On this day in 1797 The Massacre of Tranent took place, when workers from the East Lothain town confronted the Cinque Port Light Dragoons to protest the conscription of men into the British Militia.

The act was initially deeply unpopular as it was believed the militia ballot would be used to enable the Crown to remove men from Scotland.
 
On August 28th a proclamation was drawn up by local people of Tranent to object to the conscription of Scots into the British Militia, to be used either for controlling their own people or for deployment elsewhere. The proclamation comprised four clauses:

• We declare that we unanimously disapprove of the late Act of Parliament for raising 6000 militiamen in Scotland.
• We declare that we will assist each other in endeavouring to repeal the said Act.
• We declare that we are peaceably disposed; and should you, in endeavouring to execute the said Act, urge us to adopt coercive measures, we must look upon you to be the aggressors, and as responsible to the nation for all the consequences that may follow.
  
• Although we may be overpowered in effecting the said resolution, and dragged from our parents, friends, and employment, to be made soldiers of, you can infer from this what trust can be reposed in us if ever we are called upon to disperse our fellow-countrymen, or to oppose a foreign foe.

 
The following day, the proclamation was handed to Major Wight, the commanding officer of the recruitment squad; it was initially ignored. Later, when a contingent from the local colliery communities, led by 'Jackie' (Joan) Crookston confronted the troops, their response was swift and bloody. Several of the protesters, including Crookston, were shot dead out of hand.

On this day in 1298 the Battle of Falkirk took place between the forces of Scotland under William Wallace and an English army under Edward I. A pivotal moment in the First War of Scottish Independence, it would be a significant defeat for the Scots leading to Wallace resigning as Guardian of Scotland.

John Balliol was a King of Scotland, who reigned between November 30th 1292 and July 10th 1296. He was chosen to succeed Margaret, Maid of Norway, who died  in September 1290 leaving no obvious heir. Following her death the Guardians of Scotland, who had been appointed to govern the realm during the young Queen's minority, called upon Edward I of England, to decide between various competitors for the Scottish throne in a process known as the Great Cause. Edward and his council would choose John, but the English king used it as an opportunity to turn Scotland into one of his vassals and what ensued was the bitter struggle of the First War of Scottish Independence.

Little of Balliol's early life is known. He was born between 1248 and 1250 at an unknown location; possibilities include Galloway, Picardy and Barnard Castle, County Durham. He derived his claim from being the great-great-great-grandson of David I (who reigned between 1124 and 1153), being senior in genealogical primogeniture but not in proximity of blood. His main rival was Robert Bruce, 5th Lord of Annandale (grandfather of Robert the Bruce, who later became king) and so following the Margaret's death there was a great risk that this rivalry would descend into a catastrophic civil war.

In an attempt to avoid conflict Guardians and other Scots magnates asked Edward I to intervene. Edward issued the ultimatum that his involvement would be on the condition that the realm of Scotland become a feudal dependency of the English throne. This was a long held ambition of the English monarchy, and while it was not unusual for Scottish kings to pay homage to their English neighbours, the practical implications were usually non-existent. What Edward sought was something more legally binding. This condition was not forthcoming, however a compromise was reached where Edward was put in temporary control of the principal royal castles of Scotland and for his part, Edward agreed that he would return control of both kingdom and castles to the successful claimant within two months.

Fourteen nobles put themselves forward as candidates for the throne. In reality only four had genuine claims, namely Balliol, Bruce, John Hastings, 1st Baron Hasting and Floris V, Count of Hooland. Of these only Bruce and Balliol had realistic grounds on which to claim the crown. The rest merely wished to have their claims put on the legal record. Edward gave judgement on November 17th 1292 and Balliol was chosen as king, with Edward’s son, the future Edward II, becoming heir designate. This decision had the support of the majority of Scots nobles and magnates. Balliol was crowned King of Scotland at Scone on November 30th ​1292, St. Andrew's Day.

