Roseline Journey - Part 4

19.KINGHORN, KINGDOM OF FIFE

Moving northwards from Inchkeith we hit the mainland at Kinghorn, in the Kingdom of Fife. The name Kinghorn is derived from a sexual innuendo directed at King Alexander III. One of Scotland's strongest leaders, it was Alexander who defeated the Norwegians at the Battle of Largs, 1263. As a result he regained control of the Isle of Man and the Hebrides for the Scots. Alexander's first wife was Margaret, daughter of King Henry III of England, they married when the young King was only 10 years old.

During Alexander's reign, Scotland and England enjoyed a period of respect and mutual harmony. Queen Margaret's bloodline was held to be the reason behind the cordial period. The royal couple had three children but all, sadly, died during the time of Alexander's rule.

On the 18th March, 1286, the King held a council meeting, followed by convivial feasting with his leading barons and nobles, in Edinburgh Castle. The hour was late when the King decided that he wished to retire from the evening's spirited diversion and be reunited with his voluptuous new second wife, Yolande De Dreux, in Fife (she was around half the age of the King). A strong weather front was battering the East Coast that evening, making the ferry crossing from Edinburgh to Fife near impossible. The defiant King was not a man to be restrained and he ordered the crossing. He was met in Fife by a mount and escort. Alexander became separated from his guides and, in the howling, bitter, blasting gale, his horse lost its footing. The 44 year old King was found dead the next morning at the bottom of a very steep, rocky embankment, "Kinghorn" horn of the King, was named as a fitting testament, but Alexander's death was truly a national tragedy. The Roseline runs directly through this tragic and historically important spot. HE WAS THE LAST OF A LONG LINE OF CELTIC KINGS

After Alexander's death his peaceful realm was plunged into a period of conflict and uncertainty that would eventually lead to war with England. As Alexander left no surviving children, the heir to the throne was his unborn child to Queen Yolande. When Yolande's pregnancy ended in a still birth on November 25th 1286, Alexander's only grand-daughter, Margaret, Maid of Norway became his heir. She was the last of the direct line of the house of Canmore. Arrangements were made in October, 1290 for the 7 year old Princess to come to Scotland to be crowned. On route the little Princess died under suspicious circumstances. King Edward I had prearranged the marriage of his son Edward II to the young Princess when the time was deemed acceptable, as the younger Edward was just one year older than Margaret. Edward senior's plan to bring about the Union of the Crowns through a Royal marriage died along with the young Maid of Norway.

No less than 13 Scottish noblemen, including the head of the Bruce family, declared themselves as potential inheritors of the vacant throne, almost resulting in a state of Civil War. King Edward I was invited to be the arbitrator. John Balliol was chosen by a meeting of Scottish nobles and Edward at Berwick. There is a hint that some underhand forces were at work in the ballot box. John's durability was seen as suspect and he was easily influenced. Despite severe misgivings, he was duly inaugurated as King of Scotland at the Moot Hill, Scone, on the 30th November 1292, St Andrew's Day.

Sly and cunning Edward I had skillfully extended his dominion at the exspense of the internally disputative Scots. He declared his own position as Lord Paramount of Scotland. The feudal superior of the Scottish realm steadily eroded and undermined the authority of King John, repeatedly humiliating the Scots King. Edward treated Scotland as a feudal vassel state, effectively now a province of England. Every Scottish Castle was now under Edward's control and all high office bearers were replaced with Englishmen. King John's reign was now accordingly void, a mere figurehead with Scottish roots. The Nation was in involuntary seige under the English Army's control.

In 1294 political tensions in Scotland were further aroused when King Edward sent orders to the Scottish King John, demanding he mobilise his Army and send his troops to war in Flanders, in support of the English cause against the French. The weak minded John was under severe pressure yet found the courage to refuse Edward's order.

With a rebellion in Wales to contend with, the Scots King knew Edward's resources were stretched. In Paris on the 23rd October, 1295, King John and King Philip IV of France demonstrated their allegiance to each other by signing the Auld Alliance agreement and conspiring in unison to halt the advances of Edwards Army.

