The Raider (A Highland Guard Novel) Read online

  Clifford was, however, at Berwick Castle during the time of Bruce’s raids in 1311 and 1312, having been appointed Keeper of Scotland South of the Forth on April 4, 1311, which made him the perfect brother for my fictional heroine.

  There is really no chivalrous way to spin the Bruce raids in 1311 and 1312. They were basically a campaign of blackmail (sometimes with hostages) to support his kingship and fund the costly war. If the money was not paid, the English were threatened with “fire and sword.” However, with the exception of the raid in Durham in 1312, which was led by Edward Bruce and the Black Douglas, the Bruce raiders did not typically kill anyone unless they resisted. Even the English monks at Lanercost Abbey made note of this in their records of the period.

  The enormous two-thousand-pound figure for the truce between Boyd and Clifford is based on the actual amount paid by Northumberland in August 1311.

  At the time of The Raider, Bruce was laying siege to the castle at Dundee, which would eventually fall and be destroyed in May 1312. Key to understanding the reason for the raids is remembering that although Bruce had a hold on Scotland north of the Tay at this time, the south was still occupied by English garrisons. It was clearing these garrisons from Scotland’s important castles (and usually the destruction of the castle afterward) that marks the period between 1311 and 1314. But laying siege to castles and paying men beyond their hundred days of service was expensive, the royal coffers were empty, and Scotland was devastated after years of war. Without the raids, Bruce wouldn’t have been able to get a foothold in the south and evict the English who were so deeply entrenched there.

  Boyd, James Douglas, Thomas Randolph, and Edward Bruce were the king’s key lieutenants in the south and the men more often than not leading the raids in England. How you viewed them (whether hero or terrorist) was largely an issue of perspective, i.e., on which side of the border (called the Marches at the time) you lived. For example, Douglas was known as “Good Sir James” in Scotland, but in England he was reviled as “The Black Douglas.”

  Similarly, from our modern perspective there is nothing heroic in hostage taking. But in medieval times, it was basically institutionalized and an accepted part of warfare. We’ve already seen it with David, the young Earl of Atholl, in The Recruit, who was held as a hostage most of his young life by the English king as surety for his father’s good behavior. That David came to sympathize with his hostage takers was also very common and actually served a purpose as a bridge between the two sides when the hostage was returned.

  It appears uncommon for something bad to happen to the hostage even when a deal was reneged upon. David is a good example of that as well. Even when his father rebels and is eventually executed, the boy is not harmed.

  The most famous example is probably the great English knight William Marshall. He was held by King Stephen as a youth and famously avoided death when his father broke his promise and taunted the king that he still had “the hammer and anvil with which to forge still more and better sons.”

  Men—of course—were vastly preferred, but there were some examples of women serving as hostages.

  I couldn’t resist the temptation to name Rosalin after her illustrious relative. The famously beautiful “Fair Rosamund,” who captured the heart of King Henry II and became his mistress, would have been Rosalin’s great-aunt three times over.

  Finally, although I have Rosalin giving birth at Dean Castle in Kilmarnock in the epilogue, the old Balliol lands were not formally given to Boyd until after Bannockburn. Dean Castle would be built by his son, Thomas, and their descendants would be the future Earls of Kilmarnock.

  To my very own strapping lad. (Yes, Dave, stop looking around, I am talking about you.)

  And to all the readers on Facebook, thanks for your enthusiasm, encouragement, and expertise on subjects far and wide. You’ll see one of the examples here (oats, that’s all I’m saying!).

  BY MONICA MCCARTY

  The Raider

  The Hunter

  The Recruit

  The Saint

  The Viper

  The Ranger

  The Hawk

  The Chief

  Highland Warrior

  Highland Outlaw

  Highland Scoundrel

  Highlander Untamed

  Highlander Unmasked

  Highlander Unchained

  Coming soon!

  Look for the next novel in Monica McCarty’s Highland Guard series!

  THE ARROW

  Published by Ballantine Books

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