David II of Scotland

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David II
King of Scots
File:David II of Scotland (Sylvester Harding, 1797).jpg
Posthumous drawing of David II by Sylvester Harding (published in 1797) —[1] There is absolutely no evidence that suggests he actually looked like this.
Reign7 June 1329 – 22 February 1371
PredecessorRobert I
SuccessorRobert II
Burial
Holyrood Abbey
Names
David Bruce
Middle EnglishDavy the Bruys
NormanDavid de Brus
GaelicDaibhidh a Briuis
DynastyBruce
FatherRobert I
MotherElizabeth de Burgh

Daibhidh a Briuis (Modern Gaelic: Dàibhidh Bruis),[2] anglicised as David II (5 March 1324 – 22 February 1371), was King of Scotland between 7 June 1329 and 22 February 1371.

Early life

Dunfermline Palace, just visible to the right, birthplace of David Bruce.

David II was the elder and only surviving son of Robert I of Scotland and his second wife, Elizabeth de Burgh. He was born on 5 March 1324 at Dunfermline Palace, Fife. His mother died in 1327.[3] In accordance with the Treaty of Northampton's terms, David was married on 17 July 1328 to Joan of the Tower, daughter of Edward II of England and Isabella of France, at Berwick-upon-Tweed. They had no issue.[4]

Reign

David became king of Scotland upon the death of his father on 7 June 1329, aged 5 years, 3 months, and 3 days. David and his Queen were crowned at Scone on 24 November 1331.[5]

During David's minority, Sir Thomas Randolph, 1st Earl of Moray was appointed Guardian of Scotland by the Act of Settlement of 1318. After Moray's death, on 20 July 1332, he was replaced by Donald, Earl of Mar, elected by an assembly of the magnates of Scotland at Perth, 2 August 1332. Only ten days later Mar fell at the Battle of Dupplin Moor. Sir Andrew Moray of Bothwell, who was married to Christian (or Christina), the sister of King Robert I (her third husband), was chosen as the new Guardian. He was taken prisoner by the English at Roxburgh in April 1333 and was thence replaced as Guardian by Sir Archibald Douglas who fell at Halidon Hill that July.[6]

Meanwhile, on 24 September 1332, following the Scots' defeat at Dupplin, Edward Balliol a protégé of Edward III of England, was crowned King of the Scots at Scone by the English and his Scots adherents. By December, however, Balliol was forced to flee to England but returned the following year as part of an invasion force led by the English king.[7] Following the victory of this force at the Battle of Halidon Hill in July 1333, David and his Queen were sent for safety into France, reaching Boulogne on 14 May 1334,[8] and being received very graciously by the French king, Philip VI. Little is known about the life of the Scottish king in France, except that Château-Gaillard was given to him for a residence, and that he was present at the bloodless meeting of the English and French armies in October 1339 at Vironfosse, now known as Buironfosse, in the Arrondissement of Vervins.

Joan & David II with Philip VI of France.

Meanwhile David's representatives had once again obtained the upper hand in Scotland, and the king was able to return to his kingdom, landing at Inverbervie in Kincardineshire on 2 June 1341, when he took the reins of government into his own hands.

In 1346 under the terms of the Auld Alliance, he invaded England in the interests of France, but was defeated and taken prisoner by John Coupeland at the Battle of Neville's Cross on 17 October 1346,[9] and remained in England for eleven years, living principally in London, at Odiham Castle in Hampshire and Windsor Castle in Berkshire. His imprisonment was not a rigorous one, and negotiations for his release were soon begun.

Eventually, on 3 October 1357, after several interruptions, a treaty was signed at Berwick-upon-Tweed by which the Scottish estates undertook to pay 100,000 marks as a ransom for their king. This was ratified by parliament at Scone on 6 November 1357.

David returned at once to Scotland; but owing to the poverty of the kingdom it was found impossible to raise the ransom. A few instalments were paid, but the king sought to get rid of the liability by offering to make Edward III, or one of his sons, his successor in Scotland. In 1364 the Scottish parliament indignantly rejected a proposal to make Lionel, Duke of Clarence, the next king; but David negotiated secretly with Edward III over this matter, after he had suppressed a rising of some of his unruly nobles.

