Alexander III
King of Scots
Reign	July 6, 1249–19 March 1286
Born	4 September 1241
Died	19 March 1286
Buried	Dunfermline Abbey
Predecessor	Alexander II
Successor	Margaret
Consort	Margaret of England Yolande de Dreux
Issue	Margaret, Alexander, David
Father	Alexander II
Mother	Marie de Coucy

Coronation of King Alexander on Moot Hill, Scone. He is being greeted by the ollamh rígh, the royal poet, who is addressing him with the proclamation "Benach De Re Albanne" (= Beannachd Dé Rígh Alban, "God Bless the King of Scotland"); the poet goes on to recite Alexander's genealogy.

Alexander III (4 September 1241 – 19 March 1286), King of Scots, was born at Roxburgh, the only son of Alexander II by his second wife Marie de Coucy. Alexander's father died on 6 July 1249 and he became king at the age of eight, inaugurated at Scone on 13 July 1249. Image File history File links Alexander_III.jpg Oggetto Alexander III in a late portrayal Licensing This image is in the public domain because its copyright has expired in the United States and those countries with a copyright term of life of the author plus 100 years or less. ... July 6 is the 187th day of the year (188th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 178 days remaining. ... Events University, the first College at Oxford founded Births Emperor Kameyama of Japan Pope John XXII Frederick I, Margrave of Baden Deaths July 6 - Alexander II of Scotland (b. ... March 19 is the 78th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (79th in leap years). ... Events Margaret I of Scotland became queen of Scotland, end of Canmore dynasty. ... September 4 is the 247th day of the year (248th in leap years). ... Events April 5 - Mongols of Golden Horde under the command of Subotai defeat feudal Polish nobility, including Knights Templar, in the battle of Liegnitz April 27 - Mongols defeat Bela IV of Hungary in the battle of Sajo. ... March 19 is the 78th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (79th in leap years). ... Events Margaret I of Scotland became queen of Scotland, end of Canmore dynasty. ... Dunfermline Abbey and Church - illustration from Cassells History of England circa 1902 Dunfermline Abbey is the remains of a great Benedictine abbey founded in 1070 by Queen Margaret, wife of Malcolm Canmore and granddaughter of Edmund Ironside, King of England. ... Alexander II (August 24, 1198 – July 6, 1249), king of Scotland, son of William I, the Lion, and of Ermengarde of Beaumont, was born at Haddington, East Lothian, in 1198, and succeeded to the kingdom on the death of his father on 4 December 1214. ... Margaret (1283–1290), known as the Maid of Norway, is traditionally considered to have been Queen of Scots from 1286 until her death although she never came to Scotland and was never inaugurated at Scone. ... Margaret of England, Queen Consort of Alexander III of Scotland (b. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Margaret of Scotland (1260 February 28–1283 April 9 (?)), in old Norse referred to as Margrét Alexandersdóttir, modern Norwegian Margrete Alexandersdotter, was queen of Norway, married to King Eirik II of Norway. ... Alexander II (August 24, 1198 – July 6, 1249), king of Scotland, son of William I, the Lion, and of Ermengarde of Beaumont, was born at Haddington, East Lothian, in 1198, and succeeded to the kingdom on the death of his father on 4 December 1214. ... Marie de Coucy (c. ... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (887x779, 222 KB) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Alexander III of Scotland Scotland Coronation Kingdom of Scotland Scone, Perth and Kinross List of monarchs of Scotland... Image File history File links Download high-resolution version (887x779, 222 KB) File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Alexander III of Scotland Scotland Coronation Kingdom of Scotland Scone, Perth and Kinross List of monarchs of Scotland... Scone (Modern Gaelic: Sgàin; Medieval: Scoine) (pronounced Scoon) is a town in Perth and Kinross, Scotland. ... Scone is a large village, a mile north of Perth, Scotland. ... September 4 is the 247th day of the year (248th in leap years). ... Events April 5 - Mongols of Golden Horde under the command of Subotai defeat feudal Polish nobility, including Knights Templar, in the battle of Liegnitz April 27 - Mongols defeat Bela IV of Hungary in the battle of Sajo. ... March 19 is the 78th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (79th in leap years). ... Events Margaret I of Scotland became queen of Scotland, end of Canmore dynasty. ... This is a list of British monarchs, that is, the monarchs on the thrones of some of the various kingdoms that have existed on, or incorporated, the island of Great Britain, namely: England (united with Wales from 1536) up to 1707; Scotland up to 1707; The Kingdom of Great Britain... Historically, the Royal Burgh of Roxburgh (Gaelic: Rosbrog), in the Scottish Borders, was an important trading burgh in the economy of Scotland. ... Alexander II (August 24, 1198 – July 6, 1249), king of Scotland, son of William I, the Lion, and of Ermengarde of Beaumont, was born at Haddington, East Lothian, in 1198, and succeeded to the kingdom on the death of his father on 4 December 1214. ... Marie de Coucy (c. ... July 6 is the 187th day of the year (188th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 178 days remaining. ... Events University, the first College at Oxford founded Births Emperor Kameyama of Japan Pope John XXII Frederick I, Margrave of Baden Deaths July 6 - Alexander II of Scotland (b. ... Scone is a large village, a mile north of Perth, Scotland. ... July 13 is the 194th day (195th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 171 days remaining. ... Events University, the first College at Oxford founded Births Emperor Kameyama of Japan Pope John XXII Frederick I, Margrave of Baden Deaths July 6 - Alexander II of Scotland (b. ...

