[Britannia Expansion - Custom Submod] The Isles of Chaos (Roleplay Hotseat)

[Turkafinwë]

Ps: I find this change of events very cool! Well done guys. The aim of this HS is not to win AT ALL COST (kinda of course - we should always keep the victory conditions in mind), but to create a nice RP setting.
Cheers!

and don't forget...SEEK AND DESTROY!

And that's why this HS is the best one out there! (come fight me )

[paladinbob123]

At warkworth castle he was joined by a massive army of English soldiers lead by Lord Francis, and the shires reinforcement group was lead by Leofwine who had ridden from Newcastle just for the sake of taking part in another fight, which he was loath to miss. The castle had a significant garrison but had no real commander of note and many of the troops were of a low quality standard garrison troop than any companies of quality , so the attackers had spent the last season preparing siege engines and artillery , with plenty of time to prepare their assault.

Outnumbered five to one, when the walls defenses where mainly reduced to rubble, thank to the artillery, the english force, engaged in archery fire on one side of the castle, where-as the northern shires forces maned their siege engine's, and attacked the walls, the gate in a massive overwhelming assault. Bewildered, beleaguered and without good command [the commander had taken a concussion inflicted hit due to debris hitting him from cannon ball damage], the assault went smoothly with the northern duchy troops taking the walls, and overwhelming the gatehouse, leading to the allies storming inside the castle.

Hand to hand fighting broke out in the courtyards, but the overwhelming numbers cut through what little defenses the scottish could putup, and they were forced to using the keeps slight staircases to fight single combat fighting in the narrow places, to slow the assault, but it could not be stopped. The light faded and torches where boughtout, and the storming of the keep commenced with both sides taking some losses but the duchy troops forced their way into the main part of the keep , where at this point, the scottish surrendered, thinking that honour had been done, and further loss of life would avail them little.



It took several days, to regain control of the army [most where in search of loot] , which Duke Geoffrey spent on planning the next steps of the campaign, knowing that speed was a essential thing , almost as important as surprise which was fading fast as a advantage against the Scottish forces. As he unraveled the map, and consulted messages from the english king, he knew their next moves must be against the neck of scotland where several important cities of perth, edinburgh and stirling where based, intelligence reports had showed that scotland had withdrawn the heavily armoured pikeman that were garrisoned in hume castle had withdrawn to edinburgh to reinforce its garrison. Furthermore, this defence line had scottish troops flooding into it, and reports showed that edinburgh could now field its own full field army now ,the situation would only get worse, the longer time went on.



Frustrated at the escape of the heavy pike from hume castle caused Duke Geoffrey to bang the table with his fist, but he knew he didnt have the strength to do everything on the border, and although he advised the english to advance, they were having their own problems navigating the northern road networks in unfamiliar terrority. To the north of him , lay Kirk with his border defence force, down to half strength but still a threat, and hume castle would have to be taken with his own troops to clear the road north into scotland proper. For the attack at Hume , he would ask Leofwine to do this task, although from the captured drink and leofwine profanity , he rather worried about his capability to achieve this deed, so he noted to let a accomplished sergeant at arms to leave with him, to help out if needed.

Within the end of the week , Duke Geoffrey took a small apart of his previous army and lead it northwards into Scotland proper, navigating over the light foothills, towards the coast and kirks camp, where the scottish troops where attempting to reorganize , and rest from wounds. Although the troops of the duke outnumbered the scottish in quantity , the scots still had some quality troops in some highlanders, some nobles, warriors and pikemen were particularly hard to troops to face, but the rest was town&spear militia from the settlements, who were better armored but lacked the fierceness and hardiness of the highlanders.

The duke sent a emissary to ask the scottish forces to surrender, but kirk shouted out a turse reply.

"Dinnae come 'ere tae parley , we perfer tae mak' ye bleed ower than blether " , shouted out kirk, stopping all negotiation, as he formed up his forces, with the highlanders in the centre.

Duke Geoffrey cursed these barbarians , and ordered the attack with the heavy billmen , billmen&spear militia to charge the enemy line. Ten minutes went by , but they held, and even in some places in the centre, they began to push back the english, so the duke sent in reinforcements into the center to pack the line, which held the battleline stable. Within twenty minutes, the line had flattened, with the scottish nobles pushed back to their starting positions, but within half a hour, the town &spear militia began to weaken for the scot's, with the more offensive bill troops beginning to fold in their flanks. Some Scottish highlanders hidden in the short brushland, sprang up and attempted to flank the english effort, but the duke sent in his heavy cavalry bodyguard, who cut them down without mercy, but the mainpart of the fighting was coming to a bloody end, as the english flanking troops had pushed the Scottish troops on the flanks into the main line, jumbling the town&dspear militia amongst the highlanders, and all of them were now surrounded on three sides, with the only open sides being the sea, where even there in the distance english shipping patrolled.

The english troops pushed onwards, their bill hooks making use of the scottish jumble and confusion as a massacre began to occur as the scottish had nowhere to turn, some scottish troops dropped their weapons and dived in the cold wars of the sea, hoping to swim in the strong currents to no avail.

"Ah arent aff tae be some trophey fur a sassenach dog....if yi'll waant mah body yer gaun hae tae fish fur it" , cried Kirk before felling one more english billman, before he took his axe, turned his back on the english and strode slowly into the sea, his back of his head became the only things that could be seen , before that to disappeared below the waves of the hungery sea, never to reappear.



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"fekking sods! Come down and fight,you cowards!.......Have all your balls rotted away?!", the torrent of abuse, from the drunk lord Leofwine , was hurled at the defenders of Hume castle, just a few companies of spear militia, looked on in bemusement of the enlgish lord, who was struggling with his breeches , so he could pee in the direction of the scottish defenders.

The sergeant at arms sighed, at the drunken lord, and ordered, the troops to rush at the castle, and the Scottish defenders, were astonished to find the chains to lower the portcullis had been jammed, [some english spies had entered a few nights back and sabotaged the defences]. Caught off guard, the english troops had entered the courtyard before the defenders were ready, forcing the battle to a fight in the courtyard, a fight perhaps the scottish couldnt win with their numbers, but all had to laugh at the english lord, complaining that the sergeant had started the attack before he was ready, as he desperately pulled up his breeches, after relieving himself , so he could quickly get into the quickly developing fight.

A few hours later, the castle had been taken [despite the english lord], the castle made safe, and the main road, leading into the neck& perhaps the heart of scotland was wide open for the forces of the alliance to travel northwards and perhaps bring a fatal blow to the scottish kingdom.



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The battle at hermitage castle was truly a multinational affair, with nicholas forces, including welsh archers, and irish kerns as well as a full english army making up the bulk of the forces. He was joined by the English king , Anslem, who was accompanied by George of Plymouth , and Nicholas was happy to take a backseat in the planning of the assault, trying to ignore the letter from the scottish asking him to rebel despite the fact, he was now surrounded by english forces , especially now Carlisle had been taken.

The siege started badly for Nicholas as the scottish formed a sally group made from some of their best troops of highlanders, noble lords[in armour] and some mercenaries and let them sneak out of the gates during the night, where they kept low in the heather surrounding the land. In the early morning of dawn they leapt out of the brush, and stormed the english position. The sudden shock of the assault took the duchy troops by surprise, as the elite troops took a good accounting of themselfs, but there main target was revealed as the cannons , the duchy troops had bought to break the walls. Although the guns were saved, the engineer crew were assaulted , with many killed , reducing the efficiency of this previous arm. With four hundred dead and his artillery companies damaged, the english king looked down on Nicholas, and ordered him to lead, the assault to prove himself, and regain his honour.

The guns the duchy bought reduced the walls and towers of the defence, and Nicholas helped storm the walls, using the siege towers they had bought, as the ram assaulted the gatehouse and ladders were bought forward to storm the walls in other areas. The walls were taken at a cost, and a very bloody Nicholas reported to the king , the walls were theirs, with much bloodshed, on all sides . There was a quick battle for the keep, and then the Scottish army surrendered, removing perhaps the last intact border defence army of scotland [out of three].

With the castle taken , Nicholas received new orders from Duke Geoffrey where he was to hand his command over the navy where-as it was to be given to support Lord Godwin lewes who had sailed across the coast and lay siege to Dumfries, whilst he was to move to secure the isle of mann. There was a look of severe suspicion in Nicholas'es eyes as he read the letter, and the english king had a glint in his eyes, but he still shook his hand in thanks ,patted him on the back before the king moved onto past him to other matters. A worrying niggle seem to worry the duchy general that perhaps someone or sombody had been reading his messages, and he had been removed from his post, perhaps for the blunder of defending his artillery or whether they worrying he would actually rebel or respond to the scottish kings words, and so he had been removed from command and shuttled over to a quieter area of the battlefield.



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There was a modicum of naval combat as the meager fleet in the north sea, finally caught up to the scottish squadron they had engaged last season, and finally brought them back to battle, and finally ended their threat on the sea, leaving the scottish fleet , flailing , on fire, and slowly sinking into the sea.



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Waylander sighed as he lowered the dual firing crossbow seeing the young noble, sink his head onto the table they had sent out near the tent, where the scottish army was gathering on the western coastline. He had been ordered to cause strife and stop who he could ...but truly he didnt want to kill such youngsters, who didnt even have beards yet, for it seemed they had not even experienced life fully yet, and had not been corrupted in the path of it. Such kills , always disturbed him , for he preferred to kill those who had found their own vices, for it justified the kill in some part. ...or perhaps he was just getting old/tired of the killing.

He sighed again, strapping the crossbow to his side, as he moved into the brush to the south of the camp, as the scottish guard became award of the young lords demise, and vanished into the countryside.



turn to England
https://www.dropbox.com/s/i71vx2ky55...d_120.sav?dl=0

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Edinburgh



"Edin", the root of the city's name, derives from Eidyn, the name for this region in Cumbric, the Brittonic Celtic language formerly spoken there. The name's meaning is unknown. The district of Eidyn centred on the stronghold Din Eidyn, the dun or hillfort of Eidyn. This stronghold is believed to have been located at Castle Rock, now the site of Edinburgh Castle. Eidyn was conquered by the Angles of Bernicia in the 7th century and later occupied by the Scots in the 10th century. As the language shifted to Northumbrian Old English, which evolved into Scots, the Brittonic din in Din Eidyn was replaced by burh, producing Edinburgh. Similarly, din became dùn in Scottish Gaelic, producing Dùn Èideann.

Nicknames

[coat of arms of edinburgh - Motto(s): Nisi Dominus Frustra (Latin) = Without the Lord, all is in vain]


The city is affectionately nicknamed Auld Reekie, Scots for Old Smoky, for the views from the country of the smoke-covered Old Town. A remark on a poem in an 1800 collection of the poems of Allan Ramsay said, "Auld Reeky. A name the country people give Edinburgh from the cloud of smoke or reek that is always impending over it."

Thomas Carlyle said, "Smoke cloud hangs over old Edinburgh,—for, ever since Aeneas Silvius's time and earlier, the people have the art, very strange to Aeneas, of burning a certain sort of black stones, and Edinburgh with its chimneys is called 'Auld Reekie' by the country people."

A character in Walter Scott's The Abbot says "... yonder stands Auld Reekie—you may see the smoke hover over her at twenty miles' distance."

Robert Chambers who said that the sobriquet could not be traced before the reign of Charles II attributed the name to a Fife laird, Durham of Largo, who regulated the bedtime of his children by the smoke rising above Edinburgh from the fires of the tenements. "It's time now bairns, to tak' the beuks, and gang to our beds, for yonder's Auld Reekie, I see, putting on her nicht -cap!"

Edinburgh has been popularly called the Athens of the North from the early 19th century. References to Athens, such as Athens of Britain and Modern Athens, had been made as early as the 1760s. The similarities were seen to be topographical but also intellectual. Edinburgh's Castle Rock reminded returning grand tourists of the Athenian Acropolis, as did aspects of the neoclassical architecture and layout of New Town. Both cities had flatter, fertile agricultural land sloping down to a port several miles away (respectively Leith and Piraeus). Intellectually, the Scottish Enlightenment with its humanist and rationalist outlook was influenced by Ancient Greek philosophy. In 1822, artist Hugh William Williams organized an exhibition that showed his paintings of Athens alongside views of Edinburgh, and the idea of a direct parallel between both cities quickly caught the popular imagination. When plans were drawn up in the early 19th century to architecturally develop Calton Hill, the design of the National Monument directly copied Athens' Parthenon.Tom Stoppard's character Archie, of Jumpers, said, perhaps playing on Reykjavík meaning "smoky bay", that the "Reykjavík of the South" would be more appropriate.


[note the two darker patches in the middle are [left] edinburgh castle-note the shear sides on most areas..and [right] calton hill


The city has also been known by several Latin names such as Edinburgum while the adjectival forms Edinburgensis and Edinensis are used in educational and scientific contexts.

Edina is a late 18th century poetical form used by the Scots poets Robert Fergusson and Robert Burns. "Embra" or "Embro" are colloquialisms from the same time, as in Robert Garioch's Embro to the Ploy.

Ben Jonson described it as "Britaine's other eye", and Sir Walter Scott referred to it as "yon Empress of the North". Robert Louis Stevenson, also a son of the city, wrote that Edinburgh "is what Paris ought to be."


History
The earliest known human habitation in the Edinburgh area was at Cramond, where evidence was found of a Mesolithic camp site dated to c. 8500 BC. Traces of later Bronze Age and Iron Age settlements have been found on Castle Rock, Arthur's Seat, Craiglockhart Hill and the Pentland Hills.

When the Romans arrived in Lothian at the end of the 1st century AD, they found a Brittonic Celtic tribe whose name they recorded as the Votadini. The Votadini transitioned into the Gododdin kingdom in the Early Middle Ages, with Eidyn serving as one of the kingdom's districts. During this period, the Castle Rock site, thought to have been the stronghold of Din Eidyn, emerged as the kingdom's major centre. The medieval poem Y Gododdin describes a war band from across the Brittonic world who gathered in Eidyn before a fateful raid; this may describe a historical event around AD 600.

In 638, the Gododdin stronghold was besieged by forces loyal to King Oswald of Northumbria, and around this time control of Lothian passed to the Angles. Their influence continued for the next three centuries until around 950, when, during the reign of Indulf, son of Constantine II, the "burh" (fortress), named in the 10th-century Pictish Chronicle as oppidum Eden, was abandoned to the Scots. It thenceforth remained under their jurisdiction.

The royal burgh was founded by King David I in the early 12th century on land belonging to the Crown, though the date of its charter is unknown.The first documentary evidence of the medieval burgh is a royal charter, c. 1124–1127, by King David I granting a toft in burgo meo de Edenesburg to the Priory of Dunfermline. In the middle of the 14th century, the French chronicler Jean Froissart described it as the capital of Scotland (c. 1365), and James III (1451–88) referred to it in the 15th century as "the principal burgh of our kingdom". Despite the destruction caused by an English assault in 1544, the town slowly recovered, and was at the centre of events in the 16th-century Scottish Reformation and 17th-century Wars of the Covenant.




Castle rock

Castle Rock (Scottish Gaelic: Creag a' Chaisteil, IPA:[ˈkʰʲɾʲekˈaˈxaʃtʰʲɪl]) is a volcanic plug in the middle of Edinburgh upon which Edinburgh Castle sits. The rock is estimated to have formed some 350 million years ago during the early Carboniferous period. It is the remains of a volcanic pipe which cut through the surrounding sedimentary rock, before cooling to form very hard dolerite, a coarser-grained equivalent of basalt. Subsequent glacial erosion was resisted more by the dolerite, which protected the softer rock to the east, leaving a crag and tail formation.

The summit of the castle rock is 130 metres (430 ft) above sea level, with rocky cliffs to the south, west and north, rearing up to 80 metres (260 ft) from the surrounding landscape.This means that the only readily accessible route to the castle lies to the east, where the ridge slopes more gently. The defensive advantage of such a site is clear, but the geology of the rock also presents difficulties, since basalt is an extremely poor aquifer. Providing water to the Upper Ward of the castle was problematic, and despite the sinking of a 28-metre (92 ft) deep well, the water supply often ran out during drought or siege, for example during the Lang Siege of 1573




Edinburgh castle

Foreword by PB - Edinburgh castle is one of those fantastic castles , that are a must see.....its perhaps one of the archetypal defensive sites, siting atop a igneous rock of freaky nature due to a geological volcanic pug making the rock really hard...therefore undermining walls or mining in general is out of the question, with most of its sides, a shear face of cliff, [with walls around the sides] it makes mockery of siege equipment] making you storm the one and only entrance to the east [which is in the open, so nowhere to hide from missiles on its approach .Then you have the main gatehouse & drawbridge, after that a narrow channel, and then the path takes you all around the inner upper area, which can be shooting at you all the while, and the path had additional narrow points [choke points] and gate areas..its a defenders dream to be honest, and explains why perhaps its only weakness ,was one of treachery[a traditional way of taking a castle}, and its problem of water/food supply. but all in all a very hard castle to storm , indeed




Archaeological investigation has yet to establish when the Castle Rock was first used as a place of human habitation. There is no record of any Roman interest in the location during General Agricola's invasion of northern Britain near the end of the 1st century AD. Ptolemy's map of the 2nd century AD shows a settlement in the territory of the Votadini named "Alauna", meaning "rock place", making this possibly the earliest known name for the Castle Rock. This could, however, refer to another of the tribe's hill forts in the area. The Orygynale Cronykil of Andrew of Wyntoun (c. 1350 – c. 1423), an early source for Scottish history, names "Ebrawce" (Ebraucus), a legendary King of the Britons, as having "byggyd [built] Edynburgh".According to the earlier chronicler, Geoffrey of Monmouth (c. 1100 – c. 1155), Ebraucus had fifty children by his twenty wives, and was the founder of "Kaerebrauc" (York), "Alclud" (Dumbarton) and the "Maidens' Castle".

The 16th-century English writer John Stow (c. 1525 – 1605), credited Ebraucus with building "the Castell of Maidens called Edenbrough" in 989 BC. The name "Maidens' Castle" (Latin: Castra or Castellum Puellarum) occurs frequently up until the 16th century. It appears in charters of David I (r. 1124–1153) and his successors, although the reason for it is not known. William Camden's survey of Britain, Britannia (1607), records that "the Britans called [it] Castle Myned Agned [winged rock], the Scots, the Maidens Castle and the Virgins Castle, of certaine young maidens of the Picts roiall bloud who were kept there in old time". According to the 17th-century antiquarian Father Richard Hay, the "maidens" were a group of nuns, who were ejected from the castle and replaced by canons, considered "fitter to live among soldiers". However, this story was considered "apocryphal" by the 19th-century antiquarian Daniel Wilson and has been ignored by historians since. The name may have been derived from a "Cult of the Nine Maidens" type of legend.

Arthurian legends suggest that the site once held a shrine to Morgain la Fee, one of nine sisters. Later, St Monenna, said to be one of nine companions, reputedly invested a church at Edinburgh, as well as at Dumbarton and other places. Similar names are shared by many other Iron Age hillforts and may have simply described a castle that had never been taken by force or derived from an earlier Brittonic name like mag dun.

An archaeological excavation in the early 1990s uncovered evidence of the site having been settled during the late Bronze Age or early Iron Age, potentially making the Castle Rock the longest continuously occupied site in Scotland. However, the extent of the finds was not particularly significant and was insufficient to draw any certain conclusions about the precise nature or scale of this earliest known phase of occupation.

The archaeological evidence is more reliable in respect of the Iron Age. Traditionally, it had been supposed that the tribes of central Scotland had made little or no use of the Castle Rock. Excavations at nearby Dunsapie Hill, Duddingston, Inveresk and Traprain Law had revealed relatively large settlements and it was supposed that these sites had been chosen in preference to the Castle Rock. However, the excavation in the 1990s pointed to the probable existence of an enclosed hill fort on the rock, although only the fringes of the site were excavated. House fragments revealed were similar to Iron Age dwellings previously found in Northumbria.

The 1990s dig revealed clear signs of habitation from the 1st and 2nd centuries AD, consistent with Ptolemy's reference to "Alauna". Signs of occupation included some Roman material, including pottery, bronzes and brooches, implying a possible trading relationship between the Votadini and the Romans beginning with Agricola's northern campaign in AD 82, and continuing through to the establishment of the Antonine Wall around AD 140. The nature of the settlement in this period is inconclusive, but Driscoll and Yeoman suggest it may have been a broch, similar to the one at Edin's Hall near Duns, Scottish Borders in the Scottish Borders.


[The Castle seen from the North]


Early Middle Ages
The castle does not re-appear in contemporary historical records from the time of Ptolemy until around AD 600. Then, in the epic Welsh poem Y Gododdin there is a reference to Din Eidyn, "the stronghold of Eidyn". This has been generally assumed to refer to the Castle Rock. The poem tells of the Gododdin King Mynyddog Mwynfawr, and his band of warriors, who, after a year of feasting in their fortress, set out to do battle with the Angles at "Catreath" in Yorkshire. Despite performing glorious deeds of valour and bravery, the poem relates that the Gododdin were massacred.


[Map of northern Britain showing the Gododdin and other tribes c.600 AD]


The Irish annals record that in 638, after the events related in Y Gododdin, "Etin" was besieged by the Angles under Oswald of Northumbria, and the Gododdin were defeated. The territory around Edinburgh then became part of the Kingdom of Northumbria, which was itself absorbed by England in the 10th century. Lothian became part of Scotland, during the reign of Indulf (r.954–962).

