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T
'^7"
STRAY LEAVES
FBOX
SCOTCH AND ENGLISH HISTORY,
WITH
THE LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE,
Scotland's fAXRior, J^ero, and J'olitical ^Iartyr.
BY THE EEV. CHAELES GOEDON GLASS, A.M.,
Latb Principal of Woodstock Colleob, graduate of thk Univkbbitt
OF Aberdeen, Alumnus of the University of St. Andrews,
AND Honorary Member of its Literary Society,
author of a Treatise on Education, &o.
PRINTED BY JOHN LOVELL, 23 AND 25 ST. NICHOLAS STREET.
1873.
&5
800
Entered according to Act of Parliament, in the year one thousand eight hundred
and seventy- three, by the Rev. CnAULKa Gordon Glass. M.A., in the Office
of the Minister of Agriculture of the Dominion of Canada.
sJ
TO HIS EXCELLENCY FREDERICK TEMPLE, EARL OF
DUFFERIN, VISCOUNT CLANDEBOYE, GOVERNOR
GENERAL OF THE DOMINION OF CANADA, &c., &c.
May it please Your Excellency,
The author of the present work has presumed to dedicate it to' Your
Excellency. He has done so, not from any mercenary motive, but
from respect to you as representative in this large and growing por-
tion of her dominions,of a Sovereign he wishes to honour, and also from
regard to Your Excellency personally. Many years ago, the author had
the pleasure of spending several weeks in that beautiful part of the North
of Ireland where Your Excellency resides and owns large estates ; and
amid the great agitation that then prevailed in regard to the " Tenant
Right Question," and the bad feelings shewn towards many of the
proprietors by the people, found Your Excellency spoken of by them
with the greatest deference, and held up as a model proprietor. Since
that time tlie author has marked with satisfaction the great success
that has attended the labors of Your Excellency in the paths of
literature, while as a statesman you have filled posts of the highest
responsibility with creHit to yourself anc honour to your country.
The last consideration which has induced the author to dedicate this
work to Your Excellency he considers the weightiest of all, viz., that
you are a lineal descendant of one of those noble and ancient
families in Scotland, a member of which was not ashamed to fight
side by side with Scotland's patriot hero for the securing of those
liberties that Scotchmen will ever reckon dear.
■ a
PREFACE.
It is sad that while the Dominion of Canada grows
rapidly in wealth and population, it cannot yet be
said to have any literature. Its educational insti-
tutions are numerous, and many highly educated
men are connected with them. And besides these,
many more of the like character are to be found
throughout the country, possessed of literary tastes
of the highest order ; and yet,with few exceptions,
there has been nothing issued from the Dominion
press of any consequence in the shape of literary
productions. This cannot be owing to the fact that
a reading public is not to be found throughout the
country, for a vast importation of publications from
other quarters annually takes place, and many of
them of the most questionable character. The
minds, especially of the youths of the country, are
thus being vitiated, and a positive distaste engen-
dered for any kind of literature of a pure and ele-
vating character. Having resided in one of the
Provinces of the Dominion for many years, the
author has had reason to deplore this growing evil,
and the present work is humbly intended, however
6
PREFACE.
feeble the attempt, to arrest it, and give the youths
of this great country a taste for history, biography
and kindred subjects. And surely nothing would
be more apt to do so than to put within their reach
the life of a man written in a popular style, who
is one of the most perfect patriot heroes to be found
in ancient or modern times. Such a work of him is
much needed, for if we except the popular version
of Blind Harry, the Minstrel rendered into modern
Scotch verse by Hamilton of Gilbertfield, much
of which is unintelligible to the youth of this
country, no such work, as far as known to the
author, has yet been produced. It is true, the great
exploits of Wallace have been the theme of the
poet, the novelist, and even the historian of his own
and of other countries ; and his memory is dear alike
to Scotchmen and Englishmen, and to every other
person in whose breast there glows the least spark
of freedom. But a life of him, adapted to the
youth of this and other countries, bringing out
the real character, public and private, of the man,
without being interlarded with antiquarian refer-
ences and quotations, is still wanted. If such a man
as Macaulay or Carlyle in his most vigorous days
had touched off the life of Wallace, and not left it
to feebler hands, he would have conferred a last-
ing boon on coming generations. One thing is
PREFACE.
