History Series / AHistoryOfScotland

** Henry V of England planned to use James I of Scotland, who had been an English captive since he was 12, like this to prevent the Scots fighting against him in the HundredYearsWar.

* HundredYearsWar: The Scots served as TheCavalry for the French just after Agincourt.

%% commented out as ZeroContextExample * RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething
* TheRomanEmpire: A (mythical) battle between the invading Romans and the Caledonians forms the backdrop of the opening scenes in episode one. Their (probably unreliable) accounts also provide the only written record of ancient Scotland.

--> As a partner in TheBritishEmpire, Scotland began the 20th century with an advanced economy and a world-beating heavy industry. But in the closing decades its sense of Britishness was in doubt and a Scottish Parliament sat in Edinburgh for the first time since 1707. Charting Scotland's darkest century, Neil Oliver discovers a country driven to self-determination through a series of economic crises so deep that her most striking export became her own disillusioned population.

** Thw Stuart and the [=MacDonald=] family, which came to shape Scotland's political and cultural destiny.

* ReasonableAuthorityFigure: The [=MacDonald=] family, the Lords of the Isles, who had kept peace in their territory for a century.

Running from November 2008 to November 2009, '''A History Of Scotland''' was an ambitious documentary made by Creator/TheBBC exploring [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin the history of Scotland]]. Presented and narrated by author, broadcaster and archaeologist Neil Oliver, the series was first broadcast on BBC One Scotland and consisted of [[BritishBrevity ten]] sixty-minute episodes spread over two series.

* TheAce: William, Earl of Douglas.

* AnAesop: About the division between Highland and Lowland Scotland in Episode Four.

* UsefulNotes/AngloSaxons
* ArchEnemy: England and Scotland are presented as being this towards each other.
** UsefulNotes/EdwardTheFirst and William Wallace.

* AsLongAsThereIsOneMan: The Declaration of Arbroath.

* {{Badass}}: William Wallace.

* BarbarianHero: Calgacus looks like this.
* BattleTrophy / CreepySouvenir: After UsefulNotes/EdwardTheFirst's treasurer Hugh Cressingham was killed at the Battle of Stirling Bridge, William Wallace has his skin turned into a sword belt.

* BloodKnight: Alexander II
** UsefulNotes/EdwardTheFirst

* DealWithTheDevil
** The Ragman Rolls and John Baliol accepting UsefulNotes/EdwardTheFirst as overlord.

* EarnYourHappyEnding: Robert the Bruce, oh so much.

* ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin: ''A History Of Scotland'' is the history of Scotland.

* ForTheEvulz: UsefulNotes/EdwardTheFirst's use of [[SiegeEngines the trebuchet "Warwolf"]]

* HairTriggerTemper: James II
* HappilyAdopted: UsefulNotes/MaryOfScotland with the French royal family.

* TheHighMiddleAges

* UsefulNotes/TheHouseOfNormandy
* UsefulNotes/TheHouseOfPlantagenet
* UsefulNotes/TheHouseOfTudor
* UsefulNotes/TheHouseOfStuart

* HornyVikings

* InMediasRes: "Project Britain"

* {{Jerkass}}: James I, at best.

* KangarooCourt: William Wallace's trial in Westminster Hall.

* KnightFever
* KnightTemplar: Widespread during the Protestant Reformation.
* TheLateMiddleAges
* TheLancer: James Douglas to Robert the Bruce.
* LargeAndInCharge: UsefulNotes/EdwardTheFirst.

** UsefulNotes/MaryOfScotland to Henry VIII

* TheLowMiddleAges: Episode One.

* UsefulNotes/MaryOfScotland

* NobleFugitive: Robert the Bruce in hiding.
** UsefulNotes/MaryOfScotland

* UsefulNotes/ThePope: Winning his approval was an important point in the GunboatDiplomacy of TheMiddleAges.

* ProperlyParanoid: James II and William, The Black Douglas towards each other.
* PrinceCharming: James IV.

