SCOTLAND.
123
long refidence in Scotland had rendered him a
perfect mafter of the language of that country.
Aydan, however, was afterwards biſhop of all
Northumberland. As to Donald, we are told,
that he was educated in the Ifle of Man, which
I perceive was, at that time, in the poffeffion of
Edwin, king of Northumberland; and that Co-
nan, biſhop of that iſland, tranſported him from
thence to Scotland. Being afterwards drowned
in Loch Tay, in the fifteenth year of his reign,
and of our Lord 646, he was fucceeded by his
nephew, Ferchard the fecond, fon to Ferchard Ferch ard II
the firſt. This prince is ftigmatized by Bocce and
Buchanan, as a monſter of impurity and tyran-
ny; tho' Fordun affures us, that he reigned four-
teen years in perfect tranquillity. He is faid to
have been wounded by a wolf; to have been
excommunicated by his fubject, St. Colman;
and to have died a miferable death.
Malduin, the fon of Donald, next fuccceded Malduin.
to the throne of Scotland, in 664, and lived on
very bad terms with his Saxon neighbours,
though there never was any formal declaration
of war between the two nations. The Scots
and Picts were the only people, we are told,
that eſcaped a peftilence, which, at this time,
defolated all the reft of Europe. Malduin
proved a prince of great piety and fpirit, and
quelled a civil war which broke out, in his
reign, between the inhabitants of Argyle and
R 2
Lenox;
1
124
}
THE
HISTORY
Lenox; the former being fupported by the
iflanders, and the latter by the Gallovidians,
We meet with few particulars concerning this
prince's reign, except what is related by Boece
and Buchanan, who affert, that when Malduin
was upon the eve of a war with the Saxons, he
was ftrangled by his wife, in a fit of jealoufy;
and being afterwards apprehended, with her ac
complices, fhe was burnt alive, in the year 684.
The hiftory of Eugene the fifth (called, in old
Eugene V. chronicles, Eugene, or Eochol with the crook-
ed nofe) who was the nephew, as well as fuc-
ceffor of Malduin, is more explicit than that of
his predeceffor. Upon his acceflion to the
affits the
Irish.
throne, he concluded a truce for twelve months
with Egfrid, king of Bernicia, who had dif
poffeffed his brother Alfrid of the kingdom of
Deira, and had quarrelled with the pope and
his biſhop Wilfred. Egfrid at the fame time com
menced hoftilities against the Picts, who had in-
vaded Northumberland: he feems, however, to
have quickly made peace both with them and
the Scots, to facilitate his projected conqueft of
Ireland; whither he accordingly tranfported an
army. But the Irish, though a harmless, inof-
fenfive people, and willing to have ſubmitted
to any reaſonable terms, being incenfed by his
cruelty and ambition, at laft took arms and
drove the Northumbrians out of their king-
dom. It is very probable that the Scots fent
over
OF
125
SCOTLAN D.
*
over affiftance to the Irish, whom they confider-
ed as their allies, if not as their countrymen.
Be this as it may, it is certain that Egfrid,
upon his return to Northumberland, raifed an
army, with which, contrary to the opinion of
all his council, he invaded Galloway; and, be-
ing joined by the Picts, laid fiege to the caftle
of Donſkene. Eugene, forcfeeing what would
happen, took the field at the head of a ftrong
army, and entering into a fecret correfpondence
with the Picts, prevailed with them to withdraw
their troops from thofe of the ambitious Nor-
thumbrian. Here fome difficulty occurs, fince
it is doubtful whether Galloway, at that time,
belonged to the Scots or the Picts: if it was in
the poffeffion of the latter, the fiege of the caftle
of Donfkene muft have been after the Picts
had deferted the Northumbrians.
It is cer-
tain, however, that Egfrid, finding himfelf
unable to oppofe the united army, retired to
his own dominions, after being defeated (if
we may credit Buchanan and Boece) in a
bloody battle with the Scots, who loft fix thou-
fand of their own men, but killed twenty thou-
fand of their enemies. Tho' I am inclined to
doubt whether fuch a battle was ever fought, yet
there can be no queftion that in the year 685,
Egfrid invaded the country of the Picts, who,
by a feigned retreat, drew him towards the
mountains, where his army was completely de-
feated, and himſelf killed. I muft not, how-
ever,
Uncertain-
tv of the
Scotch hif
tory.
126
HISTORY
THE
ever, conceal, that ſome manufcripts of Bede
mention this laft expedition to have been made
againſt the Scots, and fome againſt the Picts.
The latter appear to have been the greatek
gainers by Egfrid's defeat; for they recovered
all the territories taken from them by the kings
of Northumberland. The Scots and the Bri-
tons likewiſe enjoyed their fhare of the ſpoils
of the kingdom of Northumberland, which,
after this defeat, never recovered its impor-
tance. Some modern writers think, that the
country of Ireland mentioned to have been in-
vaded by Egfrid, lay in Scotland, upon the
banks of the Ierne, or Ern; but we cannot
adopt this opinion, without unhinging the cre-
dibility of hiſtory itſelf. Eugene the fifth is faid
to have died in the fourth year of his reign,
Eugene VI. and to have been fucceeded by Eugene the fixth
{
Hiftorical
gemark.
(called by Fordun Eugene the fifth) the ſon of
Ferchard. He was, for thoſe times, a learned
prince, being educated under Adaman, abbot
of Icolm-kill. He cultivated peace with the
Northumbrians; but had frequent quarrels and
truces with the Picts. Northumberland was
then governed by Alfrid, faid, by Fordun, to
have been a baftard-brother of the late king Eg-
frid. Here we have a plain diftinction, not at-
tended to by later hiftorians, between Scotland
and Ireland; for the above-mentioned writer
fays exprefsly, that this Alfrid was educated in
Scotland and Ireland, and was intimate with
Eugene
+-
very
F. Taylor fadp.
EUGENIUS, VI.
!
Bannerman sculp.
AMBERKELETHUS.
i
!
:
A smith sculp
EUGENIUS. VII.
OF SCOTLAND.
127
Eugene, by which means they lived in friend-
fhip together. The Picts, at that time, were
very powerful, and the union between the two
kings was political; for the Saxon Chronicle
informs us, that Bertus, or Berth, who had
been general to Egfrid, in his defcent upon
Ireland, invaded the country of the Picts to re-
venge his maſter's death; but that he was de-
feated and killed by them, as a juft judgment
upon him, according to Matthew of Weſtinin-
fter, for the cruelty he had exerciſed upon the
harmleſs Iriſh. For thefe particulars we are in-
debted to the Engliſh records, which infinuate,
that Alfrid found the Scots and the Picts fo well
fettled in the dominions they recovered from
his predeceffor, that he could never retake
them. Eugene dying in the tenth year of his
reign, the crown devolved on Amberkeleth, Amberke
who was nephew to Eugene the fifth. Fordun
is filent as to the vices of lazinefs and luxury,
with which this prince is accufed by Boece and
Buchanan. He tells us, however, that during
the year of his acceffion, which was in 697, he
inconfiderately entered into a war with the
Picts; and that he was killed with an arrow, in
a thick wood, while he was invading their do-
minions.
leth.
Amberkeleth was fucceeded by his brother, Eugene VI
Eugene the feventh, who married Spondana,
daughter of Garnard, then king of the Picts,
with whom he alfo concluded a peace. Spondana
is
128
HISTORY
THE
Adaman,
bishop.
is faid to have been murdered by two affaffins,
brothers, inſtead of her huſband, who had put
their father to death. The Picts fufpecting Eu-
gene to have been the murderer, prepared to
revenge her death. A part of the Scotch nobi-
lity likewife inclining to the fame opinion,
the king was called upon to juftify his conduct
before the ftates of his kingdom; but in the
mean time, the real murderers were appre-
hended, convicted, and died confeffing their
crime. As Fordun mentions none of theſe facts,
they are, perhaps, forged by Boece, to prove
the jurifdiction which the ſtates of the kingdom
had over their kings. Eugene would have re-
fented this treatment, had he not been diffuad-
ed by the admonitions of the good biſhop
Adaman. After this, he convoked an affembly
of the moſt learned men in his dominions, and
ordered them to compofe the hiftory of his pre-
deceffors; which, after it was completed, was
lodged in the monaftery of Icolm-kill. The
truth is, the kings in the northern parts of Bri-
tain were, at this time, perhaps, the moſt
learned princes in the world; and their com-
mon ftudies feem to have kept them in pro-
found tranquillity. Ceolwolf was then king
of Northumberland; and Bede, who dedicated
his hiſtory to that prince, acknowledges that
the Scots and Picts lived with him in inviolable
friendship. We have not, however, been
able to learn, whether that hiftory was feen
by
taylor palp
MORDACUS.
OF SCOTLAND.
129
by later hiftorians, though it is almoft indifpu-
table, that long before this period the Scots
had regiſters of their public tranfactions. After
being a generous benefactor to the priests, and
having repaired and rebuilt feveral churches,
Eugene died, in 715, being the feventeenth year
of his reign. He is reprefented by Fordun,
as a modeft, affable prince, devoted to peace,
and, though addicted to hunting, adorning his
country with excellent laws.
Murdac, the ſon of Amberkeleth, next mount- Murdac,
ed the throne of Scotland, and imitated his pre-
deceffor in cultivating the arts of peace; for the
venerable Bede ſpeaks in raptures of the har-
mony which then prevailed among the Britons,
the Northumbrians, the Scots, and the Picts.
He likewife informs us, that each of thoſe na-
tions ſpoke a different language; a miftake he
probably fell into, from being ignorant that the
Britons, Scots and Picts, originally uſed the
fame dialect; though it is not improbable,
that in his time, the provincial pronunciation
might have diſguiſed it fo, as to feem three
different languages. Murdac was a great bene-
factor to the church; and, according to fome
authors, founded or repaired the monaftery of
Candida Cafa, or Whitehorn, in Galloway;
tho' others think that province to have been then
in the poffeffion of the English. It is not, in
fact, eaſy to afcertain the boundaries of the Sax-
ons, Scots, and Picts, nor the precife time when
VOL. I.
their
S
130
HISTORY
THE
Ethfin.
}
Donald of
the Illes.
their territorial property changed its mafters.
Sometimes a country, or an eſtate, was held in
homage, which was paid by the perfon, who
enjoyed the real poffeffion of it, to its fuperior
lord; but the frequent inroads, devaſtations,
and plunderings, which thofe parts of the
ifland were at this time fubject to, deprives us
of all the means of aſcertaining, even for
a few days or weeks, the property of the
foil. In a cafe like this, however, it is very
poffible that Murdac might rebuild or repair
a church for which he had a veneration, tho'
it ftood upon other people's ground. This
prince, after a peaceable reign, dying in 734,
was fucceeded by Ethfin, fon of Eugene the
feventh, a pacific prince likewiſe, as well as a
ftrict jufticiary. In the decline of life, being
oppreffed with years and infirmities, he refign-
ed the management of affairs to Donald, thane
of Argyle; Cullen, thane of Athol; Murdac,
thane of Galloway; and Conrith, thane of
Murray. Under this delegated government,
every thing fell into confufion, each regent fa-
vouring his own dependents, and endeavouring
to extend his own power. Donald, lord of the
Ifles, taking advantage of the public diftrac-
tions, laid waste and plundered all Galloway,
in which he was countenanced by Murdac.
This melancholy ftate of public affairs affected
Ethfin fo fenfibly, that he died of grief, in the
thirteenth year of his reign, and in the year of
Qur
Filter foulp.
ETFINUS.
?
f
F
1
Bannerman
sculp.
EUGENIUS VI
OF SCOTLAN D.
131
our Lord 762. Egbert was then king of the
Northumbrians, and made war upon the Picts
with fuch fuccefs, that he penetrated as far as
Kyle. After this, the two nations concluded a
peace; and Onnuft, fon of Hungus, king of
the Picts, in 756, joining his forces with thofe
of Egbert, thefe princes befieged and took
Dumbarton, the capital of Areclute, as it is
called this capture feems to have complet-
ed the deftruction of the Cumbrian kingdom.
The chronology of the ancient fragments of
Pictish history coincides very remarkably with
that of the Saxon, at this period.
Vill.
Eugene the eighth, Murdac's fon, who fuc- Eugene
ceeded Ethfin, was a brave, refolute prince,
and continued the peace concluded by his pre-
deceffors with the Picts, Britons, and Saxons,
that he might the more effectually remedy the
public diftractions of his own kingdom. He
defeated, took prifoner, and put to death, the
lord of the Ifles, together with his confederate
the thane of Galloway; and puniſhed the other
regents, who had abuſed their power. Perhaps
he was too virtuous for the times he lived in;
for we learn, that having reftored peace and
tranquility to his kingdom, he grew indolent,
avaricious, and tyrannical, till at laft he was
put to death by his nobles, for paffing an unjuft
fentence upon a rich man, in 763, and was bu̟-
ried with his predeceſſors at Icolm-kill,
S 2
Fergus
732
HISTORY
THE
Fergus III.
Solvaith.
Fergus the third (by fome called the fecond)
the ſon of Ethfin, next afcended the Scottiſh
throne. Fordun and later authors inform us,
that his wife poiſoned him in a fit of jealoufy;
that feeing ſeveral innocent perfons fuffering,
and put to the torture, for her crime, fhe was
ftruck with remorfe, tho' none fufpected her;
and openly confeffing her guilt, fhe plunged a
dagger into her own breaft in a public affembly
of the people. Fordun, however, paints this fact
in a very different light from Boece and Bucha-
nan: he takes no notice of the infamous fenfuality
of the king, defcribed by them; but reprefents
the queen bewailing him as a loving huſband, and
dying with remorfe, acknowledging herſelf wor-
thy of the moft public and excruciating death,
Fergus was murdered in the third year of his
reign, which anfwers to that of our Lord 766,
and was fucceeded by Solvaith, or Selvac, fon
of Eugene the eighth. This prince is extolled
by Buchanan, after Boece, for the royal quali-
ties he difcovered during the firft year of his
reign. Fordun obſerves very juftly, from the
Saxon and Engliſh Chronicles, that the affairs
of the Northumbrians were, at this time, in
fo miferable a fituation, that had the Scots,
even without the affiftance of the Picts, exert-
ed themſelves, they might have retaken all the
territory they had loft in the north of Eng-
land; but, fays he, nothing really memora-
ble was performed, excepting a few petty in-
roads."
F. Taylor foulp
FERGUS,III.
འབ་
?
---,----
Call foulp
SOLVATHIUS.
!
1
OF SCOTLAND.
133
roads." About the third year of his reign, Sol-
vaith was attacked by a violent gout, or rheu-
matiſm; and his dominions were invaded by
Donald Bane, or the White, who ftiled himſelf
king of the Ebuda. Solvaith, when difabled
from taking the field in perfon, gave the com-
mand of his army to Cullan and Duchal, the
thanes of Argyle and Athol, who defeated the
invader, and drove him into a paſs, where he
and his followers were all put to death. Gyl-
lequham, who was confederated with Donald,
invaded Galloway at the fame time, and under-
went the fame fate. After reigning twenty-
one years, Solvaith died, in 787, worn out with
pain and infirmity.
Charles the Great, commonly called Charle-
magne, was then in the zenith of his reputa-
tion for the wonderful exploits he was per-
forming againſt the infidels. Though it is fo-
reign to this hiftory to defcend to particulars,
yet he more than once intended to have paffed
over to Britain, had he not been prevented by
his wars upon the continent. As the Scots, at
this period, were renowned for their learning
and orthodoxy, and ftill more for the zeal
they manifefted, as we fhall fee hereafter, in
preaching the goſpel to the Pagans; we can en-
tertain no doubt of their being highly efteem-
ed by Charles, who certainly formed clofe con-
nections with Northumberland; and was jea-
lous that Offa, king of Mercia, the moft pow-
erful
Connec-
tions of
Charles the
Britain.
Great with
134
HISTORY
THE
erful prince then in Britain, ſecretly fent fuc-
cours to his Saxon enemies. It likewife ap-
pears indiſputably, that Lambert, archbiſhop of
Canterbury, managed a correfpondence between
Charles and the other Saxon princes, who were
alfo jealous of Offa; but the latter made fuch
conceffions to the fee of Rome, as entirely re-
conciled the French monarch to his conduct
and perfon. Charles, however, had other rea-
fons for cultivating a friendſhip with the Scots.
The Danish Pagans, who were his enemies, had
lately made feveral deſcents upon the coaſts of
Northumberland, great part of which had been
recovered by the Scots, though we are igno-
rant of the particulars; and it was by no means
the French king's intereft that they ſhould form
fettlements there. Poffibly he might be not a
little influenced by Alcuin, his favourite and
preceptor, and who undoubtedly was a Briton,
if not a Scotchman. It is very certain, that a
Scotch embaffador was at his court, after his
glorious return from Italy; and it is equally true,
that he was fond of concluding alliances with
Chriſtian princes, however infignificant they
were in other refpects. Upon the whole, tho'
I am far from profefling myſelf an advocate
for the authenticity of the league between
Charles and the Scots; yet it is carrying hifto-
rical fcepticiſm to an extreme to doubt that he
lived in friendſhip with them, and that he pro-
fited by their affiftance; nay, that they became
his
Bannerman foulp
i
ACHAIUS.
OF SCOTLAND.
135
his allies, upon certain terms ftipulated on both
fides.
The fucceffor to Solvaith was the famous
Achaius, fon of Ethfin. Upon his acceffion to Achaius,
the throne, the Irish (though I rather fufpect
the Danes, who were, at this time, fettling
plantations in Ireland) made a defcent upon
Kintire, from whence they were expelled by
the valour of the inhabitants. Achaius, whofe
difpofition, like thofe of his late predeceffors,
was pacific, was then employed in the civil re-
gulations of his kingdom, and in fending an
embaffy to accommodate matters with the
Irifh; but the latter were fo exafperated, that
they rejected all the terms propofed, and in-
vaded fome of the islands of Scotland, which
they ravaged. In their return home, their fhips
were attacked by a ftorm, and few of them
reached land. The Urfperg Chronicle mentions
an army which Charles the Great fent, about
this time, to England, under Andolph, who
compelled the Engliſh Saxons to give him hof-
tages for their good behaviour, whom Andolph
prefented to Charles, at Worms, upon his re-
turn. Was this fact uncontrovertible, nothing
is more natural than to fuppofe, that the
famous league between Achaius and Charles
was firft projected by Andolph, and afterwards.
completed by the Scottish king. We learn
from foreign authorities, that the league was
con-
136
THE HISTORY
His league
with
Charles.
.
concluded in the year 790*; and that both the
king and the nobles were fo ftruck with the
grandeur of Charles, that they gave him the
title of 'Lord' in their letters, fubfcribing them-
felves your humble fervants;' a compliment
often paid to great princes long after this peri-
od, though without conferring any claim of
fuperiority over thoſe who bestowed it. The
Scotch writers, on the contrary, pretend, that
Charles fent ambaffadors to Scotland, requeſt-
ing Achaius to fend him fome learned men to
propagate languages and fciences in his king-
dom, and offering him his friendſhip. Achaius
convened a council of his nobility upon the oc-
cafion, when fome of them, particularly Col-
man, thane of Mar, were of opinion that the
friendſhip of the Saxons would be of greater
utility to the Scots than an alliance with
Charles. Thefe were anfwered by Alban, thane
of the Ifles, whofe opinion was efpouſed by the
majority; and the league with Charles was ac-
cordingly concluded, the conditions of which
the reader will find in the notes f. Nothwith-
ſtanding
* Eginhard. in Vit. Carol. Mag.
1. That whatever injury was done by the Saxons to either
nations, ſhould be looked upon as done to them both. 2. When
the French are invaded by the Saxons, the Scots ſhall ſend an
army to affift them; which army is to be maintained by the
French king. 3. That, when the Scots are invaded by the Sax-
ons, the French king will fend an army to their affiftance, upon
his own expences. 4. That, if any of the people of other na-
tions, during the time of war, fhall barbour, fupport, or pro-
te& any Saxon, they fhall be deemed guilty of læfe majefty by
them
·
137
OF SCOTLA N D.
ftanding theſe appearances of authenticity, how-
ever, I ftrongly fufpect the whole detail of this
tranfaction to be a French forgery; efpecially as
the league itſelf carries evident marks of more
modern times, and is calculated to cherish that
connection between France and Scotland, which
afterwards proved fo very beneficial to the for-
mer. If we may believe Fordun, (whofe credit
ought to have confiderable weight) Gilmer, or,
as other hiftorians call him, William, brother
to Achaius, was, previous to this alliance, one
of the chief officers under Charles; but modern
writers fuppofe, that after the conclufion of the
league he was fent over with four thoufand
troops to the affiftance of Charles: others fay,
with more appearance of truth, that the first
auxiliaries were furnifhed by the French monarch.
William, after performing many glorious ac-
tions againſt the infidels, embraced a religious
life, and founded a number of monafteries for
his countrymen in Germany and other places.
This fact ſeems to be well afcertained; and in
Paulus Æmilius's hiftory of the French atchieve-
ments, we meet with the following very re-
markable expreflions: "The Saxons being
overcome, that their name, by degrees, might
them both. 5. That neither peace fhould be concluded with,
nor war declared again, the Saxons, without the confent of
both nations. 6. That an authentic copy of this league fhould
be kept in both kingdoms, fubfcribed by both kings, and both
their feals appended to it.---See Mackenzie's Lives and Charac-
ters of the moſt eminent Writers of the Scots Nation, p. 48.
VOL. I.
Т.
be
Scottish
colleges in
Germany,
138
THE HISTORY
>
War with
Athelflan.
be extinguished, Charles beftowed the honours
of magiftracy upon ftrangers, but principally
upon the Scots, whom he made ufe of for the
great fidelity he found in them." After this pe-
riod, the hiftory of this reign becomes fomewhat
obfcure, through the great confufion of names.
We are told that Achaius married Fergufiana,
daughter to Hungus king of the Picts, and that
he lent his father-in-law ten thoufand Scots
to repel the invafions of Athelftan. That no
fuch king of England as Athelftan lived at this
time, is certain; neither is he mentioned by
Fordun. If there is any truth in the above
facts, they muſt belong to another Athelſtan,
or fome Saxon or Danifh general; but, indeed,
the hiftory of this tranfaction is attended with
many difficulties. We are likewiſe informed,
that after Hungus had received the ten thou-
fand auxiliaries, he entered Northumberland,
from whence he carried off a great booty; but
being purſued by Athelftan with a fuperior
army, he was overtaken near Haddington, and
encompaffed in fuch a manner, that he expected
nothing less than the deftruction of himſelf and
his troops in the night-time, however, he re-
ceived in a dream an affurance, from St. Andrew,
of victory. Some exhalations which appeared
in the air next day in the form of a croſs ſtruck
the Scots and Picts, who being amazingly infpi-
rited when Hungus acquainted them with his
dream, defeated their enemies, and killed
:
Athelftan
Bannerman feulp.
DONGALLUS
OF SCOTLAND.
139
Athelftan at a place called to this day Athel-
ftan's Ford. Though the Saxon Chronicle takes
no notice of this incident, it may be founded in
hiſtory; and it is not impoflible that Hungus
might defeat fome free-booter of that name.
For my own part, I confefs I can by no means
confider the whole of this ftory as a fiction, be-
cauſe it has been fupported by uninterrupted
tradition, which fixes the time when the Scots
and Pics chofe that apoftle for their tutelar
faint; and nothing was more common in thoſe
times than fuch wonderful revelations, one of
which Hungus invented on this emergency.
We have nothing farther to add to this account
of the reign of Achaius, except that he died in
peace in the year of our Lord 819, after having
wore the Scottiſh diadem thirty-two years, and
was fucceeded by his nephew Conval, though
he had a fon, who had commanded his armies
with reputation. Of Conval we know no Conval.
more than that he reigned in peace five years,
and then, according to Fordun, Dongal, the
fon of Solvaith, afcended the throne.
The good harmony between the Scots and Dorgai.
Picts began now to be interrupted by events
which fhould naturally have cemented it. There
is great reafon for believing, that under Achaius
the Pictish territories were much more extenfive
than thoſe of the Scots, who were ftill confined
to the western parts. On the other hand, the
Scots feem to have poffeffed a more adventurous
T 2
and
140
THE HISTORY
The col-
legal fuccef-
fion.
and warlike difpofition, and were fond of ferv-
ing in foreign armies; a circumftance which
accounts for the fuperiority they enjoyed in the
field over the Picts. The poffeffions of the Scots
at this time, which were denominated the king-
dom of Dalrietæ, or Dalriedæ, included all the
western islands, together with the counties
of Lorn, Argyle, Knapdale, Kyle, Kintyre,
Lochabyr, and a part of Braid-albayn. The
Pictish kingdom comprehended all the reft of
the north of Scotland, from the Friths to the
Orkneys, exclufive, as we have ſeen, of a great
part of Northumberland. Thefe obfervations are
neceffary to underftand the fuccceding part of
this hiftory.
Some of the fubjects of Dongal being diſguſt-
lateral, the ed with his government, applied to Alpin to
affert his hereditary right to the throne; but it
plainly appears, that the collateral was the legal
fucceffion at this time to the crown of Scotland.
Alpin, inftead of accepting this invitation, dif-
clofed it to Dongal, who treated him with the
greateſt affection and tenderneſs, and in con-
fideration of the merits of his father Achaius,
was willing, if the ftates of his kingdom would
confent, to refign the crown in his favour.
Alpin, however, contented himself with clearing
up his own innocence. The confpirators, on
the other hand, accufed him of endeavouring
to debauch them from their duty; but Dongal
afiembling an army, apprehended and puniſh-
ed
OF SCOTLAND.
141
A-
ed as many of them as he could find.
bout this time Hungus died. His eldeſt ſon
Dorftolog was murdered by his fecond fon
Egan, who in his turn was affaffinated by his
brother's widow. The male line of the Pictifh
monarchy thus becoming extinct, the fucceffion
to it was claimed by the Scots. Fordun is by
no means poſitive as to the ground of this claim,
which he conjectures to have been founded
upon an ancient convention between the Scots
and the Picts, when the latter came from the
continent, and for want of women were obliged
to marry Scotch wives, after promifing to pre-
fer the female line to the male, when any dif
pute happened about the fucceffion. This con-
jecture, which is founded upon the words of
Bede, confutes itſelf; and the honeft hiftorian
has recourſe to the juft judgments of God upon
the Picts to explain the extinction of their mo-
narchy. Later hiftorians, to folve this difficulty,
aſcribe that great revolution to the eſtabliſhment
of hereditary right to the Pictifh throne in the
perfon of Alpin, who was fon to the daughter
of Hungus. If this fact could be clearly proved,
there would be no difficulty in vindicating the
claim of the Scotch prince. An excellent critic Mr. Innes.
in hiſtory, who, in other cafes, gives no quarter
to modern authorities, when they clash with
his fyftem, is here willing to admit that Bocce
and Buchanan might have had fome autho-
rities, which are now loft, for afferting this he-
reditary
142
HISTORY
THE
1
Beret,aPict.
Alpin.
reditary right in Alpin; but Fordun tells us,
that Dongal claimed the kingdom of the Picts
in his own right, by virtue of the ancient con-
vention we have mentioned.
That fuch a claim was preferred appears from
all hiftorics, as well as that it was rejected by
the Fiets, who refolving to maintain the inde-
pendency of their crown, chofe for their king
Feret, or Wred, one of their greateſt noble-
men. Dongal fent an ambaffador to remon-
ftrate against this election, and, according to
Boece, to reprefent Alpin's right; but the Picts.
refuſed him an audience when they understood
the purpoſe of his meffage. Upon the embaf-
fador's return Dongal raifed an army: before he
had recourfe however to force, he fent a frefl
embaffy to accommodate matters; but the cm-
baffadors were met on the road by a herald at
arms, who in the name of king Feret command-
ed them to proceed no farther, and to retire
from his dominions. Every thing was now
ready for the campaign, when, according to
Bocce, Dongal was drowned in crofling the
Spey, though Fordun leaves it doubtful whe-
ther he was not killed in war.
Alpin mounted the throne of Scotland in
831.
Being at the head of an army, he imme-
diately marched against Feret, who was en-
camped near Forfar. A moft bloody battle
enfued; and though the Picts loft their king, the
Scots had no reaſon to the boaft of the victory.
Alpin
Bannerman foulp.
ALPINUS.
t
:
1
OF SCOTLAN D.
143
Alpin next morning, upon reviewing his army,
perceived he had loft one-third of it; how-
ever, he plundered the camp of the Picts, who
had retired from the field of battle, fo that he
returned to his own dominions with the air of
a conqueror. The Picts chofe Brudus, Feret's
fon, to fucceed him, but put him to death
in the first year of his reign, on account of his
ftupidity and indolence. Such was the venera-
tion they entertained for the father, that they
next chofe Keneth, his brother, who proved
a coward, and as fuch was killed by a country-
man, who did not know him, as he was flying
from the enemy. Keneth was fucceeded by
another Brudus, a brave and fpirited prince.
Refolving to rifk his all in fupport of his inde-
pendency, he raifed a great army. Before
he entered upon hoftilities he offered to make
a peace with the Scots; but Alpin rejected all
terms, except a total furrender of his crown.
The Pictiſh monarch upon this fent a meflage
to Edwin, king of Northumberland, with a
large fum of money, to engage him as his auxili-
ary againſt the Scots. Edwin, whofe real name
probably was Eandred, took the money, and
promiſed the affiſtance; but afterwards pretend-
ed that he was engaged in civil wars of his own,
and that the king of France had interpofed his
authority in favour of the Scots.
This disappointment did not difcourage Bru-
dus, who marched with his army from Dunkeld
into
144
THE HISTORY
Alpin be-
headed.
Kenneth.
into Angus, where that of the Scots lay near
Dundee. We are told of a ftratagem uſed up-
on this occafion by Brudus, who ordered all the
uſeleſs attendants, and even the women, to
mount on horfeback, and fhew themſelves to
the enemy as foon as the battle fhould begin.
This ftratagem, it is faid, had the defired effect;
for in the heat of the engagement, while both
fides were fighting with the moft determined
fury, the fight of this fuppofed reinforcement
threw the Scots into a panic, from which all Al-
pin's efforts could not recover them. They im-
mediately fled, and loft more men in the purfuit
than in the battle. Alpin and the chief of his
nobility were taken priſoners; the latter were
put to death on the field of battle, but the king
was ignominioufly bound, and all ranfom being
refuſed for his life, he was beheaded at a place
which from his name is, at prefent, called Pitalpy,
but in former times Bas-alpine, which in the
Gaelic or Celtic languages fignifies, " The death
of Alpin." His head was afterwards expofed
from a wall upon a pole.
Alpin, faid by Fordun to have been a proud as
well as rafh prince, left a fon, Kenneth, who was
the firſt fole king of that part of the iſland pro-
perly called Scotland; and from him we have a
clear deduction of that royal family.
appears to have been of age at the time of
his father's murder, and was a brave and ac-
compliſhed prince, the Scots did not heſitate to
As he
re-
I. Taylor sculp
KENNE THII.
OF SCOTLAND.
145
receive him as his father's fucceffor in the throne.
The conduct of the Picts, at this time, fhewed
them deferving of the worthleſs character given
them by Fordun. Not contented with the bar-
barous murder of Alpin, they made a law, and
confirmed it with an oath, that it fhould be
death for any man to propofe a peace with the
Scots, whom they doomed to total extermina-
tion. This fact appears the more credible, when
we confider the bafe manner in which Alpin
and his nobles were. murdered. Some of the
wifeft of the nobility were expelled the affem-
bly for oppofing this law. The Picts being thus
elated, their nobles difdained all fubordination;
factions began to be formed among them; and
while they were marching againſt the Scots,
they fought a bloody battle among them-
felves. Their king endeavoured to appeafe
them; but finding it impracticable, he disbanded
his army, and foon after dying of grief, was fuc-
ceeded by his brother, Druiken, who alfo failed
in his endeavours to compofe the civil diffenfions
of his country, by which the Scots gained fome
refpite; and a few of them who fpoke the Pic-
tiſh language, had the addreſs to carry off Al-
pin's head from the capital of the Picts, fuppof-
ed to have been Abernethy.
fubdued,
Tho' Kenneth was very intent upon revenging The Picts
his father's death, he found his nobles entirely
averſe to the renewal of the war with the Picts.
According to Fordun, however, who is fol-
VOL. I.
U
lowed
146
HISTORY
THE
lowed by Boece and others, he conquered their
obftinacy by inviting them to an entertainment,
and introducing into the hall where they flept,
in the middle of the night, a perfon cloathed in
fiſh-ſkins, or robes which made fo luminous an
appearance, that they took him for an angel, ef-
pecially when he thundered into their ears thro'
a long tube prepared for that purpoſe, a dread-
ful peal of denunciations, if they did not imme-
diately declare war againſt the Picts, the mur-
derers of their late king. Fordun has relat-
ed the ſtory in this manner, but Boece has in-
troduced feveral of thoſe luminous meffengers,
who all of a fudden difappeared. The ftory,
upon the whole, when we confider the age, is
more ridiculous than incredible. Next morn-
ing, all mouths were filled with the angelic ap-
parition, and Kenneth fwore he had ſeen it like-
wife. A refolution was immediately taken to
raife an army against the Picts. The juncture
was favourable for Kenneth on account of the
popular fury which raged againſt the Picts for
Alpin's murder, and fome deſcents made by the
Danes upon their territories. The Picts, how-
ever, were not deficient in making the ne-
ceffary preparations to defend themſelves. They
had, by this time, obtained fome Engliſh auxi-
liaries, and Kenneth having, if we may credit
Fordun, paffed the vaſt ridge of mountains cal-
led Drumalban, gave The Death of Alpin,"
to his foldiers as their military word. The firft
battle
OF SCOTLAND.
147
battle is faid to have been fought near Stirling,
where the Picts were entirely defeated, being de-
ferted by their Engliſh auxiliaries; though this
laſt circumſtance is contradicted by the above-
mentioned hiftorian. As to Druſken, he escaped
by the goodneſs of his horfe. In a few days after
the battle, he applied to Kenneth for peace, who,
like his father Alpin, demanded a furrender of all
thePictiſh dominions. We ſee no reaſon for de-
parting from the narrative of Boece, as to the
remainder of Kenneth's campaigns against the
Picts. He foon conquered Merns, Angus, and
Fife; but while he was marching againft Stirling,
he received intelligence of an univerfal infur-
rection of the Picts, who had cut off his garri-
fons, and were again in arms with Drufken at
their head. Kenneth was then encamped near
Scone, and the Picts under Drufken coming up,
both armies drew out in order of battle. Druf-
ken, however, demanded an interview (to fave
the cffuſion of blood) with Kenneth, which was
granted him. The Pictish prince rejecting the
terms offered by the king of the Scots, which
were, to yield to him in abfolute fovereignty
Fife, Merns, and Angus, both fides prepared
for a decifive battle.
The army of the Scots was compofed of three
divifions; the first was commanded by one Bar;
the fecond by Dongal, a nobleman; the third by
Donald the king's brother; and Kenneth put him-
felf at the head of a body of cavalry, as a corps
U 2
de
148
HISTORY
THE
but not ex
terminated.
de referve. The engagement was very defperate,
but the Picts were again defeated with great
flaughter, and among the number of the flain
was their king Drufken, who is faid to have re-
newed the engagement feven different times.
His armour was prefented to Kenneth, who ſent
it to be hung up at Icolm-kill. The Scottiſh no-
bility would have been glad of ſome repoſe af-
ter their fatigues; but there is fome reafon to
believe that Kenneth won them over by dividing
among their leaders the conquered lands of the
Picts. The chief of thofe leaders are faid to
have been Angus, Merns, and Fife, who gave
their own names to the feveral divifions that
were allotted them.
Though there can be no doubt of the barba-
rities and bloodfhed which happened at this
time between the Scots and the Picts, and that
Kenneth was highly exafperated at the latter, yet
we cannot, with the Scotch hiftorians, admit of
his having exterminated the whole race, nor of
his declaring this refolution to his people, who
all applauded it. It was perhaps found policy
in him to give the Picts no reſpite in the profe-
cution of the war, and we accordingly find that
he beficged their chief town, which the Scotch
writers call Camelon; but unlefs by this appel-
lation is meant Abernethy, we know not where
it was fituated. Kenneth met with a vigorous
refiftance; but at laft he granted the befieged a
truce for three days, which they employed in
preparing for a vigorous fally, in which they
were
OF SCOTLAND.
149
were with great difficulty driven back to the
city, after killing fix hundred of their enemies.
The Scots renewed their efforts, but the Picts de-
fended themſelves with great bravery for above
four months, though they laboured under all the
miferies of famine. At laft, however, the place
was taken by furprize, and all the inhabitants
put to the fword. The reduction of Camelon
was followed by that of the Maiden-Caſtle, now
called the cafile of Edinburgh, which was aban-
doned by its garrifon, who took refuge in Nor-
thumberland.
This period is generally fixed upon as the end
of the Pictish government in Scotland; but to
imagine that Kenneth exterminated the whole
race, is not only abfurd, but contrary to the
plaineft evidence; for the Picts are exprefsly men-
tioned by old writers, as apcople exifting three
hundred years after this time. Such a maffacre
would have been as impolitic as infernal; nor do
we meet with any well attefted accounts in hif
tory of a numerous people, like the Picts, being
totally and finally extirpated. The moft proba-
ble opinion feems to be, that the Scots becom-
ing mafters of Pictland by conqueft, their lan-
guage fuperfeded that of its old inhabitants;
but we cannot allow that the bulk of the na-
tion are compofed of the defcendants of thofe
conquerors. The hiftory of almoft every coun-
try in Europe proves, that the victors impofe
their own names upon their conquefts; that of
Gaul,
150.
HISTORY
THE
Gaul, for inftance, being changed into France,
from its being conquered by the Francs.
The conqueft of Pictland has fo engroffed the
attention of all the Scotch hiftorians, from For-
dun down to Buchanan, that they have omitted
the other illuftrious actions of Kenneth's reign,
though they are mentioned in one of the oldeſt
records of the Scotch affairs now extant, and
confirmed by Giraldus Cambrenfis and Ralph
of Chefter, two Engliſh hiftorians of undoubted
authority. According to thefe writers it ſeems
highly probable, that Kenneth waged war at the
fame time with the Picts and the Saxons. The
famous chronicle quoted by Camden and arch-
bishop Ufher exprefsly tells us, that Kenneth
reigned two years in Dalriedæ, or the kingdom
of the Scots, before he attacked the Picts; and
that he invaded the Saxons fix times, and burnt
Dunbar and Melrofs. This is confirmed by the
two Engliſh hiftorians already mentioned, who
add, that Kenneth was mafter of all the territories
from the Friths to the Tweed: on the other hand,
the Britons burnt Dunblain, and the Danes ra-
vaged Pictland as far as Dunkeld. I mention thefe
circumftances, becauſe, however obfcurely they
are exprefied, they prove, that other people be-
fides the Scots and the Picts, were engaged in
this war. Before we difmifs this founder of the
Scotch monarchy, we cannot omit mentioning
the difficulties which Fordun lies under as to
the extirpation of the Picts. At firſt, he ſays, that
not
OF SCOTLAND.
151
not only their kings and leaders were deftroy-
ed, "but, continues he, we read, that their
race and generation, and even their language,
failed." The reader will judge how far theſe
expreffions may imply, that the people and the
language of the Picts diſappeared, by being in-
corporated with thofe of the Scots. That this
is their fenfe, feems evident from what he after-
wards relates, of Kenneth having taken under his
protection the harmleſs part of the people; that
he
put to the fword thoſe who were in arms, but
that he likewife received the fubmiffions of
many. Upon the whole, there can no doubt
remain that Kenneth, as is ufual with other kings
and conquerors who fet up claims of blood,
deſtroyed, as far as he could, all the Picts who
refufed to acknowledge his title, and gave them
no quarter in the field. This feems to be the
opinion of Buchanan himſelf in his preliminary
diſcourſe, which is the beſt part of his hiftory.
Kenneth is faid to have been the author of
the Mac Alpine-Laws, fo called from his name.
We are now entirely ignorant of the municipal
laws of Scotland before his time, which were
compoſed by Ethfin, fon to Eugene with the
Crooked Nofe, and are mentioned in the chro-
nicle I have fo often quoted. Thofe attributed
to Kenneth are as follows:
* Sic quidem non folum reges & duces gentis illius deleti funt,
fed etiam ftirps & genus adeo cum idiomatis fui lingua defeciffe
legitur. Vide Scoti Chron. lib. iv. p. 285.
" I. That
152
HISTORY
THE
The Mac-
Alpine
Laws.
c
"I. That in every fhire of the kingdom there.
fhould be a judge, for deciding of controver-
fies, well feen in the laws; and that their fons
fhould be brought up in the ftudy of the laws.
II. That the laws of the kingdom fhall be kept
by them; and if any of them ſhall be convicted
of læfe majefty, or wrongous judgment, they
fhall be hanged. III. He that is convicted of
theft, fhall be hanged; and he that is guilty of
flaughter, beheaded. IV. Any woman convict
of a capital crime, fhall be either drowned or
buried alive. V. He that blafphemes God, or
ſpeaks diſreſpectfully of his faints, of his king,
or of his chieftains, fhall have his tongue cut
out. VI. He that makes a lie to his neighbour's
prejudice, fhall forfeit his fword, and be ex-
cluded the company of all honeft men. VII. All
perfons fufpected of any crime, fhall fuffer the
inqueft of feven wife and judicious men, or of
any number of perfons above that, provided the
number be odd. VIII. All oppreſſors, robbers,
and invaders of other people's properties, fhall
be beheaded. IX. All vagabonds, fturdy beg-
gars, and other idle perfons, that may, and do
not, gain their livelihood by fome honeft calling,
ſhall be burnt upon the cheek, and whipt with
rods. X. The wife fhall not be punished for her
huſband's fault; but the man ſhall be puniſhed
for his wife's fault, if he knows of it; and if
ſhe be not his wife, but his concubine, fhe fhall
be puniſhed with the fame puniſhment that the
man
OF SCOTLAN D.
753
man deferveth for his crime. XI. He that ra-
vifheth a virgin, unlefs fhe defire him in mar-
riage, fhall be beheaded. XII. He that defiles
another man's bed, fhall be put to death, with
the woman; unleſs ſhe has been raviſhed. XIII.
He that ravifheth a woman, fhall be beheaded;
and the woman declared innocent. XIV. He
that is injurious to his father, by any member
of his body, fhall have that member cut off,
then hanged, and remain unburied above
ground. XV. He that is a man-flayer, born
dumb, or unthankful to his father, fhall fuc-
ceed to no heritage. XVI. All witches, jugglers,
and others that have any paction with the devil,
fhall be burnt alive. XVII. No feed fhall be
fown, till it be firft well cleanfed from all noxious
grains. XVIII. He who fuffers his land to be
over-run with poiſonous and hurtful weeds,
ſhall pay, for the firſt fault, an ox to the com-
mon good; for the fecond, ten; and for the
third, he fhall be forfaulted of his lands. XIX.
If you find your comrade and friend killed in
the field, bury him; but if he be an enemy, you
are not bound to do it. XX. If any beaft be
found ftraying in the fields, reftore him, either
to the owner, the Tocioderach, or fearcher after
thieves, or to the priest of the parifh; and who-
ever keeps him up for three days, fhall be pu-
nished as a thief. XXI. Who finds any thing
that is loft, fhall caufe it to be proclaimed pub-
lickly, that it may be restored to the owner;
VOL. I.
other-
X
154
HISTORY
THE
er.
otherwiſe he ſhall be puniſhed as a thief. XXII,
He who beats his adverfary before a judge, fhall
lofe his plea; and the perfon beat fhall be ab-
folved. XXIII. If your neighbour's kine fall a-
fighting with yours, and if any of them happen
to be killed, if it be not known whofe cow it
was that did it, the homyl-cow (or the cow that
wants horns) fhall be blamed for it; and the
owner of that cow fhall be anfwerable for his
neighbour's damage. XXIV. A fow that eats
her pigs, fhall be ftoned to death, and none be
permitted to eat of her flesh. XXV. A fow that
eats corn, or furrows up another man's land,
fhall be killed without any redreſs to the own-
XXVI. All other beafts that fhall be found
eating their neighbour's corn or grafs, fhall
be poinded, till the owner give fatisfaction
for the lofs that his neighbour has ſuſtained.
XXVII. Altars, churches, oratories, images of
faints, chapels, priefts, and all ecclefiaftical per-
fons, fhall be held in veneration. XXVIII. Fef-
tival and folemn days, fafts, vigils, and all other
ceremonies inftituted by the church, fhall be
punctually obferved. XXIX. He who injures a
churchman, either by word or deed, fhall be
puniſhed with death. XXX. All fepulchres fhall
be held in great veneration, and a crofs put up-
on them, that they may not be trampled upon.
XXXI. The place where any man is killed or
buried, fhall be untilled feven years. XXXII.
Every man fhall be buried according to his qua-
lity.
OF SCOTLAN D.
155
lity. If he be a nobleman that has done great
actions for the common-wealth, he fhall be bu-
ried after this manner: Two horfemen fhall
paſs before him to the church; the firft mount-
ed upon a white horfe, cloathed in the de-
funct's best apparel, and bearing his armour; the
other fhall be upon a black horſe, in a mourn-
ing apparel; and when the corpfe is to be in-
terred, he who is in mourning apparel fhall
turn his back to the altar, and lamentably be-
wail the death of his mafter; and then return
the fame way that he came the other fhall
offer his horfe and armour to the prieft; and
then inter the corpfe with all the rites and ce-
remonies of the church."
Kenneth.
Though I have given the fubftance of thefe Death of
laws as I find them in Scotch authors, yet many
of them are thought to be of a more modern
date than the days of Kenneth, ingrafted up-
on his laws. They principally ferve to fhew
the great power and prerogatives which church-
men formerly enjoyed; and thoſe parts are
perhaps the more modern inftitutions. The
cuftoms prefcribed in burying noblemen were
found fo inconvenient and capricious, that they
were afterwards commuted for a pecuniary con-
fideration of five pounds. Kenneth is faid, at
the time of his death, to have been poffeffed of
all the north part of the island as far as Adrian's-
'wall, and to have reigned in peace fixteen years
after his fubduction of the Picts. According
X 2
to
156
!
THE HISTORY, &c.
to the fhort Chronicle I have already mention-
ed, he died at Fort Teviot, called there Forthuir-
tabaicht, of a fiftula in ano. This fort had been
one of the Pictish palaces, fituated near Dup-
plin, in Perthshire, where the place ftill retains
its name. Nothing fills us with a higher idea
of the political character of this great prince,
than his removing the famous ftone (now to
be ſeen in Weſtminſter-abbey) which the Scots
looked upon as the palladium of their mo-
narchy, from Argylefhire to Scone; a place
which had been held in the higheſt veneration
by the Picts, and pitched upon by Kenneth as
the place of inauguration for his fucceffors. The
fituation of the place, in the heart of a fine
country, and in the neighbourhood of Perth,
which was a kind of key to the conquefts of
Kenneth, contributed to the attachment the
Scots had to the Fatal Stone, as it was called,
Before the end of Kenneth's reign the fur-
viving Picts, towards the North, feem to have
been entirely reconciled to his government.
