Scottish monarchy encyclopedia topics

Coronation Oath

The Coronation Oath sworn by Mary II, William II and Anne as monarch of Scotland was approved by the Parliament of Scotland on 18 April 1689. The oath was as follows:

'WE William and Mary, King and Queen of Scotland, faithfully promise and swear, by this our solemn Oath, in presence of the Eternal God, that during the whole Course of our Life we will serve the same Eternal God, to the uttermost of our Power, according as he has required in his most Holy Word, revealed and contained in the New and Old Testament; and according to the same Word shall maintain the true Religion of Christ Jesus, the preaching of his Holy Word, and the due and right Ministration of the Sacraments, now received and preached within the Realm of Scotland; and shall abolish and gainstand all false Religion contrary to the same, and shall rule the People committed to our Charge, according to the Will and Command of God, revealed in his aforesaid Word, and according to the laudable Laws and Constitutions received in this Realm, no ways repuguant to the said Word of the Eternal God; and shall procure, to the utmost of our power, to the Kirk of God, and whole Christian People, true and perfect Peace in all time coming. That we shall preserve and keep inviolated the Rights and Rents, with all just Privileges of the Crown of Scotland, neither, shall we transfer nor alienate the same; that we shall forbid and repress in all Estates and Degrees, Reif, Oppression and all kind of Wrong. And we shall command and procure, that Justice and Equity in all Judgments be kept to all Persons without exception, us the Lord and Father of all Mercies shall be merciful to us. And we shall be careful to root out all Heretics and Enemies to the true Worship of God, that shall be convicted by the true Kirk of God, of the aforesaid Crimes, out of our Lands and Empire of Scotland. And we faithfully affirm the Things above-written by our solemn Oath.'

Houses

Although genealogists divide the monarchs of Scotland into "Houses", based on continental European ideas of dynasties, it appears that the kings and queens of Scotland, insofar as they thought about their ultimate origins, traced their descent from Fergus Mór, the legendary founder of Dál Riata said to have flourished in the late 5th century, and from his grandson Gabrán mac Domangairt and brother Loarn mac Eirc. James VI is recorded as saying that he was a "Monarch sprunge of Ferguse race". After the Restoration of 1660, when Jacob de Wet was commissioned to produce portraits of Scotland's past and present rulers for Holyrood Palace, the series began with Fergus Mór.

List of monarchs of Scotland

House of Alpin (848-1034)

The reign of Kenneth MacAlpin begins what is often called the House of Alpin, a concept entirely modern. The descendants of Kenneth MacAlpin were divided into two branches; the crown would alternate between the two, the death of a king from one branch often hastened by war or assassination by a pretender from the other. Malcolm II was the last king of the House of Alpin; in his reign, he successfully crushed all opposition to him and, having no sons, was able to pass the crown to his daughter's son, Duncan I, who inaugurated the House of Dunkeld.