* RapePillageAndBurn
* RebelLeader:
** In the First War of Independence, there were [[BadassPreacher Bishops Wishart and Lamberton]], [[MemeticBadass William Wallace]], [[FolkHero Robert the Bruce]] [[AndZoidberg and Andrew Moray]].
* [[ReasonableAuthorityFigure ReasonableAuthorityFigures]]: The [=MacDonald=] family, the Lords of the Isles, who had kept peace in their territory for a century.

* TheRevolutionWillNotBeCivilized: Frequently.

* RoyalBlood
* RoyalsWhoActuallyDoSomething

* UsefulNotes/{{Scotland}}

* TheStarscream: Giric to Aed.

* TyrantTakesTheHelm: James I.

* WarriorPrince: Many of them.
** Alexander II
** UsefulNotes/EdwardTheFirst
** Robert the Bruce
* WeAREStrugglingTogether: Frequently occurs.

* DownerBeginning: Episode one opens with the legend of Calgacus losing the Battle of Mons Graupius to the invading [[TheRomanEmpire Romans]].
* TheDreaded: [[HornyVikings The Vikings]] to [[TheDarkAges Dark Age]] Scotland.

* LeftHanging: Episode Three ends with the five year old David II becoming King and England invading once again. Episode Four picks up years later, with King David having died and TheHouseOfStuart ascended to the throne.

--> At one time, Gaelic Scotland - the people and the language - was central to the identity of Scots. But as Oliver reveals, Scotland's infamous Highland/Lowland divide was the result of a family struggle that divided the kingdom. This is the story of how the policies of the [[TheHouseOfStuart Stewart royal family]] in the 15th century led to the Gaels being perceived as rebels and outsiders.

--> Bitterly divided by politics and religion for centuries, this is the infamous story of how Scotland and England came together in 1707 to form [[UsefulNotes/{{Britain}} Great Britain]]. Over time the Union matured into one of the longest in European history, but it very nearly ended in divorce. Exploiting the Union's unpopularity, the exiled [[TheHouseOfStuart Stuarts]] staged several comebacks, selling themselves as a credible and liberal alternative to the [[TheHouseOfHanover Hanoverian regime]]. Neil Oliver reveals [[WhatCouldHaveBeen just how close they came to succeeding]].

** The feud between TheHouseOfStuart and the [=MacDonald=]'s tended to become this.

* DoubleStandard: [[LampshadeHanging Lampshaded]] by the Scots in their negotiations with Edward II when they pointed out that TheHouseOfNormandy and TheHouseOfPlantagenet were both illegitimate and the result of a foreign invasion. They used this to argue that Robert the Bruce, King of Scotland, was, as the sole living member of the House of Wessex, also the only legitimate King of England!

* EndOfAnAge: The end of Gaelic Scotland's GoldenAge with the collapse of the [=MacDonald=]'s, and the passing of the title "Lord of the Isles" to [[TheHouseOfStuart James IV]].

** TheHouseOfStuart and the [=MacDonald=] family, which came to shape Scotland's political and cultural destiny.
* FlowerMotifs: The Scottish Thistle, first adopted as an emblem by [[TheHouseOfStuart James IV]], which eventually became a symbol of the whole of Scotland.

** The feud between [[TheHouseOfStuart the Stewart Kings]] and the [=MacDonald=]'s, the Lords of the Isles.

* TheHouseOfNormandy
* TheHouseOfPlantagenet
* TheHouseOfTudor
* TheHouseOfStuart

* RagsToRoyalty: TheHouseOfStuart's rise from hostages and prisoners to being the dominant force in the British isles.

** Later happened in England, when the deaths of most of TheHouseOfTudor left Henry VIII's illegitimate daughter [[UsefulNotes/ElizabethI Elizabeth]] and UsefulNotes/MaryOfScotland as the two competing claimants to being Queen of England.

* MurderIsTheBestSolution: How James II took to dealing with William, The Black Douglas. AndItWorked.

