Page:Dictionary of National Biography volume 17.djvu/34

Edward I affairs of the kingdom (, Documents, i. 4). During 1288 Edward was in treaty with Eric of Norway to procure a marriage between his son Edward and Eric's daughter Margaret) and the following year a bull was obtained from Rome sanctioning the marriage, which was approved of and settled by a meeting of commissioners of the three kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Norway, held at Salisbury on 6 Nov. The treaty of Salisbury gratified the Scots, and a letter expressing their pleasure was sent to Edward by the estates assembled at Brigham, near Roxburgh, on 10 March 1290. The estates also entered into a treaty in July concerning the preservation of the rights and laws of the kingdom. Edward then appointed Antony Bek, bishop of Durham, governor of Scotland, in the name of Margaret and of his son Edward, that he might act with the regents and magnates in administering the kingdom according to its ancient laws; and further demanded that the castles should be put at his disposal, for he had heard of certain dangers that threatened the country. This demand, however, was refused, and was not insisted on. Margaret set sail from Norway and died before reaching Orkney. There were thirteen competitors for the crown, and the kingdom was in imminent danger of disturbance. Even before the death of Margaret, when the report of her illness had reached Scotland, the bishop of St. Andrews, the chief of the guardians of the kingdom, wrote to Edward urging his interference, and entreating him, should the queen be dead, to come to the border in order to prevent bloodshed, and to enable the faithful men of the realm to 'choose for their king him who ought to be so' (Fœdera ii. 1090). Edward is said to have told his lords that he hoped to bring the king and kingdom of Scotland as much under his authority as he had brought Wales (Ann. Wav. p. 409). This reads like an afterthought. At all events he did nothing which tended to reduce Scotland to the same condition as Wales, for he took steps towards providing her with a king by summoning the lords of the kingdom to meet him at Norham on 10 May 1291, while certain of his own military tenants were also ordered to be there at the beginning of June. On opening the proceedings the chief justice demanded whether the Scottish barons would recognise Edward as their superior lord, and various passages were read from ancient chronicles showing how the Scottish kings had in time past done homage to the kings of England. When the barons were evidently unwilling to assent to this demand the king swore 'by St. Edward that he would either have the due right of his kingdom and of the crown of St. Edward of which he was the guardian, or would die in that place in the prosecution of it' (, ii. 34). He gave them three weeks to consider their answer. When they came before him again on 2 June, the lords and clergy acknowledged his superiority, and each one of the eight competitors that were present afterwards did so singly for himself, promising to abide by his decision as that of the 'sovreign lord of the land' (Fœdera, ii. 529). Edward received seisin of the land and castles, and immediately restored the guardianship of the land to the regents, adding a lord to their number and appointing a chancellor and chamberlain. He received oaths of fealty from several lords, his peace was proclaimed, he appointed a commission consisting partly of Englishmen and partly of Scotchmen, chosen by Bruce and Baliol to decide on the claims of the competitors, adjourned the court until 2 Aug., and then proceeded to Edinburgh, Stirling, and Perth, receiving the homage of the people at each place to which he came. The court was again opened at Berwick on 2 Aug., the proceedings were adjourned, and the king returned to the south. The proofs of the recognition of his superiority over Scotland were by his command entered in the chronicles of divers English monasteries. In the March of this year Nicolas IV granted him a tenth of ecclesiastical revenue lor six years for the crusade he was contemplating (ib ii. 509). Acre had fallen, and the christians of the East were looking to Edward to defend their cause. He was never able to undertake this crusade, and he applied the money which is said to have been collected with much strictness to other purposes (, p. 198). On 8 Sept. he buried his mother with considerable state at Amesbury. A private war that had been carried on between the Earls of Gloucester and Hereford took him to Abergavenny to hold an inquisition concerning a castle that Gloucester had built there without license. Thence he went to Hereford, and on 9 Nov. to Worcester. On the 25th he solemnly kept the anniversary of the queen's funeral at London, with a large number of bishops who came thither for the purpose (Ann. Wigorn. p. 506). After keeping St. Edmund's day, 28 April 1292, with his son and daughters at Bury St. Edmund's, and visiting Walsingham Abbey (Cont. . ii. 264), Edward again proceeded to Berwick. While he was at York he caused Rhys, son of Meredydd, who had risen against him and had been defeated and captured, to be tried and executed for treason. On 2 June the court was again opened at Berwick. The hearing of the case lasted until 17 Nov. [for