Alexander III of Scotland
Alexander III | |
---|---|
King of Scotland | |
Reign | 6 July 1249 – 19 March 1286 |
Coronation | 13 July 1249 |
Predecessor | Alexander II |
Successor | Margaret |
Born | 4 September 1241 Roxburgh Castle, Roxburghshire, Scotland |
Died | 19 March 1286 Kinghorn Ness, Fife, Scotland | (aged 44)
Burial | 29 March 1286 |
Spouses | |
Issue More | |
House | Dunkeld |
Father | Alexander II |
Mother | Marie de Coucy |
Alexander III (Medieval
Life
Alexander was born at
The years of his minority featured an embittered struggle for the control of affairs between two rival parties, the one led by
On attaining his majority at the age of 21 in 1262, Alexander declared his intention of resuming the projects on the
Death of Alexander III
Alexander had married Margaret, daughter of King Henry III of England and Eleanor of Provence, on 26 December 1251, when he was ten years old and she was eleven.[4] She died in 1275, after they had had three children.[5]
- Margaret (28 February 1261 – 9 April 1283), who married King Eric II of Norway[3]
- Alexander, Prince of Scotland (21 January 1264 Jedburgh – 28 January 1284 Lindores Abbey); buried in Dunfermline Abbey
- David (20 March 1272 – June 1281 Stirling Castle); buried in Dunfermline Abbey
According to the Lanercost Chronicle, Alexander did not spend his decade as a widower alone: "he used never to forbear on account of season nor storm, nor for perils of flood or rocky cliffs, but would visit none too creditably nuns or matrons, virgins or widows as the fancy seized him, sometimes in disguise."[6]
Towards the end of Alexander's reign, the death of all three of his children within a few years made the question of the succession one of pressing importance. In 1284 he induced the
Alexander died in a fall from his horse while riding in the dark to visit the queen at Kinghorn in Fife on 19 March 1286 because it was her birthday the next day.[9] He had spent the evening at Edinburgh Castle celebrating his second marriage and overseeing a meeting with royal advisors. He was cautioned against making the journey to Fife because of weather conditions, but crossed the Forth from Dalmeny to Inverkeithing anyway.[10] On arriving in Inverkeithing, he insisted on not stopping for the night, despite the pleas of the nobles accompanying him and one of the burgesses of the town, Alexander Le Saucier. Le Saucier (who was either linked to the King's kitchen or the master of the local saltpans) must have been known to the King, since his rather blunt warning to the King lacks the usual deference: "My lord, what are you doing out in such weather and darkness? How many times have I tried to persuade you that midnight travelling will do you no good?"[11]
However, Alexander ignored the repeated warnings about travelling in a storm, and set off with his retinue and two local guides.[10] The king became separated from his party near Kinghorn, and was found dead with a broken neck near the shore the following morning. It is assumed that his horse lost its footing in the dark. While some texts say that he fell off a cliff,[12] there is none at the site where his body was found; however, there is a very steep rocky embankment, which "would have been fatal in the dark."[13] After Alexander's death, his realm was plunged into a period of darkness that would eventually lead to war with England. He was buried in Dunfermline Abbey.
As Alexander left no surviving children, the heir to the throne was his unborn child by Queen Yolande. When Yolande's pregnancy ended, probably with a miscarriage, Alexander's three-year-old granddaughter
The death of Alexander and the subsequent period of instability in Scotland was lamented in an early Scots poem recorded by Andrew of Wyntoun in his Orygynale Cronykil of Scotland.
Quhen Alexander our kynge was dede,
That Scotlande lede in lauche and le,
Away was sons of alle and brede,
Off wyne and wax, of gamyn and gle.
Our golde was changit into lede.
Crist, borne in virgynyte,
Succoure Scotlande, and ramede,
That is stade in perplexite.[14]
In 1886, a monument to Alexander III was erected at the approximate location of his death in Kinghorn.[15]
Fictional portrayals
Alexander III has been depicted in historical novels. They include:[16]
- The Thirsty Sword (1892) by Robert Leighton. The novel depicts the "Norse invasion of Scotland" (1262–1263, part of the Haakon IV of Norway.[16]
- Alexander the Glorious (1965) by Jane Oliver. The novel covers the entire reign of Alexander III (1249–1286), "almost entirely from Alexander's viewpoint".[17][18]
- The Crown in Darkness (1988) by Paul C. Doherty. A crime fiction novel where Hugh Corbett investigates the "mysterious death" of Alexander III (1286). Alexander supposedly suffered a fatal fall from his horse. But there are suspicions of murder. The novel concludes that Alexander was indeed murdered "by a fanatical servant" of Edward I of England. The killer acting according to "Edward's secret desire to overwhelm and control Scotland". Doherty suggests that the personal relations of the two kings were strained by constant arguments, though this is not confirmed by historical sources.[19]
- Quest For A Maid (1988) by Frances Mary Hendry. The novel depicts the life of Meg, her power-hungry older sister Inge, Lady Marjorie, Countess of Carrick and their part in securing the succession of Lady Marjorie's son Robert the Bruceto the Scottish throne. It includes depictions of Alexander III's death as "falling off a cliff" with sorcery as the cause.
