Tae the maist Haly Faither and Laird in Christ, the Laird John, by heivenly providence Heidmaist Pontiff o the Haly Roman and Universal Kirk, his hummle and aefauld sons Duncan, Yerl o Fife, Thomas Randolph, Yerl o Moray, Laird o Man and o Annandale, Patrick Dunbar, Yerl o Mairch, Malise, Yerl o Strathearn, Malcolm, Yerl o Lennox, William, Yerl o Ross, Magnus, Yerl o Caitness and Orkney, and William, Yerl o Sutherland; Walter, Steward o Scotland, William Soules, Butler o Scotland, James, Laird o Douglas, Roger Mowbray, David, Laird o Brechin, David Graham, Ingram Umfraville, John Menteith, gairdian o the yerldom o Menteith, Alexander Fraser, Gilbert Hay, Constable o Scotland, Robert Keith, Marischal o Scotland, Henry Sinclair, John Graham, David Lindsay, William Oliphant, Patrick Graham, John Fenton, William Abernethy, David Wemyss, William Mushet, Fergus o Ardrussan, Eustace Maxwell, William Ramsay, William Mowat, Alan Murray, Donald Campbell, John Cameron, Reginald Cheyne, Alexander Seton, Andrew Leslie and Alexander Straiton forby the ither barons and freehauders and the hale community o the realm o Scotland send aw mainner o feal reverence, wi devout kisses o his seilie feet.

Maist Haly Faither, we ken and fae the chronicles and buiks o the auncients we lairn that amang ither faur-kent nations, oor ain, the Scots, has been blisst with braid renoun. Vaigin fae Greater Scythia by wey o the Tyrrhenian Sea and ben the Pillars o Hercules, and bidin in Spain a lang speil amang the maist rochsome fowks, in nae airts could the Scots be dingit doun by onie fowk, nae maitter hou barbarous. Fae there sin syne they cam, twal hunner year efter the fowk o Israel gaed ower the Red Sea, tae their hame in the west whaur aye they bide. The Britons first they flemit, the Pechts they malafoostert awthegither, and forby that they were aft breeshelt and left forfochen by Norwegians, Danes and English, they buir the gree wi monie victories and stentless strauchles; and, as historians o auld hae telt, themsels sin syne they aye hae haudit free o thirldom. In their kinrick there hae reigned yin hunner and thirteen kings o their ain royal bluid, thon sibness o kin unsindert by onie ootlander.

The graces and virtues o these fowk, were they no ithergates kythin clear, leam furth skyrie eneuch fae this: that even though they bidit at the yondermaist ends o the Yird, the King o kings and Laird o lairds, oor Laird Jesus Christ, efter his His Passion and Resurrection, cawed them nearhaund the first tae His maist haly Faith. Naither did he wish them tae be confirmit in thon faith by oniebodie but by the first o His Apostles, by cawin - awbeit saicont or third by gree - the maist douce Saunt Aundrae, brither o the Blisst Peter, whae ever syne He has bade tae proteck them, as their ayebidin patron.

The Maist Haly Faithers, yer predecessors, taen tent o these thochts wi an eydent mynd and bestowit upon this verra kinrick monie favours and privileges, bein as it wis in the byous keepin o the brither o Blisst Peter.

Sae it wis that oor people bidit monie years in peace and freedom unner thon protection, up tae thon time whan thon michty prince, the King o the English, cam alang. Whan oor kinrick had nae high-heid-yin, and whan oor fowk harbourit nae malice or treachery and were unyaised tae wars or invasions, kythed Edward, the faither o the yin whae reigns the day, lattin on tae be a freen and ally, but syne harassin us as an enemy.

The deeds o ill-daein, slauchter, strouth, reivin, and arson, the imprisonin o prelates, the burnin doun o moasteries, the choreyin, and the pittin tae deid o monks and nuns - forby monie ither coontless ootrages that he perpetratit agin oor people, wi nae regaird fur age or sex, religion or rank - naebodie could descrieve nor fully imagine forby that they had seen it wi their ain een.