With the new king in place, Edward I coerced recognition as Lord Paramount of Scotland, the feudal superior of the realm, and steadily went about undermining John's authority. He demanded homage to be paid towards himself, legal authority over the Scottish King in any disputes brought against him by his own subjects, contribution towards the costs for the defense of England, and military support was expected in his war against France.

The Scottish nobility soon became weary of their king’s compromised position and so John’s authority was taken from him by the leading men of the kingdom, who appointed a council of twelve at Stirling in July 1295. They went on to conclude a treaty of mutual assistance with France, known in later years as the Auld Alliance.

The Franco-Scottish negotiations did not go unnoticed in England and in early October, Edward began to make preparations for an invasion of Scotland. One of Edward’s key appointments was that of Robert Bruce, 6th Lord of Annandale (father of the future King Robert the Bruce) as the governor of Carlisle Castle. He also ordered John to relinquish control of the castles and burghs of Berwick, Jedburgh and Roxburgh. Bit by bit, the English king began to build up his forces along the Scottish border.

In response John summoned all able-bodied Scotsmen to bear arms and gather at Caddonlee by March 11th 1296. Several Scottish nobles chose to ignore the summons, including Robert Bruce. On the 30th March, Edward sacked Berwick and then moving his forces north, met the Scots on the April 27th at the First Battle of Dunbar. The battle was a crushing defeat for the Scots, effectively ending the Scottish war effort. John retreated north, reaching Perth on June 21st, where he received a message from Edward, inviting him to surrender.

John abdicated at Stracathro near Montrose on July 10th 1296. Here the arms of Scotland were formally torn from his surcoat, giving him the abiding name of "Toom Tabard" (empty coat). By the end of August, most of Scotland was under Edward’s control  and, after removing the Stone of Destiny from Scone Abbey and transporting it to Westminster Abbey, Edward convened a parliament at Berwick, where the Scottish nobles paid homage to him as King of England.

On this day in 1495 the first known batch of Scotch whisky was recorded. In an entry in the Exchequer Rolls for 1494/95 it is written that malt was sent "To Friar John Cor, by order of the king, to make aqua vitae VIII bolls of malt", enough to make about 500 bottles. It’s from the term “aqua vitae", Latin for” water of life”, that whiskey derives its name, coming from the Gaelic Uisge, a shortened version of uisge beatha meaning, you guessed it, "water of life.”

This is unlikely to the first time whisky was distilled in Scotland. In fact the earliest mention of whiskey comes from Ireland, with the seventeenth-century Annals of Clonmacnoise attributing the death of a chieftain in 1405 to "taking a surfeit of aqua vitae" at Christmas. So it’s likely that its distillation developed in Scotland at around the same time, or at least shortly after.

Scotland’s king at the time was James IV and he is reported to have been very fond of the drink. Brother John Cor was a Tironensian monk based at Lindores Abbey in Fife, where he probably acted as an apothecary. He was a servant at James’ court and would therefore probably have been an obvious choice of distiller for the king.

At this time the distillation process was still in its infancy; whisky itself was not allowed to age, and as a result tasted very raw and brutal compared to today's versions. Renaissance-era whisky was also very potent and not diluted. Over time whisky evolved into a much smoother drink we know today and I for one am very happy about that - Sláinte!

This scene was built by Dan Harris as part of a series of models on Scottish history. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to see them first.

On this day in 1568 the Battle of Langside was fought between forces loyal to Mary, Queen of Scots and forces acting in the name of her infant son James VI. The battle, which can be regarded as the start of the Marian Civil War, was a crushing defeat for Mary, who was forced into exile and captivity in England.

In 1567, Mary’s short period of personal rule ended in recrimination, intrigue and disaster when, after her capture at Carberry Hill, she was forced to abdicate in favour of her son James, who was little more than a year old at the time. Mary was imprisoned in Loch Leven Castle, while her half-brother, James Stewart, Earl of Moray was appointed Regent on behalf of his nephew. However, on May 2nd 1568 Mary escaped, heading west to the country of the Hamiltons, high among her remaining supporters, and the safety of Dumbarton Castle with the determination to restore her rights as queen.