The years of his minority featured an embittered struggle for the control of affairs between two rival parties, the one led by Walter Comyn, Earl of Menteith, the other by Alan Durward, Justiciar of Scotia. The former dominated the early years of Alexander's reign. At the marriage of Alexander to Margaret of England in 1251, Henry III seized the opportunity to demand from his son-in-law homage for the Scottish kingdom, but Alexander did not comply. In 1255 an interview between the English and Scottish kings at Kelso led to Menteith and his party losing to Durward's party. But though disgraced, they still retained great influence, and two years later, seizing the person of the king, they compelled their rivals to consent to the erection of a regency representative of both parties. Walter Comyn, Lord of Badenoch, jure uxoris Earl of Menteith (d. ... Duke of Albany is a peerage title that has occasionally been bestowed on the youngers sons in the Scottish and later the British Royal Family, particularly in the Houses of Stuart and Hanover. ... Alan Hostarius or Alan Durward (Scottish Gaelic: † 1275) was the son of Thomas de Lundin, a grandson of Gille Críst, Mormaer of Mar. ... The Justiciar of Scotia (in Norman-Latin, Justiciarus Scotie) was the most senior legal office in the High Medieval Kingdom of Scotland. ... Margaret of England, Queen Consort of Alexander III of Scotland (b. ... Henry III (1 October 1207 – 16 November 1272) was crowned King of England in 1216, despite being less than ten years of age. ... Kelso is unique in Scotland for having a cobbled square fed by four cobbled streets - 360 degree panorama by David Kilpatrick Kelso (made up name in Gaelic) is a market town in the Borders area of Scotland, located where the rivers Tweed and Teviot have their confluence. ...