!
A GE-
i
Bannerman
a foulp
DONALD V
A
GENERAL HISTORY ·
O F
}
SCOTLAND.
BOOK THE THIRD.
From the Death of KENNETH MAC-
ALPIN, to the Acceffion of MAL-
COLM CAINMORE, in 1054.
HE difference among the Scots writers Donald.
concerning the hiſtory and character of
Te writers
Donald, who fucceeded his brother
Kenneth Mac-Alpin in the throne, ought to
caution us againſt placing any implicit faith in
the hiftories of Boece and Buchanan, and thoſe
who tranſcribe from them. By thofe authors
Donald is reprefented as a monſter of luxury and
prodigality, difregardful of advice, and as en-
couraging the exiled Picts, by his diffipated
courſe of life, to apply to Ofbreth and Ella,
two Saxon kings, for affiftance to be reftored
to their country, which they propoſed to render
tributary to the Saxons. The two kings ac-
cordingly
158
THE HISTORY
Boundaries.
cordingly invaded Scotland with a powerful
army, but were defeated by Donald, who re-
covered Berwick, which had been taken by
the English, and afterwards feized upon the
fhips and provifions of the enemy. The former
being laden with wine, the Scottish king and
his officers indulged themfelves too freely in
drinking; upon which Ofbreth rallying his
troops, furprized them, cut in pieces twenty
thoufand of the common foldiers, took the king
and moſt of his nobility prifoners, and carried
them about as public objects of hatred and con-
tempt. Ofbreth purfucd his blow, conquered
all the territory between Adrian's and Anto-
nine's-wall, and would have made a defcent
upon the coafts of Fife, had not his fhips been
difperfed by a form. His land-forces, however,
marched as far as Sterling, intending to crofs the
Forth on the bridge built at that town; but find-
ing his army weakened, he concluded a peace
with the Scots, who ftipulated that they ſhould
yield up all the lands between the two præten-
tures. Thus the boundaries of the Scotch do-
minions towards Sterling was the Forth, and
towards Dumbarton, the Clyde; the Forth was
from that time to be called the Scotch Sea; and
it was made capital for any Scotchman to fet his
foot on Engliſh ground. They were to erect no
forts near the Engliſh confines, and to pay an
annual tribute of a thousand pounds, befides
giving up fixty fons of their chief nobility as
hoftages.
OF SCOTLAND.
159
*
hoftages. We are farther told, that Ofbreth
erected a coinage at Sterling, a name which dif-
tinguiſhes the Engliſh filver to this day; and
that he raiſed a crofs on the bridge of Sterling,
with an inſcription in Latin, fignifying it to be
the common boundary between the Britons
and the Scots. After this, the Picts, finding that
they had been neglected in the treaty between
the English and the Scots, fled to Norway,
while thoſe who remained in England were
maffacred. This inglorious peace furniſhed
Donald with a freſh opportunity of indulging
his vices; upon which his fubjects deeming
him irreclaimable, fhut him up in priſon, where
he put an end to his own life in 858.
Boece.
Not to mention the univerfal filence of the Forgery of
Saxon and Engliſh Chronicles as to thofe glorious
conquefts of their princes, this whole narrative
carries with it the appearance of impofture.
Oibreth, fuppofing him to have been a king of
Northumberland, muft have been a Saxon ;
nor do we find that any tribe of Britons, called
by that name, then exiſted in the north of Eng-
land. But not to infift upon mere improbabi-
lities, Boece is convicted of forgery by the
pofitive teftimony of Fordun and the author of
the before-mentioned Chronicle, who have an-
tiquity to fupport their affertions. According
to the former, Donald was a hero, and had
* ANGLOS & SCOTIS feparat Crux ifta remotis :
Arma hic ftant BRUTI, ftant SCOTI fub hac Cruce tuti.
obtained
160
THE HISTORY
Conftantine.
鼈
​obtained frequent victories over the Picts.
After his acceffion to the throne, he cultivated
friendſhip with all the neighbouring kings and
princes. Some of the Picts had fled to Nor-
thumberland, where they were perfuaded by
the inhabitants, who joined them, to break the
truce upon Kenneth's death. The loyal Pics,
however, (a freſh proof that the race was not ex-
terminated) and the fteadiness of the Scotch king,
defeated the efforts of thoſe enemies, all of whom
were that very year deftroyed. The author of
the Chronicle informs us, that Donald reigned
four years; that the Guydhels, by whom we
imagine he means the Picts, the Caledonians,
and the few Britons who might ftill remain in
Scotland, compiled with the king in his palace
of Fort Teviot the laws of Ethfin, the fon of
Eugene with the Crooked Nofe; and that he
died in his palace of Belachor. Winton, who
likewiſe wrote before Boece, agrees in the fame
: character of this prince; and indeed there is
nothing more natural than to fuppofe, that,
having fucceeded to the kingdom of the Picts,
he would gratify his new fubjects by a code of
laws, which, though now loft, were perhaps
favourable to their nation and cuſtoms.
Upon the death of Donald, Conftantine, his
nephew, the ſon of Kenneth Mac-Alpin, fuc-
ceeded to the throne. In his time, Denmark and
the northern nations continued to fend over
great numbers of their inhabitants to Scotland
as
OF SCOTLAN D.
161
as well as England; but the Saxon Chronicle and
the Engliſh hiftorians having tranfmitted very
few particulars as to their progreſs in Scotland,
we muſt therefore, for fome time, depend on the
Scotch writers. Upon the landing of a body of
theſe emigrants in the north, Conftantine offered
them a reception in his harbours, as well as pro-
vifions for their money. This, together with
the ſtate of their countrymen in England, whom
they affifted, procured the Scotch king fome re-
ſpite. That prince finding his nobles very re-
fractory, probably on account of the indulgence
extended to the Picts during the laft reign, con-
vened an affembly of the ſtates, who demanded
an abrogation of thofe laws. In the mean time,
Ewen of the ifles broke out into rebellion, and
feized the caſtle of Dunftaffage; but this infur-
rection was foon quelled, and the rebel put to
death.
the Danes,
During thoſe tranſactions, the Picts who had Invaſion by
fled to Denmark prevailed with his Daniſh ma-
jeſty to fend his two brethren, Hungar and
Hubba, to recover the Pictish dominions from
Conftantine. Thefe princes accordingly landed
on the coaft of Fife, where they committed the
moft horrid barbarities; for they even murdered
the ecclefiaftics who took refuge in the iſland
of May, at the mouth of the Forth. Conftan-
tine foon put himſelf at the head of an army,
and defeated that divifion of the Danes com-
manded by Hubba, near the water of Leven;
VOL. I.
Y
but
162
THE HISTORY
but afterwards attacking that under Hungar, he
was in his turn totally defeated; and being taken
prifoner, was carried to a cove or cave, fince
called The Devil's Cave, and there beheaded. The
monuments of Danish antiquity ftill to be feen
in the county of Fife, leave no room to doubt
that it was the fcene of many bloody wars be-
tween theſe people and the Scots: the veſtiges
of the trenches appear near the place of bat-
tle, even to this day; and by the common
people are called the Dancs Dikes. The Scots
are faid to have loft ten thoufand men in this
action; and Conftantine, after reigning fixteen
years, fuffered death in the year 874.
Fordun afferts, that fome Dancs were fettled
in Scotland before the last mentioned def
cent, who lived in tolerable good correfpon-
dence with the Scots, till the Picts, who were
not yet thoroughly fubdued, perfuaded them to
join the invaſion. The fame hiftorian preſents us
with a more ſtriking proof than any we have
yet inftanced, that the Picts were then fubfift-
ing as a people under Conftantine; for he in-
forms us, that prince was betrayed by the Pics
whom he had rafhly employed in his army, and
who proved like ferpents in his bofom; that
they fled upon the firft onfet; and, being fol-
lowed by others, the king was left alone, fur-
rounded, taken, and put to death by his ene-
mies; who immediately after their victory, re-
turned on board their fhips, and the Scots car-
ried
F. Taylor feulps
ETHUS.
OF
163
SCOTLAN D.
ried their king's body to Icolm-kill, where they
interred it. The Little Chronicle mentions a
war carried on between Conftantine and the
Iriſh, who appear to have invaded Pictland
likewife; (and this is by no means incredible)
but that in the third year of the war, Amlaib,
the Irish king, was killed by the Scotch monarch
in another invafion; that the war between the
Danes and the Scots happened after his death,
and that the former (whom the author calls
Normans) paffed a whole year in Pictland.
Eth, called the Swiftfoot from his agility, Eth.
fucceeded his brother Conftantine. The Little
Chronicle fays, that he performed nothing me-
morable; reigned but one year; and was killed
at Inneroury. Fordun tells us, that his acceffion
was difputed by Gregory, the fon of Dongal;
and that the nobility being divided, a battle
was fought between the two parties, in which
Eth was mortally wounded, in the firft onfet
but that he lived two months after, and was
buried at Icolm-kill. Such is the account we
have of this prince, from the oldeſt and moſt
authentic records. Boece and later writers
have reprefented him as voluptuous and indo-
lent; as abandoning his dominions to the
Danes, for which he was imprifoned by his
fubjects; and dying of grief on the third day
of his confinement. Thefe facts feem to be in-
vented merely to juſtify the power fubjects pof-
fefs over kings. What allurements could a
Y 2
king
164
THE HISTORY
Gregory the
Creat,
contempo-
rary with
Alfred.
king of Scotland have in thofe days, to render
him voluptuous, luxurious, and indolent!
Gregory, defervedly furnamed the Great,
was the fucceffor of Eth the Swiftfoot. The
permiſſion he allowed foon after his coronation
at Scone, for the royal interment of his prede-
ceffor's body; his paffing an act of indemnity for
all who had borne arms against him; and his
reftoring order and unanimity to his kingdom;
were the happy omens of his adminiftration.
The unheard-of cruelties committed by the
Danes in England, and the inability of the
Saxon princes, even of Alfred the Great, to
protect their northern dominions, induced
many of the inhabitants to put themfelves un-
der the protection of Gregory, and to pay him
fealty and homage; "becauſe (fays Fordun)
they thought it better willingly to fubmit to
the Catholic Scots, though enemies, than un-
willingly to the Pagan infidels." Gregory hav-
ing taken care, by feveral acts of munificence,
to fecure the clergy on his fide, convened an
affembly of his ftates at Forfar, whence, after
making ſeveral regulations, he marched againſt
the Picts, whom the Danes had left in poffeflion
of Fife. Unable to refift his power they went
over to the Lothians, and from thence towards
the north of England, to join their confederates
the Danes, who were now in poffeffion of York,
and mafters of all Northumberland. Their
great general Rollo, predeceffor to William the
Con-
J. Collyer faulp.
GREGORIUS.
}
OF SCOTLAND.
165
conquefts.
Conqueror, afterwards king of England, and
himſelf the conqueror of Normandy, had made
a deſcent upon England in his voyage to France;
but he found it already over-burdened with
Danes. In 875, no fewer than three armies of
thoſe emigrants arrived from the continent; but
they were employed in the conqueft of Eng-
land, while Gregory paffing the frith of Forth,
drove their countrymen, and their Pictiſh allies,
out of Lothian into Northumberland, tho' not
before they had thrown a garrifon into Berwic.
No fooner did Gregory appear before that Gregory's
town, than the Chriſtian inhabitants, in con-
fequence, no doubt, of the allegiance they
had lately fworn, received him within their
walls, where the Danish part of the garriſon
was put to the fword, and the Pictish made pri-
foners. From Berwic, Gregory purfued the
Danes, under their leader Hardnute, into Nor-
thumberland, where he defeated them; and
having expelled them from that province, he
paffed the winter in Berwic. The Saxon Chro-
nicle, and the Engliſh hiftorians, take no notice.
of theſe particulars; but the truth is, they
every where ſeem to be prepoffeffed againſt
the Scots; and very probably, confidering the
diſtracted ſtate of England at that time, they
had no opportunities of being informed of
what paffed in the northern parts of their coun-
try, at leaft not early enough to enter it upon
their annals; for fuch is the form of their hif-
tories.
}
166
THE HISTORY
tories. It is, however, certain, that a great
friendſhip fubfifted between Alfred and Grego-
ry; and that the former agreed to yield to the
latter, all the lands which had once belonged
to the Scots and Picts between the two præten-
tures. Early in the fpring, after the defeat of
Hardnute (as he is called, but erroneously, for
his name was Halfden) Gregory took the field
against the Cumbrian Britons, who had reco-
vered Dumbarton and the adjacent provinces,
which had belonged to their ancestors, for-
merly expelled by the Scots and Picts. If
we may credit the authority of Afferius, a con-
temporary writer, and the Saxon Chronicle,
Halfden had divided his army into two parts ;
one of which he fent fouthwards, and marched
with the other himfelf northward, where he
fubdued the Pics, Britons, and the Welch of
Strathclud*. This feems to have induced Gre-
gory to march against him. The Britons being
as unable as unwilling, perhaps, to oppofe him,
foon agreed to an accommodation; by which
they ceded all the lands they poffeffed formerly
belonging to the Scots; and Gregory under-
took to protect them from the Danes. This ac-
commodation, however, muſt be chiefly attri-
* Mr. Camden thinks that Halfden marched, at this time, in-
to Flintshire, where there is a little river called Clud: but in
this he is certainly miftaken; for the Saxon Chronicle and the
oldeft of the English writers tell us, that in his march from the
Tine, he wafted Northumberland and the Holy Illand, which
never could lie in his way to Flintshire.
buted
OF SCOTLAND.
167
Ellay.
buted to the terror of the Daniſh arms; for no
fooner had Alfred the Great defeated the Danes
in South-Britain, than Conftantine, king of the
Cumbrians (the greateft part of whofe fubjects Innes's
were originally Picts) violated the convention
formerly concluded with Gregory, and invad-
ed Annandale; but being encountered by the
Scotch king, he was defeated and killed near
Lochmaben. Conftantine was fucceeded by his
brother Herbert, who would have gladly ad-
hered to the terms of the late treaty; but his
offers were rejected by Gregory, who made
himſelf maſter of Cumberland and Weftmore-
land, which appear to have been then poffeffed
by the Cumbrian Britons and Picts. According
to the Scotch hiftorians, and we meet with no
ancient writers who contradict it, this peace
was confirmed by Alfred; though we are not
pofitive, whether he yielded the ceded coun-
tries to Gregory in fovereignty. It is, howe-
ver, certain, that the ftate of Alfred's affairs, at
that time, muſt have rendered it extremely in-
convenient for him to have had any variance
with Gregory.
vaded.
A war next broke out between the Scots and Ireland in
the Irish, who had intimate connections with
each other. The name of the king of Ireland,
at this time, is faid to have been Donach, a
minor; but his authority was ufurped by two
of his noblemen, Brian and Corneil. Donach
was nearly related to Gregory, who naturally
declared
168
HISTORY
THE
declared himſelf againſt the two factious noble-
men; and the Iriſh having, under pretence of
making reprisals, invaded Galloway, he re-
pelled them with lofs to their fhips, and after-
wards paffed over in perfon to Ireland. The
two noblemen, who had before been enemies.
to each other, upon his landing joined their
forces, and prepared to difpute the paffage of
the river Bane with Gregory, that he might be
forced to return for want of provifions. Gre-
gory found means, however, to get poffeffion
of an eminence, from whence he forced Bri-
an's entrenchments, and killed that chief, with
a number of his followers: upon which Cor-
neil made a retreat into the more inacceffible
parts of the iſland. After this, the Scotch king
reduced Dungard and Pont; by which we are
to underſtand Dundalk and Drogheda; but,
on his march towards Dublin, he was oppofed
at the head of a great army by Corneil, who
was defeated and killed by the Scots. Gregory
then continued his route to Dublin, where
young Donach refided; but was met by a de-
putation, with biſhop Cormac, in his veftments,
at its head, who agreed to receive him into
their city, and to put it under his protection.
Fordun fays, that he was the neareſt in blood
to the fucceffion of Ireland; this, however, can
be meant only after Donach: for upon his en-
tering Dublin, Gregory declared himſelf guar-
dian to the king, while under age; appointed a
re-
}
Bannerman foulp.
DONALD VI.
OF SCOTLAND.
169
regency; and obliged them to fwear that they
never would admit into their land either a
Dane or an Engliſhman, without his permiffion.
He afterwards placed garriſons in the ſtrongeſt
fortreffes of the kingdom, and returned to Scot-
land; but, when Donach came of age, Gregory
recalled his troops. Tho' I pretend not to afcer-
tain the ſeveral facts of this conqueft of Ireland,
as recited by Scotch writers, yet it ſeems indif-
putable that Gregory made fuch an expedition
with great glory. Fordun even afferts, that he
conquered all Ireland; and is fupported by the
very ancient Regifter of the priory of St. An-
drew's, a record of the greateſt authenticity, as
well as antiquity, of any of the hiſtorical monu-
ments of Scotland, becauſe it was undoubtedly
written in the year 1251, almoft forty years be-
fore Edward the firft of England carried off the
other Scotch archives. We have now only to
add to the preceding account of Gregory's
reign, that he was a great benefactor to the
church, as will be feen in the ecclefiaftical part
of this hiftory; that he faithfully fent back the
hoftages he had obliged the Iriſh to give him
for their fidelity to Donach; that he built the
city of Aberdeen, finiſhed his glorious life at
his caftle of Dundore in the Garioch, in the
year 892, and was buried with his anceſtors at
Icolm-kill.
Gregory's
death.
Gregory the Great was fucceeded by Donald Donald III.
the third, fon of Conftantine, who imitated the
VOL. I.
Z
virtues
170
HISTORY
THE
virtues of his predeceffor. The Scotch hifto-
rians feem unanimous that Northumberland
was, at this time, in poffeffion of Donald; this,
however, is contradicted by the beſt Engliſh au-
thorities, which tell us, that ever fince the year
883, it was governed by Guthred, who was
of Daniſh extraction, but tributary to Alfred.
We therefore have reaſon to believe, that the
Danes recovered whatever acquifitions the late
monarch had made in Northumberland, be-
fore the end of his reign; and that Alfred
found it convenient for him to accept of their
homage. Notwithſtanding this, we find that
Donald fent Alfred a body of troops, who did
him confiderable fervice, in his wars with the
Danes. Donald's friendship was the more me-
ritorious, as the Northumbrian Danes had offer-
ed to ſubmit to him, provided he would join
with them in oppofing Alfred; but he refuſed
all their terms, unless they became Chrifti-
ans. I am warranted in the above conjecture
by Fordun, who informs us, that the Daniſh
king of Northumberland and Eaft - Anglia
(whom he calls Gurmund) had been baptized
by means of Alfred; and that though Donald
knew that both he and his family had fworn
fealty to Alfred, yet he entered into an alliance
with his fon Ranald, and his kinfman Sithric,
who fucceeded him. While the Scotch mo-
narch was fettling thofe affairs in the South, his
dominions in the North were harraffed by bands
of
OF
171.
SCOTLAND.
of robbers from Murray and Rofs.. Returning
northward therefore, he bravely encountered.
them, killed fome thouſands, and totally de-
feated them near Forres. It feems not impro-
bable, from the Little Chronicle, that thoſe
robbers were no other than Danes from the
continent, who, very poffibly, might have been
joined by fome of the Picts of Rofs and Murray.
They appear to have been twice defeated by the Defeat of
Scots; firft near Cullen in Bamfshire, and after-
wards at Forres.
All hiftorians agree that Donald, after his
victory at Forres, died there; and, perhaps, the
extraordinary ſtone I have mentioned may be
his monument. Fordun intimates, that his fud-
den death, which happened in the year 903, and
the eleventh of his reign, was owing to poifon,
if not occafioned by his great fatigues. He was
buried at Icolm-kill.
Ed-
Conftantine the third, the fon of Eth Swift-
foot, next afcended the Scottish throne.
ward the Elder was then king of England, who
had given the Danes repeated overthrows, till
at laft he compelled thoſe who were fettled in
the ſouthern parts of the iſland to fubmit to his
government. We have no authentic hiftory of
the firſt years of this prince's adminiſtration; for
his alliance with the Danes, which is the moft
remarkable tranfaction recorded of his reign,
could not happen before his fixteenth year, ac-
cording to the English hiftories which may be now
depend-
Z 2
1
the Danes.
Conftan-
tine III.
172
HISTORY
THE
depended on. The truth is, Edward of Eng-
Jand grew uneafy at feeing the Scots in poffeffion
of the northern provinces; and made fuch ex-
travagant demands upon Conftantine as induced
him to enter into a confederacy with the Danes,
which, however, lafted only two years; for the
Dancs found it their intereft to join with the
English. Soon after, Edward made fuch pre-
parations that the Danes applied to Con-
ftantine to renew the league between them.
Fordun afferts, that Edward had already invad-
ed the Daniſh poffeffions, and laid them wafte
for a whole month; upon which they applied
in the most humble manner for Conftantine's
protection; which having obtained, they con-
firmed all their engagements by oath. Mal-
colm, but according to the above-mentioned
hiſtorian, Eugene, ſon of the late king Donald,
was then prefumptive heir to the crown of
Cumberland Scotland, to whom Conftantine, I think with
great wiſdom, affigned the Scotch poffeffions be-
tween the two prætentures, as his appennage, on
condition of his refiding there, and defending
them againſt all invaders. It was not long be-
fore Malcolm was obliged to take the field, at
the head of a body of troops, by way of auxi-
given to the
Scots,
:
liaries to the Danes. The Scotch writers fpeak
very obfcurely of the event of Malcolm's firft
campaign; their filence, however, is fupplied
by the Engliſh hiftorians. Athelftan, who, ac-
cording to the former, was the natural ſon of
Edward,
*
Roberta Joutp
CONSTANTINUS II.
1
1
1
!
OF SCOTLAND.
173
Edward, commanded for his father, at that
time, in the north of England. Being in no
condition to refift the confederate forces of the
Scots and Danes, he remained upon the defen-
five to obferve the motions of the former. Per-
ceiving they were chiefly intent on plunder, he
offered them battle; but politically retiring
from the field, while the Scots were bufy in pil-
laging his camp, Athelftan rallied his forces at
an appointed ſignal, and cut both the Scots and
Danes to pieces; prince Malcolm himſelf beng
carried wounded out of the field.
fealty.
This victory raiſed Edward to the fummit on terms of
of glory; and perhaps, Conftantine, rather
than endanger his hereditary dominions, might
pay fealty to Edward for the territories he
held fouth of Forth, as did Reginald, king of
the Northumbrian Danes, and the Britons of
Strathclyde. This is a fact mentioned by the
Saxon Chronicle; but there is no reafon for ex-
tending this homage, with fome modern Eng-
liſh writers, to the counties north of Forth.
The Scotch hiftorians, however, are moft un-
pardonably inaccurate in their accounts of this
important period.
Upon the acceffion of Athelftan, Edward the
Elder's fon, to the crown of England, feveral
confpiracies were formed against him, which
encouraged the northern Danes to take arms, Progrefs of
and furprize York and Davenport. They were
headed by one of their princes, named Sithric,
and
the Danes.
174
HISTORY
THE
This
and became fo formidable that Athelftan enter-
ed into a treaty with him, and gave him his
fifter in marriage: Sithric, however, did not
long furvive the nuptials. He was fucceeded
by his fon Guthred, who endeavouring to
throw off Athelftan's yoke, was defeated, and
fled into Scotland. Athelftan then befieged
York, which he took, and advancing to Scot-
land, demanded Conftantine to deliver up Gu-
thred, and his brother Anlaf. Conftantine, not
chufing either to provoke the Engliſh monarch,
or to violate the facred rights of hofpitality,
defired a conference with him; which took
place at Dakers, in Northumberland.
meeting has been variously reprefented. The
Engliſh hiftorians pretend, that Conftantine
met Athelftan as a vaffal; and not only furren-
dered to him the fuperiority of all his domini-
ons, but gave him his fon as an hoſtage for his
obedience. We know of no fon that Conftan-
tine then had, unless it was the infant to whom
William of Malmbury fays, Athelftan ftood
godfather at the font. The difagreement, and,
indeed, the miſtakes found among the Engliſh
hiftorians at this period, expoſe their credibi-
lity to the most unfavourable fufpicions. It is
moft probable, that the two kings accommo-
dated affairs at the conference, upon Conftan-
tine's promifing to withdraw his protection
from Guthred; who, with his brother Anlaf,
was permitted to make his cfcape to Yorkshire,
where
OF SCOTLAND.
175.
where he re-commenced hoftilities. It is pof-
fible too, that Athelftan might think the Scots
were privy to his conduct, and might refent it,
by fome incurfions into their country; but no
reputable Engliſh hiftorian has, at this time,
given Athelstan a complete victory over the
Scots. He rather feems to have acted upon the
defenſive, a powerful confederacy being at
this time formed againft him; in which the
Scots, the Northumbrian Danes, the Iriſh, and
the Welch, were parties. Anlaf, faid to have
been an Iriſh prince (but whether he was a bro-
ther of Guthred is uncertain) was fon-in-law to
Conftantine. The Welch were the firft who
took arms; but, not being fupported, were
quickly reduced by Athelftan, who directly
marched againſt the Scots. This muſt have
happened in the year 934, feven years after the
interview between the English and Scotch mo-
narchs at Dakers. What paffed in the inter-
mediate time between 934 and 937, or (accord-
ing to the Saxon Chronicle) 938, does not ap-
pear either from the Scotch or Engliſh records;
but the latter being the moft authentic at this
period, with which fome of their authors were
contemporaries, we follow them, rather than
thoſe of the Scots, who are deſtitute of preci-
fion.
It ſeems to be very probable, that Athelftan
continued for fome years at York, and that
hoftilities were in the mean time carried on by
both
176
HISTORY
THE
Adventure
of Anlaf.
both parties. In the year 938, the combined
army of the Scots and Iriſh, under Anlaf, land-
ed at the mouth of the Humber, and advancing
into the country, were joined by the prince of
Cumberland, by Fordun called Eugene; and
therefore we cannot fee with what propriety he
is named Malcolm by later hiftorians, unleſs
Eugene had been then dead, and was fucceeded
by a brother named Malcolm. Athelftan ſoon
put himſelf at the head of an army, and both
parties having encamped in fight of each other,
they determined to come ſpeedily to a decifive
action. While they were making the neceffary
difpofitions, Anlaf, in imitation of Alfred, who
had undertaken a fimilar adventure fome years
before, diſguiſed himſelf like a harper, a charac-
ter which procured admiflion in thofe days into
courts, houſes, and camps, otherwife inaccef-
fible; and entering the English camp, after en-
tertaining Athelftan with his mufic, and obferv-
ing the fituation of his army, was diſmiſſed with
a noble reward. An English or Danifh foldier
who had ferved under Anlaf, recollected him
through his difguife, watched his motions, and
faw him bury, in a corner of the Engliſh camp,
the gratuity he received. After Anlaf's depar-
ture, the foldier acquainted Athelftan with what
he had obferved; and, by his advice, the king
exchanged tents with a bifhop, who was flain
that very night in an irruption made by Anlaf,
who thought he had killed the Engliſh monarch.
The
OF SCOTLAN D.
177
!
The Scotch hiftorians take no notice of this
fact, tho' it is unquestionably attefted; and when
all its circumftances are confidered, I cannot
look upon the attempt of Anlaf as much better
than a defigned affaffination; perhaps, it con-
tributed to the dreadful carnage which enfued
next day.
defeated.
Both armies were encamped at a place called The Scots
Bruneford, and by Fordun, Brounyngfeld, near
the Humber. It appears that the Scots expected
to be joined by a body of Welch, as they had
been by fome auxiliary Danes under Froda.
They were diſappointed, however, through the
vigilance of Athelftan, who underſtanding that
the Iriſh, under Anlaf, had been terribly fa-
tigued by their nocturnal irruption, and perhaps
apprehenſive that they might be joined by the
Welch, refolved to attack them in their en-
trenchments. The Scots were commanded by
Conftantine; the Iriſh by Anlaf; the Cumbri-
ans by their own prince; and the Danes by Fro-
da. Athelftan had under him his brother Ed-
mund, and Turke til, his favourite general.
They entered the entrenchments of the confe-
derates fword in hand; but the refiftance they
met with was chiefly from the Scots, who were
attacked by the Londoners and Mercians, the
flower of the English army, under Turketil.
Conftantine was in the moft imminent danger
of being killed or taken prifoner; but he was
faved by the loyalty and courage of his ſubjects,
VOL. I.
though
A a
178
THE HISTORY
!
though the English writers pretend that he
fell in the field.
But it is univerfally agreed,
that after a long difpute, Athelftan obtained a
moſt complete victory.
The English hiftorians mention this as the
moft bloody battle that had ever been fought
in Britain; by which expreffion (as Buchanan
well obferves) they often mean that part of the
ifland fituated fouth of Adrian's prætenture.
I know of no hiftorian who mentions the num-
ber of the flain, though it is agreed that the
combined army loft five princes or chieftains,
and feven generals; but we are ignorant of the
diftinction between thoſe two denominations.
Fordun mentions three princes, and nine gene-
rals; and fays, that the flain were innumerable.
Athelftan's lofs was likewife very confiderable;
for, excluſive of a great number of his foldiers,
his two coufin-germans, Edwin and Ethelwin,
were killed. This battle proved fatal to the
Scots; for the active Athelftan invaded their
country, over-ran its fouthern parts, and ftript
them of all the provinces they held fouth of
Forth.
k
The reader in the note *, will find the
ridi-
King Athelstan going to make war againſt the Scots, and
by the way paying a vifit to the tomb of that faint (St. John de
Beverley) there pawned his knife at the altar, promifing to re-
deem it at his return: but when they had thus fought againſt
the Scots, he begged of God a fign, whereby it might appear to
future ages, that they were juftly vanquished by the English;
and thereupon, the king ſtriking a certain rock with his fword,
near the caſtle of Dunbar, he made a gap in it an ell deep." It
feems
!
Miller foulp.
MALCOLM I.
OF SCOTLAN D.
179
ridiculous legends related by Brompton, and
other English hiftorians, concerning their mo-
narch's expedition to Scotland, which ren-
der great part of his hiſtory very juſtly ſuſpi-
cious, though the facts here related are indif
putable.
Conftantine being now old, and difpirited
by the misfortunes of his country, foon after the
battle of Bruneford, refigned his crown to Mal-
colm, and retired to the monaftery of the Cul-
dees, at St. Andrew's, where he died, and was
buried five years after, in the year 943.
The modern hiftorians of Scotland ſeem to
have erred greatly, in fuppofing this Malcolm Malcolm.
to have been the prince of the Cumbrians in the
battle of Bruneford; becauſe the English wri-
ters have told us, that the name of the Cum-
brian prince was Eugene, and that he was kill-
ed in that battle. This coincides with Fordun's
relation; and therefore, the Malcolm here men-
tioned, very probably, was brother to that Eu-
gene, whom Ingulphus, as well as Fordun, ex- Ingulphus
prefsly fays, was then prince of Cumberland *.
:
ſeems king Athelſtan fulfilled his promife, and upon his return-
ing with victory, enriched the church of St. John with great
poffeffions, and fo, I fuppofe, got his knife again. There is an-
other miracle related alfo by the monks, of Athelftan's ſword
being loft out of the fcabbard, juft when he was ready to fight, and
another being by miracle put in the place, at the prayers of arch-
bishop Odo; which fword, they pretend, was kept in the king's
treaſury. It is no lefs a wonder than the former; and one fuch
as thefe is enough at one time.
* William of Malmbury calls him, Regulus Deirorum Eli-
genius.
aa aun, gay.
A a 2
Tho'
180
HISTORY
THE
Tho' the refignation of Conftantine the third is
fixed to the year 938, yet there is ſome reaſon
for believing, that this Malcolm did not affume
the regal title till Conftantine's death, in 943.
The great progrefs which the Danes had made
in England againft Edmund the firft, fon to
Athelftan, proved of no fmall advantage to
Malcolm, as it rendered him an uſeful ally to
Edmund; tho' the battle of Bruneford, and the
fubfequent loffes of the Scots, in their wars with
Athelftan, had reduced them fo low, that Mal-
colm at firſt cultivated peace with all his neigh-
bours. We underſtand from the Engliſh hifto-
rians, that the people of Cumberland, after the
battle of Bruneford, had chofen a prince of
their own; that Anlaf, the Engliſh Dane, hav-
ing eſcaped to Ireland, after that engagement,
was recalled from thence by the Northumbri-
ans, upon the death of Athelftan; and that up-
on his arrival, he recovered all Northumber-
land, and made a very conſiderable progreſs to
the fouthward. This proved an additional in-
ducement for Edmund to ftrengthen his con-
nections with Malcolm. The Engliſh monarch
was forced by Anlaf to an inglorious peace, into
which he was partly betrayed by the treachery
of his own fubjects; but he no fooner difco-
vered their perfidy, than, in the year 944, he
invaded Northumberland, from whence he
expelled both Anlaf and Reginald, the fon of
Guthred, who was formerly king of that coun-
try.
OF SCOTLAN D.
181
try. The Northumbrians had been greatly af
fifted in their revolt by the Cumbrians, the
name of whofe new-elected prince was Dun-
mail; and young Edmund, who was highly
elated with his fuccefs, after depofing him, of-
fered his country to Malcolm, on condition of
his holding it as a fief of the crown of Eng-
land, and of his being ready to affift him both
by fea and land. Matthew of Weftminfter fays,
that Edmund ordered the eyes of Dunmail's
fons to be put out; but he informs us, that the
only fervice Malcolm engaged to perform for
his acquifition, was, to affift in defending the
northern border. Brompton, however, with
great appearance of truth afferts, that the Scot-
tifh prince was obliged (we fuppofe, if requir-
ed) to attend Edmund's court at certain feafts;
and that houſes for his lodging on the road
were affigned him. Buchanan has added Weft-
moreland to Cumberland in the fame ceflion,
with fome appearance of probability, as it
feems unlikely that the Cumbrians were con-
fined to the prefent county of that name.
Nothing but the diftreffed fituation of Ed-
mund's affairs, by the Danes, could have pre-
vailed upon that monarch to have given the
king of Scotland fo firm a footing as he had ac-
quired in England by the late treaty. As mat-
ters were then circumftanced in the North of
England, the refervation of fealty was little
more than a matter of form, which Malcolm
might
182
HISTORY
THE
might obferve or refufe ás he pleafed. Fordun
informs us, with the English hiftorians, that a
fecond convention was concluded, by which it
was agreed, that Indulf, Malcolm's heir, and
the other heirs of Scotland for the time being,
fhould perform homage and fealty to king Ed-
mund, and his fucceffors on the throne of Eng-
land, for Cumberland; and that neither of them
fhould give fhelter to, accept of fealty from,
or form connections with, the barbarians of the
Fidelity of North (meaning the Danes). Upon the mur-
der of Edmund, in 954, the Engliſh chofe his
brother Edred for his fucceffor, to whom Mal-
colm likewiſe proved a moſt faithful ally. But
before I proceed farther, it is neceſſary to explain
a very important difficulty which occurs at this
period.
Malcolm.
Hiftorians
cenfured.
The Saxon Chronicle, in mentioning the bat-
tle of Bruneford, confounds the Hibernian and
Britiſh Scots under the common name of Scots,
which has occafioned Dr. Gibfon, afterwards
biſhop of London, and editor of that Chroni-
cle, to fuppofe that the Scots whom Athelftan
then defeated, were the Hibernian Scots. This,
however, is only fo far true as Anlaf command-
ed the Irish Scots, and in fact, was the head of
that confederacy. It is not eafy to fay, whether
the king of the Northumbrian Danes, and An-
laf, king of the Hibernian Scots, were the fame
perfon. I am inclined to think they were; and
that the Scots always acted in that war as his
auxiliaries.
OF
SCOTLAND.
183
C
auxiliaries. I am even fomewhat doubtful,
whether Conftantine, king of Scotland, was
prefent at the battle of Bruneford; for he is
not mentioned in the Cottonian manufcript
of the Saxon Chronicle, though named in
that publiſhed by bifhop Gibſon. I am the
more fufpicious on this head, becauſe it is in-
difputable that Eugene, prince of Cumberland,
was killed in that battle, whom the author of
the Chronicle, and the other Engliſh hiftorians,
might very readily miſtake for Conftantine, as
they did the latter being killed in that engage-
ment, though there is not a more certain
fact of that age than that he furvived it five
years.
Nothing can be more evident, than that it
was to the Caledonian or Britiſh Scots the coun-
ty of Cumberland was ceded by Edmund; for
when his brother Edred aſcended the throne, the
Northumbrians being again inclined to rebel,Mal-
colm, or rather his fon Indulf, renewed his oath
of fealty to Edred at York, which difconcerted
the ſchemes of the revolters, who fubmitted to
Turketil. It is, however, certain, that Anlaf
was ftill alive and in Denmark, from whence,
foon after Malcolm's performing his homage,
he returned to Northumberland with a body of
Danes, which once more put him in poffeflion
of that country. It muſt be acknowledged,
that the modern Scotch hiftorians are not very
confiftent at this period, and that fome diflicul-
ties
1
134
THE HISTORY
ties occur in their narrations. They tell us,
that upon the firft rebellion of the Northum-
brians againſt Edred, Malcolm aflifted him with
ten thouſand men; but we know of no affif-
tance fent by him to Edred againſt Anlaf.
Perhaps, Fordun may remove this difficulty,
by the new ftipulations of fealty, which, as I
have already mentioned, were formed at the
fecond convention between Malcolm and Ed-
mund.
From them it would feem, as if Malcolm thought
himſelf difengaged from his oath of fealty and
homage, and at liberty to affift, at leaft not to
oppoſe, his friend and kinfman Anlaf, whom he
might confider as the lawful king of Northum-
berland. This freſh invafion of Anlaf happen-
ed in the year 949, and he remained in quiet
poffeffion of Northumberland till the year 952,
when he was expelled by Eric. Edred, upon
this, carried an army into Northumberland,
which he again reduced. We do not find, how-
ever, that Malcolm fent him any affiftance.
Fordun, indeed, fays, that the Scots affifted
Edred in laying wafte Northumberland; but
this was previous to the invafion of the Danes,
under Anlaf. As to Malcolm himſelf, proving.
it ſeems a fevere jufticiary, he was murdered
by a conſpiracy of robbers, at Ulrine in the
county of Murray, in the year 952, and fifteenth
of his reign.
Indulf,
J
1
"
"
?
A
Bannerman foulp
=
INDULFUS.
OF SCOTLAND.
185
Indulf, fon of the late king Conftantine, fuc- Indulf.
ceeded Malcolm, whofe fon Duff was created
prince of Cumberland. Indulf appears to have
been fenfible of the barbarity of the Danes, and
therefore cultivated the friendſhip of the Anglo-
Saxon kings; it is very poffible, however, that
at this time Anlaf was dead. The connections
between Indulf and Edred exafperated the
Danes fo highly, that after Edred's death, ac-
cording to Fordun, they invaded Scotland with
a fleet of fifty fhips; having firſt laid waſte the
more fouthern coafts of England. This defcent
alarmed the iflanders as well as the Scots, whom
(fays our old hiftorian) the Danes now hated as
much as they did the English. They were, how-
ever, expelled from Eaft-Lothian; and croffing
over to Fife, they were defeated there likewiſe.
Indulf feems to have taken great care to guard
his coafts; for, notwithſtanding the advantage
the Danes enjoyed in their ſhipping, they could
not effect another landing, till feeming to fteer
for their own country, the Scots were thrown
off their guard, and their enemies all of a fud-
den landed at Cullen in Bamffshire. Indulf
foon came up with, and attacked them in their
camp, from whence he, and his two generals,
Græme and Dunbar, drove them towards their
fhips but the Scottiſh king was killed in an
ambufcade he fell into during the purfuit.
:
It must be acknowledged, that the hiftory of
the fucceffion to the crown of Scotland, at this
period,
VOL. I.
Bb
186
THE HISTORY
The Scots
ion of Edin
take poflet-
burgh.
Duff.
period, is very confufed; for the Old Chroni-
cle I have ſo often mentioned, makes Malcolm,
who fucceeded Conftantine, to have been the
fon of Dunmail; nor does it relate whoſe fon
Indulf was. We learn, however, one very im-
portant fact from it, viz. that under Indulf, the
Scots acquired the poffeffion of the caftle of
Edinburgh; an incident which may ferve to
prove the uncertainty of the Scotch geography
in thoſe days, and that the country fouth of
Forth was poffeffed fometimes by Saxons, and
fometimes by Danes: but it was probably from
the Anglo-Saxons that the Scots recovered
Edinburgh; for there is no doubt of their pre-
deceffors having been, long before this time, in
poffeffion of Lothian. The fame record men-
tions a victory which Indulf obtained over the
Summerleds or Danes, in Buchan.
Duff, which in the Gaelic language fignifies a
black man, and who is accordingly in the Chro-
nicle termed Niger, fucceeded Indulf. He is
faid to have been the fon of Malcolm, and an
excellent prince. Fordun calls him a man of
dove-like fimplicity; but at the ſame time, the
terror of rebels, thieves, and robbers. The fto-
ry of his health being affected by a magical
image melting before a fire, is agreeable to the
monkiſh fictions of that age. Even Fordun has
not mentioned it; but informs us, that in his
purfuit of robbers through all their haunts,
efpecially in Murray, he was fo incautious, that
confpi-
!
i
DUFFUS.
1
4
1
!
!
t
Bannerman
6. faulp.
COLENUS.
OF SCOTLAN D.
187
confpirators broke into his bed-chamber in the
night, and murdered him. The leader of the
confpiracy is faid to have been Donald, gover-
nor of the town and caftle of Forrefs, who was
inftigated to this treafon by his wife, and the
king's refufing to pardon fome of his relations.
The ſtory of his body being buried by the con-
fpirators under a bridge near Kinlofs, that it
might not be diſcovered, is probable; but the
miracles which attended the concealment till
the body was found out, are unworthy of repe-
tition it is fufficient to fay, that the flight of
the confpirators pointed out their guilt; that
they were retaken, and brought to condign pu-
niſhment. The Little Chronicle I have before
quoted mentions, though in almoſt unintel-
ligible words, fome wars not taken notice of by
other hiftorians, in which Duff was conqueror;
but that he afterwards loft his crown in the
fifth year of his reign. His death correfponds
with the year 965.
Culen, the fon of Indulf, had been nomi- Culen.
nated prince of Cumberland in his father's
reign, as heir apparent to the crown. There is
reaſon, from the Little Chronicle, for fuppofing
that he had fome differences with his predecef-
for; however, be that as it may, we are told
that he feverely punifhed his murderers. Not-
withſtanding this, Culen plunged himſelf into
vices of every kind to fuch a degree, as ren-
ders the fact very queſtionable, were it not
fupport-
Bb 2
188
HISTORY
THE
The
fupported by Fordun. An unbounded paffion
for women is charged upon him as his capital
crime; but the truth is, he muſt have been
more than man if he was guilty of all the acts
of incontinency mentioned by Buchanan and
Boece, who not only accufe him of fornication
and adultery with women of all ranks, but
even of inceſt with his own fifters and daugh-
ters. The king's example infected his ſubjects;
and he apologized for his conduct, by pretending
that he wanted to foften their manners.
wiſer part of the nobility withdrew from court;
and the ſubjects were fleeced to ſupply their
monarch's vices and luxuries. The kingdom
thus became a fcene of public rapine; and at
laft an affembly of the ftates was convened at
Scone, for the re-fettling the government.
Culen was affaffinated on his journey to pre-
fide at this affembly, near the village of Meth-
ven, by Rohard, thane, or fheriff of Fife,
whofe daughter the king is faid to have de-
flowered. Fordun acknowledges that he was
a degenerated prince; but fays that he was bu-
ried with his anceſtors at Icolm-kill. The Short
Chronicle mentions his being killed with his
brother Ethod, by the Britons; by whom the
author probably means the Scotch Lowlanders.
On the death of Culen, who was murdered
Kenneth III in the fifth year of his reign, Kenneth the third
fucceeded to the Scottish crown, and his admi-
niftration is a remarkable period in the Scotch
hiſtory.
Häll julp.
KENNETH III.
f
1
1
1
!
OF SCOTLAND.
189
hiftory. This prince mounted the throne in
the time of public confufion, and foreign inva-
fion. The late diforders had fo infected all the
younger part of the nobility, as to render them
feemingly irreclaimable. This, however, did
not diſcourage Kenneth, who was a prince of
invincible reſolution. He began with reforming
his own court and family; and had fagacity to
perceive, that he muft effect his purpoſe by fa-
vouring the liberties of the common people.
againſt the oppreffions of the nobility, which
were now become intolerable. He purfued this
plan with ſo much ſucceſs, that having nothing
to fear from the great barons, he ordered them
to appear before him at Lanerk: but the ma-
jority, confcious of their demerits, did not
attend. The king, whofe prudence was equal
to his refolution, diffembled his difpleaſure fo
well, that thoſe noblemen who appeared were
charmed with his affability, and the noble en-
tertainment he gave them. Kenneth went from
Clydefdale to Galloway, where he performed hist
devotions at the fhrine of the popular St. Ninian.
Next year he appointed another meeting of Afembly of
his ftates at Scone, where the affembly was very
numerous; the guilty part of the nobility being
encouraged to appear by the king's apparent
mildneſs and moderation. Kenneth had con-
certed his meaſures fo happily, that all of a fud-
den the place of meeting was befet with armed
men. Even the innocent part of the affembly,
who
the ftates,
190
HISTORY
THE
who had not been acquainted with Kenneth's
intention, trembled at their danger; however,.
the king foon diffipated their fears by a ſpeech,
in which he informed them that none but the
guilty had any thing to apprehend; that his
purpoſe was to encourage induſtry; and that
he was determined at all events, to bring re-
bels and robbers to juſtice. After this, he or-
dered fuch of the nobility as were known to
protect and encourage the most notorious delin-
quents, to be taken into cuſtody; and he inti- ·
mated, that their fubmitting to public juftice,
fhould be the price of their liberty.
From this tranfaction, the reader may con-
ceive fome idea of the national miſeries attend-
Feudal law. ing the feudal law, as then eſtabliſhed in Scot-
land. Every dependent confidered his immedi-
ate lord as his fovereign; and many of them
never fuppofed that the chief of their clan (as
he was called) could be controuled by any other
power. The fame notions prevailed in after-
times, under vicious princes, who attempted to
impoſe upon the people oppreffions more in-
tolerable than thofe impofed by their chiefs;
but a vigorous and a virtuous prince feldom
failed of gaining over the people and a majority
of their chiefs to his intereft, as will be feen in
the fubfequent part of this hiftory.
The nobles accepted of the king's offer, who
was fo well informed, that he laid before the af-
fembly the names of the chief malefactors whom
he
OF
191
SCOTLAND.
he intended to bring to juftice. The affembly,
upon this, iffued out orders for apprehending the
criminals, who were puniſhed according to their
offences. We cannot, it is true, approve of the
manner in which Kenneth proceeded in this af-
fair; but he muſt be juſtified by the character
of the times, and the neceffity of the meaſurė.
He pacified his nobles, by magnificent pre-
fents, and his generous manner of treating
them.
