For many years there had been great scarcity in both countries, a natural consequence of predatory warfare. 'This year,' says the Lanercost chronicler, 'there was both in England and in Scotland a mortality of men from famine and pestilence unheard of in our times; and in the northern parts of England a quarter of corn sold at 40s.' Walsingham says the distress was worst in the north, where, he heard, 'the people ate dogs and horses and other unclean animals.' In Ireland it was still worse; in these wretched years of intestine broils, it is said 'men were wont to devour one another.' Sir Edward Bruce had now been fighting there for a full year. With his Irish allies, he had raided the English adherents in Ulster; occupied Carrickfergus after a great fight, but failed to take the castle; captured and burnt Dundalk (June 29, 1315); defeated the joint forces of the Earl of Ulster and the King of Connaught at Connor (September 10); besieged Carrickfergus in vain (till December 6); marched down into Kildare, defeating first Sir Roger de Mortimer at Kenlis, and afterwards (January 26) Sir Edmund le Butler, the justiciar, at Arscott; and returned to the siege of Carrickfergus, which was starved into surrender some time in summer. On May 2, 1316, Sir Edward was crowned King of Ireland. In autumn of 1315, and again in the following March, Randolph had returned to Scotland for reinforcements. On the latter occasion he brought Sir Edward's urgent request that King Robert would come in person, for then the conquest would be assured. In autumn, 1316, accordingly, Bruce appointed Douglas and the Steward Guardians in his absence, and sailed from Loch Ryan to Carrickfergus. His operations during the winter in Ulster do not appear to have advanced the cause materially, and in spring he set out on an adventurous expedition throughout Ireland. Barbour's account, though considerably detailed, can be treated only with the greatest reserve. King Edward led the van, King Robert brought up the rear. The enemy lay in wait at Moyra Pass, 'the Gap of the North,' the immemorial route of invaders north and south, some three miles north of Dundalk. Edward, says Barbour, rode past the ambush. When the rear came up, two archers appeared in view, immediately suggesting the nearness of an enemy; and Bruce held back his men. Sir Colin Campbell, son of Sir Nigel and nephew of Bruce, pressed forward and killed one of them, but the other shot his horse; whereupon Bruce, in great wrath, felled Sir Colin with his truncheon for disobedience, which 'might be cause of discomfiting.' Emerging at length from the gorge, they found Richard de Clare with 40,000 men drawn up on the plain, whom they presently defeated: in all the Irish war 'so hard a fighting was not seen.' When Edward heard of it, 'might no man see a wrother man.' But only a cloistered ecclesiastic can be held responsible for such military procedure.