Scottish History - The House of Canmore pt 3
Alexander 3rd to Margaret, Maid of Norway

• Malcolm III (Canmore) (1058-1093)
• Donald Ban (1093-1094)
• Duncan II (May-November 1094)
• Donald Ban and Edmund (1094-1097)
• Edgar (The Peaceable) (1097-1107)
• Alexander (The Fierce) (1107-1124)
• David I (1124-1153)
• Malcolm IV (The Maiden) (1153-1165)
• William (The Lion) (1165-1214)
• Alexander II (1214-1249)
• Alexander III (1249-1286)
• Margaret (Maid of Norway) (1286-1290)

Alexander III (1249-86)

Alexander was only 8 when he inherited the kingdom of Scotland from his father. A regent was to be appointed but the nobles could not agree and the country suffered internal turmoil until Alexander came of age. At 10 he married Henry III's daughter, Margaret. During his childhood he established good relations with Edward I, his brother-in-law.

At this time Scotland had a population of about 400,000 and was enjoying an age of prosperity. Berwick was growing rich on foreign trade. Wool, fur and fish were exported. The ownership of the Western Isles was the first problem he faced after his coronation.

The Earl of Ross had declared war upon King Haakon of Norway to try and regain possession of the Western Isles. This terrified the local people for they could remember the fierce Viking raids which persisted into the 13th century. Haakon sailed from Norway in 1263 with a fleet of over 100 ships. The ships were of solid oak with a golden dragon at the bow and stern, an impressive sight.

Astronomers have confirmed that the day after his arrival in the Orkneys there was a total eclipse of the sun. The Norwegian soldiers considered the eclipse to be a bad omen. Haakon, however, continued to advance. Alexander in the meanwhile reinforced all the castles on the shore and gathered a large army at the place where he thought Haakon would come ashore.

He waited, knowing that there was a probability of terrible storms during September and October. As it happened a great storm did blow through Haakon's ships. The Norwegians believed that the storm was caused by the magic of Scottish witches. The Scots on the other hand felt that the storm had been sent by St. Margaret to save their country.

A battle did take place on land but Haakon's fleet had been so decimated by the storms that he decided to retreat and he returned home. Haakon died shortly after that and Alexander III secured a treaty with his successor, King Magnus. This was the Treaty of Perth whereby Alexander regained the Western Isles by paying 4000 merks to the Norwegians and 100 merks a year for an indefinite period. The yearly payment continued into the 14th century.

Orkney and Shetland remained under the control of the Norwegians and it was a long time before they too became a part of Scotland. His wife Margaret, and soon after two of their sons died (one source saying that two sons died and then his wife, Margaret, died). Alexander took a second wife, Yolande in hopes of producing a male heir. He had only been married to Yolande for about 5 months when eager to be with her he rode at night during a storm against advice. His horse stumbled and threw him over a cliff to his death.

This left his granddaughter Margaret, Maid of Norway, as heir apparent. Alexander's only daughter, also named Margaret, had married King Eric II of Norway as part of the Treaty of Perth. The daughter died in childbirth, leaving an infant daughter as heir to the Scottish throne. At the time of Alexander's death, the granddaughter was still in Norway. He had made his lords swear to accept Margaret as Queen and they had agreed that until she came of age, the country would be governed by the "Guardians", the wisest and most important of the bishops and barons. Among the six guardians chosen,

Robert Bruce the elder was excluded, although he had been recognized as heir in 1238 when Alexander II had lost his first wife without issue. Bruce the elder was the senior male descendant of David I. Because of the events that followed, it would take nearly half a century for Scotland to regain its own monarch and sovereignty.

Margaret Maid of Norway (1286-90)

The Maid of Norway was 3 when she became Queen of Scotland. The Guardians sent envoys to Edward I (Alexander III's brother-in-law) seeking his advice. Cunningly, Edward, who wanted to be recognized as the overlord of Scotland, arranged a dispensation from the Pope for a marriage between his son and the young queen. By the Treaty of Birgham-on-Tweed, the Scottish agreed to the marriage.

Their terms at first seemed to allow for Scotland's independence but there were qualifications. Edward, the heir, was to receive a personal right to the Scottish inheritance if the Prince of Wales (Edward) and Margaret, or either of them, should have no heir, and Edward remarried. He could then pass the right to Scotland to his heirs by another wife. How this would have turned out, we cannot know because Margaret died on the voyage from Norway, thus bringing into question who had the right to the Scottish throne.

It has been argued that if the marriage had succeeded that England and Scotland would have been united and three centuries of bloody warfare would have been avoided. But this argument can be countered with what we know of Edward, that to him 'union' meant 'suzerainty' and his methods to exploit this opportunity were characterized by arrogance and brutality which in effect aroused a native patriotism and hatred of England in the Scots and "made the idea of union intolerable to Scottish hearts."

The death of the Maid of Norway ended the House of Canmore.