Features - Notable Dates in History

13 July 1249	Alexander III, King of Scots, crowned at Scone. His reign ( 1249 - 1286 ) became known as "The Golden Age".
1 June 1250	Alexander III, at an Assembly in Edinburgh, gave the monks of Paisley the right to repair their fish-tanks or pond on the River Leven.
26 December 1251	Marriage of Alexander III, King of Scots, to Margaret, daughter of Henry III, King of England, in York. The young Alexander refused to acknowledge English overlordship of Scotland.
14 January 1255	Alexander III, King of Scots, chaired an Assembly at Holyrood at which he settled a dispute between the Sheriff of Perth and the Abbey of Dunfermline.
28 February 1261	A daughter, named Margaret, born to Alexander III, King of Scots. She married Erik, King of Norway, and was mother of Margaret 'The Maid of Norway'.
2 October 1263	The Battle of Largs resulted in a victory by Alexander III over the Norsemen, leading to cessation of the Hebrides and Isle of Man to Scotland.
29 October 1263	Devastated fleet of King Hakon of Norway arrived in Orkney after defeat by Scottish army under Alexander III, King of Scots, at Largs: he died 6 weeks later.
16 December 1263	King Haakon IV of Norway died in Kirkwall following his defeat by the Scots at the Battle of Largs. He was succeeded by his son Magnus IV who three years later ceded the Hebrides and the Isle of Man to Scotland.
21 January 1264	A son and heir, Prince Alexander, was born to Alexander III, King of Scots, at Jedburgh.
23 July 1266	Treaty of Perth in which Magnus IV, King of Norway, ceded the Hebrides and the Isle of Man to Scotland in return for a payment of 4000 merks in four annual installments and 100 merks in perpetuity - "The annual of Norway".
15 September 1266	Birth in Berwickshire of the philosopher and theologian John Duns Scotus.
25 August 1270	King Louis IX of France died in Tunis while leading a Crusade – his Scottish contingent was led by the Earl of Atholl.
19 August 1272	Coronation of King Edward I of England took place. He became known as 'The Hammer of the Scots' following his invasion of Scotland in 1296. He died in 1307 en route to Scotland to face challenge from Robert I, King of Scots.
11 July 1274	Birth of Robert I, King of Scots (1306-1329), at Turnberry, Ayrshire.
8 October 1275	Scottish forces put down a Manx rebellion in the Battle of Ronaldsway, Isle of Man. The Manx had refused peace terms the previous day and before dawn were routed and more than five hundred slain. The Isle of Man had passed from Norwegian to Scottish rule in 1266. "ten times 50, three times 10, and five and two did fall, O Manx race, beware lest future catastrophe you befall." - from the Chronicles of the Kings of Man and the Isles.
28 October 1278	Alexander III, King of Scots, paid homage to Edward I of England, for lands he held in England but reserved the Kingdom of Scotland from English overlordship.
11 August 1281	Princess Margaret, daughter of Alexander III, King of Scots, sailed for Norway to marry King Erik II.
15 November 1281	Prince Alexander, son of Alexander III, King of Scots, married Margaret, daughter of the Count of Flanders, at Roxburgh.
22 August 1282	Devorguilla, Countess of Galloway and mother of John Balliol, King of Scots, founded Balliol College, Oxford, England.
21 January 1284	Prince Alexander, heir to Alexander III, King of Scots, died in Cupar, Fife, on his twentieth birthday, leaving only the infant Margaret of Norway as heir to the Scottish throne.
5 February 1284	Following the death of Prince Alexander, the infant Margaret, 'The Maid of Norway', grand-daughter of Alexander III, King of Scots, was acknowledged as heir to the Scottish throne; she died en route to Scotland six years later.
25 April 1284	Birth of King Edward II of England. His defeat at Bannockburn (1314) at the hands of Robert I, King of Scots, led to the eventual recognition of Scottish Independence by England.
14 October 1285	Yolande ( or Joleta ), youngest daughter of Robert IV, Comte de Dreux, married Alexander III, King of Scots, in Jedburgh. His first wife Magaret died in 1275.
