Power and Patronage across the North Channel: Hugh de Lacy, St Andrews and the Anglo-Scottish Crisis of 1209

Abstract

The connections between the medieval kingdom of Scots and Irish earldom of Ulster have remained elusive. One of the most intriguing points of contact occurred in 1205×10, when the first earl of Ulster, Hugh II de Lacy (d. 1242), granted churches within his Irish lordship to the cathedral priory of St Andrews. Exploring de Lacy's links to the bishop of St Andrews, William Malveisin, and the constable of Scotland, Alan of Galloway, this article suggests that the gift to St Andrews was part of the earl's bid to secure King William the Lion, as an ally in the North Channel region. The king of Scots is connected to de Lacy's attempts to undermine King John of England, involving partners in France and northern England. It is further argued that the revelation of de Lacy's patronage of St Andrews contributed directly to the Anglo-Scottish crisis of 1209 and the humiliating terms imposed on the Scots by the treaty of Norham in the same year. What is superficially an ordinary grant of ecclesiastical benefices is on closer inspection found to be charged with political meaning, leading ultimately to Hugh de Lacy's expulsion from the earldom of Ulster by the army of King John.