History of Scotland

Our ongoing history of Scotland that chronicles the events in Scotland over the past million years with a special focus on the last thousand as you might expect. We have also digitised a copy of Patrick Tytler's History of Scotland which is an eccentric but wonderfully written history of the the mediaeval years in Scotland. The project of chronicling Scotland's history is ongoing, as is the process of organising and structuring and linking the pages together.

Surrender of Dundee to Wallace

Smarting under the cruelty and rapacity with which they had been treated by the English, the Scots were not slow now to take their revenge, nor was Wallace of a temper to restrain his soldiers. Few prisoners seem to have fallen into their hands, and the slaughter was general and indiscriminate. So deep was the detestation in which the character of Cressingham was regarded, that his dead body was mangled, the skin torn from the limbs, and in savage triumph cut into pieces.

The decisive nature of the defeat is, perhaps, most apparent, from the important consequences which attended it. To use the words of Knighton, "this awful beginning of hostilities roused the spirit of Scotland, and sunk the hearts of the English." Dundee immediately surrendered to Wallace, and rewarded his army by a rich booty of arms and money. In a short time not a fortress or castle in Scotland remained in the hands of Edward.

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He occupies Berwick

A dreadful dearth and famine, no unfrequent accompaniment of the ravages of war, now fell severely upon the country; and Wallace, profiting by the panic inspired by his victory at Stirling, resolved upon an immediate expedition into England. To enable his own people to lay in, against the time of scarcity, the provisions which would otherwise be consumed by his numerous army, and to support his soldiers during the winter months in an enemy's country, were wise objects. Previous, however, to his marching into England, he commanded, that from every county, barony, town, and village, a certain proportion of the fighting men, between sixteen and sixty, should be levied. These levies, "however, even after so decisive a victory as that of Stirling, were tardily made.

The vassals of Scotland, tied up by the rigid fetters of the feudal law, could not join Wallace without the authority of their overlords; and as most of the Scottish nobility had left hostages for their fidelity in the hands of Edward, and many of them possessed great estates in England, which, upon joining Wallace, would have immediately been forfeited, they did not yet dare to take the field against the English. A jealousy, too, of the high military renown and great popularity of Wallace, prevented all cordial co-operation; and the contempt with which this deliverer of his country must have regarded the nobility, who yet sheltered themselves under the protection of Edward, was not calculated to allay this feeling.

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Wallace invades England

The battle of Stirling was fought on the eleventh of September; and on the twenty-fifth of that month the English government, alarmed at the success of Wallace, sent letters to the principal Scottish nobility, praising them for their fidelity to the king; informing them that they were aware the Earl of Surrey was on his way to England, (a delicate way of noticing the flight of Warrene from Stirling and directing them to join Brian Fitz-Alan, the governor of Scotland, with all their horse and foot, in order to put down the rebellion of the Scots. The only nobles with whom the English government did not communicate, were the Earls of Caithness, Ross, Mar, Athole, Fife, and Carrick. Fife, however, was a minor; the others, we may presume, had by this time joined the party of Wallace.

The great majority of the nobles being still against him, this intrepid leader found it difficult to procure new levies, and was constrained to adopt severe measures against all who were refractory. Gibbets were erected in each barony and county town; and some burgesses of Aberdeen, who had disobeyed the summons, were hanged.After this example he soon found himself at the head of a numerous army; and having taken with him, as his partner in command, Sir Andrew Moray of Bothwell, then a young soldier of great promise, and afterwards regent of the kingdom, he marched towards the north of England, and threatened Northumberland. Such was the terror inspired by the approach of the Scots, that the whole population of this county, with their wives and children, their cattle and household goods, deserted their dwellings, and took refuge in Newcastle. The Scots, to whom plunder was a principal object, delayed their advance; and the Northumbrians, imagining the danger to be over, returned home; but Wallace, informed of this by his scouts, made a rapid march across the border, and dreadfully ravaged the two counties of Cumberland and Northumberland, carrying off an immense booty, and having the head-quarters of his army in the forest of Rothebury. "At this time," says Hemingford, "the praise of God was unheard in any church and monastery through the whole country, from Newcastle-upon-Tyne to the gates of Carlisle; for the monks, canons regular, and other priests, who were ministers of the Lord, fled, with the whole people, from the face of the enemy; nor was there any to oppose them, except that now and then a few English, who belonged to the castle of Alnwick, and other strengths, ventured from their safe-holds, and slew some stragglers. But these were slight successes; and the Scots roved over the country from the Feast of St Luke to St Martin's day,* inflicting upon it all the miseries of unrestrained rapine and bloodshed."

