Notizen zu dieser Person
1 _UID 5B1F84E982C6496090E1E64A305AD8E1BC3E
1 _UID 72E0541C389FBC4A8EF58BCFF981B55B0647
John Baliol - King of Scotland
A. How he acquired the throne
Alexander III was consecrated as the ruling monarch ofScotlandwithmuchpomp and ceremony in 1249. It was said his line couldbetracedunbrokenback to King Fergus, around 500 A.D. Fergus' fatherhadcomefromIreland, and Scottish tales claimed that these Irishweredescendedfromthe Greeks (by migration through Spain).Alexander'sfirstwife,Margaret, sister of Edward I of England, died inFebruary1275.InOctober 1285, Alexander married Joleta (Yolande), daughteroftheComtede Dreux. Of Alexander's children, the younger son, David,diedin1281when he was eight years old. The elder son, Alexander, diedin1284atthe age of twenty. The king's daughter, Margaret, marriedEricIIofNorway, and their daughter became know as Margaret, 'theMaidofNorway'.In February 1284, a week after the death of hiseldestson,Alexander IIIcalled an assembly of the magnates of the realmtogetheratScone. Thelords acknowledged the 'Maid' as heir to thekingdomofScotland shouldthe king have no other issue.
On the night of March 12, 1286, Alexander was ridingfromEdinburghtoKinghorn to join his new wife when he got separated fromhisguides. Inaheavy mist his horse stumbled on a hill of loosebasalttrap;Alexanderwas thrown, and his neck broken.
Six guardians were appointed to administer the realm inthenameofMargaret, who was then about three years old. RobertBruce(theelder)did not accept the authority of the guardianship and, withhisson,theEarl of Carrick, made some show of force in a claim tothethrone.InSeptember, 1286, Bruce's adherents entered into a bondofmutualdefenseand assistance at Turnberry, in support of the man'whoinaccordancewith hereditary rights and ancient usages ought tooccupythethrone.'
In May of 1289, Eric II of Norway sent ambassadors to EdwardItodiscussthe position of the Maid Margaret as queen ofScotland.TheScottishguardians were also invited to join thediscussionswhichconcluded withthe treaty of Salisbury. Under this treaty,theNorwegianspromised tosend Margaret to England before 1 November1290,'free andquit of allcontract of marriage.' Edward in turn promisedthat,ifMargaret came toEngland, and if Scotland remained peaceful, hewouldsendher north also'free and quit of all contract of marriage.'TheScottishrepresentativespromised to establish quietness in thelandbeforeMargaret came there;and further promised not to contract herinmarriagewithout the'ordinance, will, and counsel of Edward', andsavewith theassent of theKing of Norway, her father.
Unknown to the Scots, Edward had already sent messengers toPopeNicholasIVapplying for the dispensation for the marriage of Margarettohisson,Edward (later Edward II), since they were within theforbiddendegreesofthe canon law (cousins once removed). The dispensationwasgrantedtendays after the conclusion of the treaty, and the Scots,whentheyheardof it, agreed wholeheartedly to the proposed marriage. AlettersentfromBingham in March 1290 from the four survivingguardians,eightbishops,twelve earls, twenty-three abbots, eleven priors,andforty-eightbarons,spoke of the joyous news of the dispensationandcordially agreedto themarriage. Another letter urged Eric to sendhisdaughter toEngland.
In July of 1291, a new treaty, the Treaty of Bingham,wassignedbetweenScotland and England. This 'marriage' treaty set forththatthe'rights,laws, liberties, and customs of Scotland were for all timetobe'whollyand inviolably preserved.' The Kingdom of Scotlandwastoremain'separate and divided from the kingdom of England', and tobe'freeinitself and without subjection.' Should Edward or Margaretfailtohaveheirs, Scotland was to return to the nearest heirs, andtheKingofEngland would neither gain nor lose thereby. Otherclausespreservedthecharacter of the Scottish parliament, and theindependenceoftheScottish courts and elections (5). However, Edwardmanaged toinsertaspecific sentence in these clauses 'saving always theright ofourlordking [of England] and of any other whomsoever, that haspertainedtohim,or to any other, on the marches,, or elsewhere, before thetimeofthepresent argument, or which in any just way ought to pertain tohiminthefuture.'
In May of 1290, a great ship was sent from Yarmouth to bringtheMaidtoEngland. The ship was stocked with such childishdelightsassugarloaves, gingerbread, raisins, and figs. However, Eric,wouldtrusthisdaughter only to Norwegian ships. In September,1290,Margaretembarkedfrom Norway, but never reached her destination.Somewherein theOrkneyIslands she perished 'between the hands of theBishop Narve(ofBergen)and in the presence of the best men who accompaniedherfromNorway.' Hercorpse was returned to Bergen and interred besidehermotherin the choirof Christ's kirk.