Portrait	Traditional modern English regnal name (with modern Gaelic equivalent)	Medieval Gaelic name	Dynastic Status	Reign	Title	Nickname
	Kenneth I (Coinneach mac Ailpein)	Cináed mac Ailpín Ciniod m. Ailpin	son of Alpin king of Dal Riata	843/848-13 February 858	Rex Pictorum ("King of the Picts")	An Ferbasach, "The Conqueror
-	Donald I (Dòmhnall mac Ailpein)	Domnall mac Ailpín	son of Alpin king of Dal Riata, and brother of Kenneth I	858–13 April 862	Rex Pictorum ("King of the Picts")
	Constantine I (Còiseam mac Choinnich)	Causantín mac Cináeda	Son of Kenneth I	862–877	Rex Pictorum ("King of the Picts")	An Finn-Shoichleach, "The Wine-Bountiful
-	Áed (Aodh mac Choinnich)	Áed mac Cináeda	Son of Kenneth I	877–878	Rex Pictorum ("King of the Picts")
-	Giric (Griogair mac Dhunghail)	Giric mac Dúngail	† Non-dynastic	878–889		Mac Rath, "Son of Fortune
-	Eochaid	Eochaid mac Run	† grandson of Kenneth I	*878–889?	-	-
	Donald II (Dòmhnall mac Chòiseim)	Domnall mac Causantín	Son of Constantine I	889–900	Rí Alban ("King of Scotland")	Dásachtach, the "Madman" or "Psycho
	Constantine II (Còiseam mac Aoidh)	Causantín mac Áeda	Son of Áed	900–943	Rí Alban	An Midhaise, "the Middle Aged".
	Malcolm I (Maol Chaluim mac Dhòmhnaill)	Máel Coluim mac Domnaill	Son of Donald II	943–954	Rí Alban	An Bodhbhdercc, "the Dangerous Red
	Indulf	Ildulb mac Causantín	Son of Constantine II	954–962	Rí Alban	An Ionsaighthigh, "the Aggressor
-	Dub (Dubh or Duff) (Dubh mac Mhaoil Chaluim)	Dub mac Maíl Choluim	Son of Malcolm I	962–967	Rí Alban	Dén, "the Vehement
-	Cuilén (Cailean)	Cuilén mac Ilduilb	Son of Indulf	967–971	Rí Alban	An Fionn, "the White
-	Amlaíb (Amhlaigh)	Amlaíb mac Ilduilb	Son of Indulf	* 973x –977	Rí Alban
	Kenneth II (Coinneach mac Mhaoil Chaluim)	Cináed mac Maíl Choluim	Son of Malcolm I	971 x 977–995	Rí Alban	An Fionnghalach, "The Fratricide
	Constantine III (Còiseam mac Chailein)	Causantín mac Cuiléin	Son of Cuilén	995–997	Rí Alban
	Kenneth III (Coinneach mac Dhuibh)	Cináed mac Duib	Son of Dub	997–25 March 1005	Rí Alban	An Donn, "the Chief"/ "the Brown".
	Malcolm II (Maol Chaluim mac Choinnich)	Máel Coluim mac Cináeda	Son of Kenneth II	1005–1034	Rí Alban / Rex Scotiae	Forranach, "the Destroyer";

* Evidence for Eochaid's reign is unclear: he may never have actually been King. If he was, he was co-King with Giric. Amlaíb is known only by a reference to his death in 977, which reports him as King of Alba; since Kenneth II is known to have still been King in 972-973, Amlaíb must have taken power between 973 and 977.

† Giric and Eochaid have uncertain dynastic status, but do not appear to be direct members of the House of Alpin: Eochiad was a son of Run, King of Strathclyde, but his mother may have been a daughter of Kenneth I; Giric's family is unknown, although he may also have been related to the House of Alpin.

House of Dunkeld, 1034-1286

Duncan succeeded to the throne as the maternal grandson of Malcolm II. After an unsuccessful reign, Duncan was killed in battle by Macbeth, who had a long and relatively successful reign. In a series of battles between 1057 and 1058, Duncan's son Malcolm III defeated and killed Macbeth and Macbeth's step-son and heir Lulach, and claimed the throne. The dynastic feuds did not end there: on Malcolm's death in battle, his brother Donald Ban claimed the throne, expelling Malcolm's sons from Scotland; a civil war in the family ensued, with Donald Ban and Malcolm's son Edmund opposed by Malcolm's English-backed sons, led first by Duncan II and then by Edgar. Edgar triumphed, sending his uncle and brother to monasteries. After the reign of David I, the Scottish throne was passed according to rules of primogeniture, moving from father to son, or where not possible, brother to brother.