After this, Wallace assembled his whole army, and proceeded in his destructive march to Carlisle. He did not deem it prudent, however, to attack this city, which was strongly garrisoned; and contented himself with laying waste Cumberland and Annandale, from Inglewood forest to Derwentwater and Cockermouth. It was next determined to invade the county of Durham, which would have been easily accomplished, as three thousand foot and a hundred armed horse were all that could be mustered for its defence. But the winter now set in with great severity. The frost was so intense, and the scarcity of provisions so grievous, that multitudes of the Scots perished by cold or famine, and Wallace commanded a retreat. On returning to Hexham, where there was a rich monastery, which had already been plundered and deserted on the advance, a striking scene occurred. Three monks were seen in the solitary monastery. Thinking that the tide of war had passed over, they had crept back, to repair the ravages it had left, when suddenly they saw the army returning, and fled in terror into a little chapel. In a moment the Scottish soldiers with their long lances were upon them, calling, on peril of their lives, to showthem the treasures of their monastery. "Alas," said one of the monks, "it is but a short time sine" you yourselves have seized our whole property, and you know best where it now is." At this moment Wallaee himself came into the chapel, and, commanding his soldiers to be silent, requested one of the canons to celebrate mass. The monk obeyed, and Wallace, all armed as he was, and surrounded by his soldiers, reverently attended; when it came to the elevation of the host, he stepped out of the chapel to cast off his helmet and lay aside his arms, but in this short absence the fury and avarice of his soldiers broke out. They pressed on the priest, snatched the chalice from the altar, tore away its ornaments and the sacred vestments, and even stole the missal in which the service had been begun. When their master returned, he found the priest in horror and dismay, and gave orders that the sacrilegious wretches who had committed the outrage, should be sought for and put to death.

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Lord Robert Clifford invades Annadale

Meanwhile he took the canons under his protection. "Remain with me," said he, "it is that alone which can secure you. My soldiers are evil disposed. I cannot justify, and I dare not punish them." This sacrilegious attack was the more unpardonable, as the monastery of Hexham was dedicated to the Patron Saint of Scotland, and enjoyed a perpetual protection from King David. Wallace, to atone for the outrage, granted a charter of protection to the priory and convent, by which its lands, men, and moveables, were admitted under the peace of the king, and all persons interdicted from doing them injury. The Scots now advanced to Newcastle, but finding the garrison prepared to stand a siege, they contented themselves with ravaging the adjacent country; and having collected the booty, they allotted their part to the Galwegians who were with the army, and marched homewards.

In revenge for this terrible visitation, Lord Robert Clifford collected the strength of Carlisle and Cumberland, and twice invaded Annandale with an army of twenty thousand foot and a hundred horse. On passing the Solway, it was proclaimed by sound of trumpet, that every soldier should plunder for himself, and keep his own booty; on hearing which, the infantry with undisciplined rapacity dispersed, and the horse alone remained together. In consequence of this, nothing was effected worthy of so powerful an army. Three hundred and eight Scots were slain, ten villages or hamlets burnt, and a few prisoners taken. This happened at Christmas. In his second inroad, the town of Annan, and the church of Gysborne, were burnt and plundered. Annandale belonged to Robert Bruce; and the destruction of his lands and villages determined him once more to desert the English, and join the party of the patriots.

