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Robert
the Bruce
Although
William Wallace and Robert the Bruce were of the same period
in Scottish history, their aims were, to begin with, very different.
Wallace was driven by patriotism and hatred of the English invaders,
Bruce on the other hand, was initially motivated by his personal
ambition. The family of Bruce was Anglo-Norman and known as
de Brus. His grandfather had been one of the claimants to the
Scottish throne when Balliol was nominated by the English King,
Edward I. The Bruce had originally sworn fealty (allegiance)
to the English king too but changed sides as Wallace became
recognized as the leader of the Scottish armies by virtue of
his various successes against the English.
However
as the success of Wallace waned, Bruce once more switched his
allegiance, along with many more of the Scottish Lords who originally
joined Wallace, back to the English King. When Wallace was out
of the country and Edward I was warring in France, the way was
open for Bruce to take the initiative. His own patriotism had
been instilled in him by his first wife, the daughter of the
earl of Mar. It was the daughter of this union, through her
marriage to Walter the Steward, that became the mother of the
first great Scottish Stewart dynasty. Later relations in this
line included Charles I, and Bonnie Prince Charlie.
At
this time the English Parliament had written up a Constitution
for Scotland that had failed due to a lack of consent by the
Scots who had strong resentment toward the English and their
involvement in Scotland. In 1306 Bruce's patriotism was enhanced
when he killed his hereditary enemy, the Red Comyn during a
quarrel in the Church of the Convent of the Minorite Friars,
in Dumfries. Bloodshed on sacred ground was sacrilege, and this
act put Bruce outside the parameters of Christendom, and enraged
Edward. With the backing of a few friends and a small host gathered
round him, Bruce went to Scone where the Kings of Scotland were
crowned and became the King of Scotland. The coronation was
conducted by two Scottish Earls and three bishops. Bruce was
crowned by the Countess of Buchan in place of her brother who
held the hereditary right to crown the Kings of Scotland, since
he refused to attend in this case. The real crown having been
stolen by Edward was replaced by a golden coronella. Thus Robert
the Bruce, the greatest soldier king Scotland ever had, began
his battle against the English. He also began his fight to capture
the hearts and minds of the Scottish people and bring back pride
and independence to the beleaguered Scots.
Edward
was enraged by Bruce's actions and sent a strong force north
of the border that crushed the smaller Scottish force, aided
by treachery by some Scots. Bruce and some of his followers
took refuge in the wild mountainous areas of Athol and Argyle.
He was accompanied by Sir James Douglas, known as 'the Black
Douglas', whose clan was one of the strongest in Scotland at
the time. Edward sent many forces to find Bruce, Douglas and
the rest of the small band, but they were unable to bring them
to captivity. There were many close encounters where Bruce,
through sheer guts and determination, was able to avoid capture.
These various encounters have gone down in Scottish folklore,
but at the time they gave the Scots a focus for their hopes
of independence.
While
in hiding from the English, Bruce's lands were confiscated and
his wife and young daughter were imprisoned in English castles.
The Countess of Buchan who had dared crown Bruce was imprisoned
in an open cage made of wickerwork and fixed to the walls of
a castle in Berwick. Three of Bruce's brothers were put to death.
Many others who opposed Edward and supported Bruce or Wallace
suffered similar fates with their heads being placed on spikes
to discourage others from acting against their English overlords.
These
brutal actions undertaken by Edward, however had the opposite
effect and Scots from the Clergy, nobles, gentles and commons
rallied to Bruce's banner swearing fealty to him as their rightful
King. For about a year Bruce was a fugitive in great danger
but fate was on his side. King of England, Edward I - the 'hammer
of the Scots' - died, failing in his great purpose of life to
totally annex Scotland under English rule. Such was the hatred
of Edward that his dying wish was to have his bones carried
to Scotland the next time a rebellion broke out. Edward II was
not the same type of character as his father, though he led
an army into Scotland to obey his father's dying behest only
to be defeated in Ayrshire. Bruce continued to enhance his position
by defeating his enemies, those who had conspired with the English,
within Scotland. Philip IV of France attempted to bring about
a truce between Scotland and England but as Bruce enjoyed more
success in getting Scotland behind him, these attempts were
ignored.
Another
important step for Bruce was to get the Clergy to support him
after the incident in the church when he had slain Comwyn. This
was eventually achieved with the clergy swearing fealty to him
as their rightful King and amending their seals accordingly.
Tit for tat exchanges occurred between the English and the Scots
across the borders, with Bruce and the Scots being more successful
than their English counterparts. Various castles in Scotland
that had been taken by the English during the time of Edward
I, returned to their legitimate owners. Dumbarton, Perth, Roxburgh
and the great stronghold of Edinburgh Castle were recaptured
with daring and cunning, often with the Black Douglas acting
as leader.
The
most important stronghold of Stirling remained in the hands
of the English, so Bruce assigned the taking of it by his brother,
Edward Bruce. The English governor of the Castle suggested a
sporting challenge by offering to surrender were the Castle
not relieved before the twenty-fourth day of the following June.
This allowed time for an English army to attempt to relieve
the much besieged garrison and offered a chance for the Scots
to face the might of the English army once and for all. The
challenge was accepted out of chivalry and the stage was set
for the best known battle in Scottish history.
Duly
the English marched north with the biggest force yet to face
the smaller Scots army. As the English approached Bruce was
riding a small mount, not expecting any attack at that point.