Portrait	Traditional modern English regnal name	Medieval Gaelic name	Dynastic Status	Reign	Title	Nickname
	Duncan I (Donnchadh mac Crìonain)	Donnchad mac Crínáin	Grandson of Malcolm II	1034–1040	Rí Alban	An t-Ilgarach, "the Diseased" or "the Sick".
	Macbeth (MacBheatha mac Fhionnlaigh)	Mac Bethad mac Findláich	Son of Mormaer Findláech, Grandson of Malcolm II and husband of granddaughter of Kenneth III	1040–1057	Rí Alban	Rí Deircc, "the Red King
-	Lulach (Lughlagh mac Gille Chomghain)	Lulach mac Gille Comgaín	Great-grandson of Kenneth III	1057–1058	Rí Alban	Tairbith, "the Unfortunate - Fatuus, "the Foolish
	Malcolm III (Maol Chaluim mac Dhonnchaidh)	Máel Coluim mac Donnchada	Son of Duncan I	1058–1093	Rí Alban/ Scottorum basileus	? Cenn Mór ("Canmore") "Great Chief
-	Donald III (Dòmhnall mac Dhonnchaidh)	Domnall mac Donnchada	Son of Duncan I	1093–1097	Rí Alban	Bán, "the Fair".
	Duncan II (Donnchadh mac Mhaoil Chaluim)	Donnchad mac Maíl Choluim	Son of Malcolm III	1094	Rí Alban/ Rex Scottorum
-	Edmund (Etmond mac Maíl Coluim)	Etmond mac Maíl Coluim	Son of Malcolm III	1094-97	Subregulus Alban
	Edgar (Eagar mac Mhaoil Chaluim)	Étgar mac Maíl Choluim	Son of Malcolm III	1097–1107	Rí Alban/ Rex Scottorum	Probus, "the Valiant
	Alexander I (Alasdair mac Mhaoil Chaluim)	Alaxandair mac Maíl Choluim	Son of Malcolm III	1107–1124	Rí Alban/ Rex Scottorum	"The Fierce
	David I (Dàibhidh mac Mhaoil Chaluim)	Dabíd mac Maíl Choluim	Son of Malcolm III	1124–1153	Rí Alban/ Rex Scottorum	"The Saint"
	Malcolm IV (Maol Chaluim mac Eanraig)	Máel Coluim mac Eanric	Grandson of David I	1153–1165	Rí Alban/ Rex Scottorum	Virgo "The Maiden" - Cenn Mór, "Great Chief
	William I (Uilleam mac Eanraig)	Uilliam mac Eanric	Grandson of David I	1165-1214	Rí Alban/ Rex Scottorum	"The Lion" - Garbh, "the Rough
	Alexander II (Alasdair mac Uilleim)	Alaxandair mac Uilliam	Son of William I	1214–1249	Rí Alban/ Rex Scottorum
	Alexander III (Alasdair mac Alasdair)	Alaxandair mac Alaxandair	Son of Alexander II	1249–1286	Rí Alban/ Rex Scottorum

House of Fairhair (disputed), 1286-1290

The last King of the House of Dunkeld was Alexander III. His wife had borne him two sons and a daughter; but by 1286, his sons were dead, and his daughter, Margaret, had borne only a single daughter to her husband Eric II of Norway before herself dying. Alexander had himself remarried, but in early 1286, he died in mysterious circumstances. His wife, Yolande of Dreux, was pregnant; but by November 1286, all hope of her bearing a living child had passed. Accordingly, in the Treaty of Salisbury, the Guardians of Scotland recognised Alexander's granddaughter, Margaret of Norway, as Queen of Scots. Margaret remained in her father's Kingdom of Norway until Autumn 1290, when she was dispatched to Scotland. However, she died on the journey in Orkney, having never set foot on Scottish soil, and without being crowned at Scone. She is thus sometimes not considered Queen.

Portrait	Name	Dynastic Status	Birth	Ruled From	Coronation	Ruled Until	Death
	Margaret the Maid of Norway	granddaughter of Alexander III	early 1283	25 November 1286 disputed	Never crowned	September/October 1290
Portrait	Name	Dynastic Status	Birth	Ruled From	Coronation	Ruled Until	Death

House of Balliol (1292-1296)

The death of Margaret of Norway began a two-year interregnum in Scotland, caused by a succession crisis. With her death, the descent of William I went extinct; nor was there an obvious heir by primogeniture. Thirteen candidates presented themselves; the most prominent were John de Balliol, great-grandson of William I's younger brother David of Huntingdon, and Robert de Brus, Lord of Annandale, David of Huntingdon's grandson. The Scottish Magnates invited Edward I of England to arbitrate the claims; he did so, but forced the Scots to swear allegiance to him as overlord. Eventually, it was decided that John de Balliol should become King; he proved weak and incapable, and in 1296 was forced to resign by Edward I, who then attempted to annex Scotland into the Kingdom of England.

