Procedures for Dealing with Robbery in Scotland before 1400

This study will examine the law concerning robbery in medieval Scotland. As will be explained in more detail below, 'robbery' may be defined as the theft of goods with force or Yiolence. Three objectives will be pursued here. First, the article will reconstruct the legal procedures that dealt with robbery prior to 1400. One already existed in the twelfth century, and others were introduced in later periods. Secondly, it will be demonstrated that each of these new procedures became increasingly draconian, at least from the perspective of chose accused of robbery. Such individuals had at first been granted various legal protections and defences, but these safeguards were gradually omitted in the later forms of process. Thirdly, the paper will seek to explain these developments.