The Economy of Scotland in the High Middle Ages for the purposes of this article pertains to the economic situation in Scotland between the death of Domnall II in 900, and the death of Alexander III in 1286 which then led indirectly to the Scottish Wars of Independence. The period corresponds roughly with general European historical era known as the High Middle Ages. Royal motto: Nemo me impune lacessit (English: No one provokes me with impunity) Scotlands location within the United Kingdom Languages English, Gaelic, Scots Capital Edinburgh Largest city Glasgow First Minister Jack McConnell Area - Total - % water Ranked 2nd UK 78,782 km² 1. ... Donald II of Scotland (Domnall mac Causantín) was king of Scotland from 889 to 900. ... Events Persian scientist, Rhazes, distinguished smallpox from measles in the course of his writings. ... Alexander III (September 4, 1241 – March 19, 1286), king of Scots, also known as Alexander the Glorious, ranks as one of Scotlands greatest kings. ... Events Margaret I of Scotland became queen of Scotland, end of Canmore dynasty. ... The Wars of Scottish Independence were a series of campaigns launched after the English invasion of Scotland in 1296. ... World map showing Europe Europe is conventionally considered one of the seven continents which, in this case, is more a cultural and political distinction than a physiogeographic one. ... The cathedral Notre Dame de Paris, a significant architectural contribution of the High Middle Ages. ...

Trade

The Scottish economy of this period was dominated by agriculture and by short-distance, local trade. There was an increasing amount of foreign trade in the period, as well as exchange gained by means of military plunder. Generally, continental trading centres were confined to the eastern seaboard, and exchange with Scandinavia and Ireland on the western seaboard. The first Scottish coins were minted in the reign of David I, perhaps in the silver gained by David's acquisition of the Pennine silver mines. By the end of this period, coins were replacing barter goods, but for most of this period most exchange was done without the use of metal currency.^[1] Typical Pennine scenery. ...

Agriculture

Most of Scotland's agricultural wealth in this period came from pastoralism, rather than arable farming, with arable farming growing in the "Norman period" and with geographical differences, low-lying areas being subject to more arable farming that high-lying areas such as the Highlands, Galloway and the southern uplands. Galloway, in the words of G.W.S. Barrow, "already famous for its cattle, was so overwhelmingly pastoral, that there is little evidence in that region of land under any permanent cultivation, save along the Solway coast."^[2] The average amount of land used by a husbandman in Scotland might have been around 26 acres.^[3] There is a lot of evidence that the native Scots favoured pastoralism, in that Gaelic lords were happier to give away more land to French and English-speaking settlers, whilst holding on tenaciously to more high-lying regions, perhaps contributing to the Highland/Galloway-Lowland division that emerged in Scotland in the later Middle Ages.^[4] The main unit of land measurement in Scotland was the davoch (i.e. "vat"), called the arachor in Lennox. This unit is also known as the "Scottish ploughgate." In English-speaking Lothian, it was simply ploughgate.^[5] It may have measured about 104 acres,^[6] divided into 4 raths.^[7] Cattle, pigs and cheeses were among the most produced foodstuffs,^[8] but of course a vast range of foodstuffs were produced, from sheep and fish, rye and barley, to bee wax and honey. Pastoralism is a form of cultivation, such as Agriculture and Horticulture. ... An acre is an English unit of area, which is also frequently used in the United States and some Commonwealth countries. ... Lennox may refer to: District of Lennox, Scotland Lennox, California Lennox, South Dakota Lennox County, Ontario Picton, Lennox and Nueva, Chile Any person who has held the title of Duke of Lennox Lennox, a fictional Duke of Lennox in Macbeth Annie Lennox, a popular 80s music artist This is...

