Robert II

Robert II (1316-1390) was king of Scotland from 1371 to 1390. For many years heir presumptive to David II and frequently regent of the kingdom, Robert is important primarily for his role in Scottish affairs before he came to the throne.

Robert Steward (or Stewart) was the son of Walter Steward (the third of that name in a line stretching back to Walter "the Steward," ca. 1158) and Marjorie Bruce (daughter of Robert Bruce, who had become Robert I of Scotland in 1306). As early as 1318 the Scottish Parliament declared Robert Steward heir presumptive if the male line of Bruce should die out.

Robert first came to prominence at the battle of Halidon in 1333, where he was one of the commanders of the losing Scottish side and was in consequence dispossessed of his estates by Edward Balliol, the English-supported rival to Robert Bruce's son David II (born 1324; reigned 1329-1371). Robert Steward was among the leaders of the successful resistance to the puppet regime of Balliol and, as principal regent from 1338, paved the way for David's return 3 years later.

However, no love was lost between the two men (Robert being David's nephew and heir presumptive as well as being older and having controlled the regency), and contemporaries suspected that Robert treacherously fled the field at the crucial battle of Neville's Cross in 1346, at which David was taken prisoner by the English. Robert was again regent, for 11 years, but David's release in 1357 (obtained by a promise to pay a crushing ransom to the English) put him out of power, and in 1363 Steward joined a conspiracy against the King. This was unsuccessful, however, and David's attempt to get his ransom lowered by settling the Scottish crown on the English royal family (thus effectively disinheriting Robert) sealed the enmity between the two. Parliament rejected David's proposal, and on the King's death in 1371 Robert succeeded to the throne as Robert II.

The new king seems to have played very little part in the important events of his reign, being overshadowed by two of his many sons, first the Earl of Carrick (the future Robert III) and then the Earl of Fife. Robert was uninterested in, and powerless to stop, the renewed and increasingly bitter hostilities between the English and the Scots (the latter egged on by the French) culminating in the burning of Edinburgh in 1385 and the Scottish victory at Otterburn 3 years later. It is conjectured that Robert, now an old man, suffered physical, and perhaps mental, decline; and he had been put under a guardianship, tantamount to deposition, a few months before his death in 1390. He left a troubled succession, a quarrelsome and turbulent nobility, and a tradition of weak and largely ineffective kingship, all of which were to plague his country during the subsequent century.

Further Reading

There is no work solely on Robert II or his reign. The standard histories of Scotland give background information about his times: P. Hume Brown, History of Scotland, vol. 1 (1899), and William Croft Dickinson, A New History of Scotland, vol. 1 (1961; 2d ed. 1965). □

Robert II (1316–90), steward of Scotland (1326–71), earl of Strathearn (1357–69 and 1370–1), the first Stewart king of Scots (1371–90). The birth of a son to Robert I in 1324 left Robert only as heir presumptive failing a direct heir to David II. He was several times king's lieutenant during David's minority and captivity.

Robert was 55 when he eventually succeeded the childless David. For a time he proved more capable than his earlier career would have suggested. Too old to take the field himself, he made good use of the younger nobles to exploit the weakness of English authority during the senility of Edward III and the minority of Richard II. Payment of David's ransom was stopped in 1377; and by the early 1380s most of the lands in English occupation had been recovered. By that time, however, Richard II was emerging as a determined ruler, while Robert II's age was telling. In 1384, as more open war was breaking out, a general council deprived Robert of control of justice, which was given to his son John, earl of Carrick, the future Robert III. He was in turn succeeded in 1388 by the king's second son Robert, earl of Fife, and future duke of Albany. Robert II died in April 1390, at the age of 74.

Robert II 1316–90, king of Scotland (1371–90), nephew and successor of David II . He was the first sovereign of the house of Stuart, or Stewart (see Stuart , family), which eventually succeeded to the English as well as the Scottish throne. The son of Walter the Steward and Marjory, daughter of Robert I, he was regent three times (1333–35, 1338–41, and 1346–58) for David II during the latter's exile and captivity. He thus led the resistance to Edward de Baliol and Edward III of England. Robert rebelled against his uncle in 1363 when David recognized Edward III as his successor. On David's death (1371), however, he succeeded peacefully to the throne, in accordance with the succession law adopted in 1318. Robert's first marriage took place after the birth of several of his sons, but their succession to the throne was legitimized by an act of Parliament in 1373. Through most of his reign the government was dominated by two of these sons—John, earl of Carrick (later Robert III ) and Robert Stuart , later 1st duke of Albany. The Scots in alliance with France fought off several English invasions; they invaded England without assistance in 1388 and won a great victory at Otterburn. Robert was succeeded by Robert III.

Robert II (1316–90) King of Scotland (1371–90). Robert II inherited the throne from his uncle, DAVID II, fairly late in life; as Robert the Steward, he spent most of his active years in virtual opposition to David, leading the Scottish nationalists against the invading armies of EDWARD III while David was in exile in France. Shortly after his accession Robert successfully concluded a treaty with CHARLES V (of France) that reaffirmed the Franco-Scottish alliance.