There she was joined by a wide cross-section of the nobility, including the Earls of Argyll, Cassillis, Rothes and Eglinton, the Lords Sommerville, Yester, Livingston, Herries, Fleming, Ross, numerous of the feudal barons and their followers. Within a few days Mary had managed to gather a respectable force of some 6,000 men.

It was openly declared that her abdication, and her consent to the coronation of James, had been extorted from her under threat of death. An act of council was then passed, declaring the whole process by which Moray had been appointed as Regent to be treasonable. A bond was drawn up by those present for her restitution, signed by eight earls, nine bishops, eighteen lords, twelve abbots and nearly one hundred barons.

At this stage Mary wanted to avoid battle and aimed to establish herself to the west, at Dumbarton Castle. This strong position would enable here to receive reinforcements from the north and form the base for her to establish her authority by gradual expansion. With the intention of by-passing Moray, who had around 4,000 men under his command, she marched on a wide circuit around Glasgow, intending to move by way of Langside, Crookston and Paisley back towards the River Clyde, and then on to Dumbarton on the north side of the Clyde estuary.

However, Moray and his army were ready on the moor close to Langside, which is now part of Glasgow, but was then a small village. Crossing the River Cart, the Regent placed his ordered hackbutters (musketeers) and cavalry among the cottages, hedges and gardens of the village, which bordered each side of a narrow lane, through which Mary's army had to pass. The rest of the army was deployed around the village. No sooner was this complete than the Queen's vanguard, commanded by Lord Hamilton, began its advance through the village. The battle was now under way.

Mary’s army was under the command of Archibald Campbell, 5th Earl of Argyll, who was to show little in the way of real military skill, seemingly hoping simply to push Moray aside by sheer force of numbers. As Hamilton attempted to force a passage through Langside he was met by close fire from the Regent’s hackbutters. Many in the front ranks were killed, throwing the remainder back on those following, and adding to the general confusion. Hamilton pushed on, finally reaching the top of a hill, only to find the main enemy army drawn up in good order. Moray’s border pikemen advanced to intercept Hamilton’s men. Both sides now met in a 'push of pike'.

At one point it looked like Moray’s army might be turned on its right wing, however seeing this, Moray reinforced it and the counter-attack pressed with such force that it broke the Marian ranks. The remainder of the Regent’s forces were then committed and in the face of this onslaught the Queen's men crumbled. The Battle of Langside was over after just forty-five minutes.

Despite the low casualties, which numbered just one for Moray and around 100 for Mary, the defeat was a significant one for the Queen. Over 300 of Mary's men were taken prisoner, including some of her most powerful allies, such as Lord Seton and Sir James Hamilton. Mary fled, first trying to reach Dumbarton Castle, but then turning south to Dundrennan Abbey. From there she left for England, never to set foot in Scotland again. Over the next five years the Queen’s supporters in Scotland continued a civil war with the Regents of Scotland. Mary’s fate however, would now be decided by her cousin, Queen Elizabeth of England.

These scenes were built by Dan Harris as part of a series of models on the Kings and Queens of Scotland. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to see them first.

Constantine II, or rather Constantín mac Áeda (Modern Gaelic: Còiseam mac Aoidh), was an early King of Scotland, known then by the Gaelic name Alba, who reigned between 900 and 943. The name The Kingdom of Alba is first used during his reign, with previous rulers having been kings of the Picts. This change of title from king of the Picts to king of Alba is part of a broader transformation of Pictland and the origins of the Kingdom of Alba. Constantine was the son of Áed mac Cináeda and grandson of Kenneth MacAlpin (Cináed mac Ailpín), who according to the national myth, was the first King of Scotland, despite never having such a title in his lifetime. Constantine is therefore Scotland’s 8th king according to most modern regal lists. He succeeded the throne following the death in battle of his cousin, Donald II.