Portrait	Name	Dynastic Status	Birth	Ruled From	Coronation	Ruled Until	Death
	John de Balliol Toom Tabard ("Empty Cloak") (Iain Balliol)	great-grandson of David of Huntingdon (brother of William I)	c.1249	17 November 1292	30 November 1292	10 July 1296 deposed by Edward I of England	November 1314
Portrait	Name	Dynastic Status	Birth	Ruled From	Coronation	Ruled Until	Death

House of Bruce (1306-1371)

For ten years, Scotland had no King of its own. The Scots, however, refused to tolerate English rule; first William Wallace and then, after his execution, Robert the Bruce (the grandson of the 1292 competitor) fought against the English, and in 1306, Robert was crowned King of Scots at Scone. His energy, and the corresponding replacement of the vigorous Edward I with his weaker son Edward II, allowed Scotland to free itself from English rule; the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314 routed the English, and by 1329 the English had agreed by Treaty to accept Scottish independence. Robert's successor, his son David, was a child at his succession; the English renewed their war with Scotland, and David was forced to flee the Kingdom by Edward Balliol, son of King John, who managed to get himself crowned King of Scots and to give away Scotland's southern counties to England before being driven out again. David spent much of his life in exile, first in freedom in his ally, France, and then in gaol in his enemy, England; he was only able to return to Scotland in 1357. Upon his death, childless, in 1371, the House of Bruce came to an end.

Portrait	Name	Dynastic Status	Birth	Ruled From	Coronation	Ruled Until	Death
	Robert I the Good (Roibert a Briuis)	great-great-grandson of David of Huntingdon (brother of William I)	11 July 1274	25 March 1306		7 June 1329
	David II (Dàibhidh Bruis)	son of Robert I	5 March 1324	7 June 1329	November 1331	22 February 1371
Portrait	Name	Dynastic Status	Birth	Ruled From	Coronation	Ruled Until	Death

House of Stewart/Stuart

Stewart (1371-1567)

Robert the Stewart was a grandson of Robert I by the latter's daughter, Marjorie. Having been born in 1316, he was older than his uncle, David II; consequently, he was at his accession an old man, unable to reign vigorously, a problem also faced by his son Robert III, who had suffered lasting damage in a horse-riding accident. These two were followed by a series of regencies, caused by the youth of the succeeding kings. Consequently, the Stewart era saw periods of royal inertia, during which the nobles usurped power from the crown, followed by periods of personal rule by the monarch, during which he or she would attempt to address the issues created by their own minority and the long-term effects of previous reigns. Governing Scotland became increasingly difficult, as the powerful nobility became increasingly intractable; James I's attempts to curb the disorder of the realm ended in his assassination; James III was killed in a civil war between himself and the nobility, led by his own son; when James IV, who had governed sternly and suppressed the aristocrats, died in the Battle of Flodden, his wife Margaret Tudor, who had been nominated regent for their young son James V, was unseated by noble feuding, and James V's own wife, Marie de Guise, succeeded in ruling Scotland during the regency for her young daughter Mary I only by dividing and conquering the noble factions, and by distributing French bribes with a liberal hand. Finally, Mary I herself, the last direct descendant of Robert II, found herself unable to govern Scotland faced with the surliness of the aristocracy and the intransigence of the population, who favoured Calvinism and disapproved of her Catholicism; she was forced to abdicate, and fled to England, where she was executed for treason against the English queen Elizabeth I. Upon her abdication, her son, fathered by a junior member of the Stewart family, became King.

Portrait	Name	Dynastic Status	Birth	Ruled From	Coronation	Ruled Until	Death
	Robert II the Steward, (Roibert II Sdíbhard)	grandson of Robert I	2 March 1316	22 February 1371	March 1371	19 April 1390
	Robert III (born John Stewart) the Lame King (Roibert III Sdíbhard, An Righ Bhacaigh)	son of Robert II	c.1340	19 April 1390	August 1390	4 April 1406
	James I, (Seumas I Stiùbhairt)	son of Robert III	10 December 1394	4 April 1406	2/21 May 1424	21 February 1437
	James II ''Fiery Face, (Seumas II Stiùbhairt)	son of James I	16 October 1430	21 February 1437	1437	3 August 1460
	James III, (Seumas III Stiùbhairt)	son of James II	1451/52	3 August 1460	10 August 1460	11 June 1488
	James IV, (Seumas IV Stiùbhairt)	son of James III	17 March 1473	11 June 1488	24 June 1488	9 September 1513
	James V, (Seumas V Stiùbhairt)	son of James IV	15 April 1512	9 September 1513	21 September 1513	14 December 1542
	Mary I, Queen of Scots, Queen consort of France (Mairi Stiùbhairt)	daughter of James V	8 December 1542	14 December 1542	9 September 1543	24 July 1567	8 February 1587
Portrait	Name	Dynastic Status	Birth	Ruled From	Coronation	Ruled Until	Death