A great revolution, little attended to by
Scotch hiftorians, happened at this time in the
affairs of North as well as South-Britain. The
famous Edgar was then ſeated on the throne of
England; who being fenfible how neceffary it
was to keep up a large fleet for oppofing the
Danes, the conftant enemies of the Anglo-Sax-
on kings, fitted out a greater number of fhips
for the fafety of his country, than perhaps all
Europe befides could put to ſea.
He knew,
however, how ineffectual all his cares muſt
prove, unleſs he could unite the king of the
Scots, the prince of Cumberland, and all the
petty princes of Wales, in one common princi-
ple of fafety and defence, againſt thofe invaders.
The Engliſh, as well as the Scotch hiftorians,
are filent as to the manner in which this great
meaſure was carried into execution; but it is
certain, that fuch a confederacy took place un-
der Edgar; nor can we with any confiftency
imagine, that fo wife and fo politic a prince as
Ken-
1.
great re-
volution in
Art
England.
}
192
THE HISTORY
neth, was averfe to the union. The English
writers have reprefented this confederacy as a
ſubjection which Kenneth agreed to; but upon
no other authorities than the idle tales of the
monks, who have in a manner deified Edgar
even for his crimes and vices. All that appears
probable is, that Kenneth paid Edgar his pro-
portion of expence for maintaining his fleet,
and for guarding all the fea-coafts of Britain,
which we are told he did, by dividing his fhips
into three ſquadrons. There is likewife fome
foundation for believing that Kenneth, attended
by the prince of Cumberland, met Edgar at
Chefter; but the common ftory, forged by the
Engliſh monks, of Edgar's being rowed in his
barge on the Dee, by his feven tributary kings
(of whom Kenneth was one) could it even be
proved, is inconclufive as to its being a mark of
Kenneth's fubmiffion. If eight princes, confi-
dering the manners of thofe days, chofe to di-
vert themſelves by rowing a barge on the river;
and if Edgar, as being the moft expert fteerfman,
fat at the helm, what inference can be drawn
from fuch a frolic, to eſtabliſh the dependency
of the crown of Scotland upon that of Eng-
land? But, in fact, the whole of this ftory
Scotland to may juftly be confidered as a monkish dream.
The fub-
jection of
England
dilproved.
The truth is, that Kenneth cultivated a
friendſhip with Edgar, as well as the Britiſh
princes; and he had other reafons for this con-
duct, befides the protection of his coafts, be-
caufe
OF SCOTLAND.
193
becauſe he was now meditating a total altera-
tion in the mode of fucceffion to the throne.
It is uncertain, whether the confederacy I have
mentioned, happened before or after a dreadful
invafion of the Danes in this reign. That cir-
cumftance, however, is of no great importance,
becauſe it is impoffible for any number of ſhips,
to prevent at all times a defcent on the coafts
of Britain. Thoſe northern barbarians ap-
peared off the eaflern coafts of Angus, and
landed at Montrofe. Their original inten-
tion feems to have been to make a defcent up-
on England, which, perhaps, they found toơ
well guarded. The Danes, upon their landing,
proceeded fouthwards, filling all the country
thro' which they paffed, with the moſt horrible
ravages. Kenneth was then at Stirling, unpre-
pared to refift the invaders. The exigency of
affairs would only permit him to affemble a
handful of men in hafte, by whom he cut off
the ftragglers, and checked their plundering;
but he could not prevent the barbarians from
befieging Perth. By this time, the king had been
joined by a confiderable number of his fubjects,
and was encamped near the confluence of the
Tay and the Earn. He advanced to raife the
fiege, and found his enemy poffeffed of the ri-
fing ground. A battle enfued, in which Ken-
neth exhibited fignal proofs of his valour: he
led the center of his army in perfon; Malcolm,
prince of Cumberland, commanded the right
VOL. I.
wing;
Сс
194
THE HISTORY
Battle of
Loncarty,
and rife of
the name
of Hay.
wing; and the thane of Athol the left. Pre-
vious to the engagement, the king promifed,
according to the Scotch authors, ten pounds in
filver, or the value of it in land, for the head
of every Dane which ſhould be brought to
him; and an immunity from all taxes to the
foldiers who ferved in his army, if they fhould
prove victorious. The truth of this fact, how-
ever, is very queſtionable, when we confider
the innate hatred which had always fubfifted
between the Scots and the Danes, and the great
difficulty Kenneth would have found in fulfill-
ing his promiſes.
Whatever may be in thoſe facts, it is certain
the Danes fought fo defperately, that the Scots,
notwithſtanding the noble example fet them
by their monarch in his own perfon, muſt have
been totally routed, had they not been met by
a yeoman and his two fons, of the name of Hay,
who were coming up to the battle, armed with
fuch ruftic weapons as their condition in life af-
forded them. Partly by threats, and partly by
calling out that help was at hand, the three
brave countrymen ftopt the Scots at a narrow
pafs, which they manned; and perfuading them
to rally, they led the troops once more againſt
the enemy. The fight was now renewed with
fuch fury on the part of the Scots, that the
Danes were entirely defeated *. After the bat-
* That Hay and his two fons performed this ſervice to their
country, feems indifputable; but Buchanan, and the Scotch
}
histo-
OF SCOTLAND.
195
tle, the king rewarded Hay with the large ba-
rony
of Errol, in the carfe of Gowry, ennobled
his family, and gave him an armorial bearing
alluding to the agricultural weapons they ufed
in their brave atchievement. Such was the rife
of the illuftrious family of Errol, whoſe defcen-
dant was high-conftable of Scotland in the reign
of Robert the firft, and the defcendant from
him now claims the fame honour. The Short
Chronicle I have fo frequently mentioned,
fpeaks of Kenneth having fortified the banks of
the Forth; by which we fuppofe is meant, that
he guarded them againſt the Daniſh invaſions.
The fame author likewife mentions his invad-
hiftorians who follow him, as well as Boece, record it with cir-
cumſtances ſo improbable, as to detract from the credibility of
the action. They tell us, that this Hay and his two fons were
ploughing in a field near the ſpot where the battle was fought;
and that in loofing the yokes from their ploughs, they ftopt the
flight of their countrymen. Is it likely, that thefe brave, patri-
otic, able-bodied men, fhould einploy themſelves in the peaceful
exercife of agriculture, while their country was embroiled in
war, and when their king had invited all his fubjects to join
him? Other improbabilities occur in the ufual manner of tell-
ing the ſtory; fo that I fhould have entirely omitted it, if the
fa&t in general had not been attefted by very ancient authorities.
Upon the whole, the hiftories of other nations afford many ex-
amples of three or four reſolute men changing the fate of a bat-
the; nor is it uncommon even in modern times. This feems to
have been the cafe of Hay and his two fons, difengaged from all
improbable circumſtances. Mr. Gordon, in his Itinerarium Sep-
tentrionale, p. 151. fancies that he diſcovered a monument of
ftone, near a place called Aberlemny in the county of Angus,
with figures cut upon it expreffive of this action. That the Scots
of thoſe days practiſed a rude ſculpture, feems beyond all doubt;
but the figures on the ftones are too much defaced for us to pro-
nounce any thing decifive as to their ſubject.
Cc 2
ing
195
HISTORY
THE
ing Britain, and his ravaging Saxony: by
which perhaps we are to underſtand England,
and carrying off a ſon of the Saxon king. Hiſto-
ry furniſhes us with no light as to any of thoſe
incidents; but we have in the note fubjoined
the words of the Chronicle, in their preſent
mutilated ſtate *. It is certain, that the defeat
of the Danes at Loncarty procured repofe for
Scotland, while they were over-running Eng-
land, and even rendering it tributary.
We are
It is greatly to be regretted, that the actions
of this glorious reign are not attended by a
chronology which can be depended on. For-
dun places the acceffion of Kenneth to the
crown in the year 970; and tells us, that Ed-
gar, king of England, died in the fixth year of
his reign, which agrees with the Engliſh com-
putation and the Saxon Chronicle.
likewife ignorant of the meaſures purſued by
Kenneth, for altering the courfe of the fuccef-
fion, and diverting it into his own family; but
we are certain that they occafioned great and
general diffatisfaction throughout the kingdom.
Malcolm, the fon of Duff, was then prince of
Cumberland, and confequently was confidered
as apparent heir to the crown.
* Cinadius (meaning Kenneth) fil. Maelcolami regn. an ftatim
prædavit Britanniam ex parte pedeftres, Cinadi occifi funt maxima
cæde in moni cacornax (fic) & ad Staugna (fic) de rain. Cinadius
autem vallavit ripas vadorum Forthin. Primo anno perexit Cina-
dius, & prædavit Saxoniam, & traduxit filium regis Saxonum.
Hic eft qui tribuit magnam civitatem Brechne domino.
The
OF SCOTLAND.
197
The Engliſh hiftorians have not informed us
how far the king of England was concerned in
this alteration: but undoubtedly he had a right
to be confulted; becauſe, by the original ceffion
of Cumberland, he was a kind of guarantee
for that prince's fucceeding to the crown of Scot-
land. We learn from Fordun, that in a convention
of the ftates it was agreed, that the king's eldeſt
fon or daughter, tho' only a year old, fhould
inherit the crown; and that Malcolm, the fon
of Duff, being dead, Malcolm, the fon of
Kenneth, fwore allegiance to Etheldred, king of
England, for Cumberland.
There is ſome reaſon for fufpecting that Ken-
neth had purchafed the acquiefcence of his
great lords to this ftatute, by granting them
exorbitant eftates, which rendered them in a
manner independent on the crown. Be this as
it may, we have the ftrongeft grounds to con-
clude, that during all the fubfequent reign of
this prince, the bulk of the Scotch nation was
far from being reconciled to the alteration of
the mode of fucceffion. Tumults and infurrec-
tions happened in various parts of the country,
particularly in Rofs-fhire; and dangerous confpi-
racies were formed againſt the king's life. Ken-
neth fuppreffed and puniſhed the infurgents,
though he could not the confpirators.
In the mean time a ſcene of the moft horrid
nature was acted, which is related by Bucha-
nan and the Scotch hiftorians as follows:
Two
The fuc-
tered.
ceffion al-
198
HISTORY
THE
cident.
Boetius,
Buchanan.
Tragical in Two powerful noblemen, Cruethnet (or as
he is called by Fordun, Cruchne) and his
grandfon Crathilinth, by his daughter Fenella,
were in poffeffion of the counties of Angus and
Mearns. The latter vifiting the former at his
caftle of Delbogyn, with a large retinue, the
fervants of the two noblemen quarrelled, and
two of Crathilinth's followers were killed; of
which he complained to his mother when he
returned home. Inftead of appeafing him, fhe
prompted him to revenge; and he accordingly
returned with a numerous attendance to Del-
bogyn, where, being admitted, he murdered
his grandfather, with all his family; plundered
the caſtle; and returned in triumph to his mo-
ther at Fettercairn. The people of Angus made
reprifals on the eftates of Crathilinth; and
Kenneth was obliged to interpoſe, by fummon-
ing all parties to appear before him at Scone in
fifteen days. Crathilinth, however, inftead of
obeying the fummons, retired with his follow-
ers to Lochaber; whither the king purfuing
him, brought him priſoner to Dunfinane, and
afterwards put him to death.
Remark.
Though I have related this ſtory as I find it
in Bocce and Buchanan, with all its fhocking
circumftances, yet a ſtrong fufpicion of its au-
thenticity arifes from the filence of Fordun,
who only fays, "that Finclla confpired the
death of the king out of refentment for that of
her fon, who had by the feverity of the law, or
1
by
OF
199
SCOTLAND.
by fome other event he cannot account for, loft
his life at Dunfinane a long time before." In
fhort, from the manner of Fordun's relation, I
am inclined to think the whole narrative of the
above affaffination fabulous; and that Crathi-
linth was put to death for a 'confpiracy oh ac-
count of the fucceffion. It is moft probable,
therefore, that the death of Malcolm Duff,
prince of Cumberland, renewed the practices of
the confpirators.
"
•
Boece, Buchanan, and other Scotch, hifto
rians, without the leaft authority from Fordun,
or any ancient writer, 'have wantonly murder-
ed the reputation of Kenneth by fuppofing that
he procured the death of Malcolm Duff (who
bears an excellent character in hiftory) by poi-
fon, to make way for his own fon, Malcolm,
to fucceed him. The atrocity of the fact, the
character of Kenneth, the filence of Fordun,
and the improbability of poifoning being then
practiſed in Scotland, concur in difproving the
authenticity of this charge. It is univerfally al-
lowed, that Kenneth expreffed the most poig-
nant forrow for Malcolm's death; that he ho-
noured him with a noble burial; and that, when
it happened, he was not even fufpected. Boece
and. Buchanan, to give their relation the better
appearance of confiftency, pretend it was not
till after the death of Malcolm Duff, that Ken-
neth declared himſelf on the fubject of the fuc-
ceffion; but there is great reafon, from the
words
Death of
Malcolm
Duff
200
HISTORY
THE
words of Fordun, to think, that the meaſure
had been agreed upon fome years before. The
laft-mentioned writer likewife tells us, that a
few of the fticklers for the old mode diffented
from the ftatute; and that upon the death of
Malcolm Duff, the king fent his own fon to the
Engliſh court, where he took the oath of fealty
to king Etheldred for his principality. It is no
wonder, if the influence and power of the com-
petitors for the fucceffion, after the death of
Malcolm Duff, ftrengthened the confpiracy al-
ready formed againſt Kenneth; and that he
ſhould be loaded with the imputation of hav-
ing poiſoned Malcolm. At the head of this
confpiracy was Conftantine, the fon of Culen,
and Grime, the fon of Mogal, brother to king
Duff; both of them powerful rivals to young
Malcolm, but excluded by the late ftatute from
all hopes of the fucceffion, which enacted,
"That the king's eldeſt fon, for the future,
fhould always fucceed to his father, whatever
his age fhould be: likewife, if the fon died
before the father, that the next of kin fhould
fucceed the grandfather. That, when the king
was under age, a tutor or protector fhould be
chofen, being fome eminent man for intereſt
and power, to govern in name and place of the
king, till he came to be fourteen years of
age; and then he had liberty to chooſe guar-
dians for himfelf." The order of fucceffion in
private families, is faid to have been altered at
the fame time in many particulars.
Bucha-
OF SCOTLAN D.
201
Buchanan.
Buchanan, tho' the the profeft enemy of Credulity of
monkiſh miracles and revelations, indulges fo
much ſpite at this father of hereditary fucceflion
to the crown of Scotland, that Kenneth is haunt-
ed not only with remorfe, but with apparitions;
and at laſt, a voice from Heaven adviſes him to
repentance, and warns him of the dreadful con-
fequences of his altering the fucceffion. Such
an intelligent writer as Buchanan never could
have admitted fuch legendary tales, in his hif-
tory, of a king whom he acknowledges to
have been, in other refpects, the beſt and moſt
accompliſhed of princes, had he not been influ
enced by the moſt unjuſtifiable prepoffeffions.
It is true, that Kenneth, upon feeing the for-
midable oppofition his favourite meaſure was
likely to encounter, might take a ſerious turn;
and very poffibly, in order to attach the clergy
more firmly to his interefts, he made a pilgrimage
to the fhrine of St. Palladius, in the Merns, the
moſt venerable at that time in Scotland. Tho'
Fordun takes no notice of ſuch a pilgrimage,
yet he fays, that Fenella, whom we have already
mentioned, confederated with Conftantine, the
fon of king Culen, and Grime, the grandfon
of king Duff, to murder the king. Fenella,
with great art, infinuated herſelf into Kenneth's
favour, as he was hunting one day near her
houſe, by acknowledging the juftice of her fon's
death, and pretending, that if he would favour
her with a vifit, fhe would reveal to him the
VOL. I.
Dd
parti-
:
202
HISTORY
THE
Death of
Kenneth.
Story of
Kenneth
and Edgar.
particulars of all the conſpiracies formed againſt
him. The king, prevailed upon by her preffing
intreaties, at laſt accepted of the invitation; and
while he was admiring a curious braſs ftatue,
was shot through the heart by an arrow, dif-
charged by means of wheels and pullies from
the image, which inſtantly killed him. Bucha-
nan diſbelieves Boece and Major in this rela-
tion, without obferving that they copied it
from Fordun. Perhaps Kenneth might be con-
fidering a ftatue (for religious ſtatues were com-
mon in thoſe days) when he was murdered by
the confpirators; though Winton, a more an-
cient hiftorian than Boece, without mentioning
the ſtatue, fays, that Kenneth was flain by fome
horſemen, placed in ambuſh, at the command
of Fenella. Buchanan, I believe very juſtly,
with Fordun, fixes this monarch's death to the
year 994.
Before we clofe our account of the reign of
this great prince, we fhall mention the ſtory of
an interview between him and Edgar, king of
England, which, though related by the Engliſh
hiſtorians to his difcredit, reflects the higheſt
honour on his character. Happening one day
to be a little elevated with liquor (this muft
have been in the beginning of his reign, when
he was a young man) in the company of fome
English noblemen, he reproached them for fuf-
fering themſelves to be governed by a prince of
fuch a diminutive ftature as Edgar. This con-
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CONSTANTINE IV.
OF SCOTLAN D.:
203
verfation reaching that monarch's ear, on pre-
tence of buſineſs he drew Kenneth into a folitary
part of a wood, where producing two fwords,
he defired Kenneth to take his choice, and give
him fatisfaction for the infult he had offered.
Kenneth, however, declined the combat, and
apologized to Edgar for the affront, which he
faid had been occafioned by intoxication.
Edgar immediately forgave him, and they
parted good friends. Allowing this ftory
to be true, it affords a ftrong prefumption
againſt the pretended vaffalage of Kenneth to
Edgar, who feems to have treated him as a fo-
vereign prince; and the Scottish king muſt have
been in the laft ftate of intoxication if he re-
proached others with a meannefs to which he
himſelf was obliged to ſubmit.
The ftrength of the confederacy againſt Ken-
neth foon appeared. His attendants, tired out
with waiting near Fenella's caftle, at length
broke open the doors, and found their king
murdered; but Fenella efcaped by a pof-
tern, and joined the confpirators: upon which
Kenneth's attendants laid the place in afhes, and
carried the royal body to be buried at Icolm-kill.
It does not certainly appear, that prince Mal-
colm was in Scotland at the time of his father's
death; becauſe Fordun fays, that Conftantine Conftantine
the Bald mounted the throne the very next
day, and was crowned. Later hiftorians pre-
tend, that Malcolm was interring his father
when
Dd 2
the Bald.
204
HISTORY
THE
1
when this happened. Buchanan fpeaks of the
great art Conftantine employed to obtain the
crown; and puts into his mouth the very argu-
ments he himſelf has urged in other parts of his
works againſt hereditary fucceffion. Upon
hearing of Conftantine's ufurpation, Malcolm
raiſed an army and invaded Scotland; but find-
ing his competitor at the head of one more
powerful, he was compelled to retire to Cum-
berland, where he remained on the defenfive.
In his abfence, Malcolm was well ferved by his
natural uncle Kenneth, who, at the head of
a body of troops, took poffeffion of the ſtrong
paſs at Stirling, and prevented Conftantine
from purſuing his brother. Both armies lay,
without either venturing to attack the other,
till many of Conftantine's foldiers perifhed for
want of provifions, and he was at laſt obliged
to diſband his troops. In the mean time, the
miferies which England fuffered under the
Danes, who were ravaging Northumberland,
had obliged Malcolm to take the field; and Con-
ftantine embraced that opportunity to invade
Lothian, which Malcolm, at this time, un-
doubtedly held under the crown of England,
though by what tenure is very uncertain. Con-
ftantine was oppofed by Kenneth the Baſtard,
who encountered him at Cramond, where, tho'
inferior in number, he made fuch an excellent
difpofition of his troops, that he defeated Con-
ftantine's army; but happening to engage him
hand to hand, both princes were killed,
OF SCOTLAND.
205
His wars
colm.
The remains of Conftantine's army which Grime.
efcaped from the battle joined Grime, whom
we have mentioned to be the grandſon of king
Duff, and whom Fordun calls Conftantine's col-
legue; by which, I fuppofe, he means his ap-
As Conftantine reigned a year
parent heir.
and a half, this muſt have happened in the year
996, when it is certain that Grime was crown-
ed at Scone. Upon his elevation to the throne, with Mal-
Grime affected great moderation, diftributing
his favours equally to all parties, and even to
the known friends of Malcolm: it is likewife
probable, that he would have left Malcolm in
quiet poffeffion of all he held on the fouth of
the Forth. Fordun and the old hiftorians draw
a moft dreadful picture of the miſeries of Scot-
land, after the death of Kenneth, for nine years;
for Malcolm appears to have had a number of
friends in the kingdom, though the affections
of the people inclined to his competitor, who
reſembled his father in his refolution and ge-
nius. Finding Grime's intereft far fuperior to
his own, Malcolm employed fecret emiffaries,
who detached a number of the king's friends
from his party, which Grime perceiving, had
again recourſe to arms. Malcolm likewiſe raif-
ed troops, under pretence that Grime had im-
priſoned his ſervants; but his party was ſo diſ-
united and intimidated, that his preparations
proved ineffectual; and he once more left Grime
in poffeffion of the field and the throne. As
Malcolm
206
THE HISTORY
Malcolm was preparing for a freſh invaſion, a
good biſhop, one Fochad, offered his mediation
between the two parties; which being accepted
of, the following conditions were agreed to:
That Grime fhould retain the name of king as
long as he lived, and that, after Malcolm's death,
the whole kingdom ſhould return to him; but
that for the future, the law of Kenneth, for efta-
bliſhing the fucceffion in the laft king's children,
fhould be obferved as facred and inviolable. In
the mean time, the wall of Severus was to
be the boundary of their dominions that
which was north of the wall, was to belong
to Grime; and that fouth of the wall, to Mal-
colm.
:
I do not hazard a great deal in ſaying, that
by this peace, the Scots in general were again
ſubjected to the power of their rapacious and
oppreffive nobles, whom Grime, perhaps, was
obliged to ſupport; and is therefore called a
tyrant, though poffeffing all the accompliſh-
ments in body and mind of a great prince.
Malcolm and his party continued quiet for eight
years, according to Buchanan; but the oppref-
fions of Grime's government becoming at laft
infupportable, the Scots looked up to Malcolm
as their deliverer. Fordun gives us another
idea of this reign. He repreſents the eight years
peace as being pregnant with the moſt terrible
calamities to the people; and the moft defcrip-
tive part of his hiſtory is the character he gives.
of
1
OF SCOTLAN D.
207
Malcolm.
of prince Malcolm. "The people (fays he) were Character of
much better pleaſed with the actions of Mal-
colm than of Grime; for there was fcarcely
a man in the kingdom who could equal Mal-
colm in the exerciſes of the field, either in his
wars or his amufements. Our Hiſtorical Annals*
repreſent him as fkilful in. the management of
the ſword and the lance; and of his bearing to
a miracle, hunger, thirft, cold, and the longeſt
watching. He cautiously guarded himſelf againſt
all furprizes from Grime, by frequently mov-
ing from one part of the country to another;
and by gaining upon the affections of many
of the nobles, he privately bound them to
his intereft by oaths of fidelity. His great
ftrength, and the beauty of his perfon, became
the univerfal theme of applaufe and praife, till
at laft the public voice pointed him out as the
moft worthy of the kingdom. Malcolm being
thus confcious of his popularity, by advice
of the chieftains of his party, fent frequent
meffages to Grime, defiring him to take his
choice, either to abdicate the crown of Scot-
land, which he and his predeceſſor had ufurp-
ed, or to fight for it in a pitched battle, or to
difpute it at fingle combat, by putting them-
felves upon the juft judgment of God t. Grime
* The original is ANNALES HISTORIÆ. This is a proof that
Fordun had hiſtorical regiſters, which he confulted in writing
his hiſtory, though they are now deftroyed, or not to be met
with.
* Orig. "Juſto Dei judicio." This is a feudal expreffion, and
very common with the English hiftorians when they mention an
appeal to, and an award of, fingle combat.
208
HISTORY
THE
His com-
petitor de-
feated.
with great indignation, thinking it impoffible
to withſtand his power, put himſelf at the
head of fuch of his fubjects as he could truft,
and took the field. He was oppofed by Mal-
colm with a ſmall, but choice body; and both
armies met in a commodious field, at Achne-
bard, where a moft bloody battle was fought.
Grime behaved with the greateft courage and
refolution; but being mortally wounded, he
was carried out of the field by his followers,
and died the fame night. His troops imme-
diately retreated, and left Malcolm in poffeffion
of the crown and a complete victory. Next
day, the news of the king's death being con-
firmed, Malcolm ordered his followers to reſt
affured of his protection, and to give his body
burial at Icolm-kill."
Such is the manner in which our honeft
old hiftorian repreſents this event, one of the
moft confiderable that can happen in the
hiſtory of any nation; becauſe it introduced a
total alteration, not only in the fucceffion, but in
the modes of property. Boece and Buchanan,
as ufual, take pleaſure in reprefenting Grime,
after he became fole poffeffor of the crown by
the peace, as a moſt abandoned tyrant. It re-
quires a more minute difquifition than I can
here enter into, to decide upon the juftice of
his pretenfions, and that of Malcolm; but I
think they were very fully and very candidly
acknowledged by Malcolm, when he not only al-
lowed
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MALCOLUM
OF SCOTLAND.
209
lowed his body to be buried with his anceſtors,
but pardoned all who had been in arms under
him. Admitting that Malcolm's father had ob-
tained a majority, and even a great majority of
the nobles, to paſs the ſtatute for making the
crown hereditary in his family, the queflion is,
Whether the princes of the blood, who were
thereby fhut out from their former and confti-
tutional right of fucceffion, thought that the af-
fembly had a legal power of eſtabliſhing fuch a
pragmatic, and of altering the fundamentals
of government?
king.
I have already obferved, that Malcolm was in Malcolm,
England at the time of his father's murder; nor
can I fee any foundation for the affertion of
thoſe hiftorians who fay, that he was at that
time crowned king. Such an opinion is againſt
the evidence of hiſtory; but it is indiſpenſable
for me to take a view of his conduct, when he
refided in Cumberland, particularly during the
year 999.
when prince
At that time, the Danes, not contented with His hiftory
obliging Etheldred, king of England, to pay
them tribute, oppreffed his fubjects with bar-
barities unknown even to ſavage nations.
Etheldred was a prince of a moft unequal
ſpirit and conduct; and calling together his
council, he required Malcolm, as his tributary,
to affift him with money, to defray the arrears
due to the Danes. Malcolm anſwered, with a
VOL. I.
E e
ſpirit
210
HISTORY
THE
ſpirit above the common underſtanding of the
princes of thofe times, that, by his oath of
fealty, he was obliged to no other ſervice but
that of the field in perfon, where he was al-
ways ready to appear. He told Etheldred, at
the fame time, with the indignation of the Ro-
man dictator, that it was more glorious to de-
liver his country from flavery by fteel than by
gold. Etheldred was diffatisfied with this an-
fwer; and accufed Malcolm of not only hav-
ing violated his oath of fidelity, but of favour-
ing the Danes; and he invaded the principality
of Cumberland with great fury. An accommo-
dation, however, was foon concluded between
them; and it is probable, that Malcolm infpir-
ed Etheldred with the refolution of expelling
the Danes out of his kingdom. This fcheme
was well laid, and we have from hiftory no rea-
fon to doubt, that Malcolm took the field to
affift in carrying it into execution.
It was,
however, defeated, by the equinoctial ftorms,
which difperfed Etheldred's fleet. Simeon of
Durham, an Engliſh hiftorian, informs us,
A. D. 999. that this year Malcolm, king of the Scots, waft-
ed Northumberland with a great army; and
that he was defeated by Uthred, fon to the earl
of Northumberland, who planted Durham
round with the heads of Scotchmen which
were beft furnished with hair; and gave an old
woman a cow for waſhing them. The relation
of
OF SCOTLAN D.
211
Miſtake of
hiftorian.
an English
Malcolm's
of the laft-mentioned ludicrous circumftance is
plainly owing to the author's diflike of the
Scots; neither is it material whether it was true
or not. The hiftorian, however, is miſtaken
in attributing this invafion to Malcolm; for he
was then only prince of Cumberland, nor does
even Fordun give him any other epithet till after
the battle of Achnebard. The defeat therefore,
here mentioned, muft have been given to Grime in
one of his Engliſh expeditions againſt Malcolm,
though it is omitted by the Scottish hiftorians.
According to the beft chronology, Malcolm Manner of
mounted the throne of Scotland in 1004. The acceflion.
manner of his acceffion, as mentioned by For-
dun, plainly evinces that he never before had
taken the title of king. After Malcolm (fays
he) had obtained the victory, he did not im-
mediately affume the royal title; but calling to-
gether his nobility, he humbly befought them,
if it could be done agreeably to law, to give
him the crown; which they, in confequence of
the law made in his father's time, and acknow-
ledged by them as valid, immediately did, by
inveſting him with the diadem. Before we can
proceed in the hiftory of this prince, it is nc-
ceffary to connect it with that of the Danes
of England. About the year 995, Anlaf, a
Norwegian chief, and Swen, a Dane, called by
fome Swegen, made a deſcent upon England.
Anlaf was converted to Chriftianity, and Swen
probably
Ec 2
212
THE HISTORY
A peace.
probably returned to his own country, by
which the kingdom of England enjoyed fome
years of repoſe. Swen, having deprived his
own father of his crown and life, was him-
felf expelled out of Denmark; but after
wandering about a fugitive from court to
court, the king of Scotland gave him fhelter,
and by his affiftance Swen remounted the
throne of Denmark. That Swen took refuge
in Scotland is certain, from the teftimony of
Adam Bremenfis, and other northern hifto-
rians; but it is furprizing that an event fo glo-
rious for Scotland, as that of reftoring a king to
his crown, is not commemorated in her annals,
efpecially as, after his reftoration, he refettled the
Chriſtian religion, from which he had been an
apoftate, both in Denmark and Norway; which
latter fell to him by fucceflion. Some wri-
ters pretend, that the Scotland mentioned by
the northern hiftorians was Ireland: but, upon
the whole, there is reafon to believe, that he
did refide for fome time in the Britiſh Scotland.
About the year 1002, Etheldred was obliged to
renew his negociations with the Danes, and by
the affiftance of the excellent Gunhilda, fifter
to Swen, and who is faid to have lived for
fome time with her brother in Scotland, a peace
was concluded, Gunhilda, who was married
to Paleg, an English nobleman, becoming hof-
tage for the good faith of her countrymen.
The
OF SCOTLAN D.
213
the Danes.
This peace ferved only to render the Danes
more haughty and cruel, if poffible, than ever;
and Etheldred, at laft, came to a refolution to
maffacre all who were found in his dominions, Maffacre of
which was executed with circumftances of bar-
barity foreign to this hiftory. Among the reft
of the victims was Gunhilda, who fuffered with
a magnanimity that did honour to her fex. The
news of this maffacre having reached Swen, he
was fo exafperated that he fent over a new
fleet, and an army. Being joined by the Danes
ftill remaining in the north of England, which
feems to have been exempted from the late
maffacre, all England, and even Malcolm's pof-
feffions in the fouth of Scotland, was again fill-
ed with devaftation. We do not, however,
find that Swen was at this time in Bri-
tain; but the afliftance which Malcolm had
given to Etheldred was a fufficient motive
for the invaſion. We are told that Ochred
was at the head of the Daniſh army here, but
that he was defeated near the village of Brough
in Cumberland, by Malcolm, and ftript of all
his plunder. Swen afterwards arrived in Eng-
land; but, at this time, the Danes, by their
profperity, had plunged themſelves into fuch
exceffes, that nothing but his prefence could
have reftored them to order and difcipline; and
had not Etheldred been funk in luxury and in-
dolence, or been furrounded and miſled by trai-
tors, who fecretly favoured the Danes, he might
before
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}
214
HISTORY
THE
before Swen's ſecond arrival, which happened fo
late as the year 1013, have aboliſhed their do-
minion in England.
Ochred was himſelf a
Dane, but in a manner independent both upon
Etheldred and Swen. The latter was fo well
fatisfied with his conduct, that he left him in
quiet poffeffion of his principality; and for
fome time Cumberland enjoyed repofe.
Malcolm feems now to have been advanced in
years. He had no iffue to fucceed him, except
a grandfon by his daughter Beatrix, who was
married to a great nobleman, whom Fordun
calls the abthane, or chief thane of Dul, which
I ſuppoſe to be a corruption of the word Thule;
and that he was predeceffor to thofe lords of the
Ifles who afterwards grew fo powerful. This
grandfon's name was Duncan, and Malcolm na-
turally conferred upon him the principality of
Cumberland. Whether Duncan performed ho-
mage to Etheldred for this principality, does
not clearly appear; though it is certain, that
Malcolm was himfelf punctual in performing
all his engagements with the crown of Eng-
land. This feems to have exafperated Swen,
who afpired to Etheldred's throne; for I find,
that the Danes renewed their invafions into
Cumberland, and made ſeveral deſcents on the
coafts of Scotland, but ftill with lofs: for For-
dun fays, that Malcolm gave them three feve-
ral defeats; and by the conftant fucceffes of
his arms, he acquired the title of The Moft
Victo-
OF SCOTLAN D.
215
Victorious King, which (continues he) is given
him in all the writings wherein he is mentioned.
The fidelity of Malcolm to the Engliſh prov-
vi-
vaded by the
Danes;
ed fo invincible an obſtacle to Swen's ambition, Scotland in-
that he refolved to attack him in the very
tals of his own dominions; and ſuſpending for
fome time his operations in England, he fitted
out a great armament, compoſed of Daniſh and
Norwegian ſhips, which landed a confiderable
body of troops on the coaſt of Scotland, where
they were furpriſed by Malcolm, who cut in
pieces all of them except a few who efcaped to
their fhips, with the lofs only of thirty of his
own foldiers. This gave fome reſpite to Scot-
land; but in the mean time, the Engliſh and
Danes, in conjunction, invaded Cumberland.
There is here reafon to believe, from the words
of Fordun, that Duncan had not performed his
homage to Etheldred; becauſe (fays he) all the
intermediate ſpace between him and the Eng-
liſh court was poffeffed by the Danes, who
carried their booty twenty miles over land to
their fhips. Be this as it may, it is certain, that
Malcolm joined his grandſon, and the Danes
were again defeated. The incredible populouf-
nefs of the northern kingdoms, in thoſe times,
together with the fucceffes of their inhabitants.
in England, never fuffered Swen to be without
refources of ſhipping and men. He accordingly
* I am not certain, whether this action ought to be mentioned
here, becauſe Fordun fays, that it happened a very few days after
Malcolm's coronation.
gave
276
HISTORY
THE
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who are at
firit victo-
rious,
gave orders to two of his general officers, who
in hiſtory are called Ocan the Norwegian, and
Eneth the Dane, to make a defcent with a
powerful fleet and army, at the mouth of the
Spey. This formidable invafion had not been
foreſeen by Malcolm; but he eaſily conceived
that it was meant as a prelude to the entire con-
queft of his dominions. The fpot where the
barbarians landed was the inlet to the county
of Murray, the beſt province of his dominions,
and from whence they could penetrate into the
Highlands. He affembled in hafte a fmall ar-
my, to prevent the ravages of the Danes, who
had taken feveral forts in the neighbourhood,
and had laid ſiege to the caſtle of Nairn, then a
place of confiderable ftrength. Malcolm, not-
withſtanding the difproportion of his num-
bers to thofe of the Danes, advanced to fight
them; and made a fpeech to animate his men,
who were already highly exafperated by the
ſcenes of blood and devaftation that every
where furrounded them. Their impatience for
revenge was fuch, that they neglected all difci-
pline, and advanced with fo blind a fury, that
they were cut in pieces by the barbarians;
the brave Malcolm being carried out of the
field defperately wounded in the head.
This victory over a handful of undifciplined
men, encouraged the Danes fo much, that, not
queftioning they fhould foon be able to con-
quer all Scotland, they fent for their wives
and
OF SCOTLAND.
217
ánd children. The caftle of Nairn fell into their
hands, and the garriſon was put to the ſword,
contrary to the capitulation. As this caftle was
thought impregnable, and was excellently well
provided for a long and vigorous defence, the
garriſons and inhabitants of Elgin and Forrefs
abandoned both places; and the Danes treated
the inhabitants in every reſpect as a conquered
people. They obliged them to cut down the
corn for their ufe; and to render the caſtle of
Nairn (as they thought) abfolutely impregna-
ble, they cut through the fmall ifthmus which
joined it to the land.
feated.
Malcolm was all this time raifing forces in but are de-
Mar, and the fouthern counties. Having at laft
got together an army, he advanced to difpoffefs
the Danes of their late conquefts. He came up
with them at Murtloch, near the caftle of Bal-
veny, which appears, to this day, to have been a
ftrong Daniſh fortification. There Malcolm at-
tacked them, but with fuch bad fuccefs, that he
loft three of his general officers; Kenneth, thane
of the Ifles, Grime, thane of Strathern, and
Dunbar, the thane of Lothian. Difcouraged
by this lofs, the Scots retreated; but Malcolm
took poffeffion of a defile, where he checked the
purſuit of the barbarians, and the Daniſh general
was killed. His death damped the ardour of his
men, but infuſed freſh courage into the Scots;
and Malcolm, in his turn, charged his enemies.
with fuch fury, that he obtained a complete vic-
VOL. I.
Ff
tory;
218
THE HISTORY
A new in-
vafion.
tory; while Olan, the other Daniſh general,
was obliged to withdraw with the remains of
his army to Murray, where he took up his
winter-quarters.
It ſeems probable that the Scots, by not pur-
fuing their victory, had fuffered greatly in the
battle. Perhaps the danger of another inva-
fion rendered them cautious; for we are told,
that Malcolm immediately marched his army to
Angus. Some of the Scotch hiftorians fay, that
Malcolm killed the Daniſh chief with his own
hand; but all agree, that this victory at Murt-
loch (where he afterwards founded a bishopric)
was owing to his perſonal valour.
His
The news of the defeat of the Danes in Scot-
land was fo far from difcouraging Swen, that
he gave orders for a frefl deſcent to be made
by two fleets, one from England, and the other
from Norway, under the command of Camus,
one of his most renowned generals.
His army
was compofed of veterans, and the deſcent was
to be made at the mouth of the Forth. All the
places there were fo well fortified, that he found
a landing was impracticable; but he effected it
at Redhead, in the county of Angus. He im-
mediately marched to Brechin, where he befieg-
ed the caſtle; but not being able to take it, he
laid the town and the church in afhes. From
thence he advanced to the village of Panbride,
and encamped, as there is reaſon to believe, at
a place called Karboddo. By this time, Mal-
colm
OF
219
SCOTLAND.
colm was at hand with his army, and encamp-
ed at a place called Barr; and both fides prepared
for a battle, which was to determine the fate of
Scotland; for it is more than probable, that the
Danes then remained in full poffeffion of the
county of Murray, and ſome of the neighbour-
ing provinces. The reader may eafily conceive
the arguments made ufe of by the generals
of both armies. According to the hiftory
of the ancient family of Keith, a young
prince who commanded the Catti (a German
clan which had been fome time fettled in the
province of Caithnefs, which takes its name
from them) ferved that day as a feodary in
Malcolm's army, and bore a great fhare in the
battle, which was defperate and bloedy on both
fides. Camus was at the head of the troops
which had conquered England; but thofe un-
der Malcolm were fighting for all that could be
dear to a brave people. The flaughter was fuch
that the neighbouring brook of Loch-Tay is faid
to have run with blood. At laft, victory de-
clared herſelf in favour of the Scots, and the
Danes were put to flight they were purfued
by young Keith, who overtook Camus, and
killed him with his own hand. Another Scotch
officer coming up, difputed with Keith the glo-
ry of this action; and while the conteft lafted,
Malcolm arrived in perſon. The cafe was fuch,
that it could be decided only by fingle combat;
in which Keith proving victorious, his antago-
Ff2
nift
:
The Danes
defeated.
22Q
HISTORY
THE
The Danes
again de-
feated.
nift confeffed the truth; and Malcolm dipping
his fingers in the wounds of the expiring per-
fon, marked the fhield of Keith with three
bloody ftrokes, and pronouncing the words.
Veritas vincit, or "Truth overcomes," the fame
has ever fince been the armorial bearing and
motto of his deſcendants.
Though I have related this battle according
to what I find in the Scotch hiftorians, yet I
am ftrongly inclined to believe, that two bat-
tles were fought at a fhort diſtance from each
other; and that the laft, which proved deci-
five, was at Aberlemno, within four miles of
Brechin, where the Danes were totally defeat-
ed. Few actions of fuch antiquity are better
attefted than theſe. Even the Little Chronicle
mentions Malcolm's great war at Barr; and two
ftones, which are ftill to be feen, with other
monuments erected at the time (an account of
which the reader will find in the notes *) are
rude,
* "Buchanan makes mention of an old obelisk erected on that
ground, in memory of the faid battle. This monument I view-
ed; it is intire, and to this day, called Camus's-Crofs; but upon
fight thereof, I could gather little from the figures thereupon
towards an illuſtration of the aforefaid action; most of them
ſeeming rather emblems of devotion than victory. We are ne-
vertheless affured, by uncontefted tradition, that this crofs was
erected on occafion of Camus's death near that place.
"This ftone is divided on each fide into three compartments;
on the higheſt of which is a repreſentation of our Saviour upon
the croſs, but done in a very rude manner; on the right hand
is the figure of a man; the other, on the left, being intirely de-
faced within the ſecond divifion is a Sagittarius; the upper part
of which reſembles a man, with a bow in his hand; the lower
part
OF SCOTLAN D.
221
rude, though noble and authentic monuments
of Malcolm's two victories. One of thoſe mo-
numents,
part a four-footed beast; and this is alfo done with a very Go-
thic and barbarous taſte. In the third divifion are only fome
waved ornaments; the whole is in low relievo. On the reverfe
fide, within the firft compartment, is another repreſentation of
our Saviour, with the angels adminiftring to him. The fecond
and third compartments contain four other figures, which may
probably repreſent the four evangelifts.
\
"Commiſſary Maul, whom we have had occafion to mention
before, in his MS. Hiftory of Scotland, gives an account of the
figures upon this ſtone, as he obſerved them above one hundred
and twenty years ago, with other curious circumſtances of anti-
quity, which I here prefent, tranflated verbatim from his own
original Latin. "About eight miles from Brechen, at Kar-
boddo, a place belonging to the earl of Crawford, are to be ſeen
the veſtiges of a Daniſh camp, fortified with a rampart and
ditch, and vulgarly called Norway Dikes; near which is the
village of Panbride, where was anciently a church dedicated to
St. Brigide, becauſe on that faint's day, which preceded the bat-
tle, Camus, general of the Danes, pitched his camp there.
Not far from hence is the village of Barrey, where a mighty bat-
tle was fought between the Danes and Scots, with great flaugh-
ter on both fides, near the mouth of a ſmall rivulet called Lough-
Tay. There many little artificial mounts, or tumuli, are ſtill
to be feen, within which were buried the bodies of thoſe flain in
the fight; and becauſe the foil thereabouts is fandy, the wind
blowing away the fand, frequently diſcovers bones of a fize
much exceeding men in our age. Near this is Camus-Town, a
village belonging to the barons of Panmure, and noted for the
death of Camus, flain there, it being only a mile from the field
of battle there, to this day, is to be ſeen an obelisk, whereon
little is engraven to evince the truth thereof; for, upon the eaſt-
fide is the figure of Moſes [if I miſtake not] giving out the law,
engraven in three divifions; and on the fide towards the weſt,
upon the upper part, is the effigies of our Saviour on the crofs;
below which is the repreſentation of a horſeman fhooting with a
croſs-bow: this is all I could obferve at that time; but nine
years after I wrote that treatiſe, a plough turning up the ground,
near this obelisk, difcovered a large fepulchre, believed to be that
of Camus, encloſed with four great ſtones. Here a huge ſkeleton
was dug up, fuppofed to have been the body of Carius; it ap-
peared
222
HISTORY
THE
numents, which is called Camus-Crofs, I con-
jecture to have been erected by the piety of
Malcolm, to propitiate for the foul of the Dane,
who perhaps was a heathen; and to expreſs the
triumph of Chriftianity over Paganifm. The
figures on the other, at Aberlemno, are plainly
warlike and triumphal.
The broken remains of the Danish army
reached their fhips; but meeting with crofs-
winds, and being deftitute of provifions, they
put five hundred men on fhore on the coaft of
Buchan, to range the country for food. They
were diſcovered by Mernan, the thane of Bu-
chan, who cut off their communication with
their fhips, and forced them to retire to a hill,
where they fortified themſelves as well as they
could with large ſtones. The Scots feveral
times attempted to dislodge them; but being re-
pulfed with fome lofs, they were reinforced with
numbers, and mounted the hill with fo much
refolution, that they broke into the Danish en-
trenchment, and put every man of them to
peared to have received its death by a wound on the back part
of the head, ſeeing a confiderable part of the ſkull was cut away,
and probably, by the ftroke of a ſword."
"I the rather choſe to give this gentleman's deſcription, for
that he not only viewed the figures one hundred and twenty
years ago; but alfo, becauſe he mentions other circumſtances of
antiquity, extremely curious and entertaining; and, indeed,
he had a good opportunity of examining theſe monuments of the
Danes, feeing a confiderable number of them are on the ground
belonging to the earl of Panmure, of which illuftrious family
he was a fon." Vide Gordon's Itinerarium Septentrionale, p.154-
355.
the
OF SCOTLAN D.
223
the ſword. The place where this maſſacre hap-
pened is ftill called Crudane, which I take to
be an abbreviation of Cruor Danorum, the ap-
pellation given it by the ecclefiaftics or monks
of thoſe days.
monuments
The care of the Scots in erecting monuments Hiftorical
of their glorious victories over the Danes in in Scotland.
their own country cannot be fufficiently com-
mended, as they fcarcely are mentioned by the
Engliſh hiftorians. From them, however, we
learn, that Swen fent his fon Canute, one of
the greatest warriors of the age, afterwards
king of England, and furnamed the Great,
with an army more powerful than any of the
former, to invade Scotland, where the Danifh
fleet, after the ſlaughter at Crudane, had reach-
ed Murray. Even this formidable invafion did
not daunt the Scots, who feem by this time to
have become excellent troops. Either by de-
fign or accident, Canute landed at Buchan; a
circumftance which, together with the remains
of Daniſh encampments in that country, inclines
me to believe, that they had ftill a footing
there. The Scots may be reaſonably ſuppoſed
to have been, by this time, confiderably weak-
ened by their repeated invafions; and for that
reafon, as well as on account of Canute's repu-
tation in war, Malcolm determined to act up-
on the defenfive, by harraffing his enemies, and
cutting off their convoys. The Scots, who
now thought themfelves invincible, did not re-
lifh.
224
HISTORY
THE
A peace.
lifh that fkirmifhing method of fighting, and
called aloud for a general engagement. Mal-
colm complied with their ardour, and a bloody
battle was fought, which, as the Scotch hiftori-
ans fay, afforded no matter of triumph to either
fide. I can by no means be of that opinion, be-
cauſe it produced a peace which gave Malcolm
all that he could have expected from a victory.