It has been suggested that during the reign of Donald’s predecessors, Giric and Eochaid, both Constantine and Donald may have lived in exile in Ireland, where their aunt Máel Muire was wife of two successive High Kings of Ireland, Áed Findliath and Flann Sinna. Donald's reputation is suggested by the epithet dasachtach, a word used to describe a violent madmen and it is probable that he was killed fighting Vikings at Dunnottar, Aberdeenshire. Early in his reign Constantine was himself forced to deal with Viking attacks, as the Norse were driven out of Dublin in 902 by his uncles and made their way to the western coasts of Scotland, England and Wales. In 904, a battle at Srath Erenn between Constantine and these invaders is said to have resulted in a significant Viking defeat.
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In 906 Constantine and Bishop Cellach met at the Hill of Belief near the royal city of Scone and pledged themselves that the laws and disciplines of the faith, and the laws of churches and gospels, should be kept pariter cum Scottis. The translation of this is contested, with propositions including that it should be read as “in conformity with the customs of the Gaels", relating it to the claims in the king lists that Giric liberated the church from secular oppression and adopted Irish customs or "together with the Gaels" suggesting either public participation or the presence of Gaels from the western coasts as well as the people of the east coast. Whatever it means it seems to have been an important step in the gaelicisation of the lands east of Druim Alban.

It would however be events to the south that would dominate Constantine’s reign. Dublin was retaken by the Norse in 917 and the following year Viking armies under Ragnall and Sihtric invaded Northumbria with the aim of retaking York. Constantine sent help and the combined Scottish / Northumbrian force met Ragnall’s army at the indecisive Battle of Corbridge in 918. Further south Edward the Elder had secured Mercia and so when the Sihtric struck there in 919 they were unable to make any gains. In 920 or 921 Edward convened a meeting of kings, in which according to the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, Ragnall, Constantine, Ealdred son of Eadwulf of Northumbria and Owain ap Dyfnwal of Strathclyde "chose Edward as father and lord".

Edward died in 924. His realms appear to have been divided with the West Saxons recognising Ælfweard while the Mercians chose Æthelstan. Ælfweard died within weeks of his father and so Æthelstan was inaugurated as king of all of Edward's lands in 925.

In 937 however, together with Owain of Strathclyde and Olaf Guthfrithson of Dublin, Constantine invaded England. The combined Scottish, British and Viking force met Æthelstan at the Battle of Brunanburh (Dún Brunde), which is reported in the Annals of Ulster:

“…a great battle, lamentable and terrible was cruelly fought... in which fell uncounted thousands of the Northmen. ...And on the other side, a multitude of Saxons fell; but Æthelstan, the king of the Saxons, obtained a great victory.”

Brunanburh is often argued to be one of the most important battles in British history. It's been cited as the point of origin of the English nation, with historian Michael Livingston argue that:

"the men who fought and died on that field forged a political map of the future that remains [in modernity], arguably making the Battle of Brunanburh one of the most significant battles in the long history not just of England, but of the whole of the British Isles."

Æthelstan died on October 27th 939. He was succeeded by his brother Edmund, then aged 18. His empire collapsed in little more than a year, when Vikings from Ireland under Amlaíb Cuaran (Olaf Sihtricsson) seized Northumbria and the Mercian Danelaw. Consequently, Constantine’s conflict with the English kings came to an end.

In 940 Constantine abdicated the throne in favour of his nephew, Malcolm. It is rumored that this may have been involuntary, however Constantine is said to have been a devout king and he spent his retirement as an abbot, probably at St Andrews.
 
Constantine died in 952. Following the death of Malcolm two years later, his son Indulf would be crowned king. Constantine’s reign would prove hugely influential with the creation of a new form of Scottish kingship lasting two centuries after his death.

​These scenes were built by Dan Harris as part of a series of models on the Kings and Queens of Scotland. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to see them first.

Donald II, or rather Domnall mac Causantín (in Modern Gaelic: Dòmhnall mac Chòiseim), was a king of the Picts who reigned between 889 and 900. He was the son of Constantine I (Constantín mac Cináeda), and succeeded Giric and Eochaid following their expulsion or death. The Prophecy of Berchán, which is not a prophecy at all but a poem written in the 12th century or later, gives him the epithet Dásachtach, "the Madman".

