Gilbert Foliot II. It opened on 4 April 1139, and among other matters heard an appeal from the Empress Matilda concerning her claim to the throne of England. Matilda was the daughter and only surviving legitimate child of King Henry I, but following her father's death in late 1135 her cousin Stephen, the son of Henry's sister, had seized the crown. By 1139 Matilda had gathered supporters and was contesting Stephen's right to the throne. In about 1143 Foliot wrote an account of the proceedings of the council in a letter to one of Matilda's supporters. No action was taken on her
The Thrissil and the Rois of the League of Cambrai. The subsequent campaign ended with James' death in the Scots' defeat at Flodden. The author, William Dunbar, was a prolific poet who had been employed at the Scots royal court since at least 1500. His work often recorded state events. The thistle had first appeared in Scottish iconography on the coins of King James III. His son and successor James IV continued its use as a symbol of the Scottish monarchy. A rose, coloured red and white, had been adopted as a dynastic symbol by Henry VII who had seized the throne of England in