1300-1371
by Gwen Sinclair
As the Chronicles of Castle Hill continue, referencing the archaeological studies of the 11980s and 90s, evidence suggests this chapter opens with Castle Hill, together with the other High Steward’s estates, all held by King Edward I of England, with little surviving of their once great 13th century castle at Dundonald.
As the bells rang out for the start of the new century in the year 1300, it was likely in faint celebration. For the nation of Scotland remained gripped by the icy fingers of political turmoil and economic instability, much of its land mass under the tyrannical occupation of England’s King Edward I, with its own King John Balliol (c1249-1314), now exiled in France.
As for Castle Hill, it’s difficult to say just how much of its great 13th century castle remained, as excavations surmise that it was likely by now generally ruinous, with nothing of its west gatehouse remaining from about 4-5 m above ground. Dundonald, after over one and half centuries in hands of the High Stewards of Scotland, together with the rest of their feudal estates across Kyle, Renfrewshire, and beyond, were now controlled by Edward I.
As for the previous residents of Castle Hill, and indeed James the 5th High Steward of Scotland (c1283-1309), and his family, where they lived at this time is not known, but England’s king had appointed Sir Alexander Lindsay, of Barnweil, Byres and Crawford (c1267-c1309) as feudal protector of what had been James’ estates. As Hogmanay merriments go, a somewhat bitter celebration may well have been observed at any family feast that year, for Sir Alexander was married to James’ sister, Lady Beatrix Alice Stewart (1264-1337). Nonetheless, it wasn’t long before Sir Alexander appeared to have fallen from Edward’s good graces when later in the year the Steward’s lands were passed to the control of Henry de Lacy, 5th Earl of Lincoln (c1249-1311), a close advisor to England’s king, who had fought against Sir William Wallace at the battle of Falkirk in 1298.
As for Sir Alexander Lindsay, he appeared to have continued this decline in favour when by 1305, England’s monarch, often referred to as Edward Longshanks, due to his exceptionally long limbs, kicked Alexander out of the British isles for a half-year of banishment.
Meanwhile, by May 1301, Henry de Lacy, was tasked with a kind of heir-to-the-throne-in-training exercise, taking Edward’s heir, named after his father, under his expanding wing in Scotland. It is reasonable to suppose that young Edward (1284-1327) could have spent some time at Dundonald since archaeology at the site has uncovered post-holes showing that a wooden structure had likely been built over what remained of the masonry base of the East gatehouse towers of the 13th century castle. This is thought to have been a temporary English Peel or Pele, or fortified camp and barracks usually surrounded by a palisade. Other finds included over 50 nails, green glaze pottery and 3 bone-handled knives, thought to have been tools for working leather – all probably from this period – as well as an abundance of charcoal and charred timber joists or beams, giving reason to suppose that any defensible wooden garrison structure was eventually set ablaze.
Later in the year, an urgent missive for immediate assistance was dispatched to Edward I from Henry de Lacy’s appointed steward at Renfrew Castle, another stronghold that had belonged to James. This was probably in response to news of a 300 strong raiding party who had arrived from Galloway, hellbent on driving Edward’s forces out of South West Scotland. They were led by Sir John de Soules (d.1310), Guardian of Scotland from 1301-1304, whose wife was thought to be Hawise Stewart (c 1249-1317), another sister of James the 5th High Steward. The resulting restoration of James’ lands from de Lacy at this time indicates that Sir John’s mission was accomplished, and perhaps links to the charred wooden remains at Dundonald.
It seems for the most part of his later years as High Steward, James spent them in the saddle travelling between skirmishes and meetings. In July 1302, James ventured as far as the French royal Court as part of a delegation of desperate Scottish nobles, seeking assistance from King Philip IV (1268-1314) to restore their kingdom. Almost a year later, when James returned to Scotland, his days in the saddle became a little lessened perhaps when not only were his estates once more stripped from him and turned over to Henry de Lacy, but he also relinquished permission for safe conduct to travel. This may have been decreed as an incentive to surrender Sir William Wallace, who continued his campaign to wrest the nation from Edward’s grasp, and by 1304, Wallace was attacking lands in the north of England, essentially intending to cut off the supplies to Edward’s occupying forces in Scotland.