He remarried about 20 February 1364, Margaret Drummond, widow of Sir John Logie, Knt., and daughter of Sir Malcolm Drummond, Knt. He divorced her about 20 March 1370. They had no issue.[4][10] Margaret, however, travelled to Avignon and made a successful appeal to the Pope to reverse the sentence of divorce which had been pronounced against her in Scotland. She was still alive in January 1375.[11]

Death

David II died unexpectedly and at the height of his power in Edinburgh Castle on 22 February 1371. He was buried in Holyrood Abbey.[4][10] At the time of his death, he was planning to marry his mistress, Agnes Dunbar (daughter of Agnes Dunbar, 4th Countess of Moray). He left no children and was succeeded by his nephew, Robert II. He was the last male of the House of Bruce.

Ancestry

Family of David II of Scotland
16. Robert de Brus
8. Robert de Brus
17. Isobel of Huntingdon
4. Robert de Brus
18. Gilbert de Clare, 5th Earl of Hertford and Gloucester
9. Isabella of Gloucester and Hertford
19. Isabel Marshal
2. Robert I of Scotland
20. Donnchadh, Earl of Carrick
10. Níall of Carrick
5. Marjorie of Carrick
22. Walter Steward of Dundonald
11. Margaret Stewart
23. Bethóc of Angus
1. David II of Scotland
24. Richard Mor de Burgh
12. Walter de Burgh, 1st Earl of Ulster
25. Egidia de Lacy
6. Richard Óg de Burgh, 2nd Earl of Ulster
26. John Fitzgeoffrey
13. Isabel FitzJohn
27. Isabel Bigod
3. Elizabeth de Burgh
28. Hubert de Burgh, 1st Earl of Kent
14. John de Burgh
29. Beatrice de Warrenne
7. Margarite de Burgh
30. William III de Lanvaley
15. Hawise de Lanvaley
31. Maud Peche

Notes

  1. ^ http://www.npg.org.uk/live/search/portrait.asp?mkey=mw123890
  2. ^ Daibhidh a Briuis is the Classical Gaelic form.
  3. ^ Richardson, Douglas, Plantagenet Ancestry, Baltimore, Md., 2004, p. 23, ISBN 0-8063-1750-7
  4. ^ a b c Richardson (2004) p. 23
  5. ^ Dunbar, Sir Archibald H., Scottish Kings — A Revised Chronology of Scottish History 1005 – 1625, Edinburgh, 1899, pp. 146–7
  6. ^ Dunbar (1899) pp. 147–9
  7. ^ Dunbar (1899) pp. 148–9
  8. ^ Dunbar (1899) p. 150
  9. ^ Dunbar (1899) p. 152
  10. ^ a b Dunbar (1899) p. 154
  11. ^ Dunbar (1899) p. 156.

References

  • David Nash Ford (2004). Royal Berkshire History: David II, King of Scots (1324-1371).
  • John of Fordun (1871–72). Chronica gentis Scotorum, edited by W. F. Skene. Edinburgh.
  • John Hill Burton. (1905). History of Scotland, vol. ii. Edinburgh.
  • Andrew Lang. (1900). History of Scotland, vol. i. Edinburgh.
  • Andrew of Wyntoun. (1872–79). The orygynale cronykil of Scotland, edited by D. Laing Edinburgh.
  • Public Domain This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. {{cite encyclopedia}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)

Further reading

  • Michael Brown. (2004). The Wars of Scotland, 1214–1371. The New Edinburgh History of Scotland, volume 4. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press.
  • Ranald Nicholson. (1975)., Scotland. The Later Middle Ages. Edinburgh: Mercat Press.
  • Michael Penman. (2003). David II, 1329–71: The Bruce Dynasty in Scotland. East Linton: Tuckwell Press.
David II of Scotland
Born: 1324 Died: 1371
Regnal titles
Preceded by King of Scots
7 June 1329–22 February 1371 		Succeeded by
Scottish royalty
Preceded by Heir of Scotland
as heir apparent
5 March 1324–7 June 1329 		Succeeded by
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