Edward's anger at this show of contempt for his authority was to provoke a slaughter of the innocents that would haunt the Scottish people for generations. Berwick upon Tweed was Scotland's leading port and had built up trading links all over Europe, it was the 4th largest port in the U.K. On March the 30th, 1296, Berwick was subjected to the storm of Edward's wrath.

The English Army's destruction of the town was undiscriminating in status, age or sex. The stricken and wounded inhabitants fled to the churches, but the offended King's pride was stronger than his faith, over 8000 of the towns inhabitants where hacked to death, remorselessly butchered or burnt to death in the false sanctuary of the churches. Only a few survivors avoided the mass cull.

No sooner were the dead buried and the English flag raised, than Edward commissioned a vast force of Northumbrian workers to rebuild the Royal Burgh. Edward understood the importance to the Scottish economy of this jewel of the Border towns. Vast defensive earth mounds, with deep water moats were constructed round the town's boundaries. A declaration of intent was delivered to the Scots, Berwick on Tweed was to be the new seat of Government for Scotland. Hugh Cressingham, Edward's lackey, would be in charge of collecting taxes from the Scots.

John Comyn, the Earl of Buchan, made a number of cross border reprisals, mainly at soft targets. His failed attempt to sieze Carlisle Castle, where the young Robert the Bruce was helping to defend his English interests, was seen as agitation and served simply to aggravate Edward's fury.

The Scots people were still in deep shock, from their empathy for those slaughtered at Berwick, arose an immediate call for violent retribution. Dunbar Castle was seized by the Scots, prompting Edward to dispatch the Earl of Surrey, John de Warenne - no less than King John Balliol's father-in-law, along with 12000 battle wise veterans. On 27th April, 1296, 40000 ill managed and badly equipped men, confronted the English at Spottsmuir on the Lammermuir hills near Dunbar. The Earls of Atholl and Mar withdrew their contingents of fighting men at the last minute, due to internal indiscipline, strife and dispute. King John's ill-judgment in refusing to be in charge, or even present at the battle, was avowed to be one of the major factors contributing to the Scots army's rout by the heavy English cavalry.

After the disastrous Battle of Dunbar, no significant resistance remained, Dunbar Castle was recaptured the next day, closely followed by Roxburgh, Dumbarton and Jedburgh. Edinburgh Castle surrendered after several days of pounding by Edward's effective Siege Engines. By mid June, Edward's army had reached Stirling Castle. His reputation had preceded him, the gates where allready open when he arrived, the garrison had fled shortly before his arrival.

King John Balliol's limited options were now at an end, on the 2nd of July, 1296, King John wrote a letter from his hideaway in Kincardine, requesting clemency and offering to relinguish his throne, in return for safe passage.

The letter had Scotland's official insignia stamped on it, known inspiringly as "The Great Seal of Scotland, the insidious Edward, waiting and watching for this opportunity to entrap his opposition's leader, accepted the letter and conjured up a devious plan to bring about King John's final humiliation.

On 10th July, 1296, John Balliol's "coup de theatre" was staged at Brechin. Wearing a white night gown and carrying a broken staff, Balliol was made to make confession for his sins before the Bishop of Durham, Antony Bek. The pantomime was repeated the same day at Montrose. This time John had to beg for his pardon in front of Edward and swear him an oath of allegiance. Edward stripped John's Royal Seal from his robe, stigmatising him and his family for ever after with the description "Toom Tabard" (empty coat)

At the beginning of August,1296, John Balliol and his son were imprisoned for a spell in the Tower of London. Balliol was later allowed a house with hunting grounds in Hertford. In due course, in July, 1299, under the escort of the Bishop of Vicenza, he made his way to France. In 1302 he was allowed to return to his ancestral estate at Bailleul in Picardy, where he died in 1314. His son Edward (!), returned to Scotland in 1333, three years after King Robert the Bruce died, to sit on the Scottish throne for five years. His reign was under the direct control of his English neighbour, Edward III. Edward Balliol had inherited his father's submissive traits.

