Documentary Analysis Of The Declaration Of Arbroath

Documentary Analysis: The Declaration of Arbroath

The Declaration of Arbroath is, by far, one of the most celebrated documents in Scottish History. Since it's rediscovery in the 19th century it has become a symbol of national pride for Scots everywhere. However, one might begin to wonder not only, why this is so, but if the declaration does in fact deserve its mythical status. In order to even begin to answer these questions it is important to examine the document's historical context, content and, most importantly, its significance.

In 1314, Robert the Bruce, King of Scotland, led his army to an unlikely victory over the English at Bannockburn. It was one of the first decisive victories for the Scots over their enemies. Unfortunately for Bruce this was not enough to end the War of Independence against a determined Edward II. (Maclean, 2005)

Scotland's domestic position improved dramatically after Bannockburn, however, due to poor relations with Pope John XXII the country did not enjoy much international support. Bruce had been excommunicated by the pope for the in church murder of John Comyn in 1306. For this reason, he was not recognized as king from the time of his inauguration until 1320 when the declaration was written. To make matters worse, England enjoyed great relations with the papacy and in 1319 Edward II was able to persuade the pope to excommunicate the whole kingdom of Scotland. In 1317, Pope John XXII attempted to negotiate peace between the two countries; however, both Edward and Robert the Bruce were unwilling to succumb to each others demands.

After twenty years of mostly uninterrupted war Bruce, his nobles and the people of Scotland were growing increasingly more desperate for an end to the fighting. By 1320 relations with the pope were in crisis and if the Scots ever wanted peace with England something had to be done. It is under these circumstances in 1320 that the Declaration of Arbroath took rise.

The declaration of Arbroath was composed by Bernard of Linton, abbot of the abbey of Arbroath, and it was sealed by eight earls and thirty-one barons. The declaration was written as a letter to Pope John XXII in hopes that he would acknowledge Robert the Bruce as lawful king of an independent and free Scotland.

The declaration begins by drawing a comparison between the people of Scotland and the Israelites who came out of Egypt; suggesting that the Scots were a chosen people who were destined by God to claim the Northern lands of Britain. Not only did this chosen people witness the uninterrupted succession of one hundred and thirteen kings, but it drove out all foreign invaders (Norwegians, English and the Picts) who threatened Scotland and its people. This opening paragraph within the declaration is a very interesting one because many of the facts are exaggerated. While Scotland may technically have borne one hundred and thirteen kings the document fails to mention that many of these kings would have sworn their allegiance to Ireland and not to Scotland. (Broun, 1998, p.11) It is also worthwhile to note that many of the kings in this list were Pictish rulers who would have reigned at the same time as another. For a line of kings that was supposed to be of Scottish "Ð'...native and royal stock", it seems to have quite a few foreigners in it. While the history of the royal kingship is embellished to some extent it does not take away from the document itself. The purpose of the declaration was to convince Pope John XXII that Scotland should be recognized as a Kingdom so that he would persuade the English to relinquish their claim to Scottish soil. Through the historical embellishments a stronger case is created for the Scots.

The next significant section of the declaration discusses the betrayal of Edward I. During a time when the Scottish kingdom had been rendered kingless, Edward I came to them as a friend under the guise of alliance and confederacy. In 1296 the king of England invaded the nation committing countless atrocities against the people of the land with no respect for anyone whether they were of female gender or innocent children.

The document goes on to name Robert the Bruce, the current king of Scots, as the nation's liberator sent by God. It declares Robert as the Scottish version of Joshua once again drawing on the parallels between the Israelites and the Scots. (Barrow, 1979, p.30) The people of Scotland will pledge unwavering allegiance to this king, Robert, so long as he upholds the principles of freedom during his reign. However, if he chooses to subject the kingdom to English rule then he shall be overthrown and another king will be chosen to replace him so that freedom may be defended. Bernard of Linton, the author of the declaration, goes so far as to say that even if one hundred people remain they will be prepared to fight for freedom with their lives because that is all a Scotsman truly cares about. Many historians see this section of the Declaration of Arbroath as the birth of contractual monarchy in Europe. The significance of this statement will be discussed in greater depth later in this paper, but for now the focus remains on document content.

The last paragraphs of the declaration consist of a plea and a warning. The Scottish people urge Pope John XXII to please see things from their side and to expel the King of England from any rights to Scottish land. If this is done the wars will finally end and they will be able to live in peace. However, if he, the pope, continues to support the English cause and fail to recognize Scotland as an independent nation the Scots will have no choice but to carry on with the war. Furthermore, all the blood and loss of souls will be on the pope's shoulders for he did not change his mind.

Now that the context and content of the declaration have been examined its significance can be investigated. The first point of significance worth examining is whether the Declaration of Arbroath did in fact serve the purpose for which it was created. As mentioned above the letter's purpose was to persuade the pope to recognize Scotland a sovereign nation for which Edward II had no claim. While it seems to have failed in convincing Pope John XXII to lift his sentence of excommunication on Scotland in 1320, it may in fact have persuaded him to intervene between the two nations perhaps paving the way for the Treaty of Northampton realized in 1328. (Maclean, 2005) It was in this treaty that the English finally renounced their claim to Scotland and that the country finally achieved independence. So although it took an extra eight years to achieve, it would seem that in the end the Declaration of Arbroath did succeed in attaining its goal.

A second reason why the Declaration of Arbroath is often thought to be significant is its