Scottish Declaration of INdependence

The Scottish Declaration of Independence An Analysis by E. Raymond Capt, M.A., A.I.A., F.S.A., Scot. "Scotland's most precious possession" is what many call the letter from King Robert (the Bruce) of Scotland to Pope John XXII. Known today as the "Declaration of Arbroath" of "The Scottish Declaration of Independence" it may be seen in a shallow glass case in the Register House of Edinburgh. The document is a parchment to which are attached twenty-five red and green seals -- the seals of the subscribing Scottish nobles. Bruce's letter preserves an intriguing allusion to the origin of the Scots and provides one link to the solution of one of history's most fascinating problems. What was the fate of the so-called "Ten Lost Tribes of Israel?" The Declaration not only contains a record of the origin of the Scottish people, but indicates the routh of their previous migrations. The Declaration's authority rests not on a single individual (King Rober Bruce) but is attested by the signature of twenty-five Scottish nobles. It was drawn up by Bernard de Linton, Abbot of Aberbrothick and Chancellor of Scotland, and was sent to Pope John XXII by the Scottish Estates in the Parliament assembled in the Abbey of Aberbrothick under the Presidence of King Rober the Bruce, and is dated the 6th of April, A.D. 1320.