19 March 1286	Alexander III, King of Scots, killed accidentally at Kinghorn, Fife. The last of the MacAlpine dynasty and the Celtic line of Scottish Kings, his reign was known as "The Golden Age".
29 March 1286	Alexander III, King of Scots, was buried at Dunfermline Abbey.
21 January 1290	Death of Devorguilla, daughter of Alan, Lord of Galloway, mother of King John Balliol, foundress of Sweetheart Abbey and Balliol College, Oxford
18 July 1290	Treaty of Bingham between Scotland and England for marriage of Margaret, 'The Maid of Norway', to Edward, son of Edward 1, King of England: the Treaty safeguarded rights of Scotland though with some ambiguity.
7 October 1290	Death of Margaret, 'The Maid of Norway', in Orkney en route to succeed to the Scottish throne following the death of her grandfather Alexander III in 1286.
18 March 1291	Pope Gregory X issued a bull awarding clerical tithes of Scotland to King Edward I of England for crusade.
2 August 1291	Lawsuit known as Great Cause started at Berwick to decide Scottish succession following death of Maid of Norway.
17 November 1292	John Balliol was declared King of Scots in the lawsuit to choose the succession to the Scottish throne known as The Great Cause. The 16-month deliberations headed by King Edward I of England declared that the judgement was based on the superior legal strength due to the principles of primogeniture of the Balliol cause.
30 November 1292	Coronation of John Balliol, the last recorded inauguration of a King of Scots on the Stone of Destiny. Known as 'The Toom Tabard', (empty coat), Balliol was seen as a puppet of Edward I of England.
25 March 1293	John Balliol, King of Scots, failed to respond to a summons from King Edward I of England to attend a tribunal, thus defying the English king's efforts to assert his feudal authority.
29 April 1294	John Balliol, King of Scots, finalised plans for a visit to London, England, at which he was to pay over three years' revenue for his English estates.
1 April 1295	Death of Robert Bruce, ‘The Great Competitor’, grandfather of Robert I, King of Scots.
23 October 1295	Treaty between John Balliol, King of Scots, and Philippe IV of France, made at Paris for mutual military help against the English - "The Auld Alliance". Renewed by Robert I (Treaty of Corbeil, 1326) it became accepted response to English aggression against either party.
23 February 1296	The treaty, “The Auld Alliance”, between Scotland and France made on 23 October 1295 was ratified by John Balliol, King of Scots, and the Scottish Parliament.
26 March 1296	Hostilities between Scotland and England broke out with an attack on Carlisle led by John Comyn, Earl of Buchan, six other Scottish earls and John Comyn, the younger. Carlisle Castle was held for King Edward I of England by Robert Bruce, father of the Future King of Scots.
30 March 1296	Berwick, Scotland’s premier trading port, fell to the invading English army led by King Edward I of England, The town was put to the sword and remained in English hands for over 20 years.
5 April 1296	John Balliol, King of Scots, formally renounced his homage to King Edward I of England.
27 April 1296	Rout of Scottish army in the Battle of Dunbar by Edward 1, King of England, after John Balliol, King of Scots, had renounced his allegiance to England. Known as the "Dunbar Drave".
10 June 1296	Comyn Castle at Kirkintilloch surrendered to King Edward 1 of England. The surrender was accepted on his behalf by James Stewart, who had surrendered sixteen days after Dunbar in order to protect the Stewart family dominance in western Scotland.
14 June 1296	Army of King Edward I of England, having sacked Berwick and defeated the Scots at Dunbar, reached Edinburgh and, after a week of using three seige-engines, took the castle.
8 July 1296	Abdication of King John Balliol at Montrose. "This Johne the Balliol spulyeit he Edward Off all his robis or ryalte, And tuke out the pelloure of his tabart, Tume Tabart thai callit him eftirwart; And all uthire insignyis That fell to king on ony wis As croune and cepture, suerd and ring, Fra this Johne, that he maid king, He tuke halely fra him thare, And maid him of the kinrik baire." Wyntoun Chronicle VIII xii.
14 July 1296	Edward I, King of England, arrived in Aberdeen for a five-day stay during a triumphant procession along the east coast. He ‘exacted homage’ from the defeated Scots as he journeyed.