The archaeological evidence for the period in question is based entirely on the analysis of middens (domestic refuse heaps), with no evidence of structures. Few conclusions can therefore be derived about the status of the settlement during this period, although the midden deposits show no clear break since Roman times.

High Middle Ages

The first documentary reference to a castle at Edinburgh is John of Fordun's account of the death of King Malcolm III (1031–1093). Fordun describes his widow, the future Saint Margaret, as residing at the "Castle of Maidens" when she is brought news of his death in November 1093. Fordun's account goes on to relate how Margaret died of grief within days, and how Malcolm's brother Donald Bane laid siege to the castle. However, Fordun's chronicle was not written until the later 14th century, and the near-contemporary account of the life of St Margaret by Bishop Turgot makes no mention of a castle. During the reigns of Malcolm III and his sons, Edinburgh Castle became one of the most significant royal centres in Scotland. Malcolm's son King Edgar died here in 1107.

Malcolm's youngest son, King David I (r.1124–1153), developed Edinburgh as a seat of royal power principally through his administrative reforms (termed by some modern scholars the Davidian Revolution). Between 1139 and 1150, David held an assembly of nobles and churchmen, a precursor to the parliament of Scotland, at the castle. Any buildings or defences would probably have been of timber, although two stone buildings are documented as having existed in the 12th century. Of these, St. Margaret's Chapel remains at the summit of the rock. The second was a church, dedicated to St. Mary, which stood on the site of the Scottish National War Memorial. Given that the southern part of the Upper Ward (where Crown Square is now sited) was not suited to being built upon until the construction of the vaults in the 15th century, it seems probable that any earlier buildings would have been located towards the northern part of the rock; that is around the area where St. Margaret's Chapel stands. This has led to a suggestion that the chapel is the last remnant of a square, stone keep, which would have formed the bulk of the 12th-century fortification. The structure may have been similar to the keep of Carlisle Castle, which David I began after 1135.


[St Margaret, depicted in a stained glass window in the chapel of Edinburgh Castle]


David's successor King Malcolm IV (r.1153–1165) reportedly stayed at Edinburgh more than at any other location. But in 1174, King William "the Lion" (r.1165–1214) was captured by the English at the Battle of Alnwick. He was forced to sign the Treaty of Falaise to secure his release, in return for surrendering Edinburgh Castle, along with the castles of Berwick, Roxburgh and Stirling, to the English King, Henry II. The castle was occupied by the English for twelve years, until 1186, when it was returned to William as the dowry of his English bride, Ermengarde de Beaumont, who had been chosen for him by King Henry. By the end of the 12th century, Edinburgh Castle was established as the main repository of Scotland's official state papers.


Wars of Scottish Independence
A century later, in 1286, on the death of King Alexander III, the throne of Scotland became vacant. Edward I of England was appointed to adjudicate the competing claims for the Scottish crown, but used the opportunity to attempt to establish himself as the feudal overlord of Scotland. During the negotiations, Edward stayed briefly at Edinburgh Castle and may have received homage there from the Scottish nobles.

In March 1296, Edward I launched an invasion of Scotland, unleashing the First War of Scottish Independence. Edinburgh Castle soon came under English control, surrendering after a three days long bombardment. Following the siege, Edward had many of the Scottish legal records and royal treasures moved from the castle to England. A large garrison numbering 325 men was installed in 1300. Edward also brought to Scotland his master builders of the Welsh castles, including Thomas de Houghton and Master Walter of Hereford, both of whom travelled from Wales to Edinburgh. After the death of Edward I in 1307, however, England's control over Scotland weakened. On 14 March 1314, a surprise night attack by Thomas Randolph, 1st Earl of Moray recaptured the castle. John Barbour's narrative poem The Brus relates how a party of thirty hand-picked men were guided by one William Francis, a member of the garrison who knew of a route along the north face of the Castle Rock and a place where the wall might be scaled. Making the difficult ascent, Randolph's men scaled the wall, surprised the garrison and took control. Robert the Bruce immediately ordered the slighting of the castle to prevent its re-occupation by the English. Four months later, his army secured victory at the Battle of Bannockburn.

After Bruce's death in 1329, Edward III of England determined to renew the attempted subjugation of Scotland and supported the claim of Edward Balliol, son of the former King John Balliol, over that of Bruce's young son David II. Edward invaded in 1333, marking the start of the Second War of Scottish Independence, and the English forces reoccupied and refortified Edinburgh Castle in 1335, holding it until 1341. This time, the Scottish assault was led by William Douglas, Lord of Liddesdale. Douglas's party disguised themselves as merchants from Leith bringing supplies to the garrison. Driving a cart into the entrance, they halted it there to prevent the gates closing. A larger force hidden nearby rushed to join them and the castle was retaken. The 100 English men of the garrison were all killed.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yJc3_F8dEcE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7qucLznvpnI
[some fantastic aerial views of edinburgh castle....there are many more to find ]


David's Tower and the 15th century
The 1357 Treaty of Berwick brought the Wars of Independence to a close. David II resumed his rule and set about rebuilding Edinburgh Castle which became his principal seat of government. David's Tower was begun around 1367, and was incomplete when David died at the castle in 1371. It was completed by his successor, Robert II, in the 1370s. The tower stood on the site of the present Half Moon Battery and was connected by a section of curtain wall to the smaller Constable's Tower, a round tower built between 1375 and 1379 where the Portcullis Gate now stands.

In the early 15th century, another English invasion, this time under Henry IV, reached Edinburgh Castle and began a siege, but eventually withdrew due to lack of supplies. From 1437, Sir William Crichton was Keeper of Edinburgh Castle, and soon after became Chancellor of Scotland. In an attempt to gain the regency of Scotland, Crichton sought to break the power of the Douglases, the principal noble family in the kingdom. The sixteen-year-old William Douglas, 6th Earl of Douglas and his younger brother David were summoned to Edinburgh Castle in November 1440. After the so-called "Black Dinner" had taken place in David's Tower, both boys were summarily executed on trumped-up charges in the presence of the ten-year-old King James II (r.1437–1460). Douglas' supporters subsequently besieged the castle, inflicting damage. Construction continued throughout this period, with the area now known as Crown Square being laid out over vaults in the 1430s. Royal apartments were built, forming the nucleus of the later palace block, and a Great Hall was in existence by 1458. In 1464, access to the castle was improved when the current approach road up the north-east side of the rock was created to allow easier movement of the royal artillery train in and out of the area now known as the Upper Ward.

In 1479, Alexander Stewart, Duke of Albany, was imprisoned in David's Tower for plotting against his brother, King James III (r.1460–1488). He escaped by getting his guards drunk, then lowering himself from a window on a rope. The duke fled to France, then England, where he allied himself with King Edward IV. In 1482, Albany marched into Scotland with Richard, Duke of Gloucester (later King Richard III) and an English army. James III was trapped in the castle from 22 July to 29 September 1482 until he successfully negotiated a settlement.

During the 15th century the castle was increasingly used as an arsenal and armaments factory. The first known purchase of a gun was in 1384, and the "great bombard" Mons Meg was delivered to Edinburgh in 1457. The first recorded mention of an armoury for the manufacture of guns occurs in 1474, and by 1498 the master gunner Robert Borthwick was casting bronze guns at Edinburgh. By 1511 Edinburgh was the principal foundry in Scotland, supplanting Stirling Castle, with Scottish and European smiths working under Borthwick, who by 1512 was appointed "master melter of the king's guns". Their output included guns for the Scottish flagship, the "Great Michael", and the "Seven Sisters", a set of cannons captured by the English at Flodden in 1513. Sir Thomas Howard, England's Lord Admiral, admired their graceful shape and brilliant finish, declaring them the most beautiful [cannon] for their size and length that he had ever seen. From 1510 Dutch craftsmen were also producing hand culverins, an early firearm. After Flodden, Borthwick continued his work, producing an unknown number of guns, of which none survive. He was succeeded by French smiths, who began manufacturing hagbuts (another type of firearm) in the 1550s, and by 1541 the castle had a stock of 413.

Meanwhile, the royal family began to stay more frequently at the Abbey of Holyrood, about 1 mile (1.6 km) from the castle. Around the end of the fifteenth century, King James IV (r.1488–1513) built Holyroodhouse, by the abbey, as his principal Edinburgh residence, and the castle's role as a royal home subsequently declined. James IV did, however, construct the Great Hall, which was completed in the early 16th century. His daughter Margaret Stewart was lodged in the castle with her servant Ellen More.

James IV was killed in battle at Flodden Field, on 9 September 1513. Expecting the English to press their advantage, the Scots hastily constructed a town wall around Edinburgh and augmented the castle's defences. Robert Borthwick and a Frenchman, Antoine d'Arces, were involved in designing new artillery defences and fortifications in 1514, though it appears from lack of evidence that little of the planned work was carried out. Three years later, King James V (r.1513–1542), still only five years old, was brought to the castle for safety. Upon his death 25 years later, the crown passed to his week-old daughter, Mary, Queen of Scots. English invasions followed, as King Henry VIII attempted to force a dynastic marriage on Scotland. When the English burnt Edinburgh in May 1544 the gunner Andrew Mansioun firing from the castle destroyed an English cannon placed to bombard the forework. In 1547 disaffected members of the garrison who resented Regent Arran came to Norham Castle and offered to let the English in.

Refortification in 1548 included an earthen angle-bastion, known as the Spur, of the type known as trace italienne, one of the earliest examples in Britain. Brunstane Castle the home of the traitor Alexander Crichton was demolished to provide building materials.The Spur may have been designed by Migliorino Ubaldini, an Italian engineer from the court of Henry II of France, and was said to have the arms of France carved on it. James V's widow, Mary of Guise, acted as regent from 1554 until her death at the castle in 1560.

The following year, the Catholic Mary, Queen of Scots, returned from France to begin her reign, which was marred by crises and quarrels amongst the powerful Protestant Scottish nobility. In 1565, the Queen made an unpopular marriage with Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley, and the following year, in a small room of the Palace at Edinburgh Castle, she gave birth to their son James, who would later be King of both Scotland and England. Mary's reign was, however, brought to an abrupt end. Three months after the murder of Darnley at Kirk o' Field in 1567, she married James Hepburn, 4th Earl of Bothwell, one of the chief murder suspects. A large proportion of the nobility rebelled, resulting ultimately in the imprisonment and forced abdication of Mary at Loch Leven Castle. She escaped and fled to England, but some of the nobility remained faithful to her cause. Edinburgh Castle was initially handed by its Captain, James Balfour, to the Regent Moray, who had forced Mary's abdication and now held power in the name of the infant King James VI. Shortly after the Battle of Langside, in May 1568, Moray appointed Sir William Kirkcaldy of Grange Keeper of the Castle.




Grange was a trusted lieutenant of the Regent, but after Moray's murder in January 1570 his allegiance to the King's cause began to waver. Intermittent civil war continued between the supporters of the two monarchs, and in April 1571 Dumbarton Castle fell to "the King's men". Under the influence of William Maitland of Lethington, Mary's secretary, Grange changed sides, occupying the town and castle of Edinburgh for Queen Mary, and against the new regent, the Earl of Lennox. The stand-off which followed was not resolved until two years later, and became known as the "Lang Siege", from the Scots word for "long". Hostilities began in May, with a month-long siege of the town, and a second short siege in October. Blockades and skirmishing continued meanwhile, and Grange continued to refortify the castle. The King's party appealed to Elizabeth I of England for assistance, as they lacked the artillery and money required to reduce the castle, and feared that Grange would receive aid from France and the Duke of Alba in the Spanish Netherlands. Elizabeth sent ambassadors to negotiate, and in July 1572 a truce was agreed and the blockade lifted. The town was effectively surrendered to the King's party, with Grange confined to the castle.

The truce expired on 1 January 1573, and Grange began bombarding the town. His supplies of powder and shot, however, were running low, and despite having 40 cannon available, there were only seven gunners in the garrison.The King's forces, now with the Earl of Morton in charge as regent, were making headway with plans for a siege. Trenches were dug to surround the castle, and St Margaret's Well was poisoned. By February, all Queen Mary's other supporters had surrendered to the Regent, but Grange resolved to resist despite water shortages within the castle. The garrison continued to bombard the town, killing a number of citizens. They also made sorties to set fires, burning 100 houses in the town and then firing on anyone attempting to put out the flames.

In April, a force of around 1,000 English troops, led by Sir William Drury, arrived in Edinburgh. They were followed by 27 cannon from Berwick-upon-Tweed, including one that had been cast within Edinburgh Castle and captured by the English at Flodden.The English troops built an artillery emplacement on Castle Hill, immediately facing the east walls of the castle, and five others to the north, west and south. By 17 May these batteries were ready, and the bombardment began. Over the next 12 days the gunners dispatched around 3,000 shots at the castle. On 22 May, the south wall of David's Tower collapsed, and the next day the Constable's Tower also fell. The debris blocked the castle entrance, as well as the Fore Well, although this had already run dry. On 26 May, the English attacked and captured the Spur, the outer fortification of the castle, which had been isolated by the collapse. The following day Grange emerged from the castle by a ladder after calling for a ceasefire to allow negotiations for a surrender to take place. When it was made clear that he would not be allowed to go free even if he ended the siege, Grange resolved to continue the resistance, but the garrison threatened to mutiny. He therefore arranged for Drury and his men to enter the castle on 28 May, preferring to surrender to the English rather than the Regent Morton. Edinburgh Castle was handed over to George Douglas of Parkhead, the Regent's brother, and the garrison were allowed to go free. In contrast, Kirkcaldy of Grange, his brother James and two jewellers, James Mossman and James Cokke, who had been minting coins in Mary's name inside the castle, were hanged at the Cross in Edinburgh on 3 August.


Nova Scotia and Civil War
Much of the castle was subsequently rebuilt by Regent Morton, including the Spur, the new Half Moon Battery and the Portcullis Gate. Some of these works were supervised by William MacDowall, the master of work who fifteen years earlier had repaired David's Tower. The Half Moon Battery, while impressive in size, is considered by historians to have been an ineffective and outdated artillery fortification. This may have been due to a shortage of resources, although the battery's position obscuring the ancient David's Tower and enhancing the prominence of the palace block, has been seen as a significant decision.

The battered palace block remained unused, particularly after James VI departed to become King of England in 1603. James had repairs carried out in 1584, and in 1615–1616 more extensive repairs were carried out in preparation for his return visit to Scotland. The mason William Wallace and master of works James Murray introduced an early Scottish example of the double-pile block. The principal external features were the three, three-storey oriel windows on the east façade, facing the town and emphasising that this was a palace rather than just a place of defence. During his visit in 1617, James held court in the refurbished palace block, but still preferred to sleep at Holyrood.

In 1621, King James granted Sir William Alexander the land in North America between New England and Newfoundland, as Nova Scotia ("New Scotland"). To promote the settlement and plantation of the new territory, the Baronetage of Nova Scotia was created in 1624. Under Scots Law, baronets had to "take sasine" by symbolically receiving the earth and stone of the land of which they were baronet. To make this possible, since Nova Scotia was so distant, the King declared that sasine could be taken either in the new province or alternatively "at the castle of Edinburgh as the most eminent and principal place of Scotland."

James' successor, King Charles I, visited Edinburgh Castle only once, hosting a feast in the Great Hall and staying the night before his Scottish coronation in 1633. This was the last occasion that a reigning monarch resided in the castle. In 1639, in response to Charles' attempts to impose Episcopacy on the Scottish Church, civil war broke out between the King's forces and the Presbyterian Covenanters. The Covenanters, led by Alexander Leslie, captured Edinburgh Castle after a short siege, although it was restored to Charles after the Peace of Berwick in June the same year. The peace was short-lived, however, and the following year the Covenanters took the castle again, this time after a three-month siege, during which the garrison ran out of supplies. The Spur was badly damaged, and was demolished in the 1640s. The Royalist commander James Graham, 1st Marquis of Montrose was imprisoned here after his capture in 1650.

In May 1650, the Covenanters signed the Treaty of Breda, allying themselves with the exiled Charles II against the English Parliamentarians, who had executed his father the previous year. In response to the Scots proclaiming Charles King, Oliver Cromwell launched an invasion of Scotland, defeating the Covenanter army at Dunbar in September. Edinburgh Castle was taken after a three-month siege, which caused further damage. The Governor of the Castle, Colonel Walter Dundas, surrendered to Cromwell despite having enough supplies to hold out, allegedly from a desire to change sides.

Castle defences
Edinburgh Castle is located at the top of the Royal Mile, at the west end of Edinburgh's Old Town. The volcanic Castle Rock offers a naturally defended position, with sheer cliffs to north and south, and a steep ascent from the west. The only easy approach is from the town to the east, and the castle's defences are situated accordingly, with a series of gates protecting the route to the summit of the Castle Rock.



[Plan of Edinburgh Castle
Key:
A Esplanade · B Gatehouse · C Ticket office [a deadly place-winks] · D Portcullis Gate & Argyle Tower · E Argyle Battery · F Mills Mount Battery & One o'Clock Gun · G Cartsheds · H Western Defences · I Hospital · J Butts Battery · K Scottish National War Museum · L Governors House · M New Barracks · N Military Prison · O Royal Scots Museum · P Foog's Gate · Q Reservoirs · R Mons Meg · S Pet Cemetery · T St. Margaret's Chapel · U Half Moon Battery · V Crown Square · W Royal Palace · X Great Hall · Y Queen Anne Building · Z Scottish National War Memorial]


Outer defences
In front of the castle is a long sloping forecourt known as the Esplanade. Originally the Spur, a 16th-century hornwork, was located here. The present Esplanade was laid out as a parade ground in 1753, and extended in 1845. It is upon this Esplanade that the Edinburgh Military Tattoo takes place annually. From the Esplanade the Half Moon Battery is prominent, with the Royal Palace to its left.

The Gatehouse at the head of the Esplanade was built as an architecturally cosmetic addition to the castle in 1888. Statues of Robert the Bruce by Thomas Clapperton and William Wallace by Alexander Carrick were added in 1929, and the Latin motto Nemo me impune lacessit is inscribed above the gate. The dry ditch in front of the entrance was completed in its present form in 1742. Within the Gatehouse are offices, and to the north is the most recent addition to the castle; the ticket office, completed in 2008 to a design by Gareth Hoskins Architects. The road, built by James III in 1464 for the transport of cannon, leads upward and around to the north of the Half Moon Battery and the Forewall Battery, to the Portcullis Gate. In 1990, an alternative access was opened by digging a tunnel from the north of the esplanade to the north-west part of the castle, separating visitor traffic from service traffic.

Portcullis Gate and Argyle Tower

The Portcullis Gate was begun by the Regent Morton after the Lang Siege of 1571–73 to replace the round Constable's Tower, which was destroyed in the siege. In 1584 the upper parts of the Gatehouse were completed by William Schaw, and these were further modified in 1750. In 1886–1887 this plain building was replaced with a Scots Baronial tower, designed by the architect Hippolyte Blanc, although the original Portcullis Gate remains below. The new structure was named the Argyle Tower, from the fact that the 9th Earl of Argyll had been held here prior to his execution in 1685. Described as "restoration in an extreme form", the rebuilding of the Argyle Tower was the first in a series of works funded by the publisher William Nelson.

Just inside the gate is the Argyle Battery overlooking Princes Street, with Mills Mount Battery, the location of the One O'Clock Gun, to the west. Below these is the Low Defence, while at the base of the rock is the ruined Wellhouse Tower, built in 1362 to guard St. Margaret's Well. This natural spring provided an important secondary source of water for the castle, the water being lifted up by a crane mounted on a platform known as the Crane Bastion.


Upper Ward
Foog's Gate

The Upper Ward or Citadel occupies the highest part of the Castle Rock, and is entered via the late 17th-century Foog's Gate. The origin of this name is unknown, although it was formerly known as the Foggy Gate, which may relate to the dense sea-fogs, known as haars, which commonly affect Edinburgh. Adjacent to the gates are the large cisterns built to reduce the castle's dependency on well water and a former fire station, now used as a shop. The summit of the rock is occupied by St Margaret's Chapel and 15th-century siege gun Mons Meg. On a ledge below this area is a small 19th-century Dogs' Cemetery for the burial of the soldiers' regimental mascots. Beside this, the Lang Stair leads down to the Argyle Battery, past a section of a medieval bastion, and gives access to the upper storey of the Argyle Tower. The eastern end of the Upper Ward is occupied by the Forewall and Half Moon Batteries, with Crown Square to the south.


St. Margaret's Chapel
The oldest building in the castle and in Edinburgh is the small St. Margaret's Chapel. One of the few 12th-century structures surviving in any Scottish castle, it dates from the reign of King David I (r.1124–1153), who built it as a private chapel for the royal family and dedicated it to his mother, Saint Margaret of Scotland, who died in the castle in 1093. It survived the slighting of 1314, when the castle's defences were destroyed on the orders of Robert the Bruce, and was used as a gunpowder store from the 16th century, when the present roof was built. In 1845, it was "discovered" by the antiquary Daniel Wilson, while in use as part of the larger garrison chapel, and was restored in 1851–1852. The chapel is still used for religious ceremonies, such as weddings.