** MaryOfScotland to Henry VIII

* MaryOfScotland

** MaryOfScotland

* SelfFulfillingProphecy: Henry VIII wanted to MaryOfScotland to marry his son in order to prevent Scotland siding with his European enemies. Only during his war to try and force this through did France side with Scotland and arrange for the marriage of Mary into the French royal family, fulfilling Henry's fears.

** Later happened in England, when the deaths of most of TheHouseOfTudor left Henry VIII's illegitimate daughter [[UsefulNotes/ElizabethI Elizabeth]] and MaryOfScotland as the two competing claimants to being Queen of England.

** Bishop Wishart of Glasgow, one of the leaders in the First War of Independence. He told EdwardTheFirst to his face that Scotland "is not held in tribute or homage to anyone".

* BattleTrophy / CreepySouvenir: After EdwardTheFirst's treasurer Hugh Cressingham was killed at the Battle of Stirling Bridge, William Wallace has his skin turned into a sword belt.

* BuyThemOff: EdwardTheFirst's tactics for keeping the peace post-1305.
* TheChessmaster: EdwardTheFirst utilised Scotland's SuccessionCrisis to give himself effective control over the country.

** The same treatment was inflicted upon Robert the Bruce's brother by EdwardTheFirst.

** Inflicted by William Wallace's army on the English at the Battle of Stirling Bridge. EdwardTheFirst returned the favour at Falirk.

* HeroKiller: EdwardTheFirst to William Wallace.

** EdwardTheFirst's solution to Scotland's rebelliousness. At Berwick, for example.

** Offered by EdwardTheFirst to John Baliol in exchange for Baliol accepting him as overlord. Then offered by Bishop Lamberton and Bishop Wishart to Robert the Bruce as a replacement for Baliol.

* ITakeOffenseToThatLastOne: William Wallace during his [[KangarooCourt trial]] at Westminster. Accused of murder, arson, destruction of property and sacrilege, he only spoke when accused of treason - pointing out that he had never sworn allegiance to EdwardTheFirst to begin with.

* TreacherousAdvisor: EdwardTheFirst was invited to mediate on Scotland's SuccessionCrisis. He ended up taking over as [[EvilOverlord overlord]].

* IHaveYourWife: EdwardTheFirst's army captured and held Robert the Bruce's wife and daughter during the early stages of his rebellion.

** EdwardTheFirst

--> Oliver charts [[TheHighMiddleAges the 13th century]] story of the two men who helped transform the Gaelic kingdom of Alba into the Scotland of today. While Alexander II forged Scotland in blood and violence, William Wallace's resistance to [[EdwardTheFirst King Edward I]] of England hammered national consciousness into the Scots.

--> Robert Bruce's 22-year struggle to secure the Scots' independence is one of the most important chapters in Scotland's story. Oliver explores the role the Scottish church played in promoting Robert Bruce, the propaganda campaigns, both at home and abroad, and how the 1320 Declaration of Arbroath persuaded UsefulNotes/ThePope to finally recognise Scotland as an independent nation.

--> Oliver describes how the ambitions of two of Scotland's Stuart monarchs were the driving force that united two ancient enemies, and set them on the road to the Great Britain we know today. While [[MaryOfScotland Mary Queen of Scots]] plotted to usurp [[TheVirginQueen Elizabeth I]] and seize the throne of England, her son James dreamt of a more radical future: a Protestant Great Britain.

--> Neil Oliver continues his journey through Scotland's past with the story of the Covenanters, whose profound religious beliefs were declared in the National Covenant of 1638. This document licensed revolution, started the CivilWar that cost [[CharlesTheFirst King Charles I]] his head, cost tens of thousands of Scots their lives and led to Britain's first war on terror.