The Chronicle of the Kings of Alba records that during his reign “The Northmen wasted Pictland…” and that “…a battle occurred between Danes and Scots at Innisibsolian where the Scots had victory”
 
According to the Chronicle, he was killed sometime in 900 by Vikings at Dunnottar in Aberdeenshire. It has been suggested that this event was part of King Harald Fairhair of Norway’s ravaging of Scotland as described in the Heimskringla. There is some disagreement about the nature of his death, with the Prophecy of Berchán attributing it to Gaels, not Vikings, and other sources reporting that he died at Forres.
 
Donald was succeeded by his cousin Constantine II, while his son Malcom, would become king in 943.

This scene was built by Dan Harris as part of a series of models on the Kings and Queens of Scotland. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to see them first.

Eochaid ab Rhun was King of the Picts between 878 and 889 and apparently ruled jointly with the mysterious character Giric mac Dúngail. He was the grandson of Kenneth MacAlpin (Cináed mac Ailpín), and, along with Giric, succeeded his uncle Áed mac Cináeda. According to the national myth, his grandfather was the first King of Scotland, and so alongside Giric, Eochaid is Scotland’s fifth king according to most modern regal lists.

Eochaid descended from Kenneth through his mother, who was married to Rhun ab Arthgal, King of Strathclyde. The people of the kingdom were predominantly neither Picts nor Gaels, but Britons, and would have spoken a Brythonic language closely related to Old Welsh, and in modern terms, Welsh, Cornish and Breton. While Brythonic and the Goidelic language of the Gaels form two different branches of the Insular Celtic tree, the relationship between it and Pictish is less certain, with most modern theories on the latter suggesting that Pictish and its variants, was also a form of Brythonic.

It's uncertain when Rhun's reign and life ended, but one possibility is that it happened in 876, at the same time as his brother-in-law Constantine I, who according to various sources was slain by Vikings in Fife. It's also uncertain who assumed the kingship of Strathclyde after Rhun, but Eochaid is a likely candidate. In Pictland Constantine was succeeded by his brother Áed, who reigned for just one year and may have been killed by Eochaid’s possible co-ruler, Giric.

Giric and Eochaid's relationship is uncertain, but they appear to have ruled the Kingdom either jointly over a unified area or separately over different areas for 11 years. While it is possible that they held the Pictish kingship concurrently as allies, it is also conceivable that they ruled successively as opponents. Another possibility is that, whilst Giric reigned as King of the Picts, Eochaid reigned as King of Strathclyde.

​The Chronicle of the Kings of Alba records that Eochaid and Giric’s reigns came to an end when they were both expelled from the Pictish Kingdom. Other sources however suggest that Giric was slain at Dundurn. If the accounts of Giric's downfall are to be believed, and if both he and Eochaid were allied together at the time, it is conceivable that both Eochaid and Giric fell together. Alternately, Giric's killing could have contributed to Eochaid's ejection from the kingship. Although it is unknown who was responsible for Giric's reported demise, one candidate is the succeeding Donald II, who would rule between 889 and 900.

The opening salvo of what would become known as the First War of Scottish Independence occurred when Edward sacked and captured Berwick-upon-Tweed in March. The English then moved north along the east coast to their next objective, Dunbar Castle. Edward sent one of his chief lieutenants, John de Warenne, 6th Earl of Surrey, John Balliol's own father-in-law, northwards with a strong force of knights to invest the stronghold. The castle, whose garrison was small and no match for the English sent out a call for help, finding John and his army camped at nearby Haddington. In response the army, or a large part of it, advanced to the rescue of Dunbar. John, who was a weak king and an even weaker commander did not accompany it. Instead he placed John Comyn, Lord of Badenoch (Red Comyn) in charge.

​The Scottish forces arrived on the morning of April 27th and formed up on Spottismuir - a ridge of high ground overlooking Dunbar. Seeing this, Surrey left his infantry to maintain the siege and moved his mounted forces to engage the Scots. To meet them, Surrey's cavalry had to cross a gully intersected by the Spott Burn. As they did so their ranks broke up, and the Scots, deluded into thinking the English were leaving the field, abandoned their position in a disorderly downhill charge, only to find that Surrey's forces had reformed on Spottsmuir and were advancing in perfect order.

