medieval-atlas/events-from-about-850-to-1460/103

Transcription

Robert 1(1306-29) The map tries to show something of the political significance of the gains made by Robert I's chief supporters during the Wars of Independence. Since, however, it is very difficult to determine the exact boundaries of the lands involved, they are simply indicated by conventional symbols, the size of which roughly corresponds to the extent and importance of the lands. The greatest changes came in the Borders, where there was almost an obligation to hand over lands recovered from the English to the men who had recovered them. The map shows the lands acquired by the two Douglas brothers, James and Archibald, and by Thomas Randolph, whose families had held only a modest inheritance on the eve of the wars. Most of the lands shown were gains. The map also shows the lands of the Steward family; but their lands in Renfrewshire, Ayrshire, Bute and Kintyre had been held for generations and their gains were very small. (;> ~Sir lames Douglas • Sir Archibald Douglas @ Sir Thomas Randolph ~ Robert Steward of Scotland ® Renfrewshire oAyrshire @Bute ® Kintyre In 1329, there was a kind of equilibrium among these four families; but the descent of the lands, sometimes contrived, sometimes accidental, changed the situation profoundly. In 1371, the Stewards became kings, merging their lands in practice with those ofthe crown. In 1354, the lands ofthe two Douglas branches merged; and these were joined in 1388 by the lordship of Galloway, creating a predominant Douglas power in the Borders. Meantime, the Randolph inheritance had passed to the earls of March, producing as the map might suggest, a rivalry between Douglas and March which was resolved by the exile of George, earl of March in 1400, leaving the Douglas power in the Borders unchallenged until it was destroyed by the crown in the 1450s. Thus the power struggles of the next ISO years flowed in great measure from the landed settlement established by Robert 1. The size of each symbol gives an approximate measure of the extent and importance of the lands kms @Galloway 0 25 50 7;; 100 I i i i i Lands of Robert I's chief supporters 0 10 , 20 30 40 50 60 BW miles 103