After the successful reign of David ended in 1153 with Scotland in possession of most of northern England, Scotland was at the peak of its medieval powers. Unfortunately, the new king was a 12 year-old boy faced with numerous regional threats and an England reunited under the rule of Henry II, a king even more powerful than his Norman predecessors. Could Malcolm see off the challenges of Gaelic warlords, a Plantagenet powerhouse and a distinctly unimpressive epithet?