Considered to be one of the greatest of Scotland's medieval kings, David
I--the youngest son of King Malcolm III and St. Margaret--was never
expected to succeed to the throne. During the reigns of his elder
brothers, David carved out a career for himself as an Anglo-Norman
nobleman at the court of his brother-in-law, Henry I of England. With
Henry's backing and the support of his elder sister, Queen Matilda,
David secured a good marriage and a rich inheritance, with estates
spread from Normandy to northern England, as well as a principality of
his own in southern Scotland. On succeeding to the Scottish throne in
1124, he faced a long and bitter struggle against rivals for his crown,
but ruthlessly imposed his authority on the kingdom and won the respect
of his Gaelic lords. As king, David began the modernization of his
kingdom along European lines. Many of the greatest families of medieval
Scotland-- such as the Bruces, Comyns, and Stewarts--were brought in as
colonists by David, and monastic communities--such as Dunfermline,
Kelso, Melrose, and Holyrood--were founded by him. Reform at home was
coupled by aggressive expansion abroad, with David extending his power
across the whole of mainland Scotland, into the Western Isles, and
finally into northern England. Skillfully playing off Stephen and
Matilda--the two rivals for the English throne after 1135--David secured
control of Northumberland, Cumbria, and even large parts of Yorkshire
and Lancaster, tipping the balance of power in Britain firmly in favor
of the Scots. It was a rich legacy to pass on to his heirs, but stripped
of David's leadership, Scotland's dominant position swiftly crumbled
away.