On attaining his majority at the age of 21 in 1262, Alexander declared his intention of resuming the projects on the Western Isles which the death of his father thirteen years before had cut short. He laid a formal claim before the Norwegian king Haakon. Haakon rejected the claim, and in the following year responded with a formidable invasion. Sailing around the west coast of Scotland he halted off the Isle of Arran, and negotiations commenced. Alexander artfully prolonged the talks until the autumn storms should begin. At length Haakon, weary of delay, attacked, only to encounter a terrific storm which greatly damaged his ships. The battle of Largs (October 1263) proved indecisive, but even so, Haakon's position was hopeless. Baffled, he turned homewards, but died in the Orkneys on 15 December 1263. The Isles now lay at Alexander's feet, and in 1266 Haakon's successor concluded the Treaty of Perth by which he ceded the Isle of Man and the Western Isles to Scotland in return for a monetary payment. Norway retained only Orkney and Shetland in the area. The Western Isles are an archipelago in Scotland. ... An illustration of Hákon, King of Norway, and his son Magnus, from Flateyjarbók Håkon IV (1204 – December 16, 1263), (Norwegian Håkon Håkonsson, Old Norse Hákon Hákonarson) also called Haakon the Old. ... Arran shown within Clyde Coast The Isle of Arran (Scots Gaelic: Eilean Arainn) is the largest island in the Firth of Clyde (430 km²). It is in the unitary council area of North Ayrshire. ... Trends in natural disasters, Pascal Peduzzi, UNEP/GRID-Arendal Extreme weather includes weather phenomena that are at the extremes of historical patterns, especially severe or unseasonal weather. ... The Battle of Largs took place in Largs, North Ayrshire in 1263 between Scotland and the forces of King Magnus III of Man and the Isles as well as the manxmens ally, King Haakon IV of Norway. ... December 15 is the 349th day of the year (350th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Events Detmold, Germany was founded. ... The Treaty of Perth ended military conflict between Norway under Magnus the Law-mender and Scotland under Alexander III over the sovereignty of the Western Isles, the Isle of Man and Caithness. ... Orkney (sometimes known as the Orkney Islands) is an archipelago in northern Scotland, situated 10 miles north of the coast of Caithness. ... Shetland (formerly spelled Zetland, from etland) formerly called Hjaltland, is one of 32 council areas of Scotland. ...

Alexander had married Princess Margaret of England, a daughter of King Henry III of England and Eleanor of Provence, on 26 December, 1251. She died in 1274, after they had three children: Margaret of England, Queen Consort of Alexander III of Scotland (b. ... Henry III (1 October 1207 – 16 November 1272) was crowned King of England in 1216, despite being less than ten years of age. ... Eleanor of Provence (c 1223 – 26 June 1291) was Queen Consort of King Henry III of England. ... December 26 is the 360th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, 361st in leap years. ...

1. Margaret (28 February 1260–9 April 1283), who married King Eirik II of Norway
2. Alexander (21 January 1263–28 January, 1283)
3. David (20 March 1272–June 1281)

According to the Lanercost Chronicle, Alexander did not spend his decade as a widower alone: "he used never to forbear on account of season nor storm, nor for perils of flood or rocky cliffs, but would visit none too creditably nuns or matrons, virgins or widows as the fancy seized him, sometimes in disguise." Margaret of Scotland (1260 February 28–1283 April 9 (?)), in old Norse referred to as Margrét Alexandersdóttir, modern Norwegian Margrete Alexandersdotter, was queen of Norway, married to King Eirik II of Norway. ... February 28 is the 59th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... The magnificent Cathedral of Chartres was dedicated in 1260. ... April 9 is the 99th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (100th in leap years). ... For broader historical context, see 1280s and 13th century. ... Eirik Magnusson (c. ... January 21 is the 21st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... Events Detmold, Germany was founded. ... January 28 is the 28th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... March 20 is the 79th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (80th in leap years). ... For broader historical context, see 1270s and 13th century. ... For broader historical context, see 1280s and 13th century. ... The Lanercost Chronicle is a northern English and Scottish history covering the years 1201 to 1346. ...

Towards the end of Alexander's reign, the death of all three of his children within a few years made the question of the succession one of pressing importance. In 1284 he induced the Estates to recognize as his heir-presumptive his granddaughter Margaret, the "Maid of Norway". The need for a male heir led him to contract a second marriage to Yolande de Dreux on 1 November 1285. The parliament of Scotland, officially the Estates of Parliament, was the legislature of the independent Kingdom of Scotland. ... Margaret (1283–1290), known as the Maid of Norway, is traditionally considered to have been Queen of Scots from 1286 until her death although she never came to Scotland and was never inaugurated at Scone. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... November 1 is the 305th day of the year (306th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 60 days remaining. ... For broader historical context, see 1280s and 13th century. ...

