The turn of the 14th century was a time of change and turmoil in Scotland. The English king Edward I, the "Hammer of the Scots", had reduced Scotland to a vassal state. In 1297 William Wallace had defeated the English army at the battle of Stirling Bridge, and became Guardian of Scotland, but not for long. The Battle of Falkirk on 22nd July saw Wallace defeated by Edwards army, and he fled underground, after resigning the position of Guardian so recently bestowed upon him. Two men then became joint Guardians - John 'the Red' Comyn and Robert the Bruce - until 1300 when the place of Robert the Bruce was taken by Ingram de Umfraville. John Balliol, the uncle of John 'the Red' Comyn, was technically king of Scotland from 1292-1296, but had surrendered Scotland to Edward I in 1292, and with the royal arms stripped from his coat, he became known as 'Toom Tabard' or 'Empty Coat'. He went into exile, and it was also this man who William Wallace was attempting to restore as King of Scotland. So Robert the Bruce, after the death of his father in 1304, found himself in competition for the Scottish throne with the Comyn/Balliol family.

Wallace evaded capture for years, until finally in 1305 he was betrayed and captured as he slept by a well in Robroyston, near Glasgow. He was tried for treason and brutally executed on the 24th August 1305, after seven years in hiding. After the trial, he was taken to Smithfield, and subsequently hung, drawn and quartered, then beheaded. As a warning to all others, the ruthless King Edward I sent the body parts of William Wallace to Berwick, Stirling, Perth and Newcastle to be put on display. His head was impaled on a spike on London Bridge. William Wallace inspired many men in his time, with his courage and brilliant military tactics. Robert the Bruce was inspired by him as well. In 1302 Bruce had submitted to the English in exchange for a pardon, partly because at that time, and with Wallace on the run, he could not see the point in fighting for an independent Scotland if it meant his rivals, the Balliol/Comyn family, would be on the throne. However, following the execution of Wallace, everything changed. Bruce knew that if he was to realise his claim on the Scottish throne, he had to eliminate his biggest problem in order to clear the path for him to rule. The problem was John 'the Red' Comyn, the nephew of the exiled Balliol. Comyn was powerful, he had influence and many powerful allies and friends. Bruce knew he had come to a cross-roads. He must come to an agreement with Comyn, in the shape of a proposal which outlined Bruce's plan to become king. Under Bruce's plan, Bruce would give his lands to Comyn, in return for his support in making Bruce king. A meeting was set for 10th of February 1306, at Greyfriars, a Franciscan church in Dumfries. Comyn agreed to come and listen to Bruce's proposal.

The two men met at the alter of the church and when Comyn heard Bruce's proposal, he was enraged. So enraged in fact, that a heated argument was ignited between himself and Bruce. This filled Bruce with anger, and in the heat of the moment he reached for his dagger and thrust it into John Comyn, Killing him on the spot. Sir Robert Comyn, John's uncle, rushed to defend his nephew and was killed by Bruce's followers. With that killing, Robert the Bruce had placed himself in a vulnerable position, and changed the history of Scotland. In his temper he had killed a well-respected noble, and worse still, killed him in a church. He knew that he was now under threat from Comyn's kinsmen, as well as being an outlaw for the murder. He was also excommunicated from the church by Pope Clement V for the murder of Comyn. Nevertheless, on the 25th of March, 1306, a mere six weeks after the killing, Robert the Bruce was crowned king of Scotland in Scone palace. Things were only to turn from bad to worse for King Robert the Bruce, including being outlawed by Edward I, hunted under Edwards command by the brother-in-law of Comyn, Aymer de Valence, defeated by him in a battle at Methven, and nearly being captured at Tyndrum by more of Comyn's kinsmen.