The death of the Maid of Norway upset all of Edward's plansforapeacefulunion of Scotland and England. A letter fromWilliamFraser,Bishop of St.Andrews, addressed to Edward I on October7th,reportedthat, upon a'sorrowful rumour' of the death of the queenreachingthepeople, thekingdom of Scotland had become disturbed. RobertBrucehadcome with agreat following to Perth; the Earl of Mar andAthollwerecollecting theirforces; parties were beginning to form, andtherewasfear of general warwhich could be averted only byEdward'sgoodservices. The lettercontinued: 'If Sir John Baliol shouldcome toyourpresence we advise youto take care so to treat with him thatinanyevent your honour and youradvantage may be preserved'; and,ifindeedthe queen be dead, then letEdward come to the border toconsolethepeople, to save the shedding ofblood, and to set up 'for kingthemanwho ought to have the succession,provided he will followyourcounsel.'
There were in all, thirteen claimants for the throne, eachbelievingthathewas the rightful heir.
1. John Baliol
2. Robert Bruce
3. John Hastings
4. John Comyn or Cummin, Lord of Badenoch
5. Florence, Earl of Holland
6. Patrick Dunbar, Earl of March
7. William de Vescey
8. Robert de Pynkeni
9. Nicholas de Soules
10. Patrick Galythly
11. Roger de Mandeville
12. Robert de Ross
13. Eric II, King of Norway (through Margaret)
During the reign of Alexander II, when he was stillchildless,themagnatesof the realm chose Robert Bruce to be hissuccessor.Thisdecision wasbased on Bruce being the son of the seconddaughter oftheking's uncle,David, the Earl of Huntingdon. Devorguilla wasthedaughterof David'seldest daughter. John Baliol claimed his right asthegrandsonof theoldest daughter, Margaret; while Robert Bruce, EarlofAnnandale,said hehad superior right to the succession because hewasonegeneration olderthan Baliol, and therefore nearer thecommonancestor;John Hastings wasdescended from the youngest daughter,andholding thetitle of Lord ofAbergavenny. The lines of descent werelessdirect forthe other tenclaimants.
At this time, most countries were adopting thehereditaryprincipleinregard to the succession of their kings. It was arelativelynewpracticehowever, and many problems arose, one of these beingthatofBaliol,Bruce, and Hastings as descendants of the same heir. NooneinScotlandcould possibly name one of these three as king withouthavingacivil waron his hands. In those days, the custom in this typeofdisputewas tocall on a foreign king who could supposedlyviewthesituationimpartially and pick the new ruler. Edward I, theKingofEngland, stoodin a curious relationship to Scotland. Hewasthebrother-in-law of thedead Alexander; he was feudal superioroftheScottish monarch for greatestates in England; the mostpowerfulNormannobles in Scotland owed himfealty for English lands; Ericor Norwaywasdeeply in his debt. It wasnatural that the Scottish leadersshould,withthe approval of the peopleturn to Edward for help; the twoneighborshadbeen on friendly terms fora century.
Edward seized upon the chance of settling the dispute,thinkingthathecould easily turn the tables so that he gained controlofScotland.OnApril 16, 1291, a summons went out to the barons ofthenortherncountiesto attend Edward at Norham. There, on May10th,Edwardestablished hisright to chose the successor to the throne.TheCommunitas(the wholebody of prelates, lords, and important men; the'goodmen' ofthe realm)objected to giving him this authority. Such aclaim,theydeclared wasnew to them; they had no knowledge of any previousclaimbyEdward, or byany of his predecessors, for recognition as 'supremelordofthe realm'.Moreover, how could they admit Edward's claim when theyhadnoking, towhom alone such a claim should be made and who alonecouldanswerit? Inthe end, the objectors were not heeded.
All those making a claim were made to swear allegiance toEdwardIandaccept him as Lord Superior of Scotland. Scottishnobles,debatingtheissue, dared not refuse; for Edward, with the might oftheEnglisharmy,would take their country by force, making matters muchworse.Also,thoseAnglo-Norman nobles with extensive estates south of theborderstoodtolose much by challenging the king. Finally they gaveEdwardhisanswer;how, they asked, could they make such a momentousdecisionwithoutthecounsel of a king? If he would name their king,theywould considerthematter. Ten claimants made the oath withouthesitationas they wereallof Norman descent and, even though they hadScottishestates, theyweredisliked by the Scots. Baliol was the last toswearallegiancebecause hewas absent from the first few meetings.