Stuart (1567-1651)

The Stewarts of Lennox were a junior branch of the Stewart family; they were not, however, direct descendants of Robert II. In the past, through the means of the Auld Alliance with France, they had adapted their surname to the French form, Stuart. Consequently, when the son of the Earl of Lennox, Henry, Lord Darnley, married the Queen of Scots, Mary I, their son, as the first King of the Lennox branch of the Stewart family, ruled as a Stuart.

James VI also became King of England and Ireland as James I in 1603, when his cousin Elizabeth I died; thereafter, although the two crowns of England and Scotland remained separate, the monarchy was based chiefly in England.

Charles I, James's son, found himself faced with Civil War; the resultant conflict lasted eight years, and ended in his execution. The English Parliament then decreed their monarchy to be at an end; the Scots Parliament, after some deliberation, broke their links with England, and declared that Charles, son and heir of Charles I, would become King. He ruled until 1651; however, the armies of Oliver Cromwell occupied Scotland and drove him into exile.

Portrait	Name	Dynastic Status	Birth	Ruled From	Coronation	Ruled Until	Death
	James VI (also James I of England and Ireland) (Seumas VI Stiùbhairt)	son of Mary I by Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley	19 June 1566	24 July 1567	29 July 1567	27 March 1625
	Charles I (also Charles I of England and Ireland) (Teàrlach I Stiùbhairt)	son of James VI	19 November 1600	27 March 1625	8 June 1633	30 January 1649 executed
	Charles II (Teàrlach II Stiùbhairt)	son of Charles I	29 May 1630	30 January 1649	1 January 1651	1651 removed by conquest	6 February 1685
Portrait	Name	Dynastic Status	Birth	Ruled From	Coronation	Ruled Until	Death

The Commonwealth of England

In 1652, following the flight of Charles II, the English Parliament passed the Tender of Union: by its terms, the Kingdom of Scotland was abolished, and annexed into the Commonwealth of England. Scotland would not regain independence until 1660, when at the restoration of Charles II, the old system of the Union of Crowns was restored. Until that time, Scotland was ruled directly from England; the rulers were Oliver Cromwell and his son, Richard, who ruled over the Commonwealth as Lord Protectors, quasi-monarchs.

Portrait	Name	Dynastic Status	Birth	Ruled From	Coronation	Ruled Until	Death
	Oliver Cromwell, Lord Protector of the Commonwealth	N/A	19 April 1599	16 December 1653	N/A	3 September 1658
	Richard Cromwell (Tumbledown Dick), Lord Protector of the Commonwealth of England	son of Oliver Cromwell	4 October 1626	3 Setember 1658	N/A	25 May 1659 formally resigned	12 July 1712
Portrait	Name	Dynastic Status	Birth	Ruled From	Coronation	Ruled Until	Death

House of Stuart (restored) (1660-1707)

With the Restoration, the Stuarts became Kings of Scotland once more. But Scotland's rights were not respected: the Scottish Parliament was, during the reign of Charles II, dissolved, and his brother James was appointed Governor of Scotland. James himself became James VII in 1685; his Catholicism was not tolerated, and he was driven out of England after three years. In his place came his daughter Mary and her husband William of Orange, the ruler of the Dutch Republic; they were accepted as monarchs of Scotland after a period of deliberation by the Scottish Parliament, and ruled together as William II and Mary II.