Mons Meg

[The siege gun Mons Meg, described in a 17th-century document as "the great iron murderer called Muckle-Meg" (muckle being Scots for 'big')]

The 15th-century siege gun or bombard known as Mons Meg is displayed on a terrace in front of St. Margaret's Chapel. It was constructed in the Flanders on the orders of Philip III, Duke of Burgundy in 1449, and given as a gift to King James II, the husband of his niece, in 1457.[58] The 13,000-pound (5.9 t) gun rests on a reconstructed carriage, the details of which were copied from an old stone relief that can be seen inside the tunnel of the Gatehouse at the castle entrance. Some of Meg's large gun stones, weighing around 330 pounds (150 kg) each, are displayed alongside it. On 3 July 1558, it was fired in salute to celebrate the marriage of Mary, Queen of Scots to the French dauphin, François II. The royal Treasurer's Accounts of the time record a payment to soldiers for retrieving one of her stones from Wardie Muir near the Firth of Forth, fully 2 miles (3 km) from the castle. The gun has been defunct since its barrel burst while firing a salute to greet the Duke of Albany, the future King James VII and II, on his arrival in Edinburgh on 30 October 1681.


Half Moon Battery and David's Tower

The Half Moon Battery, which remains a prominent feature on the east side of the castle, was built as part of the reconstruction works supervised by the Regent Morton, and was erected between 1573 and 1588. The Forewall to the north was built between 1689 and 1695 to link the Half Moon to the Portcullis Tower, although part of the original wall of 1540 was incorporated into it. The Half Moon Battery was built around and over the ruins of David's Tower, two storeys of which survive beneath, with windows facing out onto the interior wall of the battery. David's Tower was built on an L-plan, the main block being 51 by 38 feet (16 by 12 m), with a wing measuring 21 by 18 feet (6.4 by 5.5 m) to the west. The entrance was via a pointed-arched doorway in the inner angle, although in the 16th century this was filled in to make the tower a solid rectangle. Prior to the Lang Siege, the tower was recorded as being 59 feet (18 m) high, and the remaining portions stand up to 49 feet (15 m) from the rock.

The tower was rediscovered during routine maintenance work in 1912, and excavations below the Half Moon Battery revealed the extent of the surviving buildings. Several rooms are accessible to the public, although the lower parts are generally closed. Outside the tower, but within the battery, is a three-storey room, where large portions of the exterior wall of the tower are still visible, showing shattered masonry caused by the bombardment of 1573. Beside the tower, a section of the former curtain wall was discovered, with a gun loop which overlooked High Street: a recess was made in the outer battery wall to reveal this gun loop. In 1912–1913 the adjacent Fore Well was cleared and surveyed and was found to be 110 feet (34 m) deep, mostly hewn through the rock below the castle.




Calton Hill

Calton Hill is a hill in central Edinburgh, Scotland, situated beyond the east end of Princes Street and included in the city's UNESCO World Heritage Site. Views of, and from, the hill are often used in photographs and paintings of the city.

Calton Hill is the headquarters of the Scottish Government, which is based at St Andrew's House, on the steep southern slope of the hill. The Scottish Parliament Building and other prominent buildings such as Holyrood Palace lie near the foot of the hill. Calton Hill is also the location of several monuments and buildings: the National Monument, the Nelson Monument, the Dugald Stewart Monument, the old Royal High School, the Robert Burns Monument, the Political Martyrs' Monument and the City Observatory


In 1456, James II granted land to Edinburgh by charter wherein Calton Hill is referred to as "Cragingalt", the name by which it appears on the 1560 Petworth map of the Siege of Leith (rendered as "Cragge Ingalt"). The name may have derived from Old Welsh or Old English meaning "the place of the groves".

The records of South Leith Parish Church name "Caldtoun" as one of the quarters of the parish in 1591, though the village and area are otherwise generally referred to as "Craigend", signifying the main land form (crags) at the western end of the feudal barony of Restalrig, as opposed to the distinguishing feature at its eastern end, a loch, hence the name Lochend. The name "Caldtoun" (sometimes anglicised as "Cold town") remained general until about 1700; the names Calton and Caltonhill first appearing when Wester Restalrig was sold to Edinburgh in 1725. The Armstrongs' map of the Three Lothians (1773) still uses the name "Caldtoun" and Ainslie's maps of Edinburgh record a change in spelling from Caltoun to Calton between 1780 and 1804.


History
There was possibly a prehistoric hillfort on Calton Hill and an area used for quarrying (the Quarry Holes at the eastern end). By his charter of 1456, James II granted the community of Edinburgh the valley and the low ground between Calton Hill and Greenside for performing tournaments, sports and other warlike deeds. This was part of his policy of military preparedness that saw the Act of 1457 banning golf and football and ordering archery practice every Sunday. This natural amphitheatre was also used for open-air theatre and saw performances of the early Scots play "Ane Pleasant Satyre of the Thrie Estaitis" by Sir David Lyndsay. In May 1518 the Carmelite Friars (also known as White Friars and locally based at South Queensferry), were granted lands by charter from the city at Greenside and built a small monastery there.

Monasteries were abandoned following the Scottish Reformation of 1560, and the Calton Hill monastery therefore stood empty before conversion in 1591 into a hospital for lepers, founded by John Robertson, a city merchant. So severe were the regulations that escape, or even the opening of the gate of the hospital between sunset and sunrise, would incur the penalty of death carried out on the gallows erected at the gate. The monastery would appear to have been located at the north-east end of Greenside Row and its site is shown there on the 1931 Ordnance Survey maps. Ten skeletons found in July 2009 during roadworks to create a new tramway in Leith Walk (later cancelled but currently undergoing public consultation) are believed to have been connected with the hospital.

The Calton area was owned by the Logan family of Restalrig but their lands were forfeited in 1609 following the posthumous sentence of treason on Robert Logan. The lands of Restalrig and Calton, otherwise known as Easter and Wester Restalrig, passed to the Elphinstone family. Sir James Elphinstone was made Lord Balmerino in 1604 and in 1673 the lands of Restalrig and Calton were erected into a single barony. In 1725, the western side of Calton Hill was disjoined and sold to the royal burgh of Edinburgh.The eastern end was owned by the charitable institution of Heriot's Trust. Calton remained a burgh of barony until it was formally incorporated into Edinburgh by the Municipality Extension Act of 1856.

In 1631, the then Lord Balmerino granted a charter to The Society of the Incorporated Trades of Calton forming a society or corporation. This also gave the Society the exclusive right to trade within Calton and the right to tax others who wished to do so. Normally the trades of burghs were separately incorporated, for example in the Canongate there were eight incorporations, but the Incorporated Trades of Calton allowed any tradesman to become a member providing they were healthy and their work was of an acceptable standard. This lack of restrictive practices allowed a thriving trade to develop.

The village of Calton was situated at the bottom of the ravine at the western end of Calton Hill (hence its earlier name of Craigend), on the road from Leith Wynd in Edinburgh and North Back of Canongate to Leith Walk and also to Broughton and thence the Western Road to Leith. In the village, the street was variously known as St. Ninian's Row or Low Calton. Many of the old buildings here were demolished at the time of the Waterloo Place and Regent Bridge development, which bridged the ravine, from 1816. The remaining old village houses of the Low Calton were removed in the 1970s.

Holyrood Park

Holyrood Park (also called the Queen's Park or King's Park depending on the reigning monarch's gender) is a royal park in central Edinburgh, Scotland about 1 mile (1.6 kilometres) to the east of Edinburgh Castle. It is open to the public. It has an array of hills, lochs, glens, ridges, basalt cliffs, and patches of gorse, providing a wild piece of highland landscape within its 650-acre (260 ha) area. The park is associated with the royal palace of Holyroodhouse and was formerly a 12th-century royal hunting estate. The park was created in 1541 when James V had the ground "circulit about Arthurs Sett, Salisborie and Duddingston craggis" enclosed by a stone wall.

Arthur's Seat, an extinct volcano and the highest point in Edinburgh, is at the centre of the park, with the cliffs of Salisbury Crags to the west. There are three lochs: St Margaret's Loch, Dunsapie Loch, and Duddingston Loch. The ruined St Anthony's Chapel stands above St Margaret's Loch. Queen's Drive is the main route through the Park, and is partly closed on Sundays to motor vehicles. St Margaret's Well and St Anthony's Well are both natural springs within the park. Holyrood Park is located to the south-east of the Old Town, at the edge of the city centre. Abbeyhill is to the north, and Duddingston village to the east. The University of Edinburgh's Pollock Halls of Residence are to the south-west, and Dumbiedykes is to the west.

Holyrood Park is one of Scotland's Properties in Care, owned by Scottish Ministers and managed on their behalf by Historic Environment Scotland.


Arthur's Seat


[Edinburgh, showing Arthur's Seat, one of the earliest known sites of human habitation in the area]


Arthur's Seat is the main peak of the group of hills which form most of Holyrood Park. The hill rises above the city to a height of 251 metres (823 ft), provides excellent views, is quite easy to climb, and is a popular walk. Though it can be climbed from almost any direction, the easiest and simplest ascent is from the East, where a grassy slope rises above Dunsapie Loch, a small artificial loch located between Dunsapie Hill and Arthur's Seat. The loch is fed with water from Alnwickhill in the south of the city, and is a popular location within the park, supporting several bird species.

Salisbury Crags

Salisbury Crags are a series of 46-metre (151 ft) cliffs at the top of a subsidiary spur of Arthur's Seat which rise on the west of Holyrood Park. Below the foot of the cliffs is a large and steep talus slope falling to the floor of Holyrood Park with a track known as the Radical Road running in the space between the two. This track was given its name after it was paved in the aftermath of the Radical War of 1820, using the labour of unemployed weavers from the west of Scotland at the suggestion of Walter Scott.

On the basis of it simply being the same name, Hugo Arnot derived the name from the first Earl of Salisbury who accompanied Edward III of England on one of his invasions of Scotland.James Grant's view of this is that it was "an idle story" and quoted Lord Hailes' derivation from Anglo-Saxon meaning "waste or dry habitation". The modern Gaelic name of the cliffs is Creagan Salisbury, a direct translation of the English; however in 1128, the cliffs were described in a charter under an older Gaelic name, Creag nam Marbh (the Crag of the Dead)

[Turkafinwë]

England

The capture of Kendall castle secured England's backlines. The Scottish garrison under command of Matad Forster fought bravely but were no match for their English counterparts. Lewes' canons left the castle in ruins. Now the march north could begin in earnest.

https://www.mediafire.com/view/94pew...052_1.jpg/file

Scotland up: https://www.mediafire.com/file/rdoq4...d_120.sav/file

[Der Böse Wolf]

Shouldn't be Wales up first?

[Turkafinwë]

Usually that would be the case but since Ireland has been put on AI I get to play as Wales directly after my turn as England

[Der Böse Wolf]

"And it began, in the winter of 1377: the march of treason and infamy to serve the tyranny of the Crown.
A march where the oppressed peoples of Britannia, marched side by side with their oppressors against the northern folk, a once noble ally who were the first to defend the Isles of the greed of the Anglo-Saxon invaders..."

"Enough with the poetry and send letters to the King. Tell him that Dumfries will stand strong against the treacherous scum. They might have the numbers but we have the walls and the cannons..."
The commander of Dumfries ordered the scribes to postpone the history report, as he observed the masses of the Shires armies encircle the city.
Yet the attackers were outgunned and will need more artillery support if they wish the breach the walls.

---

With the fall of the border forts, the combined English armies are swarming in.
The clans, left to fend for themselves as their king is bogged down in Ireland, organise the defences of the Scottish heartland.
Tensions were high as mobilisations accelerated.
At the clans emergency war council, opinions turned to almost fist fights.
"He wanted to emulate Alexander the Great?? He should focus more on keeping his kingdom alive instead"
"Oh shut up, he was betrayed by those scum in the south..."
"He should have known not to trust Englishmen"
"Stop rambling on, he needed to buy time to secure Ireland!"
"Ireland? What are we even doing there in the first place? Why doesn't he come back to defend the realm?"
"He cannot be everywhere, too much blood was spilled in Ireland to leave it all now!"
"Is that so? So we take Ireland and lose our homeland??"

And fights erupted in the hall.


As the men at arms gather up, the men of the dark made sure nothing disturbed the preparations as they eliminated any unwanted intruders.

---

"The way to Edinburgh is open Sire. The clans are mobilising any able-bodied man to take up arms. The situation is critical."
Hew's advisor gave his report.

"What did the council say about me?" Hew, still carrying Alexander's achievements, cares about the public opinion of him.
"Well, they are divided. They need a victory!"
The advisor said with much enthusiasm.

"Victory?? I will give them victory!" Hew shouted as he ordered the assault on the last Irish fort on the road south.

After the fall of the fort, Hew held a council and decided it was time for some diplomacy talks, to stir up any modicum of pride left on the mainland.

PS: Too bad that Wales is controlled by England. It limits RP possibilities, diplomacy and plotting!

---Barons next: https://www.mediafire.com/file/2a561...s_120.sav/file

[paladinbob123]

The Scottish were in severe peril , as the full power of English troop numbers were unleashed into the lower part of scotland, which unfortunately for them held some very critical key settlements. Scotland had just managed to recruit/divert enough troops to make a full second army group which was stationed in Stirling, but in the haste for recruitment, both the duchy and the english generals had some doubts about the scottish armies combat capabilities.



Duke Geoffrey wasted no time , having the ships move him around the coast where he disembarked near Edinburgh and was reinforced from the force that had taken Hume castle, which rejoined with its original battlegroup, and began to dig in to siege Edinburgh . It was perhaps here where the scottish were put upon with a difficult question of whether they had the strength to hold lower scotland, or whether they would have to fall back and hold the highlands, as they did of old. If the scottish could break the duchy and english strength at edinburgh, then the invasion would be over...but if they could'nt , then the lower holdings of scotland would be all be placed in doubt, and the english and the duchy would push a forced diplomatic peace upon scotland, lest the war last for years to come in the highlands, much to scotlands ill fortunes.

-------------------

Waylander saw the general fall from a distance , felled by a poisoned scotch bottle, one of the targets favorite brands which was easily spotted in the lords personal supply tent, which might additionally poison a few troops more[if they had partook of it], but it was all to the good, in removing the leadership of this newly formed army in Stirling which had spilled outside the castle, into a camp which could barely contain the swelling army-group.



Turn to England
https://www.dropbox.com/s/ohum3pqkln...d_121.sav?dl=0


---------------------------------

Cardiff
[last settlement of the welsh]



Caerdydd (the Welsh name of the city) derives from the Middle Welsh Caerdyf. The change from -dyf to -dydd shows the colloquial alteration of Welsh f [v] and dd [ð], and was perhaps also driven by folk etymology. This sound change had probably first occurred in the Middle Ages; both forms were current in the Tudor period. Caerdyf has its origins in post-Roman Brythonic words meaning "the fort of the Taff". The fort probably refers to that established by the Romans. Caer is Welsh for fort and -dyf is in effect a form of Taf (Taff), the river which flows by Cardiff Castle, with the ⟨t⟩ showing consonant mutation to ⟨d⟩ and the vowel showing affection as a result of a (lost) genitive case ending.

The anglicised Cardiff is derived from Caerdyf, with the Welsh f [v] borrowed as ff /f/, as also happens in Taff (from Welsh Taf) and Llandaff (from Welsh Llandaf).

The antiquarian William Camden (1551–1623) suggested that the name Cardiff may derive from *Caer-Didi ("the Fort of Didius"), a name supposedly given in honour of Aulus Didius Gallus, governor of a nearby province at the time when the Roman fort was established. Although some sources repeat this theory, it has been rejected on linguistic grounds by modern scholars such as Professor Gwynedd Pierce


[see the castle at the top centre area of the map]


Origins
Archaeological evidence from sites in and around Cardiff: the St Lythans burial chamber near Wenvoe, (approximately four miles or six kilometres west of Cardiff city centre); the Tinkinswood burial chamber, near St. Nicholas (about six miles or ten kilometres west of Cardiff city centre), the Cae'rarfau Chambered Tomb, Creigiau (about six miles or ten kilometres northwest of Cardiff city centre) and the Gwern y Cleppa Long Barrow, near Coedkernew, Newport (about eight miles or thirteen kilometres northeast of Cardiff city centre), all show that people had settled in the area by at least around 6000 BC, during the early Neolithic; about 1,500 years before either Stonehenge or the Great Pyramid of Giza was completed. A group of five Bronze Age tumuli is at the summit of the Garth (Welsh: Mynydd y Garth), within the county's northern boundary. Four Iron Age hill fort and enclosure sites have been identified within Cardiff's present-day county boundaries, including Caerau Hillfort, an enclosed area of 5.1 hectares (12+1⁄2 acres).

Until the Roman conquest of Britain, Cardiff was part of the territory of the Silures – a Celtic British tribe that flourished in the Iron Age – whose territory included the areas that would become known as Breconshire, Monmouthshire and Glamorgan. The 3.2-hectare (8-acre) fort established by the Romans near the mouth of the River Taff in AD 75, in what would become the north western boundary of the centre of Cardiff, was built over an extensive settlement that had been established by the Romans in the 50s AD. The fort was one of a series of military outposts associated with Isca Augusta (Caerleon) that acted as border defences. The fort may have been abandoned in the early 2nd century as the area had been subdued. However, by this time a civilian settlement, or vicus, was established. It was likely made up of traders who made a living from the fort, ex-soldiers and their families. A Roman villa has been discovered at Ely. Contemporary with the Saxon Shore forts of the 3rd and 4th centuries, a stone fortress was established at Cardiff. Similar to the shore forts, the fortress was built to protect Britannia from raiders. Coins from the reign of Gratian indicate that Cardiff was inhabited until at least the 4th century; the fort was abandoned towards the end of the 4th century, as the last Roman legions left the province of Britannia with Magnus Maximus.

Little is known of the fort and civilian settlement in the period between the Roman departure from Britain and the Norman Conquest. The settlement probably shrank in size and may even have been abandoned. In the absence of Roman rule, Wales was divided into small kingdoms; early on, Meurig ap Tewdrig emerged as the local king in Glywysing (which later became Glamorgan). The area passed through his family until the advent of the Normans in the 11th century.

Norman occupation and Middle Ages


The Norman keep
In 1081 William I, King of England, began work on the castle keep within the walls of the old Roman fort. Cardiff Castle has been at the heart of the city ever since. The castle was substantially altered and extended during the Victorian period by John Crichton-Stuart, 3rd Marquess of Bute, and the architect William Burges. Original Roman work can, however, still be distinguished in the wall facings.

A town grew up under the castle, consisting mainly of settlers from England. Cardiff had a population of between 1,500 and 2,000 in the Middle Ages – a normal size for a Welsh town in the period. It was the centre of the Norman Marcher Lordship of Glamorgan. By the end of the 13th century, Cardiff was the only town in Wales with a population exceeding 2,000, although it remained relatively small compared with notable towns in England and continued to be contained within its walls, which were begun as a wooden palisade in the early 12th century. It was of sufficient size and importance to receive a series of charters, notably in 1331 from William La Zouche, Lord of Glamorgan through marriage with the de Clare family, Edward III in 1359, then Henry IV in 1400, and later Henry VI.

In 1404, Owain Glyndŵr burned Cardiff and took possession of the Castle. As many of the buildings were made of timber and tightly packed within the town walls, much of Cardiff was destroyed. His statue was erected in Cardiff Town Hall in the early 20th century, reflecting the complex, often conflicting cultural identity of Cardiff as capital of Wales. It was soon rebuilt on the same street plan and began to flourish again.Besides serving an important political role in the governance of the fertile south Glamorgan coastal plain, Cardiff was a busy port in the Middle Ages and declared a staple port in 1327.

County town of Glamorganshire
In 1536, the Laws in Wales Acts 1535–1542 led to the creation of Glamorganshire and Cardiff was made the county town. It also became part of Kibbor hundred.[citation needed] Around the same time the Herberts became the most powerful family in the area. In 1538, Henry VIII closed Cardiff's Dominican and Franciscan friaries, whose remains were used as building materials. A writer in this period noted: "The River Taff runs under the walls of his honours castle and from the north part of the town to the south part where there is a fair quay and a safe harbour for shipping."

Cardiff became a Free Borough[clarification needed] in 1542 and further Royal Charters were granted to it by Elizabeth I in 1600 and James I in 1608. In 1573, it was made a head port for collection of customs duties. Pembrokeshire historian George Owen described Cardiff in 1602 as "the fayrest towne in Wales yett not the welthiest". It gained a second Royal Charter in 1608.


Cardiff Castle


The future site of Cardiff Castle was first used by the Romans as a defensive location for many years. The first fort was probably built about AD 55 and occupied until AD 80. It was a rectangular structure much larger than the current site, and formed part of the southern Roman border in Wales during the conquest of the Silures. When the border advanced, defences became less important and the fort was replaced with a sequence of two, much smaller, fortifications on the north side of the current site.

A fourth fort was built in the middle of the 3rd century in order to combat the pirate threat along the coast, and forms the basis of the Roman remains seen on the castle site. The fort was almost square in design, approximately 635 feet (194 m) by 603 feet (184 m) large, constructed from limestone brought by sea from Penarth. The fort's irregular shape was determined by the River Taff that flowed along the west side of the walls. The sea would have come much closer to the site than is the case in the 21st century, and the fort would have directly overlooked the harbour. This Roman fort was probably occupied at least until the end of the 4th century, but it is unclear when it was finally abandoned. There is no evidence for the re-occupation of the site until the 11th century.


11th century


[Plan of the castle in the 21st century; A - North Gate; B - motte and shell keep; C - outer bailey; D - main lodgings; E - inner bailey; F - the Clock Tower; G - the Black Tower; H - South Gate and barbican tower]


The Normans began to make incursions into South Wales from the late 1060s onwards, pushing westwards from their bases in recently occupied England. Their advance was marked by the construction of castles, frequently on old Roman sites, and the creation of regional lordships. The reuse of Roman sites produced considerable savings in the manpower required to construct large earth fortifications.