The terms concluded between him and Canute
were, That the Danes fhould depart and leave
Murray and Buchan; and that as long as Mal-
colm and Swen lived, neither of them ſhould
wage war with the other, nor help one an-
other's enemies: that the field in which the
battle was fought, fhould be fet a-part, and con-
fecrated for the burial of the dead. Thoſe terms
prove the Scots to have been far from barbarous
when they were concluded; and that the Danes,
as well as Canute, had been converted to Chrif-
tianity. The ftipulations were punctually fulfilled
by Malcolm, who built in the neighbourhood
a chapel, dedicated to Olaus, the tutelar faint
of thofe northern nations. It is remarkable,
that fince the commencement of the preſent
age, human bones of an uncommon magnitude
have been diſcovered, or dug up, near all the
places of battle between the Scots and the Dancs:
a circumſtance which affords fome countenance
to thoſe who alledge, that the latter were, in
thoſe days, of an unuſual fize. The fame re-
mark was made by Bocce.
When
OF SCOTLAN D.
225
legiſlator of
Scotland.
When the hiſtory of Malcolm is duly attend- Malcolm
ed to, he well deſerves the name of the Legif-
lator of Scotland; and he was, perhaps, the
greateſt prince who ever fat upon that throne,
not even excepting the firft Bruce. Having
with wonderful courage and perfeverance
cleared his dominions of their barbarous in-
vaders, he applied himſelf to the arts of peace;
and we fhall, in the Ecclefiaftical Hiſtory, take
notice of the great things he did for the
church. Lawyers and antiquaries are divided
with regard to the antiquity of the feudal law
in Scotland; and fome have gone fo far as to
fay, that it was unknown even in England be-
fore the time of the Norman Conqueft. As I
am extremely clear that the conftituent parts of
the feudal law were known not only to the
Saxons, but to the Danes, and other nor-
thern nations, I can fee no reafon for fup-
pofing it to have been unknown to Malcolm
and his people; and I am of opinion with thoſe
lawyers who think that it was imported thither
by Fergus, commonly called the fecond. But
whether the Regiam Majeftatem of Scotland
(fo called from its firſt two words) which con-
tains the code of the ancient Scotch law, was
borrowed from the English, is a queftion that
belongs more properly to a lawyer than a hifto-
rian. That it is of great and undoubted
antiquity, is not difputed by any; and that
it is not later than the time of king David the
VOL. I.
Gg
first
226
HISTORY
THE
His gift ex-
amined.
firft or fecond: fo that it is at leaſt a record of
the higheſt authority. It was publiſhed by the
learned Skene, who was the greateſt antiquary in
thofe matters that Scotland ever produced, and
approved of by parliament in the reign of James
the third. Prefixed to it are the laws of king
Malcolm, approved of by the fame authority;
and in the firft chapter of thofe laws, which
treats of ward and relief, we read as follows:
King Malcome gave and diſtributed all his
lands of the realm of Scotland amongſt his men;
and referved nathing in propertive to himſelfe,
bot the royal dignitie, and the Mute-hill of
Scone; and all his barons gave and granted to
him, the warde and relief of the heir of Ilk-
Baron, quhen he fhould happen to deceis, for
the king's fuftentation."
t
The Scotch hiftorians have blamed Malcolm
for this liberality; and fome have imagined that
before this time the king held all the lands in
Scotland in fee. It is eafy to prove, from the
English hiftory, that the Saxon holdings in
England by the thanes were ftrictly feudal; and
as the word Thane occurs in the Scotch hiftory,
at the fame time, there can be no reafon for
doubting that the fame conftitution prevailed.
there. A thane fometimes had a grant of lands
for a certain term, at the expiration of which it
might be renewed by the king; fometimes he
held it for life, and at his death, the king
might continue it to his fon: fo that, in one
fenſe,
OF
227
SCOTLAND.
fenſe, during a long reign, the greateft part of the
lands in the kingdom might lapſe to the crown.
About the time we now treat of, the feudal
conftitutions began to favour hereditary right,
and property to be more fixed in families; nor
was there any wonder if a prince, who, like Mal-
colm, had been fo well ferved by his fubjects,
gave them a perpetual right to the lands which -
they had held ſo precariouſly before: but it is
abfurd and againſt every evidence of hiftory to
think, that the king did not reſerve his de-
mefne lands, which were to fupport his family
and houfhold; and that he had no other fuften-
tation than wardfhips and reliefs. We meet
with charters of large grants made, after this
ceffion, by Malcolm and his fucceffors. Upon
the whole, the law publifhed by Skene and
here repeated, muft either be fpurious, or im-
ply the meaning I have given it. As to the
refervation of the Mute-hill, it was perhaps,
a form which arofe from cuftoms that cannot
now be accounted for.
It was not long before Malcolm was again in-
volved in difficulties, on account of the princi-
pality of Cumberland. Canute, after his accef-
fion to the English throne, required Duncan to
pay him homage; and fent him repeated fum-
monſes for that purpoſe, which Duncan as often
refuſed to obey, on pretence that his homage
was due not to the Daniſh, but the Saxon kings
of England. Canute having then taken a reli-
gious
G g 2
228
HISTORY
THE
His death,
gious turn, was preparing to pay a visit to
Rome, and had not leiſure to enforce his or-
ders. Upon his return, in the year 1032, he
renewed his demand, which being again ne-
glected to be complied with, he fent an army
into Cumberland; but, according to Fordun,
he headed it himſelf. Malcolm marched to his
grandfon's fupport with another army; and
when both parties were preparing for battle,
certain prelates and worthy men interpofed: fo
that a peace was concluded by Malcolm's agree-
ing that Duncan, and all his fucceffors in the
principality of Cumberland, fhould pay homage
to the kings of England.
This feems to have been the laft military ex-
pedition of Malcolm. The remaining part of
his reign was tranquil, and employed in civil
inftitutions; part of which, Buchanan very tru-
ly fays, was copied from his neighbours, mean-
ing the Danes and Saxons. The fame hifto-
rian abfurdly blames him for annexing new ti-
tles to certain magiftracies, by which he means
his encreafing the fubordinate degrees of au-
thority: an unpardonable fault in the eyes
of that author. Fordun acquaints us that,
notwithſtanding all his glorious actions, the
factions which had been left by the two laſt
kings ftill fubfifted, and fecretly confpired his
death, though he had heaped upon them all
manner of obligations. They took the oppor-
tunity of way-laying him, as he was on his jour-
ney
OF SCOTLAND.
229
ney to Glamis, and murdered him, after a
brave reſiſtance. More modern authors with
great fhew of probability fay, that his own do-
meftics were privy to the affaffination, and fled
along with the confpirators; but in paffing the
lake of Forfar on the ice, it gave way under
their weight, and all of them being drowned,
their bodies were diſcovered fome days after,
The latter part of this account is confirmed by
the ſculptures upon fome old ftones erected
near the ſpot; one of which is, to this day,
called King Malcolm's Grave-Stone; all of them
exhibiting fome rude reprefentations of the
murder, and the fate of the affaffins. The rea-
der who is curious to know the particulars,
may fee them delineated by Mr. Gordon in his
Itinerarium Septentrionale.
on former
historians.
Boece and Buchanan inform us, that Mal- Remarks
colm ſtained the latter part of his reign with
avarice and oppreflion, occafioned by his own
generofity in granting away his lands, as we
have already feen. Though we have endea-
voured to explain this fact, yet it is fo expreſs,
and the evidences for it are ſo ſtubborn, that
many readers may require a farther illuftration.
For my own part I cannot be eaſily perfuaded,
that a prince of fuch abilities, both civil and
military, as Malcolm certainly poffeffed, could
be guilty of an act of ſuch infane generofity, as
our hiftorians have repreſented this ceffion to
be. I fhall therefore ftrengthen what I have al-
ready
230
HISTORY
THE
ready faid by an additional conjecture, which,
I hope, will appear rational and natural. Ken-
neth, the father of Malcolm, had, with great
difficulty, fixed the fucceffion of the throne in
his own family, by an act of the ftates; to
which fo little regard was paid after his death,
that two princes fucceeded to the crown upon
the principles of the old conftitution. Malcolm,
by his amazing abilities and good fortune, con-
quered both thofe princes, and put an end to
their reigns by their deaths; but he no fooner
mounted the throne than he found it fhaken by
the most formidable prince then in Europe,
who was mafter of England, Denmark, and
Norway, countries the moſt contiguous to his
own kingdom. The good fortune of Malcolm
ſtill continued: he had the glory of defeating
his warlike enemics, and of eſtabliſhing his
throne in tranquillity. Was it not then natu-
ral for his fubjects who had ferved him fo
bravely, to demand for themſelves the fame
privilege which they had fo generously grant-
ed to him? I am obliged to fpeak in thoſe
terms, becauſe the alteration of the fucceffion
can admit of no other. Did not found policy
require, that after the crown was rendered he-
reditary, private eftates fhould become fo like-
wife? Had not this alteration taken place in
the latter caſe, a king of Scotland, in leſs than
a century, muft have been defpotic, and con-
fequently his people flaves.
Upon
OF SCOTLAN D.
231
Upon the whole, therefore, I muft confider Difquifition,
this ſtep in a light very different from that in
which it has been hitherto reprefented; and
that it roſe from a pact either exprefs or un-
derſtood, between the king and his nobility.
The only difficulty now remaining, therefore,
is, how the king came to be ſo imprudent as
to difpofe of all the lands in his kingdom. I
have already, in part, given my opinion on
this head; which is, that he referved his de-
mefne lands, and only granted away the eftates
that were already in poffeffion of the great
land-holders; which, together with the refer-
vation of wardſhips and reliefs, and other ad-
vantages annexed to the royal authority, he
might have thought fufficient for maintaining
the dignity of his crown and ſtation. Perhaps
he was miſtaken; and from the words of
Fordun he very probably was. Some of the
great landholders might claim fome of the
demefne lands as being within their grants;
and perhaps the king might refume fome of
their eſtates as being part of his demefne; which
might give occafion to our old hiftorian to in-
finuate that he revoked his grants. I fhall fi-
niſh what I have to ſay on this important fub-
ject by obferving, that when the English hifto-
rians tell us that William the Conqueror grant-
ed to his followers all the lands of England, the
demefne lands are never underſtood to be com-
prehended in that grant. Malcolm was above
eighty
232
HISTORY
THE
Duncan.
eighty years of age when he was affaffinated,
of which he reigned thirty.
Duncan mounted the throne in the year 1034.
Malcolm, befides Duncan's mother, had another
daughter before his death, named Doada, who
was married to the thane of Glamis, and is
faid to have been mother to the famous Mac-
beth, whom Winton and our old hiftorians
call Macbeth Finlay. There is, however, great
reafon to doubt this genealogy. The firft years
of Duncan's reign were tranquil; but it was
foon over-caft by domeftic broils on the follow-
ing occafion. Banquo, thane of Lochaber, and
anceſtor to the royal houſe of Stuart, acted then
in the capacity of ſteward to Duncan, by col-
lecting his rents (an additional proof of the late
king's having referved the demefne lands); but
being a fevere jufticiary, and making his collec-
tions rigorously, the inhabitants of the country
way-laid, robbed, and almoft murdered him.
Recovering of his wounds he came to court,
where he complained of the robbers, who were
fummoned to furrender themſelves to juftice;
but, inftead of obeying, they killed the mef-
fenger. The rebels are faid to have been en-
couraged in this by one Mac-Dowald, who re-
proached the government and the king as be-
ing better fitted to rule droning monks than
brave men. This report coming to the ears of
Macbeth, he reprefented the affair fo effectually
to the king, that he was fent with an army to
reduce
1
5. Taylor foulp
DUNCAN, I.
OF SCOTLAN D.
233
reduce the infurgents, who had, by this time,
deſtroyed all the king's friends in their neigh-
bourhood. Macbeth performed his commiflion
with great valour and fuccefs; encountered and
defeated the rebels; forced their leader to put
an end to his own life; and fent his head to
the king. He then proceeded with the utmoſt
ſeverity againſt his followers; who, we are
told, confifted of Iriſhmen, Iſlanders, and High-
landers. Such is the relation given by Boece
of the commencement of this reign.
Scarcely was this infurrection quelled, when
the Danes again landed in Fife; and Duncan,
fhaking off all his indolent habits, put himſelf
at the head of an army, the thanes, Macbeth
and Banquo, ferving under him. The Danes
were commanded by Swen, who is faid to
have been the eldeſt ſon of Canute, and during
his father's life-time was king of Norway. His
purpoſe was to have conquered Scotland, and
to revenge the loffes which the Danes and Nor-
wegians had ſuffered during the late reign. He
proceeded with all the barbarity common to
his nation, putting to the fword men, women,
and children, of all ages and ſtations. It was
not long before a battle was fought between
the two nations nigh Culrofs, in which the
Scots were defeated; but the Danes purchaſed
their victory fo dearly, that they could not im-
prove it; and Duncan retreated to Perth, while
Macbeth was fent to raiſe a new army. Swen
VOL. I.
Hh
laid
A new in-
the Danes.
vafion by
234
HISTORY
THE
laid fiege to Perth, which was defended by
Banquo, under Duncan. It is probable, that
both fides were, at this time, under great dif
trefs; the befiegers for want of provifions, all
the country round them being laid wafte; and
the beficged for want of fkill to defend the
town, becauſe Banquo advifed Duncan to treat
with Swen concerning a capitulation. Swen at
firft refuſed to admit of any; but at laft agreed
to treat, provided the preffing neceffities of his
army were relieved. The Scotch hiftorians with
a very bad grace inform us, that this treaty was
entered into on the part of Duncan to amuſe
Swen, and to gain time for the ftratagem he
was preparing. This was no other than an in-
famous contrivance for infufing herbs of
noxious and intoxicating qualities into the li-
quors which were fent with the other provi-
fions to the camp of Swen. According to
them, thoſe foporifics had the intended effect;
and while the Danes were under their influence,
Macbeth and Banquo being then joined, broke
into their camp, where they put all to the
fword, and it was with difficulty that fome of
Swen's attendants carried him on board; but
we are told, that his was the only fhip of all
his fleet which returned to Norway. I hope,
for the honour of the Scotch nation, that this
ftory is as falfe as it is infamous and improba-
ble. Might not the Scots have furpriſed the
Daniſh camp in the night-time, and have.
obliged
OF SCOTLAN D.
235
་
obliged Swen to retire to his fhips, without
having recourſe to the practice of drugging the
proviſions that had been fent to the Danes upon
the public faith ? ·
It was not long before a freſh body of Danes
landed at Kinghorn in the county of Fife. They
were ſoon encountered by the Scotch army, un-
der Macbeth and Banquo, who completely de-
feated them; and fuch of the Danes as eſcaped
the fword fled to their fhips. It is probable
that this battle was fought near Lundin, where
feveral monumental ftones are ftill to be ſeen,
but without infcriptions or fculptures *. That
they ferved as grave-ftones cannot be doubted,
· from the number of bones and coffins found
near them containing ſkeletons of extraordina-
ry fizes. Before the Danes fet fail, they enter-
ed upon a treaty with the two Scotch generals,
for leave to bury their dead in Inchcolm, a
fmall iſland lying in the Forth, with an abbey
upon it dedicated to St. Columb; but that ab-
bey has been fince erected. A large fum of mo-
ney foon purchafed this favour for the Danes;
and one of their monuments reprefenting a
ftone-coffin, with a Tartar-like head at cach
end, is ſtill to be feen on the island. This bar-
*Upon fome of the fculptured ftones erected in thofe times,
we meet with the figures of men with the heads of fwine, which
I ftrongly fufpect to be a punning allufion to the name of Swen;
and the figure of a brute, perhaps a fow, is to be ſeen on a ſtone
at Inverkeithing.
The Danes
feated.
again de-
Hh2
gain
236
THE HISTORY
gain being ftruck, the Danes fet fail for their
own country; and thus ended their deſcents
upon Scotland. Before I take leave of
thofe dreadful invaders, I muft mention one
of the moſt ſtately monuments of the Gothic
kind to be ſeen in Europe, erected at Forrefs
near Murray. For my own part, I entertain not
the leaft doubt of its being intended by the
Scots as a monument of the evacuation of that
province, after the peace was concluded be-
tween Malcolm and Canute. It originally was
above thirty-five feet in height, and five in
breadth; and is adorned with rude fculptures,
which are now unintelligible, but repreſent
warlike trophies and marches on the one fide;
on the other, a croſs with two uncouth figures
of men. Mr. Gordon is of opinion, that it was
erected by the Scots after the battle of Murt-
loch; but as the Danes were for fome years after
in poffeffion of Murray, it is more reaſonable to
afcribe the erection of it to the event above-
mentioned.
After the expulfion of the Danes, Duncan
had leifure to indulge his zeal for juftice and
the reformation of his kingdom, while Mac-
beth, who had got great reputation by his va-
lour in the late fucceffes againſt the Danes, was
hatching ambitious projects. Boece and fome.
of our other hiftorians have here given a looſe
to the extravagance of their fancy, by relating
the well-known fable of the three weird fif
ters
OF SCOTLAN D.
237
ters appearing to Macbeth and Banquo, who
hailed him thane of Glamis, thane of Cawdor,
and, laftly, king of Scotland; but promiſing
Banquo that his pofterity fhould be kings of
that realm. Nothing can be more ridiculous
than this fiction, which is very juſtly exploded
by Buchanan. Winton tells us, that the whole
was no more than a dream of Macbeth. All
the truth, perhaps, of the ftory is, that Mac-
beth gave out he had fuch a dream, in order to
try how it would operate on the minds of the
public: a ftratagem not uncommon among peo-
ple in ages more enlightened than we can
fuppofe the Scots to have now been. Fordun
is filent as to the whole ftory, and repreſents
Duncan in a moft amiable light. He had been
married to the daughter of Syward, earl or
prince of Northumberland, which, by all ac-
counts, had then very little dependence on the
crown of England, and by her he had two fons;
Malcolm, named Canmore, and Donald, fur-
named Bane, or the Fair. No fooner was Dun-
can crowned than he fettled the principality of
Cumberland upon Malcolm; and upon the re-
treat of the Danes, he cultivated fo ftrict a
friendſhip with all his neighbours, that he
reigned in perfect tranquility. His cuftom was
to perambulate the kingdom once a year; re-
lieving the oppreffed, puniſhing the guilty, re-
conciling differences and quarrels of all kinds,
alleviating public misfortunes, and mitigating
the
*.
238
HISTORY
THE
Duncan
murdered.
Thofe virtues
the rigour of tax-gatherers.
were far from enfuring the fafety of this ex-
cellent prince; for (fays our hiftorian) the old
tribe of confpirators meditated his ruin. Their
proceedings were not fo fecret but that the
king's friends had fome intelligence of them,
and endeavoured to put him on his guard.
Duncan, confcious of no offence, and unwil-
ling to harbour a fufpicion of his fubjects, dif-
couraged the report, and this gave Macbeth an
opportunity of murdering him at Inverneſs.
Macbeth, Our hiftorians are unanimous in painting
Macbeth as the moft ungrateful and atrocious
of criminals, by murdering his uncle, and
ufurping his throne. I am, however, of opinion,
that he was defcended from the fame Fenella
who was concerned in the murder of Kenneth
the third; and that Macbeth was at the head
of a powerful party, which was ftill diffatisfied
with the alteration of the fucceffion, and fought
to bring it back to its former principles. For
this reafon Fordun calls them the old tribe of
confpirators; and by his exprefsly telling us,
that Macbeth was the fon of Fenella, there is
reafon to believe that he had fome family pre-
tenfions to the crown, founded upon the an-
cient conflitution. My conjectures are the more
probable, as the fons of the late king were, by this
time, grown to men's eftate; and all they could
do was to defend themſelves againſt Macbeth.
This (according to Fordun) they did for two
years;
I Hall foulp.
MACBETH.
ta
!
:
!
1
OF SCOTL A N D.
339
years; when, being unable to hold out longer,
Malcolm retired to Cumberland, and Donald
fled to the Ifles. It is not to be doubted, that
the young princes left behind them a very
ftrong party; which gave great uneafinefs to
the ufurper. His troubles were encreaſed, when
he found that Malcolm's kinfman, the earl of
Northumberland, not only entered warmly into
his intereft, but introduced him to Edward the
Confeffor, then king of England, who having
been an exile himfelf, was naturally difpofed
to pity Malcolm's misfortunes, and accordingly
promiſed him his affiſtance.
who mounta
In the mean time Macbeth was crowned at
Scone, and recognized as king of Scotland, but the throne,
continued to keep a ftrict watch over the
party of the exiled princes; in other refpects
he is allowed to have difplayed excellent ta-
lents for government. His juftice and equity
were exemplary. He ſignalized himſelf in puniſh-
ing thieves of all denominations: he endea-
voured to gain the ecclefiaftics to his party; and,
by the force of money, he actually brought
the court of Rome over to his intereft. He
marched in perfon into the moft remote haunts
of his lawleſs fubjects, whom he reduced to or-
der: he ſubdued and put to death Mac-Gill, the
moft powerful man in Galloway; a country
which, at that time, was indifputably govern-
ed by its own princes, though poflibly they
were homagers to the crown of Scotland. All
his
240
HISTORY
THE
}
and receives
the Nor-
mans into
his protec-
tion.
}
his abilities could not procure him tranquillity,
and he imagined the party of the exiled prin-
ces to be more powerful than perhaps it was.
This drove him into a ſeverity, which foon ter-
minated in cruelty. He grew jealous of Ban-
quo, the most powerful fubject in his domi-
nions. He invited him to an entertainment,
and treacherously ordered him to be murdered
in his return; but Banquo's fon Fleance, who
was deftined to the fame fate, efcaped. Here
the deficiency of the Scotch hiftorians, at fo
late a period, is amazing; but it is happily fup-
plied by the Engliſh.
Edward the Confeffor's partiality to the Nor-
mans had raiſed up a ftrong oppofition to his
government in the perſon of the famous carl
Godwin; but upon the conclufion of a peace,
Edward was obliged to baniſh the Normans,
or at leaft, fuch of them as were obnoxious;
and particularly two noblemen, whom the hif
torians of thoſe times call Ofbern and Hugh,
who, with their numerous followers, retired to
Scotland, where they were kindly received by
Macbeth. This naturally rendered the Anti-
normannic party in England jealous of Mac-
beth's intentions; and prompted Malcolm's fa-
ther-in-law, Syward, to be more affiduous in
contributing towards his reftoration. There is
ſome reaſon to believe, that the general diffatif-
faction of the Scots at Macbeth's government
was fo great, that had it not been for the Nor-
mans,
OF SCOTLAN D.
241
mans, he could not have fupported himſelf as
he did for almoft feventeen years upon the
throne, which is the time allotted by Fordun
to his reign. The arrival of the Normans in
Scotland was in the year 1054, which corre-
ſponds with the fourteenth year of Macbeth's
reign; nor do I perceive that any doubt was
raiſed concerning the legality of his govern-
ment, till about that period; for Malcolm
feems to have lived in his principality of Cum-
berland, without any thoughts of remounting
his father's throne. The encreaſing tyranny of He becomes
Macbeth foon gave him that opportunity.
After the death of Banquo, and the flight of
his fon Fleance into Wales, Macduff, the thane
of Fife, feems to have been the most confider-
able nobleman in Scotland. The influence he
poffeffed was fufficient to render him fufpected
by Macbeth; but Macduff was fo cautious and
prudent, that no legal hold could be laid on his
actions, which drove the tyrant fo much from
his guard, that he dropt fome expreffions even
in Macduff's hearing, which convinced the lat-
ter his deſtruction was intended; upon this he
fled into England. Macbeth, alarmed at
his eſcape, entered his caftle, and bafely put to
death his wife and children, who were yet in-
fants; and fequeftered all his eftate. I am to
obſerve, however, that Fordun does not men-
tion the murders, though he does the confif
VOL. I.
cation;
I i
a tyrant.
242
HISTORY
THE
paffage of
Fordun.
cation; and his words upon that occafion are
fo very remarkable, that they well deferve to
Remarkable be tranflated here: " There aroſe (ſays he) a
great diſcontent all over the kingdom, eſpeci-
ally among the nobles, by whom Macduff was
greatly beloved; becauſe the tyrant, fwayed
not by juftice, but by paffion, had banished
and attainted a nobleman of fuch worth and
power, without the award of a general meet-
ing of the nobles and ftates. They exclaimed
it was unjuft that any perfon, be his rank no-
ble or private, fhould be either baniſhed or at-
tainted by a fudden arbitrary fentence, with-
out having a day preſcribed to him for his ap-
pearance at court in a legal manner; and when
appearing there, to be either cleared by law, if
innocent; and, if found guilty, to make fatif-
faction to the king in his perſon or effects. But
in cafe he ſhould neglect to attend the court,
then fentence of banifhment ought to take
place; or, if the nature of his crime fo require,
he ought to be attainted."
Many are the obfervations that occur from
this paffage; the only one I fhall mention is,
the great conformity which it difcovers between
the Engliſh and Scotch conftitutions at this pe-
riod, as we find that earl Godwin was tried
exactly in the fame manner as Fordun men-
tions to have been the legal method of trying
Macduff. By what we learn from hiſtory,
Macduff
OF SCOTLAND.
243
Macduff was the firft who infpired Malcolm
with the idea of invading Scotland to affert his
hereditary right. That prince had been accuftom-
ed to caution; for we are told, that Macbeth had
fpies who gave him intelligence of whatever
paffed in the families which he fufpected.
When Macduff accofted him (it is immaterial
whether that happened at the court of Eng-
land, or in Cumberland) Malcolm affected a
fhynefs, which has given rife to a ridiculous
converſation handed down by the Scotch hifto-
rians, as if he had confeffed himſelf guilty
of fo many vices and crimes, that Macduff
thought him unworthy to reign. That Malcolm,
(who was a prince of excellent fenfe) was on
the reſerve, can fcarcely, confidering his cir-
cumſtances, be doubted; but his frankneſs in
confeffing his guilt muft have deftroyed the
very effects he intended. It is fufficient to fay,
he fifted Macduff in fuch a manner that he
thought he could truft him; and they under-
ftood each other fo well, that they immediately
applied to the court of England, and to Sy-
ward, for affiftance. Edward agreed to Syward's
raiſing ten thouſand men in England; and
Macduff went to Scotland to apprize Mal-
colm's friends of his intention. Macbeth ap-
pears to have been well ferved by his Norman
auxiliaries; for he fought the vanguard of Sy-
ward's army, and killed his fon with his own
hand,
Ii 2
244
THE HISTORY, &c.
1
Malcolm
crowned.
hand. Upon Malcolm's advancing with the
main body, and being joined by Macduff and
his party, Macbeth took refuge in the moſt in-
acceffible places of the Highlands, where he de-
fended himſelf for two years; but in the mean
time, Malcolm was crowned and acknow
ledged king of Scotland at Scone.
}
A GE-
Bannerman joulp.
4
MALCOLM CANMORE III.
$
1
i
A
GENERAL HISTORY
O F
SCOTLAN D.
BOOK THE FOURTH.
From the Acceffion of MALCOLM
CANMORE,
to the Death of
ALEXANDER III. in the Year
1285.
T is to the Engliſh hiftorians that we are A.D. 1057.
chiefly indebted for the hiſtory of Scot-
I th
land, at this remarkable period. Fordun is
angry with William of Malmbury, for afcrib-
ing the glory of Malcolm's reſtoration entirely
to Syward; and fays, that Syward was called
back into England by Edward, in order to op-
pofe Griffith, prince of Wales. We know not
the particulars of the war of Lumfannan (as it
is called) between Malcolm and Macbeth, and
which lafted two years. Our common hiſto-
rians, to fupply this chafm, have invented a
prophe-
1
246
HISTORY
THE
A.D. 1058.
A monkish
Story.
Lulach.
prophecy for the tyrant, importing, that he
was not to be killed by any man born of a wo-
man; and another, that he ſhould not die till
Birnam wood fhould move to Dunfinnan ( for
fo the caſtle was called in which he had forti-
fied himſelf). He was ftill attended by a num-
ber of followers; and one of the prophecies
was made good, when Malcolm ordered each
of his foldiers (either to conceal their num-
bers, or to ſcreen them from the heat of the
weather) to advance to the attack of the caftle
under boughs, which they cut down in the
wood. The circumftance of foldiers cutting
down boughs was common in thoſe days; and
Malcolm and his friends might invent the fa-
ble for the fake of the application, to encou-
rage their followers; though more probably it
is of a much later date. The tyrant, in a fally,
was killed by Macduff, who, according to an
idle tradition, came into the world by the Cæ-
farean operation, being cut out of his mother's
belly. I fhould not have mentioned thefe ridi-
culous tales which are omitted by our old hif-
torian, and condemned by Buchanan, did they
not ferve to difcover the genius of the age
and country in which they were invented, and
where the priesthood had the ſkill to coin a
prophecy for every event of importance.
The ufurpation of Macbeth did not end with
his life; for his followers elected one of his
kinfmen, Lulach, furnamed the Idiot, to fuc-
ceed
OF SCOTLAND.
247
ceed him. Not being able to withſtand Mal- A.D. 1059
colm, he withdrew to the North; but being
purfued, was killed at Effey in Strathbogie:
He reigned four months; and having, as well
as Macbeth, been crowned at Scone, the per-
formance of that ceremony, probably, intitled
him to a royal burial at Icolm-kill.
Malcolm II
Macduff
Among the firft exercifes' of Malcolm's go-
vernment, was the debt of gratitude which he
paid to Macduff, who had been the chief inftru-
ment of his reſtoration. Having been formerly
crowned at Scone, he granted him and his rewards
pofterity four privileges: the firft was, That
they ſhould place the king in his chair of ftate,
at the time of his coronation the fecond,
that they ſhould lead the van of all the royal
armies: the third, that they ſhould have a
free regality within themſelves; and the fourth,
that if any of Macduff's family fhould be guil-
ty of unpremeditately killing a nobleman, he
fhould pay twenty-four, and if a plebeian,
twelve marks, of filver; which laft law (fays
Buchanan, who in this cafe may be allowed to
be a competent evidence) was obſerved till the
days of our fathers. The next care of Malcolm
was to reinftate in their fathers poffeffions, all
the children who been difinherited by the late
tyrant, which he did in a convention of his no-
bles held at Forfar.
If
any credit is to be given to Boece, Mac-
beth, during his reign, aboliſhed the laws
The confti-
which had
tution
of
been altered
inhe- by Macbeth
248
HISTORY
THE
A.D. 1061.
reftored by
Malcolm.
inheritance which had been eſtabliſhed under
his three predeceffors, by ordering all the lands
and offices in the kingdom to be at the king's
diſpoſal, and to revert to the crown when their
poffeffor died: fo that there was a plain re-
fumption of the inconfiderate grants made by
Malcolm Mac-Kenneth. Other laws very un-
favourable to public liberty, were likewife en-
acted; particularly thoſe which diſarmed the
people, and made it penal for any of the com-
mons or huſbandmen to keep a horfe for any
other purpoſe than that of tillage and labour-
ing the ground. Thus the old conſtitution was
again reſtored; and hereditary right to private
eftates, as well as to the crown, was again
aboliſhed.
Malcolm, whofe education had been chiefly
in England (where the introduction of the
Normans, by Edward the Confeffor, was be-
ginning to introduce milder modes of the
feudal government) being fenfible of the force
of words, found it would be very difficult to
re-eſtabliſh the hereditary ſyſtem, without fome
alteration in the terms of dignities and offices.
The word Thane carrying with it an idea
incompatible with hereditary fucceffion, it
was changed into Earl, which had for fome
time prevailed in England; and Macduff, from
being thane, was created earl of Fife. Other
dignities were faid to have been inſtituted
about the fame time; and the cuſtom of patro-
nimical
OF SCOTLAND.
249
nimical defignations, by which every man was A. D. 1062.
named after his father, with a Mac (fignifying
fon) prefixed to his furname, began to wear
out; and the furname was fixed to a clan in-
ſtead of a perſon. Surnames from the lands of
the proprietors were introduced, and fuch lo-
cal names are to this day reckoned the moft
honourable. Thofe inftitutions could not have
taken place among a people fo wedded as the
Scots were to their former ufages, had not
Malcolm poffeffed a great fund of political, as well
as perfonal abilities. It is reaſonable to believe,
that the cruelties of Macbeth had driven many
of Malcolm's family-friends into foreign parts,
from whence they now returned, and affifted
him with the lights they brought from abroad.
I am even inclined to believe that after his re-
ftoration, he gave encouragement for the Nor-
mans, and the other foreigners who had retir
ed to Scotland during the preceding reign, to
fettle in his kingdom; and this might in a great
meaſure contribute to the general improvement
of manners which then took place.
tions and
wars.
While Malcolm was bufy in thoſe arduous Infurrec-
matters, advice was brought him of an infur-
rection of robbers in the fouthern parts of his
dominions, near a place called Cockburn's-path;
upon which he fent one of his chief officers,
lately created earl of Dunbar, to quell the in-
furgents, in which he happily fucceeded. From
this particular, we can have no doubt that
VOL. I.
K k
Malcolm
250
HISTORY
THE
A. D. 1062. Malcolm had been, before his coronation at
Scone, recognized by Edward as prince of
Cumberland. We are therefore carefully to di-
ftinguish between his fucceffion to the Engliſh
eftates with thofe fouth of Forth, and that to
his crown, which he poffeffed by hereditary
right. After this, Fordun and the Scotch hif-
torians entertain us with the well-known ftory
of a confpiracy formed against Malcolm; and
of his drawing the chief confpirator afide into
a wood, where, after upbraiding him with his
treachery, he offered to fight him upon equal
terms upon which the traitor threw himſelf
at the king's feet, confeffed his guilt, and gave
hoftages for his future good behaviour. The
recital of this ftory is fufficient to confute it.
It is a fable of the times; and with a very lit-
tle alteration, is the fame as that told of Edgar
and Kenneth, which we have already mentioned.
The like adventure is related, only with the
difference of names, of feveral other kings.
Affairs of
England.
Our Scotch hiftorians have fixed the time of
Malcolm's acceflion to his crown to the year
1056, tho' it is certain that he left England in
1054. Syward was now dead, and was fucceed-
ed in his government of Northumberland by
Tofti, fecond fon to the famous earl Godwin,
and brother to Harold, afterwards king of
England. As a great party had been formed
against the Godwin family, and Harold made
no fecret of his defign upon the crown, after
the
OF SCOTLAND.
251
the death of Edward, it was natural for Tofti A. D. 1063.
to connect himſelf with Malcolm, as his fureft
ally; nor could Malcolm have any friend fo
powerful to ſerve him as Tofti, eſpecially after
the death of Edward the Outlaw, the true heir
to the crown, whom Edward the Confeffor had
fent for from Hungary, to counterbalance the
power and ambition of the Godwin family.
We are accordingly told, that a ftrict intimacy
was contracted between Malcolm and Tofti;
but it was of no long continuance. Tofti was
one of the many princes of that age, who had
been guilty of frequent murders; fo that, in
order to quiet his confcience (after the manner
of thofe times) he undertook a pilgrimage to
Rome. He was alfo fo detefted, that the Nor-
thumbrians complained of his repeated acts of
cruelty, refufing to be longer fubject to him.
Edward was in a manner compelled by their
clamour to grant a commiffion for trying him;
and Tofti being found guilty, his own brother
Harold joined the Northumbrians againſt him
in favour of earl Morchar, who was Tofti's
competitor for Northumberland.
This being the ftate of affairs in England,
we can be at no lofs to account for the rea-
fons why Malcolm, at this time, invaded
Tofti's dominions; for which we have the
authority of the Engliſh hiftorians. It was the
duty of Malcolm, as a feodary of England, to
be an enemy to all Edward's enemics; and
Kk 2
no
1064.
252
HISTORY
THE
A. D. 1065.
Rife of the
Stewart
family.
no doubt he found his advantage in other re-
ſpects from the part he acted. I am inclined to
fix this invaſion to the year 1064, when Tofti
was at Rome, where he feems to have made a
very short ftay, for he certainly was profcribed
the beginning of next year: but neither the
English nor the Scotch hiftorians have inform-
ed us of any acquifition which Malcolm made
by this invafion.
During his abfence in England, where he
viſited Edward's court, and very poffibly re-
newed his oath of fealty, fome commotions
ſeem to have happened in Murray, Rofs, and the
north and weft parts of his dominions; but
they are faid to have been quelled by a general
who is named Walter, and was the fon of Fle-
ance, who eſcaped Macbeth's murderers by fly-
ing into Wales, where he begot this Walter on
a Welch princefs; but I believe there is little
more than tradition for this ſtory. As to Wal-
ter, he undoubtedly was created high fteward
of Scotland, for the great fervices he perform-
ed to Malcolm; nor have we any reafon to
doubt his being the fon of Fleance, and of his
having returned to Scotland after Malcolm was
fettled on the throne. The high - ftewardſhip
was a dignity held by a fervice, and entitled the
owner to all the privileges of a baron; but
Malcolm, no doubt, added to it confiderable
eftates. We are informed, that he ferved the
king in Galloway likewife; and that he was
highly
OF SCOTLAN D.
253
highly inftrumental in curbing the tyranny of A.D. 1066.
the great lords over their inferiors: but we
are now upon the eve of the greateſt revolu-
tion that ever happened in Britain; I mean the
conqueft of England by the Normans.
of Edgar
It is foreign to my purpoſe to relate the par- Adventures
ticulars of that conqueft farther than it is connect- Atheling.
ed with the hiſtory of Scotland. Upon the death
of Edward the Confeffor, Harold feized the throne
of England, notwithſtanding Edgar, fon of Ed-
ward the Outlaw, was then at the Engliſh court,
and undoubted heir to the crown. The truth
is, Edgar was a weak prince, and Harold be-
ing victorious over all oppofition, particularly
from his brother Tofti, was quietly recognized
by the Engliſh for their king. He had, how-
ever, the magnanimity to create Edgar, who
was fur-named Atheling (or royal) earl of Ox-
ford, and to treat him with great refpect. In
fhort, by his juſtice and moderation, he fhew-
ed himſelf worthy of the dignity he ufurped.
Upon Harold's defeat and death, and the ac-
ceflion of William the Norman to the crown
of England, the latter plainly diſcovered fome
jealoufy of Edgar. We fhall not here difcufs
the queſtion, how far Edgar forfeited his
right, by acknowledging Harold for his fove-
reign. It is fufficient to fay, that if the right
of blood could have availed him, his title was
better than even that of the Confeffor. Upon
William's paying a vifit to his Norman domi-
nions,
254
HISTORY
THE
A. D. 1067. nions, he appointed Edgar to attend him, and
fome other noblemen, whom he ſuſpected to be
in his intereft; but upon his return to England,
he found the people fo difaffected to his govern-
ment, that he proceeded with great feverity;
fo that numbers of his Englifh fubjects took
refuge in Cumberland, and other parts of Mal-
colm's fouthern dominions. Edgar's unafpir-
ing difpofition feems to have preferved him
from the confpiracies which the Anglo-Saxons
were now daily forming againſt William and
his Normans; for it does not appear from any
good Engliſh hiftorian, that he ever was in the
field againſt the Conqueror. Edgar had two fif-
ters, Margaret and Chriftina; and his two chief
friends were Gofpatric and Marleſwin, who
foon rendered him fenfible how precariouſly he
held his life under a jealous tyrant; and per-
fuaded him to make preparations for flying by
fea, with his fifters, to Hungary or fome fo-
reign country.
This refolution probably was formed while
William was in the north of England, where
he reduced York, with all that country. We
know of no attempts he made againſt Malcolm;
but Egelwin, biſhop of Durham, pleaded great
merit with him for having difpofed Malcolm to
renew the peace with William, as it ftood in
the days of Edward the Confeffor. I am there-
fore inclined to believe, that Malcolm had, at
this time, formed no connections with Edgar;
and
OF SCOTLAN D.?
255
and that William himſelf connived at Edgar's A. D. 1068.
eſcaping to a country from whence he had no-
thing to fear. Be this as it may
Be this as it may (for it is a
matter of doubt) Edgar, attended by his mo-
ther Agatha, his two fifters, and a great train
of Anglo-Saxon noblemen, embarked on board
a fmall fquadron; which, by ftrefs of weather,
was forced into the frith of Forth, where the who is
illuftrious exiles landed, at a place fince called
the Queen's - Ferry. Malcolm no fooner heard
of their landing than he paid them a viſit in
perfon, and fell in love with the princefs Mar-
garet.
It must be acknowledged that this was a bold
ftep in Malcolm, as he could not but foreſee
the confequences; but it is more than probable
that his great dependence was upon the Anglo-
Saxon party in England, the heads of which
no fooner heard of Edgar's landing in Scotland,
than they repaired to Malcolm's court. It was
not long before William formally demanded
that Edgar fhould be given up to him; which
Malcolm refuſed; and, upon this, war was de-
clared between the two nations. Hoveden and
fome other Engliſh hiftorians have repreſented
this event in a different light, as if the whole
had been contrived between Malcolm and Ed-
gar; and they tell us, that the former was
making war in the north of England, when
Edgar landed at the Queen's-Ferry. In the re-
lation I have given, I have been determined
by
driven to
Scotland.
War be-
tween Scot-
land and
England.
256
HISTORY
THE
A. D. 1069. by Turgot, archbishop of St. Andrew's, and
confeffor to Margaret, whofe life he wrote;
and Ealred, abbot of Redewal, who wrote it
likewife, and lived near the time.
Malcolm
ravages
England.
wan
Beſides the Anglo-Saxon noblemen, many of
the clergy (fome fay Stigand and Aldred, the
two Engliſh archbishops) joined Edgar in Scot-
land. Though the power of Malcolm was in-
confiderable, compared to that of William, yet
his Engliſh auxiliaries affifted him fo effectually,
that the Norman found great difficulty even to
keep his own countrymen in their duty. He
was obliged to give up the county of Northum-
berland to Gofpatric (probably the fame who
had attended Edgar in his flight, and who was
related to the Anglo-Saxon royal family) upon
condition of his making war upon the Scots.
Gofpatric accordingly invaded Cumberland;
but his vifit was repaid by Malcolm's filling
Northumberland, and all the north of England,
with his ravages; and returning to his own
country with a vaſt booty in prifoners and ef-
fects. But this was not the only method by
which Malcolm fought to diſtreſs William; for
he fent ambaffadors to Denmark and Ireland,
to invite their princes to join him in a confede-
racy against that conqueror.
The Danes, even at this time, kept up their
claims upon the crown of England; fo that they
I could not be fuppofed to be very zealous for
Edgar. The Irish had received under their
pro-
OF SCOTLAND.
257
protection the three fons of the late Harold, king A.D. 1070.
of England, and it was natural for them to
plead a family-right to their father's crown.
All parties, however, were united againſt Wil-
liam; but when they came to particular ftipula-
tions, no general confederacy could be formed;
and thus Malcolm's plan fell to the ground.
The three fons of Harold made a deſcent upon
Somerſetſhire with a body of Irish, to which
William oppofed one of Engliſh; but the latter
were defeated; and it foon appeared that the
Iriſh, by returning with a large booty to their
fhips, after ravaging the country, had only ſerv-
ed for plunder. The Danes acted with more
caution than the Irifh, probably with a view
of getting once more footing in England; and
landing at the mouth of the Humber, in two
hundred and forty fmall fhips, they were join-
ed by Edgar and his party. This defcent threat-
ened to overthrow the Norman government in
England. William had taken the earldom of
Northumberland from Gofpatric, and given it
to Robert Cummin, one of his Norman barons,
who thought that he had little elfe to do than
to take poffeffion of his new dignity; but he
was deceived.
The Northumbrians had joined Gofpatric,
and received the Danes as their countrymen,
while Malcolm lay in the neighbourhood with
an army ready to fupport them. Before a junc-
tion could be formed, the Northumbrians had en-
VOL. I
L1
ter-
258
HISTORY
THE
A. D. 1070.
tered into a confpiracy to murder all the Nor-
mans who fell into their hands; which they ac-
cordingly executed upon Cummin and his fol-
lowers at Durham, where they had been guilty
of great cruelties. After this, they attacked
the forts which William had built at York; but
not being able to take them, in the middle of
December, the Engliſh, Scots, and Danes, unit-
ed their arms, and marching towards York
took that city, and put to the fword three
thouſand Normans who were there in garriſon.
This fucceſs was followed by incurfions and ra-
vages into the country of England, where the
Danes and Northumbrians acquired a great
booty.
It foon appeared that the Danes and Nor-
thumbrians, who confidered themſelves almoft
as one people, were no more in earneft than
the Iriſh, to affift Edgar; and that all his
dependence was upon Malcolm, and the few
fouthern English who had followed his for-
tunes; for the Northumbrians and Danes were
no fooner mafters of the booty, than the for-
mer retired to their habitations, and the latter
to their fhips. William, haughty as he was,
deigned to court the Engliſh upon this occaſi-
on, by reſtoring the Saxon laws, and mitigat-
ing the ſeverity of the Normannic government.
This compliance, together with the ravages late-
ly committed in England, re-eftabliſhed his au-
thority; and he ſaw himſelf again at the head
of
OF SCOTLAND.
259
of an army, with which he fet out for the
North. After a very difficult march, occafion-
ed by the rains, he arrived in Yorkſhire, where
he took a fevere revenge upon the Northum-
brians (great part of Yorkſhire then lying in
Northumberland); and though he met with a
brave oppoſition from earl Waltheof, fon to
Syward, he took York, and put to death all its
inhabitants. After this, perceiving that the
Danes ftill lay hovering upon the coaft; and
being apprehenſive that they might join Mal-
colm, who was at the head of a ftrong army,
he ſent a ſum of money to Ofbern, their gene-
ral, and brother to their king, with an offer of
what proviſions he pleaſed to accept of, pro-
vided he would return to Denmark; and Of
bern accordingly complied with the terms.
A. D. 1070.
Scotland.
It is probable that Malcolm, perceiving this
fudden turn in favour of William,withdrew to his Returns to
own dominions, where he lay upon the defen-
five. Upon his retreat, William took poffeffion
of Durham, wintered at York, and received
the fubmiffions of Waltheof and Gofpatric;
creating the former earl of Northampton and
Huntingdon, and giving him his own niece in
marriage. Soon after, William marched to
Wales, where he quelled an infurrection; and
Edgar, on the retreat of the Danes, returned
to Scotland, where Malcolm was making great
preparations once more to invade England.
Other hiftorians are of opinion, that he did not
Lla
join
260
HISTORY
THE
A. D. 1071. join Malcolm, till the army of the latter was
upon its march towards England.
Again in-
land.
This part of our hiftory falls in with the
year 1071. The Engliſh hiftorians have been ve-
ry fevere upon Malcolm's barbarity during this
vades Eng- invafion; and poffibly, in fome inftances, it
may not be defenfible. We are, however, to
recollect, that the Northumbrians and Danes
had, by this time, abandoned both Edgar and
Malcolm, after giving them the ſtrongeſt affu-
rances of fidelity: and the Scotch hiftorians
(who are not very correct as to French or Eng-
lifh names) have mentioned feveral very cruel
inroads into Malcolm's dominions before this
time. Fordun mentions particularly, an inva-
fion of Scotland by Odo, bishop of Bayeux,
brother to William, who was defeated by Mal-
colm at the mouth of the Humber; but the
Engliſh hiſtorians are not clear as to the fact ;
and I follow them chiefly at this period. Ac-
cording to them, Malcolm invaded England by
Cumberland, ravaged Teefdale, and, at a place
called Hundreds - keld, near Barnard - caſtle,
killed fome Engliſh noblemen, with all their
followers. He next wafted Cleveland, in the
North-Riding of Yorkshire; renewed his ra-
vages in the neighbourhood; fent back the
booty with part of his army to Scotland; and
pillaged the biſhopric of Durham, where he is
faid not to have ſpared the moſt facred edifices,
and to have burnt them to the ground.
