Editing Edgar, King of Scotland (section)

== Reign ==
Edgar claimed the kingship in early 1095, following the murder of his half-brother [[Duncan II]] in late 1094 by [[Máel Petair of Mearns]], a supporter of Edgar's uncle [[Donald III of Scotland|Donald III]]. His older brother [[Edmund of Scotland|Edmund]] sided with Donald, presumably in return for an [[appanage]] and acknowledgement as the heir of the aged and son-less Donald.<ref>Oram, pp. 44–45.</ref>

Edgar received limited support from [[William II of England]] as Duncan had before him; however, the English king was occupied with a revolt led by [[Robert de Mowbray]], [[Earl of Northumbria]], who appears to have had the support of Donald and Edmund. Rufus campaigned in northern England for much of 1095, and during this time Edgar gained control only of [[Lothian]]. A [[charter]] issued at [[Durham, England|Durham]] at this time names him "... son of Máel Coluim King of Scots ... possessing the whole land of Lothian and the kingship of the Scots by the gift of my lord William, king of the English, and by paternal heritage".<ref>Oram, p. 46, notes that the charter distinguishes Lothian, William Rufus's gift, from the kingship of the Scots, paternal heritage; Duncan, p. 56.</ref>

Edgar's claims had the support of his brothers [[Alexander I of Scotland|Alexander]] and [[David I of Scotland|David]] – [[Ethelred of Scotland|Ethelred]] was [[Abbot of Dunkeld]], and Edmund was divided from his siblings by his support of Donald – and his uncle [[Edgar Ætheling]] as these witnessed the charter at Durham.<ref>Oram, p.46.</ref>

William Rufus spent 1096 in [[Normandy]] which he bought from his brother [[Robert Curthose]], and it was not until 1097 that Edgar received further support which led to the defeat of Donald and Edmund in a hard-fought campaign led by Edgar Ætheling.<ref>Oram, p.47; Duncan, pp. 57–58.</ref>

Although [[Geoffrey Gaimar]] claimed that Edgar owed feudal service to William Rufus, it is clear from Rufus's agreement to pay Edgar 40 or 60 shillings a day maintenance when in attendance at the English court that this is untrue. In any event, he did attend the court on a few occasions. On 29 May 1099, for example, Edgar served as sword-bearer at the great feast to inaugurate [[Westminster Hall]]. After William Rufus's death, however, Edgar ceased to appear at the English court. He was not present at the coronation of [[Henry I of England|Henry I]].<ref>Duncan, p.58.</ref>

The inheritance of the Scottish crown was not [[primogeniture]] as Duncan II had a legitimate son and heir in the person of [[William fitz Duncan]].<ref>Duncan, p. 59.</ref> With Donald and Edmund removed, however, Edgar was uncontested king of Scots, and his reign incurred no major crises. Compared with his rise to power, Edgar's reign is obscure. One notable act was his gift of a [[camel]] (or perhaps an [[elephant]]), presumably a "souvenir" of the [[First Crusade]], to his fellow Gael [[Muirchertach Ua Briain]], [[High King of Ireland]].<ref>[[Annals of Innisfallen]], s.a. 1105.</ref>

In 1098, Edgar signed a treaty with [[Magnus Barefoot]], [[King of Norway]], setting the boundary between Scots and [[Norwegians|Norwegian claims]] in the west. By ceding claims to the [[Hebrides]] and [[Kintyre]] to Magnus, Edgar acknowledged the practical realities of the existing situation.<ref>Oram, p. 48.</ref> Edgar's religious foundations included a [[priory]] at [[Coldingham]] in 1098, associated with the [[Convent]] of [[Durham, England|Durham]]. At [[Dunfermline Abbey]] he sought support from [[Anselm of Canterbury]] with his mother's foundation from which the monks of [[Canterbury Cathedral|Canterbury]] may have been expelled by Domnall Bán.<ref>Barrow, p. 153.</ref>

Edgar died in [[Edinburgh]] on 8 January 1107 and was buried at [[Dunfermline Abbey]]. Unmarried and childless, he acknowledged his brother Alexander as his successor. Edgar's will also granted David an [[appanage]] in "[[Cumbria]]" (the lands of the former [[Kingdom of Strathclyde]]), and perhaps also in southern parts of [[Lothian]].<ref>Duncan, p. 60; Oram, p. 60.</ref> David would later be known as [[David I as Prince of the Cumbrians|Prince of the Cumbrians]].