Siege of Berwick (1318) Siege of Berwick (1318) The Capture of Berwick was an event in the First War of Scottish Independence which took place in April 1318. Sir James Douglas, Lord of Douglas took the town and castle of Berwick-upon-Tweed from the English, who had controlled the town since 1296. Following the decisive Scots victory at the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314, the Scots had recovered all their strongholds, with the exception of Berwick. In September 1317, King Robert Bruce attempted a siege of Berwick, which lasted until November before he withdrew. The following April, an English sergeant was bribed to allow a
Battle of Halidon Hill ultimate victor. The Treaty of Northampton in 1328 brought an end to over thirty years of intermittent warfare following the defeat of Edward II by Robert Bruce. Bruce's own death the following year opened up an opportunity for the disinherited, Balliol and the English to invade Scotland once more. In 1332 under the leadership of Edward Balliol, son of King John Balliol, and Henry Beaumont, 4th Earl of Buchan, these men invaded Scotland with the full support of Edward III, defeating the Bruce loyalists at the Battle of Dupplin Moor. Building on this success Balliol was crowned King of Scotland.