Gofpa-
OF SCOTLAND.
261
Gofpatric, to whom William had lately ceded A.D. 1072.
Northumberland, in the mean time attempted
to make a diverfion to Malcolm, by falling into
his principality of Cumberland. There is rea-
fon for believing that Malcolm had taken care
to guard that principality with the troops which
had carried off his booty; for Gofpatric was
repulfed, and obliged to fhut himſelf up in Bam-
borough-caſtle. It can afford neither inſtruction
nor amufement to the reader, to give a detail
of all the 'cruelties, which Malcolm is accufed
of having committed, after this, in the North
of England. There is one reafon for believing
them to have been exaggerated by Simeon of
Durham and other Engliſh hiſtorians, which is,
that no country ſeems capable of fupplying fuch
ravages; though it is very probable that the
war was carried on with great fury on both
fides, and that Malcolm brought off with
him a great number of English captives, with
whom he peopled the fouthern part of his do-
minions. Upon the whole, one of the reaſons
why I have preferred the English and Norman
to the Scotch hiftorians, in the warlike ac-
counts of this reign, is, becauſe the former muſt
undoubtedly have been better inſtructed than
the latter were, in the names of their generals
and noblemen, as well as of places within their
own dominions. Befides an earl Roger, who, as
the Scots fay, invaded Scotland, they tell us of an
earl of Glouceſter, both of whom were defeated
by
262
THE HISTORY
A.D. 1072. by Malcolm and his generals. Befides Odo,
brother to king William, they have given the
command of another army to that conqueror's
fon, Robert, furnamed Curtois, who fecretly
befriended Edgar, and did nothing worth men-
tioning. The Engliſh hiftories take no notice
of thofe generals, or their defeats; and no-
thing is more likely, than that William trufted
for the defence of Northumberland and the
northern parts to thofe noblemen, whether
Engliſh or Northumbrian, to whom he had
granted them in fee.
Even the Engliſh hiſtorians admit that, at the
period I now treat of, Malcolm was victorious,
and carried back his army to Scotland in tri-
umph. It does not clearly appear, whether
Malcolm had been married to the princeſs Mar-
garet, Edgar's fifter, before his return from this
ruinous expedition into England. Archbishop
Turgot, and the abbot Ealred, whom I have
already mentioned, intimate that the marriage
took place immediately upon Edgar's arrival in
Scotland; other writers fix it to the year 1070,
and the English hiftorians a year later; and all
agree that it was celebrated at Dunfermling,
where Malcolm had a palace. Perhaps the nup-
tials were not folemnized till the laft-mentioned
year; and this is the more probable, as from
that period the temper and difpofition of Mal-
colm took a new and a favourable turn towards
humanity. We are obliged to the Engliſh hif-
torians
OF SCOTLAN D.
263
•
in England.
torians for the knowledge of the following A.D. 1072.
fact, which happened at the fame time. Fre-
deric, abbot of St. Alban's, perceiving the mi-
ſeries of the Engliſh under the Norman govern-
ment, entered into a confpiracy against Wil- Confpiracy
liam, and fent to Scotland for Edgar, who ac-
cordingly repaired to England, to head the in-
furrection. His name was fo popular, that Wil-
liam did not chufe to employ force in quelling
the confpiracy; but took an oath at Berkham-
ftead to govern the English by their own laws.
Upon this the confpirators laid down their
arms; and Edgar, notwithſtanding the various
means William uſed to fecure his perfon, eſcaped
back to Scotland. William was no fooner freed
from this danger, than he difregarded all the
terms he had fo lately fworn to; and heaped
freſh cruelties upon the Engliſh, who no long-
er having Edgar to head them, were forced to
fhelter themſelves in the Ifle of Ely, and other
remote fortreffes. Thofe who affembled in the Ifle
made a moſt formidable ſtand, and chofe Here-
ward, a nobleman of great diftinction, for their
chief. They were joined by the bishop of Dur-
ham, and fome other noblemen who had, like
him, taken refuge in Scotland. William march-
ed againſt them with an army, and with great
difficulty diflodged them out of the Ifle; and
the brave Hereward eſcaped through the Fens
to Scotland.
When
264
HISTORY
THE
A. D. 1072.
William the
Conqueror
invades
Scotland.
Bishop
Gibſon.
When we compare all circumftances, and re-
flect on the vaft refources which William had,
both in England and from the continent, it is
amazing that Malcolm fhould have made fuch
a ftand as he did againſt his power. William's
conqueft of the Ifle of Ely, which happened
in the year 1072, afforded him leiſure to
raiſe an army, which might ftrike at the root
of all his dangers, by enabling him to invade
Scotland. The English hiftorians have been
very pompous in their accounts of this expedi-
tion; and the difficulties William met with,
give us fome idea of Malcolm's power and po-
licy; tho' fome parts of the Conqueror's conduct
are fomewhat unaccountable. We are told, for
inftance, that he invaded Scotland by Gallo-
way, which is at prefent the weftermoft part of
the kingdom. From this, all we can conclude
is, that this invafion was carried on both by
fea and land; and that William made a deſcent
in the mouth of Solway-frith, or in Wigton-
bay; for it is certain that he found Yorkshire,
Northumberland, Durham, and Richmond-
fhire, fo depopulated and ravaged, that he
could not march through them. The Saxon
Chronicle exprefsly fays, that he blocked up
the Scots by fea; and that he marched his land-
forces to a certain river, which, by the fimila-
rity of the name, the right reverend editor.
of that chronicle thinks (though improbably)
to have been the Tweed. The fame Chronicle
fays,
}
OF SCOTLAN D.
265
fays, that in his land march he found nothing A.D. 1702.
which could be of fervice to him. Polydore Vir-
gil, the foreign hiftorian of English affairs, in-
forms us that William penetrated into Gallo-
way, becauſe he underſtood that it was the
chief receptacle for his English enemies. I am
rather inclined to believe, that as this country
was not then fubject to Scotland, or but very
imperfectly fo, and governed by a ſeparate
prince, William was in hopes of being joined
by the inhabitants, who had but a very few
years before been at war with the Scots. I
throw out theſe hints only by way of conjec-
ture, and ſhall now purfue the thread of the
hiſtory.
William found fo little encouragement in
Galloway, that having in vain harrafled his
troops by marching over its hills and through
its deferts, he ftruck through Clydefdale, and
proceeded directly to Lothian, where Malcolm
lay with his army. Both princes, for fome
days, faced each other; but neither inclined to
fight, if they could avoid it with honour. The
Engliſh army was probably fatigued; and if de-
feated, muſt have been without refources. On
the other hand, the loss of a battle to Malcolm
might have been attended with that of his
crown and kingdom. After long deliberation,
a peace was agreed upon; Malcolm confenting Receives
to pay homage to William. The Scotch hifto- Malcolm's
rians themſelves agree with the English as to
homage.
VOL. I.
M m
thofe
266
HISTORY
THE
A. D. 1703. thofe facts; but contend that the homage Mal-
colm then paid, was only for his Engliſh poffef-
fions; and both parties fay, that William re-
ceived it at Abernethy, which lies north of the
Forth, and was formerly the capital of the Pic-
tish kingdom. It is likewife admitted, that,
upon
the conclufion of the peace, a croſs was
erected at Stanmore, in Richmondshire, with
the arms of both kings, to ferve as a boundary
between Malcolm's feudal poffeffions in Eng-
land, and thoſe of William. Part of this mo-
nument, which is called Re-crofs, or rather the
Roy-croſs, or Croſs of the Kings, was entire in
the days of Camden.
-
It appears from the beſt of our hiftorians,
that Malcolm had, for fome time, refuſed to
pay homage for Cumberland to William, for
the fame reaſon that his predeceffor, Malcolm
the ſecond, refuſed to pay it to the Danes, be-
cauſe he was not the heir of the Anglo-Saxon
princes. The affertion of Hollinfined and mo-
dern Engliſh hiftorians, that Malcolm paid ho-
mage for all Scotland, is founded on the au-
thority of the monk Ingulphus, which must be
of very little importance; becauſe, in the firſt
place, he fays, that William then conquered all
Scotland, which is a notorious falfehood; and
in the next, he does not ſpecify the territories
for which the homage was paid. The truth is,
William feems to have been as fond as Malcolm
was of peace, and it was concluded upon terms
highly
OF SCOTLAN D.
267
terms.
highly to the honour of the latter; becauſe A.D. 1705.
William agreed, that the English exiles fhould Upon what
be pardoned; and that Malcolm ſhould re-enter
into the poffeffion of his Engliſh dominions, up-
on his performing for them the fame homage
as his predeceffors had done to the former
kings of England. It is added, that William
demanded Malcolm fhould not, for the fu-
ture, give protection to the Engliſh exiles in
Scotland; and that thoſe who were already
there, fhould be re-admitted to their eftates and
honours, upon their properly recognizing Wil-
liam's right to the English crown. As to the
homage paid by Malcolm, it could be no dero-
gation to his honour, as it was only for the
Engliſh eſtates he held; and the like homage
was paid by William himſelf and his fucceffors,
for their French poffeffions. Edward the firſt,
it is true, in his claim of fuperiority over the
Scotch nation, mentions this homage to have
been paid for all Scotland; but he does it upon
evidences I have already examined and dif-
proved; and later English writers were fo fen-
fible of their weaknefs, that they have had re-
courfe to the most manifeft forgeries, in fup-
port of his pretenfions: indeed, it would be
miſpending the reader's time to anfwer argu-
ments which refute themfelves.
The eſtabliſhment of peace between Malcolm
and William, introduced a total alteration of
manners among the Scots. Many caufes con-
M m 2
tri-
268
HISTORY
THE
A
A. D. 1705.
Alteration
of manners
in Scotland.
The queen
of Scotland
Court.
tributed to this; but the chief was the excel-
lent difpofition of Malcolm's queen, the pat-
tern not only of piety, but politenefs, for that
age. The next was the great number of fo-
reigners who had fettled in Scotland; among
whom, if I miſtake not, were fome French,
as Malcolm, by his differences with William,
became the natural ally of the French king,
who, we are told, furniſhed him with fome
auxiliaries. The third caufe I fhall mention,
was the fair opportunity which the new-efta-
bliſhed peace offered to Malcolm, for foftening
the natural ferocity of his fubjects. As to Mal-
colm himſelf, the prodigious devaftations which
he carried through England, fhew him to have
been, by habit, a barbarian; but his after-con-
duct proves him to have been endued with all
the qualities befitting a great prince.
During Malcolm's abfence in England, his
excellent queen chofe Turgot not only for her
confeffor, but her affiftant in her intended re-
formation of the kingdom. She began with
her own court, which fhe new-modelled, by
reforms the introducing into it the offices, furniture, and
modes of life, that were ufual among the more
polite nations of Europe. She difmiffed from
her fervice, all who were noted for immorality
and impiety; and fhe charged Turgot, upon
pain of her difpleafure, to give her his real
fentiments upon the ſtate of the kingdom, af-
ter the beſt enquiry he could make. Turgot's
report
OF SCOTLAND.
269
report was by no means favourable to the re- A.D. 1075.
putation of the Scots. He informed Margaret,
that faction raged among the nobles; rapine
among the commons; and incontinence among
all degrees of men. Above all, he complained
of the kingdom being deftitute of a learned
clergy, capable of reforming the people by their
example and doctrine. The queen was not dif
couraged by this report, and foon made her
huſband fenfible how neceflary it was for his
glory and fafety, to fecond her efforts for re-
forming his fubjects. She reprefented to him
particularly, the corruption of juſtice, and the
infolence of military men; and found in him
a ready difpofition for reforming all abuſes.
He accordingly began the great work, by fet-
ting the example in his own perfon, and oblig-
ing his nobility to follow it.
in Scotland,
A people, like the Scots, long habituated to Infurrection
rapine, and the oppreffion of their inferiors, in
which they were indulged by the feudal laws,
thought all reſtrictions of their power were fo
many ſteps towards their flavery. The intro-
duction of foreign offices and titles confirmed
them in this opinion; and an infurrection hap-
pened in Rofs, Murray, and Marr, headed by
one Mac Duncan, fo dangerous, that Malcolm
thought proper to march in perfon againſt the
rebels. Being advanced as far as Monimufk,
he had certain intelligence that they were drawn
up on the farther banks of the Spey, and con-
fifted
270
HISTORY
THE
A. D: 1076.
fifted of all the clans in the North and Weft.
Malcolm, upon this, vowed, after the man-
ner of thoſe times, to grant the lands of Mo-
nimufk to the church of St. Andrew's, if he
fhould return victorious from his expedition.
We are to obferve, that he had fent before him
Macduff, with an army, to attack the rebels,
whom that nobleman found fo powerful,
that he durft not advance till he was joined
by Malcolm.
When the latter came to the
banks of the Spey, he faw the rebels drawn
up in much better order, and making a more
formidable appearance, than he expected; but
this was fo far from daunting Malcolm, that he
ordered his troops to advance, and paſs the
river, though the moſt impetuous of any in
Scotland. His ftandard bearer feeming to
make a halt, Malcolm plucked the banner from
his hands, and gave it to a brave knight, Sir
Alexander Carron, who immediately plunged in-
to the ſtream. Such a fhew of refolution diſcou-
raged the infurgents; and they employed their
clergy, an order of men whom they knew Mal-
colm regarded, to intercede for their pardon.
Thofe fathers, accordingly, appearing on the
farther bank in a poſture of humiliation, Mal-
colm gave orders for their being ferried over,
which they accordingly were; and he received
their fubmiffions. Malcolm, however, refuſed
to grant them an unconditional pardon. He
gave the common people, whom he knew to be
the
1
OF SCOTLAN D.
271
the flaves of their chieftains, liberty to return to A.D. 16,
their reſpective habitations; but infifted on all
the better fort furrendering themſelves to his
pleaſure. This they were obliged to comply
with. Mac Duncan and feveral of the ring-
leaders were either put to death, or had their
lands forfeited, while many were condemned to
perpetual impriſonment, and their eftates con-
fifcated.
Farther re-
Our hiftorians have been fond of fending formations.
Walter the ſteward, at this time, into Gallo-
way, where he again fubdued the rebels; but,
though this is by no means improbable, perhaps
it was the fame expedition that we have alrea-
dy mentioned as the origin of the Stewart-fa-
mily. The peace of Scotland being again re-
ftored, Malcolm returned to his ſchemes of re-
formation. He found the feudal inftitutions
fo deeply rooted among his people, that he
durft not entirely abolish the infamous practice
of the landlord claiming the firſt night with
his tenant's bride; but we certainly know that,
by the queen's influence, this privilege was
commuted into the payment of a piece of mo-
ney by the bridegroom, and has been fince
known by the name of Mercheta Mulierum, or
The Woman's Mark. By the beſt accounts, the
Scots of thofe days were without the practice
of ſaying grace after their meals, till it was in-
troduced by Margaret, who gave a glafs of
wine, or other liquor, to every gueft who re-
mained
272
THE HISTORY
A. D. 1076.
His religi-
ous endow-
ments.
·
mained at the royal table, and heard the thankf
giving; and this innocent expedient gave riſe
to the term of the Grace-drink. It cannot,
however, be denied that fuperftition had a
great fhare in the reformation then brought
about. The queen and Turgot began by regu-
lating the duration of Lent, and the time of
Eafter; and, according to Fordun, the king ad-
miniſtered meat and drink to a certain number
of poor people with his own hands, every
day. Turgot tells us, that the queen not
only did the fame, but beftowed large alms of
filver among the needy, and waſhed the fores
of fix of their number.
Princes who, in their own perfons, applied
themſelves to fuch devotional exerciſes, could
not be fuppofed to ftop there. The bifhoprics
of Murray and Caithnefs were then founded;
thofe of Murtlach, Galloway, St. Andrew's,
and Glaſgow, were endowed with additional
lands and revenues; and all the dilapidations
which the epiſcopal eſtates had ſuffered during
the late wars, were repaired. Parifh-churches
were rebuilt and ornamented by the royal
bounty; but above all, Malcolm's favourite
refidence, the palace of Dumfermling, was em-
belliſhed and enriched; for the queen not only
caufed a ftately church to be built there from
the foundation, but endowed it with veffels of
gold and filver; and befides other jewels of im-
menfe value, fhe bequeathed to it in her own
life-
1
OF SCOTLAN D.
273
life-time, the famous black crofs, which was A. D. 1073.
compofed of diamonds, and had been brought
to Scotland by her brother Edgar, as being one
of the royal jewels of England. A monaftery
was likewife founded here by Malcolm, and en-
dowed with great privileges. Thefe inftances
are fufficient to fhew how very confiderable a
progrefs Malcolm and his queen made, in the
introduction of piety, and the amendment of
manners, among their fubjects.
Notwithstanding thofe noble regulations,
ſome hiſtorians have (I believe with great juſ-
tice) complained, that with the manners of
the Engliſh and the French, their luxuries
were introduced into Scotland. The Scots,
till this reign, had been remarkable for the fo-
briety and fimplicity of their fare, which was now
converted into excefs and riot, and fometimes
ended fatally by broils and bloodshed. We are
told, at the fame time, that even in thoſe days
their nobility eat only twice a day, and were
ferved with no more than two difhes at each
meal; but that their deviation from their an-
tient temperance, occafioned a diminution of
the ftrength and fize of the people.
affairs.
Edgar Atheling returned to England the English
year after the concluſion of the peace between
William and Malcolm, where he had large ap-
pointments fettled upon him; but we know of
no attempts he made againſt the eſtabliſhed go-
vernment, though the North of England was
VOL. I.
N n
then
274
HISTORY
THE
A. D. 1074.
then full of confufion and bloodshed. After
William had left Scotland, he ftripped Gofpatric
of Northumberland, either becauſe it had been
fo ftipulated in the late peace, or becauſe he
was diffatisfied with his conduct when he com-
manded againſt the Scots, and eſpecially for
the fhare he had in the death of Cummin. He
was fucceeded by earl Waltheof, Syward's
fon; but this part of hiſtory is not without its
difficulties; for I ftrongly fufpect that Gofpa-
tric never was poffeffed of all Northumberland,
though he had a large eſtate in that country;
and there feems to have been certain provincial
names, which among the Danish race were
appropriated indifcriminately to their great
men. Thus feveral Waltheofs, Sywards, and
Gofpatrics, might exift at the fame time, and
might be fucceffively poffeffed of the fame
lands; and this identity of appellations necef-
farily creates a confufion in hiſtory. We can-
not therefore be pofitive, that this kinfman of
Malcolm was the fame earl Waltheof, who, af-
ter difcovering a dangerous confpiracy, which
William quelled, was by his order, afterwards,
moſt ungratefully beheaded at Wincheſter, in
1074.
There is, however, a great prefumption that
he was the fame; and that Malcolm's refent-
ment for his death, occafioned his invafion of
England in 1077. It was probably at this time,
that the Scots, under the earl of Dunbar, de-
feated
OF SCOTLAN D.
275
feated the two Norman noblemen I have al-
ready mentioned, Robert and Richard; for I
perceive that William then brought over to
England his fon Robert to command againſt
the Scots; and it is unquestionable that, foon
after, his brother, the warlike bifhop of Bay-
eux, actually did march againſt them with an
army. From thofe circumftances we may form
fome idea of the confufion introduced into
the Scotch hiftory, by the difregard of all its
old writers to method and chronology. The
murder of biſhop Walcher (who, after Wal-
theof's death, had either purchaſed or obtained
his eſtates from William) by the Northumbri-
ans, falls within this period; and it was to re-
duce thofe rebels, that the biſhop of Bayeux
was fent to the North. Malcolm was then in
arms; and had entered into a correfpondence
with the Danes for invading England. This
having come to William's knowledge, he fent
orders to his brother to be particularly atten-
tive to the fea-coafts, in cafe the Danes fhould
land; and we accordingly find, that except
laying wafte the country, in order to cut off
the fubfiftence of the Danes, Odo did nothing
of importance, either againſt the rebel Nor-
thumbrians or the Scots. I am now arrived to
the year 1080, when Odo being recalled from
his command, was fucceeded in it by Robert,
William's eldeſt fon, one of the moft warlike,
but unaſpiring princes of the age. We have no
autho-
Nn 2
A.D. 1077.
Continued.
1079.
Ic80.
276
HISTORY
THE
A. D. 1985.
Death of
William the
Conqueror.
authority from the Engliſh hiftorians which
countenances thofe of Scotland in ſaying, that
Robert was defeated by Malcolm; nor do we
know of any action he performed, except that of
planning out a town, which is now fo well
known by the name of Newcastle upon Tyne.
The invafion of England by the Danes cer-
tainly failed, thro' the vigilance of William, and
by the force of his money, which bribed their
chief counfellors. In the year 1085, William
carried over Edgar Atheling with him to Nor-
mandy, and there they parted. The Saxon Chro-
nicle (the beſt hiftorical authority of thofe times)
fays, that he there deferted William; but by
this we are only to underſtand, that Edgar
took his leave of him; and that he went with
two hundred knights to Italy, from whence he
proceeded on a crufade to the Holy Land. The
fafety of Edgar, when in the power of fuch a
prince as William, was undoubtedly owing to
Malcolm, who in cafe of Edgar's death, would
have been a formidable competitor for the Eng-
lish crown. William, however, was fafe in
Edgar's weakneſs and inactivity; and this ſeems
to have been the true fource of his generofity
to that unambitious prince. William foon af-
ter died in France; and the adventures of Ed-
gar, during the intermediate time, are un-
known.
The death of the Conqueror, and the accef
fion of William Rufus to his throne, altered
the
OF
277
SCOTLAND.
Hiſtory
the whole ſyſtem of Malcolm's connections A.D. 1088.
with England. He confidered Rufus as ufurp-
ing not only the right of Edgar, but of his el-
der brother Robert. No fooner was the death of Edgar
Atheling.
of the Conqueror known to Edgar, than he re-
paired to France, where he was kindly receiv-
ed, and nobly entertained by Robert; but when
matters were compromifed between the two
brothers, Rufus perfuaded Robert to withdraw
his countenance from Edgar, while he confif-
cated all thofe eftates in England, which the
Conqueror had given him. This feverity was
occafioned by the preparations Malcolm was
making for invading England, which Rufus
perfuaded Robert, an eafy, impolitic prince,
were intended to place Edgar on the English
throne. Malcolm, who was then in the height
of his glory, faw Edgar once more reduced to
throw himſelf upon his protection, and he re-
ceived him as formerly, with the greateſt affec-
tion and reſpect, though he feems to have had
no reaſon to be pleafed with his conduct. He
was at the time of Edgar's arrival, at the head
of a brave, well-difciplined army, and prepar-
ing to invade England. The beginning of May,
Malcolm without refiftance penetrated a great Malcol
way into the country, making a vaft booty, England.
with which he returned to Scotland. The Sax-
on Chronicle intimates, that he was beaten by
William's lieutenants; but Florence of Wor-
ceſter and other hiftorians only fay, that it was
the
invades
278
HISTORY
THE
A. D. 1091.
Scotland
invaded.
the will of Providence he fhould advance no
farther an expreffion which more modern
writers are at a lofs to account for, as alfo for
Malcolm's hafty return from ſo promiſing an
expedition.
The Scotch hiftories tell us, that Malcolm was
provoked to this invafion by the injustice of
William's lieutenants, who had feized his caſtle
of Alnwick, and of William himſelf, who had
fequeftered into his own hands twelve fine.ma-
nors that had been given him by the Conqueror.
The Engliſh chronicles agree with thoſe of Scot-
land as to theſe facts; but I am apt to believe
that the caftle of Alnwick was furprized while
Malcolm was in the more foutherly parts; and
that the true reafon of his return to Scot-
land, was the certain intelligence he had, that
William, with his elder and younger brothers,
were on their return from France to England,
which accordingly happened in the autumn of
this year.
year. Upon their arrival, William raiſed
great armaments both by fea and land, to in-
vade Scotland. His fleet was daſhed to pieces
by ftorms and tempefts, and almost all who
were on board of it perished. Malcolm had
foreſeen the invafion by land, and had fo effec-
tually laid waſte the counties through which
the English army was to pafs, that William loft
great part of his troops by fatigue and famine;
and when he arrived in Scotland, found him-
felf in no condition to profecute his ambitious
ſchemes,
OF SCOT LA N D.
279
fchemes, eſpecially as Malcolm was advancing A.D. 1091.
againſt him with a powerful army.
Rufus, in this diſtreſs, had recourſe to Robert
de Mowbray, earl of Northumberland, who dif-
fuaded him from venturing a battle; but coun-
felled him, if poffible, to open a negociation by
means of Edgar and the other English noble-
men refiding with Malcolm. His advice proved
falutary and ſucceſsful. Edgar being applied to,
and having obtained a promiſe of being reftored
to his Engliſh eftate, undertook the negociation,
which feems to have been a matter of more dif-
ficulty than he had apprehended. According
to Odericus Vitalis, who lived at the time, and
was well acquainted with public affairs, Mal-
colm had never yet recognized the right of Ru-
fus to the Engliſh crown, and therefore he re-
fuſed to treat with him as a fovereign prince,
but offered to enter into a negociation with his
elder brother Robert. Robert, very probably at
William's defire, gave Malcolm the meeting;
and the latter, carrying him to an eminence,
fhewed him the difpofition of his army, and of-
fered, if Robert would give him leave, to cut off
his younger brother, and to pay to him the al-
legiance that was due for his Engliſh poffeffions.
Robert generously anſwered, That he had re-
figned to Rufus his right of primogeniture in
England; that he had even become one of Wil-
liam's fubjects there, by accepting of an Engliſh
eftate. The mention of this interview has been
unac-
280
THE HISTORY
A. D. 1092. unaccountably omitted by all the Scotch hifto-
rians, though one of the moſt remarkable cir-
cumftances of Malcolm's reign, as it difplays,
better than any other that I know of, his prin-
ciples and politics. From it we learn, that he
confidered the pretenfions of Edgar to the
crown of England as being extinguiſhed, and
that the homage he had already paid to the
Conqueror was due to his eldeſt fon. It ap-
pears, however, that he thought the abdication
of Robert left him at liberty to treat with Wil-
liam. An interview between them according-
ly followed; and many difficulties being fur-
mounted, a treaty was concluded; by which
it was agreed, that Malcolm ſhould yield the
fame obedience to Rufus, as he had done to his
father the Conqueror: that William fhould
reftore to Malcolm, the twelve manors in difpute,
together with his other Engliſh poffeffions; and
give him likewife twelve marks of gold yearly,
befides reſtoring Edgar to all his Engliſh
eftates.
A peace,
That this treaty was concluded in Lothian,
and not at Leeds, in Yorkſhire (as the Scotch
hiftorians contend) is next to certain, not on-
ly from the teftimony of the English chroni-
cles, but from the circumftance of William,
upon his returning from the place of treaty,
having taken a liking to the fituation of Carliſle,
which he intended to fortify.
William
OF SCOTLAND.
281
William thought this treaty fo difhonourable A. D. 1093.
on his part, that he refolved not to fulfil it; and
it is generally agreed that neceffity alone forced
him to conclude it. He carried Edgar back
with him to England, where he found that
fome of his noblemen had conquered part of
the Welch borders, and that his affairs were in
a ftate of great fecurity. Robert and Edgar
having been the principal inftruments in com-
pleating the late negociation, began to remind
William of his engagements with themſelves, as
well as with Malcolm; but his anfwers were ſo.
evaſive, that they plainly faw he was refolved
to perform nothing: upon which they threw
themſelves on fhip-board, and paffed over to
Normandy. Upon their departure, William
applied himſelf to fortify his northern bar-
rier, and efpecially Carlile (which had
been two hundred years before deſtroyed by
the Danes); but as it lay within Malcolm's
feudal dominions, and as its fituation was, of
great importance, it was then poffeffed by one
Dolphin, whom, with his followers, William
expelled, and began to build a new caftle within
the town; which Malcolm complained of as a
breach of the late treaty. Soon after this, Wil-
liam fell ill; but upon his recovery, in autumn,
Malcolm repaired to his court, at Gloucefter,
that he might have a perſonal interview with
William, and redreſs of all his complaints; and
laftly, to conclude a new treaty, which might
VOL. I.
finifh
282
THE HISTORY
A. D. 1093.
finiſh all difputes between the two nations.
for the future. Upon his arrival, he found
he could get no admittance to William's pre-
fence, without having firſt performed his ho-
mage, and fubmitted to the judgment of his ba-
rons in full court. We are told that Malcolm
refuſed to do either; becaufe he was only
obliged, by the late treaty, to do homage in
the fame manner as the former kings of Scot-
land had done it to William's predeceffors, and
as he himſelf had performed it to the Con-
queror; that is, upon the confines of both
kingdoms. William rejected his reafons; and
peremptorily infifting upon his compliance,
Malcolm left England in a rage.
I have given the laft-mentioned tranfaction
at Glouceſter from unquestionable authors, who
feem to blame William for his haughtiness. I
am, however, of opinion, that Malcolm's re-
fufal of doing homage aroſe from the terms
not being complied with upon which he was
to perform it; and that the real intention of
William was, to try him as an Engliſh peer,
upon fome charge which was eafy to be invent-
ed. Be this as it may, upon Malcolm's return
to Scotland, he raiſed a new army, and befieg-
ed Alnwic.
Robert de Mowbray, the then governor or
earl of Northumberland, raiſed fome forces to
oppofe Malcolm; but could not prevent the
fiege being carried on with great vigour. Ac-
cording
OF SCOTLAN D.
283
killed.
cording to Fordun and other Scotch hiſtorians, A.D. 1093、
the place was reduced to fuch ftreights, that a
knight came out of the caftle, with its keys on
the point of his fpear; and telling thoſe whom
he met that he was come to lay them at Mal-
colm's feet. That prince, unarmed as he was,
advancing to receive them, was by the traitor
run through the eye, and killed upon the fpot. Malcolma
They add, that prince Edward, Malcolm's eld-
eft fon, was mortally wounded in endeavour-
ing to revenge his father's death; and Fordun
fays, he died three days after. The Engliſh hifto-
rians on the other hand contend, that Malcolm
was furprized in his camp by Mowbray; that
he was killed by one Morel de Bæbaburh; that
his fon fell at the fame time; and that their ar-
my ſuffered a total rout. Upon comparing cir-
cumſtances, I cannot help'giving the preference
to the Engliſh relation, that of the Scotch be-
ing full of inconfiftences. It is very poffible,
that Malcolm might have been treating with
the governor of the garriſon about a furren-
der, when his army was furprized by Mow-
bray; and there is nothing improbable in our
fuppofing him to have been killed in the at-
tack, perhaps by the very man with whom he
was treating, and who might have been in
concert with Mowbray. This is the utmoſt we
can allow to the Scotch narrative; and it ac-
counts for prince Edward being mortally
wounded, as Fordun fays he was, during the
O02
con-
284
HISTORY
THE
A. D. 1093.
His iffue,
confufion occafioned by the attack. The rela
tion of the Scots is the more improbable, by
their childishly alledging that the furname of
Piercy, an old Norman barony, took its rife
from the manner in which Malcolm was killed.
They are better founded when they tell us,
that their excellent queen Margaret was then
lying ill within the caftle of Edinburgh, where
fhe died, four days after her hufband. It is
certain, that Malcolm's body was diſcovered,
and carried in a cart by fome country fellows
to Tinmouth church, where it lay buried, to-
gether with that of his fon, till both of them
were removed ſome years after to the abbey of
Dumfermling *.
Malcolm's iffue by Margaret was as follows:
Edward, who was killed as we have already men-
tioned; Edmund, who died in England the fame
year his father was flain. Some fay, that he
was a brave and a valiant prince, and that he
had retired from the world at the time of his
death but William of Malmfbury gives us a
very different idea of him; for he fays, that
he was acceffory to his elder brother's death
•
* The following epitaph, compofed by fome Scotchman who
probably was contemporary with Malcolm, takes no notice of
his having been treacherously run through the eye :
"Ter deca quinque valens armis, & menfibus octo,
MALCOLMUS, fanctus rex erat in SCOTIA.
ANGLORUM gladiis in bello fternitur heros,
Hic rex in SCOTIA primus humatus erat."
The meaning of the laft line is, that he was the first king of
Scotland not buried at Icolm-kill.
(by
OF
285
SCOTLAND.
(by which it would feem as if he had ferved in A.D. 1093.
the Engliſh army) and that he had agreed to
divide the kingdom with his baftard-brother
Duncan; but being diſcovered, he was taken
and thrown into prifon, where he died a fin-
cere penitent, defiring that he might be buried
in the irons with which he was loaded. I am
apt to believe Malmſbury's relation. Of Ethel-
red, the third fon, we know nothing, but that
he was buried at St. Andrew's; and we fhall
hereafter have occafion to mention his three
younger fons; Edgar, Alexander, and David.
The daughters were, Matilda or Maud, mar-
ried to Henry the first of England; and Mary,
the wife of Euftace, count of Bouillon, bro-
ther to Godfrey and Baldwin, fucceffively
kings of Jerufalem.
ter.
Malcolm, who was killed the fixth of June, and charac
in the thirty-fixth year of his reign, was a very
extraordinary prince for that age; and though
there is reaſon to fufpect his hiftorians, who
were churchmen, of partiality, yet the English
hiftorians leave us no room to doubt of his va-
lour and prowefs. The barbarous manner in
which he made war is to be charged upon the
times; and it was his peculiar felicity to have
for his wife, a woman whofe amiable virtues
foftened the ferocity both of him and his fub-
jects. But after all I have faid, the ſtate of
Scotland at the time of his death, affords
ftrong reafon to fufpect, that we have only the
bright fide of his character and actions,
286
HISTORY
THE
A. D. 1093.
Donald,
furnamed
Bane,
It appeared in a few days after Malcolm's
death, that his own authority and courage
alone had given tranquility, but without any
ftability, to the internal government of his
kingdom. Notwithſtanding all that had been
done by himſelf and his family, to render the
fucceffion hereditary, tho' they were princes of
èxemplary virtues, and tho' their fucceffion had
been broken into by a deteftable tyrant, yet
fuch was the prevalent love which the Scots
had for the collateral fucceffion to their crown,
that during all his reign, a ftrong party in its
favour was lurking in the kingdom. At the
head of this was his brother Donald, furnamed
Bane, whofe name is not mentioned in the
long reign of Malcolm; but who appears to
have retired in difcontent to the Iflands and
Highlands, where his partizans were fo nume-
rous, as well as in the Lowlands, that there
does not feem to have been even a ftruggle for
the fon of Malcolm, when his uncle, Donald,
mounted the throne. His party was greatly
affifted by the univerfal diffatisfaction at the
meaſures of the late reign, in introducing
the English and other foreigners, and raiſing
them to great pofts and eſtates. I have already
traced the reafons for this innovation (for it
was no other) in the government, and fhewn
that they were partly political, and partly ne-
ceffary. It would perhaps be no difficult mat-
ter to fhew, that the glorious figure which
Malcolm
1
Miller soulp ·
DONALD, VII.
1
OF
287
SCOTLAN D.
Malcolm the third made in the time of the Con- A.D. 1093.
queror and his fon, was owing to Edgar's
party in England; but Donald, upon his ac-
ceffion, expelled all foreigners out of Scot-
land, and obliged them to feek refuge in Eng-
land, through the interceffion of Edgar, who
was then at that court.
Their removal gave a new, but a difmal, face
to the affairs of Scotland. Malcolm's family
had ſtill a great intereft in the kingdom; and
Atheling found means to reſcue his nephew
Edgar, the eldeft fon of Malcolm, out of the
hands of Donald, and to carry him to the court
of Rufus, where he was in great reputation.
He was then aged, infirm, and venerable for
his fufferings, as well as for his being the true
heir to the English throne; but Rufus thinking
he had nothing to apprehend from him, treat-
ed him with a generous confidence. William
himfelf was on bad terms with his brothers;
and by the complexion of his hiftory, it feems
as if ſome of their partizans had ſpread a notion
that he intended to adopt young Edgar for
his heir, having no iffue of his own.
It was
likewife more than infinuated, that Edgar
Atheling had been the adviſer of this meaſure;
and an Engliſhman, whofe name, according to
Fordun, was Orgar, boldly accufed Atheling
of practices to advance his nephew to that fuc-
ceffion, with a view of himſelf being regent
during his minority. Rufus either believed,
or
Edgar Athe-
ry continu-
ling's hifto-
ed.
288
THE HISTORY
A.D. 1093. or feemed to believe the charge, but required
legal proofs of Atheling's guilt. As thoſe
could not be produced, Orgar infifting upon,
and Edgar denying, the charge, the barbarous
laws of the times rendered a ſingle combat un-
avoidable between the two parties. If we may
believe Fordun, the whole weight of Wil-
liam's authority was on the fide of Orgar, who
was one of the ſtrongeſt and moſt active men
in the nation; and though Edgar's age allowed
him to be defended by the arm of another, yet
none was found bold or generous enough,
through fear of the royal indignation, to be-
come his champion, till one Godwin of Win-
chefter, whofe family had been under obli-
gations to Edgar, or his anceſtors, offered to
be his fubftitute in the combat. The day ac-
cordingly was appointed; the proper oaths
were adminiſtered; and, all the pompous pa-
rade of arms being finiſhed, the combatants
engaged. Fordun has given us a deſcription
of the combat fo minute and exact, that I am
apt to think Turgot, or fome author from
whom he had it, has taken it from the life.
It is fuflicient here to fay, that Godwin was
victorious; and Orgar, when dying, confeffed
his guilt. The conqueror, as cuftomary, ob-
tained all the lands of his adverfary. The vic-
tory of Godwin was interpreted, by the king
and all his court, as the viſible manifeftation of
heaven in favour of Edgar; and William and
$
he,
OF SCOTLAN D.
289
he, ever after, lived in the moft intimate A.D. 1994.
friendſhip.
This combat, immaterial as the fuccefs was
for clearing Atheling, produced wonderful ef-
fects in favour of young Edgar, and his two
brothers, who were likewife at the Engliſh
court. Their party began to revive in Scot-
land; and Donald had recourfe to an expe-
dient which he ſeems to have planned before,
that of calling in the Danes and Norwegians
for the fupport of his government; for which
they were to be indemnified by his ceding to
them the Orkney and Shetland Iſlands, then
fubject to the kings of Scotland, and very pof-
fibly the appenage of Donald himfelf, before he
ufurped the throne. Magnus, who was king of
Norway at this time, after actually taking pof-
feffion of the Iflands, marched a body of
troops to the affiſtance of Donald. Thofe bar-
barians, as ufual, became fo infolent, that in a
fhort time they were more hated than the
Engliſh had ever been by the Scots, who com-
plained that they faw their country in danger
of becoming a province to Norway.
We know not what the real fentiments of
Rufus were at this juncture; but I am inclined
to think he did not ſeriouſly intend that young
Edgar fhould fucceed to the crown. A natural
fon, named Duncan, of the late Malcolm, had
been fent a hoftage into England; and having
been made a knight by Rufus, he was ferving
VOL. I.
P p
in
Ceffion of
the Ork-
to the king
ney iſlands
of Norway.
290
HISTORY
THE
A. D. 1095. in his armies with great reputation, when Wil-
liam formed the defign of placing him upon the
throne of Scotland, as illegitimacy could be no
obftacle in the eyes of a prince who was himſelf
the fon of a baftard. The Scotch hiftorians gene-
rally fuppofe that Duncan applied for affiftance
to Rufus; but this is immaterial, as the latter
had many weighty reafons for declaring againſt
Donald.
Direfs of
the Scots.
;
The Scots became now more than ever dif
contented with Donald's Norwegian auxiliaries;
but he found himſelf under a neceffity of main-
taining himſelf upon the throne by their means.
This was an alarming circumftance to William
and he readily put Duncan at the head of a
body of troops, with whom he entered Scot-
land. If he met with refiftance, it muſt have
been from the Norwegians: for the Scots in ge-
neral abandoned Donald, who was obliged
again to retire to the Ifles; though there is
fome reaſon for believing, that it was only in
order to receive freſh recruits from Norway.
The Scots, upon the flight of Donald, imagin-
ed that Duncan was about to raiſe Edgar to
the throne of his father; but inftead of that,
he repaired to Scone, where he was folemnly
crowned.
Nothing can be imagined more diftrefsful
than the fituation of the Scots at this time.
Two ufurpers were contending about their
crown, and each were fupported by an army
of
Heller foulp.
DUNCANII.
}
!
:
OF
291
SCOTLAN D.
of foreigners. They, however, at laft acted A. D. 1095.
A.D.
with a becoming fpirit. Malpedir, the thane,
or earl, of Mearns, a powerful nobleman, fur-
prized (fome fay by Donald's advice) Duncan,
and killed him, in the caftle of Menteith; which
was the more eafily effected, as the domeftic
troubles of England had, by this time, forced
William to recal his troops out of Scotland.
Upon the death of Duncan, Malpedir was fo
much of a patriot, that he replaced Donald up-.
on the throne, rather than owe the reſtoration
of Edgar to Engliſh troops: nor does it appear
that the Norwegians affifted Donald in regain-
ing his crown. A vifit which the king of Nor-
way, about this time, paid to his new acquifi-
tions in the Weſtern and Northern Ifles, cre-
ated freſh alarms at the court of England;
and the Scots in general fhewed manifeft difpo-
fitions for calling in young Edgar. Donald, to
prevent that, offered Edgar all that part of
Scotland which lay fouth of the Forth: the
terms, however, were not only rejected, but the
meſſengers who brought them were puniſhed as
traitors; by which we may fuppofe Edgar was
then in the South of Scotland, or in that part
of England which he looked upon to be his own
dominions. His uncle Edgar Atheling was ſtill
alive; and Rufus, rather than fee the Norwe-
gians again obtain a footing in Scotland, gave
Atheling the command of a body of troops to
restore his nephew. Miracles, in thofe days,
Pp 2
were
292
HISTORY
THE
A. D. 1096. were of great fervice in warlike expeditions;
and when Edgar came to Durham, the bury-
ing-place of Cuthbert, that faint appeared to
him, and promiſed him fuccefs, provided he
repaired next day to his church, and received
his banner from the hands of the canons; which
Edgar accordingly did. The truth is, the Scots
would have effected the reſtoration of Edgar,
had not the good faint interpofed; for they
abandoned Donald at the appearance of the
English troops. They were headed by Robert,
fon of that Godwin who had fo bravely de-
fended Atheling; and, tho' only two thou-
fand in number, after obtaining a bloodlefs
victory, they forced the ufurper to an inglo-
rious flight. He was purſued fo cloſely, that
he was taken and brought before young Edgar,
who ordered his eyes to be put out, and con-
demned him to perpetual impriſonment, in
which he died.
Edgar.
Edgar, having mounted the throne of his
anceſtors, proved a grateful votary to St. Cuth-
bert, by the vaſt preſents he made to his church,
as we ſhall ſee in the ecclefiaftical part of this
hiftory. Upon the death of William Rufus,
his brother, Henry the firft, became king of
England, though Robert, duke of Normandy,
who was elder brother to both, was ſtill alive.
Chriftina, fifter to Edgar Atheling, had by this
time profeffed herſelf a nun in the monaftery of
Wilton, into which fhe carried her niece, young
Matil-
÷
Sdp.
EDGARUS.
1
វ
OF SCOTLAN D.
293
Matilda, fiſter to Edgar, now king of Scotland.
As it was highly improbable that Edgar Athe-
ling could have any iffue, and as his nephew
never thought of putting in any claim to the
Engliſh crown, as the male repreſentative of
the Anglo-Saxon royal blood, Henry thought
that his marriage with young Matilda, a beau-
tiful and an accompliſhed princeſs, would
ftrengthen his title to the crown. Some devo-
tees of the time oppofed the marriage, under
pretence of Matilda's having been a profeſſed
nun. Henry's fituation with his clergy did not
admit of his difobliging the haughty Anfelm,
then archbishop of Canterbury; but as the
princeſs herſelf was far from being averſe to
the match, fhe gave her royal lover all the in-
formation he could defire for removing the ob-
jection. She abfolutely denied her ever having
taken the veil; fhe faid, that her aunt had obliged
her fometimes to wear a piece of black cloth, to
cover her face from the infolence of the Nor-
man foldiers, but that as foon as her aunt was
abſent, ſhe always threw it away; and that her fa-
ther often declared he defigned her to be a wife,
and not a nun. Her information (for Chriftina
feems by this time to have been dead) was laid
before Anfelm, who called a fynod before he
would give any decifion; but the cauſe being
fully heard, and the lady's cafe being drawn up
by the archdeacons of Canterbury and Saliſbu-
ry, and confirmed by the nuns, fentence paffed
in
A. D. 1098.
294
HISTORY
THE
A. D. 1100.
Henry I.
marries his
fifter.
in favour of the marriage, which was celebrated
with the greateſt pomp and national fatisfacti-
on, in November 1100.
Such is the account which William of Malmf-
bury and other old Engliſh hiftorians give of
this famous marriage. Matthew Paris has not
treated it in ſo favourable a light. He fays that
the princeſs herſelf was averfe to it; but was
afterwards prevailed on to confent by the im-
portunities and flattery of her friends, who
told her that the marriage was the only means
of faving the blood of both nations, and reſtor-
ing them to lafting tranquility. He adds, how-
ever, that the confented with fo much reluc-
tance, on account of having been profeffed a
nun, that fhe devoted the fruit of her womb
to the devil. This relation of Paris carries
with it all the marks of an infernal, mifguided
zeal, and is exprefsly contradicted by the pro-
ceedings of the fynod, and the archbiſhop.
The match ftrongly cemented the good un-
derſtanding between the crowns of Scotland and
England; and the English writers themfelves
acknowledge, that Edgar continued to the
time of his death, a faithful ally to Henry.
The intercourfe between them has given rife to
fome monks, zealous for the fuperiority of the
kingdom and church of England over thoſe of
Scotland, to forge certain writings, by which
An English Edgar acknowledges," that he held the king-
dom of Scotland by gift of his lord William,
forgery.
king
OF
295
SCOTLAN D.
:
-
king of England; and with confent of his faid A. D. 1100.
lord, he gives to God Almighty, and the
church of Durham, and to the glorious biſhop
St. Cuthbert, and to biſhop William, and to
the monks of Durham, and their fucceffors,
the manſions of Berwic and Coldingham, with
feveral other lands poffeffed by his father
Malcolm and this charter is granted in the
prefence of biſhop William, and Turgot, the
prior; and confirmed by the croffes of Edgar
his brother, and other nobleman." That this
pretended charter is a forgery appears from the
original not being producible, and from the
copy of it printed in the Monafticon Anglica-
num in the following manner:
"In the days
of William the firft, king of England (viz. the
Conqueror) and of William biſhop of Durham,
Edgar, king of Scotland, made a grant to St.