certain, when the author attempts this work, he has
no wish to stir up national feelings and engender
strife betwixt the Scotch and English in these
Colonies or elsewhere. Centuries have rolled
on since the transactions recorded in the work,
many of them bloody and cruel, took place, and the
two nations are now happily united. As for the
beloved Sovereign that reigns over them, her
fond attachment to Scotland evidently shews what
little sympathy she has with one of her Royal
ancestors, who inflicted such terrible wrongs on
one of Nature's nobles, and on a people who strug-
gled along with him so manfully for their liber-
ties. And further than this, the attempts made
to destroy these liberties, were not put forth with
the consent of the English people, but through
the ambition and cruel deceit of a monarch who
made several thrusts at their own independence :
for any person consulting the English records of
that period will find that the leading barons, and
especially the people themselves, engaged most
reluctantly in the wars in Scotland. On both
sides of the Border, they are now one, and the cruel
deeds of some of the English monarchs, in days
gone by, cannot be charged against the nation as a
whole. The vouths of both countries, and their
descendants in the Colonies, may, therefore, claim
8
PREFACE.
"Wallace as their common ancestor; and while they
have many names on the roll of fame belonging
to such, to which they can point with pride and
satisfaction, none of them can dim the lustre of
this great man, whether considered as a patriot or
hero. A beautiful English writer, when referring
to this subject, has well expressed such sentiments
in the following words : " The Englishman who-
now reads of the deeds of Wallace or Bruce, or
hears the stirring words of one of the noblest
lyrics of any tongue, feels that the call to ' lay the
proud usurpers low ' is one which stirs hi& blood
as much as that of the born Scotchman : for the
small distinctions of locality have vanished, and
the universal sympathies for the brave and the
oppressed stay not to ask whether the battle for
freedom was fought on the banks of the Thames-
or of the Forth." Of one thing the author is certain,,
that no person that ever lived in his own or
any other country, whose life and character have
been made known to the world, and faithfully
portrayed in the pages of profane history, has
been able to impress his mind half so much, as the
subject of the memoir. The reading of his won-
derful exploits, when a child, as recorded by Blind
Harry the Homer of Scotland, filled him with
admiration j while his terrible sufferings, endured
PREFACE.
9
with such christian meekness, and heroic patience,
towards the close of an eventful, unselfish, but
terribly earnest life, drew many a flood of tears
from his eyes. Afterwards it was so ordered by
Providence that the writer was appointed to
reside in a part of the country where many of
Wallace's deeds of valour were performed, and
some of his greatest battles were fought; and former
scenes were thus called up, and former recollections
revived. And to keep them embalmed in his
memory, he visited with earnest care, the castles,
towers and ruined piles, where " rook and daw with
whirring flight kept busy stir," that were associated
with the hallowed name of Wallace. He hastened
through the greenwood's tangled maze, if some
arching cleft was to be seen which led to what was
considered one of his solitary retreats, although
only a dreary cave in the midst of a hollow rock.
And wherever any of the mountains, plains, or
rude crags, silvered with spray, over whose jutting
barriers the wild flood dashed its angry waters
were to be found as being connected in the memo-
ries of his countrymen, with his death struggles
for the liberation of his native land, these became
sacred in his eyes. And now, in conclusion, the
author might well say, adopting the language of
another, if any one of his readers would take half
10
PREFACE.
the pleasure in reading the following pages, which
he has taken in writing them, he would not fear the
loss of his labor. The employment detached him
from the bustle and hurry of life, the inroads of a
dangerous disease, and the care and vexation con-
nected with the management of an educational
institution. He rose fresh as the morning to
the task of writing the deeds of one whose
memory he will ever revere, and the silence
of night invited him to it again, not with reluct-
ance, but with the same amount of satisfaction as
before. And however imperfectly the task may
have been performed, now that he has given the
life of his model patriot to the world, and how-
ever coldly it may be received by the youth of
the Dominion, his ideas of him will ever re-
main the same ; and he will stand out before him
as the most perfect representative man his own
country, or any other has yet produced, so far as
heroism or true patriotism are concerned : —
'* ■■■ ■ •* A soul supreme in each hard conflict t'-ied,
Above all pain, all passion, and all pride.