But the sudden death of the king dashed all such hopes. Alexander died in a fall from his horse in the dark while riding to visit the queen at Kinghorn in Fife on 19 March 1286. Alexander became separated from his guides and it is assumed that in the dark his horse lost its footing. The 44 year old king was found dead on the shore the following morning. Some texts have said that he fell off a cliff. Although there is no cliff at the site where his body was found there is a very steep rocky embankment - which would have been fatal in the dark. He was buried in Dunfermline Abbey. Kinghorn, Fife Kinghorn is a burgh in Fife, Scotland. ... Fife (Fìobh in Gaelic) is a council area of Scotland, situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with landward boundaries to Perth and Kinross and Clackmannanshire. ... March 19 is the 78th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (79th in leap years). ... Events Margaret I of Scotland became queen of Scotland, end of Canmore dynasty. ... Dunfermline Abbey and Church - illustration from Cassells History of England circa 1902 Dunfermline Abbey is the remains of a great Benedictine abbey founded in 1070 by Queen Margaret, wife of Malcolm Canmore and granddaughter of Edmund Ironside, King of England. ...

As Alexander left no surviving children the heir to the throne was his unborn child by Queen Yolande. When Yolande's pregnancy ended in a still-birth in November of 1286, Alexander's granddaughter Margaret became the heir. Margaret died, still uncrowned, on her way to Scotland in 1290. The inauguration of John Balliol as king on 30 November 1292 ended the six years of interregnum when the Guardians of Scotland governed the land. King John as depicted in the 1562 Forman Armorial, produced for Mary, Queen of Scots. ... November 30 is the 334th day (335th on leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 31 days remaining. ... For broader historical context, see 1290s and 13th century. ... An interregnum is a period between monarchs, between popes of the Roman Catholic Church, emperors of Holy Roman Empire, polish kings (elective monarchy) or between consuls of the Roman Republic. ... The Guardians of Scotland were the de facto heads of state of Scotland during the First Interregnum of 1290-1292, and the Second Interregnum of 1296-1306. ...

See also

• History of Scotland

Stirling Castle has stood for centuries atop a volcanic crag defending the lowest ford of the River Forth. ...

Source

• Scott, Robert McNair. Robert the Bruce: King of Scots, 1996

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Monarchs of Scotland (Alba)

	Traditional List of Monarchs of the Picts Legendary Monarchs • Drest of the 100 Battles • Talorc I • Nechtan I • Drest II • Galan • Drest III • Drest IV • Gartnait I • Cailtram • Talorc II • Drest V • Galam Cennalath • Bruide I • Gartnait II • Nechtan II • Cinioch • Gartnait III • Bruide II • Talorc III • Talorgan I • Gartnait IV • Drest VI • Bruide III • Taran • Bruide IV • Nechtan IV • Drest VII • Alpín I • Óengus I • Bruide V • Cináed I • Alpín II • Talorgan II • Drest VIII • Conall • Caustantín • Óengus II • Drest IX • Eogán • Ferat • Bruide VI • Cináed II • Bruide VII • Drest X
something	Traditional List of Monarchs of the Scots Cináed I • Domnall I • Causantín I • Áed • Giric • Domnall II • Causantín II • Máel Coluim I • Idulb • Dub • Cuilén • Cináed II • Causantín III • Cináed III • Máel Coluim II • Donnchad I • Mac Bethad • Lulach • Máel Coluim III • Domnall III Bán • Donnchad II • Domnall III Bán • Edgar • Alexander I • David I • Máel Coluim IV • William I • Alexander II • Alexander III • First Interregnum • John • Second Interregnum • Robert I • David II • Robert II • Robert III • James I • James II • James III • James IV • James V • Mary I • James VI* • Charles I* • Charles II • The Covenanters • The Protectorate • Charles II* • James VII* • Mary II* • William II* • Anne* * also monarch of Ireland and England