Cardiff Castle was built during this period. There are two possible dates for the construction: William the Conqueror may have built a castle at Cardiff as early as 1081 on his return from his pilgrimage to St Davids. Alternatively, the first Norman fortification may have been constructed around 1091 by Robert Fitzhamon, the lord of Gloucester.Fitzhamon invaded the region in 1090, and used the castle as a base for the occupation of the rest of southern Glamorgan over the next few years. The site was close to the sea and could be easily supplied by ship, was well protected by the Rivers Taff and Rhymney and also controlled the old Roman road running along the coast.



Cardiff Castle was a motte-and-bailey design. The old Roman walls had collapsed and the Normans used their remains as the basis for the outer castle perimeter, digging a defensive trench and throwing up a 27-foot (8.2 m) high bank of earth over the Roman fortifications. The Normans further divided the castle with an internal wall to form an inner and an outer bailey. In the north-west corner of the castle a wooden keep was constructed on top of a 40-foot (12 m) tall earth motte, surrounded by a 30-foot (9.1 m) wide moat. The motte was the largest built in Wales. The overall area of the castle was around 8.25 acres (3.34 ha); the inner bailey was around 2 acres (0.81 ha) in area. Mills were essential to local communities during this period, and the castle mill was located outside the west side of the castle, fed by the River Taff; under local feudal law, the residents of Cardiff were required to use this mill to grind their own grain.

The conquered lands in Glamorgan were given out in packages called knights' fees, and many of these knights held their lands on condition that they provided forces to protect Cardiff Castle. Under this approach, called a castle-guard system, some knights were required to maintain buildings called "houses" within the castle itself, in the outer bailey. Anglo-Saxon peasants settled the region around Cardiff, bringing with them English customs, although Welsh lords continued to rule the more remote districts almost independently until the 14th century. Cardiff Castle was a Marcher Lord territory, enjoying special privileges and independence from the English Crown. The medieval town of Cardiff spread out from the south side of the castle.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U2bTWmqS0WE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UCxqqgyKiXQ

[these feature both a aerial view and a internal view of cardiff castle]



12th–14th centuries


FitzHamon was fatally injured at the Battle of Tinchebray in 1106 and died shortly afterwards. Henry I then gave the castle in 1122 to Robert of Gloucester, the king's illegitimate son and the husband of FitzHamon's daughter, Mabe. After the failed attempt of Robert Curthose, duke of Normandy, William the Conqueror's eldest son, to take England from Henry I, the duke was moved here in 1126 from imprisonment at Devizes and remained imprisoned in the castle until his death in 1134. Robert of Gloucester held the castle during the troubled years of the Anarchy in England and Wales, and passed it on to his son, William Fitz Robert. Around the middle of the century, possibly under Robert of Gloucester, a 77-foot (23 m) wide, 30-foot (9 m) high shell keep was constructed on top of the motte, along with a stone wall around the south and west sides of the inner bailey. The polygonal shell keep has architectural links to a similar design at Arundel Castle. The building work was probably undertaken in response to the threat posed following the Welsh uprising of 1136.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wvXG4u4Xl0o
{battke of tinchebray}


Tensions with the Welsh continued, and in 1158 Ifor Bach raided the castle and took William hostage for a period. A further attack followed in 1183. By 1184 town walls had been built around Cardiff, and the West Gate to the town was constructed in the gap between the castle and the river. William died in 1183, leaving three daughters. One of these, Isabel, Countess of Gloucester, was declared the sole heir to the estate by Henry II. This was contrary to legal custom in England, and was done in order that Henry could then marry her to his youngest son Prince John and thus provide him with extensive lands. John later divorced Isabel, but he retained control of the castle until she married Geoffrey de Mandeville in 1214.


Interior of the keep

Upon Isabel's death in 1217 the castle passed through her sister to Gilbert de Clare, becoming part of the Honour of Clare, a major grouping of estates and fortifications in medieval England. The castle formed the centre of the family's power in South Wales, although the de Clares typically preferred to reside in their castles at Clare and Tonbridge. Gilbert's son, Richard de Clare, 6th Earl of Gloucester, carried out building work at the castle in the late 13th century, constructing the Black Tower that forms part of the southern gateway seen today. On the ground floor the tower contained the Stavell Oged and Stavell Wenn chambers, with three rooms constructed above them. Richard was also probably responsible for rebuilding the northern and eastern walls of the inner bailey in stone. The inner bailey was reached through a gatehouse on the eastern side, protected by two circular towers and later called the Exchequer Gate. The defensive work may have been prompted by the threat posed by the hostile Welsh leader Llywelyn ap Gruffudd, Prince of Wales.

Richard's grandson, Gilbert de Clare, the last male de Clare, died at the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314 and the castle was given to Hugh Despenser the Younger, the controversial favourite of Edward II. Poor harvests and harsh governance by the Despenser family encouraged a Welsh rebellion under Llywelyn Bren in 1316; this was crushed and Llywelyn was hanged, drawn and quartered in Cardiff Castle in 1318 on Hugh's orders. The execution attracted much criticism from across both the English and Welsh communities, and in 1321 Hugh arrested Sir William Fleminge as a scapegoat for the incident, first detaining him in the Black Tower and then executing him in the castle grounds. Conflict between the Despensers and the other Marcher Lords broke out soon after, leading to the castle being sacked in 1321 during the Despenser War. The Despensers recovered the castle and retained it for the rest of the century, despite the execution of Hugh Despenser for treason in 1326. Under a 1340 charter granted by the Despensers, the castle's constable was made the de facto mayor of Cardiff, controlling the local courts.

15th–16th centuries
By the 15th century, the Despensers were increasingly using Caerphilly Castle as their main residence in the region rather than Cardiff. Thomas le Despenser was executed in 1400 on charges of conspiring against Henry IV. In 1401 rebellion broke out in North Wales under the leadership of Owain Glyndŵr, quickly spreading across the rest of the country. In 1404 Cardiff and the castle were taken by the rebels, causing considerable damage to the Black Tower and the southern gatehouse in the process. On Thomas's death the castle passed first to his young son, Richard, and on his death in 1414, through his daughter Isabel to the Beauchamp family. Isabel first married Richard de Beauchamp, the Earl of Worcester and then, on his death, to his cousin Richard de Beauchamp, the Earl of Warwick, in 1423.


[The South Gate, showing the restored 15th century Black Tower and the barbican tower]


Richard did not acquire Caerphilly Castle as part of the marriage settlement, so he set about redeveloping Cardiff instead. He built a new tower alongside the Black Tower in 1430, restoring the gateway, and extended the motte defences. He also constructed a substantial new domestic range in the south-west of the site between 1425 and 1439, with a central octagonal tower 75-foot (23 m) high, sporting defensive machicolations, and featuring four smaller polygonal turrets facing the inner bailey. The range was built of Lias ashlar stone with limestone used for some of the details, set upon the spur bases characteristic of South Wales and incorporated parts of the older 4th and 13th century walls. The buildings were influenced by similar work in the previous century at Windsor Castle and would in turn shape renovations at Newport and Nottingham Castles; the octagonal tower has architectural links to Guy's Tower, built at around the same time in Warwick Castle. A flower garden was built to the south of the range, with private access to Richard's chambers. Richard also rebuilt the town's wider defences, including a new stone bridge over the River Taff guarded by the West Gate, finishing the work by 1451.

Cardiff Castle remained in the hands of Richard's son, Henry and Henry's daughter, Anne until 1449. When Anne died, it passed by marriage to Richard Neville, who held it until his death in 1471 during the period of civil strife known as the Wars of the Roses. As the conflict progressed and political fortunes rose and fell, the castle passed from George, the Duke of Clarence, to Richard, Duke of Gloucester, to Jasper Tudor, the Duke of Bedford, back to Richard Neville's wife Anne, back to Jasper and finally to Prince Henry, the future Henry VIII. The ascension of the Tudor dynasty to the English throne at the end of the wars heralded a change in the way Wales was administered. The Tudors were Welsh in origin, and their rule eased hostilities between the Welsh and English. As a result, defensive castles became less important. In 1495 Henry VII formally revoked the Marcher territory status of Cardiff Castle and the surrounding territories, bringing them under normal English law as the County of Glamorgan.

The Crown leased the castle to Charles Somerset in 1513; Charles used it while he was living in Cardiff. In 1550 William Herbert, later the Earl of Pembroke, then bought Cardiff Castle and the surrounding estates from Edward VI. The outer bailey contained a range of buildings at this time, and extensive building work was carried out during the century. The Shire Hall had been built in the outer bailey, forming part of a walled complex of buildings that included the lodgings for the traditional twelve holders of castle-guard lands. The outer bailey also included orchards, gardens and a chapel. The castle continued to be used to detain criminals during the 16th century, with the Black Tower being used as a prison to hold them; the heretic Thomas Capper was burnt at the castle on the orders of Henry VIII. The visiting antiquarian John Leland described the keep as "a great thing and strong, but now in some ruine", but the Black Tower was considered to be in good repair. In the inner bailey, the Herberts built an Elizabethan extension to the north end of the main range, with large windows looking onto a new northern garden; the southern garden was replaced by a kitchen garden



Thomas le Despenser



Thomas le Despenser, 2nd Baron Despenser, 1st Earl of Gloucester KG (22 September 1373 – 13 January 1400) was the son of Edward le Despenser, 1st Baron le Despencer, whom he succeeded in 1375.

Royal intrigues
A supporter of Richard II against Thomas of Woodstock and the Lords Appellant, he was rewarded with an Earldom as Earl of Gloucester in 1397, by virtue of being descended from Gilbert de Clare, 7th earl of an earlier creation. He spent the years 1397–99 in Ireland, attempting with little success to persuade the Gaelic chieftains to accept Richard II as their overlord.

However, he supported Henry Bolingbroke on his return to England to become King Henry IV, only to be attainted (deprived of his Earldom because of a capital crime) for his role in the death of Thomas of Woodstock.

He then took part in the Epiphany Rising, a rebellion led by a number of Barons aimed at restoring Richard to the throne by assassinating King Henry IV; this quickly failed when the conspirators were betrayed by Edward of Norwich, 2nd Duke of York to Henry. After fleeing to the western counties, a number of the Epiphany Rising conspirators were captured and killed by mobs of townspeople loyal to the king; Despenser was captured by a mob and beheaded at Bristol on 13 January 1400.








The Despenser War


The Despenser War (1321–22) was a baronial revolt against Edward II of England led by the Marcher Lords Roger Mortimer and Humphrey de Bohun. The rebellion was fuelled by opposition to Hugh Despenser the Younger, the royal favourite. After the rebels' summer campaign of 1321, Edward was able to take advantage of a temporary peace to rally more support and a successful winter campaign in southern Wales, culminating in royal victory at the Battle of Boroughbridge in the north of England in March 1322. Edward's response to victory was his increasingly harsh rule until his fall from power in 1326.


The initial success of the rebels reflected the power of the Marcher Lords. Since Edward I's conquest of Wales, "[t]he marcher privileges remained undiminished, and the marcher energies which could no longer find employment in the struggle against the Welsh, sought new direction in the fertile field of English politics." The death of the last Earl of Gloucester also meant the redistribution of his vast estates and lordships in Ireland and Wales. The important Lordship of Glamorgan passed to the late earl's brother-in-law, the younger Despenser, married to his eldest sister Eleanor.

The Lords Ordainers, the powerful baronial hegemony led by the Earl of Lancaster, despised the younger Despenser and his father, the elder Despenser, on account of the influence they both wielded over the king. The council of Ordainers was formed in 1311 to reform the King's household, restrict his royal prerogatives, supervise the economy, and they insisted on the banishment of his then favourite, Piers Gaveston, husband of the earl of Gloucester's sister Margaret.

Roger Mortimer, his uncle, Roger Mortimer de Chirk, and Humphrey de Bohun, a staunch Ordainer, were avowed enemies of the Despensers. The younger Despenser, through his marriage with Eleanor, received many expensive gifts, and much property and land grants in the Marches. The passage of Glamorgan to Despenser in its entirety angered his brothers-in-law, Roger d'Amory and Hugh de Audley, who were cheated out of their share of lands which rightfully belonged to them. Hostility deepened among the Marcher Lords when Despenser titled himself "Lord of Glamorgan" and "Earl of Gloucester".


First phase: [Date: 4 May – 14 August 1321]

In February 1321 Mortimer, Hereford and Lancaster agreed on an attack on the Despenser lands in Wales. Edward responded in March by mobilising his forces in Wales, demonstrating that he intended to make any attack on the Despensers an attack on the crown, and therefore treasonable. The king travelled to Gloucester and called upon the Marcher Lords to join him there; Mortimer and Hereford declined. Mobilising more forces, Edward marched on to Bristol, and repeated his call for the Marcher Lords to convene with him there in May. They again declined.

Mortimer and Hereford promptly began their attack on the Despenser lands. Newport, Cardiff and Caerphilly were seized by Mortimer in an intense eight-day campaign. Mortimer and Hereford then set about pillaging Glamorgan and Gloucestershire, before marching north to join Lancaster at Pontefract. The barons then swore an alliance at Sherburn-in-Elmet in June, naming their faction the "contrariants" and promising to remove the Despensers for good.

Edward had returned to London, where he held his own parliament to discuss courses of action. Mortimer led his army east towards London as well, reaching St Albans in late July. The city of London refused to let Mortimer's forces in, and his forces placed the capital under effective siege. Lancaster arrived in August to support him and a tense stand-off ensued, with the younger Despenser threatening the rebels from a ship on the River Thames, and the barons threatening to begin to destroy royal properties and lands outside London unless he desisted.

The Earl of Pembroke, a moderate baron with strong French links, intervened in an attempt to defuse the crisis. Edward continued to refuse to negotiate or exile the Despensers, so Pembroke arranged for Queen Isabella to publicly go down on her knees to appeal to Edward to exile the Despensers. This provided him with a face-saving excuse to exile the Despensers and defuse the crisis, but it was clear Edward intended to arrange their return at the first opportunity.


Second phase: October [Date 13 October 1321 – 16 March 1322]


Despite the momentary respite, by the autumn of 1321 tension between Edward and the baronial opposition led by Thomas of Lancaster, were extremely high, with both sides raising forces across the country. At this point, Isabella undertook a pilgrimage to Canterbury, leaving the traditional route to stop at Leeds Castle; its governor, Bartholomew de Badlesmere, was steward of the King's household but by 1321 had joined the opposition. Historians suggest this was a deliberate act by Isabella on Edward's behalf to create a casus belli.

Badlesmere was away at the time, leaving his wife Margaret in charge; when she refused the Queen admittance, fighting broke out between Isabella's guards and the garrison. Edward now mobilised his supporters and besieged the castle, giving Isabella the Great Seal and control of the royal Chancery. The attack on the Queen meant he was joined by many moderates and volunteers from London; chroniclers claim he soon had 30,000 men, although this is almost certainly an overestimate. When the castle surrendered at the end of October, Badlesmere and his men were executed.

Edward's position was much stronger than in August, and he now revoked the banishment of the Despensers. It was clear his opponents could expect little mercy; when Mortimer and Hereford travelled north meet with Lancaster, the three reaffirmed their opposition to Edward. However, Mortimer and Hereford were forced to return to the Welsh Marches to deal with a peasant revolt, while in December Edward marched to Cirencester, preparing to invade.

In the north, Lancaster tried to enlist the support of the Scots in a bid to bring more forces to bear before Edward could retake Wales. In January 1322, Edward finally overcame resistance along the River Severn and advanced into the Marches; despite attacking and burning Bridgnorth, Roger Mortimer and his uncle, Roger Mortimer de Chirk recognised their position was hopeless and surrendered at Shrewsbury on 22 January 1322.

Edward turned north, assisted by the Despensers who had secretly returned from exile in mid-January. After mustering his men at Coventry in February, he advanced on Burton on Trent, where Lancaster and Hereford had fortified bridge over the River Trent. Realising they were outnumbered, the rebels withdrew, but on 16 March an army led by the Earl of Carlisle defeated them at the Battle of Boroughbridge. Hereford was killed in the fighting, Lancaster and another forty captured knights were beheaded shortly after.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E40ymGciRlk
{battle of Boroughbridge}


Aftermath
Victory left Edward and the Despensers firmly in control of England and the Welsh Marches. The Despenser War "totally changed the political scene in England". It proved a catalyst for the disintegration of the baronial oligarchy, allowing Edward to regain the powers lost by the Ordinances of 1311.

Roger Mortimer was imprisoned in the Tower of London after his surrender at Shrewsbury and some of his supporters, including William Trussell, continued to raid Despenser lands. In August 1323 Mortimer escaped and attempted to break other Contrariants out of Windsor and Wallingford Castles.He eventually fled to France where he was later joined by Queen Isabella, who was ostensibly on a peace mission, but was actually seeking assistance from her brother, King Charles IV of France to oust the Despensers. Mortimer and Isabella obtained the necessary help in Flanders and in 1326 the successful Invasion of England was launched.

This invasion led to the executions of the two Despensers, the deposition and killing of Edward II, and the seizure of authority by Queen Isabella and Roger Mortimer, who became the de facto rulers of England from 1327 to 1330. Mortimer was hanged in November 1330 by the order of Isabella's son King Edward III after he ousted his mother and Mortimer from power and assumed personal rule.

[Turkafinwë]

England

The walls of Edinburgh, indomitable and filled to the brim with Scots. If Anselm could defeat the Scots here there was a good chance of victory in this war. Anselm would be remembered as the Englishmen who did the impossible. Defeat the hated Scots and perhaps unite England under a new King.

The brothers Lewes were united once again. Godwine welcomed Jasper with open arms as he brought the much needed artillery to move the siege of Dumfries forward. If Dumfries fell the road to Glasgow would be open pincering the Scots.

Rhyddrech takes a Scottish fort

https://www.mediafire.com/view/8zdmh...148_1.jpg/file

Scotland up: https://www.mediafire.com/file/a0nds...d_121.sav/file

[Der Böse Wolf]

Sorry for the delay guys, I was away for the weekend. I will upload it tomorrow.
Cheers.

[Der Böse Wolf]

A loud wood crushing sound made everyone in the hall suddenly stop to see what happened. The chieftains, who were fighting among themselves in the emergency Clans Council, saw the majestic figure of Kyle Dunbar, with a red face and a huge battle axe of Norse origin, standing tall in the middle of the hall.

"Edinburgh is under siege by 4 English armies.."
"3 armies, Kyle, 3 English armies..." His brother corrected him, with amusement...

"3 English armies and one army of treacherous dogs, English dogs" Kyle continued, still red-faced.
"If Edinburgh falls the whole of Scotland falls. Never were the Highlands in such danger. And what are you doing, you, the Highlands chieftains? Fighting each other like wild cats! Forget about King Hew and his royal armies. They are in Ireland and will not leave it to come here. Hew only thinks of himself. He is willing to lose Scotland if this means that he gets Ireland. Maybe not...It does not matter!
What matters now, is to rally every able-bodied man to take up arms and march to Edinburgh!"

"But this is suicide! The English armies are full of knights, heavy sergeants and men at arms, we stand no chance!" Protests were heard in the assembly.

"Aye, this could be suicide, But either we all die together tonight, or we die later, each defending his village alone!. If Edinburgh falls, we are doomed!" Kyle was sounding fatalistic.
"We have the numbers...and I have a plan" Kyle continued.

"The English armies are camped on the western walls, undisciplined, arrogant and careless. Anselm is no king. His thousands of men, sure of victory, are being poorly led. I scouted their camp. They do not expect an attack.
Even worse, they are not in battle condition. Anselm has let the dog Geoffrey to initiate the siege from the eastern walls, unassisted. He hopes to use his dogs to die on the walls for the first assault and then he moves in to get the reward.
Geoffrey, the dog he is, is not even aware of this and is diligently building siege equipment while Anselm and his men do nothing, on the other side of the city.
This is our chance. We attack the English in the night. If we are swift and brutal, we can rout them before the dogs of the shires even know what is happening.
We outnumber them, but they are better equipped. However if we swarm them and catch them off guard, their shiny armour will serve them not!
For this to work, I don't want any torches nor bagpipes and no screams.
I want death to crawl into the English camp!
We know the terrain. They don't!
Gather your clans in complete silence and let's move!"

The chieftains, flabbergasted, needed a couple of seconds to grasp what Kyle just said. Then, one of the strongest warriors, Hew of Berwickshire said: "You heard the man, let's gather and move!"

----

Geoffrey was awaken in the middle of the night. Screams and sounds of clashing steal can be heard from the west.
"This arrogant prick! Anselm wants Edinburgh for himself and has initiated the siege without telling me so he can claim the victory! I will not let him have it his way"

Furious, Geoffrey sent a scout to enquire about this noise from the other side of the city, and to deliver a message to Anselm with his protests, since the plan was to assault the next day, not tonight, threatening to leave the siege altogether.
He then ordered his men to leave the siege equipment and join camp, refusing to partake in the unplanned assault.
The men reluctantly left their arms and went to their tents.

---

"What is taking him so long" Geoffrey was getting impatient. Then his servant screamed and rushed into his tent. He was holding the head of the messenger which was shot at the camp by a catapult. Geoffrey was confused, but did not have time to say a word, as screams erupted from the camp, with the men running amok, away from the flaming arrows which lit the tents on fire...
Geoffrey looked in fear as he saw savage-like warriors descending on the camp, yielding large swords and dressed in rags...

