The COTR Podcast

thecotrpodcast

Fortnightly series with leading historians discussing the sources for the reign of Robert Bruce, king of Scots (1306-29). From the Declaration of Arbroath to letters absolving the king of murder, this podcast explains why Robert has the reputation he does, and why it matters. Image (c) The National Museum of Scotland, of Bute Mazer, on loan from the Bute Collection at Mount Stuart. Follow us on twitter @cotr2020

Episodes

  1. 30/06/2020

    E10: The charters of King Edward Balliol

    Matthew Hammond explains the oft-forgotten story of Edward Balliol, erstwhile king of Scots, whose successful assertion of his kingship prompted the 'second war of independence'. For more, see www.cotr.ac.uk/blog/scotlands-forgotten-king

    19 min

  2. 21/06/2020

    E9: Arbroath and its abbey

    Matthew Hammond tells us about Arbroath, the place associated with the 'Declaration'. Why was Arbroath important to Robert I and how did the 1320 letter come to be dated there? For more on the Arbroath historical pageant, see www.historicalpageants.ac.uk

    16 min

  3. 20/01/2020

    E8: The Absolution of Robert I, 1310

    John Reuben Davies takes us through the document containing the absolution of Robert Bruce, issued in 1310, following Robert's murder of John Comyn in 1306. For John's translation of the earliest surviving copy (in Dublin, Trinity College, MS 498) click here.

    9 min

  4. 07/01/2020

    E7: The Schøyen Chronicle

    Dauvit Broun takes us through the Schøyen Chronicle, a sixteenth-century manuscript containing a year-by-year chronicle covering 1297 and 1327, preserving new information about William Wallace and the appointment of seven (yes, you read that right) Guardians of the kingdom. You can find MS 679 here

    18 min

  5. 10/11/2019

    E6: The charters of Robert I

    Matthew Hammond introduces the corpus of Robert I's charters, explaining what they can (and can't) tell us about his reign.  NLS, Charter no. 242 (Robert confirms a quitclaim of land in Angus, saving his service, issued in 1322) Image (c) National Library of Scotland and reproduced with permission

    15 min

  6. 28/10/2019

    E5: The 1318 legislation

    Alice Taylor takes us through the earliest piece of legislation to have survived from the parliament of Scone, issued at Scone in December 1318. For a translation of the 1318 legislation, visit: http://www.rps.ac.uk/trans/1318 Image (NLS, MS 34.4.2: Registrum Vetus of Arbroath Abbey)

    15 min

  7. 14/10/2019

    E4: The Irish Remonstrance

    Steve Boardman takes us through the fascinating Irish Remonstrance, supposedly written by the king of Ulster in support of Edward Bruce's short-lived kingship of Ireland (and in defence of his campaigns in Ireland), and preserved within two histories of the Scots.

    12 min

  8. 07/10/2019

    BONUS EPISODE: The Declaration of Arbroath - Pluscarden versions

    Dauvit Broun introduces the fascinating 'Book of Pluscarden', completed in 1461, whose unknown author included TWO copies of the Declaration of Arbroath and rewrote them in different ways. What did he change and why might he have done so?  For the 'teaser' of the project's dynamic edition, which will show how the Declaration has been rewritten over time, see https://cotr.ac.uk/dynamic-arbroath/

    9 min

  9. 30/09/2019

    E3: Regiam Maiestatem

    Alice Taylor introduces us to the mysterious 'Regiam Maiestatem', the book of (supposedly) Scottish law (probably) compiled in Robert's reign which, by 1426, had become one of the main books of 'ancient law' in the kingdom. Join us to find out more about the mystery! Episode artwork: Initial 'R' from the Regiam Maiestatem in the Bute manuscript, National Library of Scotland, MS 21246, fo. 27r.

    12 min

  10. 16/09/2019

    E2: Barbour's Bruce

    Steve Boardman takes us through Barbour's Bruce, the epic poem written generations after Bruce's death, and starting point for all later discussion of who Bruce and why he did what he did. The image is from a 14th-century MS from a treatise of the Seven Vices from Genoa, now British Library, Additional MS 28841, f. 6r. Because of the spider!

    19 min

  11. 13/08/2019

    E1: The Declaration of Arbroath

    Dauvit Broun takes us through the letter written by the Scottish 'community of the realm' to Pope John XXII in 1320, explaining how, why and when it became incorporated into the later medieval history of the Scots. For the Declaration at the NRS: https://www.nrscotland.gov.uk/research/learning/features/the-declaration-of-arbroath

    15 min
  • 11 Episodes

Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
8 Ratings

About

Fortnightly series with leading historians discussing the sources for the reign of Robert Bruce, king of Scots (1306-29). From the Declaration of Arbroath to letters absolving the king of murder, this podcast explains why Robert has the reputation he does, and why it matters. Image (c) The National Museum of Scotland, of Bute Mazer, on loan from the Bute Collection at Mount Stuart. Follow us on twitter @cotr2020

Information

  • Creator
    thecotrpodcast
  • Years Active
    2019 - 2020
  • Episodes
    11
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Copyright 2019 All rights reserved.
  • Show Website
    The COTR Podcast