William the Lion, king of Scotland, grandson of David I., and brother of Malcolm IV., whom he succeeded in 1165, and whose surname is supposed to have been derived from his substitution of the lion for the dragon on the arms of Scotland; was taken captive when invading England at Alnwick Castle in 1174; sent prisoner to Falaise, in Normandy, but liberated on acknowledgment of vassalage to the English king, a claim which Richard I. surrendered on payment by the Scots of 10,000 marks to aid him in the Crusade; was the first king of Scotland to form an alliance with France; died at Stirling after a reign of 49 years (1143‒1214).
Definition taken from The Nuttall Encyclopædia, edited by the Reverend James Wood (1907)
William II. * William the Silent