However, Wallace was captured at Robroyston, imprisoned in London, and on the 23rd day of August 1305, brutally hung, drawn and quartered, for the crime of ‘treason’ against King Edward. As a warning to all, William’s head was placed on a spike above Tower Bridge, his right arm displayed in Newcastle, his left arm at Berwick, his left leg in Aberdeen or Stirling, with his right leg in the town square in Perth. Edward hoped that any future spirit of rebellion against him in Scotland would perish alongside him. Legend has it that as much of the remains of Sir William Wallace as could be collated were buried at a secret location within the hallowed grounds of Cambuskenneth Abbey, where the banks of the meandering River Forth loop round at Stirling, giving it an odd sense of being an island.
Cambuskenneth Abbey
By November, 1305, James signed another humble submission to Edward’s will and pleasure, and once again, Dundonald and the rest of his High Steward’s estates were restored to him. Nonetheless, these lands were soon back with Henry de Lacy, when an enraged Edward Longshanks discovered that Robert the Bruce (1270-1329), now nephew-in-law to James through the Bruce’s recent marriage to Elizabeth de Burgh, daughter of the Earl of Ulster, had become invested into Scotland’s kingship in March 1306 at Scone. King Robert I’s hastily arranged coronation, in borrowed robes from the Bishop of Glasgow, and a simple coronet of thin gold replacing the Scottish crown stolen to London, caused a major ruffling of Edward’s royal feathers, appearing to have resulted in the stripping of Steward of his lands and titles once more, and given over to de Lacy.
England’s king’s coat of arms and lion rampant on purple belonging to Henry de Lacy
The Steward estates, with their blue and white chequerboard coat of arms, on gold, having by now been stripped down, and replaced many times, and yet the de Lacy banner with its lion rampant purpure (purple) on gold, fluttering in the breeze, may have lost some authority, as it could well have been mistaken for the lion rampant pennant of the king of Scotland, in a certain light. This latest attempt at control of the Steward’s lands by Henry de Lacy were to be given a short shift on this occasion, for by the autumn of that year, James’ lands were once more, and finally redeemed to him under the languid eye of Edward’s commissioned statue of Saint Mary Magdalene at Lanercost Priory in Cumbria. On the 3rd day of October 1306, James swore his final oath of fealty to England’s monarch over various saintly relics, and two of Edward’s most holiest of crosses.
Some 10 miles east of Dundonald in May the following year, king Robert I was in Galston seeking support for the defence of the kingdom when news arrived of an advancing Edward’s army led by Sir Aymer de Valence, 2nd earl of Pembroke (c1270-1324). Commanding an estimated 1500 – 3000 infantry and calvary, de Valance was under strict orders to hunt down Scotland’s king. In response, Robert marched 7 miles further east towards Loudoun Hill, halting roughly at the same strategic location of William Wallace’s raid on the English baggage train of 1297, and there he prepared for battle by setting the scene and setting a trap. Ahead of de Valence’s imminent arrival, the Scots dug three trenches, all within bow-shot range of the old Roman road which passes Loudoun Hill, hoping to assure the element of surprise, and control of the battlefield. On 10th May 1307 roughly 600 Scots forced the English to sound a hasty retreat, and we might pause to wonder if “the great breaking of spears and screams of the wounded” recounted from this event by John Barbour, (c1325-95) in his epic poem The Brus, may have reached Castle Hill, if there was anyone still there to listen.
Perhaps regarded in hindsight as a victory for Robert in more ways than one, when the news of this defeat reached the ears of Edward Longshanks, he gathered his wrath, and as vast an army as he could muster, and marched northwards in scant regard for the dire financial effects war with Scotland had taken on his royal coffers. The fates, nonetheless it seems, had other plans. At Burgh-on-Sands, a few miles south of the Scottish border on 7th July 1307, this final act essentially made him a chief participant in his own demise, as in the presence of Henry de Lacy, Edward breathed his last. Some say his final rasping order commanded that his very own relics be removed and henceforth carried northwards to Scotland to forever forward his campaign.
Edward I statue at the spot where he died at Burgh on Sands
A collective sigh in relief may well have sailed through the summer breeze across the kingdom of Scotland, and finally in March 1309 king Robert was able to hold his first parliament. Robert’s right to rule was declared, and in a letter to king Philip IV of France, calling to mind the treaties between the two kingdoms, announced Scotland’s freedom: “from the tempests of war having been quelled and secure peace having been granted, then your royal highness will be able to have as supporters to achieve the end of your desire, the service of God, and to come to your help, not only our lord the king aforesaid, but also the inhabitants of his kingdom as best they are able.” To which James placed his seal in agreement, and yet, attendance at this historic meeting was to be his final known act as High Steward of Scotland, since on 16th July 1309, his own life story came to an end.