20. KIRKCALDY and RAVENSCRAIG CASTLE.

Kirkcaldy is Fife's largest town and is the constituency for the other "Brown" on our Roseline Journey. The "Brown Ones" trace their name's origins to Scotland and the name reflects their envied deeper shade of golden skin color. They are said to descend from the great transmigratory tribes known as the unconventional Gypsy folk, who in turn can trace there roots back to Egypt, where their traditions were heavily influenced and inspired by the Egyptian priests' natural philosophies

The Gypsies were avowable crystal-gazers and mastered the realm of mystery which added to the experience Their reputation was gained in times gone by for providing enlightening revelation. Thus, they were recognised and accepted for their precognitive messages and clairvoyance and had a great tradition of future fortune storytellers. The Royal bloodlines of Stewart and Sinclair were historically consorts and disciples to the Gypsies.

The "Gypsy Glens" of Traquair in Peeblesshire and Roslin in Midlothian today. still retain their name tags. They are owned by the Maxwell-Stuart family at Traquair and the Sinclair family from Roslin, respectively. Ground was duly set aside and the Gypsy families were treated with consideration and honour. These prize sites were carefully selected, directly on the Roseline so that the Gypsies could transmute and transmit their messages to the gentlemen and knights in their privy chambers. These disclosures were accepted to be from a higher source, the Divine Providence.

Kirkcaldy's Gordon Brown, with over 10 years in charge of the U.K's revenues, is the longest serving chancellor in modern history.A job that requires the skills of an archmage to interpret future budget trends and detect and control any forthcoming shortfalls. Or, at least, so we thought! The ultimate reflection of his skills and accomplishments will be in his length of time in office.

On 27th of June, 2007, Gordon Brown, the one eyed Labour M.P, reached the top of the pyramid in British political aspirations when he was sworn in as the PRIME MINISTER of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. He follows on from Tony Blair making 2 Scots born Prime Ministers in succession. Brown's father, the late John Brown, was a Church of Scotland minister in Kirkcaldy and was influential in Gordon's imminent impeling drive. P.M. Brown is a keen Raith Rovers football supporter and attended matches in the past.

Ravenscraig Castle, in the heart of Kirkcaldy has a strong affiliation with the Sinclair Clan of Rosslyn. The town takes pride in the fact by naming a great number of streets after Rosslyn Chapel and the Sinclair Barons with a district in Kirkcaldy aptly named Sinclairtown.

The building of the Castle at Ravenscraig commenced in 1460 on the orders of King James II. It was to be a second home for his wife, Mary of Gueldres. Shortly after work began on the Castle, King James II died after being blown up by his own cannon backfiring at Roxburgh Castle. The widowed Mary continued to oversee the Castle's construction until her own death three years later in 1463. Building work on the half completed castle then came to a grinding halt.

In 1469 the Sinclairs of Rosslyn acquired Ravenscraig Castle from King James III, recently married to Princess Margaret of Denmark, in exchange for the Earldom and all lands associated with Orkney. On the face of it a bit of a bum deal! William St Clair, the architect and head designer of Rosslyn Chapel, realised his masterpiece was in great danger of being abandoned because of a lack of funds. His small army of skilled Master Masons were becoming increasingly disenchanted and were entertaining the notion of dropping their tools and moving on, if no remuneration was forthcoming.

King James was consulted of the crisis and offered his act of devotion to the Chapel at Rosslyn by the exchange of the building site at Ravenscraig, in return for a major part of the crown jewels in the Sinclair family's possession, the Orkney Islands. Shortly afterwards building work was resumed at both sites and finished under the Sinclairs.

The Raven name and totem can be traced back to the Sinclairs' Scandinavian roots. In Viking mythology and folklore, the God Odin had a raven perched on each of his shoulders, representing Wisdom and Memory. The Vikings would turn to the Ravens and pray for spiritual support. The Ravens were regarded as highly intelligent and supreme scavengers that could imitate other birds calls and steal anything that came into their possession. Shiny, glittering objects would be devoured greedily. Their freedom to roam and intense, ravenous plundering of prey mimicking the qualities that made Vikings, Vikings.They even trained the ravens to search for land and to bring back a token object as evidence. A longboat's most popular emblem for its sails was the Raven.

The Sinclairs are said to trace there own lineage back to Rollo (860-932) he was the founder and first ruler of the Viking principality in what was soon to be known as Normandy. Rollo is a direct ancestor of William the Conqueror. According to report, William flew a Raven banner at the battle of Hastings. Through William, Rollo's lineage descends to the present day British Royal Family.