The essays in this book, all by distinguished historians, illuminate the main activities, preoccupations and aspirations of the families whose territorial power and local leadership made them a central factor in medieval Scottish society. Issues discussed include the influence of Anglo-Norman England on earlier medieval Scotland, patterns of land accumulation by the aristocracy, noble residences, the legal and administrative aspects of baronial lordship, clientage, and dealings between magnates and the Church. Throughout, the essays stress the importance of recognising that, before the Wars of Independence, the nobility of Scotland was closely bound by ties of kinship and property with the nobility in England and emphasise that the common assumption of perpetual opposition between baronage and the Crown is a myth. First published in 1985, these essays remain essential reading on the subject.

This book brings unusually brings together work on 15th century and the 16th century Scottish history, asking questions such as: How far can medieval themes such as OCylordshipOCO function in the late 16th-century world of Reformation and state formation? How"e;

A one-volume political and ecclesiastical history of Scotland from the eleventh century to the Reformation.

This ambitious book, newly available in paperback, examines the encounter between Gaels and Europeans in Scotland in the central Middle Ages, offering new insights into an important period in the formation of the Scots' national identity. It is based on a close reading of the texts of several thousand charters, indentures, brieves and other written sources that record the business conducted in royal and baronial courts across the length and breadth of the medieval kingdom between 1150 and 1400.Under the broad themes of land, law and people, this book explores how the customs, laws and traditions of the native inhabitants and those of incoming settlers interacted and influenced each other. Drawing on a range of theoretical and methodological approaches, the author places her subject matter firmly within the recent historiography of the British Isles and demonstrates how the experience of Scotland was both similar to, and a distinct manifestation of, a wider process of Europeanisation.

This nine-essay volume provides the first full-length, detailed exploration of the kingdom of Scotland during the reign of Alexander II (1214-49), and the most extensive analysis of this key state-builder and his policies.

This volume examines Highland society during the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries highlighting the extent to which kinship and clientage were organising principles within clanship. Based on clans located in the central and eastern Highlands this study goes some way to addressing the imbalance in Highland historiography which hitherto has concentrated largely on the west Highlands and islands. Focusing initially on internal clan structure, the study broadens into an analysis of local politics within the context of regional and national affairs, raising questions regarding the importance of land and the nature of lordship as well as emphasising the need for Highland history to be integrated further into broader studies of Scottish society during this period.