Cuthbert, and to the church of Durham, of
Coldinghamſhire, and of the tenure following."
Now it is certain that William the Conqueror
had been dead ten years before Edgar came to
the throne of Scotland; and that William, bi-
shop of Durham, was not alive at the time
the charter is fuppofed to have been granted.
Beſides thoſe two indifputable evidences of its
forgery, many others might be produced; but
they are unneceffary. The like intemperate
zeal has prompted another forgery of the fame
kind, under the feal of Edgar on horfeback,
with a ſword in his right hand, and a ſhield
on
296
HISTORY
THE
A.D. 1100, on his left arm, within a bordure of France.
This laft circumſtance is a fufficient proof of its
forgery, as in the fame repoſitory there are five
undoubted genuine charters of the fame Edgar,
who, on his feal, is reprefented fitting on two
fwords planted a-crofs, with a ſcepter in one
hand, a ſword in the other, a royal diadem on
his head, and an infcription round, Scotorum
Bafileus, which the beſt Engliſh antiquaries ad-
mit to have been a title denoting independen-
cy. I fhall not mifpend the reader's time in
mentioning other forgeries of the fame nature,
which are acknowledged by the moft judicious
hiftorians, and fufpected by the moft credu-
lous.
Notwithſtanding the great troubles raifed
both in France and England againſt Henry the
firſt, Edgar never could be perfuaded to take
part againſt his brother-in-law; and what is ftill
more extraordinary, he remained firm to his
engagements even after Henry had been defert-
ed by Atheling, to whom his nephew Edgar
owed fo much. Atheling, though now old
and infirm, feems never to have been at reſt
but we are in the dark as to many particulars
of his fortune. It is certain, that before his
death, he left the party of Henry the firſt, and
joined that of duke Robert, who was entirely
defeated at the battle of Tinchebray, in Nor-
mandy, and taken prifoner, together with
Atheling. According to William of Malmf
;
bury,
1
I. Taylor Joulp
ALEXANDER I.
OF SCOTLAN D.
297
bury, the latter had paid a viſit to the Holy A.D. 1107.
Land, and had refufed many advantageous of-
fers from feveral European powers, that he
might end his days peaceably in England. It
is well known with what ſeverity Henry treat-
ed his elder brother Robert, during his capti-
vity but his affection for his queen, and his
regard for Edgar, prevailed with him to fuffer
Atheling to enjoy his favourite wiſh; for he
was ſet at liberty, and returning to England he
there finiſhed his life. It is uncertain, whether
he furvived his nephew Edgar, who, after a
happy and peaceable reign of nine years and
three months, died at Dundee, in 1107, and
was buried at Dumfermling.
Alexander
Edgar was fucceeded by his brother Alexan-
der, furnamed, from his impetuofity, the Fierce. the Fierce,
It muſt be acknowledged, that the Scotch hif-
torians have been fcandaloufly neglectful of this
prince's hiftory, and its chronology. It ap-
pears, that upon his acceffion to the throne, his
fubjects were fo ignorant of his true character,
on account of his piety and devotion, that the
Northern parts were foon filled with ravages
and bloodshed, the infeparable concomitants of
the feudal inſtitutions. It happened fortu
nately for the royal authority, that thofe dif-
ferences were fo deeply rooted in the breafts of
the parties, that they feldom or never could be
perfuaded to join in oppofing the king's power;
and this circumftance was, in fact, its chief fup-
VOL. I.
QI
port.
"
298
HISTORY
THE
A.D. 1108. port. Alexander inftantly raiſed an army, march-
ed into Murray and Rofsfhire, attacked the in-
furgents feparately; and having fubdued them
all, he ordered numbers of the moft powerful
among them to be executed. Upon his return
from this expedition, in paffing through the
Merns, he met with a widow who complained
that her huſband and fon had been put to death
by the young earl their fuperior. Alexander
immediately alighted from his horfe, and ſwore
he would not remount him till he had enquired
into the juftice of the complaint; and find-
ing it to be true, the offender was hanged in his
prefence.
Confpiracy
Though thofe feaſonable examples prevented
against him. all attempts towards an open rebellion, yet
they occafioned many private confpiracies
among the more abandoned part of his fub-
jects, who had been accuftomed to live under
a remifs government. We accordingly find
that a freſh confpiracy broke out againſt Alex-
ander, while he was engaged in building the
caftle of Baledgar, fo called in compliment to
his brother Edgar, who had laid the founda-
tion-ftone. This caſtle lay in the carfe of Gow-
ry, which we are told, had formerly belonged
to Donald Bane; but afterwards came to the
crown, either by donation or forfeiture. The
fituation of this caftle was particularly conve-
nient for the fuppreffion of the robberies which
were frequent in the neighbourhood: but the
con-
OF SCOTLAN D.
299
confpirators bribed one of his bed-cham-
ber men to introduce them at night into
the king's bed-chamber. Alexander hearing a
noiſe, drew his fword, diſpatched fix of them,
and by the help of Alexander Carron eſcap-
ed the danger, by flying to Fife. According
to Sir James Balfour's manufcript Annals, the
confpirators chiefly refided in the Merns, to
which Alexander once more marched with an
army; but they retired a-croſs the Spey. Alex-
ander purſued them to the banks of that river;
and if the Scotch hiftorians have not confound-
ed this expedition with one of the fame na-
ture already related, he would have plunged
into the river to pafs it, had he not been re-
ftrained by Carron, who bravely attacked the
rebels, defeated them, and brought all who
fell into his hands to public juftice. Carron,
from his valour in this battle, was called
Skrimgeour, or Skrimzeour, which is no other
than the Engliſh word Skirmisher, or Fighter.
A. D. 1110,
It was probably after he had reduced his He vifits
England.
kingdom to fome order by thofe vigorous pro-
ceedings, that Alexander paid a vifit to his
brother-in-law, Henry the firft of England, who
had juſt married his daughter to the emperor of
Germany. Henry was at that time planting a
colony of Flemings upon the borders of Wales,
in order to keep that turbulent people in awe,
as well as to introduce into his kingdom the
manufactures for which the Flemings were then
famous,
૦૧ 2
1
300
HISTORY
THE
A. D. 1113.
famous. The Welch were impatient at this
growing colony, and had broken out into fome
hoftilities in 1113, while Alexander was in Eng-
land. They had proved victorious over the earl
of Cheſter and Gilbert Strongbow, the two
moft powerful of the English fubjects; and
Alexander, by virtue of the fealty he had fworn
for his Engliſh poffeffions, readily agreed to
lead an army into North-Wales, where the
ftrength of the Welch lay. Their heads were,
Owen ap Cadogan; Griffith, the prince of
North-Wales, who difclaimed all fubjection to,
or alliance with, Henry; Meredith ap Blethyn,
and Owen ap Edwin. Henry, who was then
on very doubtful terms with the crown of
France and his Norman barons, depended folely
on Alexander for the fuccefs of this expedi-
tion; but he took the field in perfon. Alex-
ander, being joined by the earl of Chefter,
entered North-Wales, and defeated Owen ap
Edwin, whom he purfued as far as Penannt-
Bachwy; but though he reduced him to the
greateft ftreights, Edwin eſcaped to Griffith, the
prince of North-Wales, with whom he was
cloſely allied. Henry, with the diviſion which.
he commanded, was not fo fuccefsful as Alex-
ander, whoſe troops were far better fitted, than
his were, for fuch an expedition; for having
advanced as far as Murcaftle, he found that he
had loft two-thirds of his army, with almoſt
his whole baggage, by fatigue, famine, or the
attacks
OF
301
SCOTLAN D.
attacks of the enemy. The politic Henry, A. D. 1113.
upon this, raiſed a jealoufy between the two
Welch princes, that each was tampering either
with himſelf or Alexander; and he employed
the earl of Cheſter and Meredith, who had
fubmitted to him, to promote the divifion.
The event was, that Henry was forced to re-
ftore Owen to all his lands, and to give Grif-
fith a large fum of money. The Scotch hifto-
rians are entirely filent with regard to this
remarkable expedition; and, indeed, when we
confider the manner in which it is related by
the Engliſh, there is the ftrongeſt reaſon to
believe, that the fuccefs or preſence of Alexan-
der were the chief inducements, not only for
the Welch, but with Henry himſelf, to con-
clude the peace.
In the year 1118 died Matilda, queen of Eng-
land, and daughter to Malcolm Canmore. Her
virtues and moderation were confpicuous; but
Malmesbury has charged her memory with be-
ing over-liberal to foreign muficians, which in-
duced her fometimes to opprefs her tenants;
every queen of England, in thoſe days, being
poffeffed of a ſeparate eftate, even during her
huſband's life-time. Her marriage with Henry
undoubtedly contributed greatly to the tran-
quility of his government in England, and even
to the keeping the crown upon his head. Up-
on her death, which happened on the 30th of
April, the care of her funeral was committed to
the
302
THE HISTORY
A.D. 18. the ſheriffs of London, who, by an original
roll which ftill remains, charged the crown
with fifteen fhillings and two pence half-penny
for oil expended in burning upon her tomb,
and with three fhillings for cloth to cover the
fame.
1123.
Adventure
of Alex-
ander.
The rest of Alexander's reign was spent in
civil and ecclefiaftical duties. But I cannot
here omit a very fingular adventure which be-
fel him about the year 1123. Being about to
paſs the frith of Forth, a violent tempeſt aroſe,
which drove him upon the Ifle of Emona,
(fince called Inchcolm, which I have already
mentioned to have been the burying-place of
the Danes) with his attendants. This ifland
contained then no other inhabitants than a her-
mit, who lived in St. Columb's chapel, and
fubfifted on the milk of one cow, and a few
fhell-fiſh, which he gathered on the ftrand,
or from the hollows of the rocks. The hofpi-
table hermit fhared his homely fare with the
king for three days, the ftorm continuing fo
long, and cutting off all communication be-
tween the iſland and the main land. Alexan-
der, during his diſtreſs, made a vow to build a
religious houſe upon the place of his refidence;
and he accordingly afterwards erected and en-
dowed an abbey there for canons regular.
Many were his works of the fame kind; for
he finiſhed the church of Dumfermling, and he
gave the lands of Boarrinke, ſo called from a
monftrous
t
2
:
Bannerman foulp
DAVIDI.
OF SCOTLAND.
303
His death
and cha-
racter.
1124.
monftrous mifchievous boar there flain, to A.D. 1123.
the church of St. Andrew's. In fhort, Alex-
ander equalled any of his predeceffors in acts
of munificence to the church, reigned feven-
teen years and twenty-one days, and, dying a
batchelor, was buried at Dumfermling in 1124.
Ælred, abbot of Riedual, who was cotempo-
rary with Alexander, fays, that he was affable
and humble to the monks and clergy, but in-
expreffibly terrible to his other fubjects; that
his ſpirit in all his undertakings was far above
his ſtrength; and that he was a learned prince.
From this character we may fafely conclude,
that Alexander was eaten up with zeal for the
clergy.
Alexander the Fierce was fucceeded by his David.
younger brother, David, who, with his fifter,
queen Matilda, had his education in England.
He married Maud, the daughter of Waltheof,
by Judith, the niece of William the Conque-
ror; and David became afterwards poffeffed
of the great earldoms of Huntingdom and
Northumberland; ſo that he was, at the time
of his acceffion to the crown of Scotland, the
moſt powerful ſubject in England. He culti-
vated his family-friendſhip with Henry the firft
of England; and having early foreſeen the oppo-
fition which his niece, the emprefs Maud (who,
by the death of her elder brother, was then
heiress to the crown of England) would en-
counter, he took an oath to maintain her and
her
304
HISTORY
THE
}
A. D. 1124.
Takes part
with the
empress
Maud.
her iffue in that fucceffion. This he did on a
motive of principle; for Stephen, who was her
antagoniſt, was David's kinſman by his
younger
fifter, Mary, wife to Euftace earl of Boulogne.
Upon the death of Henry, Stephen feized the
crown of England, together with the royal
treaſures; and his progrefs was fo rapid, that
the party of the empreſs was quite overborne,
and numbers of her friends took refuge in
Scotland. David not only gave them a hofpi-
table reception, but raiſed an army, with which
he marched into England, feized upon Car-
lifle and Newcaſtle, and obliged the nobility in
the north of England to give hoftages for their
fidelity to the emprefs and her young fon, after-
wards Henry the fecond. The truth is, that Da-
vid was affifted in his progrefs during this irrup-
tion by the affection which the northern nobility
bore to the cauſe of the empreſs; but, in order
to form a true idea of David's conduct, it is
neceffary to make a fhort review of the ftate
of affairs in England at that time.
Stephen earl of Boulogne was third fon to
the earl of Blois and Boulogne, by William
the Conqueror's daughter. The eldeft brother
was difabled by nature from the management
of affairs; the ſecond brother was earl of Blois,
and a competitor for the duchy of Normandy;
and Stephen, having long refided in England,
demanded that crown, while the emprefs and
her fon were fet afide from the fucceffion in a
great
OF SCOTLAND:
305
Progre's of
great council of the peers, without (fo far as A.D. 1135.
appears from hiftory) a contradictory vote.
The reafons pretended for this ſtep were, her
being married to a needy foreign prince, who, Dav.d
in her right, might lay claim to the government
of England; and her father Henry having, on
his death-bed, repented his appointing her to
the fucceffion. The emprefs and her fon were
at that time lying wind-bound in a French
harbour, which prevented her party from
openly declaring in her favour; but this had
no influence upon David. He was preparing
to march fouthward, when Stephen, hearing
that he was mafter of Carlifle and Newcaſtle up-
on Tine, but not of Bamborough, fwore that he
would recover by arms what David had feized
by treachery, meaning, by his making ufe of
Maud's name and authority. With incredi-
ble diligence he raiſed an army, juft as Da-
vid, having ſeized upon Alnwick and Norham,
was preparing to befiege Durham, though the
winter was then far advanced.
All this time, the emprefs and her party had
not declared her title to the crown of Eng-
land; and her natural brother, Robert earl of
Glocefter, who, next to David, was thought
to be the greateſt fupport of her intereft, had
provifionally recognized Stephen's title. Thofe
appearances, with the uninterrupted fucceffes
of Stephen, feem to have ftartled David, who,
perhaps, thought he had gone too far. Ste-
VOL. I.
Rr
phen,
and Ste-
phen.
306
THE HISTORY
A Treaty.
oppoſition made to it
The reſt of the treaty
A.D. 1136. phen, on the other hand, having advanced
as far as Durham, was certainly apprehenfive
of the fate of a battle, which, if it went againſt
him, muſt ſhake his throne, and ſent to know
the demands of David. Theſe were, that he
fhould receive the inveftiture of the earldom of
Huntingdon; that he ſhould keep Carliſle and
Doncafter; and that his fon Henry, in right
of his mother, fhould be put in poffeffion of
the earldom of Northumberland. Stephen
agreed to all thoſe demands except the laſt,
which he referred to the decifion of his great
council, becauſe of the
by fome of his fubjects.
was executed on both parts. A great diffi-
culty, however, ftill fubfifted, how David
fhould get over his oath in favour of Maud's
fucceffion; but this was removed, by his giv-
ing the inveftiture of all his Engliſh eſtates.
to his fon Henry, who accordingly performed
homage to Stephen. When the whole of this
tranfaction is confidered, the prudence of Da-
vid is but barely reconcileable to his honour,
if he gave Stephen reafon to believe that he
had entirely abandoned the intereft of his niece
the emprefs.
The prince of Scotland was then the repre-
fentative of the old Anglo-Saxon kings, to
whom the Engliſh had ftill a ftrong affection.
Stephen therefore treated him with all the ho-
nours due to the first prince of the blood, and
thought
OF SCOTLAND.
307
thought he gained a capital point, by pre- A.D. 1136,
vailing with Henry to attend him to London,
and appear at his court at Weſtminſter. The
difficulties which the profufion of Stephen,
and the oppofition he began now to meet
with, threw him into, probably prevented his
gratifying the prince of Scotland in his de-
mands upon the earldom of Northumberland,
which was become a capital object with the
chief of the Engliſh nobility. The prior of
Hexham, a cotemporary author, informs us,
that at the feſtivity of Eafter, Stephen placed
prince Henry on his right hand; which occa-
fioned the archbishop of Canterbury, the earl
of Cheſter, and other peers, to ſpeak con-
tumeliouſly of the young man, and to with-
draw from court. Notwithſtanding the pro-
fufion of honours heaped upon Henry, David
faw through Stephen's motives, and that he
kept his fon about his perfon only to over-
awe the emprefs and her party. Henry ap-
plied with indefatigable affiduity to have his
claim upon Northumberland difcuffed; but
meeting with frivolous delays, David ordered
him to leave the Engliſh court, which he did;
and he accordingly returned to Scotland with-
out the inveftiture.
Stephen's affairs having called him to Nor-
mandy, he was there alarmed with an ac-
count, fent him by his Engliſh regency, of a
confpiracy formed by the old Engliſh, to place
David
Rr 2
308
THE HISTORY
againſt Ste-
phen.
A.D. 1136. David (but more probably prince Henry)
upon his throne.. This information received
Confpiracy fome countenance from the freſh preparations
making in Scotland for invading England, on
account of the non-performance of the treaty
of Durham. I cannot, however, perceive,
how that non-performance could be conftrued
into a` juſt motive for this fecond invaſion
becauſe the affair did not lie in the breaft of
Stephen, but in the peers of his court. Be this
as it may, while Dayid was bufied in his pre-
parations, and when more than half of Eng-
land ſeemed diſpoſed to join him and his ſon,
they received a meffage from Thurftan, the aged
archbiſhop of York, begging that they would
give him a meeting at Roxburgh, which lies
near the borders of the two kingdoms. The
voice of piety and religion was always deci-
five with David; and the venerable character
of Thurſtan prevailed with him and his fon
to poftpone their expedition till Stephen's ar-
rival in England, which happened in Decem-
ber 1137. He had been fo fuccefsful in Nor-
mandy, that he had nothing to fear from that
quarter; and when David's deputies demanded
the inveftiture of Northumberland for their
prince, he abfolutely refuſed their requeft in
very high terms. By this time David had
built the caſtle of Carlile; and from the nar-
ratives of the Engliſh hiftorians it appears,
that a number of their greateft men confidered
1137.
David
OF
309
SCOTLAN D.
David as their true king; and Milo de Beau- A.D. 1137.
champ, governor of the caftle of Bedford, actual-
ly declared himſelf in his favour. Whether Da-
vid fell in with their fentiments is not certain;
nor have we any foundation in hiſtory to fup-
port the affirmative, becauſe he always pro-
feffed a ſtrong attachment to the emprefs.
Stephen, however, ſeems to have thought that
David had an eye upon his crown; for, tho'
it was then in the midft of winter, he raiſed
an army, and, without regard to the fanctity
of the time, he took the caſtle of Bedford on
Chriſtmas-day.
in England,
If David had any views for himſelf up- David's wars
on the crown of England, Stephen's alacrity
and expedition difconcerted them. The
Scots had laid fiege to Wark, and were
commanded by William, grand nephew to
David, who had been joined by many of the
Engliſh barons. As Wark was at that time a
place of importance, David preffed it furi-
oufly; but hearing of Stephen's fuccefs in the
South, he raiſed the fiege, and penetrated into
Northumberland. Stephen marched north-
ward to oppoſe him; and, upon David's re-
treating, he was fo incautious as to expoſe
his army to be either ftarved or cut in pieces;
which had almoft happened at Roxburgh,
where David had taken up fo ftrong a camp,
that Stephen could not force it. On this oc-
caſion David diſplayed great abilities, becauſe
he
310
THE HISTORY
A.D. 1137.
He worfts
Stephen,
he gained time for his niece's party, who were
in arms in the South; and Stephen was forced
to make a precipitate retreat fouthward, af-
ter loſing half his army. The emprefs Maud,
and her fon prince Henry, had now claimed
the crown of England; and the earl of Glou-
cefter, having publicly renounced his allegiance
to Stephen, declared himſelf of their party;
but David had difficulties to encounter he had
not foreſeen. Though he was at the head of
thirty thouſand men, and tho' he himſelf was
a generous humane prince, yet they were com
manded by other chiefs, whofe hatred of the
Engliſh led them into barbarities which Da-
vid could not prevent; and thereby he loſt the
hearts of the inhabitants. It must be acknow-.
ledged, that the Scotch hiftorians are blame-
able, in not having properly availed them-
felves of the excellent lights communicated
by the cotemporary authors of this time. From
them it is plain, that the northern barons con-
tinued to be totally averfe to David's receiving
the inveſtiture of Northumberland, for this
plain reaſon, that their diftance from the feat
of government rendered them almoſt indepen-
dent on the crown of England, and they dread-
ed the refidence of a Scotch prince among them.
Upon the retreat of Stephen fouthwards, he
found the confederacy against him very ſtrong,
and that many of his greateſt ſubjects had re-
nounced their allegiance to him, on pretext
of
OF SCOTLAND.
311
1138.
and again in-
vades Eng-
land.
of his having broken his coronation oath, by A.D. 1137-
diffeizing his English fubjects of their fran-
chifes, and by the encouragement he gave to fo-
reigners. Stephen, as an anſwer to their com-
plaints, reduced the caftles of Hereford, Dover,
Shrewſbury, and others, which had declared
against him. To counterbalance thofe advan-
tages, David, after Eafter, in 1138, again in-
vaded the bishopric of Durham; but he was
vigorously oppofed by the Northumbrian no-
bility, not from any affection they bore to
Stephen's perfon or title, but from the cauſes
above ſpecified. Among them we have the
names of Robert de Bruce, and his brother,
whofe defcendants make fo illuftrious a figure
in the annals of Scotland. The earl of Al-
bermarle, Walter de Gaunt, and Walter Ef
pee, renowned for his military proweſs, were
in the number of David's enemies. The head
of the Mowbray family (though but a boy)
gave a fanction to the caufe; but old archbi-
fhop Thurftan was the foul and fpirit of the
whole. York was appointed to be the place
of rendezvous, and their meeting was opened
with an animated fpeech, made by that pre-
late.
There is no diffembling that the barbarities
committed by David's troops gave but too
juſt a handle to the hatred with which the
archbiſhop inſpired the northern barons againſt
the Scots. David had lately reduced the town
of
312
THE HISTORY
A. D. 1138.
of Norham, which belonged to the biſhop of
Durham, to whom he offered to reftore it,
provided he would renounce his allegiance to
Stephen. His offer was rejected, and he de-
moliſhed the caſtle. In the mean time, the
English army had advanced from York to
Clithero, and David fent his grand-nephew,
William, to command againſt them. William
was fo fucceſsful, that he cut to pieces the
van-guard of their army, and deftroyed their
country with a barbarity that ferved only to
exaſperate the inhabitants the more. David
again befieged Wark; but hearing of William's
fucceſsful expedition, he left the fiege to be
carried on by fome of his general officers; and
calling in his troops under William, he march-
ed to Yorkſhire, with a refolution to fight a
decifive battle, if the Engliſh fhould keep the
field. Being joined by Euftace Fitz John,
who delivered up to him the ftrong caftle of
Alnwick, he paffed the Tine; but fuch was
the confternation of the Engliſh barons, from
their defeat at Clithero, that he found no ene-
my in the field. His army then confifted of
twenty fix thouſand men; and Robert de
Bruce, with Bernard de Baliol, who held great
poffeffions in Scotland as well as in England,
were ſent by the northern barons to prevail
with him to withdraw from the bifhopric of
Durham, where he then lay; in which cafe
they promiſed to do their utmoſt in procuring
him
!
1
OF SCOTLAND.
313
him the inveftiture of Northumberland. A
propofition fo advantageous, and fo honour-
able, muſt have prevailed with a prince of leſs
rigid principles than David; and we are told
he would have accepted of them, had they
not been oppofed by his general and grand-
nephew, William, who reproached Bruce as
a traitor, and confirmed David in his refolu-
tion to poftpone all other confiderations to his
engagements with his niece the emprefs. The
negociation being thus at an end, the two
deputies renounced their allegiance to David,
which, in the language of thofe times, was
called defying him.
Cotemporary hiftorians infinuate the ravages
of the Scots to have been fo barbarous, that
they united the Engliſh against them. The
prince of Scotland, however, is defcrib
ed by them as a moſt amiable perfonage,
brave, generous, and compaffionate; diftin-
guished for the beauty of his figure; affable,
yet awful; and poffeffed of every virtue. Such
is the character given of him by Elred, abbot
of Riedual, to whom he was perfonally known;
and therefore we cannot well diftruft his autho-
rity. All, therefore, we can fay, in alleviation of
the barbarities committed by the troops under
his command, is, that he either could not pre-
vent them, or that he had conceived fo ftrong
a hatred of the Engliſh, that he thought it
not criminal to diftrefs them. Upon the re-
VOL. I.
Sf
turn
A.D. 1138,
314
THE HISTORY
A.D. 1138. turn of the English deputies to their army,
Battle of the
Standard.
they found it encamped at Thurftan-caſtle,
and that it had received great reinforcements
from the fouthern parts, particularly from
Nottingham and Derbyshire. A new affocia-
tion was entered into againſt the Scots; and
they advanced to Northallerton, where the fa-
mous ftandard was produced. Its body was a
kind of box, which moved upon wheels, from
whence the maft of a fhip arofe, furmounted by
a filver cross, and round it were hung the ban-
ners of St. Peter, St. John de Beverly, and
St. Wilfred. Thofe ftandards were then com-
mon on the continent of Europe, and were
never brought into the field but on the moſt
important occafions.
Thurſtan continued to command the Eng-
lifh army; but being worn out by age and
infirmities, he refigned his command to Ralph,
biſhop of the Orkneys, who is, by Matthew
Paris, and other Engliſh hiftorians, called the
biſhop of Durham. The Engliſh in general had
an incredible confidence in the fortune of their
ſtandard, and its fupernatural efficacy; but the
vaft advantage they had over their enemies, in
point of armour, gave them a more folid ground
to hope for ſucceſs. Both armies met together
on a plain called Cutton-Moor. The firft line
of the Scots, according to the prior of Hexham,
was compofed of Picts (for fo he calls them).
who inhabited Galloway, Carric, Kyle, Con-
ningham,
OF SCOTLAND.
315
ningham, and Renfrew. This abbot's tefti-
mony is an irrefragable evidence of what I
have already afſerted, that the race of the Picts
ftill fubfifted; and that though they had a prince
of their own, he was a feudatory to David.
The fecond line or center of his army confifted
of Lothian men, by which we are to under-
ſtand his Engliſh as well as Scotch fubjects fouth
of the Forth, together with the English and
Normans of Maud's party. The third line was
formed of the clans under their different chief-
tains, but ſubject to no regular command, and
always impatient to return to their own coun-
try with their booty. The English army ranged
themſelves round their ftandard, and quitted
their horfes, not only to fhew their refolution
to die or conquer, but to avoid engaging at
too great a diſadvantage with the long lances of
the Picts. Their front line was intermixed with
archers, and a body of cavalry, ready for pur-
fuit, hovered at fome diftance. The Picts, be-
fides their lances, made ufe of targets; but
when the Engliſh clofed with them, they were
foon difordered, and driven back upon the cen-
ter, where David commanded in perfon. Here
his brave fon made a gallant reſiſtance; but the
third line feems never to have fought. David
ſeeing the day irretrievable, ordered fome of his
troops to fave themfelves, by throwing away
their badges, and mingling with the English.
From this particular we may conclude, that
S f 2
the
A.D. 1138.
316
HISTORY
THE
!
A.D.
A. D. 1138.
David re-
treats.
1139.
:
The war
continues.
the Normans and Engliſh of Maud's party
wore particular cognizances; but be that as it
may, David made a moft noble retreat to Car-
life.
When he arrived there, his fon was miffing,
and he concluded that he had been killed; but
in a few days he arrived with part of the divi-
fion that he headed. The Scotch and Engliſh
hiftorians have run into oppofite extremes with
regard to this battle. The former moft un-
pardonably make no mention of it, though no
fact in hiſtory is better atteſted ; and the lat-
ter undoubtedly magnify the lofs of the Scots,
when they fay it amounted to ten thouſand
men, and that the defeat was total. This was
fo far from being the cafe, that David was
not purfued, and the victorious army was un-
able to keep the field; for we find that, ſoon
after the battle, David took the ftrong caftle
of Wark, which had fo long refifted his arms,
and Stephen's party employed Albert, biſhop
of Oftia, the pope's legate, to negociate a peace;
but all that he could obtain, was a truce till
the 11th of November.
In the beginning of the year 1139, we find
David ftill at the head of his army, and Ste-
phen marching to Scotland to fight him. In
the intermediate time, during Stephen's ab-
fence in Normandy, his wife Matilda, one of
the beſt women of that age, had laboured fo
inceffantly with David for peace, that the
terms
OF SCOTLAND.
317
terms were agreed on; and while Stephen was
on his march, he received meffengers from Da-
vid with a copy of the preliminaries, which
were ratified by Stephen, and a definitive
treaty was concluded. By this treaty, Henry
prince of Scotland was put in poffeffion of
Huntingdon and Northumberland, and took an
oath of fealty to Stephen, whom he certainly
attended to the fiege of Ludlow; but whether as
a hoftage or a volunteer is fomewhat doubtful.
It muſt be confeffed, that the relations even
of the English hiftorians, though living at the
time, are obfcure, eſpecially as they have not
related the precife terms of the treaty; and the
events are far from agreeing with the fupe-
riority they afcribe to Stephen. I am inclined
to think, that prince Henry of Scotland con-
fidered his own caufe as different from that of
the empress, or even of his own father; and
that he attended Stephen to Ludlow-caftle as
one of his military tenants. The prince gained
the affections of Stephen in a most diftinguiſhed
manner; for when he was in danger of being
hooked into the caftle by one of the befieged's
grappling-irons, he was difengaged by Ste-
phen in perfon. It does not enter within my
preſent ſcheme to relate the various operations
of the war in England, between the empreſs
and Stephen, farther than as they regard the
hiſtory of Scotland.
Stephen was taken prifoner at the battle of
Lincoln, where no mention is made of David;
fo
A.D. 1139.
A peace.
318
HISTORY
THE
A. D. 1139.
1141.
David's fi-
delity to
the emprefs.
fo that the realm of Scotland probably conti-
nued in a ſtate of tranquility during the criti-
cal year 1141, when the affairs of Stephen were
defperate. David was then in England, and
continued ftill to be the main prop, as well as
the wife counſellor, of his niece the empreſs;
but her haughtinefs and perverfenefs broke
through all his fchemes. When he was on
the point of being recognized by the Lon-
doners, ſhe madly refuſed to fuffer them to
be governed by the laws of king Edward. Da-
vid and the earl of Gloucefter remonftrated.
against her imprudence, which had almoft coft
her fon the crown of England; for the Lon-
doners drove her from their city, and it was
with difficulty that David carried her to Ox-
ford, and from thence to Winchefter. There,
her ingratitude and paffion exceeded all bounds.
She upbraided David for controuling her will,
and put herſelf into the hands of Milo earl of
Hereford. Even this affront did not ſhake the
fidelity of David; but while he remained with
the empress at Wincheſter, which was beſieged
by Stephen's generals, he feems to have di-
vefted himſelf of all command in the army,
and to have ferved as a volunteer under the
earl of Gloucefter, in covering the famous re-
treat of the army from Winchefter to Lug-
gerfhal in Wiltſhire. This retreat, which faved
the perſon of the emprefs, was conducted with
no more than two hundred men, and per-
formed with moft amazing courage and con-
duct,
OF SCOTLAN D.
319
He eſcapes..
duct, in fight of a victorious and fuperior army. A. D. 1141.
It was, however, impracticable to keep them
longer together; and after the empress had
reached Luggerfhal in fafety, David and his
friend, the earl of Gloucefter, prepared to make
their efcape. The latter was taken priſoner;
but David marched northwards, by the fidelity
of David Oliphant. He was now the chief
object of Stephen's attention, who had been
made a captive by the party of the emprefs, but
was exchanged for the earl of Gloucefter. I
fhall therefore confine my narrative to the il-
luftrious part which the Scots acted in this
important quarrel.
1
David's regard for the emprefs was far from
rendering him unmindful of his own family-
intereft. Upon his return to the North, he
found it in a very flouriſhing condition; for
his fon was in poffeffion of all Northumber-
land, the earldom of Huntingdon, and a large
eſtate in the bifhopric of Durham, which he
received when he gave up the poffeffion of that
city. Stephen raiſed an army with great ex-
pedition, and ordered it to rendezvous at York,
with an intention to invade David's domi-
nions; but he found him fo well provided for
a defence, that he was forced to return to Nor-
thampton about Whitfuntide, in 1142, leaving
the kingdom of Scotland in tranquility. The 1142.
war went on all this while with great fierce-
nefs in the fouthern parts of England, as well
as
320
THE HISTORY
A. D. 1142. as in Normandy, while David was entirely
1146.
1147.
Cafe of the
earldom of
Northum-
berland.
employed in giving ftrength and ftability to
his kingdom; but by the unpardonable neg-
lect of the Scotch hiftorians, we know little
of the particulars. The party of the empreſs,
in the year 1146, received an irreparable blow
by the death of the earls of Gloucefter and
Hereford; and her affairs were brought fo low,
partly by that, and partly by her own mifcon-
duct, that he was forced to return to Nor-
mandy in 1147. During her abfence, Stephen
appears to have granted to David the great
earldom of Cambridge, as part of that of Hun-
tingdon, which had devolved upon him by his
wife, the daughter of Waltheof, earl of Nor-
thumberland. I have already mentioned the vaſt
difficulties which David and his fon encountered,
before they obtained the inveſtiture of Nor-
thumberland; and impartiality calls upon me
to ftate the rife of thofe difficulties in as clear a
manner as poffible.
There can be no doubt that Henry the firſt
gave to David fome of his wife's father's eftates,
under certain reftrictions; but this feems to
have been a perfonal favour done to David,
without reftoring the blood of Waltheof; for
his daughter, at the time of her marriage with
David, had a fon alive by a former huſband,
Simon de Senlys. The fucceffion to the earl-
doms of Northumberland, Huntingdon, and
Cambridge, came therefore to David by a quite
different
OF SCOTLAND.
321
different tenure from that to Cumberland and A. D. 1147.
Weftmoreland, the inveftiture of which was
granted by the crown of England to the heirs
apparent of Scotland; and, upon the whole,
I am inclined to believe, that the grant was ori-
ginally made to David. His poffeffion of
them, however, was (as we have already ſeen)
far from being undiſturbed; and proofs are
to be found in the Engliſh records, that
even his niece the emprefs thought him too
powerful, either as a fubject or a neighbour,
notwithſtanding the great obligations the lay
under to his friendſhip. Almeric de Vere had
become one of the greateſt fupports of the
emprefs, and fhe promiſed to grant him the
inveftiture of the earldom of Cambridge, with
the third penny, as ufual, of the rents of the
county, provided fhe could prevail with Da-
vid to exchange it for another. If fhe could
not prevail, fhe was to give him his option of
the counties of Oxford, Berks, Wilts, and
Dorfet. As de Vere was afterwards made earl
of Oxfordshire, it is probable that the emprefs
failed in her application. David was at this
time, indeed, too powerful to be compelled to
a compliance; and was lying with an army at
Carliſle, of which he ftill kept poffeffion.
In 1149, young Henry of Anjou, though 1149
not fifteen years of age, prevailed with the
emprefs his mother, and his father Geoffrey
Plantagenet, to fend him over to England with
VOL. I.
Tt
a fmall
322
THE HISTORY
A. D. 1149. a finall body of troops, to make good his fa-
mily-claim to that crown. He landed with
only a hundred and forty horſe, and three thou-
fand foot; but his great dependence was on
his grand-uncle, David, whom he joined at
Carlife. According to the cuftom of thoſe
times, he received the order of knighthood
from the hands of David, affifted by the earl
of Chefter. The laft-mentioned nobleman, one
of the moft ambitious and faithlefs in England,
had never lived on good terms with David;
and at this time complained of his keeping
poffeffion of Carliſle, which he pretended be-
longed of right to the earls of Chefter. This
breach might have proved fatal to young Hen-
ry's caufe, had it not been compromiſed by
the intervention of friends; and it was agreed
that the earl fhould be put in poffeffion of Lan-
cafter, while David was to keep Carlifle; and
that in the mean time the former ſhould raiſe his
followers in the South, and join David and
his grand-nephew. The earl was infincere in
this reconciliation; for he no fooner left Car-
lifle, than he fought to make his terms with
the oppofite party. Stephen was then march-
ing northwards, at the head of a great army,
intending to fight David and Henry; but
though they had met with a fevere diſappoint-
ment from the earl of Cheſter, they took their
meaſures fo well, that the fummer paffed with-
out any action.
Next
OF
SCOTLAND.
323
Next year we find young Henry in Norman-
dy, but David ftill remained at Carlifle. In
1152, he met with a fevere lofs in the death
of his eldeſt fon, prince Henry. The Scotch
hiftorians have, upon this occafion, put into
David's mouth a moft pious, edifying speech
to his nobility, which I fhall forbear to tran-
ſcribe, becauſe compofitions of that kind are
generally works of the author. Prince Henry
left behind him three fons, Malcolm, William,
and David; and three daughters, Adama, Mar-
garet, and Maud. David ordered Malcolm to
be immediately proclaimed prince of Scotland;
and he is faid to have given the earldom of
Northumberland to William. We know of
no concern which David took in the affairs of
England, during the year 1153, when an agree-
ment took place between king Stephen and
prince Henry, by which the latter was to fuc-
ceed the former in the throne of England upon
his death.
A. D. 1150.
1152.
Death of
Henry of
Prince
Scotland.
1153.
David was now old, and worn out with fa-
tigues. Finding his end approaching, he pre-
pared to meet it with the moft exemplary acts
of devotion, and ordered himfelf to be carried
to church, where he received the facrament,
refufing to fuffer it to be brought to him.
Upon his return he expired, with a wifh, to
enter the kingdom where all the inhabitants
were kings. He died at Carliſle, on the twenty- death,
fourth of May, 1153, after a glorious reign of
Tt2
twenty-
David's
!
324
HISTORY
THE
A. D. 1153.
and cha-
racter.
twenty-nine years, two months, and three
days, and was buried at Dumfermling, with
great pomp and ſplendor.
That David was an excellent warrior and
an able politician, appears from every ſtep of
his long reign, as well as the power and fplen-
dor in which he left his dominions at his death.
I have already mentioned his attachment to
his niece the emprefs, and examined the prin-
ciples on which he acted. He is, perhaps, leſs
defenfible in his unbounded liberality to the
clergy, by his erecting four new bishoprics,
nine capital abbeys, four priories, and two
nunneries, all which fhall be particularized in
the ecclefiaftical hiftory. It is more to my
purpoſe, here, to obferve, that their annual re-
venues amounted to a hundred and twenty
thouſand francs; an immenfe fum for thoſe
days. On the other hand, we are not to make
an eſtimate of David from the poverty into
which the crown of Scotland afterwards fell.
His revenues were very little, if at all, fhort
of thofe of England, and his troops were far
more eaſily maintained; fo that his endow-
ments were not extravagant, when we confider
his income. But a ſtronger plea may be urged
in favour of David's profufion to the church,
when we reflect, that it was perhaps the only
means he could employ for the civilization of
his people; that ecclefiaftics were then the ve-
hicles of all inftruction, governmental, religious,
تحبه
and
1
}
1
Hall
MALCOLM IV.
OF SCOTLAND.
325
and moral; that though fome were lazy, A.D. 1153.
lewd, and ignorant, yet many of them were
men of underſtanding and virtue; and that the
crown afterwards received confiderable fupport
from thofe very endowments.
David is faid to have given directions for
compiling the Regiam Majeftatem; but the
English writers endeavour to prove, that it
was copied from their judge Glanville. We
fhall have hereafter occafion to examine that
point, on which fpecious arguments have been
advanced by both parties. All I ſhall here ob-
ferve is, that David was a prince very likely to
have formed a code of this kind; and by his
refidence, connections, and concèrns in Eng-
land, he had all the opportunities he could have
defired for information.
the fourth.
Malcolm the fourth, who, from his conti- Malcolm
nence, obtained the furname of the Maiden, was
no more than fifteen years of age when he fuc-
ceeded his grandfather. His fubjects foon felt
the difference between the two governments;
for Malcolm, befides his youth, had a natural
indolence of difpofition, and gave too much
way to the monkifh education he had received.
At the time of his acceffion, Scotland was de-
folated by a famine; and Sommerled, the am-
bitious thane of Argyle, preferred a claim to
the crown itſelf, at the head of a confiderable
army, which daily encreaſed by the refort of
all the needy and the profligate to his ſtandard.
Another
326
THE HISTORY
A.D. 1155. Another chieftain, who is called Donald, the
His tranf-
actions with
England.
1156.
fon of Macbeth, took arms at the fame time;
but he was defeated, and fhut up in the fame pri-
fon with his father, though both of them were
foon afterwards received into favour. Gilchrift
earl of Angus, was then at the head of young
Malcolm's troops, and having defeated Sommer-
led in three battles, he forced him to fly to Ire-
land. But Malcolm had now a far more power-
ful rival to encounter :
This was no other than Henry the fecond,
who then fat on the throne of England, to
which he had been raiſed principally by Mal-
colm's grandfather. Henry, by his marriage,
was the moſt powerful prince in Europe, and
at the fame time the ableft and moft ambitious.
He fecretly confidered all the grants made by
his mother, in prejudice of his crown, as
proceeding from force, and therefore not bind-
ing. He thought, at the fame time, that thofe
made by Stephen were fo many acts of ufurpa-
tion, and he had formed a refolution to reſume
them all. He began by calling upon Malcolm
for the reftitution of Northumberland and
Cumberland. His demand, as to the latter,
was grofsly unjuft; but as to the former, he
affirmed, that David was not in poffeffion of
Northumberland at the time of Henry the
firft's death, and that no conceffion made
by Stephen was valid. As thofe grants,
however, had been ratified by the emprefs,
*
:
1
in
OF SCOTLAN D.
327
in whofe right her fon Henry inherited the A. D. 1156.
Engliſh crown, the demand was arbitrary; and
Malcolm was weak enough to grant him a
meeting at Chefter. Henry had by this time
given fufficient intimations of his intention,
by his depriving the bishop of Glafgow of his ec-
clefiaftical functions at Carliſle, to which town
he fent another bishop. Notwithstanding this,
Malcolm, depending upon Henry's gratitude,
repaired to the meeting. Buchanan and other
Scotch hiftorians fay, that when Henry re-
ceived the order of knighthood, he folemnly
fwore not to difturb David, or any of his pofte-
rity, in the poffeffion of what they held in
England. Fordun is of opinion, that Malcolm's
counſellors were corrupted by thofe of Henry;
and this feems to have been the truth, becaufe
Malcolm was not then in poffeffion of the
eftates which Henry demanded; for the late
king David had not only given Northumber-
land to William, his fecond grandfon, but had
given the earldom of Huntingdon in England,
and of Garioch in Scotland, to his third grand-
fon, David. Probably Henry urged his power
as lord paramount to reject David's inveftiture,
which he had an undoubted right to do; and
this feems to have determined Malcolm to re-
fign his family claim upon the counties of Cum-
berland and Northumberland, upon his being
put in poffeffion of the earldom of Huntingdon,
and doing homage for it, in the fame manner
as
328
THE HISTORY
A. D. 1159.
as his grandfather had done before to Henry
the firft. This he certainly performed, though
no good authority fays, that thehom age was
paid for all the kingdom of Scotland.
This tranfaction carries with it appearances
of treachery on the part of the Scotch miniſtry.
I am apt to think, that Malcolm's great tenants
were well pleaſed to ſee the power of the crown
weakened by their monarch's giving up Cum-
berland and Northumberland for the precarious
revenues of Huntingdon, which lay at a great
diſtance from his frontiers. Their fuffering
him to repair to Cheſter was likewiſe a capital
error, as it might have been eafily forefeen,
that Henry would make his own terms, as foon
as he had got Malcolm's perfon in his power.
There is ſome reaſon for believing, that Mal-
colm became fenfible, in a fhort time, of his
miftake. Upon his return home, he found
his fubjects highly exafperated at the con-
ceffions he had made; and in the year 1159,
Henry invited him to a new interview at Car-
lifle. Malcolm gave him the meeting, but
Henry could not prevail upon him to agree
to any of the terms he propofed. They there-
fore came to no conclufion; but it appears
very plainly, that Malcolm, who was then
but young, was either fo much over-awed by
Henry's arms, or fo dazzled with the luftre of
his court, that he attended him into England,
greatly to the diffatisfaction of his principal
fub-
OF SCOTLAN D.
329
fubjects. Henry demanded his attendance up. A.D. i1gh,
on him in an expedition he was meditating
againſt Thouloufe, which he claimed in right
of his wife. It is uncertain, from hiftorical
authority, whether Malcolm, who was in his
perfon very brave, and wanted to fignalize
himſelf, did not privately agree, that Henry
fhould make this demand, to which he con-
fented, on pretence (to fave appearances with
his ſubjects) that he had not attendants with
him fufficient to diſpute the will of his para-
It is certain, that he accompanied
Henry during the unfortunate campaign he
made in Provence; that he behaved with the
greateſt valour at the fiege of Thouloufe, which
was relieved by the French king in perfon;
and when Henry returned to Tours, he con-
ferred the honour of knighthood upon Mal-
colm, which feems to have been the principal
inducement for that prince's ferving under
the banners of England in a foreign country.
mount.
The Scots, at this time, entertained very high
notions of their ancient leagues with France;
and the fouthern parts of Scotland being peo-
pled by the difcontented English, who never
could hope to obtain their pardon from the Eng-
liſh government, no pains were fpared to give
the public of Scotland very unfavourable ideas of
Malcolm, for ferving under Henry againſt his an-
cient and natural ally the king of France. For-
dun, whoſe teſtimony is of great weight, informs
VOL. I,
U u
us,
His cam-
paign in
France.
330
THE HISTORY
A.D. 1159. us, that Malcolm's campaign in the county of
Thoulouſe gave a general diſguſt to all his fub-
jects; and they were fo much fcandalized at
the familiarity between him and Henry, that
they fent him a deputation on that head, and
even began to fay among themſelves, " We
will not have this man to reign over us." Mal-
colm continued with Henry, and landed with
him at Southampton, from whence he return-
ed to Scotland, where he found the fpirit of
difaffection very ftrong. On his arrival there,
his nobles were in arms under Ferchard, earl
of Strathern, and five other earls, fome influ-
enced by public, and others by private, confi-
derations. They befieged him in the town of
Perth, to which he fummoned a meeting of
his ftates. This conftitutional meaſure turned
the hearts of his other fubjects in his favour;
and the attempts of the infurgents were, for
that time, baffled. By the intervention of the
clergy, a meeting of the ftates was held,
where Malcolm pleaded, that all the conceffions
of territory he had made to Henry, had been
extorted from him by force, and that he had
ſerved him in his war with France againft his
inclination. His fubjects accepted of the apo-
logy, and the rather, as the kingdom was then
threatened with commotions in other quar-
ters.
neus, or Angus (Fordun calls him Fergus)
thane
1
OF SCOTLAND.
331
thane of Galloway,
A.D. 1159.