The defeat of Anselm




The defeat of Geoffrey

------

Hew of Berwickshire assembled the thousands of brave Scottish survivors in front of Edinburgh.
Corpses from both sides litter the area, as the early rays of light cast upon a desolate landscape of death.

The victory was resounding for the Scots.

"Send a messenger to King Hew immediately" ordered Kyle.
"Wait, no one leaves before we do what we should have done!" Hew of Berwickshire interrupted Kyle.
"No Scottish army goes to war without the sound of the bagpipes. We did what you ordered us to do, and did not sound the pipes, But now the battle is over and we want to honour you with a proper tribute!"

Kyle stood there surprised as the highlanders assembled in formation.

"Salute Chieftain Kyle Dunbar" ordered Hew of Berwickshire with pride as tears rolled on his bloodied cheeks...

---


Barons next: https://www.mediafire.com/file/tberv...s_121.sav/file

[paladinbob123]

Dumfries stood before Godwine lewes and perhaps further glory which was that is why it must fall, said Godwine to himself, joined by a large english army which contained his brother, the two english armies[abet one from the north] settled into siege , whilst a second camp of extra support troops was further reinforced with additional extra cannons, which combined with the 2nd English armies artillery was sufficient to start the assault . The scottish defenders were around a thousand, bitter edged men, tough men of scotland, but mainly of the town , rather than the highlands, meaning their reliance of the walls and artillery was critical for them.

A surrender message was given to the garrison with a message that no quarter would be given to the Scottish troops that resisted , but the message from the scots came back , guttural and plain.

"Pick a windae, yer leavin' ye sassenach dogs....come back whin yer maws hae breed better hounds that lap at thair betters !"

The assault started after a day of prayer, and two days was spent both negating the enemy artillery and the rest spent reducing walls and towers at point of the attack that could prove deadly to the approaches for the main attack, making everything possible that would reduce Godwine's casualties list, for with tibber's castle to the north already taken by the welsh, the open southlands of scotland would be open to him and that unblemished land was sure to have some great riches.



Leading his men , with pinpoint precision, he warned off the support army and the other english army preferring to take a direct hand, to make sure the assault went well, siegetowers approached the wall, ladders were bought forward and the gatehouse had already been smashed with the artillery as the force sent to take it, had a easy time of capturing it. Most of the scottish troops put up token resistance at the wall, perhaps felling two score of englishmen, on the approach, but fell back when the english numbers reached the top of the outerwalls and towers , running back to the keep to make a last defense. The town was quiet and empty as most of the population had boardedup their houses , keeping a low profile ,as the english advanced on the keep,surrounding it and bring up a single cannon to smash its gate, and prepare the way for the final assault which was readied for the morrow.

Godwine personally directed the men attacking the keep in the morning, grinning as he shouldered his shield, and ran behind the van of the attack , determined to get some personal action for himself[and perhaps some of the best loot] as the best companies of the northern shires, attacked the keep, hunting down the last resistance of dumfries before the end of the day, where the flag of the Duchy of York&Newcastle was fluttering in the afternoon breeze.


[6 cannon companies , 3 from godwine,2 from support army-shipped from isle of mann last turn but just arrived this turn, 1 from english army]

With the fall of Dumfries came a call for help, from the welsh , as Tibbers castle had been beseieged by some scottish troops , so Godwine acting quickly sent a english forward party northwards to surprise the scottish troops that were trying to shift the only contribution to the campaign from the welsh, knowing that the english king, would not wish them to be so easily destroyed , so early in the campaign.

The force moved northwards at speed encountering a small rebel force, blocking the road north were they readied to do battle. Funny enough, the prospect of a battle, equally lured out Godwine lewes, who would rather take part in that, rather than settle the administration transfer at Dumfries. So riding hard and fast , when he heard the news, he arrived to conduct the battle against some scottish rebels, although not in such numbers to provide any blocking to the armies northern movement nor to provide much sport to the energetic lord.


[this rebel scottish unit lead by captain kirk is boldly going where it should'nt bloody well be ]

The Lord and the force partied ways, moving northeastwards of Tibber castle before looping around and striking [and surprising] the scottish force from its flank whilst it was still sieging the fort.The cavalry charged first, not wishing to waste the opportunity of surprise, cutting a wide path into the scottish forces, which were generally spearmen, whom raced around to form schiltrom to protect themselfs from the old foe. Billmen supported by mercenary gallowglasses started to take on individual isolated schiltroms whilst the cavalry patrolled the field, effectively keeping the scottish in place. some schiltroms edged to the north, keeping formation and without the mighty longbows, the duchy troops didnt have the forces to break them up, but other schiltroms stayed , preferring to fight it out against the duchy troops, which were individually isolated and destroyed whilst the cavalry kept the schiltroms apart.



--------------------------
Back on the eastern main road to the north, the invasion and siege of Edinburgh devolved into debacle, with 3 good english armies routing against 3 scottish armies, as the scottish preformed excellent maneuvers all under the superb command of Kyle Dunbar who without his precious experience and generalship , the result would have been certainly completely different. Without Dunbar though the result was significantly different, Dunbar had moved down from the highlands, with just enough stamina to reach the first battlefield, but to break the siege they would have to beat Duke Geoffreys forces, so the scottish would have to fight that without him.

The army of the duke was attacked with speed with fire and catapults shot, and the surprise was certainly telling but after the shock of the attack, even though he was outnumbered two to one, Geoffrey conducted a notable fighting withdrawal, not a fighter himself, nevertheless he had a eye for talent, and most of his lesser commanding officers knew their craft well. troops were rotated in the retreat, with supporting brigades at hand, all the while ready to hit the scots with a furious counterattack to force the scots back if they got too close, whilst the main army detached and roll backwards ever closer to the border, before the force, reformed up again, and kept the withdrawal controlled and managed.

At the end of the retreat , the army had certainly been beaten, losing a thousand men in the battle and the withdrawal , but they had taken on, 3 scottish armies , outnumbered two to one, and had killed sixteen hundred scottish forces, [a bigger figure than his own losses]so his forces had performed well, were still in reasonable morale when they reassembled back at Hume castle.

Within the day, the duke had arranged for reinforcements to be sent northwards to reinforce his position and rebuild his armygroup, knowing that the scottish had equally taken losses , so he didnt expect them to surge southwards just yet, despite the threat of the message he received from the scottish king. Good news came from the west, reporting that Godwine had taken Dumfries opening another route to challenge the scottish forces, but without the main effort on the main road, the lowlands of scotland would be a unavailable target to the war, but the main fact of the battle had been that the english troops and generalship had under-performed [The duke ignored the fact he had raced northwards putting the english effort on the western flank nearest to the scots] , they had taken a severe licking, routing to even flee to below Hume castle, even south of the river, and would the english reform and be back for the fight?, for without their effort, the war would fail and terms and land would have to be surrendered to Scotland to square the balance. Would the english still fight? Would the English king rise to the occasion? This was perhaps the words on all the soldiers of the duchy lips, and all would await its answer with baited breath.

------------------------

Waylander watched the assassin move out of the town to skirt his own position ,only to have the assassin fall into a pit trap he had dug earlier ,prepared during the week, &whilst the poor man was in pan, waylander appeared out of his hiding place, and raised the crossbow , sighted at the mans forehead, and pulled the trigger.



Turn to England
https://www.dropbox.com/s/459yk9rsg1...d_122.sav?dl=0


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Tibber's Castle

Tibbers Castle is a motte-and-bailey castle overlooking a ford across the River Nith in Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland. To the east is the village of Carronbridge and to the north west is a 16th-century country house, Drumlanrig Castle.

Possibly built in the 12th or 13th century, Tibbers was first documented in 1298 at which point the timber castle was replaced by a stone castle. It was the administrative centre of the barony of Tibbers until the second half of the 14th century when it shifted to nearby Morton. During the Anglo-Scottish Wars of the early 14th century the castle was captured by first the Scots under Robert the Bruce and then the English, before returning to Scottish control in 1313.

The castle descended through the Earls of Moray and subsequently the Earls of March before coming under the control of the Scottish Crown. A 'toun' was established near the castle. While it is unclear at what point Tibbers Castle fell out of use, by the 18th century the site was used for agriculture. Archaeological investigations took place in 1864, 1912, and 2013–2014.

http://www.castlestudiestrust.org/do...port-Final.pdf - a study of the castle ground and archeological digs around the area.


History

The origin of Tibbers Castle is undocumented, and it may have been founded in the 12th or 13th century as a timber castle. It was first recorded in 1298 when Sir Richard Siward, either built the stone enclosure castle or enhanced one which had already been added to the timber structure.[2] King Edward I of England visited the castle the same year. Siward was the Sheriff of Dumfries when the area was under the control of the English and documentation from this period gives some evidence for activity at the castle. In 1302, £100 was spent on the structured while it was manned by a 23-strong garrison.


The death of Alexander III of Scotland in 1286 led to a succession crisis resulting in English rule of Scotland under Edward I. Robert the Bruce's family was one of the claimants and in 1306 he was crowned king, leading to war with England.The first phase of Bruce's campaign in 1306 was to capture the English-held castles of Ayr, Dalswinton, Inverkip and Tibbers. Control was given to John de Seton until the English recaptured the castle from the Scots, hanging the defenders, and a larger garrison, this time numbering 54, was installed. In 1313 the Scots regained control of the region. From there Tibbers Castle remained in Scottish hands, and was possessed by Thomas Randolph, 1st Earl of Moray. He was succeeded by Thomas Randolph, 2nd Earl of Moray and John Randolph, 3rd Earl of Moray. When John died at the battle of Neville's Cross in 1346 the earldom along with Tibbers Castle was given to Patrick, Earl of March. His son inherited in 1369 and acquired the barony of Morton which probably became the administrative centre for the barony of Tibbers. The estates descended through the Dunbar family until 1435 when their lands were confiscated by the Scottish Crown. In 1450 or 1451, King James II of Scotland subsequently gave Tibbers to George Crichton, Lord High Admiral of Scotland and later the 1st Earl of Caithness. When he died in 1454 the property again came under royal control.

A 'toun' or township at Tibbers was mentioned in 1451, and the presence of the castle did not prevent the town from being attacked by Sir Alexander Stewart of Garlies in 1547. It is unclear when Tibbers Castle fell out of use, but in the 18th century, the ridge on which the castle sits was used to grow crops. Part of the structure was demolished to reuse materials such as lime. The "Mote de Tibbris" is mentioned in the Registrum Magni Sigilli in 1489 and 1541.

The interpretation of Tibbers has changed over time, and in the 18th century it was thought to be a Roman fort though it was later understood to be a medieval castle.The name of the castle led to the suggestion that it derived from Tiberius Caesar, however 'Tibbers' comes from the Gaelic word 'Toibar' meaning a well. The earliest recorded excavation at Tibbers Castle took place in 1864, which recovered two coins from the reign of Edward II of England (1307–1327) and a dagger from the early 15th century. The site was surveyed in 1912 with no further archaeological investigation until the 21st century. It was designated as a scheduled ancient monument in 1937. In 2013 and 2014 the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland carried out measured and geophysical (using resistivity and a gradiometer) surveys at Tibbers with funding from Historic Scotland and the Castle Studies Trust.

Layout
Occupying a ridge on the west bank of the River Nith, the earliest phase of the castle consisted of a small bailey or enclosure. This bailey was revealed by the geophysical survey in 2014 which also indicated that it contained timber buildings.

When Richard Siward remodelled the castle c. 1298 it is likely that he added the motte with its stone enclosure castle and replaced the single small bailey with two large enclosures south of the motte. These enclosures may have housed a market as was the case at Lochmaben Castle. There are few examples in Scotland of earthwork castles being rebuilt in stone. The four-sided motte measures 44 by 27 metres (144 by 89 ft) at the summit. The enclosure castle on top is roughly rectangular, measuring 26.8 by 11.6 metres (88 by 38 ft), with a round tower at each corner. Little survives above ground of this structure, though the south-south-east tower survives best. The south side of the enclosure castle had an additional tower which tower with the south-south-east corner tower flanked the entrance. Inside, the castle had a well on the east side and a range of buildings extending along the west and north sides; these likely contained a great hall, the kitchens, and a chamber. There was a postern gate just south of the north-east tower. This phase of Tibbers is "one of the few authentic surviving remnants of English castle building in Scotland during the Plantagenet occupation."

At its greatest extent Tibbers Castle measured 330 metres (1,080 ft) by 85 metres (279 ft). The courtyard of the enclosure castle is the inner bailey. The outer and outermost baileys each cover an area of about 0.4 hectares (0.99 acres). The ramparts enclosing the site survive to a height of 0.5 metres (1 ft 8 in) and are between 3.4 and 5.5 metres (11 and 18 ft) wide. Double baileys are uncommon, with examples at Windsor and Llandinam



Morton Castle
{not used but both castles overlook the important nith valley]
Morton Castle is located by an artificial loch in the hills above Nithsdale, in Dumfries and Galloway, south-west Scotland. It lies 2.5 miles (4 km) north-east of Thornhill, and once formed part of a chain of castles along the strategically important Nith Valley, which runs from the Solway Firth north to the Clyde Valley.

History
In the 12th century, the honour of Morton was a possession of Dunegal, Lord of Strathnith (Nithsdale). A ditch to the south of the castle is thought to date from this period, although it may be natural. During the reign of Robert the Bruce the lands of Morton were held by Thomas Randolph, later the first Earl of Moray. By 1307, and possibly as early as the 1260s, a castle had been constructed here, on a high defensible promontory surrounded by marshland. Randolph also constructed an enclosed deer park nearby.

The Treaty of Berwick in 1357, which secured the release of David II, also required the Scots to destroy thirteen castles in Nithsdale, including Morton. It is not clear how much, if any, of the original castle remains.

The lands of Morton passed to the earls of March, who probably built (or rebuilt) the existing castle in the early 15th century.

In the mid 15th century the lands were given by James II of Scotland to James Douglas of Dalkeith, later Earl of Morton (although the earldom is named for another Morton in Lothian).

The fourth earl of Morton was executed in 1580 for his alleged part in the murder of Lord Darnley, and Morton Castle, together with the earldom, briefly passed to John Maxwell, 7th Lord Maxwell, and grandson of the third earl. However, in 1588, James VI led an expedition against the Catholic Maxwells. Morton Castle was taken and burned, and returned to the Earls of Morton, the fourth earl's attainder having been reversed.

In 1608 the castle was sold to William Douglas of Coshogle, who sold it in turn to William Douglas of Drumlanrig (later the first Earl of Queensberry) ten years later. The castle was at least partially occupied until 1714, probably serving as a hunting lodge rather than a dwelling. A dam was constructed in the 18th century to flood the marshland, creating the artificial loch which now surrounds the castle on three sides.

Following its abandonment in the 18th century, much stone was carried off until the 1890s when some repairs were carried out. It is now the property of the Duke of Buccleuch, and is cared for by Historic Environment Scotland. Morton Castle is a Scheduled Ancient Monument.
Construction date
There is some debate as to the precise date of the castle. Gifford discusses the possibility that the defensive structures date from the original, 14th-century castle, which was then rebuilt as a hunting lodge in the 15th century. However, he concludes that it is not impossible that the majority of the castle dates from the 15th century.

The castle
Architecturally the castle bears some resemblance to Caerlaverock Castle, being triangular in plan, with similar twin gatehouses at the south-west corner. One of the two D-plan towers still stands to four storeys, and has a pit prison below. Above this were several rooms which probably served as the lord's lodging, as suggested by an elaborate fireplace in one room. Only the foundation of the second gate tower remains. The gate originally had a portcullis, and a turning bridge over a pit.

This high level of defensive architecture contrasts with the main range of buildings across the south of the castle. Here, large, fine arched windows and a lack of arrow loops suggest that this range was either built or remodelled as a hunting lodge. The long two-storey block had a large first-floor hall, with basement rooms below. At the east end, a private room opened off the hall, connecting to rooms in the round south-east tower.

To the north, the walls which flanked the edges of the marshland have been removed, leaving the former courtyard open.


River Nith

The River Nith (Scottish Gaelic: Abhainn Nid; Common Brittonic: Nowios) is a river in south-west Scotland. The Nith rises in the Carsphairn hills of East Ayrshire, more precisely between Prickeny Hill and Enoch Hill, 4.4 miles (7.1 km) east of Dalmellington. For the majority of its course it flows in a southerly direction through Dumfries and Galloway and then into the Solway Firth at Airds point.

The territory through which the river flows is called Nithsdale (historically known as "Stranit" from Scottish Gaelic: Strath Nid, "valley of the Nith").
The estuary of the River Nith is an internationally important winter feeding site for waders, geese and other wildfowl, and is for this reason protected at an international level as part of the Upper Solway Flats and Marshes Ramsar site and Special Protection Area. The SPA supports virtually the entire Svalbard population of barnacle geese during winter.

The area also forms part of the Solway Firth Special Area of Conservation, which is protected due to the presence of several priority habitats, and as well as populations of sea lamprey and river lamprey



Nithsdale

Nithsdale(Srath Nid in Scottish Gaelic), also known by Scoticised names Strathnith, Stranith or Stranit, is the strath or dale of the River Nith in southern Scotland, and the name of the local area. The name Strath Nid may represent the Cumbric Ystrad Nidd; Cumbric (a variety of Common Brittonic) was the dominant language in this area from before Roman times until the 11th or 12th centuries, whereas Gaelic influence here was late and transient. The River Nith flows north to south through the Southern Uplands in south-west Scotland, separating the Lowther Hills from the Scaur Hills. Nithsdale has historically been a strategic area as it forms an invasion route from England into central Scotland.


Nithsdale was also a historic district of Scotland, bordering Annandale to the east, Clydesdale to the north, Kyle to the north-west and Galloway to the west. The district was in the Sheriffdom of Dumfries and later became part of Dumfriesshire, one of the counties of Scotland. The Local Government (Scotland) Act 1889 established a uniform system of county councils in Scotland, and realigned the boundaries of many of Scotland's counties: Nithsdale became one of three sub-divisions of Dumfriesshire, along with Eskdale (previously part of Liddesdale) and Annandale.




Dumfries

Toponymy
There are a number of theories on the etymology of the name, with an ultimately Celtic derivation (either from Brythonic, Gaelic or a mixture of both) considered the most likely.

The first element is derived either from the elements drum or dronn-, (meaning "ridge" or "hump", also in Gaelic as druim), or from Dùn or Dum meaning fort. One of the more commonly given etymologies is that the name Dumfries originates from the Scottish Gaelic name Dùn Phris, meaning "Fort of the Thicket".

The second element is less obvious, but may be cognate with the Cumbric prēs, an element common in the Brythonic areas south of the forth river. As such, Dumfries has been suggested as a possible location of Penprys, the mysterious capital of a land in Medieval Welsh literature, most notably mentioned in the awdl, "Elegy for Gwallawg" by Taliesin.

According to a third theory, the name is a corruption of two Old English or Old Norse words which mean "the Friars' Hill"; those who favour this idea allege the formation of a religious house near the head of what is now the Friars' Vennel. If the name were English or Norse, however, the expected form would have the elements in reversed orientation . A Celtic derivation is therefore preferred.


Early history
Some writers hold that Dumfries flourished as a place of distinction during the Roman occupation of North Great Britain. The Selgovae inhabited Nithsdale at the time and may have raised some military works of a defensive nature on or near the site of Dumfries; and it is more than probable that a castle of some kind formed the nucleus of the town. This is inferred from the etymology of the name, which, according to one theory, is resolvable into two Gaelic terms signifying a castle or fort in the copse or brushwood. Dumfries was once within the borders of the Kingdom of Northumbria. The district around Dumfries was for several centuries ruled over and deemed of much importance by the invading Romans. Many traces of Roman presence in Dumfriesshire are still to be found; coins, weapons, sepulchral remains, military earthworks, and roads being among the relics left by their lengthened sojourn in this part of Scotland. The Caledonian tribes in the south of Scotland were invested with the same rights by an edict of Antoninus Pius The Romanized natives received freedom (the burrows, cairns, and remains of stone temples still to be seen in the district tell of a time when Druidism was the prevailing religion) as well as civilisation from their conquerors. Late in the fourth century, the Romans bade farewell to the country.

According to another theory, the name is a corruption of two words which mean the Friars' Hill; those who favour this idea allege that St. Ninian, by planting a religious house near the head of what is now the Friars' Vennel, at the close of the fourth century, became the virtual founder of the Burgh; however Ninian, so far as is known, did not originate any monastic establishments anywhere and was simply a missionary. In the list of British towns given by the ancient historian Nennius, the name Caer Peris occurs, which some modern antiquarians suppose to have been transmuted, by a change of dialect, into Dumfries.

Twelve of King Arthur's battles were recorded by Nennius in Historia Brittonum. The Battle of Tribruit (the 10th battle), has been suggested as having possibly been near Dumfries or near the mouth of the river Avon near Bo'ness. Notorious recording artist and long-term "Friend of the Scene" Thomas Johnstone, colloquially known as 'Tam Skoosh' to brothers near and far, spent the vast majority of his troubled, and well-publicised childhood in Dumfries.

After the Roman departure the area around Dumfries had various forms of visit by Picts, Anglo-Saxons, Scots and Norse culminating in a decisive victory for Gregory, King of Scots at what is now Lochmaben over the native Britons in 890.


