First War of Scottish Independence
_The First War of Scottish Independence lasted from the invasion by England in 1296 until the de jure restoration of Scottish independence with the Treaty of Edinburgh-Northampton in 1328. De facto independence had been established in 1314 at the Battle of Bannockburn. In this section we have assembled some of the Major battles of the First War.
_Battle of Bannockburn
The Battle of Bannockburn was a significant Scottish victory in the Wars of Scottish Independence. It was the decisive battle in the First War of Scottish Independence. Around Lent of 1314 Edward Bruce, brother of the Scottish King , began the siege of Stirling Castle, which was commanded by Sir Philip Mowbray.The army might have numbered as many as 9,000 men in all, but probably more of the order of 6,000–7,000. It was gathered from the whole of Scotland: knights and nobles, freemen and tenants, town dwellers and traders: men who could afford the arms and armour required. Barbour tells that King Robert turned away those who were not adequately equipped. For most, such equipment would consist of a spear, a helmet, a thick padded jacket down to the knees and armoured gloves. It is highly probable that a large proportion of the spearmen had acquired more extensive armour given that the country had been at war for nearly twenty years. On the first day of battle there occurred one of the most memorable episodes in Scottish history. Henry de Bohun, nephew of the Earl of Hereford, was riding ahead of his companions when he caught sight of the Scottish king. De Bohun lowered his lance and began a charge that carried him to lasting fame. King Robert was mounted on a small palfrey and armed only with a battle-axe. He had no armour on. As de Bohun's great war-horse thundered towards him, he stood his ground, watched with mounting anxiety by his own army. With the Englishman only feet away, Bruce turned aside, stood in his stirrups and hit the knight so hard with his axe that he split his helmet and head in two. This small incident became in a larger sense a symbol of the war itself: the one side heavily armed but lacking agility; the other highly mobile and open to opportunity. Rebuked by his commanders for the enormous risk he had taken, the king only expressed regret that he had broken the shaft of his axe. Eventually the Scottish would win the battle overall. The Scottish victory was complete and, although full English recognition of Scottish independence was not achieved until more than ten years later, Robert Bruce's position as king was greatly strengthened by the outcome.
Battle of Falkirk
_ The Battle of Falkirk took place on 22 July 1298 and was one of the major battles in the First War of Scottish Independence. On Tuesday 22 July, the English cavalry, divided into four battalions, finally caught sight of their elusive enemy. The left was commanded by the Earls of Norfolk, Hereford and Lincoln. The right was under the command of Antony Bek, Bishop of Durham, while the King commanded the centre, still a little distance to the rear of the vanguard. Once in sight of the enemy, Norfolk and his colleagues began an immediate attack, but on encountering a small marsh to the front of the Scots position, made a long detour to the west before being able to make contact with the right of Wallace's army. Bek tried to hold back his own battalion to give the King time to get into position but he was overruled by his impatient knights anxious to join their comrades on the left in an immediate attack. In a disorganised pell-mell the cavalry finally closed on the Scots, on the right and left The party of men-at-arms under John Comyn, outnumbered about 30 to one, left the field immediately. A great many Scots were killed, including Macduff, son of the Earl of Fife. The survivors, Wallace included, escaped as best they could, mostly into the nearby forest of Torwood where their pursuers could not safely follow. For Edward, Falkirk was a victory that he badly needed as his previous defeats by Wallace and his ongoing wars in France,which were costing a lot to maintain,were starting to suggest that he was a weak king. Wallace had lost some of his most loyal supporters, including Sir John Stewart of Bonkill and second-in-command Sir John de Graham. Above all, the ability to exercise effective command in battle was decisive.
____Sieges of Stirling Castle
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Sieges of Stirling Castle. After the defeat of William Wallace's Scots army at the Battle of Falkirk in 1298, it took Edward I six years to gain full control of Scotland. The last stronghold of resistance to English rule was Stirling Castle. Armed with twelve siege engines, the English laid siege to the castle in April 1304. For four months the castle was bombarded by lead balls , Greek fire, stone balls, and even some sort of gunpowder mixture. Impatient with lack of progress, Edward ordered his chief engineer, Master James of St. George, to begin work on a new, more massive engine called Warwolf . The castle's garrison of 30, led by William Oliphant, eventually surrendered on 20 July after Edward had previously refused to accept surrender until the Warwolf had been tested. Historians disagree on what eventually led the garrison to surrender. One explanation says that Edward succeeded in filling the moat with earth and stone and prepared scaling ladders and ropes, and the garrison saw their fate and offered their surrender. Another says that Edward managed to breach a wall with a ram, which convinced the garrison to surrender. A different possibility is starvation. Despite previous threats, Edward showed great mercy to the rebels. He spared all the Scots in the garrison and executed only one Englishman who had previously betrayed the castle to the Scots. William Oliphant was imprisoned in the Tower of London.
Sieges of Stirling Castle. After the defeat of William Wallace's Scots army at the Battle of Falkirk in 1298, it took Edward I six years to gain full control of Scotland. The last stronghold of resistance to English rule was Stirling Castle. Armed with twelve siege engines, the English laid siege to the castle in April 1304. For four months the castle was bombarded by lead balls , Greek fire, stone balls, and even some sort of gunpowder mixture. Impatient with lack of progress, Edward ordered his chief engineer, Master James of St. George, to begin work on a new, more massive engine called Warwolf . The castle's garrison of 30, led by William Oliphant, eventually surrendered on 20 July after Edward had previously refused to accept surrender until the Warwolf had been tested. Historians disagree on what eventually led the garrison to surrender. One explanation says that Edward succeeded in filling the moat with earth and stone and prepared scaling ladders and ropes, and the garrison saw their fate and offered their surrender. Another says that Edward managed to breach a wall with a ram, which convinced the garrison to surrender. A different possibility is starvation. Despite previous threats, Edward showed great mercy to the rebels. He spared all the Scots in the garrison and executed only one Englishman who had previously betrayed the castle to the Scots. William Oliphant was imprisoned in the Tower of London.