An infur-
rection in
Scotland,
was then in arms; and
the differences between Malcolm and his fub-
jects had even encouraged him to declare him-
ſelf a candidate for the crown. Gilchrift, the
king's general (according to Boece and Bucha-
nan), was fent against him; and Eneus being
defeated, was fhaved, and fhut up a monk in
the abbey of Holy-rood houfe, his life being
fpared at the interceffion of his powerful
friends. His eftate, however, was confifcated,
and he put his fon Othred as a hoftage into the
king's hands. Fordun, who is more to be de-
pended upon, tells us, that this rebellion was
quelled by the king in perfon, without any
lofs on his part. This is the more probable,
as the inhabitants of Murray were in arms
about the fame time; and rifing under one
Gilderminic, filled all the neighbourhood with
ravages. Gilchrift, who was fent against them,
was totally defeated; which exafperated Mal-
colm fo much, that (according to Fordun) he
came to a refolution to exterminate the Mora-
vians (for fo the inhabitants of Murray are
called) or tranfplant them into other provinces.
He accordingly advanced against the rebels
with a ſtrong army; and coming up to them
at the river Spey, he put them all, with their
leader, to the fword, without giving quarter quella.
* Fordun calls him Regulus, which implies fome degree of
independency; though the princes of Galloway undoubtedly
at this time paid fealty to the kings of Scotland.
Uu2
to
332
THE HISTORY
A, D. 1159. to any. A third infurrection about the fame:
time broke out. Sommerled, who was (as
we have feen) a competitor for the crown, and
had been driven to Ireland by Gilchrift, in the
beginning of this reign, once more landed in
Scotland, with an intention, it is to be fup-
pofed, to revive his claim. He is by Fordun
called the king of Argyle; but thoſe who are
acquainted with the Engliſh and northern hif-
tories know, that Sommerled is a denomina-
tion applied to all the northern nations, the
Danes eſpecially. This Sommerled feems to have
been one of thoſe roving Daniſh adventurers or
pirates, who at that time infefted the coafts
of Ireland and Scotland, where poffibly he
might have made a temporary fettlement, un-
der the name of king. Be that as it may, he
landed near Renfrew, from Ireland, with a
confiderable fleet and army, and began to plun-:
der the country. His fuccefs, however, was
fo indifferent, that he was attacked and de-
-feated, and (according to Fordun) flain, by a
handful of the inhabitants; but, if we may cre-
dit later writers, he was taken and carried alive
to the king, by whofe orders he was hanged.
1161.
Thoſe vigorous exerciſes of government
prove Malcolm, however deficient he might
be in politics, to have been perfonally brave
and active, though he was not above twenty-
three
of
years
In 1161, he called toge-
age.
ther the ftates of his kingdom, and they voted
3
him
OF SCOTLAN D.
333
Marriage
filters.
him a large fubfidy for marrying his eldeſt A. D. 1161.
fifter, Margaret, to Conan, duke of Brittany, of Mal
and his younger fifter, Ada, to Florence, earl colm's
of Holland. From this and other circum-
ftances we may venture to conclude, that
Malcolm had now entirely regained the affec-
tions of his fubjects, and that the remainder of
his reign was ſpent in tranquility. In the year
1163, we find him at the court of England, 1163.
performing homage anew to Henry the fecond;
but we know of no requifition he made to be
reinftated in his English dominions. The
Scotch hiftorians have looked upon this acqui-
efcence as a fign of pufillanimity; but I am in-
clined to think, that it manifefted his wiſdom,
and, perhaps, his juftice. The English would,
as one man, have united against him, had he
attempted to retake Northumberland by arms.
He had been lately an eye-witneſs to the great
power of Henry; and it would have been worſe
than madneſs in him, to have drawn upon his
country the weight of the English arms. Add to
this, that Malcolm had regularly ceded the ter-
ritory in queftion; and that (as I have already
fhewn) his father's and grandfather's right of
poffeffing it was, at beft, queftionable. The
Scotch hiftorians themſelves very truly ſay,
that Henry declared, he was refolved not
to part with fo confiderable a portion of his
regal dominions; which was faying, in fact,
that he did not think any of his anceſtors or
pre-
334
THE HISTORY
A.D. 1163. predeceffors could legally give them up. Im-
Reaſon why
he is called
the Mai-
den.
partiality has obliged me to fay thus much in
defence of Malcolm, whofe conduct is juftified
by after events.
It ſeems to have been after Malcolm's laft
vifit to the English court, that he held a meet-
ing of his ſtates at Scone. There, the biſhop of
St. Andrew's, taking the lead in the affembly,
which was very numerous, folemnly put Mal-
colm in mind, that his leaving a lawful heir
of his own body was a duty he owed to his
country; and concluded by requefting him, in
the name of his fubjects, to take a wife. Tho'
the bifhop enforced his requeft by very strong
arguments, both moral and political, yet he
was obliged to defift from his fuit, by Mal-
colm's obftinacy not to enter into the ftate of
marriage. No author has ventured to give
any
reafon for this unaccountable behaviour of
Malcolm, but that he pleaded a vow of celi-
bacy he had made, and that his brother would
fufficiently fupply his place, in cafe of his death.
It may, perhaps, be thought too bold for a mo-
dern hiftorian to fay, that Malcolm's obftinacy
was owing to a fecret compact between him and
his brother, with whom (according to Fordun)
he had great differences, on account of the
alienation of Northumberland. The fame old
hiftorian feems to admit, that Malcolm, to-
wards the end of his reign, grew very unpopu-
lar, on account of his devoting himfelf entirely
to
OF
335
SCOTLAND.
to religious affairs, which indeed was the capi- A. D. 1165.
tal failing of his family; though, as we fhall
fee in our ecclefiaftical diviſion, he was not
an enthuſiaſt for the pope's power. Fordun
even ſays, that his brother William, becauſe
of his hatred to the Engliſh, was, without the
king's confent, chofen regent or guardian of the
kingdom. All hiftorians agree that Malcolm,
towards the end of his reign, applied himſelf
to the founding and endowing religious houſes;
fuch as the abbey of St. Rule, in the city of St.
Andrew's, and that of Coupar, in Angus. At
laft, Malcolm fell into fo deep a depreffion of
fpirits, that it brought upon him a diſeaſe which
put an end to his life, in the twelfth year of His death,
his reign, and the twenty-fifth of his age, in
the year 1165.
and cha-
I have endeavoured to ſet this prince's cha-
racter and actions in their true light, by the racter.
affiftance of the Engliſh hiftory. That of Scot-
land is very imperfect with regard to both :
and, after all, I can fcarcely fix a chronologi-
cal period, but thofe of his acceffion, of his
return from France in 1163, and that of his
death; nor can I perceive any grounds for fup-
pofing him to have any more interviews than
thoſe I have mentioned with the king of Eng-
land. Malcolm was not the only king of Scot-
land in whom religious delufion and enthufiafm
deftroyed the brighteft parts, and enervated
the moft exalted courage.
Malcolm
336
HISTORY
THE
A. D. 1165.
William.
Demands
Northum-
berland.
Fordun.
Malcolm was fucceeded by his brother Wil-
liam, whofe fituation at the time of his accef-
fion was very extraordinary; and undoubtedly
it gave him great reafon to complain againſt
Malcolm. The only heritage his father had
affigned him, confifted of thoſe Engliſh eftates
which his elder brother had given up, while
his younger brother, David, remained in peace-
able poffeffion of the great carldom of Hun-
tingdon. This treatment exafperated him fo
highly, that he refuſed to enter into any pub-
lic bufinefs till he had named ambaffadors to
demand from the king of England the reftitu-
tion of Northumberland. He then iffued or-
ders for affembling his ftates at Scone, where
he was folemnly crowned and recognized.
When his ambaffadors made their requifition
of Northumberland, Henry, whofe affairs were
then much embarraffed, gave him a foothing
anfwer, but pretended that William ought,
previous to any fuch requifition, to appear at
his court, and pay his homage in perfon. The
ftates of Scotland were affembled, and Henry's
anfwer was laid before them. Their opinion
was, that in order to put an end to the miſe-
ries of war, which were then raging between
the two kingdoms on account of Northumber-
land, William fhould go to the English court,
and, after paying his homage, conclude a
final agreement concerning Northumberland,
that peace might be reftored to both king-
doms,
I. Taylor feulp.
WILLIAM, I.
J
·
+
;
OF SCOTLAND.
337
homage for
doms. William accordingly, in the beginning A.D. 1166,
of the year 1166, went to Windſor, where
Henry waited for him, and was received with He pays
great pomp. Having performed his homage his English
for Cumberland and Huntingdon, which he estates,
held in capite of the English crown (though
his brother David had the emoluments of the
latter) he required to be put in poffeffion of
Northumberland likewife. Henry would have
willingly evaded this demand, becaufe William's
friendſhip was then of great confequence to his
affairs; but at laft he was forced to acquaint
William, that it was not in his power to dif-
member Northumberland from his crown, with-
out the confent of his peers in parliament.
Henry was then preparing to paſs over to
France, under pretence of making a crufade to
the Holy Land (the moft plaufible expedition
of thofe times); and no doubt he omitted no
argument to prevail with the king of Scot-
land to attend him. William, flattered with
the glory of the enterprize, and, perhaps, ex-
pecting to form a party among the Engliſh no-
bility, which might bring his claim upon Nor-
thumberland to a favourable decifion, promiſed
to comply with Henry's defire. It was in vain
for the few noblemen about his perfon to re-
monftrate against this ftep, and to urge the
example of his brother to diffuade him; for he
immediately went over to Normandy with
Henry, who thereby thought that he had in
VOL. I.
X X
his
338
HISTORY
THE
He goes to
France,
A.D. 1166. his hands a pledge for the tranquility of his
northern dominions. We have no particular
account of William's behaviour in France; but
it is probable that, finding Henry's pretence
for an expedition to the Holy-Land no more
than an expedient to draw the pope to his
fide, in his difpute with the famous Becket,
archbishop of Canterbury, William returned
to his own dominions. Fordun tells us, that
before he left France he concluded a truce
with Henry, and that it was agreed a defini-
tive treaty fhould be concluded with the firſt
opportunity. During the ſhort ſtay that Wil-
liam made in Scotland, he was employed in
giving orders for ftrengthening his frontiers
towards England, as forefeeing what after-
wards happened. He likewife brought to juf-
tice a number of robbers, who then infeſted
his kingdom; and next year we find him once
more at the English court at Windfor. Boece
and Buchanan inform us, that Henry had by
this time agreed William fhould poffefs that
part of Northumberland which his great grand-
father held (meaning, I fuppofe, Malcolm Can-
more); and that William declaring he would
be fatisfied with nothing less than the whole,
Henry repented himſelf of his grant. Though
I meet with no authority for this fact in the
English records, yet, from what has fallen
from Fordun, Henry feems to have made ſome
very favourable conceffions to William, which
he
OF SCOTLAN D.
339
Annals,
he afterwards retracted. This brought on a A.D.1179.
renewal of hoftilities between the two king-
doms; but in the year 1170, matters were ſo
well compromiſed between the two kings, that Balfour's
Henry knighted David earl of Huntingdon, MSS.
at Windfor, in prefence of his brother, the
king of Scotland; but this calm was not of
long duration, being the effect of only one
year's truce.
The greatnefs and power of Henry the fe-
cond was now formidable to all the princes of
Europe, but eſpecially to the kings of Scotland
and France. Happily for them, Henry's queen,
the reſtleſs and implacable Eleanor, had excited
her fons to an unnatural war againft their fa-
ther; and William refolved not to loſe ſo fair
an opportunity of obliging Henry to do him
juftice. According to the French hiftorians
(for the Scotch are filent on the fubject,) William,
under pretence of renewing the league between
the two nations, went over to France, where
a general confederacy had been formed againſt
Henry. It confifted of Henry's three fons, the
Norman noblemen, with the earls of Flanders
and Boulogne, Blois, Troyes, Chefter, Beau-
mont, and Leiceſter, befides the kings of
Scotland and France. The latter, becauſe he
was lord paramount of Normandy and Hen-
ry's French dominions, took the lead; and
a grand council was fummoned, in which the
feveral claimants made their demands. Thofe
X X 2
of
His con-
cerns in the
England.
affairs of
340
1
THE
HISTORY
A. D. 1170.
:
1172.
The Scots
invade Eng-
Land.
of William were to be put in full poffeffion of
all Northumberland, which he was to hold as
a fief from the crown of England, and that his
brother David, in like manner, fhould hold the
earldom of Huntingdon. His claims were al-
lowed, and (if we are to credit the French
writers) William performed homage to young
Henry, whom his father had already inveſted
with the name, but not the power, of king of
England. If William, as we have reafon to believe,
was prefent at this affembly, there can be little
doubt of his having performed the homage to
young Henry; becauſe the declared intention
of the king of France, and the other confede-
rates, was to place him upon the throne of
England. Their plan of operations was next
formed, and it was agreed that William fhould
invade England, by the way of Northumber-
land.
No prince of that age had fo good intelli-
gence as Henry; and it was feconded by a fuit-
able activity, which difconcerted all the ſchemes
of the confederates in France and Normandy,
where he acted in perfon. As to Northum-
berland, he left it to be defended by Richard
de Lucy, who was his lieutenant over alt
England, and other noblemen. His fuccefs
in France had difabled the confederates from
fulfilling their engagements with William; fo
that the latter could not take the field ſo early
as he intended. The king of France depended
on
OF
341
SCOTLAND.
on William's efforts fo much, that, though A.D. 1170
he could ill fpare troops for a diverſion, he
fent over the earl of Leiceſter into England,
with a confiderable body of Normans and
Flemings. William upon this took the field,
with an army of Scots and Gallovidians (for
the inhabitants of Galloway were ftill diftin-
guiſhed by that appellation) and finding no
force in the field to oppoſe him, he ravaged
the country to the banks of the Humber; and,
after putting to the fword many of the inha-
bitants, he returned by the way of Carlisle,
which he befieged. Though Richard de Lucy,
and Humphrey de Bohun, and other great
English noblemen, thought themſelves too
weak to fight William, yet they made a pow-
erful diverfion to his arms; for they invaded
Scotland by the way of Berwick, which they
burnt to the ground. They were preparing to
have proceeded northwards, when they re-
ceived intelligence, that the earl of Leiceſter
having landed in Suffolk, and being joined by
Hugh Bigod, was advancing againſt the town
of Leicester; and this determined Lucy and de
Bohun to fufpend their northern expedition,
that they might oppofe Leicefter. It is al-
ledged by the English hiftorians, againſt the
truth of hiftory, that William on this occafion
agreed to a truce with the two English gene-
rals;
but it is certain that that truce did not
take place till fome time after. He was ftill
lying
342
HISTORY
THE
A.D. 1173. lying before Carlisle, and was preparing to
march fouthward to join Leiceſter, when he
found himſelf oppofed by an English army, un-
der Richard de Lucy, whilft Bohun marched
forward, and totally defeated the earl of Lei-
cefter, near St. Edmund's-bury. The news of
this foon reached William, who now liftened
to a propofal of a truce, which was made by
Hugh bishop of Durham. It was then the
month of December, and it was agreed that all
hoftilities fhould ceafe between the two na-
tions till eight days after the enfuing Eafter,
but that William, in the mean time, fhould
' receive three hundred marks in filver; upon
which he returned to Scotland.
This fhort ceffation of hoftilities was em-
ployed by William in vigorous preparations.
for war; and it was agreed between him and
the earl of Flanders, (who refented the flaugh-
ter of his fubjects, they having received no quar-
ter at the battle of St. Edmund's-bury) that
they would invade England in different quar-
ters, upon the expiration of the truce. In the
mean time, I perceive that Simon de St. Lys,
who was, by the first marriage, either the fon
or grandfon of Waltheof's daughter, wife to
David, the late king of Scotland, claimed, in
her right, the earldom of Huntingdon, to the
prejudice of Malcolm's brother, who held it.
This claim was probably encouraged by Henry,
and we find St. Lys at this time blocking up
Huntingdon-castle.
Wil-
OF SCOTLAN D.
343
William, in confequence of his engagements, A.D.1173.
had now taken the field, and had levied upon
the inhabitants of Northumberland the three
hundred marks which had been agreed to be
paid him during the late truce. He divided
his army into three columns; the firſt, com-
manded by one of his generals, laid fiege to
Carlife; he led the fecond himſelf into the
heart of Northumberland; and his brother Da-
vid advanced with the third divifion into Lei-
cefterfhire, to make head againſt Simon de St.
Lys. William reduced the caftles of Burgh,
Appleby, Warkworth, and Garby; and then
joined that divifion of his army which was be-.
fieging Carliſle. The place was defended by
Robert de Vaux, who agreed to give it up to
William, if it was not relieved before the end
of September; upon which William befieged
Prudhou-caftle, belonging to the Umfrevilles.
It foon appeared, that William's fecurity had
led him into a capital error, by inducing him
to divide his forces. He had left fome troops
to continue the fiege, or rather the blockade,
of Carlifle. He had fent a reinforcement to
his brother David; and he had diſpatched two
of his generals, called earl Duncan and earl
Angus in the Engliſh hiftories, to levy con-
tributions on the neighbouring country. He
thus retained about his own perfon only a
handful, with which he was carrying on the
fiege of Prudhou, when he heard that the
York-
William is
foner by the
taken pri-
English.
*
344
HISTORY
THE
A. D. 1173.
Yorkshire men, under Robert de Stuterville
and his fon, were advancing to furprize him.
There is reafon to believe that the Stutervilles
had, before this, defeated fome of the divifions
of the Scotch army; either that under the two
earls, or that which was marching towards
Leiceſter; for William no fooner heard of the
approach of the Yorkshire men, than he retired
towards Alnwic, which he befieged. Stuter-
ville and Ralph de Glanville, another Engliſh
nobleman of the elder Henry's party, had fo
good intelligence of William's motions, and
the careleſs, diffipated manner in which he
acted, that they formed a fcheme to furprize
him. They dreffed a party of their light horfe
in Scotch habits (thofe probably of the Scots
whom they had lately defeated) and puſhing
on with forced marches, they came in fight of
William's camp before Alnwic; who, fup-
pofing them to be a party of his own men,
fuffered them to approach fo near, that he was
taken prifoner, while he was reconnoitring
ſome ground about the caſtle, with no more
than fixty attendants in his train. His horfe
was killed in the attempt he made to difen-
gage himſelf; and we are told, that his retinue
was compofed entirely of Engliſh and Nor-
mans, in the party of the younger Henry.
Such is the true manner in which this king
was made a captive; nor does it appear from
Fordun, or any good authority, that a truce
(as
.
OF SCOTLAN D.
345
(as later Scotch hiftorians alledge) was then A. D. 1173.
fubfifting between William and the English.
Matthew Paris fays, that a great ſlaughter of the
Scots enfued upon William's captivity; but he
is weak enough to pretend, that this fuccefs
of the English arms was owing to the elder
Henry having, fome time before, fubmitted
his bare back to be fcourged with rods by
monks, for the murder of the archbishop of
Canterbury.
The barbarity of the Engliſh to their royal
captive is almoft incredible; for he was carried
prifoner, with his feet tied under a horfe's bel-
ly, to Richmond-caſtle; a fituation, which, how-
ever difgraceful, was more glorious than that
of the mighty Henry, when under the difcip-
line of the Monks.
bro-
1174.
His con-
and ceffions and
David, earl of Huntingdon, who was then
in Leiceſterſhire, when he heard of his
ther's captivity, inftantly left England,
returned to Scotland, where he found many
fcenes of blood and confufion, on account of
the king's impriſonment. According to For-
dun, the Scots and Gallovidians revenged them-
felves feverely, by repeated and bloody inroads
upon the English; while the latter broke into
Scotland and Galloway, where they gave no
quarter to age or fex. Thofe mutual barbari-
ties were no doubt encouraged by the ignomi-
nious manner in which Henry treated William,
who was carried before him in chains at Nor-
VOL. I.
thampton,
Y Y
releaſe.
346
HISTORY
THE
A. D. 1174.
thampton, and ordered to be tranfported to
the caſtle of Falaife in Normandy, where he
was fhut up with other ftate-prifoners. Soon
after this, an accommodation took place be-
tween Henry and his fons; and all the pri-
foners on both fides were fet at liberty, except
William, who bore his confinement with great
impatience. It was natural for Henry to avail
himſelf of this, by preffing him to agree to that
point which had been fo long in debate between
the two nations; I mean, his performing ho-
mage to the king of England for the crown of
Scotland, as well as for the lands he held of
Henry. There is no denying that William was
mean enough to accept of the propofed condi-
tion; and that he agreed to a treaty, by which
all dubiety concerning the kingdom of Scot-
land being a fief of the crown of England was
removed. But thofe conceflions were only
upon paper, and might be retracted as ſoon as
William was at liberty, on pretence that they
had been extorted by force; an excufe which
has ever been allowed to be valid among all
nations. The elder Henry was too confummate
a politician not to foreſee this; and he obliged
William to agree to deliver up, as depoſits, into
his hands, the principal forts of his kingdom;
which were, the caftles of Roxburgh, Berwic,
Jedburgh, Edinburgh (which in the record is
called the Maiden-caſtle) and Stirling. David,
earl of Huntingdon, with twenty of the barons
•
of
OF SCOTLAND.
347
Fœdera.
of Scotland, who were prefent at the figning A.D. 1174
of this convention, promifed to perform ho-
mage to Henry for the future, if required, and Rymer's
were delivered into his hands as hoftages for
William's good faith; engaging, at the fame
time, to procure the affent of all their abſent
nobility to the agreement. One farther cir-
cumftance is remarkable, and ferves to prove
how unconscionable the demands of Henry
were; for William was obliged to agree to
pay out of his own pocket the garrifons of
the caftles which he had thus fo fhamefully
ceded.
Few hiftories afford an inftance of fuch a peo-
ple as the Scots tamely fubmitting to fo infa-
mous a convention as this was; nor indeed can
we fairly attribute it to any other caufe, than
the affection they bore to their king. The
treaty was not only concluded, but ratified and
executed; and Henry thereby held Scotland
in chains. All his precaution, however, could
not give a validity to the convention, which
was void by the king being in durance when it
was made.
liberty.
William being reftored to his liberty, re- He is fet at
turned to Scotland, which he found in great
confufion. During his captivity, the people
of Galloway, at the head of whom were two
noblemen or princes, called Othred and Gil-
bert, took that opportunity of reviving their
claim to an independency upon the Scotch
Yy 2
crown.
348
HISTORY
THE
A.D. 1174. crown. They were the fons of Fergus, the
late prince of Galloway, whom I have already
mentioned; and having expelled all the Scotch
officers out of their country, they demoliſhed
the forts that had been erected there by Wil-
liam and his predeceffors, and put to death all
foreigners. The two brothers quarrelling,
upon their fuccefs, Othred was murdered by
Gilbert or his order; and Gilbert applied to
Henry for protection.
1175.
By this time Henry had returned to Eng-
land; and, to give all the validity that his
late convention with William could admit of,
he fummoned him to meet him and his fon,
to whom he was now reconciled, at York, in
1175. William obeyed the fummons, which
appears to have been of a very extenfive na-
ture; for all the great nobility and land-holders
in Scotland appeared at the fame time, con-
firmed the convention of Falaife, fwore fealty
to Henry, and put themſelves and their country
under his protection. All that can be faid in
extenuation of this infamous tranfaction (for
it cannot be denied) is, that the nation was
then as much in Henry's power as William had
been when he concluded the convention of
Falaife. Henry having gained this great point,
ordered Hoveden, the hiftorian, and Robert
de Vaux, the governor of Carliſle, to treat
in Scotland. with Gilbert of Galloway. The latter had of-
fered to put himſelf and his people under the
pro-
Civil war
OF SCOTLAND.
349
protection of England, and to pay to Henry
two thouſand marks of filver yearly, with five
hundred cows, and as many hogs, by way of
tribute. This immenfe fubfidy (for fo it was
at that time) leaves no room to doubt, that
Galloway was then of a much greater extent
than the preſent county of that name; and that
it had then refources in commerce which are
now loft. Henry's two commiffaries, ftruck
with the horror of Othred's murder, refuſed
to make any final agreement with Gilbert.
The negociation was transferred to Henry in
perfon; and he, to pleafe his new feudatory,
William, declined intermeddling in the affair.
Upon this, William ordered his general, Gil-
chrift, to march with an army againft the Gal-
lovidians, which he did with fo much fuccefs,
that he defeated them. Before I leave this
part of hiſtory, I am to obſerve, that William
did nothing againſt the Gallovidians but by
the permiffion of Henry, who now confidered
himſelf as the lord paramount of Scotland.
Gilbert, who had actually affumed the title
of king, pretended that his allegiance was due
to Henry, not as a Scotch nobleman, but as a
feudatory prince. He therefore did not ap-
pear at York with the other Scotch land-hold-
ers; but he afterwards repaired to England,
under a ſafe-conduct from William, and there
performed his homage to Henry, paying him at
the fame time a thouſand marks of filver, to atone
A. D. 1175
for
350
HISTORY
THE
A.D. 1175.
Rymer.
1176.
for his brother's murder, and leaving him his
ſon as a hoſtage for his fidelity. Upon the
whole, the complexion of the hiſtory of Gal-
loway, as it is delivered cafually by Scotch
and Engliſh authors, leaves no room to doubt
that it was inhabited by a race of men, who
were not either of Scotch or English original,
and became a dependent people only by com-
pulfion.
The reader is to obferve, that the forts in
Scotland delivered up to Henry, were to be
reftored as foon as the terms of the Falaiſe con-
vention were fulfilled. Buchanan is of opi-
nion, (but he is juſtified by none of the records
or the old hiftorians,) that they were in the
nature of a mortgage for the payment of cer-
tain fums of money by William. However
this may be, the ceffion was temporary and
conditional. One of thoſe conditions, how-
ever, remained ftill to be performed; which
was,
"That the church of Scotland fhall here-
after make fuch fubmiflion to the church of
England as he ought to make to her, and as
ſhe was wont to do in the time of the kings
of England, his predeceffors." Henry, who
knew the importance of this ftipulation, or-
dered an ecclefiaftical fynod to be held at Nor-
thampton, in 1176; and there, William ap-
peared at the head of his clergy, according to
Henry's fummons. The church of Scotland,
to her honour, was not fo pliable as her king
and
OF SCOTLAN D.
331
dency of the
clergy,
and laity, had been, to a foreign jurifdiction. A.D. 1176,
The clergy took advantage of the ambiguity
of the expreffion, "as fhe was wont to do,"
to diſpute the bishop of York's claim; and,
happily for them, the archbishop of Canter- Indepen-
bury infifted upon their fubmitting to him as Scotch
primate. This producing a contest between
the two metropolitans, the Scotch clergy re-
tired without fubmitting themſelves to either.
William, to foften this diſappointment (for
fuch it was to Henry) referred the matter to
the pope, and fent ambaffadors to Rome for
that purpoſe. His holinefs, always glad of
an occafion to dictate to princes, appointed a
cardinal, one Vivian, to repair to Scotland,
and to take cognizance of the affair; but he
had inftructions, at the fame time, to raiſe as
much money in Scotland as he could. Wil-
liam was not ignorant of his commiffion, and
fent him notice, that he could not anfwer for
his fafety, if he intended aught in prejudice of
his crown and kingdom; and he even obliged
him to take an oath, that he would attempt
nothing of that kind. Upon the legate's com-
pliance with thoſe demands, he was admitted
into Scotland; and the national council being
held in 1177, at the abbey of Holy-rood houſe,
many ancient canons were renewed, and new
ones enacted. Soon after this, William had a
difference with the bifhops of St. Andrew's and
Aberdeen, which Henry and the pope endea-
voured
1177.
352
HISTORY
THE
A.D. 1177.
An ufurper.
voured to compromife, but in vain.
vain. This
produced an excommunication against Wil-
liam, and an interdiction of his kingdom, but,
fo far as we know, without any bad confe-
quence to either; which is an additional proof
how little the church of Scotland was then un-
der papal influence.
The kingdom of Scotland being now freed
from all apprehenfions on the fide of England, by
Henry's obtaining peaceable poffeffion of the
cautionary fortreffes, William ſeems to have
lived, for fome years, in uninterrupted but in-
glorious tranquillity. It was difturbed by one
Donald Bane, fo called from his anceſtors, who
were of the blood-royal of Scotland; and it is
extremely probable, that William's fhameful
fubmiffion to Henry encouraged him to take
the title of king, which he undoubtedly did.
Having affembled a body of men in the Ebudæ
and the neighbouring ifiands, he landed in
Rofs-fhire, where he ravaged the country. Sir
James Balfour, in his Manufcript Annals, fays,
that this Donald Bane, who was otherwiſe
called Mac William, pretended to be the grand-
fon of Duncan, baftard of Malcolm Canmore,
and whom we have already mentioned to have
worn the crown of Scotland. It is not fur-
prizing that, under fuch pretexts, numbers
repaired to his ftandard, and that he advanced
as far as Murray. There he was encountered by
William in perfon, and, being totally defeated,
his
OF
353
SCOTL A N D.
his head was cut off, and carried ignominioufly A.D. 1177.
about upon a pole.
Gilchrift.
About this time, the famous Gilchrift, whom Disgrace of
we may call the crown-general of Scotland,
fell under the king's difpleaſure, on the fol-
lowing occafion. He had married Matilda, fif-
ter to William, and the youngest daughter of
his father, prince Henry; but Gilchrift, either
upon fufpicion or proof of her incontinence,
had put her to death, at a village called Maynes,
near Dundee. William (who perhaps was
not fatisfied with the evidence brought againſt
his fifter) fummoned Gilchrift to take his trial
for the murder; and, upon his not appearing,
his eftates were forfeited, his caftles demolish-
ed, and himſelf baniſhed. He took refuge in
England; but the conventions between Wil-
liam and Henry, importing, that one fhould
not harbour the traitorous fubjects of the other,
forced Gilchrift to return to Scotland with his
two fons. There they were expofed to all
the miſeries of indigence, and fear of difco-
very; and obliged to fkulk from place to place.
Upon William's return from his northern ex-
pedition againſt Mac William, happening to
paſs by Perth, he obferved three ſtrangers,
who, though diſguiſed like ruftics, appeared,
by their noble mien, to be above the vulgar.
William, who firft difcovered them, was con-
firmed in this apprehenfion, by feeing them
ftrike out of the high road, and endeavouring
VOL. I.
Z z
to
354
HISTORY
THE
A. D. 1177.
1186.
Affairs of
Galloway.
Fordun.
to avoid notice. He ordered them to be
feized; and when brought before him, the
eldeft, who was Gilchrift himſelf, fell upon
his knees before him, and gave fuch a detail
of his misfortunes, and their caufes, as drew
tears into the eyes of all who were prefent;
and Gilchrift was reſtored to his honours and
eftates. From the family of this Gilchrift that
of the Ogilvies is faid to be defcended.
In the year 1186, Henry the ſecond looked
upon the county of Galloway as being legally
annexed to his crown, by the late fubmiffions
of its princes; and leaving France, on pre-
tence of quelling fome commotions there, he
raiſed an army, with which he marched into
Scotland. Being advanced as far as Carlile,
Roland, then prince of Galloway, and fon to
Othred, threw himſelf at Henry's feet. This
Roland, notwithſtanding his defection from
his allegiance to the crown of Scotland, had
been affifted by William to fubdue Gofpatric,
Henry, and Samuel Kennedy, who had been
the inftruments of the late Gilbert's tyranny.
He had likewife fubdued and killed a famous
robber, whom Fordun calls Gillicolin, and
who, it feems, was a friend and partizan of
Henry. The hiftory of Galloway is the moſt
intricate of any portion of the Scotch annals.
It is difficult to determine to whom this Ro-
land owed his allegiance. It appears, that he
thought it due to William, but that he paid it
to
OF SCOTLAN D.
355
to Henry, even by William's orders *. Ro-
land's fubmiffion foftened Henry, and he laid
afide his expedition againſt Galloway.
A.D. 1186.
William.
There is fome reafon to believe, that great Marriage of
part of William's time was ſpent at the Engliſh
court; for we find him, in the year I now
treat of, marrying at Woodstock Ermen-
garda, daughter to the earl of Beaumont, a
near relation of Henry; who, among other
reſtitutions to the crown of Scotland, gave up
the caſtle of Edinburgh (which he appears to
have unjustly detained) to William, as part of
his wife's fortune. The English records inti-
mate, that Simon de St. Lys, ever fince the
profperous turn of Henry's affairs, had been in
poffeffion of the earldom of Huntingdon; and
that upon his death Henry gave it to William.
Some of the Scotch hiftorians fay, that he be- Balfour.
ftowed upon him, at the fame time, Weftmore-
land and Cumberland; but they feem, in this
reſpect, to be too liberal.
The acceffion of Richard the firft to the crown
of England was a joyful æra to the Scots.
Richard, when he mounted the throne, was
* Henricus, rex Angliæ, graviter exaſperatus erga Rotho-
landum, pro morte proditorum Galwalenfium, quos anno pre-
cedente fe fuaque juratuendo belli lege proftraverat, atque, ad
fuggeftionem malivolorum quorundam, eum habens exofum,
coadunato contra eum undequaque per Angliam exercitu, Kar-
lele ufque, progreffus eft. Ubi Rotholandus, juffu & confilio do-
mini fui regis Scociæ, ad eum veniens, honorifice eum ipfo con-
cordatus eft. Fordun, p. 720.
Richard the
firſt releaſes
the Scots
from their
dependency.
Zz2
en-
,
355
THE HISTORY
A.D. 1186, engaged in the crufade; and the lenity with
which his father had of late treated William,
fufficiently indicated, that his newly acquired
fuperiority over Scotland was but very preca-
rious. He therefore formed a plan for enfuring
the quiet of his kingdom, while he was abfent
in the crufade, by making William his friend.
William's brother, David, had affifted at Ri,
chard's coronation, as earl of Huntingdon; and
one of the firft mcafures of Richard's govern
ment, was his inviting William to give him a
meeting at Canterbury; for which purpoſe he
ordered his brother, Geoffrey, archbishop
of York elect, and all the northern barons, to
receive William upon the borders. So illuftri-
ous a deputation, in a country where William
had lately feen himſelf a fhackled captive, could
not but pleaſe him; and he arrived at Can-
terbury about the middle of December, 1189.
According to the English records, Richard
then held, of all the cautionary forts, only
thoſe of Roxburgh and Berwic; and, from
the words of the original proceedings, there
is the ftrongeft proof, that William's acts of
fealty for the crown of Scotland had been al-
ways confidered, even in England, as being
extorted from him by an unjuſt force. He
agreed to pay Richard ten thouſand marks of
filver, and to renew his homage for all his Eng-
lifh poffeffions, provided Richard releaſed him
from the unjuft homage which he had been
1189.
forced
OF
357
SCOTLAN D.
forced to pay for his crown of Scotland. The A.D. 1189.
convention entered into is ftill extant in the
English hiftorian Hoveden, and carries on its
face the ſtrongeſt evidence of the independen-
cy of the Scotch crown; becaufe Richard there
pofitively acknowledges, "that all the conven-
tions and pactions of fubmiflion from William
to the crown of England, had been extorted
from him by unprecedented writings and du-
reffe." This generofity of Richard met with a
noble return from William; for when Richard of William
was lying priſoner in an Auftrian dungeon,
the king of Scotland fent an army to affift his
regency againſt his tyrannical brother, John,
who wanted to ufurp his throne.
Gratitude
to Richard.
1194.
Upon the return of Richard to his dominions
in 1194, he overflowed with gratitude for Wil-
liam's generous friendship; and acknowledged it
was owing to him that the ſchemes of John had
been baffled, and that even the king of France
had not been able to fhake his friendfhip to the
crown of England. William was fufficiently
fenfible of his own importance, to which his
demands were adequate. They amounted
to his being put in poffeffion of Northum
berland, Cumberland, Weftmoreland, and Lan. His high de
cafter, with a confirmation of the rank and
all privileges which had been formerly due or
granted to any of his predeceffors as kings of
Scotland. Richard's circumftances at this time
were fuch, that he could not immediately agree
mands.
to
358
HISTORY
THE
A. D. 1194.
to transfer to William a property which in fact
made him more powerful than himſelf; but he
appointed a meeting at Chepftow, in order to
adjuſt all matters of difference between them.
At this meeting, Richard again expreffed the moſt
lively fentiments of gratitude to William, and
the latter laid before him his late charter, which
imported, "That all claims of the kings of Scot-
land concerning their journies to or from the
Engliſh court, when fummoned, and their abode
therein, together with all difputes about their
liberties, dignities, and honours, fhould be re-
ferred to the arbitration of eight noblemen, of
which, four were to be chofen by Richard,
from among the Scots, and four by William,
from among the English." By another article
of the fame charter it is provided, "That the
king of Scotland, and his heirs for ever, fhould
poffefs all his lands, whether demefnes or feodal,
in England, that is to fay, in the earldom of
Huntingdon, and elſewhere, with the fame im-
munities and privileges as his brother King Mal-
colm had enjoyed the fame; excepting thoſe ef-
tates which, by either of them, had been given
off in fee, the fervices ftill to be reſerved to the
The reader will find the
crown of Scotland."
original words in the notes *, which will enable
him to judge of their importance.
* Præterea quietavimus et omnes pactiones quas bonus pater
nofter, Henricus rex Angliæ, per novas chartas, et per captionem
fuam extorfit, ita videlicet, et vobis faciat integre et plenarie
quic
OF
359
SCOTLAND.
?
William.
That William was at this time a very power- A. D. 1294-
ful prince, may be fairly concluded from the ten-
derneſs and decency with which Richard, haugh-
ty and over-bearing as he was, treated his de-
mands. Theſe were no leſs than his being put Power of
in poffeffion of all the northern counties, as I
have already obferved, without any regard to
the acts which had been performed by himſelf
or his predeceffors in prejudice of his fovereign-
ty; and likewiſe that the terms and manner of
his entertainment when he entered England
fhould be fettled. The latter was a matter of
high importance, and feems to have been dic-
tated by the great landholders of Scotland to
their king, which requires that I fhould lay the
cafe fully open.
The feodal law had left it doubtful, whether a
vaffal to a lord paramount was obliged to ap-
quicquid rex Scotia Malcolmus frater ejus antecefforibus noftri ;
de jure fecit, et de jure facere debuit : et nos ei faciemus quidquid
anteceffores noftri prædicto Malcolmo de jure fecerunt et facere
debuerunt, fcilicet et de conductu in veniendo curiam, et in mo-
rando in curia, et in redeundo a curia, et in procurationibus, et
in omnibus libertatibus, et dignitatibus, et honoribus, eidem jure
debitis, fecundum quod recognofcetur a quatuor proceribus nof-
tris ab ipfo W. rege electis, et a quatuor proceribus illius a nobis
electis. Præterea de terris fuis quas haberet in Anglia, feu do-
minicis, feu feodis, fcilicet in comitatu Huntedon, et in omnibus
aliis, in ea libertate et confuetudine poffideat et hæredes ejus in
perpetuum, qua præfatus rex Malcolmus poffidet vel poffidere
debuit, nifi prædictus rex Malcolmus vel hæredes fui aliquid pof-
tea infeodaverint, ita tamen, quod fi aliqua poftea infeodata funt
ipforum feodorum fervitia, ad eum et ad hæredes ejus pertineant
et terram quam pater nofter prefcripto regi W. donavit, in eadem
libertate, quam ipfam ei dedit, ipfum et hæredes fuos perpetuo
poffidere volumus. Rymer's Feed, tom. I. p. 64.
pear
360
HISTORY
THE
A.D. 1194
State of
William's
fealty.
pear at that lord's court, if it was held without
the bounds of his fee. The kings of Scotland
had often attended the Engliſh courts, when held
in the ſouthern parts of the iſland; but they
had always complained of fuch attendance as an
unjuft oppreffion, becauſe the maintenance of
royal dignity coft the fubjects of Scotland vaft
fums, by which they were not profited. Ri-
chard was refolved to gratify William in all
demands he poffibly could comply with. He
waved his privilege of obliging the king of
Scotland, as his vaffal, to appear wherever the
fuperior held his court; and he paffed a char-
ter, importing, "That when the king of Scot-
land ſhould, in order to meet with the king of
England, enter the limits of this laft kingdom,
the biſhop of Durham, and the fheriff of Nor-
thumberland, fhould receive him at the river
Tweed, and wait on him to the Teife; and
there the archbishop of York, and fheriff of
Yorkſhire, fhould receive and conduct him to
the borders of that county; and fo the bishops
of each diocefe, with the fheriffs, fhould attend
him from county to county, till he came to the
English court. That, from the time he entered
England, he ſhould receive every day, of al-
lowance from the king of England, one hun-
dred fhillings (in thoſe days no ſmall fum);
and, when at court, thirty fhillings; twelve of
the king's fine cakes; twelve of his bifkets,
or fimnal loaves, of fine wheat, twice baked ;
four
OF SCOTLAND.
361
four gallons of his wine, and eight of ordina-
ry wine; two pounds of pepper, as much of
cinnamon; two cakes of wax, weighing each
eight or twelve pounds; four wax-candles;
and forty great long candles, of the king's
candles; and eighty ordinary candles; and
that, when he returned into his own country,
he fhould be conducted back again by the bi-
fhops and ſheriffs as before, and have the fame
allowance in money, of one hundred fhillings
: a day."
A. D. 1194
Richard.
This charter bears date at Northampton, He vifits
on Eafter-Tueſday, being the twelfth of April,
1194, and is a glorious teftimony of the ſpirit
of independency which then actuated the king
and the people of Scotland. It freed them
from an immenfe expence. The injuſtice of
the claims fet on foot by Henry the fecond
had been fully acknowledged, and formally
cancelled, and the moft difgraceful part of feu-
dal fubmiffion was by this charter revoked;
becauſe the king of England, in fact, gave up
his power of arbitrarily and wantonly fum-
moning the king of Scotland, to attend him
where he pleaſed. William was fully fenfible
of the pre-eminence which it gave him over
the fubjects of England; for when he came to
Brackley, on his journey to Wincheſter, he
commanded the bishop of Durham, who at-
tended him, to yield him up his lodging. The
haughty prelate refuſed to comply, and a ſkir-
VOL. I.
Aaa
mifh
362
HISTORY
THE
A.D. 1194, mish enfued, in which fome blood was fhed;
but, upon William's complaint, the bifhop re-
ceived next day a fevere reprimand from Ri-
chard. On the feventeenth of April, five days
after the grant of the above charter, Richard
held a parliament at Winchefter, where he
was folemnly crowned a fecond time; and we
find William, on this occafion, officiating as
the firft fubject of England; for he carried one of
the fwords of ftate, as earl of Huntingdon, be-
tween the earls of Warren and Cheſter.
Difpute
concerning
berland.
All this time, the great claim of Northum-
Northum- berland, urged by William, lay undecided,
becaufe Richard pretended that it muſt be re-
ferred to his court of peers. His neceffities,
however, at laft, obliged him to make a gene-
ral refumption of all the lands that had been
alienated from the crown, and, among others,
of Northumberland, which was then poffeffed
by the bishop of Durham. That prelate knew
Richard's impetuous temper too well to dif
pute his pleafure; and refigned the county
into the hands of Hugh Bardolf, one of Ris
chard's favourites. William took this amifs;
and being fenfible how much Richard wanted
money, he offered to pay him down fifteen.
thouſand marks for Northumberland. Richard
would gladly have accepted the money, and,
at the fame time, have given up the revenues;
but he refuſed to part with the caftles, becauſe
the prerogative of the king of England fuf-
<
fered
OF SCOTLAN D.
363
fered no fortified place to remain in the hands A. D. 1194.
of a fubject; upon which William very wifely
broke off the bargain, which must have ter-
minated in a precarious poffeffion of the county,
to which he otherwife pleaded a right. Bar-
dolf, therefore, kept poffeffion of the county
of Northumberland, and forced the bishop of
Durham to refign into his hands the caftle of
Bamborough, and the town of Newcastle upon
Tine, together with fome lands that had even
been annexed to the biſhopric.
tranfactions
in England.
1199.
Upon the acceffion of John to the crown of William's
England, in 1199, the cafe of the great barons
having liberty to build caftles upon their own
eftates, was again agitated. They thought,
that as John's title was precarious (his elder
brother's fon being alive) the juncture was fa-
vourable for their demands; and they were not
deceived. David, brother to the king of Scot-
land, was prefent in the grand affembly held
at Northampton, in which the barons fwore
an eventual fealty to John, on condition of
their being confirmed in their privileges; one
of which, they alledged, was that of fortifying
caſtles on their own eftates. William, as the
firft fubject of England, loft no time in reviv-
ing his claim to the difputed northern counties.
He fent ambaffadors to the English regency
(John being then in Normandy) with a pe-
remptory requifition of the litigated counties;
and with orders, if they ſhould receive no fa-
Aaa 2
tisfaction
364
HISTORY
THE
A. D. 1199.
tisfaction from the regency, to proceed to Nor-
mandy, and to apply to John in perfon. This
was a delicate point, both with regard to John
and the regency. The former was afraid that
William might eſpouſe the cauſe of his elder
brother's fon, the young duke of Brittany;
and the latter, (who knew John's difpofitions,)
that, if he gratified the king of Scotland, they
might unite together, and put an end to their
liberties. After the Scotch ambaffadors had
their audience in England, the regency flatly
refuſed to ſuffer them to proceed to Normandy,
and, by meffengers of their own, they informed
John of their errand. His anfwer was, that,
upon his arrival in England, he would do juf-
tice to the king of Scotland, provided the
latter kept the peace in the mean time. John,
on the twenty-fifth of May, landed in Eng-
land; and, after his coronation, he gave au-
dience to the Scotch ambaffadors, who were
the archbiſhop of St. Andrew's, and Hugh
de Mauleville. John gave a foothing anſwer
to William, and promiſed that he would fa-
tisfy his dear coufin in all his demands, if he
would grant him a meeting; and at the fame.
time he ordered the bishop of Durham to
receive William upon the frontiers. Wil-
liam's reply was, that he was no longer to be
trifled with, and that he knew how to do
himſelf juftice, if he did not obtain it with-
in forty days. John, who had come to Not-
tingham
OF
365
SCOTLAND.
tingham in order to meet William, upon re- A.D. 1199ª
ceiving this unexpected anfwer, made William
de Stuterville his lieutenant for the northern
counties, his own affairs obliging him to re-
turn to Normandy.
In the year 1200, William's claim upon Nor-
thumberland remained ftill undetermined. He
probably had trufted to the friendſhip of the
northern barons, who difliked his entering
into poffeffion of Northumberland. Upon the
breach that happened between John and his
turbulent natural brother, Geoffrey, archbishop
of York, John fent a moft fplendid embaffy to
invite William to meet him at Lincoln. The
ambaffadors were, Philip, biſhop of Durham;
Roger Bigod, earl of Norfolk; Henry de Bo-
hun, earl of Hereford; David, earl of Hun-
tingdon; Roger de Lucy, conftable of Cheſter;
William de Vefci, Roger de Rofs, and Robert
Fitz Roger, fheriff of Northumberland. On
the twenty-firft of November both princes
met at Lincoln; and William performed his
homage in public to John upon the Bone-hill
there. I hazard little in faying, that this ho-
mage was performed by William on a prefump-
tion that it was to put him into poffeffion of
Northumberland; for David, at that time, cer-
tainly was earl of Huntingdon. It is indeed
uncertain, whether he did not hold it as a fub-
fee from William, who had ſeveral other eſtates
in England at the fame time, for which he
might
1200.