As nothing more is ever mentioned about James’ son, Andrew, who was thought perhaps to have remained at large for some time in the company of Bruce after he was forcibly used as surety of fealty to Edward I in 1297, it’s likely that Andrew didn’t survive. This is indicated also when it was Walter (1293-1327), likely James’ oldest surviving son, at the age of only 16, who inherited the Steward lands, and took up his father’s responsibilities as Scotland’s High Steward.
So far, we know that Scotland became a more unified land mass geographically thanks to the presence and valour of the High Stewards, and with Walter, as Scotland’s 6th High Steward, the work of his father did continue, as he helped to solidify the status of the nation and its king. Yet, as we shall find out in Chapter 6, part two, perhaps James’ most lasting contribution is the trust which had formed with the Stewards and the royal family, and with his son Walter, these threads were to become ever deeply woven into the story of Scotland’s future kings…
#Year of Stories #YS2022. #TalesofScotland
Sources:
1Dundonald Castle Excavations 1986—93
Author(s): Gordon Ewart, Denys Pringle, David Caldwell, Ewan Campbell, Stephen Driscoll, Katherine Forsyth, Dennis Gallagher, Tim Holden, Fraser Hunter, David Sanderson and Jennifer Thoms
Source: Scottish Archaeological Journal, Vol. 26, No. 1/2, DUNDONALD CASTLE EXCAVATIONS 1986—93 (2004), pp. i-x, 1-166
Published by: Edinburgh University Press
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/27917525
McNamee, C. The War of the Bruces Scotland, England and Ireland 1306-1328. 1997. Tuckwell Press East Linton.
McAndrew, B. A. Scotland’s Historic Heraldry, 2006.Boydell Press
Prebble, J.,1974. The Lion in the North: one thousand years of Scottish History. pp109-10. Book Club Associates. Robert MacLebose and Co Ltd, Glasgow.
Barrow G, Royan A .James Fifth Stewart of Scotland 1260(?)-1309. Essays on the Nobility of Medieval Scotland
http://drcallumdouglas.blogspot.com/2018/04/this-aged-king-death-of-robert-ii-1390.html?m=1
Boyle, A. Ayrshire Heritage. 1990. Walker and Connell Ltd, Darvel.
Samson, D. A Genealogical and Historical Account of the Illustrious Name of Stewart, from the first original to the accession to the Imperial Crown of Scotland. 1726. Edinburgh
McNair Scott, R. Robert the Bruce King of Scots. 1996. Canongate.
https://www.westminster-abbey.org/abbey-commemorations/commemorations/henry-de-lacy-earl-of-lincoln
https://electricscotland.com/history/bruce/part1.htm
https://www.undiscoveredscotland.co.uk/stirling/cambuskenneth/index.html
http://portal.historicenvironment.scot/designation/BTL36 Notes of the Battle of Loudoun Hill
https://elizabethashworth.com/the-de-lacy-family/henry-de-lacy/https://www.east-ayrshire.gov.uk/TourismAndVisitorAttractions/LocalHistoryAndHeritage/Famouspeople/SirWilliamWallace.aspx
https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/currency-converter/#currency-result
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Edward-I-king-of-England/Wars
https://www.rps.ac.uk/trans/1309/1
Images
Cover Image by Gwen Sinclair for FoDC
Timeline by Gwen Sinclair for FoDC
James 5th High Steward seal image by Unknown author – Hewison, JK (1895). The Isle of Bute in the Olden Time. Vol. 2, The Royal Stewards and the Brandanes. Edinburgh: William Blackwood and Sons. The image appears on page 58, figure 2., Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=58368178
The remains of Turnberry Castle By Walter Baxter, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=14529485
Lanercost Priory By The original uploader was Shermozle at English Wikipedia. – Transferred from en.wikipedia to Commons., CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=2095035
Edward I coat of arms By Rs-nourse – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=42674181
Henry de Lacy Coat of Arms By Cookieman1.1.1 – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=95225986
Edward I memorial on the spot where he died at Burgh on Sands By Dougsim – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=8556481
Images from Cambuskenneth Abbey by Gwen Sinclair