Hooivver, fae these stentless strauchles we hae been set free by the help o Him whae, though He afflicts, yet heals and restores, and by oor maist tireless prince, King and laird, the laird Robert. Fur that his fowk and his heritage micht be deliverit oot o the hauns o oor enemies, he tholed blythely trauchle and dree, hunger and peril, like anither Maccabaeus or Joshua. Through divine providence, through the richt o kingship accordin tae oor laws and customs, which we sall uphaud tae the deith, and forby through the due consent and assent o us aw, he, tae, is oor prince and king. Tae him, as tae the man by wham salvation has been wrocht untae oor people, we are thirlt baith by his richt and by his merits, that oor freedom micht be aye uphaudit; and by him, come whit micht, we ettle tae staun.

Yet gin he should gie up whit he has stertit and ettle tae pit us or oor kinrick in thirldom tae the King o England or the English, we should at aince mak a maucht tae drive him oot as oor enemy and a cowper o his ain richt forby oors, and mak some ither chiel whae wis weel able tae fend us oor King. Fur sae lang as but ae hunner o us aye draw breith, never will we ever thole the lairdship o the English. It is, forsuith, no fur glory nor siller nor honours that we fecht, but fur freedom alane, which nae honest chiel gies ower but wi life itsel.

Syne it is, Reverend Faither and Laird, that we beseek yer Haliness wi oor maist eydent prayers and hummle herts, in yer sincerity and guidness, tae tak tent o aw this. Since Him Whase vice-regent on the yird ye are gies nae mair wecht tae Jew or Greek, Scotsman or English, we beseek ye tae luik wi the een o a faither on the trauchles and dree brocht by the English upon us and upon the Kirk o God. Micht it please ye tae admonish and threap at the King o the English, whae ocht tae be mair nor blythe wi whit belangs tae him - fur England wis aforesyne eneuch fur seiven kings or mair - tae lea us Scots in peace; we Scots whae bide in this puir wee Scotland - ayont which there is nae bidin-place at aw - an whae covet nocht but oor ain. We are maist sincerely willint tae dae oniethin fur him, haein regaird tae oor condition, that we can, tae win peace fur oorsels.

This gey concerns ye, Haly Faither, fur we see the savagery o the haithens in their birslin bangstrie agin the Christians, as the sins o Christians hae suith deservit, and the mairches o Christendom bein gart inwart ivery day; and ye maun perceive hou muckle it will tairnish yer Haliness’s memory gin (which God forfend) the Kirk drees eclipse or stushie in onie branch o it durin yer time.

Syne upsteer the Christian princes whae, fur fause reasons, lat on that they cannae gang tae the help o the Haly Laun acause o wars they hae gaun on wi their neebours. The real reason that pits them frae it is that, in makkin war on their wee neebours, they find a mair ready fordel and mair fendless resistance. But he fae Wham nocht is hidden weel kens hou blythely oor laird the King - an oorsels forby - would gang there gin the King o the English would lea us alane; and we profess and declare it tae ye as the Vicar o Christ, and tae aw Christendom forby.

But gin yer Haliness taks ower muckle tent o the haivers o the English and will no gie leal-hertit belief tae aw this, nor haud aff fae favourin them tae oor skaith, syne the slauchter o bodies, the perdition o sowels and aw the ither trauchles that will follae - inflictit by them on us and by us on them - will, we believe, siccarly lead tae the wytin o yersel by the Maist High.

Sicweys, we are and aye sall be, faur as duty bids us, bowsome sons tae ye, his Vicar; and tae Him, the Supreme King and Judge, we trust the uphaudin o oor cause, and lippen oor trauchles tae Him in aw faith that He will baulden us wi smeddum and bring oor enemies tae nocht.

Micht Oor Faither in Heiven grant tae ye in his Haly Kirk haliness an halth, forrit and ayont.

Gien at the monastery o Arbroath in Scotland on the saxth day o the month o April in the year o grace thirteen hunner and twinty and the fifteenth year o the reign o oor King aforementiont.