Robert II Stuart of Scotland

Robert II Stuart was born on 02 Mar 1315/16 as the first child of Walter Stewart and Marjory Bruce. He died on 19 Apr 1390 (Age: 74). When he was 31, He married Elizabeth Mure,daughter of Adam Mure and Janet, on 22 Nov 1347 in Dispensation, Kyle, Ayrshire, Scotland. When he was 38, He married Euphemia De Ross,daughter of Hugh De Ross and Margaret Graham, after 05 Feb 1355.

Robert II Stuart was buried in Scone Abbey, Scone, Perthshire, Scotland. He was known by the title of King of Scotland.

Robert II Stuart and Moira Leitch had the following children:

1. John Stuart was born in Of Bute.

Robert II Stuart and Elizabeth Mure had the following children:

1. Robert III John. He died on 04 Apr 1406 in Rothshay Castle, DunDonald. He married Annabella Drummond in 1377.

2. Walter. He died in 1362.

3. Margaret Stuart was born about 1330. She married John MacDonald after 14 Jun 1350.

4. Alexander Stewart was born in 1352 in Dundonald, Ayrshire, , Scotland. He died in 1405

5. Robert Stuart was born in 1339. He died on 03 Sep 1419 in Stirling Castle, Stirling, Stirlingshire, Scotland. He married Margaret Graham after 09 Sep 1361. He married Muriel De Keith after 04 May 1380.

6. Isabella.

7. Marjory.

8. Jean Johanna. She died about 1350. She married John Lyon between 27 Jun 1376–02 Oct 1377. She married James Sunderlands Sandilands about 1384. She married John De Keith on about 17 January I373.
Katherine.

9. Elizabeth.

Robert II Stuart and Euphemia De Ross had the following children:

1. David Stewart was born in 1356 in Dundonald, Ayrshire, , Scotland. He died in 1390 in Perth, Perthshire, , Scotland.

2. Walter Stuart was born in Of Atholl. He died in 1437.

3. Egidia Gelis. She died after 1387.

4. Catherine.

5. Margaret.

6. Elizabeth. She died after 1380.


Robert II Stuart and Marion Cardny had the following children:

1. Thomas Stuart was born in Of Dunkeld.

2. James Stuart was born in Of Kinfauns.

3. Walter.

4. Alexander Stuart was born in Of Inverluan.

5. John Stuart was born in Of Burley.

6.John Stuart was born in Of Arntullie.

7. John Stuart was born in Of Cairdney.

The Kings and Queens of Britain (John Cannon, ‎Anne Hargreaves).


  Robert II Encyclopædia Britannica Article                born March 2, 1316 died April 19, 1390, Dundonald, Ayrshire, Scot.         Robert II, coin, 14th century; in the British Museum  Peter Clayton      also called (until 1371)  Robert the Steward , or (1357-71)  Robert Stewart, Earl of Strathearn  king of Scots from 1371, first of the Stewart (Stuart) sovereigns in Scotland. Heir presumptive for more than 50 years, he had little effect on Scottish political and military affairs when he finally acceded to the throne.      On the death (1326) of his father, Walter the Steward, in 1326, Robert became seventh hereditary steward of Scotland at age 10. From 1318 he was heir presumptive to his maternal grandfather, King Robert I the Bruce (died 1329). He lost this position in 1324 when the Bruce's son, afterward King David II, was born; but two years later the Scottish Parliament confirmed Robert the Steward as heir apparent to David.      During David's periods of exile and of imprisonment by the English, Robert the Steward was joint regent (1334-35; with John Randolph, 3rd earl of Moray) and sole regent (1338-41, 1346-57). After David had been ransomed from the English, Robert led an unsuccessful rebellion (1362-63). He succeeded in defending his own right as heir apparent against David's abortive proposal to commute his remaining ransom payments to the English by making a son of King Edward III of England heir to the Scottish throne.      On the death of David (Feb. 22, 1371), Robert succeeded to the throne, his reign proving largely an anticlimax to his career. He took no active part in the renewed war with England (from 1378 to 1388). From 1384 the kingdom was administered by Robert's eldest son, John, earl of Carrick (afterward King Robert III), and from 1388, by his next surviving son, Robert, earl of Fife (afterward 1st duke of Albany).      Robert's marriage (c. 1348) to Elizabeth Mure followed the birth of their four sons and five daughters, whose legitimation by the subsequent marriage did not give any of them an undisputed right of succession to the crown. A superior claim was asserted on behalf of Robert's two sons and two daughters by his second wife, Euphemia Ross, whom he married in 1355. Partly because of this dispute, Walter, earl of Atholl, one of Robert's sons by Euphemia, instigated the murder (1437) of James I, king of Scots, grandson of Robert and Elizabeth Mure. Robert also had at least eight illegitimate sons.
 Robert II
 Encyclopædia Britannica Article


 born March 2, 1316
 died April 19, 1390, Dundonald, Ayrshire, Scot.


