William I of Scotland
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The banner of King William |
William I "the Lion" ( known in
Gaelic as
Uilliam Garm1 or
William the Rough), (1142/1143 –
December 4 1214) reigned as
King of Scots from 1165 to 1214. His reign was the second longest in
Scottish history before the
Act of Union with
England in 1707, (
James VI's was the longest 1567-1625). He became King following his brother
Malcolm IV's death on
9 December 1165 and was crowned on
24 December 1165.
In contrast to his deeply religious, frail brother, William was powerfully-built, redheaded, and headstrong. He was an effective monarch whose reign was marred by his ill-fated attempts to regain control of
Northumbria from the English.
Traditionally, William founded
Arbroath Abbey, the site of the later
Declaration of Arbroath. Interestingly, he was not known as "The Lyon" during his own lifetime, and the sobriquet did not relate to his tenacious character or his military prowess. William adopted the use of the Lion Rampant by his right to do so under the law of Heraldry.
The "Lion" became attached to him because of his flag or standard, a red lion rampant (with a forked tail) on a yellow background. This (with the addition of a 'double tressure fluery counter-fluery' border) went on to become the
Royal standard of Scotland; the British Monarch when in
Scotland honours the display of Scotland's Royal Standard due to the fact they share a Common ancestor with the Scots. However, this common ancestor is not William the Lion, but William's Great Grandfather, King Malcolm III,who was also known as "Canmore" meaning "Great Head". He was the husband of Queen Saint Margaret,and also the Great Grandfather of English King Henry II. The rampant lion within the 2nd quarter of Great Britain's Royal arms represents their common ancestry with the Scots.
William also inherited the title of Earl of
Northumbria in
1152. However he had to give up this title to King
Henry II of England in
1157. This caused trouble after William became king, since he spent a lot of effort trying to regain Northumbria.
William was a key rebel in the
Revolt of 1173-1174 against Henry II. In
1174, during a raid in support of the revolt, William recklessly charged the English troops himself, shouting, "Now we shall see which of us are good knights!" He was unhorsed and captured by Henry's troops and taken in chains to Northampton, and then transferred to
Falaise in
Normandy. Henry then sent an army to Scotland and occupied it. As ransom and to regain his kingdom, William had to acknowledge Henry as his feudal superior and agree to pay for the cost of the English army's occupation of Scotland by taxing the Scots. This he did by signing the
Treaty of Falaise. He was then allowed to return to Scotland.
The Treaty of Falaise remained in force for the next fifteen years. At the end of that time the new English king,
Richard the Lionheart, agreed to terminate it in return for 10,000 silver marks. Richard needed the money to take part in the
Third Crusade.
Due to the terms of the Treaty of Falaise, Henry II had the right to choose William's bride. William was married to
Ermengarde de Beaumont, a granddaughter of King
Henry I of England, at
Woodstock Palace in
1186.
Edinburgh Castle was her dowry. The marriage was not very successful, and it was many years before an heir, Alexander, was born. William and Ermengarde's children were:# Margaret (
1193-
1259), married
Hubert de Burgh, 1st Earl of Kent.# Isabella (
1195-
1253), married
Roger Bigod, 4th Earl of Norfolk.#
Alexander II of Scotland (
1198-
1249), reigned
1214-1249.# Marjorie (
1200-
1244), married
Gilbert Marshal, 4th Earl of Pembroke.
William died in Stirling in 1214 and lies buried in Arbroath Abbey. His son,
Alexander II, succeeded him as king.
1. =
Uilleam Garbh; e.g. Annals of Ulster, s.a. 1214.6; Annals of Loch Cé, s.a. 1213.10
*Ashley, Mike.
Mammoth Book of British Kings & Queens, 1998
*Magnusson, Magnus. Scotland: Story of a Nation, 2001
