Why modern borders distort medieval Britain

The claim that Scotland's external military history consisted only of English invasions overlooks several parts of the medieval record. Norse claims involving the Northern and Western Isles complicate that picture, as do the raids England and Scotland conducted against each other even during periods of nominal alliance. York and Newcastle provide examples of fortified places facing threats from the north. Southern Scotland had strong Northumbrian and Anglo-Saxon ties, with Scots closely related to Northumbrian speech. Modern national categories therefore flatten a landscape of changing borders, languages, and kingdoms. The discussion also places Britain's navy before its overseas empire, since an island state needed ships before it could expand abroad.