The Battle of the Standard 1138

 In 1138, an English army defeated an invading Scottish force at the battle of the Standard. The Scottish king at the time was David I. David was the brother of the now long dead Matilda of Scotland who had been the first wife and Queen of Henry I of England. Matilda was the mother of the Empress Matilda whom Henry I had designated as his heir to the throne of England before he died in 1135. However, Matilda's succession did not go uncontested and she was beaten to the crown by her cousin Stephen of Blois. Very quickly into King Stephen's reign however, trouble began to brew. One of the sources of that trouble was David I of Scotland. David had two motivations for invading Northern England. One, pressing the claims to the throne of England by his niece the Empress Matilda. And two, to capture territories in Northern England.

In 1137,  David made his first move against the usurping King Stephen by invading Northumberland. By January 1138, David moved deeper and deeper into English territory, causing devastation as he and his men marched on. Men, women and children were murdered in cold blood, towns and churches burnt to the ground. Children from high born families were led into slavery in scenes that were reminiscent of the Viking raids of centuries past. Although medieval chronicles were given to exaggerations at times, and sometimes massively so, it's safe to say the conduct of David and his Scottish army was particularly shocking.

King Stephen, who had problems elsewhere in his kingdom, marched northwards and arrived in Northumberland forcing David into a hasty retreat. David did not make a full retreat and instead set a trap, hoping to take the English king unawares. The plan didn't work as Stephen instead marched to Scotland, launching a revenge attack and causing much destruction to the Scottish. David was undeterred and he continued his brutal campaign. He then sent his nephew William to march further southwards, where William and his band of men raided Yorkshire, again killing innocent people regardless of sex or age, again taking young members of the nobility, mainly women, as slaves and where they looted a monastery in Craven.

Boosted by the success of William's raids further south, David continued on his violent campaign. With Stephen preoccupied with matters in the Southwest of England at this time, the English king was now reliant on his northern nobility to save the crown he had won, or stolen, less than 3 years earlier. The nobility quickly made preparations for battle although they did send a small group of men to negotiate with David, offering Northumberland to David's son Henry if the Scottish king left England immediately. The offer was rejected with contempt and battle now inevitable.

The two sides would meet NorthAllerton in Yorkshire and the Battle would be given the name of Standard from a mast that was hoisted upon a cart by the English army on which they hung a container holding the communion bread, hoping for diving inspiration. Also on the mast, the banners of Northern bishops were flown. The battle begun and the Scots quickly sustained heavy losses. And it wasn't long before many of the Scots decided to flee with David I among them. The battle had lasted little more than a few hours.

However, although the victory at the Battle of the Standard had been an emphatic one, and a victory that was received gratefully by the king of England, it was hardly a decisive success. David gathered his forces together again and forced Stephen to negotiate a peace settlement. David was allowed to keep Carlisle and Cumberland whilst his son Henry was given the earldoms of Northumberland and Huntingdon. The result of these negotiations rather sums up what would be a pathetic reign for King Stephen. He had essentially been bullied by the Scottish king. And he had only averted complete disaster because of the military capabilities of powerful northern noblemen. If the Battle of the Standard had been lost, then Stephen's kingdom may have been lost. But his problems weren't over yet. He still had Empress Matilda to deal with yet.