--> At the start of the 19th century, everything familiar was swept away. People fled from the countryside into the industrial towns of Scotland's Central Belt. Rural workers became factory workers - in some of the worst conditions in Europe. This new Scotland became a seedbed of revolution. But it wasn't just force that kept the Scottish people in their place, it was fantasy. Neil Oliver reveals how Sir Walter Scott created so powerful a myth, it haunts the Scots collective imagination to this day.

** David II, who succeeded his father, Robert the Bruce, when just five years old.

** Taken to ludicrous extremes when [[MaryOfScotland Mary I]] became Queen while ''six days old'' after the death of James V.

* AnAxeToGrind: Robert the Bruce famously killed a charging English knight at the Battle of Bannockburn with one blow of his battleaxe.

** EdwardTheFirst and William Wallace.

** EdwardTheFirst wanted his son and heir to marry the very young Queen Margaret to secure England's control over Scotland. If failed when she died before this could happen.
** Henry VIII thought-up the same plan and wanted his son to marry the very young Queen MaryOfScotland to bring Scotland under English control. He had the added pressure of fearing that Scotland would serve as a willing invasion point for Anglican England's Catholic enemies on the continent.

** EdwardTheFirst

* ColdBloodedTorture: William Wallace was hung, drawn and quartered in London before execution, largely as depicted in {{Braveheart}}.

** The Ragman Rolls and John Baliol accepting EdwardTheFirst as overlord.

** MaryOfScotland in France.

* ForTheEvulz: EdwardTheFirst's use of [[SiegeEngines the trebuchet "Warwolf"]]

** William Wallace and EdwardTheFirst are presented as ultimately defining Scotland's sense of modern identity.

* HappilyAdopted: MaryOfScotland with the French royal family.
* HarmlessVillain: Edward II of England, at least when he took to the battlefield. Certainly in comparison with [[EdwardTheFirst his father]].
* HeirClubForMen: Both EdwardTheFirst and Henry VIII of England realised that they could control Scotland through marrying their sons to Scotland's young Queens (Margaret and [[MaryOfScotland Mary]] respectivley), as [[ValuesDissonance a woman's property would become her husbands property upon marriage]].

* HeroesWantRedHeads: Francois and [[MaryOfScotland Mary]]

** Happens to various Englishmen. EdwardTheFirst especially.

* LargeAndInCharge: EdwardTheFirst.

* LongRangeFighter: EdwardTheFirst's Welsh Longbowmen at the Battle of Falkirk.

* MineralMacGuffin: The Stone of Destiny, upon which Scottish monarchs were crowned. Taken by EdwardTheFirst to Westminster in 1296 as the spoils of war, it has been used in coronations right up until [[UsefulNotes/HMTheQueen Elizabeth II]] (and will be used beyond that). Stolen in 1950 and returned in 1951 ([[EpilepticTrees or a copy was returned]])[[note]]the thieves were never identified[[/note]], it finally came back to Scotland in 1996.

* PuppetKing: John Baliol. Was treated this way both by his [[EvilOverlord overlord]] EdwardTheFirst ''and'' the Lords that ended up running the country in opposition to Edward.

* TheQuisling: King John (Baliol), who accepted EdwardTheFirst as overlord in exchange for the Scottish crown. Although Baliol drew the line at being instructed to go fight in France on Edward's behalf.

* RedBaron: EdwardTheFirst, the "Hammer of the Scots".

* SiegeEngines: EdwardTheFirst built what was then the biggest trebuchet ever constructed to take Stirling Castle. He called it "Warwolf".

* SuccessionCrisis: Caused by the sudden deaths of the Alexander III and his only heir, his three-year old granddaughter Margaret. Two competing claims to the throne, from John Baliol and Robert Bruce, nearly led to CivilWar. Then up stepped EdwardTheFirst...
** Later happened in England, when the deaths of most of TheHouseOfTudor left Henry VIII's illegitimate daughter [[TheVirginQueen Elizabeth]] and MaryOfScotland as the two competing claimants to being Queen of England.

* WhatCouldHaveBeen: MaryOfScotland was nearly nearly Mary of Scotland, England AND France.

