John Baliol was King of Scotland from 1292 to 1296. He was born in 1249 and died in 1315. On the death of Margaret, the Maiden of Norway and grandchild of Alexander III, John Baliol claimed the vacant throne by virtue of his descent from David, Earl of Huntingdon, brother to William the Lion, King of Scotland, Robert Bruce (grandfather of the king) opposed John Baliol; but Edward I's decision was in favour of John Baliol, who did homage to him for the kingdom, On November the 20th, 1292. Irritated by Edward's harsh exercise of authority, John Baliol concluded a treaty with France, then at war with England; but after the defeat at Dunbar he surrendered his crown into the hands of the English monarch. He was sent with his son to the Tower, but, by the intercession of the pope in 1297, obtained liberty to retire to his Norman estates, where he died. His son, Edward, in 1332 landed in Fife with an armed force, and having defeated a large army under the regent Mar (who was killed), got himself crowned king, but was driven out in three months. Research John Baliol
Robert Bruce was the greatest of the Scottish Kings. He was born in 1274 and died in 1329. He was King of Scotland from 1306 to 1329. The son of Robert Bruce (Earl of Carrick) in 1296, as Earl of Carrick, he swore fealty to Edward I, and in 1297 fought on the English side against Wallace. He then joined the Scottish army, but in the same year returned to his allegiance to Edward until 1298, when he again joined the national party, and became in 1299 one of the four regents of the kingdom. In the three final campaigns, however, he resumed fidelity to Edward, and resided for some time at his court; but, learning that the king meditated putting him to death on information given by the traitor Comyn, he fled in February 1306, to Scotland, stabbed Comyn in a quarrel at Dumfries, assembled his vassals at LochmabenCastle, and claimed the crown, which he received at Scone, on March the 27th.
Being twice defeated, he dismissed his troops, retired to Rathlin Island, and was supposed to be dead, when, in the spring of 1307, he landed on the Carrick coast, defeated the Earl of Pembroke at Loudon Hill, and in two years had wrested nearly the whole country from the English. He then in successive years advanced into England, laying waste the country; and on June the 24th, 1314, defeated at Bannockburn the English forces advancing under Edward II to the relief of the garrison at Stirling.
In 1316 he went to Ireland to the aid of his brother Edward, and on his return in 1318, in retaliation for inroads made during his absence, he took Berwick and harried Northumberland and Yorkshire. Hostilities continued until the defeat of Edward near Byland Abbey in 1323, and though in that year a truce was concluded for thirteen years, it was speedily broken. Not until March the 4th 1328, was the treaty concluded by which the independence of Scotland was fully recognized. Robert Bruce did not long survive the completion of his work, dying at CardrossCastle on June the 7th, 1329. He was twice married; first to a daughter of the Earl of Mar, Isabella, by whom he had a daughter, Marjory, mother of Robert II; and then to a daughter of Aymer de Burgh, Earl of Ulster, Elizabeth, by whom he had a son, David, who succeeded him.
Ronert Bruce (Robert De Brus) was the fifth lord of Annandale. He was born in 1210 and died in 1295. He was possessed of extensive estates in Cumberland, of which he was made sheriff in 1255. He was one of the fifteen regents of Scotland during the minority of Alexander III and was one of the competitors for the Scottish crown on the death of Margaret, the Maiden of Norway, in 1290; Bruce being the grandson of David, earl of Huntingdon, by his second daughter Isobel, while Baliol claimed as the great-grandson by the eldest daughter Margaret. On the decision of Edward being given in 1292 in favour of Baliol, Robert Bruce resigned the estate of Annandale to his eldest son to avoid doing homage to his rival.
Robert Bruce (Earl of Carrick), was the eldest son of Robert Bruce and father of Robert Bruce, the later king of Scotland. He accompanied Edward I to Palestine in 1269; married, in 1271, Martha Margaret, countess of Carrick. Like his father he resigned the lordship of Annandale to his eldest son to avoid acknowledging the supremacy of Baliol. On the revolt of the latter Robert Bruce fought on the English side, and after the battle of Dunbar made an unsuccessful application to Edward for the crown. He died in 1304. Research Robert Bruce
The Battle of Dupplin Moor took place on August 12th 1332 when Edward Baliol and the Scottish barons defeated a numerically superior force of King David of Scotland under the Earl of Mar and obtained the crown for three months. Research Battle of Dupplin Moor
The Battle of Harlaw was a battle, fought in 1411, which delivered the Lowlands of Scotland from a Highland invasion and the fear of Highland supremacy. Donald, lord of the Isles, having collected an army 10,000 strong, threatened to overrun all northern Scotland, and ravaged the country until he was met at Harlaw, on the Urie, in Aberdeenshire, by a much inferior Lowland force under the Earl of Mar. The battle resulted in the defeat of Donald, although many of the Lowland gentry, the provost and chief magistrates of Aberdeen, and a large number of men fell on the field. Research Battle of Harlaw
The Coonan .357 Magnum is an American pistol based upon the Colt M1911 but chambered for the .357 Magnumcartridge and made from stainless steel, first produced in 1983. The Coonan .357 Magnum takes a 7-round magazine and has adjustable Bo-Mar sights. Research Coonan .357 Magnum
The AlMar Grunt I is an American fighting knife based upon Second World War military knife designs. It has a 5 1/87 inch Bowie-type blade with a deep bevel-ground edge and false back edge made of steel. Research Grunt I
The AlMar Grunt II is an American fighting knife with a 7.75 inch Bowie-type steel blade with a pronounced clip and bevel-ground edge with a sharpened clip edge which gives a sharp point that penetrates well, but lacks prying strength. Research Grunt II
The Royal Scots Fusiliers are a British army regiment first formed in Scotland in 1678 by the Earl Of Mar, and originally known as the Earl Of Mar's Fusiliers - and by the nickname of the Earl of Mar's Grey Breeks on account of their grey breeches - and later called the 21st Regiment Of Foot. They were transferred to an English establishment in 1689 under the name of the 21st Royal North British Fusiliers and received the title of Royal Scots Fusiliers in 1877. Research Royal Scots Fusiliers
The AlMar SERE series of knives are American multipurpose knives for special forces personnel. There are three fixed blade and three folding knives in the series. Generally they have spear pointed blades with a serrated section to the back (the model IV having a plain false back edge). Research SERE
The Probert Encyclopaedia was designed, edited and programed by
Matt and Leela Probert
Abbreviations
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