The question that concerns us now is how the kingdom came into being. The best-known story is that Fergus Mór mac Erc, a king of Dál Riata who died in AD 501, led the migration.
Five Minutes at Craigmillar Castle
March 20, 2015 By
Craigmillar Castle is an extremely well-preserved example of a medieval Scottish castle, and its various improvements over three hundred years. Though it is now a ruin, it is so beautifully intact that you get a real sense of the layout, and how it would have been used centuries ago.
Researchers create genetic map of the British Isles
March 19, 2015 By
Many people in the UK feel a strong sense of regional identity, and it now appears that there may be a scientific basis to this feeling, according to a landmark new study into the genetic makeup of the British Isles.
Rowallan Castle in Scotland to be turned into a hotel
February 24, 2015 By
Historic Scotland is transferring control of Rowallan Castle, which dates back to the Middle Ages, back to its owner, who who will be converting it into a hotel as part of a golf course development.
The Partition of a Kingdom: Strathclyde 1092-1153
February 12, 2015 By
The last British king of Strathclyde, Owein, son of Dyfnal, died in 1018. At that time his kingdom stretched from Lennox, north of the Clyde, as far south as the Rere Cross at Stainmore in the North Riding of Yorkshire.
Mons Meg removed from Edinburgh Castle for conservation work
February 11, 2015 By
Mons Meg, one of the most famous weapons of the Middle Ages, was removed from Edinburgh Castle last month for specialist restoration and conservation work.
Medieval Maps of Britain
February 8, 2015 By
How did people depict England, Scotland and Wales in the Middle Ages? Here are 15 images of maps created between the 11th and 16th centuries, which shows how maps developed over history.
Booty in Border Warfare
January 31, 2015 By
Nothing is more revealing in this universal itch to ravage and to spoil than the traces we find in the sources of rules for the sharing of the plunder.
Through Trial and Error: Learning and Adaptation in the English Tactical System from Bannockburn to Poitiers
January 28, 2015 By
During the late thirteenth century and early fourteenth century, the English in medieval Europe fought in two wars: the Scottish Wars of Independence followed by the Hundred Years War.
Dervorguilla of Galloway: ‘Daughter of the Oath’
December 8, 2014 By
Dervorguilla is a familiar figure in Scottish history, a lady of wealth, substance and impeccable pedigree. She is mentioned because she is the great grand-daughter of King David I, the mother of King John Balliol and she confirmed the foundation of a college at the University of Oxford, creating an endowment to ensure its future.
16th-century Haunted Castle for Sale in Scotland
December 4, 2014 By
With an asking price of £500,000, this Scottish castle is an attractive offer, although you might be sharing the building with a specter.
Edinburgh Castle named the UK’s Best Heritage Attraction for 4th year in a row
December 1, 2014 By
Edinburgh Castle has been named the UK’s Best Heritage Attraction for a record fourth year running at the 2014 British Travel Awards (BTAs).
Region and Frontier in the English State: the English Far North, 1296-1603
November 23, 2014 By
What was the relationship between the English far north and England as a whole in the late middle ages?
Managing Criminal Women in Scotland: An Assessment of the Scarcity of Female Offenders in the Records of the High Court of Justiciary, 1524-1542
November 21, 2014 By
The records of Scotland’s High Court of Justiciary that run from 1524 to 1542 contain a remarkably low number of women charged with felonies and pleas of the crown, and reveal the justiciar’s reluctance to convict or execute female offenders.
The Viking Language of the Highlands and Islands: Reconstructing the Norn Language from Old Norse
November 18, 2014 By
The Orkney and Shetland islands of Scotland were at one time colonized by Vikings and belonged firmly within the field of Scandinavian cultural influence. During this time the people of these archipelagos spoke a unique language known as Norn which evolved from the Old Norse language.
Viking Hoard discovered in Scotland
October 13, 2014 By
Scottish officials announced today “a hugely significant find” – the discovery of a Viking Hoard in Dumfries. Over 100 artifacts dating back to the 9th and 10th century have been found, including a solid silver cross and a Carolingian pot.
Earl Rögnvaldr of Orkney, a Poet of the Viking Diaspora
October 8, 2014 By
Kali Kolsson, later Rögnvaldr, Earl of Orkney, ca. 1103–1158, is a truly international figure. He was born in Noway. He travelled to England with some traders in his youth. He then came to power in Northern Scotland.
Aberdeen Breviary goes online
September 26, 2014 By
A copy of the Aberdeen Breviary, one of the first printed books in Scotland, has been purchased by the National Library of Scotland and is now available to read online.
Marjorie Bruce, Princess of Scotland and mother of the Stewart dynasty of Kings of Scots
September 18, 2014 By
Marjorie Bruce, Princess of Scotland, was the only child of the first marriage of King Robert I the Bruce with Isabella of Mar. Marjorie would suffer greatly through the Scottish Wars of Independence, surviving to marry and become the mother of the child who would go on to found the Stewart dynasty of Kings.
The Second Scottish War of Independence, 1332-41: a national war?
September 13, 2014 By
While there is no doubt that the second war began in 1332 there is more uncertainty as to when it ended. Unlike the first war, there was no peace treaty between Scotland and England bringing the armed conflict to an end.
Vassals or Vikings?: Orkney‘s identity in the changing Norwegian world (1151-1206)
September 7, 2014 By
Throughout the Middle Ages, the Jarldom of Orkney and Caithness maintained a fine balance between its geographical proximity to the Scottish mainland and its political and cultural proximity to the kingdom of Norway.
Europe and the beginning of Scottish sovereignty
September 6, 2014 By
Scotland’s story may have been distinctive, but its experience was not.
What Braveheart did for Scottish Independence
August 20, 2014 By
Twenty years ago support for Scottish independence was confined to a small minority – but the release of the film Braveheart in the spring of 1995 changed their fortunes.
The Stewart Earls of Orkney and the History of Orkney and Shetland
August 11, 2014 By
The Northern Isles have their own national, or at any rate quasi-national, historical tradition. It is quite separate from that of Scotland, though it is clearly connected to it; and it offers parallels to the nineteenth-century growth in historical consciousness elsewhere in the British Isles.
Britain and the beginning of Scotland
August 10, 2014 By
In this lecture Professor Dauvit Broun explores recent rethinking on Scottish origins by discussing the role of Britain as an ‘idea’, connections with England, the emergence of Scotland as a country in the 13th century, and the beginnings of the Scottish kingdom itself.
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