The frown of power, the blast of public breath,
The love of lucre, and the dread of death."
'■■'i
CHAPTER I.
The Scotch people claim for their proujenitors a high anti-
quity. According to ancient legends and traditions
many kings reigned in that country before the birth of
Christ. These traditions to a considerable extent, veri-
fied by the facts of the case in the terrible resistance
offered to the Eoman legions that invaded the country,
and in their final expulsion from it. Strange that it
should have been so, and owing perhaps to some extent
. I to the poverty of the country and the inaccessible
retreats it offered the natives, but particularly to the
early introduction of Christianity into it. Though
tracing back their early origin to the Egyptians,
the early inhabitants of Caledonia, along with the other
native tribes of South Britain and Ireland, probably came
from Gaul, and the first missionaries of the Cross, in all
likelihood from the same country. The term Culdee
applied to the early Christians in Caledonia. Their
efforts extended to Ireland through Patrick, one of their
number. Ilis great success there, and the light of the
Gospel reflected back to Scotland, and extended to
\ England. Its effects destroyed there by the invasicms
and confusions of the times.
No people in the world have laid claim to a higher
antiquity, and a greater degree of bravery, in be-
half of their progenitors, than the Scotch. If we
credit the legends that still continue to linger in
12
STRAY LEAVES.
If!
m
w
'
the more remote districts of the country, together
with the traditions of its ancient bards, whose
harps have long been hushed in silence, while they
themselves have gone to the land of forgetfulness ;
a long line of kings might be summed up who
reigned over them, many of whom performed deeds
of great renown, previous to the time when that
adorable Being, who created the universe, deigned
to assume our nature and tabernacle among us. And
after making allowance for a considerable amount
of fable on the subject, there can be little doubt
but these traditions are largely verified by history.
For during the first century of the Christian era,
when the Roman legions that had hitherto borne
the imperial standard triumphantly into every part
of the then known world, dared to penetrate
into the interior of Caledonia, they met with such
determined opposition as they had nowhere
encountered before. It is true they fought with
all their wonted skill and courage. They were
often led on at the same time with some of the
best generals Rome ever produced, and inflicted
terrible punishment on the natives of the country.
But the result remained the same, for though often
severely chastened, they never considered them-
selves subdued ; and retiring fighting before their
enemies for a little to the fastnesses of the
mountains or the inaccessible retreats of the forests,
they returned upon them with renewed vigor and
determination, and waged a conflict more fiercely
than they had done before. Regardless of lift,
STRAY LEAVES.
13
they threw themselves back upon the ranks of the
invading foe whenever a fit opportunity presented
itself, cut off their retreat and inflicted terrible
slaughter amongst them, till the tide of Roman
conquest was ultimately rolled back like a " wave
from the beach of the surf-beaten shore," But
this was not enough for the brave Caledonians,
for they often followed the invaders of their country
into the Provinces they had acquired by a vast
amount of blood and treasure in the southern part
of the island, and there made them feel the force
of their determined opposition. The Romans
protected themselves from these incursions, it is
true, by vastly fortified walls running across the
whole island, and manned by the bravest soldiers
their country could produce. But the northern
warriors often dismantled the walls, put the guards
to the sword, and carried desolation far beyond
them to the south. So that it came to pass after
centuries of incessant toil and vain endeavors,
during which time they sometimes obtained a boot-
less victory, but oftener a grave amid the forests
and dreary regions of the north, the Romans at
last abandoned all hopes of ever being able to
subdue the hard}'^ Caledonians. And after destroy-
ing the walls and breaking down the fortifications
they left the bold inhabitants of the north to enjoy
their liberties for which they had contended so
Icng, although at terrible odds, and repose them-
selves amid their native glens and mountains,
around whose summits the stormy mist and winter
14
STRAr LEAVES.