Medieval period
When, in 1069, Malcolm Canmore and William the Conqueror held a conference regarding the claims of Edgar Ætheling to the English Crown, they met at Abernithi – a term which in the old British tongue means a port at the mouth of the Nith. It has been argued, the town thus characterised must have been Dumfries; and therefore it must have existed as a port in the Kingdom of Strathclyde, if not in the Roman days. However, against this argument is that the town is situated eight to nine miles (14 km) distant from the sea, although the River Nith is tidal and navigable all the way into the town itself.

Although at the time 1 mile (1.6 km) upstream and on the opposite bank of the Nith from Dumfries, Lincluden Abbey was founded circa 1160. The abbey ruins are on the site of the bailey of the very early Lincluden Castle, as are those of the later Lincluden Tower. This religious house was used for various purposes, until its abandonment around 1700. Lincluden Abbey and its grounds are now within the Dumfries urban conurbation boundary. William the Lion granted the charter to raise Dumfries to the rank of a royal burgh in 1186. Dumfries was very much on the frontier during its first 50 years as a burgh and it grew rapidly as a market town and port.

Alexander III visited Dumfries in 1264 to plan an expedition against the Isle of Man, previously Scots but for 180 years subjected by the crown of Norway. Identified with the conquest of Man, Dumfries shared in the well-being of Scotland for the next 22 years until Alexander's accidental death brought an Augustan era in the town's history to an abrupt finish.

A royal castle, which no longer exists, was built in the 13th century on the site of the present Castledykes Park. In the latter part of the century William Wallace chased a fleeing English force southward through the Nith valley. The English fugitives met the gates of Dumfries Castle that remained firmly closed in their presence. With a body of the town's people joining Wallace and his fellow pursuers when they arrived, the fleeing English met their end at Cockpool on the Solway Coast. After resting at Caerlaverock Castle a few miles away from the bloodletting, Wallace again passed through Dumfries the day after as he returned north to Sanquhar.

In the invasion of 1300, Edward I of England lodged for a few days in June with the Minorite Friars of the Vennel, before at the head of the then greatest invasion force to attack Scotland he laid siege to Caerlaverock Castle. After Caerlaverock eventually succumbed, Edward passed through Dumfries again as he crossed the Nith to take his invasion into Galloway. With the Scottish nobility having requested Vatican support for their cause, Edward on his return to Caerlaverock was presented with a missive directed to him by Pope Boniface VIII. Edward held court in Dumfries at which he grudgingly agreed to an armistice. On 30 October, the truce solicited by Pope Boniface was signed by Edward at Dumfries. Letters from Edward, dated at Dumfries, were sent to his subordinates throughout Scotland, ordering them to give effect to the treaty. The peace was to last till Whitsunday in the following year.

Before becoming King of Scots, Robert the Bruce slew his rival the Red Comyn at Greyfriars Kirk in the town on 10 February 1306. His uncertainty about the fatality of his stabbing caused one of his followers, Roger de Kirkpatrick, to utter the famous, "I mak siccar" ("I make sure") and finish the Comyn off. Bruce was subsequently excommunicated as a result, less for the murder than for its location. Regardless, for Bruce the die was cast at the moment in Greyfriars and so began his campaign by force for the independence of Scotland. Swords were drawn by supporters of both sides, the burial ground of the Monastery becoming the theatre of battle. Bruce and his party then attacked Dumfries Castle. The English garrison surrendered and for the third time in the day Bruce and his supporters were victorious. He was crowned King of Scots barely seven weeks after. Bruce later triumphed at the Battle of Bannockburn and led Scotland to independence.

Once Edward received word of the revolution that had started in Dumfries, he again raised an army and invaded Scotland. Dumfries was again subjected to the control of Bruce's enemies. Sir Christopher Seton (Bruce's brother in law) had been captured at Loch Doon and was hurried to Dumfries to be tried for treason in general and more specifically for being present at Comyn's killing. Still in 1306 and along with two companions, Seton was condemned and executed by hanging and then beheading at the site of what is now St Mary's Church.

In 1659 ten women were accused of diverse acts of witchcraft by Dumfries Kirk Session although the Kirk Session minutes itself records nine witches. The Justiciary Court found them guilty of the several articles of witchcraft and on 13 April between 2 pm and 4 pm they were taken to the Whitesands, strangled at stakes and their bodies burnt to ashes

Dumfries Castle
Dumfries Castle was a royal castle that was located in Dumfries, Scotland. It was sited by the River Nith, in the area now known as Castledykes Park.

A motte and bailey castle was built in the 12th century. The town was created a royal burgh by King William the Lion in 1186. The castle was enlarged and rebuilt in stone in 1214. King Alexander III of Scotland visited the castle in 1264 to plan an expedition against the Isle of Man. Robert de Brus, 5th Lord of Annandale captured the castle in 1286. The castle was occupied by the English from 1298. King Edward I of England stayed at the castle in 1300. Robert de Brus captured the castle briefly in 1306 from the English-appointed constable Richard Siward. King Robert I of Scotland captured the castle from the English appointed constable Dungal Macdouall in 1313. According to the RCAHMS there is "a strong belief" that it was destroyed after the capture and never rebuilt.

[Turkafinwë]

England

A messenger bearing Scottish colours approached the camp of the retreating English forces. It had been a week since the defeat at Edinburgh and English morale was still low though the men were grim with determination. The messenger rode smugly through the camp, the hateful glances from his southern neighbours only feeding his arrogance. Anselm, still covered in dirt and blood, met the messenger outside his tent. There would be no hospitality for the insufferable Scot. The Scot introduced himself but Anslem paid no attention to him merely stretching his hand to take the message. The message was partially what Anselm had predicted it would be. Hew, King of the Scots, asked for a ceasefire. The english were to retreat from Dumfries and south of the river Tweed. What surprised Anselm was that Hew did not demand Carlisle to be returned to Scottish occupation. A small grin appeared on the Lord Protector's face. The Scottish messenger noticed and visibly tensed. Anselm called for a scribe to make a note. Only two minutes later the note was handed to the messenger.

"Take this to your King." Anselm said, a smirk still on his face. The Scot composed himself as best he could and accepted the message. This must've not gone like he thought it would.

Scotland: https://www.mediafire.com/file/1wkxg...d_122.sav/file

[Der Böse Wolf]

Pardon the delay guys. I have been working long hours and coming home late, knackered. I will upload it tomorrow.

[Turkafinwë]

No problem mate. I know how it is.

[Der Böse Wolf]

As expected, the English refused the ceasefire and have taken Dumfires.
However, with the winter in full blow, both realms stayed put, licking their wounds.

Scotland is now at war with all the peoples of the Isles. This privilege was usually that of the Crown of England, the historical oppressor and imperialist faction of Britannia.
Hew pondered how history is changing, as he gave his orders to Dunbar to prepare for the spring offensive of the English and Welsh armies.

However, in Ireland, the march south continues despite freezing weather.

Sorry forgot to screenshot the result but it was a clear victory.

--

Barons next: https://www.mediafire.com/file/8she8...s_122.sav/file

[paladinbob123]

Both Duke Geoffrey and Godwine lewes took different strategies to alleviate the boredom that reigned over each camp, with perhaps Godwine having the better of it, spending his time planning and preparing in the city of Dumfires, where-as the duke was stuck in a lone castle on the border. Supplies and men traveled northwards, some by land and other by sea, reaching the two camps, revitalizing the two army groups for another crack at the scottish defenses around the Edinburgh-Stirling Castle line . Godwine was perhaps more optimistic , his forces taken less damage, and he had obtained some riches for himself in the conquering of new terrority, and he eagerly looked northwards at the rich untouched Scottish lands to the north, and was bitting at the bit, to attack them , but realistically he knew it would have to be joint effort to attack northwards this time, not just a lone strike northwards on one axis of attack.

Duke Geoffrey however had made the best of it in the castle, taking the lords room for his own and roughly customizing it to his choices , and it was here he ran the supply operations for his army group. Objectively , he could fight on a battlefield, but his age, and lack of enthusiasm was that was clear, and he much prepared to fight his battles, in the way he knew best, organizing, preparing with intelligence and distraction of the enemy. But even he found the next action in Scotland to be a surprise for him....


--------------------



It was years ago, that the templars had slowly builtup some funding of their own and mounted a expedition to smash the heathen viking raiders in the north, and the templars assembled ships , a fleet with a modest armygroup to find and smash the viking Norwegian colonies on the islands to the north[#823,p42 mar2019] but the mission had ended tragically when they had been caught on the water in mid-transit[#845&#852 p43 respectively] and all sunk by the vikings fleet, all drowning to the last man.

The Pope had in 1307 declared their order null and void, but here and there , particularly in one country or another , they still survived , some kings promoted them, and let them keep their lands[portugal],some kings took all their holdings[france],other prevaricated knowing templars provided some much needed forces,and trade,some changed their names to hide their existence, as if changed the name saved them from conviction, other areas, they moved money and trade around, and just became merchants , using the funds long built up to establish trade empires rather than a warrior elite to send to the holyland.

Four years ago now, the templars had the funding again to make a challenge to the northern islands, thinking to invade a distant northeastern island , and convert it to the sword, but this ideal had changed , when the Norwegian king had finally loosened his grasp on the isles of chaos and returned to the country of his birth. But the fact remained the Templar's still wanted revenge, and they still wanted one of the northern island, with the excuse of converting the somewhat now half christian and half pagan islanders, but with the real reason of establishing a important secure position on the northern sea, to safeguard their holdings , and manage the mercantile sea traffic , they profited from in europe.

It was in this vein, a small contingency [a lesser one than the previous one]was shipbound and sailed northeastwards, first being blown off course, only to land in flemish territory where they took on more food, water and equipment before sailing back ,arriving in the northern scottish coastal water, near wick where patrols were sent out shipping checking the scottish waters, which seemed clear of shipping, they first looked northwards towards Kirkwall and the isle in orkney which would be ideal , dropping scouts on the island . Their findings dismayed the small battlegroup, as a entire armygroup of scottish clan troops had assembled there, making a landing impossible.

Templer master Alphonso [his mother had been spanish] looked at the troops he had , a motley collection of templar sergeants&novices, supported by a rough group of mercenaries, knowing that he could'nt maintain them without some kind of victory[loot], nor return back to his superiors reporting a second failure, so he settled on the quiet city of Aberdeen on the eastern coast , as the objective for his taskforce. It was well placed on the coastline and would prove a great naval base, for templar operations, and its garrison was reputedly light.

The ships sailed south and the templar forest disembarked onto scottish soil around backhill wood [north of aberdeen], whilst the artillery was kept aboard ship for quick supporting deployment as needed, last season whilst the templars spy moved ahead reporting of enemy troop movements and defenses. But this season , the templar force finally made its final movement, moving southwards from its rough camp in the forest, heading south into kirkhill forest[just northwest of aberdeen], where it camped one more time, before receiving notification of the spy entering the settlement and the navy followed around the coast as they made preparations for storming the city.

A week later, the templar force emerged from the forest, slowly at first the white tabard'd tunics over the mail , proved a alarming sight as church bells began ringing in the city bringing the city guard to the walls, whilst the templar navy sailed down the coast ,disembarked the artillery ,which was then shielded and bought to the templar force, as it moved to surround the city. The templars made no effort to make camp ,much to the chagrin and worry of the city residents who wondered at their actions. Soon a message had been delivered by the templar master, that the city was to be handed over to him, and he would let the cityguard depart unmolested to go where they willed it, but they refused saying the king would have their guts for garters if they departed their duty&defenses to the city.

Within the hour, the artillery was readied and the templars army took formations readying for the assault, with the templar master, novices and sergeants moving to one knee, to take the sign of the cross before battle[the mercenaries just looked and sneered at such folly] ,chanted a rough pray and then stood. The Templar master , drew his sword , kissed it on the crosshilt and turned to the army raising his mighty voice , so they could all hear him.



"DEUS VULT!" , he cried out, receiving a chant of "AMEN!" in response as he turned and began to march towards the scottish city.

The scottish guard stood in awed silence , observing the white clad men , marching in column at a slow pace, towards the city, but they had nothing to fire at them, only their spears, and swords had the defenders, so they could do nothing as the templar army plodded ever closer. Finally when nearing the gate, the templars at the front began to run, and rough noises could be heard as cranking noises of the chains being pulled , as the great gates opened slowly wider and wider. Noises of battle could be heard at the gatehouse as the spy and some templar novices who had sneaked in the week before, held the gate open long enough for the army to enter the city, devolving the streets of aberdeen into street fighting .

The templars pushed the mercenaries forward first , primary to stop them from looting the city and delaying the attack, using them to batter the city garrison time after time with small engagements all thoughout the city, streets changed control several times, as the scottish mounted counterattacks retaking city squares and buildings only to lose them again hours later. By the days end, the scottish garrison was spent, and yet the templars had kept their own forces[the novices and sergeants] fresh and these now attacked the last vestiges of the scottish guard. Thirty minutes later it was over, the scottish commander of guard had been felled, ironically from one of his own guardsmen who stabbed out in exhaustion and fear at the commander sudden arrival as he arrived at another critical sector of the fight in the night . In the confusion of the commanders, death , the Scottish lost heart, some fled, some stripped themself of their uniform , returning to civilian life, and others just surrendered , hoping for good terms, against the tempar force, which was given them.

The templars secured the city, and the very next day improved its defenses, repairing the damage, and made efforts to ease the local community that they were indeed a force, for good, starting on a new templar mercantile guildhouse near the docks, and a new templar chapterhouse next to the church in the city, preparing the foundations for both, showing they wished to stand and improve the peoples lot. A message was prepared for the scottish king, offering the return of Aberdeen if he could but see his way to give the templars the isle of orkney and the city of kirkwall for perpetuity , so that they could devote its wealth and support to the cause of furthering the ideals of the tempars[&making them loads of money&securing the shipping lanes], then they would return this captured terrority...but until then , this was serve as the templars base, for conversion ...and to help their traderoutes in northern europe as a stopgap port.




[of note are some templars sites which are based in scotland - https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/...s-templar.html , one of which is in/near aberdeen - {winks} ]
-----------------------

Waylander tired of the rain and the midges that constantly attacked him in the lowlands, much preferring the climate of the lowlands of england, and feeling that he had done more than enough service to earn his rest performed one last mission of starting a fire in the wool guild merchants docks in the city of Glasglow before turning south for home and heath, with his name hopefully cleared of any undue obligations.



turn to England
https://www.dropbox.com/s/h3h5p31vvv...d_123.sav?dl=0

[Der Böse Wolf]

I had a feeling there was a navy heading north for an eastern landing...

Great RP!

[Turkafinwë]

England

Patrolling the Irish sea was Rufus, Admiral of the Western Navy. The waters had fairly quiet these past months into the war. A couple of Scottish ships that fled before them was all the action his men had seen. When the fleet went to dock at Donaghadee Rufus saw it was under a blockade by a Scottish ship. A short skirmish ensued after which the Scottish ship disengaged and sailed north. The English sailed into Donaghadee but did not get a warm welcome. The Irish had no great love for the English. Rufus didn't mind since he cared very little for the natives of the Emerald Isle and he had enough men with him to avoid trouble. They strolled into the nearest pub and treated themselves after a hard day's work.

Scotland up: https://www.mediafire.com/file/12v46...d_123.sav/file

[Der Böse Wolf]

Again, forgot the results...sorry!

"I admired him. He fought till the end to defend his nation. I feel sorry for the Irish people. But this invasion was necessary. Did you see what the English, Welsh and the dogs of the Shires did? Imagine we were fighting them on the mainland, and then Irish invade from the west...we would be doomed!"

King Hew was speaking to his war council at the siege of Trim, giving tribute to High King Lochlainn who died in the last battle. The Irish have their backs to the wall.

"Sire, I am afraid I have bad news. A Welsh army just landed near Dublin and another English army just landed east of Derry...and the Templars have taken Aberdeen. I am sorry Sire."
The messenger quickly left the tent, fearing a fit of rage.

Hew remained silent.
He then said quietly: "Even the Templars, whom we invited to help us fight the heathens...Even them betray us. They killed Christians who fought the heathens...What kind of sick world this is turning to be?? Alexander must be turning in his grave..."

--

Barons next: https://www.mediafire.com/file/adejs...s_123.sav/file

[paladinbob123]

Reinforcements heading northwards into the duchies war camp's started to slow, as the armies came back to full strength, and there was only the preparing of supplies readying for the march left to complete. Godwine Lewes looked over the map of the area from his vantage point at Dumfries.

"Did Nicolaus send the new troops this season?" , asked Godwine

"Aye", said the dockmaster , who had been called to answer questions.

"...and were those ships completed? the war ships i asked for?"

"Aye" , said the dockmaster, whilst preparing to light a small clay pipe, little flustered by being in the presence of such a high level noble, and one of little conversation.

"Well take these orders, for.....who was it now?....Your cousin?....The one you said had experience of ship combat".

The old dockmaster took the notes, from the noble , unscrolling it, looking at the words, taking little notice of the words, before scrolling backup much to the annoyance of the noble.

"Aye..will do", before he bowed stiffly and walked from the room .

Godwin lewes, shouted out as he left, for his bodyguard to send word, to the commanders of the companies, warning them the army marches tonight, with new orders for the supplies to follow them north.

Grinning he looked down at the map, again , digging his dagger into the map,

"The war restarts ...here and now...lets not allow these barbarians to recover!" he exclaimed, before himself striding out of the room, to prepare himself for the march.

-------------------------------------------
Templar master Alphonso, looked southwards from the walls, had reached him that the castle [to the south]had been occupied by a significant scottish force,commanded by a noble sent from the south. Luckily enough for him , many of the local townspeople [perhaps those that had been in the scottish army] still had bills to pay and drinks that needed purchasing, and many joined the town guard helping with the situation on the walls, strengthening the garrison for the time ahead.

The news had not been good, and the Scottish king had not been forthcoming with their arguments of a exchange of Aberdeen for Orkney, so obviously was applying pressure to the situation. He had perhaps a few choices here with the forces at his disposal and with a decent navy at his back, and so he rubbed his chin and wondered about how to begin a discussion with this scottish king about his new situation.

As the dawn began with the sun beginning to rise, he turned away ordering for his deputy , to prepare the ships and templar fleets, to move out and harass the Scottish ports on the eastern coastline, thinking to keep his men-at arms nearby incase of trouble, whilst denying the scottish king the revenue of those precious eastern coastlines. If the scottish king however consented to their requests, then perhaps he might relent and re-allow scottish trade ships to have free purchase of the eastern coastline.

-----------------------------------

The duke had received a rough sealed message from the famous assassin telling of his deeds, and his re-retirement, and was well pleased from his efforts , letting the note burn away in a nearby fire , stopping anybody else to ascertain anything from the note of the assassins whereabouts. He nodded to himself , moving back to his table of work, where his efforts of the last few months had born fruit. It appeared that Godwine was moving in the west, and his forces were near to moving in the east, the only other actor in this play were the english , and he awaited a letter from them, of when they would be ready for action. Suddenly there was a Knock at the door, and another note was passed to the Duke who eagerly broke the seal, and read the contents..


---------------------------

The ships of Admirals Barnaby's fleet speed across the water, the sails flapping a little in the firm breeze that propelled them to the northwest , with the coast of ireland on the port side, as the docklands of Downpatrick came into view, with the scottish ships still blockading the port. He had been given orders to move into the bay of arran , to stand ready to support Godwines army if needed and deny the channel to the scottish if he could, but here was a opportunity he could not just pass up .

"Bring us about Mister Gribol", said the Admiral , "lets see the fighting spirit of these scottish sailors" , he cried, as the ships boar towards the scottish ships with the winds driving them right for them , at maximum speed.

The scottish ships at anchor , saw the duchy ships late, and it took them time to weigh anchor and hoist their sails to get underway and before they really got sailing the duchy ships were amongst them, with cannonade and shot within hours the scottish ships blockading downpatrick had been sunk, on flame or sinking.

"splice the mainbrace" called the admiral, "see if there are any survivors, and break out the Grog!", called the admiral , to cheers of the crew.



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iBPslTgbgns&t=138s - Nautical explanation

Turn to England
https://www.dropbox.com/s/g772h4jwi0...d_124.sav?dl=0

------------------------

Stirling
Stirling is a city in central Scotland, 26 miles (42 km) north-east of Glasgow and 37 miles (60 km) north-west of the Scottish capital, Edinburgh. The market town, surrounded by rich farmland, grew up connecting the royal citadel, the medieval old town with its merchants and tradesmen, the Old Bridge and the port. Located on the River Forth, Stirling is the administrative centre for the Stirling council area, and is traditionally the county town of Stirlingshire. Proverbially it is the strategically important "Gateway to the Highlands".

It has been said that "Stirling, like a huge brooch clasps Highlands and Lowlands together". Similarly "he who holds Stirling, holds Scotland" is often quoted. Stirling's key position as the lowest bridging point of the River Forth before it broadens towards the Firth of Forth made it a focal point for travel north or south.


[The Stirling Wolf]


When Stirling was temporarily under Anglo-Saxon sway, according to a 9th-century legend, it was attacked by Danish invaders. The sound of a wolf roused a sentry, however, who alerted his garrison, which forced a Viking retreat. This led to the wolf being adopted as a symbol of the town as is shown on the 1511 Stirling Jug. The area is today known as Wolfcraig. Even today the wolf appears with a goshawk on the council's coat of arms along with the recently chosen motto: "Steadfast as the Rock".