 Robert II, coin, 14th century; in the British Museum
 Peter Clayton

 also called (until 1371)  Robert the Steward , or (1357-71)  Robert Stewart, Earl of Strathearn  king of Scots from 1371, first of the Stewart (Stuart) sovereigns in Scotland. Heir presumptive for more than 50 years, he had little effect on Scottish political and military affairs when he finally acceded to the throne.

 On the death (1326) of his father, Walter the Steward, in 1326, Robert became seventh hereditary steward of Scotland at age 10. From 1318 he was heir presumptive to his maternal grandfather, King Robert I the Bruce (died 1329). He lost this position in 1324 when the Bruce's son, afterward King David II, was born; but two years later the Scottish Parliament confirmed Robert the Steward as heir apparent to David.

 During David's periods of exile and of imprisonment by the English, Robert the Steward was joint regent (1334-35; with John Randolph, 3rd earl of Moray) and sole regent (1338-41, 1346-57). After David had been ransomed from the English, Robert led an unsuccessful rebellion (1362-63). He succeeded in defending his own right as heir apparent against David's abortive proposal to commute his remaining ransom payments to the English by making a son of King Edward III of England heir to the Scottish throne.

 On the death of David (Feb. 22, 1371), Robert succeeded to the throne, his reign proving largely an anticlimax to his career. He took no active part in the renewed war with England (from 1378 to 1388). From 1384 the kingdom was administered by Robert's eldest son, John, earl of Carrick (afterward King Robert III), and from 1388, by his next surviving son, Robert, earl of Fife (afterward 1st duke of Albany).

 Robert's marriage (c. 1348) to Elizabeth Mure followed the birth of their four sons and five daughters, whose legitimation by the subsequent marriage did not give any of them an undisputed right of succession to the crown. A superior claim was asserted on behalf of Robert's two sons and two daughters by his second wife, Euphemia Ross, whom he married in 1355. Partly because of this dispute, Walter, earl of Atholl, one of Robert's sons by Euphemia, instigated the murder (1437) of James I, king of Scots, grandson of Robert and Elizabeth Mure. Robert also had at least eight illegitimate sons.
 The History of Scotland - Page 90
Peter Somerset Fry, ‎Rosalind Mitchison - 1985

