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.
Edward II. Makes Great Preparations to Relive Stirling
Edward, having obtained a partial reconciliation with his discontented barons, made immense preparations for the succour of the fortress of Stirling. He summoned the whole military force of his kingdoms to meet him at Berwick on the 11th of June. To this general muster ninety-three barons, comprehending the whole body of the great vassals of the crown, were commanded to repair with horse and arms, and their entire feudal service; whilst the different counties in England and Wales were ordered to raise a body of twenty-seven thousand foot soldiers; and although Hume, mistaking the evidence of the original record, has imagined that the numbers of this army have been exaggerated by Barbour, it is certain that the accumulated strength which the king commanded exceeded a hundred thousand men, including a body of forty thousand cavalry, of which three thousand were, both horse and man, in complete armour, and a force of fifty thousand archers. He now appointed the Earl of Pembroke, a nobleman experienced, under his father, in the wars of Scotland, to be governor of that country, and despatched him thither to make preparations for his own arrival.He ordered a fleet of twenty-three vessels to be assembled for the invasion of Scotland; in addition to these, he directed letters to the mayor and authorities of the various seaport towns, enjoining them to fit out an additional fleet of thirty ships; and of this united armament, he appointed John Sturmy and Peter Bard to have the command, He directed letters to O'Connor prince of Connaught, and twenty-five other Irish native chiefs, requiring them to place themselves, with all the military force which they could collect, under the orders of Richard de Burgh earl of Ulster, and to join the army at the muster; he made the same demand upon the English barons who possessed estates in Ireland. He requested the Bishop of Constance to send him a body of sixty mounted cross-bowmen. He took care that store of provisions for the troops, and forage for the cavalry, should be collected from all quarters; he placed his victualling department under strict organization; he appointed John of Argyle, who, probably, had no inconsiderable fleet of his own, to co-operate with the English armament, with the title of High Admiral of the western fleet of England; and he took care that the army should be provided with all kinds of useful artisans—smiths, carpenters, masons, armourers—and supplied with waggons and cars for the transport of the tents, pavilions, and baggage, which so large a military array necessarily included. The various writs, and multifarious orders, connected with the summoning and organization of the army of England, which fought at Bannockburn, are still preserved, and may be seen in their minutest details; and they prove that it far exceeded, not only in numbers but in equipment, any army which was ever led by any former monarch against Scotland.
With this great force, Edward prepared to take the field, and having first made a pilgrimage with his queen and the Prince of Wales to St Albans, and with the accustomed offerings requested the prayers of the church, he held his way through Lincolnshire to York and Newcastle, and met his army at Berwick. He here found, that the Earls of Warrene, Lancaster, Arundel, and Warwick, refused to attend him in person, alleging that he had broken his word given to the lord ordinars; but they sent their feudal services, and the rest of the nobility mustered, without anyabsentees, and with great splendour: so that the monarch, having reviewed his troops, began his march for Scotland in high spirits, and with confident anticipations of victory.
Meanwhile, Bruce, aware of the mighty force which was advancing against him, had not been idle.
Bruce assembles his army
He appointed a general muster of his whole army in the Torwood, near Stirling,and here he found, that the greatest force which could be collected, did not amount to forty thousand fighting men; and that the small body of cavalry which he had, could not be expected to compete for a moment, either in the temper of their arms, or the strength of their horses, with the heavy cavalry of the English. He at once, therefore, resolved to fight on foot,and to draw up his army in ground where cavalry could not act with effect, and where the English, from their immense numbers, would be cramped and confined in their movements. For this purpose, he chose a field not far from Stirling, which was then called the New Park.
It was studded and encumbered with trees, and the approach to it was protected by a morass, the passage of which would be dangerous to an enemy. Bruce, having carefully examined the ground, determined that his right wing should rest on the rivulet called Bannock-burn, whose broken and wooded banks afforded him an excellent security against beinjr outflanked. His front extended to a village called St Ninians; and his left wing, which was unprotected by the nature of the ground, was exposed to the garrison of Stirling in the rear—a dangerous position, had not the terms of the treaty with the governor precluded attack from th'at quarter. But Bruce did not leave the defence of his left to this negative security; for in a field hard by, so firm and level that it afforded favourable ground for cavalry, he caused many rows of parallel pits to be dug, a foot in breadth, and about three feet deep. In these pits he placed pointed stakes, with a number of sharp iron weapons, called in Scotland caltkrops, and covered them carefully with sod, so that the ground, apparently level, was rendered impassable to horse.
