Constantine II, King of Scotland
Reigned from 900 to 942.
Reigned from 954 to 962. Captured the future site of Edinburgh Castle from Lothian. Lothian itself was not conquered by the Scots until 1018, when Malcolm II annexed it following his victory at Carham on the Tweed.
Reigned from 967 to 971.
Constantine III, King of Scotland
Reigned from 995 to 997.
Probably existed as a vassal ruler of Strathclyde with no real authority, according to Mike Ashley's "The Mammoth Book of British Kings & Queens." Reigned from 872, upon his father's death, to 878.
Reigned from 878 to 889.
Alexander II, King of Scotland
Knighted by King John of England in 1212. Was 16 years old when he became King of Scotland. Lent his support to the barons who forced King John to sign the Magna Carta in 1215. In 1220, Alexander built Eilean Donan Castle near Dornie in Western Ross. The castle later became the stronghold of the Clan MacKenzie and the Clan MacRae. In 1221, Alexander married the late King John's daughter, Joan. Joan was also the sister of King Henry III. Joan died in 1238, and in 1239, Alexander married Marie De Coucy, the daughter of French baron, Engeurrand De Coucy. Their son was Alexander III. In order to keep Scotland and England from going to war in 1244, it was agreed that Alexander's son, Alexander III, would marry Henry III's daughter Margaret. Alexander II died suddenly, in 1249, while planning the conquest of the Western Isles.
Alexander II, King of Scotland
Knighted by King John of England in 1212. Was 16 years old when he became King of Scotland. Lent his support to the barons who forced King John to sign the Magna Carta in 1215. In 1220, Alexander built Eilean Donan Castle near Dornie in Western Ross. The castle later became the stronghold of the Clan MacKenzie and the Clan MacRae. In 1221, Alexander married the late King John's daughter, Joan. Joan was also the sister of King Henry III. Joan died in 1238, and in 1239, Alexander married Marie De Coucy, the daughter of French baron, Engeurrand De Coucy. Their son was Alexander III. In order to keep Scotland and England from going to war in 1244, it was agreed that Alexander's son, Alexander III, would marry Henry III's daughter Margaret. Alexander II died suddenly, in 1249, while planning the conquest of the Western Isles.
Alexander III, King of Scotland
The boy-king Alexander III was crowned at Scone. He had a number of titles, inlcuding King of Alba, King of Scotia, or Scotland, and King of Scots.
On Christmas Day in 1251, Alexander was knighted by Henry III of England and, the following day, married his daughter Margaret.
In his early twenties, Alexander had set the goal for himself of completing his father's campaign to acquire the Western Isles. Like his father, he first tried negotiation, then conquest. In 1263, Haakon the Old, King of Norway, reluctant to lose his hold on the Western Isles, sent a fleet of ships to Scotland, where he was defeated by Alexander at the Battle of Largs. Haakon retired to the Orkneys, where he died. The transfer of the Western Isles was completed via diplomacy, with Norway ceding them to Scotland in the Treaty of Perth in 1266. The acquistion of the Western Isles greatly enhanced Alexander's prestige, enabling him to lead his kingdom in prosperity, order and unity.
Alexander was accidentally killed in March of 1286. He was returning to Kinghorn from a council meeting at Edinburgh Castle on a dark and stormy night, when his horse lost its footing and threw him over a cliff.
Margaret was almost 20 when she married Erik II of Norway. Erik himself was only 13 at the time (1281). Their marriage was apparently consumated in 1282, as their daughter Margaret was born in April of 1283.
Known as "The Maid of Norway" and also as "The Damsel of Scotland," Margaret was only 3 years old when her grandfather, Malcolm III died. She had been considered an heir to the throne in her grandfather's lifetime, and, upon his death, was recognized as "Lady and Queen of Scotland." Six guardians were appointed to govern the kingdom until she came of age. Edward I of England saw in this an opportunity and so proposed a marriage between Margaret and his own son, Prince Edward, who had been born in 1284. This marriage was arranged via the Treaty of Birgham in 1290, in which it was agreed that the young Queen of Scotland should marry the heir to the throne of England. It was Edward I's plan that Scotland would become subordinated to England as a result of this union, and Margaret's guardians included in the treaty provisions to maintain Scotland's independence. These proved unecessary, though, as Margaret died early, in May of 1290, during the voyage, for her wedding, from Norway to Scotland. It was thus that the House of Dunkeld came to an end and Scotland was without a monarch.
In 1300, shortly after the death of Erik II, a young German woman from Lubeck arrived in Norway, claiming to be Margaret. The "False Margaret" was put on trial, convicted as an imposter, and was burned to death in Bergen.