The Second War of Scottish Independence, was also known as the Anglo-Scottish War of Succession. This period lasted from 1332-1367 and it was series of military campaigns fought between the independent Kingdom of Scotland and the Kingdom of England .

 

On the 17th July 1328 David II of Scotland married Joan of England, ( The daughter of King Edward II and sister to Edward III)at Berwick-upon-Tweed. She was seven years old, he was only four. Their marriage would last for 34 years, but it was childless and apparently loveless

 

 

This Second War came from unresolved issues from the First. The Treaty of Edinburgh-Northampton by which the First War , had been settled had never been popularly accepted among the English and it had created a new group of disenfranchised nobles called the "disinherited" who felt unduly deprived by it of their rights to Scottish lands.

 

Edward Balliol was among one of these "disinherited"lords. Edward was the son of a former Scottish king John Balliol, who had been king from 1292 till 1296 and had abdicated. Edward Balliol was being backed secretly by King Edward IIIof England. Edward Balliol wanted the return of certain ancestral lands, and at the end of the year Edward III conveyed his demands to King David II' of Scotland's regent, Thomas Randolph. When Thomas Randolph delayed response, Edward III pressed the matter, repeating the request on 22 April 1332. And though Edward III did not openly give his support, Balliol and his followers began preparing for invasion of Scotland .

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After the battle of Dupplin Moor, and Edward's Balliol's victory. On 24th September, Edward Balliol was crowned the King of Scots, under which title he continued to rally supporters and to march across the country, settling in Roxburgh. There, on the 23rd November, Edward Balliol offered his loyalty to Edward III as his liege, offering also to wed King David II sister and to give King Edward III substantial lands in Scotland

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What came next was both a war of succession and civil war, as some Scottish citizens rose in defence of King David II and others cast their lot with Edward Balliol, who was soon joined in his efforts by the English king Edward III of England. David II was forced to take shelter under the "Auld Alliance" with King Philip VI of France until he reached his majority, while a series of guardians including future the Scottish king Robert Stewart fought back and forth battles with Balliol and Edward III for territory in Scotland.

 

After the Battle of Neville's Cross in 1346, King David II, was captured, taken wounded from the field. David II would remain captive to the English until 1357, where at first he resided in the Tower of London . David was later transferred to Windsor Castle in Berkshire until the return of Edward III from France. In the absence of the king, the Scottish forces rallied again behind Robert Stewart, supported by de Dunbar and Uilleam Ross, among others. Robert Stewart could be depended upon to defend Scotland from Edward III and Edward Balliol, but otherwise was more interested in securing his own power than looking after that of his king

 

With David II in his custody, King Edward III had a good opportunity to try to reach terms, Edward III requested have been that David II would hold Scotland as a fief for England, naming Edward III or one of his sons as his successor, should he die without children .This had altered somewhat by 1350 when Edward III sent Douglas of Liddelsdale, who was also in custody in the Tower of London, to see if the Scots would be willing to take different terms: to ransom David II for a fee of £40,000, the restoration of the disinherited lords, and the naming of Edward III young son John of Gaunt as David's successor, should he die without children .David himself is credited with removing Edward III name from the line of succession in Scotland, and the Scots seem to have been willing to entertain the idea as they sent Douglas of Liddesdale back for further negotiation and David II was himself permitted to briefly return to Scotland in early 1352 to try to seal the deal . The Parliament convened in March 1352 did not find the prospect of submitting to the English a fair trade for the freedom of their king. David II was sent back. Edward III tried again in 1354 with a simple demand of ransom, without settlement of the claim of England to superiority, but the Scots rejected this as well, perhaps because Robert Stewart was contemplating instead a stronger alliance with France. It was with French backing around 1355 that the Scottish forces began again to escalate against England..They launched a successful assault against Berwick, which fell under Scottish control.

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King Edward III reacted quickly. In early 1356, along with Edward Balliol, he invaded Scotland, leading to an episode that would become known as the Burnt Candlemas. After recapturing Berwick and overwintering at Roxburgh, he spent ten days at Haddington, where he sacked the town and destroyed most of the buildings. His army ravaged the whole of Lothian, burning Edinburgh and the Shrine of the Virgin at Whitekirk

 

In January 1356, Edward Balliol was veryweary and ill — had relinquished his claim in the kingdom of Scotland to Edward III in exchange for an annuity of £2000 He retired to live the rest of his life in the area of Yorkshire. King David II returned to Scotland, to try again to deal with the rivalries of his lords as well as now among his ladies, as his wife Joan evidently objected to the English mistress he had taken during his 11 years in captivity

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When the Treaty of Berwick was signed in 1355, this officially end the second Scottish Wars of Independence. Under the terms of the treaty, King David II was released by the English .he English demanded a ransom of 100,000 merks, or £67,000 sterling for his release, which was payable in annual instalments over a period of ten years, but only the first two payments were made .Taxation was increased in order to pay the ransom, and David began to embezzle from his own ransom fund, causing widespread resentment . King David II also agreed to name Edward III of England as his successor, which the Scottish Parliament Rejected .

 

David II died unexpectedly and at the height of his power in Edinburgh Castle on 22 February 1371 .Robert Stewart, whom was David II first cousin and grandson of Robert the Bruce became King. Which started a new House under the Scottish Monarchy “The House of Stuart”