* YoungConqueror: Alexander II. After his English allies turned on him he abandoned the north of England and he embarked on a campaign to bring the largely independent Scottish Highland's under his control.

Running from November 2008 to November 2009, '''A History Of Scotland''' was an ambitiousCreator/ {{BBC}} documentary exploring [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin the history of Scotland]]. Presented and narrated by author, broadcaster and archaeologist Neil Oliver, the series was first broadcast on BBC One Scotland and consisted of [[BritishBrevity ten]] sixty-minute episodes spread over two series.

--> "I want to look beyond the legends, to find the real story of Scotland.
--> And it's every bit as thrilling."
-->-- ''Neil Oliver (Series One, Episode One)''

* AngloSaxons

* MineralMacGuffin: The Stone of Destiny, upon which Scottish monarchs were crowned. Taken by EdwardTheFirst to Westminster in 1296 as the spoils of war, it has been used in coronations right up until [[HMTheQueen Elizabeth II]] (and will be used beyond that). Stolen in 1950 and returned in 1951 ([[EpilepticTrees or a copy was returned]])[[note]]the thieves were never identified[[/note]], it finally came back to Scotland in 1996.

* CurbStompBattle: Inflicted by William Wallace's army on the English at the Battle of Stirling Bridge. EdwardTheFirst returned the favour at Falirk.

Running from November 2008 to November 2009, '''A History Of Scotland''' was an ambitious {{BBC}} documentary exploring [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin the history of Scotland]]. Presented and narrated by author, broadcaster and archaeologist Neil Oliver, the series was first broadcast on BBC One Scotland and consisted of [[BritishBrevity ten]] sixty-minute episodes spread over two series.

--> Robert Bruce's 22-year struggle to secure the Scots' independence is one of the most important chapters in Scotland's story. Oliver explores the role the Scottish church played in promoting Robert Bruce, the propaganda campaigns, both at home and abroad, and how the 1320 Declaration of Arbroath persuaded ThePope to finally recognise Scotland as an independent nation.

* HumiliationConga: Alexander II was betrayed by his allies, excommunicated by ThePope and forced to pay homage to the nine-year old Henry III of England.

* ThePope: Winning his approval was an important point in the GunboatDiplomacy of TheMiddleAges.

** This was exploited by the Scots Church when trying to win favour with ThePope in 1301; they spun him an elaborate story about how Scots are directly descended from ancient Israelites.

--> Through the winning and [[TheAmericanRevolution losing of an American empire]] and the impact of the Scottish Enlightenment, Neil Oliver reveals how in the second half of the 18th century Scotland was transformed from a poor northern backwater with a serious image problem into one of the richest nations on Earth. This was the dawn of the modern age when Scotland made its mark on the world by exporting its most valuable commodities - its people and ideas.

* YoungConqueror: Alexander II. After a failed attempt to conquer the north of England, he embarked on a campaign to bring the largely independent Scottish Highland's under his control.

* MineralMacGuffin: The Stone of Destiny, upon which Scottish monarchs were crowned. Taken by EdwardTheFirst to Westminster in 1296 as the spoils of war, it has been used in coronations right up until [[HMTheQueen Elizabeth II]] (and will be used beyond that). Stolen in 1950 and returned in 1951 ([[EpilepticTrees or a copy was returned]])[[hottip:*:the thieves were never identified]], it finally came back to Scotland in 1996.

* BloodOnTheseHands: Robert the Bruce's lifelong reaction to killing his rival, John Comyn, in a Dumfries Church.

* GuiltComplex: Robert the Bruce to a huge level because of the BloodOnTheseHands.

* HistoryMarchesOn: Mistakes in popular perceptions of Scotland's history are often pointed out.

* TheClan: Of the [[BonnieScotland Scottish type]] and the given definition.

* BonnieScotland

* WouldntHurtAChild: [[AvertedTrope Brutally averted]] by Alexander II.

* ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin: AHistoryOfScotland is the history of Scotland.