The English quickly routed the disorganised Scots in a single charge. The action was brief and probably not very bloody, since the only casualty of any note was a minor Lothian knight, Sir Patrick Graham, though about 100 Scottish lords, knights and men-at-arms were taken prisoner. The survivors fled westwards to the safety of the Ettrick Forest. The following day King Edward appeared in person and Dunbar castle surrendered.

The remainder of the English campaign was little more than a grand mopping-up operation. Key castles - most notably Roxburgh and Stirling - being handed over without a fight. John fled north to Perth but, perhaps influenced by the fate of Llywelyn ap Gruffudd in the earlier Wars of Welsh Independence, King John capitulated confessing to rebellion and prayed for forgiveness on July 2nd. The final humiliation came at Montrose on July 8th. Dressed for the occasion John was ceremoniously stripped of the vestments of royalty. Antony Bek, the Bishop of Durham, ripped the red and gold arms of Scotland from his surcoat, thus bequeathing to history the nickname Toom Tabard (empty coat). He and his son Edward were sent south into captivity. Soon after, the English king followed, carrying in his train the Stone of Scone and other relics of Scottish nationhood.

Giric mac Dúngail (Modern Gaelic: Griogair mac Dhunghail), known in English simply as Giric, and nicknamed Mac Rath ("Son of Fortune"), was King of the Picts between 878 and 889. Giric is a mysterious character, who is not found within the Irish Annals or any Anglo-Saxon chronicle and what information is available is often contradictory. Nevertheless, he appears to have been regarded in some importance by Scottish writers in the High and Late Middle Ages and so he finds himself on most modern regal lists.

Giric's ancestry and how he came to be king are deeply obscure. There is a tendency to refer to him as the cousin or ‘first cousin once removed’ of Eochaid, who was the grandson of Kenneth MacAlpine, first king of Scotland, however this is nothing more than speculation. Nothing of any certainty is known of his father Dúngail and so it is possible that Giric was not of the MacAlpin line. However, it has been speculated that ‘Dúngail’ may be a misspelling of ‘Domnall’ and that Giric was in fact the son of Kenneth’s brother, Donald I. The fact that Áed succeeded Constantine could indicate that Giric had been denied the kingship and such a possibility could account for the claim in Andrew of Wyntoun's Orygynale Cronykil of Scotland that Giric succeeded to the throne having killed Áed.

To add to the complexity, the Chronicle of the Kings of Alba has Áed’s nephew Eochaid ab Rhun succeeding to the throne at the same time. The relationship between the two kings is uncertain and various theories have been put forward to explain it. The Chronicle of the Kings of Alba, which was written in Latin, used the phrase alumnus ordinatorque to describe Giric’s relationship to Eochaid. Translator T.H. Weeks chose to translate that phrase into English as “teacher and prime minister," yet in the same section offered “foster-son” for alumnus, translating “Eochodius, cum alum(p)no suo, expulsus est nunc de regno” as “Eochaid with his ‘foster-son,’ was then thrown out of the kingdom.” Another theory is that ‘Dúngail’ is actually a misspelling of the early form of the Welsh Dyfnwal, and that Giric was not a Gael but the Briton uncle of Eochaid’s father, and therefore of a different royal line. Such a situation could support the view of Giric being Eochaid’s ‘teacher and prime minister’. Alternatively, if Giric was not of royal blood or indeed different royal blood, it is possible, as several historians have speculated, that he was using Eochaid as a puppet.
 
Whatever the truth, Giric and Eochaid appear to have ruled either jointly over a unified area or separately over different areas for 11 years. Whilst it is possible that they held the Pictish kingship concurrently as allies, it is also conceivable that they ruled successively as opponents. Another possibility is that, while Giric reigned as King of the Picts, Eochaid reigned as King of Strathclyde.