Malcolm III “Caennmor” (Longneck) of Scotland, King of Scotland
Malcolm III, b. c.1031, d. Nov. 13, 1093, founded the house of Canmore, which ruled Scotland for more than 200 years, and consolidated the power of the Scottish monarchy. He was the son of
Duncan I, who was killed (1040) by Macbeth. Malcolm lived in exile until he defeated and killed Macbeth (1057) near Lumphanan in Aberdeenshire. He succeeded to the throne in 1058 after the death of Lulach, Macbeth's stepson.
King of Strathclyde

Malcolm III (1058-93)
Malcolm Canmore ('great head' or 'chief') was the eldest son of Duncan I. After his father's death, he found refuge in England with his uncle Siward of Northumbria, where he stayed for more than 14 years. His first wife was Ingibjorg, widow of Earl Thorfinn of Orkney. She died, and in about 1070 he married Margaret, great-niece of King Edward the Confessor of England. She had sought refuge in Scotland with her brother, Edgar the Atheling (Anglo-Saxon heir to the English throne), when William I excluded him from the English succession. Margaret had a strong influence over her husband, who revered her piety and secretly had jewel-encrusted bindings made for her religious books, which he himself was unable to read, never having learned to do so. He also substituted Saxon for Gaelic as the court language. According to Margaret's biographer, she corresponded with Lanfranc, Archbishop of Canterbury, brought Benedictine monks to Dunfermline and did away with local usages in the Scottish Church. Margaret also began building what was later to be known as St Margaret's Chapel, situated on the highest part of Edinburgh Castle.

Malcolm was determined to extend his kingdom southwards and take advantage of the upheaval caused by the Norman Conquest. Making the excuse that he was supporting the claim to the English throne of his brother-in-law Edgar Atheling, Malcolm invaded England five times (he was a formidable warrior-king, having killed his two predecessor kings). Three times defeated, Malcolm was forced under the treaty of Abernethy in 1072 to become 'the man' of the English king and give up his son Duncan as a hostage. Malcolm and his eldest son were finally killed in battle at Alnwick, Northumberland on 13 November 1093, aged about 62. His wife died when they brought her the news at Edinburgh Castle. She was canonised in 1249.

After Malcolm's death, the frontier between the kingdoms of Scotland and England was clearly defined for the first time. Anglo-Norman influence in Scotland was promoted by the subsequent marriages of Malcolm's sons to English brides.
Children
Princess Matilda (Edith) "Atheling" Dunkeld of Scotland
Princess Mary of Scotland
King David I of Scotland

St. Margaret
b. ca 1045, Probably Hungary
d. 16 Nov 1093, Edinburgh Castle, Scotland, Age: 48
br. Dunfermline Abbey, Fife, Scotland Canonised 1250 and her feast day is 16th November. In 1057 she arrived at the English court of Edward the Confessor. Ten years later she was in exile after William defeated Harold at the Battle of Hastings. She fled to Scotland where she was married against her wishes to King Malcolm to whom she bore six sons and two daughters. Her unlerned and boorish husband grew daily more graceful and Christian under the queen's graceful influence. Her remains were removed to Escorial Spain and her head Douai, France.
Children
Princess Matilda (Edith) "Atheling" Dunkeld of Scotland
Princess Mary of Scotland
King David I of Scotland



193Famous Scots
- St Margaret (1046-1093)
Margaret was a descendant of King Alfred. Her father, Edward, was exiled during the reign of King Canute and Margaret was born in Hungary. Her brother had a claim to the throne of England but came to terms with William the Conqueror.

The family were headed back to the continent from Northumbria when their ship was blown off course and landed in Fife. The Scottish King, Malcolm III (known as Canmore) gave protection to the family and married Margaret. Malcolm was devoted to her and as a result she exercised considerable influence. She introduced the English language into the court in place of the Gaelic spoken by her husband. She set the agenda for the church in Scotland and as a result the Roman church made inroads into the Celtic Church in the north of the country.

Margaret was very pious, caring for the poor and orphans and damaged her own health by repeated fasting and abstinence. In 1093, as she lay on her deathbed after a long illness, she was told that her husband and eldest son had been ambushed and killed at the Battle of Alnwick, Northumbia. She thanked God for the pain this had brought her as it might cleanse her own sins.

She is buried in Dunfermline Abbey and was canonised by the Pope in 1251. St Margaret's Chapel (illustrated above) in Edinburgh Castle is the oldest surviving building there and was constructed by King David I, Margaret's son.