H
tempest gathered ; while they were permitted to
pursue and slaughter the deer and wild beasts as
they bounded through the forests, unmolested, as
their forefathers, the native lords of the soil, had
done for centuries before them. It is, we believe, a
fact unparalleled in history that a nation of w arriors
"dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly,
and which with its great iron teeth had devoured
and broken in pieces the nations of the earth ;" and
compelled them to own its sway, should have been
so strangely arrested in the midst of its victorious
career by the heroic determination and resistance
of the few inhabitants of the northern part of a
small island in the Atlantic, considered at the
time the most outlandish and savage portion of
the earth. And yet it was so ordered that the
masters cf the world when reaching the borders
of this sterile country approached the goal of their
victories for ever, and left it tjie only country in the
world they had not been able to subdue. Treasures
untold were wasted for the accomplishment of this
object. Roman armies in all their full equipment
and military grandeur, and more than once headed
by a Roman Emperor himself, were led on to over-
awe the natives, and crush out the last spark of
opposition among them. But they failed to do so,
although they fought with all their wonted courage,
and even the great defeat that the brave and pa-
triotic ("ralgachus sustained by Agricola at the foot
of th mpians, near Ardoch, only caused him and
his disabled followers to retire for a little to recruit
STRAY LEAVES.
15
themselves, and breathe more freely amid the
heaven-kissing mountains of their glorious rugged
country, which was never intended for slaves, in
order that they might come back with renewed
determination and drive the presumptuous invaders
from the soil of their dear native land, which,
although considered bleak and dreary to strangers,
was sacred in their eyes, and better to them than
all other countries besides. Much obscurity hangs
over the origin of the history of the early inhabi-
tants of Caledonia, owing to the fact that Edward
the First of England caused their monasteries and
churches to be ransacked, and the public documents
stolen, and carried to London and committed to the
flames. This was an easy way of establishing the
fact that Scotland had been throughout but a de-
pendence of England ! but a species of vandalism
that has scarcely a parallel in history. It might
have struck the monarch, however, that it would
be difficult to reconcile his theory with the previous
history of the two countries when it would be
remembered that for centuries the Romans held
complete control over the southern part of the
island, which could hardly be said at any time to
have been the case with any part of the north.
And if the conquerors of the world were unable to
achieve an object so devoutly wished, it is surely
incredible that a people broken in spirit by so long
subjection to the Romans, should have ever at-
tempted to subdue their more warlike northern
neighbors, who had for centuries defended their
16
STRAY LEAVES.
liberties against such attempts put forth to destroy
them, as have few parallels in history. Like the
other nations of northern Europe the early inhabit-
ants of Caledonia no sooner began to acquire a
certain degree of learning and refinement than
they, in imitation of the ancient Romans, the mas-
ters of the world, began to endeavor to trace back
their origin to the Egyptians, as they did to the
Greeks. And some of their writers have noted with
minute particulars and identified the first settlers
of the country with a colony that left the banks of
the Nile in the days of one of the Pharoahs, and
after wandering long in quest of a new abode,
settled at last amid the sterile and inhospitable
regions of Caledonia. It is needless, however, to
say that the statements of such writers are unsup-
ported by facts, and only calculated to tickle the
fancy and vain-glory of a people who have nothing
else to boast of but the prowess and distinction of
their ancestors. It will be nearer the truth when
we assert that the early settlers of the country
came from Gaul, a country that comprehended the
whole of the present France and Belgium in the
time of the Romans. The southern portion of the
island was peopled from the same source, and
Ireland likewise. So that it appeared intended by
Providence from the first that these different tribes
of people now separated from the rest of Europe
from the first, by the waters of the German Ocean, .
should be united into one people at some future
period. Their origin and religion were certainly
STRAY LEAVES.
