army were one hundred and fifty knights; all the horses had breastplates and there were many steeds in complete armour, besides a numerous array of foot soldiers." The right wing of the Scottish army was commanded by Alexander Stewart of Dondonald,' the left by Sir Patrick Dunbar, and the centre by the king himself.

A.D. 3rd Oct., 1263. It appears that the Scots commenced the battle with great impetuosity. Showers of weapons were poured upon the Norwegians, who defended themselves and retired in good order. But when they approached the sea, each one hurrying faster than another, their companions on the beach imagined they were routed; some therefore leaped into the boats and pushed off from the land. Andrew Pott' leaped over two boats into a third and so escaped. Many boats went down and some men were lost.

In the Norwegian list of the slain, Haco of Steini, the

1 Alexander Stewart of Paisley had a son Alexander, who, for his good services against the Norwegians at the battle of the Largs, had a grant of the lands of Garlis and Glasserton in Wigtonshire, from Alexander III. These lands are yet possessed by that noble family. Garlis is the title of the eldest son of the Earl of Galloway.Peerage of Scotland, edition 1826, vol. i, p. 311.

2 Andrew was one of ten barons, whose duty it was to attend the person of the king. His name is frequently mentioned by Torfæus in his account of Haco's expedition, but by running away, he probably fell into disgrace, as he was not present at the king's death at Kirkwall, which the other barons were.-Flateyan and Frisian MSS., translated by Johnstone.

How widely different is the Norwegian poet's account of the battle from that given by the Norwegian historian :—

1

"The champions of Nordmaera's Lord saluted the stout harnessed barons with the rough music of battle. The train of the supporters of thrones, courageous and clad in steel, marched to the din of clashing swords.

2

"At the conflict of corselets on the blood red hill, the gleaming blade hewed the mail of the hostile tribes, ere the Scot, nimble as the hound, would leave the field to the followers of our all conquering king.

3

"Where cuirasses rung, our generous youth surrounded the illustrious giver of bracelets. The birds of prey were gluttonously filled with lifeless limbs. What great chieftain shall revenge the fate of the renowned wearer of the belt?"-Saga of Snorro Sturlson, translated by Johnstone.

king's nephew, several barons of the royal household, and three masters of the lights are mentioned, but no account is given of the total number, neither do our Scottish historians agree on this subject.' That the slaughter was great, however, on the part of the Norwegians may reasonably be inferred from the circumstance of their having, under a truce, taken five days to bury their dead.'

Steering homeward, Haco parted with Dugall Konongr and Allan, his brother, at the Calf of Mull, Magnus, king of Man, having returned previously to his kingdom.

A.D. 1264. Despairing of assistance from Norway, and not being able to resist the power of Alexander singlehanded, Magnus met that monarch at Dumfries, when on his way to Man, did homage to him there, and became bound to furnish him with five galleys of twenty oars each, and as many of twelve oars each as often as required." Alexander granting him a charter by which he held the Island from the crown of Scotland."

1 " In this battell whilk were faught at Largs, on the third day of October in the year 1263, there were slaine of the Danes and Norwegians 24000, of the Scots 5000.” -Hollinshead's Chronicles of Scotland, vol. i, p. 403. "The Danes at Largs were utterly routed with the slaughter of twenty-four thousand of their number and not above five thousand Scots."-Burton's History of Scotland, Westminster, edition 1813, p. 107. "There were slain at that battle (at Largs) sixteen thousand Norwegians and five thousand Scots."-Buchanan's History of Scotland, book vii; Anderson's Royal Genealogies, London, 1736, p. 423; Fordun, book x, cap. xv.

2 Torfæus, p. 4-47. The plains of Largs, on which this battle was fought, was lately denuded, by the hand of agriculture, of those rude obelisks, cairns, stone coffins, urns, and bones, with broken weapons buried there.-Heron's History of Scotland, vol. i, p. 333. "Upone ye northe syde of y towne ther is a pairt, called by ye vulgar ye prissin fold, quher ther wer a grate number of Danes enclosed and taken prissiners at ye battle of ye Largis."-Pont's Cunninghame Topographized, p. 17, printed from papers in the Advocates' Library, for private circulation, by my friend James Dobie, esquire, of Beith, Ayrshire, a zealous antiquary.

3 Torfæus, p. 4-47; Transactions of Soc. of Antiquaries, vol. ii, part ii, p. 386. 4 Fordun not unaptly calls them piratical vessels.—Hailes's Annals of Scotland, A.D. 1266; Heron's History of Scotland, vol. i, p. 334. According to another

account the Scotch invaded the Sudereys with an army. They also went south and obliged King Magnus to take the oaths of allegiance.-Observations on the Norwegian Expedition against Scotland, ap. Transactions of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, vol. ii, part ii, p. 403.

