The Treaty of Birgham, also referred to as the Treaty of Salisbury, comprised two

treaties A treaty is a formal, legally binding written agreement between actors in international law. It is usually made by and between sovereign states, but can include international organizations, individuals, business entities, and other legal pers ...

in 1289 and 1290 intended to secure the

independence Independence is a condition of a person, nation, country, or state in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the stat ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to ...

after the death of Alexander III of Scotland and accession of his three-year-old granddaughter Margaret, Maid of Norway in 1286. They were negotiated and signed by the Guardians of Scotland, who were ruling in Margaret's name due to her age. The first treaty was concluded in

Salisbury Salisbury ( ) is a cathedral city in Wiltshire, England with a population of 41,820, at the confluence of the rivers Avon, Nadder and Bourne. The city is approximately from Southampton and from Bath. Salisbury is in the southeast of ...

in November 1289 and relates to the arrangements by which

Edward I of England Edward I (17/18 June 1239 – 7 July 1307), also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 1272 to 1307. Concurrently, he ruled the duchies of Aquitaine and Gascony as a va ...

would secure the transport of the Maid of Norway from her homeland to Edward's own custody until Scotland was made safe for her to take up her right as queen. The Maid's father,

Eric II of Norway Eric Magnusson (1268 – 15 July 1299) (Old Norse: ''Eiríkr Magnússon''; Norwegian: ''Eirik Magnusson'') was the King of Norway from 1280 until 1299. Background Eirik was the eldest surviving son of King Magnus the Lawmender of Norway, and hi ...

, while keen for his daughter to take up her right in Scotland, had been concerned for her safety given the political instability in Scotland. Edward I was able to broker her transfer from Norway, assuaging Eric's fears with his own personal guarantees for the infant girl's safety and also settling the matter of the outstanding dowry payments which Alexander III still owed to Eric for the marriage of his daughter, also named

Margaret Margaret is a female first name, derived via French () and Latin () from grc, μαργαρίτης () meaning "pearl". The Greek is borrowed from Persian. Margaret has been an English name since the 11th century, and remained popular through ...

, to the Norwegian king. Guaranteed by Edward I, the purpose of the treaty was to put to rest the competing claims for the Crown of Scotland by the

House of Balliol The House of Balliol (de Bailleul) was a noble family originating from the village of Bailleul in Picardy. They held estates in England, granted during the reign of King William Rufus. Through marriage, they had claims to the Throne of Scotl ...

and the

House of Bruce Clan Bruce ( gd, Brùs) is a Lowlands Scottish clan. It was a Royal House in the 14th century, producing two kings of Scotland (Robert the Bruce and David II of Scotland), and a disputed High King of Ireland, Edward Bruce. Origins The surname ...

. The second treaty was drawn up at Birgham (

Berwickshire Berwickshire ( gd, Siorrachd Bhearaig) is a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area in south-eastern Scotland, on the English border. Berwickshire County Council existed from 1890 until 1975, when the area became part of th ...

) on 18 July 1290 and ratified at

Northampton Northampton () is a market town and civil parish in the East Midlands of England, on the River Nene, north-west of London and south-east of Birmingham. The county town of Northamptonshire, Northampton is one of the largest towns in England ...

on 28 August 1290."The Scottish Wars of Independence", Foghlam Alba
/ref> Under the condition that Margaret would marry Edward's son, Scotland was to remain "separate and divided from England according to its rightful boundaries, free in itself and without subjection." The treaty specified that even though a wife's possessions should become her husband's upon marriage, in this case it would not. It stated upon Margaret and Edward's marriage that the

Church of Scotland The Church of Scotland ( sco, The Kirk o Scotland; gd, Eaglais na h-Alba) is the national church in Scotland. The Church of Scotland was principally shaped by John Knox, in the Reformation of 1560, when it split from the Catholic Church ...

and

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britain by the 3rd century and to the 6th-century Gregorian mission to ...

were to be made separate, that the owner of lands in Scotland shall not have them disinherited. It made sure that the

Parliament of England The Parliament of England was the legislature of the Kingdom of England from the 13th century until 1707 when it was replaced by the Parliament of Great Britain. Parliament evolved from the great council of bishops and peers that advised t ...

and

Parliament of Scotland The Parliament of Scotland ( sco, Pairlament o Scotland; gd, Pàrlamaid na h-Alba) was the legislature of the Kingdom of Scotland from the 13th century until 1707. The parliament evolved during the early 13th century from the king's council o ...

were to remain separate and not be held outside of their respective country. The treaty proved ineffectual, both because Margaret died en route to Scotland in 1290, and because English negotiators had included enough reservations to render the independence clauses useless. In 1291 Edward summoned the

Scottish nobles The Peerage of Scotland ( gd, Moraireachd na h-Alba, sco, Peerage o Scotland) is one of the five divisions of peerages in the United Kingdom and for those peers created by the King of Scots before 1707. Following that year's Treaty of Union, ...

to meet him at

Norham-on-Tweed Norham ( ) is a village and civil parish in Northumberland, England, It is located south-west of Berwick on the south side of the River Tweed where it is the border with Scotland. History Its ancient name was Ubbanford. Ecgred of Lindisfarne ...

and styled himself overlord of Scotland ('Lord Paramount of Scotland') and challenged claimants to the

Scottish throne The monarch of Scotland was the head of state of the Kingdom of Scotland. According to tradition, the first King of Scots was Kenneth I MacAlpin (), who founded the state in 843. Historically, the Kingdom of Scotland is thought to have gr ...

to recognise himself as a feudal superior as a condition of his agreeing to arbitrate the various claims.

References

*"Birgham, Treaty of (1290)" in ''Collins Dictionary of Scottish History'' edited by Ian Donnachie and George Hewitt (Harper Collins, 2001, ) *"Medieval Scotland, 1100 - 1560", by David Ditchburn and Alastair J. MacDonald in ''New Penguin History of Scotland'' (Penguin Books, 2001, {{ISBN, 0-14-026367-5), esp. pp. 165 et. seq. 1289 in England 1289 in Scotland 13th century in England 1290 in England 1290 in Scotland Birgham Birgham Birgham Parliament of Scotland England–Scotland relations