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The Auld Alliance - France and Scotland
Dating back to
1295, the Auld Alliance was built upon Scotland and France’s shared
interests in controlling England’s aggressive expansion plans. Drawn
up by John Balliol of Scotland and Philip IV of France, it was first
and foremost a military and diplomatic alliance, but for most
ordinary Scots it brought more obvious benefits through jobs as
mercenaries in France’s armies and of course, a steady supply of
fine French wines.
Henry V’s victory at the Battle of
Agincourt in 1415 was one of England’s greatest military
achievements, but for the French it was a disaster on such a scale
that it led to the near collapse of the country. In desperation the
French Dauphin turned to the Scots, England’s traditional enemy, for
help. As always, anxious for a fight with the Auld Enemy, more than
12,000 Scots boarded ships bound for France. And they didn’t have to
wait too long: in 1421 at the Battle of Bauge they defeated the
English army, killing the Duke of Clarence.
The Scottish army was well rewarded by
their French allies with honours, titles and as much fine food and
drink as they could consume. All this cosseting and good living
appears to have taken its toll, as at Vernuil in 1424 a Scots army
totalling 4,000 men was completely wiped out. As hired mercenaries
they could have expected no mercy and they received none: those
captured were later put to the sword.
Despite this defeat, the military
intervention of the Scots had bought valuable breathing space, and
the delay ultimately saved France from English domination.
Many Scots remained in France with some
joining Joan of Arc in her famous relief of Orleans. Others formed
the Garde Écossais, the fiercely loyal bodyguard of the French
Kings. As permitted by terms of the alliance, many of the
mercenaries eventually settled in France, although then just as now,
as immigrants they would always think of themselves as Scots first.
As previously mentioned, the Auld Alliance
wasn’t simply a military alliance, a commercial alliance also
developed which was founded on the Scots love of wine ….French wine
in particular!
It was due to this special relationship
that Scottish merchants had the privilege of selecting the finest
wines for themselves, much to the annoyance of wine drinkers south
of the border. Wine that was landed in barrels at ports like Leith
was mostly for consumption by the elite of Scottish society, with
most commoners seemingly content with drinking whisky or beer.
The Auld Alliance was however rocked by
the Reformation, and trade between Protestant Scotland and Catholic
France would obviously no longer be feasible …or would it?
It does appear that the Reformation did
significantly affect trade between the two nations with the one
exception of claret. The Scots seemingly could not exist without it.
Records indicate that Scottish merchants
were still going to Bordeaux in order to bring back their favourite
choice wine as late as 1670. Even after the Union of Parliaments
with England in 1707, claret continued to be smuggled into Scotland
thus avoiding taxes. It appears that Scots through the ages have
sought to demonstrate their affinity with their French friends by
toasting ‘the King over the water’ with a fine drop of claret.
The
original alliance that granted dual citizenship in both countries
was eventually revoked by the French government in 1903.
© HUK
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