The succession of Robert II as the first of the Stewart kings of Scotland meant that the Scots had a Celtic king once more, for the Stewarts were descended from Breton Celts in Brittany (north-west France). Admittedly, the blood had been thinned by their marriages outside Celtic families, but the point was not lost on the Scots that a Celtic dynasty was ruling again. They could be forgiven for looking to Robert II to bring about a break with the allegiance to the kings of England. When he succeeded his uncle David II (who was actually several years his junior), Robert had already demonstrated his Scottish nationalism for over a quarter of a century. He believed fervently in the independence of Scotland. He had played an important part in persuading the parliament of 1363 to reject David II's preposterous plan to bequeath his kingdom to an English prince. Certainly, too, he had been right to withdraw his divisions in good order from the battlefield at Neville's Cross in 1346 (see p. 86), once he saw that the battle was lost and the king actually captured. If he, too, had been taken, Scotland would have had no direct heir to the throne.  There would have been a golden opportunity for Edward III of England to supply one---of English blood.
Robert inherited a kingdom still suffering grave difficulties as a result of the swingeing ransom instalments being collected for payment to England on behalf of David II. He came with years of administrative experience behind him. He was popular. We have descriptions of him: tall and well-built; gentle-mannered; full of good fun and humour; a ruler with the tenderest of hearts; said by the Scottish historian Boece to have paid for the damage done to crops in the fields around Scone when the crowds gathered to celebrate his coronation there in March 1372; affectionately known as 'Old Blearie' because his eyes were more or less permanently bloodshot.
And yet, this lovable old man had lost the fire and vigour of his youth. He was no longer the fighter he had been, and he proved quite unable to give Scotland the firm government she needed so desperately. Power passed to his son John, earl of Carrick, and to feudal lords like the Douglases (who were all-powerful in the Lowlands). In the military sense it was as well that power was in other hands because in the 1380s there were fresh troubles with England. One of Robert's earliest acts had been to reaffirm the 'Auld Alliance' with France, which provoked the English to renew border skirmishing. Neither side made significant gains. The French king, always ready to aggravate his English adversaries, decided to send an army over to Scotland to help step up the war. Led by Jean de Vienne, admiral of France, about 1000 knights and men-at-arms with plenty of armour and weapons set out for Scotland, intending to invade England with the help of their allies. But when they reached Scotland the were to be disillusioned.
The Scots had found that large-scale battles with the English were not worthwhile (though, of course, Bannock Burn was the glorious exception). They preferred guerrilla warfare and refused to be tempted into open battle. Even when the English crossed the border and burned down abbeys like Melrose and Dryburgh and destroyed shops, homes and farms, the French were astonished to see that their allies did nothing to stop them. The Scots explained that while it was a pity about the abbeys, the smaller buildings, mostly of wood, could easily be rebuilt in a few days. They were content to let their homes smoulder and allow the English to rampage around without opposition, for they expected the English to retire across the border, exhausted by chasing and trying to bring to battle a seemingly non-existent enemy. Then the Scots would descend into England, sack the towns and carry off what plunder they could find, meeting little opposition form the tired troops.
The French did not understand this kind of warfare at all. They had come to Scotland to fight battles with the English, but they could not risk major engagements without Scottish help. So they decided to go back to France, disgusted with the Scots whom they considered a rude and worthless people. Before they could leave, however, the Scots compelled them to pay for the damage they had done to Scottish fields and crops during their stay. The French were outraged. They were accustomed in their own land to trampling down crops on farms while on their way to battle and they were not expected to compensate the farmers. Why should they pay compensation in the land of their allies? The Scottish people were equally disenchanted. They had not wanted the French in Scotland in the first place. Why didn't they go home?
In 1390 Robert II died. His son Carrick succeeded. His Christian name was John but so many King Johns had come to grief in one form or another--John of England, forced to seal Magna Carta, John of France, defeated and captured at Poitiers (1356), and John Balliol, disgraced and expelled--that he decided to be known as Robert III.
Historical Dictionary of the British Monarchy - Page 405
James Panton - 2011
ROBERT II (1360-1390). Robert, the first monarch from the House of Stewart (see STUART, HOUSE OF), was heir presumptive to the Scottish throne for much of his life, but after the accession, he had limited impact on the course of political affairs. The son of Marjorie Bruce, daughter of King Robert I, and her husband, Walter Stewart (c1293-1326), he was born prematurely on 2 March 1316 after his mother fell from her horse while riding near Paisley. Some writers have suggested that the birth was caesarean, but this claim has been much contested.
For more than 50 years, Robert was king-in-waiting. From 1316 until the birth of Robert I's son, David (later David II), in 1324, he was heir presumptive to his paternal grandfather, and from 1326 until his succession to the throne in 1371, he was heir presumptive to David. He served as Guardian of Scotland (in effect, as regent) during periods when David was in exile in France from 1334 to 1341 and again while he was held prisoner by the English from 1346 to 1357. In 1346, he fought at the Battle of Neville's Cross but ran away, leaving the king exposed, when the English troops gained the upper hand, and in 1363 he joined the rebellion against David, perhaps because the king appeared willing to designate Edward III of England or one of his sons as the heir apparent to the Scottish throne, or perhaps because the monarch was planning to marry Margaret Drummond, a member of a family with which the Stewarts were feuding.
Robert eventually became king, at the age of 54, when David died unexpectely in 1371. The first decade of his reign was marked by improvements in the country's finances, partly because of a prosperous trade in wool and partly because of the termination of payments to the English crown that had been promised in return for David's release from captivity. However, differences with one son (John, earl of Carrick) over military strategies, and an unwillingness to deal with the despotic administrative policies of another (Alexander Stewart, wolf of Badenock), led to a palace revolution in 1384, with Carrick taking control of government and leaving his father as king in little more than name. Robert never regained control and died on 19 April 1390 sy Dundonald Castle, which he had built as a royal residence in Ayeshire. He was buried at Scone and was succeeded by Carrick, who ruled as Robert III(rather than John) in order to avoid associations, in only through nomenclature with the oft-disgraced King John of Scotland.
Traditional assessments of Robert II's reign have concluded that he had passed his intellectual and physical peaks by the time he became king and so was a weak monarch who failed to provide direction and leadership for a divided country. Some more modern views are less critical, however, suggesting that he adopted a pragmatic approach to war with England and that he attempted to maintain control at home through strategic marriages that linked his daughters to politically important nobles as well as by dispensing patronage in the form of payments derived from customs revenues--a low-profile form of leadership out of kilter with the age.