himself little about her fate; and neither paternal affection nor schemes of ambition prompted any active exertions in her cause. But with the English king the case was very different. Edward was one of the ablest and wisest monarchs of Europe, and, at the same time, the most powerful, ambitious, and unscrupulous. He had already secured to the foot of his throne the free people of Wales: and when the death of Alexander was made known, he perceived that the time was come when he might strike powerful blow at the independence of Scotland. His first measures for this purpose seem to have been in themselves just and equitable, and to have been willingly accepted by the northern barons. He entered into a treaty with the chief nobles of the regency, and proposed an alliance between his son, the Prince of Wales, and the Maiden of Norway. The agreement was finally concluded at Salisbury, July, A.D. 1290. Articles were drawn up for securing the independence of Scotland, and they were solemnly sworn to by the English king. It is matter for doubt how far such an oath would have been kept had the match taken place, for it is known that Edward had secured to his own party some of the Scottish chiefs, and, under pretence of guarding the peace of the country, had obtained possession of many castles and fortified places. But the scheme of a union between the two kingdoms by marriage was defeated by the early death of the Maid of Norway, who, having set sail for Britain, fell sick during the passage, and, Unable to pursue the voyage, landed on one of the Orkney Islands, where she expired in her eighth year.
Edward was thus compelled either to resort to other measures for the purpose of adding Scotland to his dominions, or at once to relinquish his designs upon that country. It is probable that so ambitious a monarch did not long hesitate between the two alternatives, and the result of his deliberations was a communication to his council to the effect that he "had it in his mind to bring under his dominion the king and kingdom of Scotland in the same manner that he had subdued the kingdom of Wales." The pretext on which he founded his pretended right to interfere in the affairs of Scotland, was the claim which he advanced to be lord paramount of that country—a claim supported by his being in possession of the castles already alluded to, by virtue of the treaty of marriage between his son and the Maiden of Norway.
Such a claim as this was, in the highest degree, unjust. According to the feudal laws, to create a fief the superior must he in possession of territories which he bestows upon the vassal, and for which the vassal renders homage and services. But the kings of England had never held possession of Scotland, properly so called. That kingdom was the original seat of the Scots in the province of Argyle, extended by the conquest of the Picts to the northern shores of the Frith of Forth. The provinces thus conquered, and afterwards united together into the kingdom called Albania, and afterwards Scotland, were territories to which the English had never possessed, or claimed, any right, and lay beyond the northern wall, where the southern Britons had never been able to maintain a position. This condition of the territory of North Britain existed as early as the year 538, at which period there is not only no proof of the King of England having interfered with the disposition of the conquered lands, but it is a matter for doubt whether there was then a king of England to make grants or receive of the homage.[1] It is necessary to make a distinction between the feudal suzerainty of Scotland and the right over certain territories which had formerly been part of the kingdom of England, and which, having been ceded to the Scots, were held by their princes as vassals of England to that extent. But the independence of the Scottish kingdom was no more affected by such homage than that of England was surrendered by the feudal service rendered to the King of France by the Plantagenets for their dominions on the Continent. The lands which the Scottish kings held by this tenure were parts of Cumberland and Northumberland. Frequent efforts had been made by the southern kings to change the homage due for these lands into a general homage for the kingdom of Scotland; but such attempts were always resisted, and, until the reign of William the Lion, no general acknowledgement of subjection was made.
The line of William the Lion having been abruptly cut off, the heir to the crown would be found among the descendants of David, Earl of Huntingdon, his younger brother. The earl had one son and three daughters. The former died without issue; and of the latter, Margaret, the eldest, was married to Alan, of Galloway; the second, Isabella, to Robert Bruce; and the third, Ada, to Henry Hastings. The eldest daughter bore no son to her husband, but her daughter, Dervorgoil, married John Baliol, of Bernard Castle. The issue of this marriage was a son, John Baliol. The Robert Bruce already named, who in right of his wife was Earl of Carrick, was the son of Isabella, and John Hastings was the son of Ada. Between the rival claims of these nobles there could, in our day, be no difficulty in deciding—the laws of primogeniture clearly awarding the title to the descendant of the eldest branch. Such, indeed, was the generally recognised law at the time now referred to; but it was not so clearly settled as to preclude the possibility of dispute. When, therefore, the death of the young queen was known, it was doubtful how many claimants for the throne might present themselves, or how much of disorder and bloodshed might ensue before the title to the throne had been decided. The ambition of Edward, and the position he had assumed towards Scotland, excited the greatest apprehension amongst patriotic men, who saw misfortune and misrule about to succeed to the prosperity which the country had lately enjoyed.
There is some reason to believe that at this juncture the embassy to Edward, requesting his mediation, was sent by the Scottish council. The story of such an embassy, however, rests on no very good authority, and it may be doubted whether the northern barons would take a step which they could not but see would be fraught with danger to the national independence. Whether as the result of the message alluded to, or as the initiative of the new negotiations, Edward requested the barons and the clergy of Scotland to meet him at Norham, a town on the English side of the Tweed. The summons was obeyed, and a conference took place on the 10th of May, A.D. 1291. Here Edward openly repeated the intention which he had already stated to his own barons, that he would dispose of the succession to the Scottish throne as lord paramount of that country, and he required that they should immediately
- ↑ Turner has shown that it is by no means certain whether Edgar was ever king over all England.—History of the Anglo-Saxons. vol i.,p 441
