Editing James III of Scotland (section)

=== Parliament, Mar and Albany ===
James III's pursuit of unpopular and arbitrary policies saw increasing opposition in Parliament, with the most criticism directed towards the king's failure to go out on [[Justice Ayre]]s, his making money from granting remissions for serious crimes, and his frequent recourse to taxation.<ref name="auto9">Macdougall, Norman, ''James III'' (John Donald, 2009), p. 150.</ref> Complaints from Parliament that royal justice was not being actively administered by the king in person occurred throughout his reign, partly due to his practice of delegating responsibility to appointed justices and allowing Ayres to be held without his presence.<ref name="auto9"/>

James III's "low-born" favourites at court and in government began to alienate many of his bishops and nobles. The most high-profile royal favourites was [[William Scheves]], who began his career in royal service in 1471 as a court physician, before his rapid promotion as [[Archdeacon of St Andrews]], [[Dean (Christianity)|dean]] of [[Diocese of Dunkeld|Dunkeld]], and [[Coadjutor bishop|coadjutor]] of [[Archdiocese of St Andrews|St Andrews]], before being appointed as [[Archbishop of St Andrews]]. Other unpopular favourites included [[John Ramsay, 1st Lord Bothwell]] and [[Thomas (Robert) Cochrane|Robert Cochrane]]. In 1479 conflict developed between the king and his two brothers [[John Stewart, Earl of Mar (d. 1479)|John, Earl of Mar]] and [[Alexander, Duke of Albany]]. The Earl of Mar was imprisoned at [[Craigmillar Castle]] for unspecified reasons, and died there in mysterious circumstances. The reasons behind James III's assault on Albany have been difficult to understand. Albany had helped James to power in 1469, and was an effective [[Warden of the Marches]], having resisted an incursion by [[Richard III of England|Richard, Duke of Gloucester]] in 1474. It has been suggested that the most likely causes of the rift between James and Albany were the latter's opposition to the Anglo-Scottish alliance, his being responsible for serious violations of the truce, and his abuse of his position and challenge to royal authority by the ruthless enforcement of justice in the [[Scottish Marches|Marches]].<ref name="auto10">Macdougall, Norman, ''James III'' (John Donald, 2009), p. 290.</ref>

In May 1479, Albany was accused of [[treason]] for arming and provisioning [[Dunbar Castle]] against the king, assisting known rebels and deliberately causing trouble on the [[Anglo-Scottish border]], in violation of the truce between Scotland and England.<ref name="auto10"/> Albany fled by sea to [[Paris]], where in September 1479 he was welcomed by King [[Louis XI]], and received royal favour by his marriage to [[Anne de La Tour d'Auvergne]].<ref name="auto10"/>