Dates from the ‘Chronicle of Holyrood’
Source: A Scottish Chronicle known as the Chronicle of Holyrood, ed. Marjorie Ogilvie Anderson with Alan Orr Anderson. Scottish History Society, 3rd series, vol. 30 (Edinburgh, 1938).
Note: not all events related to Scotland have been included
Colour Code:
Events involving members of the royal family are in purple.
Events involving bishops, abbots, priors and other ecclesiastics are in green.
Events involving other laypeople are in brown.
Natural and astronomical phenomena are in pink.
1115 (31.5)Death of Mary, countess of Boulogne (dr. King Malcolm III)
1118Death of Matilda, queen of England
1124 (25.4)Death of King Alexander I
1125A great famine
1128‘The church of Holyrood in Edinburgh began to be founded’
1130‘Angus earl of Moray was killed by the Scots’
1133 (5.8)An eclipse occurred
1136 (7.7)Church of Glasgow dedicated
1147Death of John, bp. Glasgow
1150Church of Dunfermline dedicated
‘Alwin the abbot (of Holyrood) voluntarily deposed himself from the pastoral charge, and Osbert received it.’
(17.11)Death of Osbert, ab. Holyrood
1152William, ab. Holyrood, elected
(3.5)Death of Matilda, queen of England
(12.6)Death of Earl Henry, son of King David I
1153 (24.5)Death of King David I
(6.11?)‘Somerled and his nephews, the sons of Malcolm [Macheth], allied with themselves very many men, and rebelled against King Malcolm, and disturbed and disquieted Scotland to a great extent’
1154A ‘great famine and pestilence among animals’ in Scotland
(27.2)‘Arthur, who was about to betray king Malcolm, perished in [trial by] combat’
Death of Geoffrey, ab. Dunfermline; succession of his nephew, also Geoffrey
Death of Duncan [I], earl of Fife
King Malcolm ‘gave the church of Tranent to the canons of Maidens’ Castle’ (Edinburgh or Holyrood). [see RRS i, no. 127]
Christian, bp. Galloway (Whithorn), consecrated at Bermondsey by archbishop of Rouen.
1155Death of Alwin, abbot of Holyrood.
1156Donald, Malcolm’s son, captured at Whithorn, imprisoned with father.
1157Malcolm Macheth ‘reconciled with the king of Scots’
Malcolm IV restores Northumberland and Cumberland to Henry II; Henry restores Huntingdon to Malcolm
1159Death of Robert, bp. St Andrews
‘Malcolm king of Scotland went with Henry king of England to Toulouse, and he was girt by king Henry with the sword of knighthood, in the [city] of Tours.
‘William bishop of Moray, who had been sent to Rome by king Malcolm, was received by the aforesaid (sic) pope Alexander with the highest honour, and was sent back to Scotland with the favour and [general legation?] of the apostolic see.