Its numbers and position
It does not appear, however, that the English cavalry attempted to charge over this ground, although, in the subsequent dispersion of the army, many lost their lives in the pits and ditches.Having thus judiciously availed himself of every circumstance, the king reviewed his troops, welcomed all courteously, and declared himself well satisfied with their appearance and equipment. The principal leaders of the Scottish army were Sir Edward Bruce the king's brother, Sir James Douglas, Randolph earl of Moray, and Walter the High Steward of Scotland. These, with the exception of the last, who was still a youth, were experienced and veteran leaders, who had been long trained up in war, and upon whom their master could place entire reliance; and having fully explained to them his intended order of battle, the king waited in great tranquillity for the approach of the enemy.
Soon after, word was brought that the English army had lain all night at Edinburgh. This was on Saturday evening the twenty-second of June, and early in the morning of Sunday the soldiers heard mass. It was stated by the contemporary historians, that they confessed themselves with the solemnity of men who were resolved to die in that field, or to free their country; and as it was the vigil of St John, they took no dinner, but kept their fast on bread and water. Meanwhile the king, on Sunday, after hearing mass, rode out to examine the pits which had been made, and to see that his orders had been duly executed. Having satisfied himself, he returned, and commanded his soldiers to arm. This order was promptly obeyed; and all cheerfully arrayed themselves under their different banners. Bruce then caused proclamation to be made, that all who did not feel fully resolved to win the field, or to die with honour, had at that moment free liberty to leave the army; but the soldiers raised a great shout, and answered with one accord, that they were determined to abide the enemy.
The baggage of the army was placed in a valley at some distance in the rear, and the sutlers and campfollowers, who amounted nearly to twenty thousand, were stationed beside it, and commanded to await the result of the battle. They were separated from the army by a small hill, which is yet called the Gilles, or Gillies' Hill.
The king now arranged his army in a line consisting of three square columns, or battles, of which he intrusted the command of the vaward, or centre, to the Earl of Moray. His brother Edward led the right, and the left was given to Sir James Douglas, and Walter the Steward of Scotland. He himself took the command of the reserve, which formed a fourth battle, drawn up immediately behind the centre, and composed of the men of Argyle, Carrick, Kentire, and the Isles. Along with him was Angus of Isla, with the men of Bute; and he had also under his command a body of five hundred cavalry, fully armed, and mounted on light and active horses.
Having thus disposed his order of battle, the king despatched Sir James Douglas and Sir Robert Keith to reconnoitre, who soon after returned with the news, that they descried the English host advancing in great strength, and making a very martial appearance. For this intelligence Bruce was well prepared; yet, dreading its effect upon his soldiers, he directed them to give out to the army, that the enemy, though numerous, were advancing in confused and ill-arranged order.
The advance of the English
Although this was not exactly the case, the rash character of Edward led him to commit some errors in the disposal of his troops, which led to fatal consequences. He had hurried on to Scotland with such rapidity, that the horses were worn out with travel and want of food, and the men were not allowed the regular periods for halt and refreshment, so that his soldiers went into action under great disadvantage. Upon advancing from Falkirk, early in the morning, and when the English host was only two miles distant from the Scottish army, Edward despatched an advanced party of eight hundred cavalry, led by Sir Robert Clifford, with orders to outflank the enemy, and to throw themselves into Stirling castle. Bruce had looked for this movement, and had commanded Randolph, his nephew, to be vigilant in repelling any such attempt. Clifford, however, unobserved by Randolph, made a circuit by the low grounds to the oast and north of the church of St Ninians, and having thus avoided the front of the Scottish line, he was proceeding towards the castle, when he was detected by the piercing eye of Bruce, who rode hastily up to Randolph, and reproached him for his carelessness in having suffered the enemy to pass. "Oh, Randolph V cried his master, "lightly have you thought of the charge committed to you; a rose has fallen from your chaplet."Conflict Between Randolph and Clifford
Stung by such words, the Earl of Moray, leaving the centre, at the head of a select body of infantry, hasted at all hazards to repair his error. As he advanoed, Clifford's squadron wheeled round, and putting their spears in rest, charged him at full speed, but Randolph had formed his infantry in a square presenting a front on all sides, with the spears fixed before them;-f- and although he had only five hundred men, he awaited the shock of Clifford with with such firmness, that many of the English were unhorsed, and Sir William Daynecourt, an officer of note, who had been more forward in his attack than his companions, was slain.Unable to make any impression upon Randolph's square by this first attack, the English proceeded more leisurely to surround him on all sides, and by a second furious and simultaneous charge on each front, endeavoured to break the line. But the light armour, the long spears, atid the short knives and battle-axes of the Scottish foot, proved a match for the heavy armed English cavalry, and a desperate conflict ensued, in which Randolph's little square, although it stood firm, seemed likely to be crushed to pieces by the heavy metal which was brought against it. All this passed in the sight of Bruce who was surrounded by his officers. At length Sir James Douglas earnestly requested to he allowed to go with a reinforcement to his relief. "You shall not stir a foot from your ground," said the king, "and let Randolph extricate himself as best he can; I will not alter my order of battle, and lose my advantage, whatever may befall him. My liege," answered Douglas, "I cannot stand by, and see Randolph perish, when I may bring him help; so by your leave I must away to his succour." Bruce unwillingly consented, and Douglas immediately held his way towards Randolph.
