It is the year 1296 and King Edward I of England, commonly called “Longshanks”, has invaded Scotland due to John Balliol's, the Scottish King's treachery. Not only did John Balliol refused to support the English military action in France, he even signed a treaty with King Philippe IV which promised mutual help against any English invasions.
Edward I, a military genius of its day, recognized the need to deal with the Scots swiftly before they became a nuisance. He seized Berwick-upon-Tweed, Scotland's most important trading port quickly with the help of Scottish lords still loyal to his cause and dealing a crushing defeat to the Scottish united independence army in the Battle of Dunbar. It was a one-sided campaign as the Scottish cavalry were no threat to their English counterparts and therefore routed immediately. The English Longbow units with their superior range softened the ranks of the Scottish light armored infantry, creating huge gaps for the following onslaught of heavy cavalry. The Scots were slaughtered like a flock of sheep. The casualties on the Scots side were far more than ten thousand while the British Army have lost less than four hundred men. John Comyn and the Earls of Buchan, Atholl, Ross and Menteith together with about 130 other lords, knights and esquires were taken prisoner and sent into captivity in England to be ransomed at a later date.
King John Balliol surrendered to the English Crown shortly after at Kincardine Castle. He confessed to rebellion and prayed for forgiveness abandoning his treaty with the French. A very difficult time for the people of Scotland followed as they were unmercifully taxed by Edward I as punishment.
However Edward I was also a very fair ruler to those loyal to him. He did grant huge areas of land in Scotland to his supporters along with the traditional privileges. Longshanks' long-term plan was to breed out the population of Scotland so he introduced a new law called "Jus Primae Noctis". The ruling lords have the right to bed any newly married Scottish woman.
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