David I, 1084-1153, king of Scotland (1124-53), youngest son of Malcolm III and St. Margaret of Scotland. During the reign of his brother Alexander I, whom he succeeded, David was earl of Cumbria, ruling S of the Clyde and Forth rivers. By his marriage to the heiress of the earl of Northumbria he also became earl of Huntingdon and acquired a claim to Northumbria. In the long struggle for the English crown between Matilda (his niece) and Stephen, David fought for Matilda, but his main object was to secure Northumbria for himself. Although he was defeated by Stephen in the Battle of the Standard (1138), Stephen conceded him the earldom. David's internal rule was wise and momentous for Scotland. He made land grants to many Anglo-Norman families, thus providing the kingdom with a new feudal aristocracy. He also encouraged the commercial development of the Scottish burghs and strengthened the church by new foundations and endowments. He was succeeded by his grandson, Malcolm IV.

(born circa 1082—died May 24, 1153, Carlisle, Cumberland, Eng.) King of the Scots (1124–53). The youngest of six sons of Malcolm III Canmore, he became king of Scotland on the death of his brother Alexander I. He created a rudimentary central administration, issued the first Scottish royal coinage, and admitted into Scotland an influential Norman aristocracy. David also reorganized Scottish Christianity to conform with European and English usages and founded many religious communities. He had obtained lands in central England through his marriage to the daughter of an English earl in 1113, and he won h1 to Northumberland from the future Henry II in 1149.

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