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Wallace chosen Governor of Scotland

Soon after his return from his expedition into England, Wallace, in an assembly held at the Forest Kirk in Selkirkshire, which was attended by the Earl of Lennox, William Douglas, and others of the principal nobility, was elected Governor of Scotland, in name of King John, and with consent of the community of Scotland. Strengthened by this high title, which he had so well deserved, and which the common people believed was ratified by the express approval of St Andrew, who presented to the hero a sacred sword, to be used in his battles against the English; % he proceeded to reward his friends and fellow-soldiers, to punish his enemies; and, despising the jealousy and desertion of a great majority of the nobility, to adopt and enforce those public measures -which he considered necessary for securing the liberty of the country. He conferred the office of Constable of Dundee upon Alexander Skirmishur, or Scrimgeour, and his heirs, for his services in bearing the royal banner of Scotland. By a strict severity, he restrained the licentiousness of his soldiers, and endeavoured to introduce discipline into his army. In order to secure a certain proportion of new levies, at any time when the danger or exigency of the state required it, he divided the kingdom into military districts.

In each shire, barony, lordship, town, and burgh, he appointed a muster-book to be made, of the number of fighting men which they contained, between the age of sixteen and sixty ; and from these he drew at pleasure, and in case of refusal under pain of life and limb, as many recruits as he thought requisite. In a short time, such were the effects of his firm and courageous dealing in the government, that the most powerful of the nobility were compelled, by the fears of imprisonment, to submit to his authority, although they envied him his high elevation, and whenever an opportunity presented itself, took part with the King of England. J But although few of the earls had joined him, the lesser barons and gentry repaired in great numbers to the banner of the governor, and willingly supported him with all their forces.

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Edwards decided measures

The general revolt of the Scots, and that rapid success with which it was attended, determined the English Regency to summon a parliament at London, on the 10th of October. To this assembly came the Earl of Norfolk and the Earl of Hereford, the one Marshal and the other Constable of England, with so powerful a body of their retainers, that they overawed its proceedings; and aware of the trying emergency in which the rebellion of the Scots had placed the king, they declared, that no aids or levies should be granted against the Scots, unless the Great Charter, and the Charter of the Forests, were ratified, along with an additional clause, which prohibited any aid or tallage from being exacted, without the consent of the prelates, nobles, knights, and other freemen. Edward was startled when informed of these demands. His affairs detained him in Flanders, where accounts had reached him of the whole of Scotland having been wrested from his hand by Wallace; he was still engaged in a war with France; and, thus surrounded by difficulties, it was absolutely necessary for him to make' every sacrifice to remain on good termswith his barons.

He accordingly, after three days' deliberation, consented to confirm all the charters which had been sent over to him; and having wisely secured the affections of his nobility, he directed letters to the earls and barons of England, commanding them, as they valued his honour, and that of the whole kingdom, to meet at York on the 14th January, and thence, under the orders of the Earl of Surrey, to proceed into Scotland, and put down the rebellion of that nation. At the same time he sent letters to the great men of Scotland, requiring them on their fealty to attend the muster at York, and denouncing them as public enemies if they refused.

These seasonable favours granted to the nobility, and the good grace with which Edward bestowed them, although, in truth, they were extorted from him much against his inclination, rendered the king highly popular; so that at York, on the day appointed, there was a great muster of the military force of the kingdom. There came the Earl Marshal and the Great Constable of England, the Earl of Surrey the king's lieutenant against the Scots, the Earls of Gloucester and Arundel, Lord Henry Percy, John de Wake, John de Segrave, Guido son of the Earl of Warwick, and many other powerful earls and barons.

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Earl of Surrey advances to Roxburgh

Having waited in vain for the Scottish nobles whom Edward had summoned to attend—an order which, as the result showed, the dread of Wallace rather than the love of their country compelled them to disobey—the English nobles appointed a general muster of their forces to be held eight days after, at Newcastle-upon-Tyne, purposing from thence to march against the enemy. Here they accordingly met, and the army, both in numbers and equipment, was truly formidable. There were two thousand heavy cavalry, armed both horse and man at all points, along with two thousand light horse, and a hundred thousand foot, including the Welsh. With this force they marched across the border, and advanced to Roxburgh. This important fortress was then invested by Wallace; and the garrison, worn out by a long siege, were in a state of great distress, when the army of Surrey made its appearance, and the Scots thought it prudent to retire. After relieving "their wounded countrymen," the English skirmished as far as Kelso, and returned to occupy Berwick, which had been in the hands of the Scots since the battle of Stirling. They found it deserted, and brought a joyful relief to the castle, the garrison of which had stoutly held out, whilst the rest of the town was in possession of the enemy.