Personal conflict between Bruce and Sir Henry de Boune
By this time the King of England had brought up his main army, and ordered a halt, for the purpose of consulting with his leaders, whether it were expedient to join battle that same day, or take a night to refresh his troops. By some mistake, however, the centre of the English continued its march, not aware of this order, and on their approach to the New Park, Bruce rode forward alone to make some new arrangements, which were called for by the absence of Randolph, and to take a final view of the disposition of his army. He was at this time in front of his own line, meanly mounted on a hackney, but clad in full armour, with his battle-axe in his hand, and distinguished from his nobles by a small crown of gold surmounting his steel helmet.
On the approach of the English vaward, led by the Earls of Gloucester and Hereford, Sir Henry de Boune, an English knight, who rode about a bowshot in advance of his companions, recognised the king, and galloped forward to attack him. Boune was armed at all points, and excellently mounted on a heavy war-horse, so that the contest was most unequal, and Bruce might have retired; but for a moment he forgot his duties as a general in his feelings as a knight, and, to the surprise of his soldiers, spurred his little hackney forward to his assailant. There was an interval of breathless suspense, but it lasted only a moment; for as the English knight came on in full career, the king parried the spear, and raising himself in his stirrups as he passed, with one blow of his battleaxe laid him dead at his feet, by almost cleaving his head in two.
Clifford defeated
All this passed so quickly, that the contest between Randolph and Clifford was still undecided; but Douglas, as he drew near to his friend's rescue, perceived that the English had by this time begun to waver, and that disorder was rapidly getting into their ranks. Commanding his men, therefore, to halt," Let us not," cried he, "diminish the glory of so redoubtable an encounter, by coming in at the end to share it. The brave men that fight yonder, without our help will goon discomfit the enemy." And the result was as Douglas had foreseen; for Randolph, who quickly perceived the same indications, began to press the English cavalry with repeated charges and increasing fury, so that they at length entirely broke, and fled in great disorder. The attempt to throw succours into the castle was thus completely defeated; and Clifford, after losing many of his men, who were slain in the pursuit, rejoined the main body of the army with the scattered and dispirited remains of his squadron.Bruce Addresses His Troops
So steadily had the Scots kept their ranks, that Randolph had sustained a very inconsiderable loss. From the result of these two attacks, and especially from the defeat of Clifford, Bruce drew a good augury, and cheerfully congratulated his soldiers on so fair a beginning. He observed to them, that they had defeated the flower of the English cavalry, and had driven back the centre division of their great army; and remarked, that the same circumstances which gave spirit and animation to their hopes, must communicate depression to the enemy.As the day was far spent, he held a military council of his leaders, and requested their advice, whether, having now seen the numbers and strength of their opponents, it was expedient to hazard a battle, declaring himself ready to submit his individual opinion to the judgment of the majority. But the minds of the Scottish commanders were not in a retreating mood; and although aware of the great disparity of force, the English army being more than triple that of Bruce, they declared their unanimous desire to keep their position, and to fight on the morrow. The king then told them that such was his own wish, and commanded them to have the whole army arrayed next morning by day-break, in the order and upon the ground already agreed on. He earnestly exhorted them to preserve the firmest order, each man under his own banner, and to receive the charge of the enemy with levelled spears, so that even the hindmost ranks of the English would feel the shock. He pointed out to them, that everything in the approaching battle, which was to determine whether Scotland was to be free or enslaved, depended on their own steady discipline and deliberate valour. He conjured them not to allow a single soldier to quit his banner or break the array; and, if they should be successful, by no means to begin to plunder or to make prisoners, as long as a single enemy remained on the field. He promised that the heirs of all who fell should receive their lands free, and without the accustomed feudal fine; and he assured them, with a determined and cheerful countenance, that if the orders he had now given were obeyed, they might confidently look forward to victory.