1160‘King Malcolm three times led an army into Galloway’
‘Fergus prince of Galloway took the canonical habit in the church of Holyrood in Edinburgh, and gave to [the canons] the vill that is called Dunrod’
Arnold, ab. Kelso, elected bp. St Andrews
John elected ab. Kelso, blessed by Herbert bp. Glasgow
1161 (12.5)Death of Fergus prince of Galloway
1162 (24.1)Death of William, bp. Moray, papal legate
Malcolm IV’s sister, Ada, married Florence, count of Holland
Death of Isaac, pr. Scone
Robert, canon of Jedburgh, appointed first abbot of Scone
(? 13.9)Death of Arnold, bp. St Andrews
1163‘Richard, chaplain of the king of Scotland, and nephew of Alwin ab. Edinburgh [Holyrood -ed.] was elected bishop of St Andrews’
‘King Malcolm gave his brother David, and other noble boys of his kingdom, as hostages into the hand of the king of England’
Death of Thor, archdeacon of Lothian
‘King Malcolm transferred [transtulit] men of Moray’
1164Master Andrew made archdeacon of Lothian
Somerled lands at Renfrew, killed there with son and large host
‘The convent came to Coupar, and was reverently received, and the abbot was blessed, namely F[ulk], by Geoffrey bp. Dunkeld’
Death of Herbert, bp. Glasgow
Ingram, king’s chancellor, elected bp. Glasgow, consecrated by Pope Alexander
1165Nicholas, king’s clerk, made chancellor
(28.3)Richard consecrated bp. St Andrews by the bishops of Scotland
(9.12)Death of King Malcolm IV
(24.12)Inauguration of King William
1167Death of the Empress Matilda
1168 (19.9)‘The moon was suffused with a blood-red colour for nearly a whole hour about cockcrow; then blackness followed, and she returned to her proper light’
(23.9)Ralph Malchael and Richard son of Baldwin and Master Imerus killed ‘by the treachery of the Scots’
Death of Malcolm Macheth, earl of Ross
1169Death of Gregory, bp. Dunkeld
1170 (31.5)David, brother of King William, ‘received arms from the elder King Henry of England’
(14.6)Crowning of Henry ‘the young king’
(29.12)Murder of Thomas Becket, archbishop of Canterbury
(20.12)Death of Fulk, first abbot of Coupar Angus Abbey
‘He was succeeded by Ralph’
1173 (20.8)King William goes to Carlisle with an army; attacks and plunders
1174King William attacks Northumbria two more times
(13.7)King William captured at Alnwick
Henry the young king, King William and the king of France all made peace with King Henry II
1175 (Feb.)King William returns to his kingdom
(Aug.)King William meets King Henry at York.
Jocelin, bp. Glasgow, consecrated.
1177, for 1176Cardinal Vivian visits Scotland and Ireland
1178, for 1177Cardinal Vivian holds council at Maidens’ Castle (Edinburgh)
Death of Walter the king’s steward
1179, for 1178 (Lent)Death of Richard, bp. Dunkeld
(summer)Death of Richard, bp. St Andrews
Schism between John and Hugh over see of St Andrews
1180 (15 June)Master John consecrated at Maidens’ Castle by the legate Alexis
(a few days later)Renewed opposition of King William, exile of Bp. John
1182General council for three days between King William and three papal legates anent St Andrews schism
1183Master John and Hugh both went to Rome
1184‘The convent came to Rothin’
1185 (29.12.1184)Death of Andrew, bp. Caithness
(1.5.1185)Eclipse of the sun, about the ninth hour.
1186(5.9)King William marries Ermengarde at Woodstock.
(17.11)‘… the peace of the holy church was broken at Coupar through the violence of Malcolm earl of Atholl. For Adam, surnamed also Donald’s son, who was the king’s outlaw, was captured; and one of his companions, his nephew, was beheaded before the altar; and the others, numbering 58, were burned and put to death in the abbot’s guest-house.’
1187 (31.7)Donald MacWilliam, ‘an opponent of William king of Scotland’, killed in Ross, ‘and many powerful opponents fell with the rest’.
1189 (1.8)Death of Ralph, ab. Coupar.
Appended:
‘1285’ (19.3.1286)Death of King Alexander III, ‘by an accidental fall on the way to Kinghorn’
1296 (30.3)Berwick taken by the English.
(27.4)Battle of Dunbar
1297 (11.9)Battle of Stirling fought by William Wallace
1298 (22.7)Battle of Falkirk
‘1302’ (24.2.1303)Battle of Roslin
1306 (25.3)Robert de Brus made king of Scotland at Scone.
(19.6)Battle of Methven
1308 (25.12)Castle of Forfar taken
‘1312’ (7.1.1313)Town of Perth taken
‘1313’ (19.2.1314)Castle of Roxburgh taken
(14.3.1314)Castle of Edinburgh taken
1314 (23-23.6)Battle of the Bannock
1318 (9.4)Town of Berwick taken by the Scots
1355 (6.11)Capture of Berwick by the Scots
(13.1.1356)Capture of Berwick by the English