Edward, in the meantime, having learnt in Flanders the strength of the army which awaited his orders, was restless and impatient till he had joined them in person. His anger against the Scots, and his determination to inflict a signal vengeance upon their perfidy on again daring to defend their liberties, had induced him to make every sacrifice, that he might proceed with an overwhelming force against this country. For this purpose, he hastened to conclude a truce with the King of France, and to refer their disputes to the judgment of Boniface the pope. He wrote to the Earl of Surrey not to march into Scotland till he had joined the army in person; arid having rapidly concluded his affairs in Flanders, he took shipping, and landed at Sandwich, where he was received with much rejoicing and acclamation. Surrey, on receiving letters from the king to delay his expedition, had retained with him a small proportion of his troops and dismissed the rest; but the moment Edward set his foot in England, he directed his writs, by which he summoned the whole military power of the kingdom to meet him at York, on the Feast of Pentecost, with horse and arms, to proceed against the Scots. He also commanded all the earls and barons, with two knights of every shire, and the representatives from the towns and burghs, to attend his parliament to be held in that city; and summoned the nobility of Scotland, unless they chose to be treated as vassals who had renounced their allegiance, to be there also on the day appointed. To this summons they paid no regard. Those who had accompanied him in his expedition to Flanders, on his embarkation for England, forsook him, and resorted to the French king; and the rest of the Scottish barons, although jealous of Wallace, dreaded the vengeance which his power and high authority as governor entitled him to inflict on them.

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Edward invades Scotland

Meanwhile Edward, having commanded his army to rendezvous at Roxburgh on the 24th of June, with, misplaced devotion, made a pilgrimage to the shrine of St John of Beverley. The sacred standard of this saint, held in deep reverence by the king and the army, had been carried with the host in the former war; and it is probable Edward would not lose the opportunity of taking it along with him in this expedition.

On coming to Roxburgh, he found himself at the head of an army more formidable in their number, and more splendid in their equipment, than even that which had been collected by the Earl of Surrey six months before. He had seven thousand horse, three thousand heavy-armed, both men and horse, and four thousand light cavalry. His infantry consisted at first of eighty thousand men, mostly Welsh and Irish; but these were soon strengthened by the arrival of a powerful reinforcement from Gascony, amongst whom were five hundred horse, splendidly armed, and admirably mounted. On reviewing his troops, Edward found that the Constable and Marshal, with the barons of their party, refused to advance a step until the confirmation of the Great Charter, and the Charter of the Forests, had been ratified by the king in person: so jealous were they of their new rights, and so suspicious lest he should plead, that his former consent, given when in foreign parts, did not bind him within his own dominions. Edward dissembled his resentment, and evaded their demand, by bringing forward the Bishop of Durham, and the Earls of Surrey, Norfolk, and Lincoln, who solemnly swore, on the soul of their lord the king, that on his return, if he obtained the victory, he would accede to their request. Compelled to rest satisfied with this wary promise, which he afterwards tried in every way to elude, the refractory barons consented to advance into Scotland.

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Difficulties of Wallace

Meanwhile that country, notwithstanding the late "expulsion of its enemies, was little able to contend with the superior numbers and discipline of the army now led against it: It was cruelly weakened by the continued dissensions and jealousy of its nobility. Ever since the elevation of Wallace to the rank of Governor of Scotland, the greater barons had envied his assumption of power; and, looking upon him as a person of ignoble birth, had seized all opportunities to despise and resist his authority. These selfish jealousies were increased by the terror of Edward's military renown, and in many by the fear of losing their English estates; so that at the very time when an honest love of liberty, and a simultaneous spirit of resistance, could alone have saved Scotland, its nobility deserted their country, and refused to act with the only man whose success and military talents were equal to the emergency. The governor, however, still endeavoured to collect the strength of the land. John Comyn of Badenoch, the younger, Sir John Stewart of Bonkill, Sir John Graham of Abercorn, and Macduff the granduncle of the Earl of Fife, consented to act along with him; whilst Robert Bruce, maintainin

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Timeline of Scottish History

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Timeline of Scottish History

History of Scotland

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