Burghs

Pre-Davidian Scotland had no towns. The closest thing to towns were the larger than average population concentrations around large monasteries, such as Dunkeld and St Andrews, and regionally significant fortifications. Scotland, outside Lothian at least, was populated by scattered hamlets, and outside that area, lacked the continental style nucleated village. David I established the first burghs in Scotland, initially only in Middle-English-speaking Lothian. The earliest burghs, founded by 1124, were Berwick and Roxburgh. However, by 1130, David had established burghs in Gaelic areas: Stirling, Dunfermline, Perth and Scone, as well as Edinburgh, were burghs by 1130. The conquest of Moray in that same year, led to the establishment of burghs at Elgin and Forres. Before David was dead, St Andrews, Montrose and Aberdeen were also burghs. In the reigns of Máel Coluim IV and William, burghs were added at Inverness, Banff, Cullen, Auldearn, Nairn, Inverurie, Kintore, Brechin, Forfar, Arbroath, Dundee, Lanark, Dumfries and (uniquely for the west coast) Ayr. New Lothian burghs also came into existence, at Haddington, Leith and Peebles. By 1210, there were 40 burghs in the Scottish kingdom. Rosemarkie, Dingwall and Cromarty were also burghs by the Scottish Wars of Independence. Dunkeld is a town in Strathtay (= the River Tay valley) on the south edge of the Highlands of Scotland. ... Named after Saint Andrew the Apostle, the Royal Burgh of St Andrews is a town on the east coast of Fife, Scotland, and the home of golf. ... Middle English is the name given by historical linguistics to the diverse forms of the English language spoken between the Norman invasion in 1066 and the mid-to-late 15th century, when the Chancery Standard, a form of London-based English, began to become widespread, a process aided by the... Events March 26 - Henry I of Englands forces defeat Norman rebels at Bourgtheroulde. ... Map sources for Berwick-upon-Tweed at grid reference NT9952 Berwick-upon-Tweed from across the river Berwick-upon-Tweed, (pronounced Berrick) situated in the county of Northumberland, is the northernmost town in England, situated on the east coast on the mouth of the river Tweed. ... Historically, Roxburgh was an important Scottish town. ... Events February 13 - Innocent II is elected pope An antipope schism occurs when Roger II of Sicily supports Anacletus II as pope instead of Innocent II. Innocent flees to France and Anacletus crowns Roger King. ... Stirling (Sruighlea in Gaelic) is a city in central Scotland. ... The Royal Burgh of Dunfermline (in Gaelic, Dùn Fearam Linn), is a town and burgh in Fife, Scotland, that sits on high ground 3 miles from the shore of the Firth of Forth, northwest of Edinburgh. ... The Royal Burgh of Perth (Peairt in Scottish Gaelic) is a large burgh in central Scotland. ... Scone is a large village, a mile north of Perth, Scotland. ... Edinburgh (pronounced ), Dùn Èideann () in Scottish Gaelic, is the second-largest city in Scotland and its capital city. ... Elgin is a town in Moray the North of Scotland. ... Suenos Stone in Forres Forres, an ancient Royal Burgh Town, is situated in the North of Scotland on the Moray Coast. ... Montrose is the name of several places in the world. ... Aberdeens location in Scotland Aberdeen (Scottish Gaelic: Obar Dheathain or The Granite City) is Scotlands third largest city, with a population of 212,125, and the greatest part of the unitary council area named the City of Aberdeen, which is surrounded by, but not within, the Aberdeenshire council... Inverness (Inbhir Nis in Scottish Gaelic) is the only city in the Scottish Highlands. ... Banff and Macduff are twin burghs in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. ... Cullen is a village in Morayshire, Scotland, on the North Sea coast 20 miles east of Elgin. ... The Royal Burgh of Nairn (Scottish Gaelic: Inbhir Narann) is a burgh in Highland, Scotland, lying about fifteen miles east of Inverness. ... Inverurie is a burgh in Aberdeenshire, Scotland approximately 16 miles north west of Aberdeen along the A96 road. ... Kintore is a small royal burgh near Inverurie in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, now bypassed by the A96 road between Aberdeen and Inverness. ... The Royal Burgh of Brechin is a burgh in Angus, Scotland. ... Location within the British Isles The Royal Burgh of Forfar is a burgh of approximately 13,500 people, located in the unitary authority of Angus in Scotland. ... The ruined Arbroath Abbey, built from local red sandstone. ... The Royal Burgh of Dundee (Dùn Dèagh in Scots Gaelic) is Scotlands fourth largest city, population 154,674 (2001), situated on the north bank of the Firth of Tay. ... This article describes the town in Scotland. ... The Buccleuch St Bridge The Auld Brig at low water The Queensberry Monument Dumfries the Sally Army hall Overlooking Dumfries The Old Bridge House Dumfries High School Dumfries location in Scotland Dumfries (pronounced dum-freece, not dum-fries) (Dùn Phris in Scottish Gaelic) is a Royal Burgh and town... Map sources for Ayr at grid reference NS337220 The royal burgh of Ayr (Scottish Gaelic, Inbhir Àir) in the south-west of Scotland is a burgh situated on the Firth of Clyde. ... Haddington is a burgh in East Lothian. ... Former Royal Yacht Britannia is permanently moored at Leith harbour. ... Old Parish Church, Peebles Location within the British Isles Peebles 55°39′ N 3°11′ W is a burgh in the traditional county of Peeblesshire (of which it is the county town), in the Scottish Borders, lying on the River Tweed. ... Events End of the reign of Emperor Tsuchimikado, emperor of Japan Emperor Juntoku ascends to the throne of Japan Otto IV, Holy Roman Emperor excommunicated by Pope Innocent III for invading southern Italy in 1210 Gottfried von Strassburg writes his epic poem Tristan about 1210 Beginning of Delhi Sultanate Births... Rosemarkie is a village on the Black Isle in the Scottish Highlands, lying a quarter of a mile east of the village of Fortrose. ... The Royal Burgh of Dingwall (Inbhir Pheofharan in Gaelic) is a burgh in the highlands of Scotland. ... Location within the British Isles. ... The Wars of Scottish Independence were a series of campaigns launched after the English invasion of Scotland in 1296. ...