5 Calendars of Ancient Charters with Rolls and Schedules of Fealties done in

A.D. 1265. Magnus died in his castle of Rushen, and was buried in the abbey church of St. Mary's, which he had finished and caused to be dedicated. He died without issue.1

He was the ninth and last of the race of Goddard Crovan, who ruled in Man. This family had for nearly two hundred years been honoured with the title of king, though, in effect, they were only lieutenants to the crown of Norway. We should have drawn a veil over many parts of their history had our design been only to adorn a tale, and not to delineate with a faithful pencil the portraiture of men and manners.

the Isle of Man, London, 1772, p. 344; Fordun, ap. Goodal, vol. ii, book x, cap. xviii, p. 101.

1 Chronicles of Man, ap. Camden.

APPENDIX.-CHAPTER V.

NOTE I.-PAGE 109.

CEREMONY OF CROWNING THE KINGS OF THE ISLES,

The kings of the Isles were generally crowned in the small Isle of Finlagan, in Isla. In Martin's time (1688) some relics of their grandeur were extant. A stone of seven feet square was to be seen, in which there was a deep impression made to receive the feet of the king during the ceremony of coronation. Reginald, or Donald, was crowned standing on this stone, and swore he would continue his vassals in possession of their lands, and do exact justice to all his subjects; and then his father's sword was put into his hands. The bishop of the Isles and seven priests anointed him in the presence of all the heads of the clans that were his vassals.-Martin's Account of the Western Isles, London, 1716, p. 240. This custom of crowning the king upon a stone seems to be derived from the practice of the Scandinavians :-" Near the city of Upsal there is a large stone of the field which the inhabitants call Morasten, that hath in its circumference twelve lesser than it, fast set in the ground. In this place the senators, or councillors of the kingdom, used to meet to choose and crown the king, who stood on the centre stone."-Olaus Magnus's Hist. of the North. Nations, London, 1658, pp. 12, 105. The king was afterwards confirmed by the catholic bishop. This was engrafting christianity upon Druidism, for, before the introduction of christianity, the Arch Druid had very probably performed a similar ceremony in the same temple.

NOTE II.-PAGE 110.

GALLOWGLASSES.

Sir James Ware, in his Antiquities of Ireland, says,

"The Gallo-glasses were

armed with an iron head-piece and a coat of defence stuck with iron nails, wearing a long sword by their sides, and bearing in one hand a broad axe with an extreme keen edge, after the manner of those ancient Gauls whom Marcellinus mentions."

"That these foot soldiers, thus armed, were used by the Irish in imitation of what they saw amongst the English, after their first arrival, is pretty manifest from the name Gallo-glass, which signifies no more than an English servitor; Gall-oglach, in Irish, importing an English servant." Dr. Ledwich treats of them as follows:"The other foot soldiers of the Irish were Gallo-glasses, these seem to have taken their name from two Irish words-Gal-glac, the courageous hand." Spencer thinks the word comes from Gal-ogla, the English servitor. He says, "They were dressed in a long shirt of mail armour down to the calf of the leg, with a broad axe in their hand. O'Neil's Gallo-glasses in 1562 bore battle-axes."

It was the opinion of Abraham Lionel Jenkins who assisted Harris in his history of the county of Down, that the Gallo-glasses were originally Scots, hired by the Irish chiefs in their domestic wars. Martin, in his account of the Western Isles, informs us that every chief had an armour-bearer who was called Gallo-glach, and finally, that Moryson always distinguished them from their countrymen who invaded and conquered the Route and Glins of Ulster-the latter, he calls Scots, the former, Galloglasses.

Shakespear, in Macbeth, brings these soldiers from the Hebrides:

"The merciless Macdonel from the Western Isles,

Of Kernes and Gallo-glasses is supplied."

NOTE III.-PAGE 113.

SURRENDER OF THE KINGDOM OF THE ISLES TO THE POPE.

"To the most Holy Father and Lord Honorius, by the grace of God, supreme Pontiff, Reginald, king of the Isles, kisseth his feet, and sendeth greeting. Be it known to your holy paternity, that we, as being partakers of the benefits derived from those things that are done in the Roman church according to the admonition and exhortation of the beloved Father in God, Peter, Lord Bishop of Norwich, elect chamberlain, and apostolic legate, have given and offered in the name of the church of Rome, and yours, and of your Catholic successors, our Island of Man, which belongs to us by right of inheritance, and for which we are not bound to do service to any; and henceforward we and our heirs for ever will hold the said Island as a grant from the church of Rome, and will do homage and fealty to it; and as a recognition of dominion, in the name of a tribute we and our heirs for ever will pay annually to the church of Rome, twelve marks stg., in England, at the abbey of Furnes, of the Cistertian order, upon the Feast Purification of the B. V. Mary. And if there should not be any person there on the behalf of you and your successors, the said twelve marks shall be deposited by us and our heirs with the abbot and convent, in the name of the church of Rome. This grant and oblation the said lord legate accepts according to your will and pleasure; and after acceptance so made by him, he, the said lord