The Wars of the Bruces : Scotland, England and Ireland 1306 - 1328

The Bruces of 14th century Scotland were formidable and enthusiastic warriors. England's war with Robert Bruce profoundly affected the whole of the British Isles. This study links up the various theatres of war, and discusses the effects of the Bruce Wars outside Scotland and the attempt to establish a 'pan-celtic alliance'.;Preface -- Acknowledgements -- Maps and charts -- Abbreviations -- Introduction: Lordship and nationality in the British Isles in the early fourteenth century -- 1. The King of Summer: the Bruce Coup d'Etat in Scotland, 1306 -- 2. Robert I, Edward II and the Kingdom of Scotland, 1307-1314 -- 3. The raiding of Northern England, 1311-1322 -- 4. The defence of Northern England, 1311-1322 -- 5. The Bruce intervention in Ireland, 1315-1322 -- 6. The North Sea theatre of war and the towns -- Conclusion: The climax and collapse of the Scottish hegemony in the British Isles, 1322-1330 -- Bibliography -- Index. The Bruces of fourteenth-century Scotland were formidable and enthusiastic warriors. Whilst much has been written about events as they happened in Scotland during the chaotic years of the first part of the fourteenth century, England's war with Robert the Bruce profoundly affected the whole of the British Isles. Scottish raiders struck deep into the heartlands of Yorkshire and Lancashire; Robert's younger brother, Edward Bruce, was proclaimed King of Ireland and came close to subduing the country; the Isle of Man was captured and a Welsh sea-port was raided; and in the North Sea Scots allied with German and Flemish pirates to cripple England's vital wool trade and disrupt its war effort. Packed with detail and written with a strong and involving narrative thread, this is the first book to link up the various theatres of war and discuss the effect of the wars of the Bruces outside Scotland. This a very readable narrative of a momentous episode in British history. Former studies of this topic concentrate upon events in Scotland, but England's war with Robert Bruce profoundly affected the whole of the British Isles. Biographies have appeared of the various leading personalities involved, but no one has hitherto attempted to link up the various theatres of war in a comprehensive study. The effects of the Bruce wars outside Scotland have never before been systematically examined; and the attempt to establish a 'pan-celtic alliance' deserves its reassessment. The emphasis on the wider implications of the war is justified by the fact that the vast bulk of the archive material relating to the war emanates from the English royal government which was unable to operate in Scotland from 1311. - Back cover. The Bruces of fourteenth-century Scotland were formidable and enthusiastic warriors. Former studies of this period of history tend to concentrate on events in Scotland, but England's war with Robert Bruce profoundly affected the whole of the British Isles. Scottish raiders struck deep into the heartlands of Yorkshire and Lanarkshire; Edward Bruce was proclaimed King of Ireland and came close to subduing that country, and The Isle of Man was captured and a Welsh sea-port raided. In the North Sea, the Scots allied with German and Flemish pirates to cripple England's vital wool trade and disrupt her war effort.