He meets
with king
John.
366
HISTORY
THE
A.D. 1200, might have done homage; but that which he
performed at Lincoln is, without difpute, to
be underſtood as done for Northumberland.
The two kings, however, were far from agree-
ing upon the terms of William's inveftiture.
John infifted upon his joining with him in a war
he was then meditating against the king of
France, who had of late forced him to a moft
diſhonourable treaty. William abfolutely re-
fuſed to do this; upon which the two kings
parted, diſſatisfied with each other; but John
promiſed to give William an anſwer by next
Whitfuntide.
1
1209.
A quarrel
between
them.
In 1209, the miſunderſtanding between Wil-
liam and John ftill continued. The former
complained of a caftle built near Berwic, by
John's orders; and the latter pretended that
William had acted against his allegiance, by
giving his daughter in marriage to the earl of
Boulogne, and fhelter to the Engliſh rebels.
John (who was then upon very ill terms with
his fubjects) was glad of a popular pretext for
keeping an army on foot. He took the field,
and threatened to invade Scotland. By this
time William had demolifhed the fort; and
neither party inclining to come to extremities,
a conference was held at York, where matters
were compromiſed; but the hiſtorians of the
two nations differ widely as to the terms.
Thoſe of England fay, that William engaged to
pay down eleven thouſand marks of filver to
John,
OF SCOTLAND.
367
John, and to deliver up his two daughters as A. D. 1209.
hoftages for the performance of the treaty ;
but that John promiſed not to rebuild the fort.
Mr. Rymer has accordingly printed William's
bond for this purpoſe, which is dated at Nor-
thampton, Auguft the feventh, 1209. Bucha-
nan and the Scotch hiftorians, on the other
hand, fay, that the money paid was by way of
dowry for the two young princeffes, who were
to be married to John's two fons. Fordun's ac-
count is, however, to be moſt depended on. He
fays, that William had twice utterly demo-
liſhed the fort then building at the mouth of
the Tweed, by John's orders; that he had
driven away, taken, or killed, all the work-
men employed upon it; and that, after tedious
negociations on both fides, it was agreed that
the two Scotch princeffes fhould be put into
John's hands, to be married, in nine years, to
his two fons, Henry and Richard, who were
yet boys.. There can be no doubt of this tranf-
action, and Fordun's relation is ftrongly cor-
roborated by the record which Mr. Rymer has
publiſhed; for he tells us, that William gave
his bond to John for the payment of fifteen
thoufand marks, at four different terms, within
two years. I am now to return to the other
parts of William's hiftory, which I have hi-
therto omitted, in order to preſerve his tranf-
actions with England as entire as poffible.
If
368
THE HISTORY
A. D. 1209.
William's
princely
virtues.
Balfour's
Annals,
MSS.
If William's reign was not fo fplendid as
thofe of fome of his predeceffors, it was owing
to the great attention he paid to the happiness
of his fubjects. He cleared his kingdom of
thieves and robbers; he erected magnificent
buildings in his dominions, witnefs the ruins
of the abbey of Arbroath; he generously made
a prefent of two thouſand marks of filver, to
help to defray the ranſom of his friend Richard,
king of England; and, before he had a fon,
he obliged his nobility to recognize the right
of his daughter Margaret to fucceed him. He
gave his fifter in marriage to Roland earl of
Galloway, whom he entirely detached from
the Engliſh intereft, by creating him great
conſtable of Scotland, which poſt was heredi-
tary, but fell to the crown by the death of
William de Morville without iffue. Harold
earl of Caithnefs, prefuming upon his remote
fituation, had been guilty of many oppreffive
acts, and kept the field with an army. He had
two fons, Rory and Torfin, who filled the
neighbouring country with devaſtation; but
William marched againſt them, and defeated
them in a pitched battle, in which Rory was
killed. Next year Harold himſelf, who had
been pardoned by the king, was inftigated by
his wife again to break into rebellion; but
being defeated and taken priſoner by the royal
forces, he was fhut up in Roxburgh-caſtle.
When the king's refentment was abated, he
was
OF SCOTLAN D.
369
was fet at liberty; but his fon Torfin furren- A.D. 1209.
dered himſelf a hoftage for his good behaviour.
Harold, notwithſtanding this, perſiſted in his re-
bellious practices, for which Torfin was puniſhed
by the lofs of his eyes and genitals.
About this time was born Alexander, prince
of Scotland, to the great joy of his father, who
foon after fummoned a convention of his ftates
at Muffelburgh, in which Alexander was recog-
nized as his fucceffor. In 1205 William's bro-
ther, David earl of Huntingdon, acknowleged
the young prince, as William's apparent heir.
According to Fordun, William made a fimple
and entire furrender to the king of England of
all the lands he held in that kingdom; and they
were reinveſted in prince Alexander, at Alnwick.
Two meetings were afterwards held; one at
Durham, and the other at Norham, at which
were preſent both kings and their nobles, together
with the queen of Scotland; and a perpetual peace
was concluded between the two kingdoms. To
make it the more permanent, prince Alexander,
when he came to be fourteen years of
age, was
knighted at London by the king of England; and
he returned to his father after Eafter 1212. The
Engliſh hiftorians fay, that William was then
grown old and unfit for government; and that
he repofed confidence in John, against his dif-
contented fubjects. Whatever may be in this,
it is agreed on all hands, that William behaved
to him as a faithful ally, and ſent him the firſt
VOL. I.
B b b
intimation
Birth of the
Scotland.
Prince of
1312.
William a
to John.
faithful ally
370
HISTORY
THE
A. D. 1212.
1213.
His rebels
defeated.
1214.
intimation of the confpiracy which the Engliſh
barons had entered into againſt John's perfon
and government; but at the ſame time he gave
refuge to Euſtace de Vefci, a great but difcon-
tented Engliſh fubject. From thofe circum-
ftances there is reafon to believe, that the barons
of England had applied to William for his af
fiftance against their king. We learn however
from Fordun, that John afterwards came to Nor-
ham, in order to have an interview with Wil-
liam; but that the latter fell fick at Haddingten,
and began to have fuch a miſtruſt of John's in-
tentions, that he would not ſuffer his fon to pro-
ceed to the meeting, tho' John earnestly de-
fired it..
In autumn 1213, William made a progrefs
to the northern parts of his dominions, which
had been infefted by a rebel, Gothred Mac-Wil
liam. He had appointed the earl of Fife go-
vernor of Murray, and had built two caftles for
bridling the rebels. The public commotions
ftill continuing, he fent the earls of Athol and
Buchan, with Sir Thomas de Lundy, againſt Go-
thred, whom de Lundy defeated; and, after kil-
ling fix hundred of his men, he brought him
prifoner before the earl of Buchan, whofe name
was William Cummin, high jufticiary of Scot-
land, by whom Gothred was fentenced to be
hanged. This example was far from reftoring
peace in thoſe parts; but in the mean time
William died in 1214, on his return from the
North,
OF SCOTLAN D.
371
North, at Stirling, being quite worn out with
age and infirmities. Before he expired he or-
dered his nobility to be fummoned, and again
to fwear allegiance to his eldeft fon Alexander.
He died in the 74th year of his age, and the
49th of his reign. His true character feems to
have been that of a peaceable prince, a fevere
jufticiary, and facrificing all confiderations of
his own grandeur to the tranquility of his do-
minions. He is by Hector Boece accufed of hav-
ing emafculated all the male defcendants of Ha-
rold earl of Caithneſs, on or near a certain emi-
nence which ſtill retains the name of Stony-hill.
He was the founder of the new town of Perth,
after he had narrowly efcaped being drowned in
the old town, by an inundation which fwept
away his palace, together with his fon, an in-
fant, his nurfe and fourteen of his attendants.
Thofe facts, tho' not very important, are men-
tioned by Buchanan and other Scotch hiſto-
rians, who are miferably defective in their in-
formation as to more material points.
A. D. 3214.
His death
and cha-
racter,
William is faid to have been twice married, and iffue.
but the name of his firſt wife is not known.
By his fecond wife, Ermengarda, he had his
fon and fucceffor Alexander, and two daughters,
Margery and Ifabel. The first was married to
the famous Hubert de Burgh, jufticiary of Eng-
land; and Henry the Third, afterwards king of
England, was fo much in love with the fecond,
that he would have married her, had he not been
diffuaded
Bb 2
372
HISTORY
THE
A, D. 1214. diffuaded by his peers from marrying the youngeſt
fifter of his ſubject's wife: upon which ſhe was
given to the earl marſhal of England.
Alexander
ΙΙ.
7
At the time of Alexander's acceffion, the crown
of Scotland made a very refpectable figure in
the affairs of Europe. The liberties of England
were on the point of being fwallowed up by
the pope; and the king and the court of Alex-
ander was crowded with Engliſh barons, who
put themſelves under his protection, and called
upon him to head them against their tyrant.
Alexander was then about fixteen, full of fire
and fpirit, and mafter of an united people.
His uncle, David earl of Huntingdon, tho' now
old and infirm, acted as chief mourner at the
late king's burial; but neither he nor his ne-
phew could be brought to declare war againſt
John, or to join the northern barons, till John
had entirely over-run their eftates, and parcelled
them out among his followers. This indecifion
was one of the chief reafons that induced the
Engliſh barons to turn their eyes towards the
king of France, for their deliverance. Alexan-
der at firft demanded, (in confequence of former
conventions) to be put in poffeffion of Northum-
berland and the northern counties; but John,
who thought he had then obtained a complete
triumph over the liberties of his people, flight-
ed his requeſt, and even made preparations for
invading Scotland. He had given all the tract
between the river Teife and Scotland to Hugh
de
Hall foolp
#LEXANDER II.
1
!
1
!
:
OF SCOTLAND.
373
de Baliol and another nobleman, upon the terms A. D. 1214
of their defending it againſt the Scots. Alex-
ander complained of this; but before he took
the field, he exacted an oath of homage from
the northern barons, and from all the military His war
tenants of the counties to which he laid claim.
He then fell upon Northumberland, which he
eaſily reduced, while John invaded Scotland by
the way of Yorkshire.
of Yorkshire. The inhabitants laid
their country wafte, and fled for protection to
Alexander, who had returned to Melros; but
he could not prevent John from burning the
towns of Wark, Alnwick, and Morpeth, and
taking the ftrong caftles of Roxburgh and Ber-
wick. He next plundered the abbey of Cold-
ingham, reduced Dunbar and Haddington, laid
all wafte where-ever he marched, and boaſted
that he would thereby hunt the little red fox
(alluding to Alexander's complexion) out of
his lurking holes.
By this time Alexander had returned to the
protection of his capital, againſt which John was
He found Alex-
advancing on a full march.
ander encamped with the river Efk in his front,
and ready to give him battle; upon which John
precipitately marched back. He was purfued
by Alexander; and, in order to cover his retreat,
John burnt the towns of Berwick and Colding-
ham, and inftructed, in his own perfon, his merce-
naries in every barbarous act; for he fet fire in the
morning to the houſes where he had lodged at
night.
with Eng-
land.
374
THE HISTORY
A.D. 1214 night. His army had the advantage of being
fupplied from his fleet with provifions, while
Alexander's troops were ftept in their march by
the defolation which their enemies had ſpread.
Alexander being thus forced to diſcontinue his
purfuit, marched to the weftward; and entering
England by the way of Carliſle, which he took
and fortified, he proceeded as far as Richmond,
and retaliated upon John's adherents the fame
feverities which his own fubjects had undergone.
There he was again ftopt by John's ravages, and
forced to return through Weftmoreland to his
own kingdom. This expedition was finished
gloriouſly on the fide of Alexander; for it is ac-
knowledged that he received the homage of all
the Yorkſhire as well as Northumbrian barons,
(who oppofed John) and that he took them un-
der his protection. We are ignorant of the nature
of the homage which Alexander exacted; but
probably it was as to a fovereign, and that he
no longer acknowledged John's title to the
crown of England. It was at this time that
the English barons applied for affiftance to the
king of France, who fent them his fon Lewis,
to whom they transferred their allegiance, and
whom Alexander likewife recognized as king of
England.
Upon the arrival of Lewis in England, the
Yorkſhire barons befieged York, which was
ftill in John's hands. Lewis, among his other
acts of fovereignty, fummoned Alexander to do
him
OF SCOTLAND.
375
He meets
Lewis.
him homage; but the latter, by this time, was A.D. 1214
befieging Carliſle, which had again fallen into
John's hands. The ftate of affairs in the fouth
did not admit of Alexander's continuing the
fiege. He therefore appeared before Barnard-
caftle, which having been ſtrongly fortified
by Hugh de Baliol, he was likewiſe unable to
take, and in reconnoitring it he loft his friend
Euftace de Vefci, one of the braveft noble-
men in England. It does not appear that Alex-
ander met with any oppofition in his march with prince
through the heart of England to London, where
he joined Lewis; tho' fome fay that their firſt
interview was at Dover. His affiftance was
highly ſeaſonable; and, upon Alexander's per-
forming homage, Lewis confirmed all his rights
to Northumberland, Cumberland, and Weft-
moreland. After the junction of the Scotch
and the English army under Lewis, the progrefs
of the latter was very rapid; but the ravages of
the combined army gave the Engliſh a diſguſt
to the French government. It is at this time
that we are to fix an interview which Lewis and
Alexander had with the king of France at Bou-
logne upon the affairs of England. At this
meeting the king of France reproached his ſon
for the untowardly ftate of his affairs in Eng-
land, but above all for fuffering the ſtrong caftle
of Dover to remain in the hands of John. Upon
the return of Alexander and Lewis to England
the fiege of Dover was formed, as was likewiſe
that
376
THE HISTORY
A. D. 1214.
1216.
He takes
part with
the Eng-
lith barons.
that of Windfor-caftle; but, by this time, the
French party in England had been ruined by
the Engliſh, and had now little other de-
pendance than Alexander's friendship and affif-
tance. The fieges of both caftles proved unfuc-
ceſsful; but Alexander continued faithful to
his engagements with Lewis and the barons;
and, in Auguſt 1216, he brought to their affif-
tance a freſh army, but obliged them to ſwear, at
the fame time, that they would make no peace
with John without his conſent.
This ſeaſonable reinforcement brought to the
barons by Alexander, once more turned the
ſcale of fuccefs againſt John, who died about
this time, and was fucceeded by his infant fon
Henry the Third. The English nation being
now rid of their tyrant, by the death of John,
gradually reconciled themſelves to his fon, whoſe
guardian was the brave earl of Pembroke.
What part Alexander took, upon this great re-
volution of affairs, is uncertain; but he ſeems to
have continued ftill attached to the party of
Rymer vol. Lewis. Mr. Rymer has printed the treaty be-
tween Lewis and the young king's guardians,
in which the king of Scotland was invited to
be comprehended. Alexander had great reaſon
to find fault with this treaty, which left him in
a manner to the mercy of young Henry and his
guardians, who were not obliged to regard the
ftipulations that had been made between him
J. p. 221,
and
OF SCOT L A N D.
377
and Lewis. He thought proper however to ac- A. D. 1216.
cept of the invitation, tho' he was thereby ob
liged to give up all the priſoners and acquifitions
he had made during the war, Henry and the
other party making the like conceffions. His
kingdom lay at this time under the papal inter-
dict; but the Scots were the only people in
Chriſtendom, who at that period deſpiſed the thun-
der of the Vatican; nor do we find that either
their king or they fuffered by the interdict,
which was taken off by the archbishop of York,
and the biſhop of Durham. Soon after, Alex-
ander gave up Carliſle, which had again fallen
into his hands, and did homage to Henry for
the earldom of Huntingdon, and his other En-
gliſh poffeffions, at Northampton, where he kept
his Chriſtmas in the year 1217.
1217.
His domef
MSS.
Perhaps Alexander's domeftic affairs had
ſome influence upon his pacific conduct at this tic affairs.
time; for we are told that Donald Bane, fon
to the rebel Mac-William, together with an Iriſh
potentate, invaded Scotland, but were defeated
by Alexander's general, who by Sir James Annals
Balfour is called Mackentagar, for which he was
knighted and nobly rewarded by his mafter.
This rebellion being fuppreffed, Alexander
turned his thoughts to marriage, and had a
meeting with Henry at York. There the peace
between the two crowns was confirmed, and
Alexander demanded from Henry, Joan, his
eldeft fifter, for a wife. The fituation of this
VOL. I.
Ccc
princeſs
378
HISTORY
THE
A.D. 1217. princess was very particular.
She had, when
very young, been betrothed by her father to the
earl of March's fon, Hugh de Lufignan, who
had been formerly in love with the mother.
He received her accordingly from John's
hands; and fhe was to remain in his cuftody
till ſhe ſhould arrive at a proper age. In the
mean time John died, and Lufignan married
his widow; but even then refuſed to deliver
the young princeſs to her brother and the Eng-
liſh nation, who reclaimed her, unleſs he was
paid a fum of money by way of ranfom. She
continued ſtill in Lufignan's hands, when Alex-
ander and Henry had their interview at York;
and the latter agreeing to the match, he bound
himſelf, if poffible, to procure his eldeft fifter
for Alexander; but if he ſhould fail, he pro-
mifed him his younger fifter in marriage, in
fifteen days after the time prefixed for the
nuptials of the eldeft. This affair being ad-
jufted, the cafe of the two Scotch princeffes,
who had been delivered to John to be married
to his two ſons, and remained yet in England,
fell under deliberation. The crying injuftice
that had been done them by John (who never
meant that his engagements fhould reach far-
ther than the receiving the money for their
dowries) prevailed with Henry to promiſe to
fend them to Scotland, if he did not provide
them with fuitable matches in England; but
at the fame time he took a bond from Alex-
ander,
OF SCOTLAN D.
379
riage.
ander, obliging him to perform his marriage A.D. 1217.
with the princeſs Joan, if ſhe could be reco-
vered out of Lufignan's hands. All thofe
matches fell out according to the wishes of the
feveral parties. The princefs Joan was married His mar-
to Alexander, whofe eldeſt fifter, Margery}
was married to Hubert de Burgh, jufticiary of
England; and his fecond fifter, with whom, as
we have already feen, Henry himſelf was in
love, to Gilbert, earl-marfhal, the two greateſt
ſubjects Henry had.
The marriage between Alexander and the
princeſs Joan was confummated at York, in
1221; and, during the life of that princeſs, a
good underſtanding fubfifted between the two
kingdoms. In the year 1222, fome diſturbances
broke out in Scotland. One Gillefpy, at the
head of a band of robbers, had burnt the town
of Inverness, and had carried fire and fword
through the adjacent counties; but he was
defeated by the earl of Buchan, and his head,
with thofe of his two fons, was fent to the
king. Alexander feems at this time to have
refided chiefly in the fouthern parts of Scot-
land; a circumftance which probably encouraged
the diforders in the North, where a terrible
fcene happened this year in Caithnefs. That
county was then in the fee of Adam, biſhop of
Orkney, whofe officers collected his tythes and
other dues fo rigorously, that the people of
the county rofe, and dragging the bishop and
Ccc 2
one
Disturb-
ances in
Scotland.
1221.
1222.
380
HISTORY
HISTOR
THE
A.D. 1222. one of his attendants, Serlo, a monk, into his
kitchen, there burnt them both alive. Alex-
ander was at Jedburgh, and raifing an army,
immediately marched north; and feizing four
hundred of the infurgents, he ordered them
all to be gibbeted. The earl of Caithness
was ftrongly fufpected of having been privy to
the bishop's murder; but by repreſenting the
oppreffions the prelate had been guilty of, and
that he had wantonly excommunicated the
criminals, Alexander was contented to pu-
niſh him with a large fine, and mulcting him
of the third part of his earldom. The fame
earl, however, next year is faid to have re-
deemed the forfeited part of his carldom with
another large fum of money; but upon his re-
turn home he was murdered, fome fay by his
domeftics, others by his enemies, and his body
and houfe reduced to afhes.
Affairs of
Galloway.
1223.
I have more than once remarked, in writing
the hiftory of England, the difficulties attend-
ing that of Galloway, on account of its pecu-
liar conſtitution. Its princes or earls had, for
fome years preceding 1223, lived in a good
correſpondence with the court of Scotland, and
had been confidered as its firft fubjects, not
only on account of their great poffeffions,
but of their enjoying the poft of high conftable.
Alan, the laft prince of Galloway, died with-
out male iffue; but left behind him three daugh-
ters. The eldeft, Helen, was married to Roger
de
OF SCOTLAN D.
381
was
de Quincy, earl of Wincheſter; Dervigild, the A.D. 1223.
fecond, was wife to John Baliol, of Barnard-
caftle; and Chriftian, of William, earl of Al-
bermarle. Alexander, no doubt, thought it a
fortunate circumftance, that ſo great a fee
ſhould be divided among the feveral claimants;
but in this he was oppofed by Thomas Mac
Duallen, the natural fon to the laft prince,
who claimed the fucceffion to the undivided
fee. His pretenfions were vigorouſly ſupported
by the friends and tenants of his late father,
who remonftrated againſt ſo noble a princi-
pality being parcelled out to foreigners, efpe-
cially Engliſhmen; and Mac Duallen
foon in poffeffion of all the eſtate. He was
affifted by his father-in-law, Olave, who is call-
ed King of Man, by fome of the petty Iriſh
princes, and likewife by Sommerled, lord of
Argyle. Alexander thought no time was to
be loft in fuppreffing this dangerous rebellion;
and immediately marched into Galloway at the
head of an army. That of Thomas confifted
of ten thousand men, but undifciplined in war,
though full of fpirits for action. Alexander
drew up his troops in three divifions. The
firſt was led by himſelf; the fecond by his lord
high-ſteward and the earl of Rofs; and the
third by Sir Archibald Douglafs. As the royal
army was much better difciplined and officered
than that of the rebels, half the latter were
cut in pieces, and the remainder threw down
their
382
HISTORY
THE
A. D. 1223. their arms; while Thomas and Gildroth, one
of his confederates, eſcaped into Ireland. There
they were joined by fome freſh auxiliaries ;
but when they returned to Scotland, they
found their party fo much difpirited, that they
threw themſelves upon the mercy of Alexan-
der, who pardoned them, as he likewife did
Sommerled.
1226.
tranfactions
English.
In 1226, Richard duke of Cornwal, we are
Alexander's told, paid a vifit to Alexander in Scotland,
with the with a view of marrying a princefs of that royal
family; but the match was oppofed by Henry.
That Richard might make fuch a vifit at this
time is no way improbable; but I know of no
princefs which Alexander had then to difpofe
of. The year after we find Alexander at Rox-
burgh, knighting John the Scot, as he is called,
fon to his uncle David, earl of Huntingdon.
This nobleman afterwards fucceeded to the
great earldom of Chefter. The truth is, it is
difficult, at this time, to follow the hiftory of
Scotland in a regular chronological order; and
therefore I am obliged, as uſual, to be directed
by records. From them we learn, that about
the year 1235, Alexander and his queen paid
a vifit to Henry at London. The occafion of
this vifit appears from the English hiftorians to
have ariſen from the fall of Hubert de Burgh,
brother-in-law to Alexander. That great no-
bleman had been accufed of having entered
into ſeveral rebellious engagements with Alex-
ander
1235.
OF SCOTLAN D.
383
ander against Henry. When Hubert was
charged with this, he frankly acknowledged
his having formed certain connections with
Alexander, in order that both of them might
obtain redreſs of the grievances they fuffered
from their enemies at the Engliſh court. We
know of no particulars which paſſed at this viſit,
but that a negotiation was entered into
between the two kings, relating probably to
Alexander's claims on the northern counties.
Upon his and his queen's return to Scotland,
he fent deputies, who laid all his pretenfions
before the English parliament. Though, as
ufual, his demands were poftponed, yet Alex-
ander had formed clofe connections with
Llewellin, the Welch prince of Aberfraw, as
well as with Hubert de Burgh's party; and
Henry thought proper to invite him to another
meeting at York.
A. D. 1235
ences with
From the papers publiſhed by Mr. Rymer, His differ-
it appears as if Henry, at this time, had com- the king of
plained to the pope of Alexander's not having England.
performed his homage to him; for we find
fome letters from his holinefs to that effect.
When the conferences opened at York, Alex-
ander urged his claim to the eftates in queftion,
and charged Henry to his face with having
falfified the promiſes that had been given him,
appealing to feveral noblemen prefent for the
truth of what he faid; and laying before him,
at the fame time, the feveral engagements that
had
384
THE
HISTORY
A.D. 1235. had been entered into by his father John, for
his being put immediately into poffeffion of
the difputed counties; and likewiſe a formal
bond for the fame purpofe, given by Henry,
to be executed at the time of his marriage
with his queen. He concluded his ſpeech by
threatening to proceed to hoftilities, if fatif-
faction was longer delayed him. Henry, who
was one of the moft irrefolute, pufillanimous.
princes that ever fat on the English throne,
could not deny what Alexander advanced;
but offered him a penfion of eighty marks a
year, according to the English hiftorians, with
which Alexander feemed fatisfied, and the af-
fembly broke quietly up. Though I have re-
lated this interview as it has come to my hand,
yet it is certain, that the marks then ftipulated
were either of very high value, and to be paid
by weight, or that there is a miftake in the
fum. I am, upon the whole, inclined to be-
lieve, that the meeting broke up without any
effect; and the rather, as I perceive that Henry
foon after appointed another meeting at York,
under the mediation of the pope's legate.
There the matter was again fully debated; and
it was at laft agreed, that Alexander fhould
receive out of lands in the counties of Nor-
thumberland and Cumberland two hundred
pounds a year; and that if the revenues of the
faid counties did not amount to two hundred
pounds a year, exclufive of thofe towns which
had
}
OF SCOTLAND.
385
--
had caftles in them, Alexander was then to
receive the balance out of the adjoining coun-
ties, he paying, by way of reddendo, every
year, a hawk to the conftable of Carliſle. The
earl of Warren was fidejuffor, or guarantee, for
the performance of this agreement on the part
of Henry, as the earl of Menteith was on that
of Alexander, who renounced all his right to
Northumberland, Cumberland, and Weftmore-
land.
On the breaking up of the conferences, the
legate intimated to Alexander, that he had a
commiffion from his holiness to pay him a viſit
in Scotland. Alexander, without faying any
thing perfonally harfh to the legate, told him,
that he never had feen, and that, if he could
prevent it, he never would fee, one of his.or-
der in Scotland; and advifed him, as he ten-
dered his own fafety, not to fet foot on his
dominions, as he could not anſwer for what
confequences might happen from the refent-
ment of his ſubjects. Though the above fact
is unquestionable, yet it is certain that feveral
cardinals, and other Romish ecclefiaftics, had
been in Scotland before, but none of them
with legantine powers.
In 1239 Otho, a new legate from Rome, hav-
ing, without fuccefs, applied to an affembly of
the Engliſh bifhops for money, declared his
intention to repair for the fame purpoſe to
Scotland. In this he was encouraged by fome
Ddd
VOL. I.
of
A. D. iz35.
He oppofes
the pope's
legate.
1239.
386
HISTORY
THE
A. D. 1239.
+
Death of
the queen
of Scotland.
Of the chief English nobility, who diflikeď his
refidence in England fo much, that they offered
to attend him to the frontiers with their fol-
lowers. Otho, thus guarded, fet out for
Scotland; but, before he reached it, he was
met by Alexander, who told him, that he
thanked God his fubjects were all good Chrif-
tians, and that his legatefhip muft not think of
proceeding farther. Upon this refolute fpeech,
Otho addreffed himfelf to his Engliſh atten-
dants, who interceded fo effectually with Alex-
ander, that he confented to admit him, but
under an exprefs article, witneſſed by all pre-
fent, that the prelate's admiffion ſhould not be
drawn into any precedent. He accordingly
proceeded into Scotland about the end of Sep-
tember, held a national council at Edinburgh
on the nineteenth day of October, and depart-
ed in the beginning of November; ſo that his
Atay could be only for a few weeks, a proof
that neither Alexander nor his fubjects were
fond of his prefence.
Before this time, the queen of England is
faid to have paid a viſit to her fifter-in-law, the
queen of Scotland, who, in returning the vifit,
died, while fhe was on a pilgrimage at Canter-
bury. As fhe had no children, the crown re-
mained unheired by Alexander. He immedi-
ately called a meeting of his ftates, who adviſed
him to marry a fecond time; and his choice fell
on the lady Mary, daughter to Egelrand de
Coucy,
OF SCOTLAND.
387
embroiled
with
1241.
Coucy, one of the most powerful of the French A.D.3239.
nobility; and Alexander accordingly marri-
ed her at Roxburgh. A perfect good under-
ftanding, till the Scotch queen's death,
had fubfifted between Alexander and Henry, Alexander
from the time of their laſt accommodation at the
York. Alexander had even been entruſted English.
with the charge of the northern Engliſh coun-
ties, either by a ſpecial commiffion from Henry,
or, which is more probable, becauſe they had,
in fact, been mortgaged to him for the pay-
ment of his annuity, the preciſe value of which
cannot now be afcertained. But many caufes
now concurred to break off their good under-
ftanding. In 1241, Alexander's young and
beautiful queen was brought to bed of a fon,
who was chriftened Alexander; and at that
time one Gillin, fecond fon to the earl of Dun-
bar, was ambaffador at the court of England;
but the chief fomenter of the differences be-
tween the two kingdoms was one Walter Bif-
fet, who, in the Scotch hiftories, is called lord
of Aboyn. This Biffet was a man infamous
for his vices and intrigues, and is noted as
fuch in the contemporary chronicle of Peter-
borough. He and his followers had bafely
murdered Patric de Galloway, earl of Athol;
and, to diſguiſe their villainy, they had fet
fire to the houſe, and confumed the body,
that the death of the young lord, who was
one of the moft promifing noblemen in Scot-
Ddd 2
land,
388
THE HISTORY
A. D. 1241. land, might appear to have happened by
chance, during the revels which attended a
tournament held at Haddington. As intermar-
riages were then very frequent between the
two nations, David Haftings, of a noble Eng-
lifh family, fucceeded to the earldom of Athol,
in right of his mother, and to earl Patric,
who had died without iffue. Biffet, who was
notoriouſly known to have been the murderer,
was fummoned to take his trial before the king
and the ftates of the realm; and upon his fly-
ing from juftice, he and his uncles, who had
been his accomplices, were baniſhed from Scot-
land, and their eftates forfeited. Walter took
refuge in England, where he practifed upon
Henry's weakneſs fo effectually, that he pre-
vailed upon him to fend a meffage, demanding
Alexander to do him homage.
Rymer,
It is uncertain whether this homage was re-
quired to be done for Scotland, or any part of
it. I am inclined to think it was demanded
for that crown itſelf; becauſe it appears, by a
letter from Innocent the fourth to Henry, that
the latter had defired his holinefs to decree
that the king of Scotland, as his vaffal, might
not be crowned without his permiffion, and
that he might have the levying of the clergy's
tythes in Scotland; both which demands the
pope refuſed to agree to.
Scotland, perhaps, never had been fo powerful,
becauſe it never was fo well united within it-
ſelf,
OF
389
SCOTLAN D.
ſelf, as at this time. John de Coucy, brother- A.D. 1241.
in-law to Alexander, was a determined enemy
to the king of England, and promiſed to affift
Alexander, in cafe of a breach between the
two nations, with large fupplies both of men
and money. Alexander was perfonally be-
loved, and extremely popular in England,
where Henry's perfon was defpifed, and his
government detefted; but Alexander raiſed
of his own fubjects an hundred thoufand well
armed foot, and a thoufand horfe. It was no
wonder, if thus ftrengthened, he returned for
anfwer to Henry's fummons, that he was re-
folved not to hold a foot of land any longer in
Scotland of the Engliſh crown. From this an-
fwer I am inclined to believe, that before this
time the kings of Scotland had performed ho-
mage for ſome lands to the fouth of the Forth,
which had formerly belonged to the Anglo-
Saxons or the Anglo-Normans. Whatever may
be in this, it is certain that Henry complained
of Walter Cummin, and fome of the Scotch
noblemen, for having built two caftles, one in
Galloway and the other in Lothian, which laſt
was called the Hermitage; and that Alexander
had given fhelter to ſeveral Engliſh rebels, who
were accuſed of keeping up a traitorous corre-
ſpondence with the French. Alexander, on the
other hand, appealed to the nobility of both
nations, whether he had not inviolably kept
all his engagements with Henry; and had the
fatisfaction
Fordun.
390
HISTORY
THE
A.D. 1241.
fatisfaction to fee himſelf feconded by the whole
body of his people, who voted him liberal
fupplies; upon which, he ordered his frontiers
to be fortified, and prepared to march with his
army into England. Before he fet out, fome
diſturbances happened from the friends and
partizans of the Biffets, who having a great
eftate in Ireland, and being favoured by Henry,
made feveral piratical defcents upon the coafts
of Scotland, where, with the affiftance of their
party, they did confiderable damage. To re-
preſs ſuch invafions for the future, Alexander
appointed Sir Allen Durwart, an excellent of-
ficer, his lieutenant or jufticiary during his ab-
fence.
Alexander, upon his arrival near Berwic,
found that by Henry's orders a new fort was
building on the fame fcite where an old one
had been erected for bridling that garrifon,
and which he immediately ordered to be de-
moliſhed. By this time, Henry was at the
head of a ſtrong body of foreigners as well as
Engliſh; but he was attended by his great mi-
litary tenants, efpecially his brother, the earl
of Cornwal; chiefly that they might be at hand
to make remonftrances againſt the injuftice of
his cauſe, and to compel him to make peace
with Alexander. Henry had advanced as far
as Newcaſtle, and Alexander was lying with
his army at a place called Caldwell, when the
earl of Cornwal, and the archbishop of York,
un-
1
OF SCOTLAND.
391
An accom-
undertook to mediate between the two princes. A. D. 1245.
Their negociation was fuccefsful; and Alexan-
der engaged to give no encouragement to the modation.
enemies or rebels of Henry; to renew his ho-
mage to him, as his liege-lord, for the poffef-
ſions he held in England; and to defift from
all incurfions upon that crown, provided he
was not oppreffed. This laft was a very re-
markable provifion, and can be understood
only of Alexander refufing to fubmit any of
his independent rights to the king and parlia-
ment of England. The treaty of York, which
was made in prefence of Otho, the pope's le-
gate, was likewiſe renewed; and Henry, by
his brother, the earl of Cornwal, fwore to ob-
ferve the peace with Scotland, and not to con-
federate with its enemies. It was agreed, at
the fame time, between both parties, that Alex-
ander's young fon and fucceffor fhould marry
the princefs of England, daughter to Henry;
a match which had been more than once men-
tioned before, as the moft effectual means for
cementing the peace between the two king-
doms. This agreement was the more glorious
for Alexander, becauſe (if we believe Matthew
Paris) Henry intended the entire reduction of
all Scotland, and had affembled his Flemifh
auxiliaries for that purpofe. I am now to at-
tend the internal affairs of Scotland.
We are told of an expedition which Alex- Aars of
ander made into Argyleíhire, where he fubdued
many
Scotland,
་ 39?
THE
HISTORY
i
A. D. 1248. many of the rebels; but probably they are the
fame I have already mentioned. Fordun like-
wife mentions the Irifh who invaded Galloway
having been cut off by the inhabitants of Glaf- -
Fordun.
gow, and that Alexander ordered two of their
chiefs to be torn in pieces by horfes at Edin-
burgh. In 1248 Lewis, commonly called the
Saint, king of France, fent ambaffadors to
Scotland, to inform Alexander, that he was
about to undertake a crufade for the recovery
of the Holy-Land from the Infidels; and re-
quiring Alexander's affiftance. As the nation
was then in peace, and the expedition extreme-
ly popular, the propofition was agreed to; and
a body of volunteers was raifed, the command
of which was given to Patric earl of March,
David Lindſey of Glenek, and Walter Stuart
of Dundonald. The fate of that crufade is
well known in hiftory. It is fufficient to fay
here, that the Scots make no great figure in
the authors who have treated of this expedi
tion, which proves that they were lefs infected
with religious frenzy than their neighbours;
but ſcarce one of the few who went upon that
crufade returned alive to their own country.
Alexander did not long furvive this tranfac-
tion. Hearing of fome commotions in Argyle-
fhire, he went by fea to quell them; but fall-
ing fick, he was on fhore on one of the iſlands
His death, of that coaft, called Kernercy, where he died
1249. in 1249, in the fifty-first year of his age, and
the
す
​*
i
Hall jeulp.
ALEXANDER III.
OF SCOTLAND.
393
the thirty-fifth of his reign, and was buried, by
his own defire, at Melros. He was an amiable
but a ſpirited prince, and ſeems to have been
perfectly well inftructed in the art of balancing
parties in England, from whence he appre-
hended his greateſt danger. He was, fays Mat-
thew Paris, defervedly and equally beloved by
the Engliſh and the Scots, for his juftice,
piety, and good-nature. In all his expeditions,
he was firm and fortunate; but he has been by
Buchanan, and ſome other authors, accuſed of
having fuffered the great family of Cummin to
obtain too great an aſcendency in his dominions.
He left no other iffue befides Alexander, his fon
and fucceffor, by his fecond marriage.
A. D. 1249.
and cha
racter,
III.
This prince was not more than nine years of Alexandet
age at the time of his father's death, and was
crowned at Scone, with great folemnity, on the
15th day of Auguft. Fordun mentions a diſpute
that happened at the time of his coronation, be-
tween Durwart, the jufticiary of Scotland, and
Cummin, earl of Menteith. The former infifted
upon his knighting the young king before he
was crowned. Menteith oppofed this propofal,
and had fuch influence in the affembly, that the
king was immediately crowned, without un-
dergoing the ceremony of knighthood. It is
probable, that the earl of Menteith thought
that honour too great to be conferred by any
fubject, and oppofed it, in order to pay a com-
pliment to the king of England. Fordun, after
VOL. I.
Eee
very
394
THE HISTORY
His re-
mark. ble
coroa. tio 1,
very particularly fpecifying the manner of the
king's coronation, which was performed by
the bishop of St. Andrew's, tells us of a
Highlander (probably one of thoſe who went
under the denomination of Sannachies) who
repeated on his knees, before the throne, in his
own language, the genealogy of Alexander and
his anceſtors, up to the firft king of Scotland.
The book of Paifley, in the king's library, which
was given to the Britiſh Muſeum, and is the
moſt authentic unpubliſhed record of the Scotch
hiftory, fays, that when the bishop of St. An-
drew's crowned Alexander before the nobles
of the land, he begirded him with a military
belt. We are not, however, to ſuppoſe by this,
that he inveſted him with the order of knight-
hood, which could be conferred only by a
knight, but as an emblem of his temporal jurif-
diction. The fame record gives us another
much more important circumftance, with regard
to the fame coronation, which is, that the pre-
late explained firſt in the Latin, and afterwards
in the Gaelic language, the laws and oaths re-
lating to the king, who favourably agreed to
and received them all, as he joyfully did bene-
diction and coronation from the fame prelate.
Among the firſt acts of his reign, was the im-
provement of his coin; for the crofs, accord-
ing to Sir James Balfour, was then made to
touch the uttermoft point of the circle, which
in his predeceffors reign it did not.
All per-
haps
OF SCOTLAN D.
395
1250.
haps we can infer from this circumftance, is, that A.D. 1249.
the alteration was intended to prevent clipping
of money. In the year 1250, the young king
and his mother met at Dumfermling, where
they raiſed the bones of the good queen Marga-
ret, wife to Malcolm the Third, and placed them
in a golden fhrine, magnificently enriched with
precious ftones.
age.
Soon after, a meeting of the ftates was held, and marri-
in which the nobility expreffed an earneſt defire
that the match propofed between Alexander
and the Engliſh princeſs ſhould immediately
take place. The earls of Menteith and Buchan,
and the reft of the Cummins, would have gladly
evaded or poftponed this refolution, which they
forefaw might be attended by the lofs of their
exorbitant power; but the affembly was fo una-
nimous, that ambaffadors were directly fent
to London, to obtain a confirmation of the late
peace, and to demand the king's daughter for
their young mafter. Henry received the am-
baffadors with great pomp and many honours.
He thought that now the time was come for ac-
quiring the actual government of Scotland, at
leaft during the young king's minority, which
might be an introduction to his and the nation's
agreeing to give up the fo much difputed in-
dependency of their crown. He readily granted
all their demands, and ordered fome of his own
nobility to return with the ambaffadors to
Scotland, and to carry with them fafe-conducts
Eee 2
under
396
HISTORY
THE
A. D. 1250.
under his own, and his court of peers, hands,
for Alexander and his great lords to meet him
at York, by Chriſtmas following, which was
agreed to on the part of the Scots. Henry ac-
cordingly kept his Chriftmas at York, to which
the king and queen dowager of Scotland re-
paired with their chief nobility.
The two
courts were magnificent beyond all expreffion,
but the queen dowager outfhone all the affembly
in fplendor. Her yearly revenues amounted to
four thouſand, (Paris fays in another place ſeven
thoufand) marks, a fum equal to a third of thoſe
of the crown; but through the uncertain com-
putation of the money of that time, it is im-
poffible to aſcertain its prefent value. Accord-
ing to Matthew Paris, fhe had beſide this, re-
ceived a large fortune from her father, and had
returned from France, and brought in her train
many of her countrymen of great diſtinction.
Nothing could be better conducted than the ac-
commodation of the company; for in order to
prevent the brawls and bloodshed which were
then ſo common among the retainers and fer-
vants of perſons of diſtinction, in taking up
their lodgings, the retinue of the two kings
had two ftreets fet apart for their quarters. On
Chriſtmas day, king Alexander was knighted,
together with twenty young perfons of diftinc-
tion at the fame time, who were all moſt mag-
nificently dreft. Next day, the marriage-cere-
mony was performed with great pomp, and Alex-
ander
OF SCOTLAND.
397
ander paid his homage to Henry for his Eng- A.D. 1250.
lifh poffeffions, among which Lothian is par-
ticularly mentioned. Henry, after this, preſſed
his fon-in-law to perform his homage for the
crown of Scotland; but Alexander, who con-
ducted himſelf with great fenfe and modefty,
anſwered, that his buſineſs in England was ma-
trimony; that he had come thither under Henry's
protection, and by his invitation; and that he
was no way prepared to anfwer fo difficult a
queftion.
in Scotland
Henry was perhaps encouraged to this requeſt Diffenfions
by the diffenſions which then prevailed among
the Scotch nobility, of which he expected to be
the arbiter. Durwart was accufed of having
married the natural daughter of the late king
Alexander, and of his having made intereft at
Rome to get her and her children legitimated,
fo as to be in a capacity to fucceed to the throne.
The abbot of Dumfermling, then chancellor of
Scotland, was charged with having paffed this
legitimation under the great feal; and being
confcious of his guilt, he privately left York,
and returning to Scotland, furrendered the
great feal to the nobility, who ordered it to be
broken in pieces till a new one could be made
upon the king's return; and then the chancellor
being fhaved, fhut himſelf up in a religious
houfe. He was fucceeded as chancellor by Ga-
melin biſhop of St. Andrews.
The
398
HISTORY
THE
A. D. 1250.
Catinu..
The Cummins thought that Henry's influence
over his fon-in-law, and in the affairs of Scot-
land, was now too great; and fearing an im-
peachment against themſelves, they withdrew
from York, leaving Henry in full poffeffion of
his fon-in-law's perfon. To fhew he deſerved
all the confidence the Scots could repofe in him,
he publickly declared that he dropt all claim of
fuperiority upon their crown; and that he would
ever afterwards act as the father and guardian
of his fon-in-law; confirming his affurances
by a charter. Upon Alexander's return to
Scotland, he found his affairs had been well
conducted during his abfence; but, by this
time, the Cummins had formed a ſtrong party
against his English connections.
They and their followers exclaimed, that
Scotland was now no better than a province of
England; and the following relation of this
intricate affair is collected from English contem-
porary writers, and indiſputable records. Henry
had fecret intelligence, that the Scotch nobi-
lity kept their king and queen as two ftate-
prifoners in the caftle of Edinburgh; upon
which, the queen of England privately fent a
phyfician, whom he could truft, to enquire
Uncomfort into her daughter's fituation. He had the ad-
the king drefs to be admitted into the company of the
young queen, who gave him a moft lamentable
detail of her condition. She faid, that the
place of their confinement was unwholefome
able ftate of
and queen.
to
OF SCOTLAN D.
399
to the laſt degree; that they were debarred A. D. 1259.
from ſeeing any company; that their health
was in imminent danger; and that they had
no concern in the affairs of government. The
English writers leave us in the dark as to the
means by which the king and queen were re-
duced to this dreadful fituation; but the Scotch
inform us, that the Cummins ufurped the
whole power of the ftate.
Henry, who feems to have had a fincere af-
fection for his daughter and his fon-in-law, was
under difficulties how to act. On the one hand,
he was afraid of their fafety, if he fhould take
violent meaſures; and he knew that, in fuch a
cafe, the bulk of the Scotch nation would fuf-
pect that he had defigns upon their indepen-
dency: on the other hand, he dreaded the
ambition, power, and wickednefs of thoſe who
kept the royal pair in a thraldom that was dan-
gerous to their lives; nor was he infenfible
that fome of them had fecret views upon the
crown itſelf. By the advice of the Scotch roy-
alifts, among whom were the earls of Dunbar,
Fife, Strathern, Carric, and Robert de Bruce,
he proceeded in a middle, and indeed a wife,
manner. He affembled his military tenants at
York, from whence he himself advanced to
Newcaſtle, where he publifhed a manifefto,
difclaiming all defigns against the peace or in-
tereft of Scotland, and declaring that the forces
which had repaired to York were intended to
maintain
400
THE HISTORY, &c.
A. D. 1250.
Who are
relieved by
England.
maintain both; and that all he meant was to
have an interview with the king, and the queen
his daughter, upon the borders. Henry pro-
ceeded from Newcaſtle to Wark; and from
thence he privately diſpatched the earl of Glou-
the king of cefler, with his favourite John Manfel, with
a train of trufty followers, to gain admiffion
into the caſtle of Edinburgh, which was then
held by John Baliol and Robert de Rofs, no-
blemen of great intereft in England as well as
Scotland. The earl and Manfel being diſguiſed,
got admittance into the caſtle, on pretence of
their being tenants to Baliol or de Rofs; and
their followers obtained accefs on the fame
account, without any fufpicion, till they were
numerous enough to have maſtered the garri-
fon, had they met with refiftance. The queen
immediately joined them, and difclofed all the
thraldom and tyranny in which fhe and her
huſband were held; and, among other parti-
culars, ſhe declared, that ſhe was ſtill a virgin,
as her jailors obliged her to lie in a bed apart
from her huſband. The English being mafters
of the caſtle, ordered the king and queen to be
accommodated with one and the fame bed that
very night; and Henry hearing of the fuccefs
of his party, fent a fafe-conduct for the royal
pair to meet him at Alnwic,
END of the FIRST VOLUME.
!
1
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GRADUATE LIBRARY
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