On the sixth of April 1320 A. D. King Robert (the Bruce) of Scotland authorized the sending of a letter to Pope John XXII which has become what many call "Scotland's most precious possession." The document is known today as the "Declaration of Arbroath" or "The Scottish Declaration of Independence." It is kept in a shallow glass case in the Register House of Edinburgh.
At the time this famous document was drawn up a two year peace was in effect between Scotland and England. The Pope had taken the side of the English because Robert Bruce had failed to show the 'proper' respect the Pope deemed was due him. Robert recognized that if peace was to be restored it would be necessary for the Pope to see the wisdom of a negotiated settlement and to use his influence upon King Edward II. "Bruce's letter preserves an intriguing allusion to the origin of the Scots and throws light on one of history's most fascinating mysteries . . . what was the fate of the so-called "Ten Lost Tribes of Israel."
"Robert Bruce and his Knights . . . date their beginnings as a nation one thousand two hundred years after the outgoing (Exodus - 1453 B.C.) of the 'people of Israel.' Thus they claim descent from the Israelites in Egypt."
Mr. Capt expands on this idea giving various accounts of the many significant signs from archaeological and historical discoveries that identify the ancient Israelites as the ancestors of the Anglo-Saxon, Celtic, Germanic and kindred peoples . . . to which the Scots are an important part. Though it contains only sixty four pages this book is a remarkable reservoir of Scottish history and interests. It includes photographs drawings and maps as well as famous poems and songs exalting Scotland its culture and its people.
