7/15/2023 0 Comments Braveheart hold the line![]() The incursion left Scotland weaker as it focused its attention on Ireland, rather than its conflict against England.ĭuring the height of the showdown between Robert and Edward II, extended winter conditions spread across Europe, which caused heavy torrential rainfall. After a bloody, three-year campaign in Ireland, Edward perished during a 1318 clash. Regardless of what motivated the incursion, the end result was a disaster for Scotland. Others, however, have suggested that Robert was trying to get his brother out of the picture by sending him on a poorly planned campaign designed to fail. After three years, four campaigns, and two major famines, Scotland gave up trying to create a Celtic coalition. The primary theory claims the Scots hoped to create an anti-English alliance. Scotland's incursion into Ireland, however, was met by heavy resistance and had long-term consequences for the country's power, particularly when the Irish retaliated by invading a Scottish island. Historians still debate why the Scots attempted to take Ireland. In 1315, Edward Bruce, the possible brother of Scotland's new king, invaded Ireland. He lost his title of Guardian, however, and other leaders for Scottish independence rose during Wallace's time in hiding, including one of Scotland's new Guardians and eventual self-proclaimed king: Robert the Bruce.įresh after the victory at Bannockburn, the Scots turned their eyes on another target. There is evidence to suggest Wallace went to France in 1299 to garner support for the Scottish cause and became an independent guerilla leader, but what Wallace did during the following six years remains a mystery. The majority of his army were slain in conflict, but Wallace fled and remained on the run until his capture and execution in 1305. Wallace's schiltrons, though proved incredibly successful in melee encounters, were outnumbered and outranged by English longbowmen. Although Wallace had led the Scots to victory at Stirling and became the Guardian of Scotland, he suffered a terrible defeat at Falkirk in 1298, which tarnished his reputation. No matter how heroically Mel Gibson portrayed Wallace's sacrifice, the end of Braveheart was by no means the end of Scotland's fight for independence.Īccording to the movie Braveheart, Scotland won its freedom at the Battle of Bannockburn, inspired by the demise of William Wallace nearly a decade earlier.īut Bannockburn didn't end the Wars of Scottish Independence, and Wallace wasn't exactly an inspiring figure to the Scottish army by 1314. The Wars of Scottish Independence were only one of the many ways England mistreated Scotland for centuries, and for some, the Scottish struggle still continues to this day. ![]() Though the Kingdom of Scotland had eventually won its freedom in 1328, disenfranchised Scottish nobles and their English allies refused to accept their losses and began a Second War of Scottish Independence only four years later. The fight for independence continued on for another 14 years through famine, civil war, and political upheaval. ![]() Historically, the Scots at Bannockburn may have "fought like Scotsmen," but they certainly did not win their freedom.Īfter the Battle of Bannockburn, Robert the Bruce continued to fight the English monarchy. And won their freedom," before fading to black. A final voiceover states, "In the year of our Lord 1314, patriots of Scotland, starving and outnumbered, charged the fields of Bannockburn. In the final scene of Braveheart, William Wallace's personal sacrifice inspires all Scotsmen to fight for their freedom at the Battle of Bannockburn.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |