The Wars Of Scotland

Between the mid-13th and mid-14th centuries, medieval Scotland experienced its greatest period of crisis. The expanding lordship of the Crown, which reached its high medieval peak under Alexander II and Alexander III, came near to collapse in the face of multiple threats. The communities which made up the 13th-century realm were forced to respond and adapt to needs of war and shifting allegiances as rival royal dynasties and the English Crown competed for lordship over Scotland. This volume describes the wars and examines their impact on the anglicized and gaelicized worlds of the British Isles. The period is dominated by the struggle to maintain Scotland as a distinct realm and community: Michael Brown considers how far the wars may also be seen as part of wider rivalries and related struggles in across western Europe.