Norwegian-Scottish War (1249)

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The Norwegian-Scottish War of 1249 was a military conflict between Norway and Scotland over possession of the West Scottish islands .

prehistory

The West Scottish islands had been under Norwegian suzerainty since the 9th century. In 1230 a Norwegian fleet had secured Norwegian sovereignty over the islands through a campaign . In the next few years the Norwegian King Håkon IV was able to further consolidate his sovereignty. When Harald , the new King of the Isle of Man , tried to end Norwegian sovereignty in 1237, a Norwegian fleet occupied the island. Harald was forced to travel to Norway in 1239 and pay homage to the Norwegian king. As a result, the barons of the West Scottish islands recognized the Norwegian king as the undisputed overlord.

The Scottish King Alexander II realized that the increased authority of the Norwegian king weakened his own authority on mainland West Scotland, especially in Argyll . Ewen MacDougall , the Lord of Lorne , was subject to the Scottish king for Argyll, but he was also king of the West Scottish islands, where he was subject to the Norwegian king. In order to strengthen his position, Alexander II tried to put the often quarreling barons of the West Scottish islands under pressure. To this end, he tried to persuade the Norwegian king to sell the islands from 1244 through negotiations. However, the Norwegian king was not ready to sell, despite repeated offers. The English King Henry III. who had previously regarded himself as the protector of the West Scottish islands, did not intervene this time. Instead, he encouraged the exiled Scottish baron Walter Bisset to strengthen the Dunaverty Castle in western Scotland , which he had occupied . Then in 1248 Alan, Son of the Earl , an illegitimate son of Thomas, Earl of Atholl , conquered the castle and took Bisset prisoner.

The island of Kerrera, where the Scottish King Alexander II died during the war. Photography from 2015.

Scottish campaign of 1249 and death of the king

When King Harald of Man, who was now closely allied with the Norwegian king, drowned on his return journey from Norway to western Scotland in 1248, the Scottish king took advantage of this. He had probably received extensive information about the situation on the West Scottish islands from Walter Bisset, who was already in the king's favor in January 1249. Alexander II initially had Harald's possessions, namely the Isle of Man and Skye and Lewis , attacked. In the spring of 1249, the Scottish king assembled an army that included at least four earls. With this force he attacked Argyll and the other mainland possessions of Ewen MacDougall. This had meanwhile been raised to an island by the Norwegian king and entrusted with the defense against the Scots. The Scottish king now offered a fleet to conquer the West Scottish islands. Given the overwhelming power of Scotland, Ewen MacDougall was ready to negotiate. The Scottish king wanted to drive him out of Argyll entirely, but offered him other properties as compensation. MacDougall refused and fled to the Isle of Lewis. The Scottish king wanted to attack the islands owned by MacDougall, but he fell ill and died on July 8, 1249 on the island of Kerrera . The campaign was then broken off.

consequences

Although the Scottish campaign had failed to achieve its main objective, Ewen MaDdougall had been driven from Argyll and Lorne on mainland Scotland. In addition, the Scots had succeeded in ensuring that the Church of Argyll was no longer subordinate to the bishops of Sodor and Man , but to Scottish bishops. The conquered Lorne was subsequently administered by royal bailiffs. Ewen Macdougall received Lorne back in 1255 through the mediation of the English king. The son and successor of Alexander II, Alexander III. , continued his father's politics after coming of age. This led to another war with Norway from 1263 .

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Michael Brown: The wars of Scotland, 1214-1371 . Edinburgh University Press, Edinburgh 2004, ISBN 0-7486-1237-8 , p. 79.
  2. ↑ Michael Brown: The wars of Scotland, 1214-1371 . Edinburgh University Press, Edinburgh 2004, ISBN 0-7486-1237-8 , p. 43.
  3. ^ Archibald AM Duncan: Scotland. The Making of the Kingdom (The Edinburgh History of Scotland; Vol. I ). Oliver & Boyd, Edinburgh 1975. ISBN 0-05-00203-7-4 , p. 550.
  4. ↑ DER Watt: The minority of Alexander III of Scotland . In: Transactions of the Royal Historical Society , Vol. 21 (1971), p. 5.
  5. ^ Archibald AM Duncan: Scotland. The Making of the Kingdom (The Edinburgh History of Scotland; Vol. I ). Oliver & Boyd, Edinburgh 1975. ISBN 0-05-00203-7-4 , p. 549.
  6. ↑ Michael Brown: The wars of Scotland, 1214-1371 . Edinburgh University Press, Edinburgh 2004, ISBN 0-7486-1237-8 , p. 80.
  7. ↑ Michael Brown: The wars of Scotland, 1214-1371 . Edinburgh University Press, Edinburgh 2004, ISBN 0-7486-1237-8 , p. 81.