Today, The Morgans and The Grandma have just arrived to Glasgow, where they have breakfast with some special guests: Sean Connery, Annie Lennox and Amy Macdonald.
This afternoon, the family is meeting Uilleam Uallas,
an old Grandma's friend, a local hero, who has a very interesting story
of bravery and honour to explain.
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, Uallas 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, Uallas 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.
Since his death, Uallas 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.
Uilleam Uallas was a member of the lesser nobility, but little is definitely known of his family history or even his parentage. When Uallas 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 Uallas 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 Uilleam Uallas 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.
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.
Uallas evaded capture by the English until 5 August 1305 when John de Menteith, a Scottish knight loyal to Edward, turned Uallas 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.
Uallaswas 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.
I'm Uilleam Uallas,
and the rest of you will be spared.
Go back to England and tell them...
Scotland is free!
Uilleam Uallas
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