8 August 1296	Scottish Coronation Stone, The Stone of Destiny, removed from Scone Abbey by King Edward I of England.
20 May 1297	Andrew de Moray raised his standard on Ormond Hill, Avoch, and commenced a successful campaign against English rule in the north of Scotland. He joined forces with Sir William Wallace and defeated English army at Stirling Bridge.
24 May 1297	Alexander Macdougall was released from prison in Berwick by the English in order that he persuade his son, Duncan, from continuing a revolt in the north-west against English rule.
10 June 1297	An English army crossed into Annandale under Henry Percy intent on crushing the rising led by William Wallace and Andrew de Moray to free Scotland from English domination.
11 September 1297	Battle of Stirling Bridge where the Scots under the command of William Wallace and Andrew de Moray defeated a larger English force under John de Warenne, Earl of Surrey, and the Treasurer of England, Hugh de Cressingham. Andrew de Moray subsequently died of wounds received in the battle.
11 October 1297	Letter from Andrew de Moray and William Wallace, Guardians of Scotland, to the cities of Lubeck and Hamburg informing them that Scotland and the Hanseatic League could recommence.
3 November 1297	At the behest of Sir William Wallace, William Lamberton was elected as the Bishop of St Andrews in succession to William Fraser who had died in France whilst on diplomatic service for Scotland.
8 November 1297	Monastery at Hexham, England, was granted a charter by Sir William Wallace, Guardian of Scotland, giving them protection against looting by Scots following complaints from the canons that their buildings had been 'sacriligeously plundered'.
19 November 1297	Scottish army under Sir William Wallace arrived at Carlisle but decided against laying a lengthy siege.
22 November 1297	End of invasion of northern England by Scottish army led by Sir William Wallace, guardian of Scotland, which had commenced in mid-October.
29 March 1298	At an Assembly at Torphichen Sir William Wallace, Guardian of Scotland, granted control of the castle of Dundee to the standard-bearer Walter Skirmischur for service in the Scottish army.
1 June 1298	William Lamberton, Bishop of St Andrews, consecrated in Rome, prior to joining fellow Scots on a diplomatic mission to the French court.
12 June 1298	Sir William Wallace attacked and routed an English invasion force under Aymour de Valence, the Earl of Pembroke, which had landed in Fife.
22 July 1298	Scottish army commanded by Sir William Wallace defeated by English forces under Edward I, King of England, at Battle of Falkirk. Sir William Wallace subsequently resigned as Guardian of Scotland.
27 June 1299	Pope Boniface VIII issued a bull known by its first two words - Scimus, fili - (we know, my son) which declared King Edward I of England's occupation of Scotland to be illegal.
21 February 1301	Scots sought to reactivate the Auld Alliance and agreed, at a Scone Assembly, to write to the French King Philip.
15 May 1301	King Edward I of England completed a document which outlined his claims to the overlordship of Scotland and which was to be presented to the Pope.
13 August 1302	Pope Boniface VIII wrote to the Scottish Bishops ordering them to promote peace with King Edward I of England as Scots continued to resist English domination.
24 February 1303	Although outnumbered four to one, Scottish forces led by John Comyn,’The Red Comyn’, and Sir Symon Fraser defeated an English army led by Sir John Segrave at the Battle of Roslin, south-west of Edinburgh.
9 February 1304	John Comyn, acting on behalf of the Community of the Realm in Scotland, surrendered at Strathord, near Perth, to King Edward I of England.
11 June 1304	Future King of Scots Robert Bruce, Earl of Carrick, made a secret bond with Bishop William Lamberton of St Andrews, promising – ‘to be of ane another’s counsel in all their business and affairs at all times and against whichever individuals.’ Bishop Lamberton assisted at Bruce’s coronation as King of Scots in 1306.
3 August 1305	Former Guardian of Scotland Sir William Wallace was captured at Robroyston, near Glasgow, by Sir John Menteith. He was immediately taken to England where he was tried in front of Edward I, King of England, and executed with great barbarity in London on 23 August 1305.
22 August 1305	Sir William Wallace arrived in London in the custody of John Seagrave. The following day, after of a travesty of a trial, he was brutally executed.