An attempt to establish a Scottish colonial empire at Darian, in challenge to that of England, failed, leaving the Scottish state bankrupt. This coincided with the accession of Queen Anne, daughter of James VII. Anne was childless, and on her death her nearest heir would be her halfbrother, James, in exile in France. The English favoured the Protestant Sophia of Hanover (a granddaughter of James VI) as heir; the Scots preferred Prince James, who as a Stuart was a Scot by ancestry, and threatened to break the Union of Crowns between England and Scotland by choosing him for themselves. To preserve the union, the English elaborated a plan whereby the two Kingdoms of Scotland and England would merge into a single Kingdom, the Kingdom of Great Britain, ruled by a common monarch, and with a single Parliament. Both national parliaments agreed to this (the Scots albeit reluctantly, motivated primarily by the national finances), and the Kingdom of Scotland was merged with England and came to an end. Thereafter, although monarchs continued to rule over the nation of Scotland, they did so first as monarchs of Great Britain, and then of the United Kingdom.

Portrait	Name	Dynastic Status	Birth	Ruled From	Coronation	Ruled Until	Death
	Charles II (restored) (Teàrlach II Stiùbhairt)	son of Charles I	29 May 1630	29 May 1660 restored to power	1 January 1651	6 February 1685
	James VII (also James II of England and Ireland) (Seumas VII Stiùbhairt)	son of Charles I	14 October 1633	6 February 1685		11 April 1689	16 September 1701
	Mary II (also Mary II of England and Ireland) (Mairi II Stiùbhairt)	daughter of James VII	30 April 1662	11 April 1689 with William II		28 December 1694
	William II, (also William III of England and Ireland) (Uilleam Orains, "William of Orange")	grandson of Charles I, husband of Mary II	14 November 1650	11 April 1689 with Mary II until 1694		8 March 1702
	Anne (also Anne of England and Ireland) (Anna Stiùbhairt)	daughter of James VII	6 February 1665	8 March 1702		1 May 1707 Act of Union, creation of Great Britain	1 August 1714
Portrait	Name	Dynastic Status	Birth	Ruled From	Coronation	Ruled Until	Death

From 1707, the titles King of Scots and Queen of Scots are incorrect. Hence, this list runs up to 1707; for monarchs after that date, see List of British monarchs.

Jacobite claimants

Despite having lost his thrones, James VII continued to claim the thrones of England, Scotland, and Ireland. When he died in 1701, his son, James, inherited his father's claims, and called himself James VIII of Scotland and III of England and Ireland. He would continue to do so all his life, despite the fact that the Kingdoms of England and Scotland were ended by their merging as the Kingdom of Great Britain. In 1715, a year after the death of his sister, Queen Anne, and the accession of their cousin George of Hanover, James landed in Scotland and attempted to claim the throne; he failed, and was forced to flee back to the Continent. A second attempt by his son, Charles, in 1745, also failed. Both James's children died without issue, bringing the Stuart family to an end.

James VIII (Seumas VIII), also known as The Old Pretender, son of James VII, was claimant from 1701 until his death in 1766.
Charles III (Teàrlach III), also known as The Young Pretender and often called Bonnie Prince Charlie, son of James VIII, was claimant from his father's death until his own death in 1788.
Henry I (Eanraig I), brother of Charles III and youngest son of James VIII. Died in 1807 without offspring.
After 1807, the Jacobite claims passed first to the House of Savoy (1807–1840), then to the Modenese branch of the House of Habsburg-Lorraine (1840–1919), and finally to the House of Bavaria (since 1919). The current heir is Franz, Duke of Bavaria. Neither he nor any of his predecessors since 1807 have pursued their claim.

Other claimants

Idi Amin, President of Uganda 1971-1979, proclaimed himself King of Scotland in 1975 (died in exile 2003).
Michel Roger Lafosse, has since 1979 claimed to be Prince of Albany and heir to the Scottish throne.

Notes

References

Anderson, Alan Orr, Early Sources of Scottish History: AD 500–1286, 2 Vols, (Edinburgh, 1922)
Hudson, Benjamin T., Kings of Celtic Scotland, (Westport, 1994)
Skene, W. F. (ed.), Chronicles of the Picts, Chronicles of the Scots and other Early Memorials of Scottish History, (Edinburgh, 1867)