Once the capital of Scotland, Stirling is visually dominated by Stirling Castle. Stirling also has a medieval parish church, the Church of the Holy Rude, where, on 29 July 1567, the infant James VI was anointed King of Scots by Adam Bothwell, the Bishop of Orkney, with the service concluding after a sermon by John Knox. The poet King was educated by George Buchanan and grew up in Stirling. He was later also crowned King of England and Ireland on 25 July 1603, bringing closer the countries of the United Kingdom. Modern Stirling is a centre for local government, higher education, tourism, retail, and industry. The mid-2012 census estimate for the population of the city is 36,440; the wider Stirling council area has a population of about 93,750.

One of the principal royal strongholds of the Kingdom of Scotland, Stirling was created a royal burgh by King David I in 1130. In 2002, as part of Queen Elizabeth's Golden Jubilee, Stirling was granted city status.


Etymology
The origin of the name Stirling is uncertain, but folk etymology suggests that it originates in either a Scots or Gaelic term meaning the place of battle, struggle or strife. One proposal is that Stirling derives from Gaelic srib-linn, meaning "stream-pool" or similar. Other sources suggest that it originates in a Brythonic name meaning "dwelling place of Melyn", with the first element being connected to Middle Welsh ystre-, "a dwelling". The name may have originally been a hydronym, and connected to Brittonic *lïnn, "lake, pool" (Welsh llyn). It is often argued that Stirling is the fortress of Iuddeu or Urbs Giudi where Oswiu of Northumbria was besieged by Penda of Mercia in 655, as recorded in Bede and contemporary annals, however, Blackness Castle may be a more likely candidate.


Ancient history
A stone cist, found in Coneypark Nursery in 1879, is Stirling's oldest catalogued artefact. Bones from the cist were radiocarbon dated and found to be over four millennia old, originating within the date range 2152 to 2021 BC. Nicknamed Torbrex Tam, the man, whose bones were discovered by workmen, died while still in his twenties. Other Bronze Age finds near the city come from the area around Cambusbarron. It had been thought that the Randolphfield standing stones were more than 3000 years old but recent radiocarbon dating suggests they may date from the time of Bruce.

The earliest known structures in Stirling are now destroyed but comprised two Neolithic Cursus in Bannockburn. The earliest known surviving structure is a fort on Gillies Hill were built by Iron Age people over 2000 years ago. Two structures are known: what is currently called Wallstale Dun on the southern end of Touchadam Craig, and Gillies Hill fort on the northwest end of the craig. The Wallstale structure is later than the Gillies Hill fort and is related in form to brochs, these appear to coincide with the Roman period and there are around 40 or so in the wider area. South of the city, the King's Park prehistoric carvings can still be found. The area is likely associated with the Maeatae and their Early Medieval successors the Miathi. The area sits in the middle of the territory known as Manau. Manau survives in four different place names: Clackmannan (The Stone of Manau); Slamannan (The Plain of Manau); Rathmannan (The fort of Manau) and Cromennane in Balfron (The boundary of Manau). All of these names seem to mark the boundaries of Manau meaning it stretched from Balfron to Fife.


Roman and early Medieval
Its other notable geographic feature is its proximity to the lowest site of subjugation of the River Forth. Control of the bridge brought military advantage in times of unrest and; excise duty, or pontage dues in peacetime. Unsurprisingly excise men were installed in a covered booth in the centre of the bridge to collect tax from any entering the royal burgh with goods. Stirling remained the river's lowest reliable crossing point (that is, without a weather-dependent ferry or seasonal ford) until the construction of the Alloa Swing Bridge between Throsk and Alloa in 1885.

The city has two Latin mottoes, which appeared on the earliest burgh seal of which an impression of 1296 is on record. The first alludes to the story as recorded by Boece who relates that in 855 Scotland was invaded by two Northumbrian princes, Osbrecht and Ella. They united their forces with the Cumbrian Britons in order to defeat the Scots. Having secured Stirling castle, they built the first stone bridge over the Forth.

On the top they reportedly raised a crucifix with the inscription: "Anglos, a Scotis separat, crux ista remotis; Arma hic stant Bruti; stant Scoti hac sub cruce tuti." Bellenden translated this loosely as "I am free marche, as passengers may ken, To Scottis, to Britonis, and to Inglismen." It may be the stone cross was a tripoint for the three kingdom's borders or marches; the cross functioning both as a dividing territorial marker, and as a uniting witness stone like in the Bible story in Joshua 22. "Angles and Scots here demarked, By this cross kept apart. Brits and Scots armed stand near, By this cross stand safe here." This would make the cross on the centre of the first stone bridge the Heart of Scotland.


The Stirling seal only has the second part and it's slightly different.

Hic Armis Bruti Scoti Stant Hic Cruce Tuti
(Brits and Scots armed and near, by this cross stand safe here.)
Apparently the Latin is not first rate having four syllables in "cruce tuti" but the meaning seems to be that the Lowland Strathclyde Britons on the southern shore and the Highland Pictish Scots on the northern shore stand protected from each other by their common Christianity.

A more modern translation suggests that rather than Briton, bruit might be better read as brute, ie brute Scots, implying a non-Scots identity was retained in Stirling for some time after inclusion into the land controlled by the King of Scots. This more likely happened around 1000 AD.

The second motto is:

Continet Hoc in Se Nemus et Castrum Strivelinse
(Contained within this seal pressed down, the wood an' castle o' Stirlin' town.)
It has been claimed that the "Bridge" seal was regarded as the Burgh seal proper, the "Castle" seal being simply a reverse, used when the seal was affixed by a lace to a charter. This agrees with a description in an official publication (which spells Bruti with only one letter t). Clearer images are available with different lettering. Sibbald conflated the two mottos into a single rhyme; he gave no indication that he was aware of Boece's work.

Stirling was first declared a royal burgh by King David in the 12th century, with later charters reaffirmed by subsequent monarchs. A ferry, and later bridge, on the River Forth at Stirling brought wealth and strategic influence, as did its tidal port at Riverside. Major battles during the Wars of Scottish Independence took place at the Stirling Bridge in 1297 and at the nearby village of Bannockburn in 1314 involving William Wallace and Robert the Bruce respectively. After the Battle of Stirling Bridge, Wallace wrote to the Hanseatic leaders of Lübeck and Hamburg to encourage trade between Scottish ports (like Stirling) and these German cities. There were also several Sieges of Stirling Castle in the conflict, notably in 1304.


Late Medieval and early Modern

[The tomb of James III, King of Scots and Margaret of Denmark at Cambuskenneth Abbey]


Another important historical site in the area is the ruins of Cambuskenneth Abbey, the resting place of King James III of Scotland and his queen, Margaret of Denmark. The king died at the Battle of Sauchieburn by forces nominally led by his son and successor James IV. During the Wars of the Three Kingdoms, the Battle of Stirling also took place in the centre of Stirling on 12 September 1648. The fortifications continued to play a strategic military role during the 18th-century Jacobite risings. In 1715, the Earl of Mar failed to take control of the castle. In January 1746, the army of Bonnie Prince Charlie seized control of the town but failed to take the Castle. On their consequent retreat northwards, they blew up the church of St. Ninians where they had been storing munitions; only the tower survived and can be seen to this day. The castle and the church are shown on Blaeu's map of 1654 which was derived from Pont's earlier map.


[Church of the Holy Rude]

Standing near the castle, the Church of the Holy Rude is one of the town's most historically important buildings. Founded in 1129 it is the second oldest building in the city after Stirling castle. It was rebuilt in the 15th-century after Stirling suffered a catastrophic fire in 1405, and is reputed to be the only surviving church in the United Kingdom apart from Westminster Abbey to have held a coronation. On 29 July 1567 the infant son of Mary, Queen of Scots, was anointed James VI of Scotland in the church. James' bride, Anne of Denmark was crowned in the church at Holyrood Palace in Edinburgh. The Holy Rude congregation still meet and some 19th century parish records survive. Musket shot marks that may come from Cromwell's troops during the Wars of the Three Kingdoms are clearly visible on the tower and apse of the church.

Economically, the city's port supported foreign trade, historically doing significant trade in the Low Countries, particularly with Bruges in Belgium and Veere in the Netherlands. In the 16th century there were so many Scots in Danzig in Prussia that they had their own church congregation and trade is mentioned with that city in Stirling Council's minutes of 1560. Around John Cowane's time there is an account which states there were about 30,000 Scots families living in Poland although that was possibly an exaggeration. Trade with the Baltic also took place such as a timber trade with Norway.

After the Jacobite threat had faded but before the railways were established, the Highland cattle drovers would use the Auld Brig on their way to market at Falkirk or Stenhousemuir. Three times a year, tens of thousands of cattle, sheep and ponies were moved together to the trysts in the south with some drovers going as far as Carlisle or even London's Smithfield. There is a record of a four-mile long tailback (of livestock) developing from St. Ninians to Bridge of Allan after a St. Ninians tollman had a dispute.

"walking the marches"
Walking the Marches is a custom probably started in the 12th century. The only way the town's boundaries could be protected was to walk round inspecting them annually. The walk was followed by a dinner. This was traditionally done by the Birlaw men made up from members of the Seven Trades, the Guildry and Council. In 2014 the tradition was revived after an official abeyance of several years.

Stirling Castle


Stirling Castle, located in Stirling, is one of the largest and most important castles in Scotland, both historically and architecturally. The castle sits atop Castle Hill, an intrusive crag, which forms part of the Stirling Sill geological formation. It is surrounded on three sides by steep cliffs, giving it a strong defensive position. Its strategic location, guarding what was, until the 1890s, the farthest downstream crossing of the River Forth, has made it an important fortification in the region from the earliest times.

Most of the principal buildings of the castle date from the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. A few structures remain from the fourteenth century, while the outer defences fronting the town date from the early eighteenth century.

Before the union with England, Stirling Castle was also one of the most used of the many Scottish royal residences, very much a palace as well as a fortress. Several Scottish Kings and Queens have been crowned at Stirling, including Mary, Queen of Scots, in 1542, and others were born or died there.

There have been at least eight sieges of Stirling Castle, including several during the Wars of Scottish Independence, with the last being in 1746, when Bonnie Prince Charlie unsuccessfully tried to take the castle. Stirling Castle is a Scheduled Ancient Monument, and is now a tourist attraction managed by Historic Environment Scotland.


Early history
Castle Hill, on which Stirling Castle is built, forms part of the Stirling Sill, a formation of quartz-dolerite around 350 million years old, which was subsequently modified by glaciation to form a "crag and tail". It is likely that this natural feature was occupied at an early date, as a hill fort is located on Gowan Hill, immediately to the east.

The Romans bypassed Stirling, building a fort at Doune instead, but the rock may have been occupied by the Maeatae at this time. It may later have been a stronghold of the Manaw Gododdin, and has also been identified with a settlement recorded in the 7th and 8th centuries as Iudeu, where King Penda of Mercia besieged King Oswy of Bernicia in 655. The area came under Pictish control after the defeat of the Northumbrians at the Battle of Dun Nechtain thirty years later. However, there is no archaeological evidence for occupation of Castle Hill before the late medieval period.

Other legends have been associated with Stirling, or "Snowdoun" as it was more poetically known. The 16th-century historian Hector Boece claims in his Historia Gentis Scotorum that the Romans, under Agricola, fortified Stirling, and that Kenneth MacAlpin, traditionally the first King of Scotland, besieged a castle at Stirling during his takeover of the Pictish kingdom in the 9th century. Boece is, however, considered an unreliable historian.

Another chronicler, William Worcester, associated Stirling with the court of the legendary King Arthur. Tradition suggests that St Monenna founded a chapel here, as she is said to have done at Edinburgh Castle, although it is now thought that the legend of Monenna results from a later confusion of early Christian figures, including Modwenna and Moninne.

The first record of Stirling Castle dates from around 1110, when King Alexander I dedicated a chapel there. It appears to have been an established royal centre by this time, as Alexander died here in 1124. During the reign of his successor David I, Stirling became a royal burgh, and the castle an important administration centre. King William I formed a deer park to the south-west of the castle, but after his capture by the English in 1174, he was forced to surrender several castles, including Stirling and Edinburgh Castle, under the Treaty of Falaise. There is no evidence that the English actually occupied the castle, and it was formally handed back by Richard I of England in 1189. Stirling continued to be a favoured royal residence, with William himself dying there in 1214, and Alexander III laying out the New Park, for deer hunting, in the 1260s.


Wars of Independence
Stirling remained a centre of royal administration until the death of Alexander III in 1286. His passing triggered a succession crisis, with Edward I of England invited to arbitrate between competing claimants. Edward came north in 1291, demanding that Stirling, along with the other royal castles, be put under his control during the arbitration. Edward gave judgement in favour of John Balliol, hoping he would be a "puppet" ruler, but John refused to obey Edward's demands.

In 1296, Edward invaded Scotland, beginning the Wars of Scottish Independence, which would last for the next 60 years. The English found Stirling Castle abandoned and empty, and set about occupying this key site. They were dislodged the following year, after the victory of Andrew Moray and William Wallace at the Battle of Stirling Bridge. Many of the garrison were killed during the battle, after which the English commanders William FitzWarin and Marmaduke Thweng retreated into the castle. However, they were quickly starved into surrender by the Scots.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i_Dp-X0Q1SU
[great aerial views of the castle]


Next summer, the castle changed hands again, being abandoned by the Scots after the English victory at Falkirk. Edward strengthened the castle, but it was besieged in 1299 by forces including Robert Bruce. King Edward failed to relieve the garrison, who were forced to surrender.

By 1303, the English again held the upper hand, and Stirling was the last remaining castle in Scottish hands. Edward's army arrived in April 1304, with at least 17 siege engines. The Scots, under William Oliphant, surrendered on 20 July, but part of the garrison were ordered back into the castle by Edward, as he had not yet deployed his latest engine, "Warwolf". Warwolf is believed to have been a large trebuchet, which destroyed the castle's gatehouse. Although Edward's victory seemed complete, he was dead by 1307, and Robert Bruce was now King of Scots. By 1313, only Stirling, Roxburgh, Edinburgh and Berwick castles were held by the English. Edward Bruce, the king's brother, laid siege to Stirling, which was held by Sir Philip Mowbray. Mowbray proposed a bargain: that he would surrender the castle, if it were not relieved by 24 June 1314. Bruce agreed, and withdrew. The following summer, the English duly headed north, led by Edward II, to save the castle. On 23–24 June, King Robert's forces met the English at the Battle of Bannockburn, within sight of the castle walls. The resulting English defeat was decisive. King Edward attempted to take refuge in the castle, but Mowbray was determined to keep to his word, and the English were forced to flee. Mowbray handed over the castle, changing sides himself in the process. King Robert ordered the castle to be slighted; its defences destroyed to prevent reoccupation by the English.


The war was not over, however. The second War of Scottish Independence saw the English in control of Stirling Castle by 1336, when Thomas Rokeby was the commander, and extensive works were carried out, still largely in timber rather than stone. Andrew Murray attempted a siege in 1337, when guns may have been used for one of the first times in Scotland. Robert Stewart, the future King Robert II, retook Stirling in a siege during 1341–1342. Maurice Murray was appointed as its keeper, who in the words of Andrew of Wyntoun "inforsyt it grettumly, for riche he was and full mychty" (enforced it greatly, for rich he was and full mighty). In 1360, Robert de Forsyth was appointed governor of Stirling Castle, an office he passed on to his son John and grandson William, who was governor in 1399.


Early Stewarts

[The north gate of the castle, at the lower left, is probably the oldest part of the castle, dating partly from the 1380s]


Under the early Stewart kings Robert II (reigned 1371–1390) and Robert III (reigned 1390–1406), the earliest surviving parts of the castle were built. Robert Stewart, Earl of Menteith, Regent of Scotland as brother of Robert III, undertook works on the north and south gates. The present north gate is built on these foundations of the 1380s, the earliest surviving masonry in the castle.In 1424, Stirling Castle was part of the jointure (marriage settlement) given to James I's wife Joan Beaufort, establishing a tradition which later monarchs continued. After James' murder in 1437, Joan took shelter here with her son, the young James II. Fifteen years later, in 1452, it was at Stirling Castle that James stabbed and killed William, 8th Earl of Douglas, when the latter refused to end a potentially treasonous alliance with John of Islay, Earl of Ross and Alexander Lindsay, 4th Earl of Crawford. James III (reigned 1460–1488) was born here, and later undertook works to the gardens and the chapel royal. The manufacture of artillery in the castle is recorded in 1475. James' wife, Margaret of Denmark, died in Stirling Castle in 1486, and two years later James himself died at the Battle of Sauchieburn, fought over almost the same ground as the Battle of Bannockburn, just to the south of the castle.


Renaissance palace
Almost all the present buildings in the castle were constructed between 1490 and 1600, when Stirling was developed as a principal royal centre by the Stewart kings James IV, James V and James VI. The architecture of these new buildings shows an eclectic mix of English, French and German influences, reflecting the international ambitions of the Stewart dynasty.


James IV (reigned 1488–1513) kept a full Renaissance court, including alchemists, and sought to establish a palace of European standing at Stirling. He undertook building works at the royal residences of Edinburgh, Falkland and Linlithgow, but the grandest works were at Stirling, and include the King's Old Building, the Great Hall, and the Forework. He also renovated the chapel royal, one of two churches within the castle at this time, and in 1501 received approval from Pope Alexander VI for the establishment of a college of priests. The Forework, of which little now remains, was derived from French military architecture, although military details were added more for style than for defence. A new portcullis was painted with red lead and linseed oil. The gardener, George Campbell, built archery butts next to the stables in 1504. James IV played tennis at Stirling with the Spanish ambassador, Pedro de Ayala.

If a satirical account in two poems by the poet William Dunbar is based on facts, the castle walls may have been the site of an attempt at human-powered flight, c.1509, by the Italian alchemist and abbot of Tongland, John Damian. The Captain of the Castle Andrew Aytoun kept an alchemist called Caldwell maintaining a furnace for "quinta essencia", the mythical fifth element, at the castle.

The building works begun by James IV had not been completed at the time of his death at the Battle of Flodden. His successor, James V (reigned 1513–1542), was crowned in the chapel royal, and grew up in the castle under the guardianship of Lord Erskine. In 1515, the Regent Albany brought 7,000 men to Stirling to wrest control of the young king from his mother, Margaret Tudor. James V as monarch was said to have travelled in disguise under the name "Gudeman of Ballengeich", after the road running under the eastern wall of the castle. Ballengeich means "windy pass" in Gaelic. In 1533 a priest James Nicholson was in charge of the building fabric, and he also fed cranes, herons, peacocks, and bitterns for the king's table.





James V continued and expanded his father's building programme, creating the centrepiece of the castle, the Royal Palace, built under the direction of Sir James Hamilton of Finnart and masons brought from France. James V also died young, leaving unfinished work to be completed by his widow, Mary of Guise. His infant daughter, Mary, Queen of Scots, was brought to Stirling Castle for safety, and crowned in the chapel royal on 9 September 1543. She too was brought up here, until she was sent to Inchmahome Priory, and then to France in 1548. In the 1550s, during the Regency of Mary of Guise, Anglo-French hostilities were fought out in Scotland. Artillery fortifications were added to the south approach of the castle including the 'French Spur', and these form the basis of the present Outer Defences. Guise employed an Italian military engineer called Lorenzo Pomarelli. From 1534 to 1584 Michael Gardiner was in charge of the artillery.

Queen Mary returned to Scotland in 1561, and visited Stirling Castle frequently. She nursed Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley, through an illness here in 1565, and the two were soon married. Their son, James VI, was baptised here in December 1566. The celebrations included fireworks, an assault on a mock castle, and a masque designed by Bastian Pagez. Darnley was already estranged from the Queen and did not attend although he was resident at the castle. James' guardian, the Earl of Mar, was made hereditary governor of the castle in 1566. Mary was travelling from Stirling when she was abducted by the Earl of Bothwell, beginning the chain of events that led to her forced abdication and her flight to England. When Mary escaped from Lochleven Castle in May 1568, the Earl of Mar was ordered step up security at Stirling around the king and expel from the castle all but his closest friends and relatives.

The young King James was crowned in July 1567 in the nearby Church of the Holy Rude, and grew up within the castle walls in the care of Annabell Murray, Countess of Mar and under the tutelage of the humanist scholar George Buchanan. A tennis court was built of timber for the king in 1576. Frequently used as a pawn in the struggles between his regents and the supporters of Mary, the young king was closely guarded. Stirling became the base for James' supporters, while those nobles who wished to see Queen Mary restored gathered at Edinburgh, under William Kirkcaldy of Grange. Grange led a raid on Stirling in 1571, attempting to round up the Queen's enemies, but failed to gain control of the castle or the King.

The keeper of the Castle, Alexander Erskine of Gogar was ejected by supporters of Regent Morton in April 1578, after his son was fatally wounded during a struggle at the gate. The rebellious Earls of Mar and Angus seized the castle in 1584, but surrendered and fled to England when the King arrived with an army. They returned the following year, forcing the King to surrender, although they proclaimed their loyalty to him.

In December 1593 Anne of Denmark decided to come to Stirling for the birth of her first child, and James ordered the palace which was in "ruin and decay" to be repaired. Prince Henry was born in the castle in 1594, and the present Chapel Royal was constructed for his baptism on 30 August. Probably built by William Schaw, the chapel completed the quadrangle of the Inner Close. Like his predecessors Henry spent his childhood here under the 2nd Earl of Mar, until the Union of the Crowns of 1603, when his father succeeded as King of England and the royal family left for London


Outer Defences
The Outer Defences comprise artillery fortifications, and were built in their present form in the 18th century, although some parts, including the French Spur at the east end, date back to the regency of Mary of Guise in the 1550s. The French Spur was originally an ear-shaped bastion known as an orillon, and contained gun emplacements which protected the main spur. This projecting spur was fronted by an earth ramp called a talus, and was entered via a drawbridge over a ditch. Excavations in the 1970s showed that much of the original stonework remains within the 18th-century defences.

