David I's systematic foundation of monasteries and reorganisation of the Scottish church was not just religious policy -- it was political consolidation using the church as an instrument of royal power. Melrose, Jedburgh, Kelso, Holyrood and Dryburgh were all founded in his reign. The abbeys served as centres of royal administration, literacy and economic development. The close church-crown relationship in David I's reign was a key element of the Norman-style governance he was building in Scotland.
Church/Crown forces: c. 500–1,000; opposition: c. 200–500 (limited violence).
Aubrey generates in-depth historical research for any location in Britain — drawing on Domesday records, scheduled monuments, Victorian OS maps, geological data and archaeological archives to tell the full story of a place.
Research a location near Roxburghshire