There were thirteen meetings from May to August in 1291wheretheclaimantspleaded their claim before Edward. His firstdecisionlaybetween eitherBaliol or Bruce, and Hastings. Hastings wishedthekingdomto be divided inthree equal parts, for the three men;whileBaliol andBruce maintainedthat the country was indivisible. TheScotsobviouslywanted to keep thecountry together, so Hastingswasdisqualified. OnAugust 3rd, Edward askedboth Baliol and Bruce tochooseforty arbiterswhile he chose twenty-four,to decide the case. Therewasthen anadjournment until June, 1292. Uponreconvening, the 104arbiterswouldn'tmake a firm decision on theclaimants. There was anotherrecessuntilOctober 10, 1292, and at thistime Edward got the arbiters toagreethatas Lord Superior of Scotland hadthe right to grant thekingshipofScotland as he would an earldom orbarony. He chose BaliolonNovember17, 1292. On November 30, Baliol wasinaugurated on the StoneofScone,the last Scottish king to be soinvested.
B. Problems of his reign - how he lost the title
Without doubt it was an honor for John Baliol toacquiretheScottishthrone, but it certainly brought trouble upon himandthecountry. Afterhis coronation, the two countries were peaceful foratime,and all mighthave gone well, had not Edward wished to presshisauthoritystillfurther.
Edward insisted that all appeals from the courts of theKingofScotlandshould pass through the English courts. EdwardkeptcallingBaliol toLondon to answer for petty cases. A Gascon winemerchantsued inEnglandfor payment of a wine-bill for 2,197 pounds whichhe saidwasowing tohim by Alexander III, and Baliol was summoned toWestminstertoplead.Scottish castles were tamely handed over toEnglishgarrisonsasguarantees of good behavior. Ships laden with cornforScotland,wherethere was a shortage of provisions, were seizedbyEdward'sbailiffs. Asthe last straw, Edward demanded that Baliolsendforces tohelp theEnglish fight the French. Instead, the 'ToomTabard'(emptyjacket), ashis contemptuous subjects styled Baliol,expelledEnglishmenfromScotland, forfeited their estates (Bruce being oneof thesufferers)andconcluded a treaty with France. [some histories implythatBaliolmayhave been confined by his nobles and had no say eitherwayintheseactions.]
The Scots themselves would not have been able to stand up toEdwardandthemighty English army, but with France backing them, they daredtotry.WhenEdward heard of the alliance with France, he wasenraged,andmadeeffective reply. As he crossed the Scottish border, Baliolsenttohimrenouncing his homage. Edward is said to have remarked,'Hasthefelonfool done such folly? If he will not come to us, wewillgo to him.'
He besieged the great merchant town of Berwick, and captureditafterheroicresistance. There followed thirty-six hours of themosthideousbutchery anddestruction. The castles of Dunbar,Roxburgh,Edinburgh, andStirling wereeasily taken; Baliol renounced hiscrown. Healso renouncedhis alliancewith Philip IV and about the sametimeappeared beforeEdward at Montroseand delivered to him a white rod,thefeudal token ofresignation. On July10, 1296, Baliol forfeited all ofhislands toEdward I. Baliol was carriedoff and never again seeninScotland. WithJohn Baliol gone from the scene,Anthony Bek, the BishopofDurham, madegood on the claims of his see and,in 1296 seizedBarnardCastle.
Baliol was imprisoned in the Tower of London between 1297and1299.Indeed,he was one of the earliest residents of the 'SaltTower',alsoknown as the'Baliol Tower, located at the southeast corner oftheTowercomplex's innerward (4). John Baliol was delivered from prisoninJuly1299 by arepresentative of Pope Boniface VIII. He was then placedinthekeeping ofthe papal delegate who had been sent by Bonifacetonegotiatepeace betweenEngland and France. Baliol agreed tolivewheresoever thepope directedhim. He left England for his Frenchestatesand did notreturn, though heapparently continued to be regarded bymanyScotsmen,including Wallace, asthe sovereign of Scotland. He diedatCastleGalliard in Normandy, inApril, 1313 (also reported as 1314and1315); heis supposedly buried inthe Church of St. WaastatBailleul-sur-Eaune.
Edward set up no more vassal kings. He declared himself tobetheimmediateruler of Scotland, Baliol having forfeited thecrownbytreason. TheScottish nobles did homage to him. On his returntoEngland,he left behindhim the Earl of Surrey and Sir HughCressinghamasguardians of thekingdom, and he carried off from Scone thestoneofdestiny on which theScottish kings had been crowned,andconcerningwhich there had been an oldprophecy to the effectthatwherever thatstone was Scottish kings shouldrule. The stone wasplacedunder thecoronation-chair of the English kingsin Westminster Abbey,andwas onlyreturned to Scotland in 1996, sevenhundred years after itwasfirsttaken.
Edward's actions, however, stiffened Scottish resolve asnothingelsecouldhave done. The abdication of John Baliol marks thebeginning oftheWar ofIndependence for Scotland, which has been writtenofextensivelyelsewhere-- and was the subject of a major movie,Braveheart.It wasthis war inwhich the deeds of Willliam Wallace wereimmortalized.It wasalso the warin which Robert the Bruce finally came topower asking,following hismurder of John Comyn. However, this was not thelastheardof the Baliolfamily in the affairs of Scotland.