Sir Henry de Bohun, an English knight, recognized Bruce and
seized the chance to fight him as, unlike Bruce, he was dressed
in full armor and riding a great war horse. On seeing the oncoming
attack, Bruce turned and rising in his stirrups, with one blow,
clove de Bohun's skull in two with his battle axe, which consequently
broke. The morning of the battle followed a night of revelry
for the English, so sure were they of victory, the Scots on
the other hand had spent it in"silence and devotion."
Bruce prepared the ground around the Bannock Burn, placing his
troops in strategic positions that allowed for retreat if victory
proved impossible. The army was divided into four 'schiltrons'
or circles, under Edward Bruce, Sir James Douglas, Sir Thomas
Randolph and Walter the Steward. The King himself was in charge
of the reserves. The ground between the Scots and the approaching
English was full of marshes and watercourses. The Bannock Burn
gave some protection to the Scottish front, as did two great
bogs that threatened to slow the English progress.
The
English attack commenced with a hail of arrows over the Scots.
In the hand to hand fighting the defenders had the upper hand
as the English, fighting in spaces too close, were caught up
in the submerged pits and bogs. Men and horses plunged helplessly,
and knights, hampered by heavy armor could not rise. The English
ranks, in total disorder, suffered the final blow when a group
of observers tore down the hill where they had been eagerly
watching shouting the Bruce's battle cry and making the English
think that Scots reinforcements had arrived. Edward II fled
the field leaving some intrepid English still fighting.
Bannockburn
was the greatest defeat that the English ever suffered at the
hands of the Scots and the victory provided great booty, but
more important, independence and Bruce as master of Scotland.
The succession to the throne was quickly organized by Parliament
and ensured that if there was no male heir to Bruce, that his
brother Edward and his male heirs would succeed. The only child
of Bruce was Marjorie who died in child birth, after a fall
from a horse, the surviving infant of the Princess later became
Robert II.
The
Pope intervened between the two warring countries by proclaiming
a two-year truce. Bruce ignored this as the Pope refused to
recognize him as the rightful King, and sent forces to Berwick
to retake the city that had been in the hands of the English
since Edward I had butchered its inhabitants. The English remained
oblivious to Scotland as independence and the Scots sent an
appeal to the Pope stating that, "While there exists a
hundred of us we will never submit to England. We fight not
for glory, wealth or honour, but for that liberty the loss of
which no virtuous man will survive."
Hostilities
between the countries continued, Edward II running out of supplies
returned south after ravaging the Scottish border area only
to be surprised by Bruce heading north after raids into Yorkshire.
Treachery was waiting for Edward II after he fled south to escape
Bruce; first, by the Earl of Carlisle who was in league with
the Scots and was summarily executed; and secondly, by his wife
who, with her lover, was conspiring against him. With various
problems hanging over him, Edward called for a thirteen-year
truce with the Scots, although this did not include recognizing
Bruce as the 'King of Scotland'. Bruce also got papal approval
and with the birth of his son, he was universally recognized
as King. The uneasiness between the English and Scottish neighbors
continued and Bruce was able to raise more taxes for his armies
through the Scottish Parliament. The situation remained the
same as Edward II was replaced by Edward III, though a treaty
was initially signed which attempted to bring peace. Finally
a large English army was forced to disband when faced by a smaller
Scottish army and with this and other pressures playing on the
English, overtures for peace were made. The terms were concluded
in Edinburgh the following year with Scotland being formally
recognized as an independent Kingdom, her King an independent
Sovereign, her inhabitants a free and independent people.
Robert
the Bruce saw the fulfilment of his highest hopes and he was
able to live out the last years of his life in peace at Cardross,
where he died in his fifty-fifth year. His last request was
that his heart be taken on the crusades against the infidel.
James Douglas carried out this last wish throwing it in front
of him into the fighting, and following it as he so often had
done. The Black Douglas was killed in Spain but the Bruce's
heart was returned to its native Scotland.
Bruce and the North East of Scotland
Bruce
was crowned in 1306 on the 26th of June, however his struggle
over the enemy from the south continued for many years after.
Kildrummy Castle lies some 30 miles west of Aberdeen and it
was here that Bruce sent the Queen, and his brother Nigel for
safety. Unfortunately the Queen was taken prisoner by the English.
Bruce
defeated his sworn enemies, the Comyns, at Old Meldrum, north
west of Aberdeen on Christmas eve in 1307. After this, the whole
of the north east swore fealty to him, and legend has it attacked
the garrison in the castle at Aberdeen who supported Edward I,
and put them to the sword. The Aberdeen motto 'Bon-Accord' on
the city Coat of Arms, was said to have been given to the town
by Bruce in thanks for their defeat of the English garrison. However,
the historic accuracy of this is open to speculation.
Keeping
peace in the north of Scotland depended on Aberdeenshire (now
Grampian). To this end, many strong fortifications were built
such as Kildrummy, Kindrochit in Mar (Braemar - 70 miles west
of Aberdeen and 15 miles from Balmoral, the summer home of the
present Queen) and later Hallforest (a hunting lodge built by
Bruce) outside Kintore. Bruce spent much time in Aberdeen especially
as it was the first area of Scotland to offer its support to him.
To show his thanks to the Aberdonians once his authority become
the dominant force in Scotland, heconferred a Royal Charter to
the city in 1314. The Royal Forest of Stocket also became the
property of the city and the Brig (bridge) of Balgownie was probably
built by funds from Bruce. Bruce also shaped the future of the
area by giving lands, some from the Comyns, to various families
who became the main dynasties of the area. The names that dominated
the area, such as Gordon (Gordon of Khartoum), Keith, Lesley,
Fraser, Irvine, Burnett, Hay and Johnstone, are still in evidence
today and much of the local history is in the context of these
names and families.
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