The
Treaty of Perth, 1266, ended military conflict between
NorwayNorway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
, under King
Magnus VI of NorwayMagnus VI Lagabøte or Magnus Håkonsson , was king of Norway from 1263 until 1280.-Early life:...
, and
ScotlandScotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, under King
Alexander IIIAlexander III was King of Scots from 1249 to his death.-Life:...
, over the sovereignty of the
HebridesThe Hebrides comprise a widespread and diverse archipelago off the west coast of Scotland. There are two main groups: the Inner and Outer Hebrides. These islands have a long history of occupation dating back to the Mesolithic and the culture of the residents has been affected by the successive...
and the
Isle of ManThe Isle of Man , otherwise known simply as Mann , is a self-governing British Crown Dependency, located in the Irish Sea between the islands of Great Britain and Ireland, within the British Isles. The head of state is Queen Elizabeth II, who holds the title of Lord of Mann. The Lord of Mann is...
.
The Hebrides and the Isle of Man had become Norwegian territory during centuries when both Scotland and Norway were still forming themselves as coherent nation-states, and Norwegian control had been formalised in 1098, when
Edgar of ScotlandEdgar or Étgar mac Maíl Choluim , nicknamed Probus, "the Valiant" , was king of Alba from 1097 to 1107...
signed the islands over to
Magnus III of NorwayMagnus Barefoot or Magnus III Olafsson was King of Norway from 1093 until 1103 and King of Mann and the Isles from 1099 until 1103.-Background:...
. In Norwegian terms, the islands were the
Sudreys, meaning Southern Isles.
The Treaty was agreed three years after the
Battle of LargsThe Battle of Largs was an engagement fought between the armies of Norway and Scotland near the present-day town of Largs in North Ayrshire on the Firth of Clyde in Scotland on 2 October 1263. It was the most important military engagement of the Scottish-Norwegian War. The Norwegian forces were...
in 1263.
Michael LynchMichael or Mike Lynch may refer to:* Michael Francis Lynch, Australian arts administrator* Michael Lynch * Michael Lynch * Michael Lynch...
has compared the treaty's importance with that of the
Treaty of YorkThe Treaty of York was an agreement between Henry III of England and Alexander II of Scotland, signed at York on 25 September 1237. It detailed the future status of several feudal properties and addressed other issues between the two kings, and indirectly marked the end of Scotland's attempts to...
of 1237. The Treaty of York defined a border between Scotland and
EnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
which is almost identical to the modern border.
Largs is often claimed as a great Scottish victory, but the Norwegian forces, led by King
Håkon IVHaakon Haakonarson , also called Haakon the Old, was king of Norway from 1217 to 1263. Under his rule, medieval Norway reached its peak....
, were not fully committed to battle and the result was inconclusive. Håkon had planned to renew military action the following summer, but he died in Orkney during the winter. His successor, King Magnus VI, sued for peace and secured the Treaty of Perth.
In the treaty Norway recognised Scottish sovereignty over the disputed territories in return for a lump sum of 4,000
marksMark was a measure of weight mainly for gold and silver, commonly used throughout western Europe and often equivalent to 8 ounces. Considerable variations, however, occurred throughout the Middle Ages Mark (from a merging of three Teutonic/Germanic languages words, Latinized in 9th century...
and an annuity of 100 marks. The annuity was actually paid during subsequent decades. Scotland also confirmed Norwegian sovereignty over Shetland and Orkney.