C. The Return to the Throne
John Baliol's eldest son, by his marriage with Isabel, daughterofJohndeWarenne, Earl of Surrey, was Edward Baliol, whosharedhisfather'scaptivity in 1296. On the death of his father,Edwardsucceededto hisestates in France where he resided in a privatemanner forseveralyears.In 1324 he was invited to England by Edward II tobebroughtforward as arival to Robert the Bruce, and in 1327, at therequestofEdward III, heagain visited England with the same object.
His real opportunity came after the death of King Robert theBrucein1329.Some of the Anglo-Norman barons possessed estates inScotlandwhichwereforfeited during the war with England. By the treatyofNorthamptonin1328, whereby the independence of Scotland was secured,theEnglishbarons'Scottish estates were restored. But treaty and factaretwodifferentthings. Two barons, Thomas Lord Wake and HenrydeBeaumont,having in vainendeavored to procure possession oftheirScottish lands,joined Baliolwhen (after the death of the Bruce)heresolved to attemptthe recovery ofwhat he considered his birthright.
In Caxton's Chronicle, it is stated that in 1331, having takenthepartofan English servant of his who had killed a Frenchman,Baliolwashimselfimprisoned in France, and only released on theintercessionofLordBeaumont, who advised him to come over to England andset uphisclaim tothe Scottish crown. King Edward did not openlysupporttheenterprise.With three hundred men-at-arms and a fewfootsoldiers,Baliol and hisadherents sailed from Ravenspur on the Humber--then aport of someimportance though now overwhelmed by the sea --andlandedat Kinghorn. OnAugust 6, 1332, they defeated the earl ofFifewhoendeavored to opposethem. The army of Baliol increased tothreethousandmen and marched toForteviot, near Perth, where theyencampedbeside theRiver Earn.Opposite, on the Dupplin Moor was campedDonald, theearl ofMar, andregent of the kingdom, with upwards of 30,000men. Atmidnight,Baliol'sforce forded the Earn and attacked the sleepingScots.Severalthousandwere slain, including the earls of Mar and Moray.Baliolthenhastened toPerth where he was unsuccessfully besieged by theearlofMarch, who'sforce he dispersed. On September 24, 1332, EdwardBaliolwascrowned kingat Scone. On February 10, 1333, he held aparliamentatEdinburgh,consisting of what are known as the disinheritedbarons,withsevenbishops, including both William of Dunkeld and, it issaid,MauriceofDunblane, the abbot of Inchaffray. His good fortune nowforsookhim.OnDecember 16 of that year, he was surprised in his encampmentatAnnanbythe young earl of Moray and others, and hisarmyoverpowered.Edward'sbrother, Henry, and many of his chief adherentswereslain, andhehimself, nearly naked and almost alone, escaped toEngland.
The year before, on November 23, 1332, Baliol hadacknowledgedEdwardassuperior lord of Scotland. Now Edward III came to hisrescue attheheadof an army which crossed the border and defeated theScotsatHalidonHill on July 19, 1333. Baliol was once again returnedtothethrone for abrief space. He renewed his homage to Edward III andcededtohim thetown and county of Berwick, with the countiesofRoxburgh,Selkirk,Peebles, Dumfries, and the Lothians in return fortheaid he hadbeenrendered. However, Edward Baliol could not hold histhroneagainsttheScottish nobility. In 1334 he was again compelled to flytoEngland.InJuly, 1335, he was restored by the arms of the Englishmonarch.In1338,while holding court at his nominal capital at Perth, hewasattackedbyRobert Stewart and again made a fugitive. Several attemptstoreclaimthethrone in following years amounted to little, and hefinallygaveupScotland completely in 1356 at Roxburgh, selling to EdwardIIIhisclaimto the sovereignty and his family estates in return for5,000merks,anda yearly pension of 2,000 pounds sterling. Edward deBaliolretiredintoobscurity and died childless at Wheatley near Doncasterin1363(or1367).
Balliol, John, of Scotland, King of Scotland
Born: CIR 1240 Acceded: 30 NOV 1292, Scone Abbey, Perthshire Died: 1313Interred: Church of St Waast, Normandy Notes: Reigned 1292-1296 thusbringing an end to the first interregnum. Known as Toom Tabard orturncoat.
Father: de Balliol, John
Mother: de Galloway, Devorguilla
Married BEF 7 FEB 1280 to de Warren, Isabel
Child 1: Balliol, Edward, of Scotland, King of Scotland Child 2: Balliol,Margaret Child 3: Balliol, Henry Child 4: Balliol, Anne
1 _UID E2494FA3307A2644AF68CF7B78D85CCB09DA
1 REFN M18024
Thomas
Schäfer