David I, who established the first burghs, copied verbatim the burgher laws from the English burgh Newcastle-Upon-Tyne. He essentially imported the burgh into to his "Scottish" dominions from his English ones. Burghs were for the most part populated by foreigners, rather than native Scots or even Lothianers. The predominant ethnic group were the Flemings, but early burgesses were also English, French and German. The burgh’s vocabulary was composed totally of either Germanic terms (not necessarily or even predominantly English) such as croft, rood, gild, gait and wynd, or French ones such as provost, bailie, vennel, port and ferme.^[9] The councils which ran individual burghs were individually known as lie doussane, meaning the dozen.^[10] Newcastle upon Tyne, often shortened to Newcastle, is a city in the county of Tyne and Wear in North East England. ... Flemings (Dutch: Vlamingen) are inhabitants of Flanders in the widest sense of the term, i. ...

Notes

1. ^ , Stringer, "Emergence of a Nation State", pp. 66-9
2. ^ , Barrow, Kingship and Unity, (1981), p. 12
3. ^ , ibid., p. 18
4. ^ , e.g. for Galloway, Oram, Lordship, pp. 212-13; for Strathearn and Lennox, see. Neville, Native Lordship, pp. 79-130
5. ^ , Barrow, Kingship and Unity, p. 12-15
6. ^ , ibid. p. 15
7. ^ , Neville, Native Lordship, p. 96
8. ^  , Driscoll, Alba, (2002), p. 53
9. ^ , Murison, "Linguistic Relations", (1974), p. 74
10. ^ , Barrow, Kingship and Unity, p. 102

References

• Barrow, G.W.S., The Kingdom of the Scots, (Edinburgh, 2003)
• Barrow, G.W.S., Kingship and Unity: Scotland, 1000-1306, (Edinburgh. 1981)
• Driscoll, Steven, Alba: The Gaelic Kingdom of Scotland AD 800-1124, (Edinburgh, 1996)
• Murison, David D., “Linguistic Relations in Medieval Scotland,” in G.W.S. Barrow (ed.), The Scottish Tradition: Essays in Honour of Ronald Gordon Cant, (Edinburgh, 1974)
• Neville, Cynthia J., Native Lorship in Medieval Scotland: The Earldoms of Strathearn and Lennox, c. 1140-1365, (Portland/Dublin, 2005)
• Oram, Richard, The Lordship of Galloway, (Edinburgh, 2000)
• Stringer, Keith J., "The Emergence of a Nation-State, 1100-1300", in Jenny Wormald (ed.), Scotland: A History, (Oxford, 2005), pp. 38-76

See also

• Scotland in the High Middle Ages
• Christianity in Medieval Scotland
• Culture of Scotland in the High Middle Ages
• Kingdom of Alba
• Legal institutions of Scotland in the High Middle Ages
• Society of Scotland in the High Middle Ages
• Warfare of Scotland in the High Middle Ages