Stewart Succession

W. Croft Dickinson, Gordon Donaldson, Isabel A. Milne – A Source Book of Scottish History; Volume 1 (1956):

The settlement of the succession on the death of King Robert I (1315 and 1318):

Meantime the heir to the throne was Marjorie, daughter of Robert I by his first wife Isabella of Mar; and, in the difficult times through which the kingdom was passing, the magnates felt that if the king were to die it was essential that he should be succeeded on the throne by a man ‘vigorous and skilled in warfare.’ Accordingly, in an assembly at Ayr, on 27th April 1315, it was agreed that if Robert I died without leaving a surviving son, his brother, Edward Bruce, and his heirs male should succeed to the crown.

Edward Bruce, however, was killed in Ireland, in October 1318, leaving no lawful heir, and thus the settlement of 1315 fell to the ground. Accordingly, in December 1318, a parliament held at Scone declared Robert, the only son of Marjorie Bruce and Walter the High Steward, to be heir to the throne if Robert Bruce had no male issue. But David, son of Robert Bruce, was born in March 1324; he succeeded as David II on 7th June 1329; but when he died without issue in February 1371 he was succeeded by Robert, son of Marjorie Bruce, who reigned as Robert II, the first of the Stewart kings.

In detail:

1315:

In the year 1315 on the 27th April at Ayr, in the parish church of that place, the bishops, abbots, priors, deans, archdeacons, and the rest of the prelates of the churches, the earls, barons, knights and the rest of the community of the Kingdom of Scotland, cleric and lay, gathered together to treat, discuss and ordain upon the state, defence and permanent security of the kingdom of Scotland, unanimously agreed and ordained in the following manner:

With the consent of the lord king and of his daughter Marjorie, heir apparent, that if it happened that the said lord king closed the last day of his life without any surviving male heir, the noble man Lord Edward de Brus, brother of the king, as a vigorous man and as most highly skilled in warfare for the defence of the right and liberty of the kingdom of Scotland, and the heirs male of his body to be lawfully begotten, shall succeed the said lord king in the kingdom.

They ordained with the consent of the said king and of the said Lord Edward, his brother, that in the absence of lawful descendants of the said Lord Edward and his heirs male of his body the succession of the said kingdom of Scotland shall revert to the above-mentioned Marjorie, whom failing to the nearest heir lineally descended from the body of King Robert, without challenge of any man, until, with the consent of the said lord king or, whom failing, with the consent of the greater part of the community of the kingdom, the said Marjorie shall be joined in marriage.

They ordained that if the foresaid lord king should die, leaving as heir male a minor, or the said Lord Edward, his brother, should die in like manner, the noble man Lord Thomas Randolph, earl of Moray, shall have guardianship of the heir and the kingdom until such time as it shall appear to the community of the realm, or to the greater part thereof, that the heir himself is able to undertake, the rule of the realm.

They moreover ordained that if the said Marjorie shall die in widowhood leaving her heir a minor in the manner above expressed, the said earl shall have guardianship of the heir and the kingdom as is expressed above in the cases of the heirs of the lord king and his brother, if the said earl shall assent thereto. If the said Marjorie shall die leaving no heir of her body and if no heir of King Robert’s body is surviving, the said earl shall have guardianship of the kingdom until he can conveniently convene the prelates, earls, barons, and others of the community of the realm to ordain and discuss concerning the lawful succession and government of the kingdom.

1318:

It was ordained and agreed by the unanimous consent of each and all, that if it happen that the lord king should close his last day with no male heir lawfully begotten of his body surviving, Robert, son of the Lady Marjorie of good memory,* daughter of the lord king, lawfully begotten of the noble man Lord Walter, Steward of Scotland, her husband, shall fully succeed the same lord king in his kingdom as his nearest lawful heir.

The lord king, has assigned the wardship or care of the said Robert, or of other heir begotten of the body of the lord king, together with the custody of the whole kingdom and people, if at the time of the decease of the lord king the heir shall be of minor age, to the noble man Sir Thomas Randolph, earl of Moray and lord of Man; and if, in the meantime, the said earl shall have chanced to die, to the noble man Sir James of Douglas; until such time as it shall seem to the community of the realm, or to the greater and wiser part thereof, that the said Robert, or other heir of the lord king, as above expressed, is able himself to take over the rule of the kingdom and the people.

*Marjorie died aged 21 on the 2nd of March, 1316. ‘Collins Encyclopaedia of Scotland’ says that she died giving birth to the future Robert II after a riding accident. Other sources say that while heavily pregnant she fell from her horse near Paisley. Her neck was broken, she died, and the child was quickly removed by Caesarian section. Other sources say that after the fall she was taken to Paisley Abbey where she died giving birth to Robert. Robert became king at the age of 54. After Marjorie died, Walter was sent to defend Berwick. This he did with enormous heroism. His signature is on ‘The Declaration of Arbroath’ (1320).

On the death of David II (22nd February, 1371) Robert the Steward succeeded to the throne of Scotland as Robert II. Robert, the Steward of Scotland, earl of Strathearn, nephew of lord David Bruce, king of Scotland was crowned at Scone by William de Laundelys, bishop of St Andrews.

His son John, Earl of Carrick, later became Robert III.