Following the attempted Jacobite invasion of 1708, improvements to the castle's defences were ordered as a matter of priority. A scheme of new defences was proposed by Theodore Dury, although this was criticised by one Captain Obryan, who put forward his own, much more expensive, scheme. In the end a compromise was built, and was complete by 1714. The main front wall was extended outwards, to form Guardhouse Square. This had the effect of creating two defensive walls, both of which were fronted by ditches defended by covered firing galleries known as caponiers. One of the caponiers survives and is accessible from Guardhouse Square by a narrow staircase.

To the rear of the walls, chambers called casemates were built to strengthen the wall, and to provide gun emplacements. The French Spur was modified slightly to allow more cannons to be mounted.The buildings within Guardhouse Square date from the 19th century. Outside the castle is the early 19th-century Esplanade, used as a parade ground, and now as a car park and performance space.


Forework

The Forework, entry to the main part of the castle


The gatehouse providing entry from the outer defences to the castle proper was erected by King James IV, and was probably completed around 1506. It originally formed part of a Forework, extending as a curtain wall across the whole width of Castle Hill. At the centre is the gatehouse itself, which now stands to less than half its original height. The round towers at the outer corners rose to conical roofs, with battlements carried around the tops of the towers. These were flanked by more round towers, of which only traces now remain, and mirrored by further rounds at the rear of the gatehouse. The overall design, as drawn by John Slezer in 1693, shows French influence, and has parallels with the forework erected at Linlithgow Palace.

Like the Linlithgow structure, the Forework was probably intended more for show, evoking the "age of chivalry", than for defence, as it would have offered little protection against contemporary artillery. The entrance was via a central passage, flanked by two separate pedestrian passages. This triple arrangement was unusual in its time, and Classical triumphal arches have been suggested as an influence. The gatehouse was dismantled gradually, and was consolidated in its present form in 1810. At each end of the crenellated curtain wall was a rectangular tower. The west tower, known as the Prince's Tower, probably after Henry, Prince of Scotland, survives to its full height, and is now attached to the later palace. At the east end, the Elphinstone Tower contained a kitchen and possibly an officer's lodging. It was cut down to form a gun battery, probably in the early 18th century when the Outer Defences were rebuilt.


Outer Close
Within the Forework is a courtyard known as the Outer Close. To the south-east are Georgian military buildings; the late 18th-century Main Guard House, and the early 19th-century Fort Major's House. The early North Gate, giving access to the Nether Bailey, contained the original castle kitchens, which were probably linked to the Great Hall. The Great Kitchen which is now visible was constructed later, against the east wall of the castle. However, in 1689 these rooms were infilled with rubble to reinforce gun emplacements, known as the Grand Battery, which were built on top of the kitchen's vaults. Excavations in the 1920s ascertained the extent of the surviving rooms, and the vaults were reconstructed in 1929. The small building above the North Gate is traditionally said to have been a mint, known in Scots as the Cunzie Hoose or "coining house". To the west of the Outer Close, the main parts of the castle are arranged around the quadrangular Inner Close: the Royal Palace to the south, the King's Old Building on the west, the Chapel Royal to the north, and the Great Hall to the east.

Sieges of Stirling Castle
There have been at least eight sieges of Stirling Castle, a strategically important fortification in Stirling, Scotland. Stirling is located at the crossing of the River Forth, making it a key location for access to the north of Scotland.

The castle changed hands several times between English and Scottish control during the Wars of Scottish Independence (1296–1357). In 1299, the castle was in English hands, when the constable, John Sampson, was besieged by the Scots. In 1304, Edward I of England besieged the Scots, deploying siege engines to force the garrison to surrender. In 1337, a siege by Sir Andrew Murray failed to retake the castle. Between 1571 and 1585, the castle was besieged three times by Scots factions during the reign of James VI. In 1651, Oliver Cromwell captured the castle during his invasion of Scotland. The final siege took place in 1746, when Charles Edward Stuart besieged the castle during the final Jacobite rising.

Siege of 1304
After the defeat of William Wallace's Scots army at the Battle of Falkirk in 1298, it took Edward I six years to gain full control of Scotland. The last stronghold of resistance to English rule was Stirling Castle. Armed with twelve siege engines, the English laid siege to the castle in April 1304. For four months the castle was bombarded by lead balls (stripped from nearby church roofs), Greek fire, stone balls, and even some sort of gunpowder mixture. Edward I had sulphur and saltpetre, components of gunpowder, brought to the siege from England.

Impatient with the lack of progress, Edward ordered his chief engineer, Master James of St. George, to begin work on a new, more massive engine called Warwolf (a trebuchet). The castle's garrison of 30, led by William Oliphant, eventually were allowed to surrender on 24 July after Edward had previously refused to accept surrender until the Warwolf had been tested.

Despite previous threats, Edward spared all the Scots in the garrison and executed only one Englishman who had previously given over the castle to the Scots. Sir William Oliphant was imprisoned in the Tower of London.



Cambuskenneth Abbey


Cambuskenneth Abbey is an Augustinian monastery located on an area of land enclosed by a meander of the River Forth near Stirling in Scotland. The abbey today is largely reduced to its foundations, however its bell tower remains. The neighbouring modern village of Cambuskenneth is named after it.

Establishment
Cambuskenneth Abbey was founded by order of David I around the year 1140. It is a daughter house of the French Arrouaise Order, the only one to exist in Scotland. The Arrouaise also ran other abbeys and churches in land owned by David I in England. The Arrouaise were a distinct order at the time of the Abbey's construction to the Augustinians but the two orders would later merge.

Dedicated to the Virgin Mary, it was initially known as the Abbey of St Mary of Stirling and sometimes simply as Stirling Abbey. In 1147 Pope Eugene III declared the Abbey had his protection through a papal bull a status confirmed by both Pope Alexander III in 1164 and Pope Celestine III in 1195. The abbey becomes known as Cambuskenneth rather than Stirling from around 1207 as shown by papal bulls of the time.

Cambuskenneth was one of the more important abbeys in Scotland, due in part to its proximity to the Royal Burgh of Stirling, a leading urban centre of the country and sometime capital. The establishment of abbeys in Scotland, including Cambuskenneth, under David I provided a new influence in Scottish public life by providing sources of literate individuals for the royal court and administrative duties.

14th century and connections to Bruce kings
Its status as a royal abbey in the neighbourhood of a major national stronghold may be compared to that of Holyrood Abbey vis à vis Edinburgh. Notable events include in 1303 Edward I of England prayed and received an oath of loyalty from Robert Wishart, Bishop of Glasgow, at the Abbey. In 1308 Niall mac Cailein, Gilbert II de la Hay and other nobles swore allegiance to Robert the Bruce. The connection to Robert the Bruce continues with a parliament being held at the abbey in 1314, five months after victory at the Battle of Bannockburn. The spoils of the Battle at Bannockburn were shared out on the grounds of the abbey. In 1326 another parliament was held where nobles and clergy swore an oath to the king and confirm the succession of his son David II. So frequently was the abbey used for Parliaments during the 14th century that one of the connected buildings on the site became known as "Parliament Hall".

The abbey continued to have close links to the heirs of Robert the Bruce, Robert II granted charters at the abbey in 1380 and accounts show that he stayed at the site for a number of days, while his son Robert III conducted royal business at the abbey in 1392.

In 1486 Margaret of Denmark died at Stirling Castle and was buried at the abbey. In 1488 her husband James III was killed at the Battle of Sauchieburn and his body was brought to Cambuskenneth Abbey for burial. His tomb was finished in 1502 and painted by David Pratt.Following the dismantling of the bulk of the abbey the tomb was damaged and it was restored in 1865, funded by Queen Victoria. It stands within a railed enclosure at the east end of the abbey ruins.


Later history and closure
Patrick Paniter became the Abbot of Cambuskenneth in 1513, he is the most notable individual to hold the title as he also held the position of secretary to James V and also fought at the Battle of Flodden in the same year.

The abbey fell into disuse during the Scottish Reformation. In 1560 the abbey was placed under the jurisdiction of the military governor of Stirling Castle, John Erskine, who had much of the stonework removed and used in construction projects in the castle. His nephew Adam Erskine was made Commendator of the Abbey. Abbey Craig, on which the Wallace Monument sits, is named such because of its siting near Cambuskenneth Abbey.


Abbey today
The abbey was acquired by the crown in 1908, and it is managed by Historic Scotland. The abbey is open to visitors during the summer months. The foundations of the abbey church and other ancillary buildings are visible on the site, much of which date from around the 13th century. Only the 13th-century campanile is intact, following an extensive renovation in 1859 There is also a historic graveyard on the site including the grave of James III of Scotland and his wife Margaret of Denmark, as well as many of the Abbots of Cambuskenneth.


Battle of Sauchieburn
The Battle of Sauchieburn was fought on 11 June 1488, at the side of Sauchie Burn, a stream about two miles south of Stirling, Scotland. The battle was fought between the followers of King James III of Scotland and a large group of rebellious Scottish nobles including the future Alexander Home, 2nd Lord Home, who were nominally led by the king's 15-year-old son, Prince James, Duke of Rothesay.


Father and son
James III had faced rebellion for months, with a complicated series of events leading to Sauchieburn. The rebels having made Prince James their figurehead earlier in the year, James III became determined to get hold of his son and settle the matter. However he broke his written word that he would negotiate first, instead travelling south to Edinburgh from his stronghold in the north. This breaking of his word apparently caused some of his strong supporters to desert him, such as Huntly, Erroll, Marishal, and Glamis; they adopted a neutral stance on the issues. In May, James crossed the river to use Blackness as a base, with the prince at Linlithgow. However, attempts to reach the prince at Linlithgow were defeated in a small skirmish, and James was forced back to Blackness, from where he fled, leaving behind those he had given as hostages to the rebels. By the 16th of May he was back in Edinburgh, and began spreading money around to raise supporters, including to his half uncle, John Stewart, 1st Earl of Atholl. At this point the rebels were geographically split, some at Stirling, some at Linlithgow. James again took the initiative with a sudden move over to Fife with his supporters and their men, advancing on Stirling, where on the 10th of June he took the rebels by surprise, driving them southwards. This left James with the town of Stirling, perhaps not the castle, from where he advanced on the 11th of June to meet the combined forces of the rebels driven from Stirling and those who had come from Linlithgow in support. To aid him in battle he had the sword of Robert the Bruce with him. Dr John Ireland heard the King's confession. His army was arrayed by the advocate John Ross of Montgrenan and battle began.

The battle went badly for the Royalists. Persistent legends, based on the highly coloured and unreliable accounts of sixteenth-century chroniclers such as Adam Abell, Robert Lindsay of Pitscottie, John Lesley, and George Buchanan, claim that James III was assassinated at Milltown, near Bannockburn, soon after the battle. There is no contemporary evidence to support this account, nor the allegation that he fled the battle, nor the tale that his assassin impersonated a priest in order to approach James.

Pitscottie provided a story that, on the eve of the battle, his ancestor David Lord Lindsay of the Byres presented James III with a "great grey horse" that would carry him faster than any other horse into or away from the battle. Unfortunately, the horse threw the King during the battle, and James III was either killed in the fall, or was finished off by enemy soldiers.

Prince James ascended to the throne, and reigned as James IV for 25 years. Throughout his reign he wore a heavy iron chain around his waist, next to the skin, as a constant reminder of his role in the death of his father.

The battlefield is currently under research to be inventoried and protected by Historic Scotland, under the Scottish Historical Environment Policy of 2009.


Participants
Some of the participants in the Battle of Sauchieburn included:

Royalists:
Alexander Cunningham, 1st Earl of Glencairn, slain in the battle;
Malise Graham, 1st Earl of Menteith;
David Lindsay, 1st Duke of Montrose;
Lord Erskine;
Lord Graham;
Lord Maxwell;
Sir William Ruthven, 1st Laird of Ruthven;
David Lindsay, 2nd Lord Lindsay who, in a later chronicle account, gave James III the horse that threw him;
Sir Thomas Sempill of Eliotston, Sheriff of Renfrew, killed in battle;
William Douglas of Cavers and his followers.
Roger Grierson I of Lag, Fatally wounded
The troops were largely from Scotland's northern counties, plus some burgh levies.

Rebels:
Alexander Home, 2nd Lord Home;
Archibald Douglas, 5th Earl of Angus;
Patrick Hepburn, 1st Earl of Bothwell;
Lord Gray;
Lord (Hugh) Mongomerie, 1st Earl of Elington;
The troops were largely from East Lothian, the Merse, Galloway, and the border counties.




Battle of Stirling Bridge

[present day bridge]


The Battle of Stirling Bridge was a battle of the First War of Scottish Independence. On 11 September 1297, the forces of Andrew Moray and William Wallace defeated the combined English forces of John de Warenne, 6th Earl of Surrey, and Hugh de Cressingham near Stirling, on the River Forth.


Background
In 1296, John de Warenne, 6th Earl of Surrey, defeated John Comyn, Earl of Buchan in the Battle of Dunbar. King John Balliol surrendered to King Edward I of England at Brechin on 10 July, and the Scottish landholders were made to acknowledge Edward's overlordship. In 1297, Moray initiated a revolt in northern Scotland and by the late summer, controlled Urquhart, Inverness, Elgin, Banff and Aberdeen. Wallace joined Moray in September near Dundee, and they marched to Stirling. Stirling, in the words of Stuart Reid, was "traditionally regarded as the key to Scotland." Meanwhile, Surrey had joined Cressingham in July and both had arrived at Stirling by 9 September 1297. By then, Moray and Wallace had already occupied Abbey Craig.

The main battle
Surrey was concerned with the number of Scots he faced, separated by a long causeway and narrow, wooden bridge, over the River Forth near Stirling Castle. Determining that he would be at a tactical disadvantage if he attempted to take his main force across there, he delayed crossing for several days to allow for negotiations and to reconnoiter the area. On 11 September, Surrey had sent James Stewart, and then two Dominican friars as emissaries to the Scots. According to Walter of Guisborough, Wallace reputedly responded with, "We are not here to make peace but to do battle to defend ourselves and liberate our kingdom. Let them come on and we shall prove this to their very beards."

Camped on Abbey Craig, the Scots dominated the soft flat ground north of the river. The English force of English, Welsh and Scots knights, bowmen and foot soldiers camped south of the river. Sir Richard Lundie, a Scots knight who joined the English after the Capitulation of Irvine, offered to outflank the enemy by leading a cavalry force over a ford two miles upstream, where sixty horsemen could cross at the same time. Hugh de Cressingham, King Edward's treasurer in Scotland, persuaded the Earl to reject that advice and order a direct attack across the bridge.

The small bridge was broad enough to let only two horsemen cross abreast but offered the safest river crossing, as the Forth widened to the east and the marshland of Flanders Moss lay to the west. The Scots waited as the English knights and infantry, led by Cressingham, with Sir Marmaduke de Thweng and Sir Richard Waldegrave, began to make their slow progress across the bridge on the morning of 11 September. It would have taken several hours for the entire English army to cross.

Wallace and Moray waited, according to the Chronicle of Hemingburgh, until "as many of the enemy had come over as they believed they could overcome". When a substantial number of the troops had crossed (possibly about 2,000) the attack was ordered. The Scots spearmen came down from the high ground in rapid advance and fended off a charge by the English heavy cavalry and then counterattacked the English infantry. They gained control of the east side of the bridge and cut off the chance of English reinforcements to cross. Caught on the low ground in the loop of the river with no chance of relief or of retreat, most of the outnumbered English on the east side were probably killed. A few hundred may have escaped by swimming across the river. Marmaduke Thweng managed to fight his way back across the bridge with some of his men.

Surrey, who was left with a small contingent of archers, had stayed south of the river and was still in a strong position. The bulk of his army remained intact and he could have held the line of the Forth, denying the Scots a passage to the south, but his confidence was gone. After the escape of Sir Marmaduke Thweng, Surrey ordered the bridge to be destroyed, retreated towards Berwick, leaving the garrison at Stirling Castle isolated and abandoning the Lowlands to the rebels. James Stewart, the High Steward of Scotland, and Malcolm, Earl of Lennox, whose forces had been part of Surrey's army, observing the carnage to the north of the bridge, withdrew. Then, the English supply train was attacked at The Pows, a wooded marshy area, by James Stewart and the other Scots lords, killing many of the fleeing soldiers.

The Stirling Bridge of that time is believed to have been about 180 yards upstream from the 15th-century stone bridge that now crosses the river. Four stone piers have been found underwater just north and at an angle to the extant 15th-century bridge, along with man-made stonework on one bank in line with the piers. The site of the fighting was along either side of an earthen causeway leading from the Abbey Craig, atop which the Wallace Monument is now, to the north end of the bridge. The battlefield has been inventoried and protected by Historic Scotland under the Scottish Historical Environment Policy of 2009.


Aftermath
Surrey left William de Warine and Sir Marmaduke de Thweng in charge of Stirling Castle, as Surrey abandoned his army, and fled towards Berwick.

The contemporary English chronicler Walter of Guisborough recorded the English losses in the battle as 100 cavalry and 5,000 infantry killed.Scottish casualties in the battle are unrecorded, with the exception of Andrew Moray, who was mortally wounded during the battle, and was dead by November.

The Lanercost Chronicle records that Wallace had a broad strip of Cressingham's skin, "...taken from the head to the heel, to make therewith a baldrick for his sword."

The Scots proceeded to raid the south as far as Durham, England. Wallace was appointed "Guardian of the kingdom of Scotland and commander of its army." Yet, Edward was already planning another invasion of Scotland, which would lead to the Battle of Falkirk.


Popular culture
The exploits of Wallace were passed on to posterity mainly in the form of tales collected and recounted by the poet Blind Harry, the Minstrel (d. 1492), whose original, probably oral sources were never specified. Blind Harry was active some 200 years after the events described in his The Acts and Deeds of the Illustrious and Valiant Champion Sir William Wallace, c. 1470. The tales were designed to entertain the court of James IV (r. 1488–1513) and are undoubtedly a blend of fact and fiction. Like most of his other episodes, Blind Harry's account of the battle of Stirling Bridge is highly improbable, such as his use of figures of biblical magnitude for the size of the participating armies. Nevertheless, his highly dramatised and graphic account of the battle fed the imaginations of subsequent generations of Scottish schoolchildren. Here is his description:

On Saturday they [Moray and Wallace] rode on to the bridge, which was of good plain board, well made and jointed, having placed watches to see that none passed from the army. Taking a wright, the most able workman there, he [Wallace] ordered him to saw the plank in two at the mid streit [middle stretch], so that no-one might walk over it. He then nailed it up quickly with hinges, and dirtied it with clay, to cause it to appear that nothing had been done. The other end he so arranged that it should lie on three wooden rollers, which were so placed, that when one was out the rest would fall down. The wright, himself, he ordered to sit there underneath, in a cradle, bound on a beam, to loose the pin when Wallace let him know by blowing a horn when the time was come. No one in all the army should be allowed to blow but he himself.

Hugh Cressingham leads on the vanguard with twenty thousand likely men to see. Thirty thousand the Earl of Warren had, but he did then as wisdom did direct, all the first army being sent over before him. Some Scottish men, who well knew this manner of attack, bade Wallace sound, saying there were now enough. He hastened not, however, but steadily observed the advance until he saw Warren's force thickly crowd the bridge. Then from Jop he took the horn and blew loudly, and warned John the Wright, who thereupon struck out the roller with skill; when the pin was out, the rest of it fell down. Now arose an hideous outcry among the people, both horses and men, falling into the water. (...)

On foot, and bearing a great sharp spear, Wallace went amongst the thickest of the press. he aimed a stroke at Cressingham in his corslet, which was brightly polished. The sharp head of the spear pierced right through the plates and through his body, stabbing him beyond rescue; thus was that chieftain struck down to death. With the stroke Wallace bore down both man and horse.

The English army although ready for battle, lost heart when their chieftain was slain, and many openly began to flee. Yet worthy men abode in the place until ten thousand were slain. Then the remainder fled, not able to abide longer, seeking succour in many directions, some east, some west, and some fled to the north. Seven thousand full at once floated in the Forth, plunged into the deep and drowned without mercy; none were left alive of all that fell army.

As well as the bridge ploy, Wallace's use of a spear appears to be a fictional element. A two-handed sword [Claidheamh de Laimh], purporting to be Wallace's, which may contain original metal from his sword blade, was kept by the Scottish kings and is displayed as a relic in the Wallace Monument.

The potency of these tales can be gauged from the following statement by the poet Robert Burns, writing some three centuries after they were first related.

The two first books I ever read in private, and which gave me more pleasure than any two books I ever read again, were The Life of Hannibal and The History of Sir William Wallace [a modernised version of Blind Harry by William Hamilton of Gilbertfield]. Hannibal gave my young ideas such a turn that I used to strut in raptures up and down after the recruiting drum and bagpipe, and wish myself tall enough that I could be a soldier; while the story of Wallace poured a Scottish prejudice into my veins which will boil along there till the flood-gates of life shut in eternal rest.

The Battle of Stirling Bridge is depicted in the 1995 film Braveheart, but it bears little resemblance to the real battle, there being no bridge (due mainly to the difficulty of filming around the bridge itself) and tactics resembling the Battle of Bannockburn.