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Sir William Wallace, in Scottish Gaelic Uilleam Uallas, is a Scottish knight who became one of the main leaders during the Wars of Scottish Independence.
Along with Andrew Moray, Wallace defeated an English army at the Battle of Stirling Bridge in September 1297. He was appointed Guardian of Scotland and served until his defeat at the Battle of Falkirk in July 1298. In August 1305, Wallace was captured in Robroyston, near Glasgow, and handed over to King Edward I of England, who had him hanged, drawn, and quartered for high treason and crimes against English civilians.
More information: BBC Scotland
Since his death, Wallace has obtained an iconic status far beyond his homeland. He is the protagonist of Blind Harry's 15th-century epic poem The Wallace and the subject of literary works by Sir Walter Scott and Jane Porter, and of the Academy Award-winning film Braveheart.
William Wallace was a member of the lesser nobility, but little is definitely known of his family history or even his parentage. When Wallace
was growing up, King Alexander III ruled Scotland. His reign had seen a
period of peace and economic stability. On 19 March 1286, however,
Alexander died after falling from his horse.
The heir to the throne was Alexander's granddaughter, Margaret, Maid of Norway. As she was still a child and in Norway, the Scottish lords set up a government of guardians. Margaret fell ill on the voyage to Scotland and died in Orkney on 26 September 1290. The lack of a clear heir led to a period known as the Great Cause, with several families laying claim to the throne.
With Scotland
threatening to descend into civil war, King Edward I of England was
invited in by the Scottish nobility to arbitrate. Before the process
could begin, he insisted that all of the contenders recognize him as
Lord Paramount of Scotland. In early November 1292, at a great
feudal court held in the castle at Berwick-upon-Tweed, judgment was
given in favour of John Balliol having the strongest claim in law.
Edward proceeded to reverse the rulings of the Scottish Lords and even summoned King John Balliol to stand before the English court as a common plaintiff. John was a weak king, known as Toom Tabard or Empty Coat. John renounced his homage in March 1296 and by the end of the month Edward stormed Berwick-upon-Tweed, sacking the then-Scottish border town. In April, the Scots were defeated at the Battle of Dunbar in East Lothian and by July, Edward had forced John to abdicate. Edward then instructed his officers to receive formal homage from some 1,800 Scottish nobles, many of the rest being prisoners of war at that time.
On 11 September 1297, an army jointly led by Wallace and Andrew Moray won the Battle of Stirling Bridge. Although vastly outnumbered, the Scottish army routed the English army. John de Warenne, 6th Earl of Surrey's feudal army of 3,000 cavalry and 8,000 to 10,000 infantry met disaster as they crossed over to the north side of the river.
In April 1298, Edward ordered a second invasion of Scotland. Two days prior to the battle 25,781 foot soldiers were paid. More than half of them would have been Welsh. There are no clear cut sources for the presence of cavalry, but it is safe to assume that Edward had roughly 1500 horse under his command. They plundered Lothian and regained some castles, but failed to bring William Wallace to combat; the Scots shadowed the English army, intending to avoid battle until shortages of supplies and money forced Edward to withdraw, at which point the Scots would harass his retreat.
More information: History Cooperative
The
English quartermasters' failure to prepare for the expedition left
morale and food supplies low, and a resulting riot within Edward's own
army had to be put down by his cavalry. In July, while planning a return
to Edinburgh for supplies, Edward received intelligence that the Scots
were encamped nearby at Falkirk, and he moved quickly to engage them in
the pitched battle he had long hoped for.
By September 1298, Wallace resigned as Guardian of Scotland
in favour of Robert the Bruce, Earl of Carrick and future king, and
John III Comyn, Lord of Badenoch, King John Balliol's nephew.
Wallace evaded capture by the English until 5 August 1305 when John de Menteith, a Scottish knight loyal to Edward, turned Wallace over to English soldiers at Robroyston near Glasgow. The site is commemorated by a small monument in the form of a Celtic cross. Letters of safe conduct from Haakon V of Norway, Philip IV of France, and John Balliol, along with other documents, were found in Wallace's possession and delivered to Edward by John de Segrave.
Wallace
was transported to London, lodged in the house of William de Leyrer,
then taken to Westminster Hall, where he was tried for treason and for
atrocities against civilians in war, sparing neither age nor sex, monk nor nun. He was crowned with a garland of oak to suggest he was the king of outlaws. He responded to the treason charge, I could not be a traitor to Edward, for I was never his subject.
More information: Scottish History
Scotland should be nothing less than equal
with all the other nations of the world.
Sean Connery
