HOME | DD

Description
Result:
Inconclusive

The Battle of Largs (2 October 1263) was an indecisive engagement between the kingdoms of Norway and Scotland, on the Firth of Clyde near Largs, Scotland. The conflict formed part of the Norwegian expedition against Scotland in 1263, in which Haakon Haakonsson, King of Norway attempted to reassert Norwegian sovereignty over the western seaboard of Scotland. Since the beginning of the 12th century this region had lain within the Norwegian realm, ruled by magnates who recognised the overlordship of the Kings of Norway. In the mid-13th century, two Scottish kings, Alexander II and his son Alexander III, attempted to incorporate the region into their own realm. Following failed attempts to purchase the islands from the Norwegian king, the Scots launched military operations. Haakon responded to the Scottish aggression by leading a massive fleet from Norway, which reached the Hebrides in the summer of 1263. By the end of September, Haakon's fleet occupied the Firth of Clyde, and when negotiations between the kingdoms broke down, he brought the bulk of his fleet to anchor off the Cumbraes.

The battle of Largs has been romanticised by later historians as a great Scottish victory, but it only involved a small part of the Norwegian fleet. With his fleet and forces intact, Haakon planned to continue to campaign after spending the winter in Orkney, but he was unexpectedly taken ill and died there. With Haakon's death, his successor, Magnus Haakonarson, King of Norway, signed the Treaty of Perth three years after the battle, leasing Scotland's western seaboard to Alexander III in return for a yearly payment. This lease became permanent, but the Kingdom of Scotland eventually stopped paying the Norwegian crown for the islands when Norway became distracted by civil wars.

Although the Battle of Largs was apparently not considered a significant event by contemporaries, later historians transformed it into an event of international importance. Today, most scholars no longer subscribe to such a view, and instead accord it just an important place in the failed Norwegian campaign

Description
Result:
Inconclusive

The Battle of Largs (2 October 1263) was an indecisive engagement between the kingdoms of Norway and Scotland, on the Firth of Clyde near Largs, Scotland. The conflict formed part of the Norwegian expedition against Scotland in 1263, in which Haakon Haakonsson, King of Norway attempted to reassert Norwegian sovereignty over the western seaboard of Scotland. Since the beginning of the 12th century this region had lain within the Norwegian realm, ruled by magnates who recognised the overlordship of the Kings of Norway. In the mid-13th century, two Scottish kings, Alexander II and his son Alexander III, attempted to incorporate the region into their own realm. Following failed attempts to purchase the islands from the Norwegian king, the Scots launched military operations. Haakon responded to the Scottish aggression by leading a massive fleet from Norway, which reached the Hebrides in the summer of 1263. By the end of September, Haakon's fleet occupied the Firth of Clyde, and when negotiations between the kingdoms broke down, he brought the bulk of his fleet to anchor off the Cumbraes.

The battle of Largs has been romanticised by later historians as a great Scottish victory, but it only involved a small part of the Norwegian fleet. With his fleet and forces intact, Haakon planned to continue to campaign after spending the winter in Orkney, but he was unexpectedly taken ill and died there. With Haakon's death, his successor, Magnus Haakonarson, King of Norway, signed the Treaty of Perth three years after the battle, leasing Scotland's western seaboard to Alexander III in return for a yearly payment. This lease became permanent, but the Kingdom of Scotland eventually stopped paying the Norwegian crown for the islands when Norway became distracted by civil wars.

Although the Battle of Largs was apparently not considered a significant event by contemporaries, later historians transformed it into an event of international importance. Today, most scholars no longer subscribe to such a view, and instead accord it just an important place in the failed Norwegian campaign