He sent his family to Kildrummy Castle in Aberdeenshire for safety, but by September, his wife and daughter were in prison, his brother Neil had been hung and beheaded, and his sister Mary and Countess Isabella put in cages. Bruce then travelled from Kintyre to the island of Rathlin, just off the Irish coast. His movements are unknown after that until his return to Scotland in February 1307. It was during this uncertain time that tales of Bruce were abound, including many that were innaccurate or just fanciful talk of a leader by inspired followers. These stories included the famous observation by Bruce of a spider while hiding in a cave. Bruce was said to have watched the spider persistently attempt to bridge a gap at the mouth of the cave. The spider failed in its first two attempts, but was successful on the third. This, allegedly, inspired Bruce, and no doubt many of his supporters. After returning to Scotland in February 1307, Bruce was aware of his position and the strength of the English army, coupled with the followers and kinsmen of Comyn. He knew that the only way to succeed was to conduct a guerilla war, with the intention of frightening and demoralizing the forces allied against him. However, several important victories followed for Bruce. He defeated John Mowbray's forces in Glen Trool, Galloway, by ambush. More important still, he defeated Aymer de Valence at Loudon Hill near Kilmarnock, even though he was greatly outnumbered, and then the Earl of Gloucester shortly afterwards. It must have seemed as though things just couldn't have gone better for Bruce, but they were about to take a significant turn. The news that Bruce, as well as many others, had been hoping for finally came to pass - King Edward I - the 'Hammer of the Scots' - was dead. At the start of 1314, Edward II of England was losing his grip on Scotland. He did not match up to his father in presence or military knowledge, and one by one the Scottish castles held by the English began to fall. After taking Edinburgh Castle, Perth and Roxburgh, Bruce turned his eyes to Stirling. This significant Scottish stronghold was garrisoned by the English under the command of Sir Philip Mowbray. To make matters more difficult, the brother of King Robert, Edward the Bruce, had agreed that if the English had not relieved Stirling Castle by midsummers day, it was to be surrendered. King Robert realised that this was a good opportunity for the English to mass an army in one place. He knew that he must defend the Castle in a head to head battle, or the English would gain a strong foothold right in the centre of Scotland. He could not allow the castle to be relieved. The two men, Edward II and King Robert the Bruce had a lot to lose. If Edward could not even relieve one castle, he would be looked on as a failure. If Bruce could not demonstrate his skill and leadership in the face of an English advance, especially with such a significant place as Stirling, then there was a real risk of losing his reputation as a couragous leader. So Bruce began in March of 1314 three months of intense training and drilling of his men. Bruce knew the lie of the land, and also knew this was going to be his greatest asset. He booby-trapped the small Bannock Burn (burn is the Scottish word for stream) with spikes to gouge the feet of advancing cavalry. He also knew that if he could force the English horse onto the boggy ground of the Carse, they would be of little use to the English king. Aware that the English army was likely to greatly outnumber his own, Robert had to use every natural advantage of the land that he could. He had 5,500 well-trained men, and there were 2,000 'small folk' - untrained volunteers. On 17th of June the massive army of Edward II was in Edinburgh, where supplies were collected in Leith. By Saturday 23rd of June, Edwards army were arriving from Falkirk in order to take up their positions for the forthcoming battle. Bruce himself rode forward to view his enemy and gather information on their numbers and formations. It was an incredible sight he saw. Edwards army was 20,000 strong, including some 17,000 archers and 2,000 heavy cavalry, compared to the 500 light cavalry and handful of archers available to . The Scots were outnumbered four to one, but King Robert the Bruce had one massive advantage - he was a master tactician and military planner. Bruce had his army positioned in four divisions, with the 'small folk' behind Coxet hill, where they would remain unless needed. Bruce knew that their inexperience in battle may hinder his well-trained troops. His spearmen were deployed in huge, thick circles, facing outward, with their schiltrons - 20ft long heavy spears - providing a massive hedgehog-like structure that would kill any cavalry attempting to penetrate it. Bruce, whilst surveying the English army, wore his crown and this sparked an idea in the mind of one young English knight. With Bruce so easy for him to identify, the young Sir Henry de Bohun realised that if he killed him the Scots would suffer a most crushing blow, and that he himself would gain unrivalled admiration from his English king. The next thing Bruce knew, de Bohun was charging towards him with his 12 foot long lance ready for action. Bruce was on his Highland pony, and saw the attack coming. He waited until the last possible moment, then violently wrenched his pony to one side. The keen de Bohen went speeding past, and Bruce swung his battle-axe, crushing the armour worn by de Bohun and splitting open his skull. The eager de Bohun fell dead on the spot with the one mighty blow, which broke the shaft of the axe wielded by Bruce. His army saw their king and his act of courage, and their hearts were filled with admiration and inspiration. If any of his men had doubted his courage, surely their fears were now at rest. Bruce had shown that he was indeed a warrior king. When his commanders reflected on the risk that Bruce took, the king of the Scots pointed out that he was more dismayed that he had broken the shaft of his axe! Edward II thought that the Scots were terrified of a head to head confrontation, and when they began advancing, he was convinced that victory was in his hand. He ordered the Earl of Gloucester to launch a massive full-frontal attack, but the inexperienced Edward did not realise that he had fallen straight into Bruce's trap. Edwards forces were positioned on the boggy carse, as Bruce had intended, and were also squeezed between two streams - the Bannock Burn and the Pelstream Burn. On launching the attack, the Earl of Gloucester was met by the advancing schiltrons of Bruce's army. The circular hedgehog-like formations of Scottish spears cut down the English cavalry and repulsed their advance. The Earl was killed, and Edward had lost one of his few battle tacticians. Bruce ordered in the cavalry under Keith's command to attack the English archers, and scatter them from the battlefield. Bruce himself, with his reserve army of Highlanders, launched a full attack on the enemy. Edward, on seeing this, decided that he should flee the field and rush for the safety of Stirling Castle, which was still held by his Garrison. To his surprise, Sir Philip Mobray refused to allow Edward into the castle, and so the English king was forced to flee towards Dunbar to escape capture. The English army, realising that their king had deserted them, became demoralized and confused. Bruce then ordered the 'small folk' - the 2,000 untrained volunteers hiding behind Coxet hill - to attack. The English on seeing this thought that the Scots had a massive reserve force, and horror was struck into their hearts. The English centre fled, unwisely, towards the waters of the Forth. The right flank attempted to head in the direction of their king, and the left flank were forced back into the Bannock Burn, where Bruce had laid his booby traps. Accounts tell of the English falling over each other to cross the Bannock Burn, killing many of themselves in the process. The £200,000 English supply convoy was captured and Bruce also obtained high-status hostages, which he exchanged for his wife, daughter and the bishop of Glasgow. King Robert the Bruce, with his Scottish army, had defeated an English army four times their size.

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