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An Early Great Britain and its Failure
The Makings of Scotland; Part 3

The Makings of Scotland; Part 3

Malcolm III (Canmore) had spent fourteen years in England, and he knew English speech as well as he did his own. He reigned in Scotland from 1057 to 1093, and saw England fall before the onset of the Normans. As the Norman power spread northwards, he felt his own throne to be in danger. He took up the Saxon cause, and to cement the alliance married Margaret, sister of Edgar Atheling, Saxon heir to the crown. Margaret was a very remarkable woman. The chroniclers admire her for being learned and pious, but she was also a keen politician. She had great influence over her husband, who followed her advice in many ways. As was natural, she wished to see things done as she had seen them in England. Thus she persuaded the Scottish Church to fall in with the customs of the Roman Church, just as the English Church had done at the Synod of Whitby, four hundred years before, with the same result of bringing Scotland into a closer connection with what was the best educated and the most civilized part of Europe. In everything she did, she spread English customs and English speech, first over Lothian, and then, as Lothian was the most important part of her husband's dominions, over the rest. She thus became the head of the English party against the Celts, and it is noteworthy that not one of her sons bore a name used by any Scottish king before. Edward, Edmund, Edgar, Alexander, David, all show her wish to break with the Celtic past.

Naturally this was resented by the Celts, and after Malcolm's death the Celtic party set up Donald Bane (Malcolm's brother), as king, drove out the English-speaking officials, and tried to return to old ways. For a time it seemed likely that Scotland might be divided into two - a Celtic-speaking kingdom north of the Forth, and an English-speaking kingdom south of it; but at last Edgar, son of Malcolm Canmore, overcame Donald Bane and his Celtic party. The army with which it was done, however, was largely aided by Normans, who came from Rufus's dominions in search of adventures and estates. When the war was over, these remained in the Lowlands, and thus, in addition to its Saxon blood, the south of Scotland has a mixture of Norman blood and Norman names; many of Bruce's supporters in later days - men of whom Scotland is most proud - were of Norman descent, as their names show: Lindsay, Ramsay, Wishart, Maxwell, are all Norman names - indeed, Bruce himself bore a Norman name. Yet though with the help of these Normans the English-speaking party got me mastery for the time, after Edgar's death division still went on. Alexander the Fierce ruled Scotland north of the Forth, supported by the Celts. His younger brother, David, was king over Lothian and Strathclyde, backed up by Norman barons and the English king. On Alexander's death, however, David inherited his realm, and was able enough to reconcile both parties under him.

The Makings of Scotland; Part 3

Chronology