- Insurrection (2010) by Robyn Young. This novel is the first of a series of novels primarily about the life and times of Robert the Bruce. However, it covers Alexander III and the circumstances surrounding his death in some detail.[20]
- Raphael Holinshed, in his oft-fanciful history of England in his Chronicles, stated that at Alexander III's wedding, a horrible monster, mostly skeleton but with raw flesh, appeared at the end of the procession and caused the wedding to be hurriedly concluded. This was, in tradition, an omen of death.
- Crusader (1991) by Nigel Tranter. This novel follows the minority of Alexander III and his relationship with David de Lindsay. Tranter, who has written scores of historical novels spanning the range of Scotland's history, also wrote "Envoy Extraordinary" (1999) (about Patrick Earl of Dunbar) and "True Thomas" (1981) (about Thomas the Rhymer), both of which take place during the reign of Alexander III, and in which Alexander is a featured character.
Ancestry
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Notes
- required.)
- ISBN 978-0-8108-7497-8.
- ^ a b c "Alexander III, King of Scots 1249–1286". Scotland's History, BBC.
- ^ Margaret MacArthur (12 July 2017). History of Scotland. Merkaba Press via PublishDrive. pp. 25–. PKEY:6610000020409.[permanent dead link]
- ISBN 978-1-4721-0113-6.
- ^ Maxwell, Herbert, ed. (1909). "Chronicle of Lanercost". The Scottish Historical Review. 6: 184. Retrieved 8 August 2016.
- ^ ""Death of Alexander III", Foghlam Alba". Archived from the original on 14 July 2015. Retrieved 14 July 2015.
- ^ Duncan 2016, p. 347.
- ^ Marshall, Rosalind K. (2003). Scottish Queens, 1034–1714. Tuckwell Press. p. 27.
- ^ ISSN 1320-4246.
- OCLC 931094353.
- ^ Wood, James, ed. (1920). The Nuttall Encyclopaedia. London: Warne. p. 13. Retrieved 8 August 2016.
- ISBN 978-1445643830. Retrieved 8 August 2016.
- ]
- ^ ""Alexander III Monument, Kinghorn", British Listed Buildings".
- ^ a b Nield (1968), p. 37
- ^ ""Historical Novel:Medieval Celts"".
- ^ ""Alexander the Glorious", review". Amazon.
- ^ Browne, Kreiser (2000), p. 78, 80–81
- ^ "Insurrection". historicalnovelsociety.org.
Sources
- Anderson, Alan Orr (ed.), Early Sources of Scottish History: AD 500–1286, 2 Vols, (Edinburgh, 1922), republished, Marjorie Anderson (ed.) (Stamford, 1991)
- idem (ed.), Scottish Annals from English Chroniclers: AD 500–1286, (London, 1908), republished, Marjorie Anderson (ed.) (Stamford, 1969)
- Ashley, Mike (2002), British Kings & Queens, Carroll & Graf, ISBN 0-7867-1104-3.
- Brown, Michael (2004), The Wars of Scotland 1214–1371, Edinburgh University Press, ISBN 0-7486-1237-8
- Browne, Ray Broadus; Krauser, Lawrence A. (2000), The Detective as Historian: History and Art in historical crime fiction, Vol. 1, Popular Press, ISBN 978-0-87972-815-1
- Campbell, Marion (1999), Alexander III King of Scots, House of Lochar, ISBN 1-899863-55-9
- Duncan, A A M (2016). The Kingship of the Scots, 842-1292: Succession and Independence. Edinburgh University Press.
- Fergusson, James (1937), Alexander the Third King of Scotland, Alexander MacClehose & Co.
- Neville, Cynthia J.; Simpson, Grant G. (2012), Regesta Regum Scottorum, Vol. IV part 1. The Acts of Alexander III, Edinburgh University Press, ISBN 978-0-7486-2732-5.
- Nield, Jonathan (1968), A Guide to the Best Historical Novels and Tales, Ayer Publishing, ISBN 978-0-8337-2509-7
- Reid, Norman H. (1990), Scotland in the Reign of Alexander III 1249–1286, John Donald, ISBN 0-85976-218-1
- Scott, Robert McNair. Robert the Bruce: King of Scots, 1869
Further reading
- Chambers, Robert; Thomson, Thomas Napier (1857). . A Biographical Dictionary of Eminent Scotsmen. Vol. 1. Glasgow: Blackie and Son. pp. 47–49 – via Wikisource.
- Alexander III at the official website of the British monarchy
- Alexander III at BBC History