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Scotland
St. Andrew is the patron saint of this country, and tradition says
that the remains of the apostle were brought by Regulus, a Greek monk,
to the eastern coast of Fife in 368. (See Rule, St.)
Scotland a fief of England.
Edward I. founded his claim to the lordship of Scotland on these
four grounds:
(1) the ancient chroniclers, who state that Scotch kings had
occasionally paid homage to the English sovereigns from time
immemorial. Extracts are given from St. Alban, Marianus Scotus, Ralph
of Diceto, Roger of Hoveden, and William of Malmesbury. (2) From
charters of Scotch kings: as those of Edgar, son of Malcolm, William,
and his son Alexander II. (3) From papal rescripts: as those of
Honorius III., Gregory IX., and Clement IV. (4) By an extract from The Life and Miracles of St. John of Beverley. The tenor of this
extract is quite suited to this Dictionary of Fable: In the
reign of Adelstan the Scots invaded England and committed great
devastation. Adelstan went to drive them back, and on reaching the
Tyne, found that the Scotch had retreated. At midnight St. John of
Beverley appeared to him, and bade him cross the river at daybreak, for
he “should discomfit the foe.” Adelstan obeyed the vision, and reduced
the whole kingdom to subjection. On reaching Dunbar on his return
march, he prayed that some sign might be vouchsafed to him to satisfy
all ages that “God, by the intercession of St. John, had given him the
kingdom of Scotland.” Then struck he with his sword the baseltic rocks
near the coast, and the blade sank into the solid flint “as if it had
been butter,” cleaving it asunder for “an ell or more,” and the cleft
remains even to the present hour. Without doubt there is a fissure in
the basalt, and how could it have come there except in the way recorded
above? And
how could a sword cut three feet deep into a hard rock without
miraculous aid? And what could such a miracle have been vouchsafed for,
except to show that Adelstan was rightful lord of Scotland? And if
Adelstan was lord, of course Edward should be so likewise. Q. E. D. (Rymer: Foedera, vol. i. pt. ii. p. 771.)
Source: Dictionary of Phrase and Fable, E. Cobham Brewer, 1894 More on Scotland from Infoplease:
- Church of Scotland - Scotland, Church of Scotland, Church of, the established national church of Scotland, Presbyterian ...
- Free Church of Scotland - Scotland, Free Church of Scotland, Free Church of, the secessionist Presbyterian church established ...
- Scotland - Information on Scotland — geography, history, politics, government, economy, population statistics, culture, religion, languages, largest cities.
- Scotland - Scotland Scotland, political division of Great Britain (1991 pop. 4,957,000), 30,414 sq mi (78,772 ...
- Scotland: meaning and definitions - Scotland: Definition and Pronunciation
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