Robert the Bruce

Robert the Bruce (1274 - 1329)

Robert the Bruce was a direct ancestor of David I of Scotland and along with John Balliol, was one of the chief claimants to the Scottish throne in 1292. King Edward I of England was called upon by the Scottish nobles to arbitrate, on his condition, that the Scottish king and nobles swear an oath of allegiance to him. After they did so at Berwick-upon-Tweed, Edward chose Balliol as his puppet on the Scottish throne.

When Balliol resisted Edward’s pressure to raise an army against the French, Edward retaliated by sacking Berwick-upon-Tweed, imprisoning Balliol and bringing Scotland under English rule. Although Robert the Bruce at first sided with Edward I against his old enemy Balliol, he came to lead the Scottish patriots in revolt and eventually to independence.

The Wars of Scottish Independence waged for nearly ten years, with battles being won for both sides, with the Battle of Stirling Bridge heralding Scotland’s fighting spirit and the Battle of Falkirk utterly defeating it. During this time William Wallace rose to prominence as a great leader of the Scots and a thorn in the side of the English King Edward I, a tale well told in the film Braveheart.

Shortly after defeat at Falkirk, Wallace was captured and brutally executed. Scotland’s cause seemed all but lost, and the nobles were again locked in dispute between, Robert the Bruce and Balliol’s nephew, John Comyn. On 10th February 1306, Robert offered to meet his enemy in truce at Greyfriars Monastery in Dumfries, but killed Comyn before the church altar. Robert the Bruce was excommunicated for his crime and was left with only one alternative to gain support. He claimed the throne and was crowned king of Scots at Scone on March 25th.

Though king, Robert didn’t yet have a kingdom and his first attempts at leading his troops against the English led to disaster. After he was defeated in the Battle of Methvan in June 1306, Robert the Bruce was forced to go into hiding, while his family fled to their stronghold at Kildrummy Castle. But in 1307 the English captured Kildrummy and Robert’s wife and daughter were locked away in York, while his brothers were executed.

To Robert, hiding in a cave on the Western Isles, all must have seemed lost. According to legend, Robert sat despairingly watching a spider weave its web, as the wind howled and blew the web apart, the spider continued to rebuild, inspiring Robert that ‘if at first ye don’t succeed, try, try again’.

Robert’s luck changed when Edward I died to be succeeded by his hapless son Edward II. Robert launched a guerrilla war in throughout Scotland. By March 1313, the Bruce had captured most of Scotland’s castles including Edinburgh . But one main castle remained, the strategically important stronghold at Stirling.

A truce had been made that if Stirling wasn’t relived by midsummer 1314 it would be surrendered to the Scots. Edward II marched north with a grand feudal army, the last of its kind to march into battle from England in the Middle Ages. Outnumbering the Scottish 3 to 1 the English marched to Bannockburn a boggy peat land a mile or so outside the town of Stirling.

On June 23rd as the English vanguard approached, Sir Henry de Bohun, the English champion, saw Robert the Bruce and charged him. Robert mounted on a light horse, lightly armed with just a battle axe stood his ground as the English knight in full armour and lance charged towards him. With the Englishman bearing down on him Robert quickly turned aside, stood high in his stirrups and brought his battle axe crashing down on de Bohun’s head with such ferocity that it split the knight’s helmet and skull, as well as the Bruce’s axe.

This legendary feat was to foretell the Battle of Bannockburn, where a stronger and better-equipped English army were to be defeated by a mix of their own rashness and the agility and fierce tactics of the Scottish. The English were forced into the wetlands of Bannockburn, where their greater numbers and armour meant they were less manoeuvrable. The English were further confounded by their blundering King who was eventually forced to flee the field. The English were routed; Scotland had at last won their greatest battle against their greatest enemy. The Battle of Bannockburn is remembered at the Bannockburn Heritage Centre built on the site of the battle.

But Robert had to wait a further ten years to gain full independence, following the Declaration of Arbroath in 1320, which set out Scotland’s status as an independent state, recognised by the Pope.