23 August 1305	Execution of Sir William Wallace in London, England after his betrayal by Menteith. "The story of Wallace poured a Scottish prejudice into my viens, which will boil along there till the flood-gates of life shut in eternal rest" - Robert Burns in a letter to Dr Moore 2 August 1787.
10 February 1306	Murder of the Red Comyn by Robert the Bruce in Greyfriars' Monastery, Dumfries.
25 March 1306	Robert de Brus, Earl of Annandale, crowned King of Scots at Scone in the presence of four bishops, five earls and the people of the land by the Countess of Buchan.
19 June 1306	Robert I, King of Scots, defeated by an English army under the Earl of Pembroke at Methven in Perthshire. The King fled with a small band of followers into the Western Highlands.
11 August 1306	Battle of Dalry ( or Dalrigh ) where Robert I, The Bruce, was defeated by Lord of Lorne near Perthshire-Argyll border.
19 March 1307	Sir James Douglas retook Douglas Castle from an English garrison, The triumphant Scots removed all provisions which could be carried and set fire to the remainder and the dead English. The event became known as ‘The Douglas Larder’,
10 May 1307	Victory by Robert I, King of Scots, over English forces under the Earl of Pembroke at Louden Hill, Ayrshire, which gave a new impetus to his campaign for Scottish Freedom.
7 July 1307	Death of King Edward 1 of England on his last punitive expedition to Scotland at Burgh-on-Sands near Carlisle. "Edwardus Primus Scotorum Malleus hic est." - The epitaph in Westminster Abbey, London, England to "the hammer of the Scots."
10 July 1308	An English fleet was ordered to sail from Hartlepool to help raise siege of English garrison by Scottish forces in Aberdeen.
8 November 1308	Death of John Duns Scotus, born in Berwickshire c.1265, scholastic philosopher at Oxford, Paris and Cologne. The Subtle Doctor (doctor Subtilis), John Duns Scotus was one of the great philosophers; study and use of his work was commended by Pope John XXIII, and he was beatified by Pope John Paul II in 1993.
16 March 1309	Robert 1, King of Scots, convened his first Parliament at St Andrews.
23 February 1310	Declaration of the Clergy and People in favour of King Robert I, The Bruce, from the Church of the Friary Minor in Dundee.
10 November 1310	An invading English army returned to Berwick after two months of fruitless marching around Central and Southern Scotland whilst being harassed continually by the Scots.
29 October 1312	Treaty of Inverness, Robert I gave an undertaking to Haakon V of Norway to observe the terms of Treaty of Perth (1266).
7 February 1313	Robert I, King of Scots, captured Dumfries.
14 March 1313	Edinburgh Castle was recaptured from English control by Sir Thomas Randolph and William Francis, when they scaled the walls with 30 men. The Scots razed the defences to prevent its use to the enemy.
18 May 1313	Robert I, King of Scots, landed at Ramsey on the Isle of Man with a large number of ships. He regained control of the island from English hands and destroyed the Castle of Rushen.
20 December 1313	Robert I, King of Scots, granted the Isle of Man to Thomas Randolph, Earl of Moray.
19 February 1314	Roxburgh Castle retaken by James Douglas and razed to the ground - 'lest the English should ever hereafter be able to lord it over the land through holding the castles.'
17 June 1314	English army under King Edward II of England entered Scotland en route for Stirling in order to relieve English garrison holding Stirling Castle.
21 June 1314	An English army, under King Edward II, occupied Edinburgh, en route to face the Scots led by Robert I, King of Scots, at Bannockburn.
23 June 1314	Robert I, King of Scots, killed Henry de Bohun at commencement of Battle of Bannockburn. "Just as they met, Bruce shunn'd the spear. Onward the baffled warrior bore His course - but soon his course was o'er! High in the stirrups stood the King, And gave his battle-axe the swing. Right on De Boune, the whiles he pass'd, Fell that stern dint - the first - the last!" Sir Walter Scott -"The Lord Of the Isles" canto vi
24 June 1314	Scots, under Robert I, defeated a far larger English army led by Edward II, King of England, at the Battle of Bannockburn.
12 November 1314	Robert I, King of Scots, appointed Sir Gilbert de la Haye as High Constable of Scotland.
26 April 1315	In the aftermath of victory at Bannockburn, the Scottish Parliament meeting at Ayr agreed that Edward Bruce, King Robert I's brother, should become heir to the throne and lead an invasion of Ulster.
29 June 1315	Scots army of Edward Bruce stormed into Dundalk after defeating the Anglo-Irish barons.
1 February 1316	The army of Edward Bruce, brother of Robert I, King of Scots, routed forces of Edmund Butler, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, at the Battle of Skerries in Kildare, Ireland.
2 March 1316	King Robert II, first of the House of Stewart, was born at Renfrew. His mother was Marjorie Bruce, daughter of Robert I and wife of Walter, Great Stewart of Scotland.
5 April 1318	Thomas Randolph, Earl of Moray, retook the town of Berwick from English occupation. Prior to the sacking of the town in 1296 by Edward I, King of England, Berwick had been the principal trading town in Scotland.
5 July 1318	St Andrews Cathedral was consecrated in the presence of Robert I, King of Scots. The building was commenced by Bishop Arnold shortly after 1160.
14 October 1318	Edward Bruce, brother of Robert I, King of Scots, died in Battle of Dundalk, after being crowned King of Ireland and winning eighteen successive victories.
7 September 1319	English army began a fierce onslaught against Berwick by land and sea. The strongly fortified town was under the Scottish command of Walter the Steward.
20 September 1319	Battle of Mitton (or Myton) where Scots forces under Thomas Randolph, Earl of Moray, defeated an English army in Yorkshire : so many clergy were killed in that the encounter was known as 'The Chapter'.
25 December 1319	A two-year truce between Scotland and England came into force.
6 April 1320	Declaration of Arbroath - Letter from Scottish barons to Pope John XXII, affirming their determination to maintain Scottish Independence and support King Robert I unless he showed signs of yielding. There are echoes of the Arbroath Declaration in the American Declaration of Independence in 1776. Extract from Arbroath Declaration - "for so long as a hundred of us are left alive, we will yield in no least way to English dominion. We fight not for glory nor for wealth nor honours; but only and alone we fight for freedom, which no good man surrenders but with his life."
5 August 1320	William de Soules, lord of Liddlesdale (butler of Scotland) and the Countess of Strathearn were sentenced to perpetual imprisonment for their part in a conspiracy, The Scoules Conspiracy, against Robert I, King of Scots. Other conspirators were sentenced to be hung, drawn and quartered.
14 October 1322	Robert I, King of Scots, led a Scottish army to victory against the English at the Battle of Byland, near Byland Abbey, Yorkshire.
5 March 1324	Birth of David II, King of Scots, in Dunfermline; he succeeded his father Robert I, The Bruce, in 1329.
15 July 1326	Scottish Parliament introduced a tax to help suitably maintain the monarch ‘as becomes his station’.
9 August 1327	A Scottish army, led by Thomas Randolph, Earl of Moray, and Sir James Douglas, which had ravaged Northumberland but successfully avoided a major confrontation with King Edward III of England, returned to Scotland.
26 October 1327	Death of Elizabeth de Burgo, eldest daughter of Richard, 2^nd Earl of Ulster, and second wife of Robert I, King of Scots. The couple married in 1306 at Dunfermline and she spent many years as a prisoner in England during the Wars of Independence.
17 March 1328	Treaty of Edinburgh by which England acknowledged the independence of Scotland under Robert 1 was concluded at Edinburgh and ratified at Northampton on 4 May 1328.
4 May 1328	Treaty of Northampton, recognising Scottish Independence, was ratified. "That the kingdom of Scotland, divided in all things from the kingdom of England by its right marches, as in the time of Alexander of good memory, King of Scots, shall remain for ever entire, free and at peace, without any sort of subjugation, servitude, claim, or demand whatsoever. And if we, or our predecessors in past times have sought in any way any rights to the kingdom of Scotland, we renounce and abandon them by these presents to the King of Scots, his heirs and his successors." From the Latin of the treaty.
7 June 1329	Death of Robert I, The Bruce, King of Scots, at Cardross Castle.