17
similar, as the many places throughout Britain
and Ireland that still retain their Celtic names and
the remains of not a few Druidical temples at the
present time, in a state of considerable preser-
vation, abundantly prove. And this union of the
three portions of the British Empire would have
been far more quickly and harmoniously carried
into effect, but for the selfish and cruel overreach-
ing policy of some of the Kings of England far
back in the past, which causes many heart-burn-
ings even at the present day. There can be no
doubt, although the mountains and inaccessible
retreats of Caledonia, together with the vaior of
its inhabitants, proved the " chariots and horse-
men" of the country at the time of the Roman
invasion, but the introduction of Christianity
among the natives was of more service than all
other things taken together, in moulding the
tribes and fitting them for maintaining their
freedom. It would be idle to speculate who the
persons were who had the honor of bearing the
standard of the Cross into this dreary and inhos-
pitable region of the globe at this early period of
its history. Christianity, however, must have
been introduced into the northern part of the
island at a much earlier period than that of the
south, and perhaps as far back as the days of the
Apostles. We have history for bearing us out that
the first martyr for Christ in South Britain was
St. Albans, about the beginning of the 4th century,
whereas Tertullian, the first of the Latin Fathers,
B
18
STRAF LEAVES.
II
i!
who lived in Africa toward the close of the second
century, whose works have come down to us,
declares " that those parts of Britain that were
inaccessible to the Romans were subject to Christ.**
And we 3an accjunt in a satisfactory way for this
rapid spread of Christianity, at so early a period, in
the regions of Caledonia. It was the only part of
the known world, that had not bowed its neck to
the Roman yoke. And while persecution and
death awaited the followers of Christ in the South-
ern Roman Provinces of the island and elsewhere
within the pale of the Roman Provinces, they
would have found without it a safe retreat from
their relentless, persecuting foes. And to these
humble followers of the Lamb, the rude inhabitants
of Caledonia would listen \^ith much more atten-
tion and respect to the simple truths of Christianity,
than if they had proceeded from the lips of those
who had so long endeavored to enslave and
degrade them. And while many believed in them
they would inspire them with new vigor and
determination against a foe who had every where
endeavored to stamp out every spark of civil liberty
from the hearts of those they were able to subdue,
and above all who had persecuted unto the death
the adherents of that pure and humble faith, that
had already superseded the rites of Druid ism
among them, and filled them with patriotic ideas
regarding the country of their birth, and elevating
notions regarding these future abodes they expect-
ed to inhabit after death. The author of the De-
STRAY LEAVES.
19
cline and Fall of the Roman Empire, labors to shew
in the 15th chap, of his great work, that the rapid
spread of Christianity throughout the Roman Em-
pire at the beginning, was owing to five secondary
causes, and not to the overruling providence of God
at all. These causes he endeavors to illustrate,
not in the logical way that might have been ex-
pected from his eminent abilities, but with all the
brilliancy of style and art of eloquence of which
he was a perfect master, with sarcastic insinuations
and partial representations of facts and arguments
likewise, he endeavors, in a very ungenerous and
uncandid way, to degrade Christianity, and hold up
its followers to ridicule and contempt. But if this
great author had only extended his enquiries be-
yond the limits of the Roman Empire, and beheld
the blessed effects Christianity produced among the
natives of Caledonia; how that it had superseded the
cruel rites of heathenism ; how that it had softened
down the hard natures of the natives of the country
and nerved them with the true spirit of Christians
and of patriots, he would have discarded his
secondary causes and ascribed the changes produced
to the great First Cause. If Gaul was the original
home of the native Caledonians, those who first
instructed them in the pure precepts of Christianity
must have come from the same country, driven out
by the fierce persecutions that raged against the
followers of Christ throughout the whole Roman
Empire. There is no other way of accounting
for the rapid manner Christianity spread among
20
STRAY LEAVES.
them at so early a period, but from the identity of
language and manners of those who introduced it,
and how it could have taken such deep root among
those over whose minds the Druids, their native
priests, had previously exercised so complete con-
trol. This fact, added to the holy and devout lives
of the persecuted ones who had come among them,
hastened to overturn the previous system of
religion established among the people, and ushered
in the dawn of a bright and glorious day. The
term Culdee was applied to those early Christian
professors who fled beyond the limits of the
Roman Empire, and sought an asylum in Cale-
donia from their persecuting foes. Their name
was derived from Gille De, servants of God, and
Ceal, a secret or sheltered place. Being driven
from the home of their fathers for a belief in that
faith which was dearer to them than life and all its
enjoyments, they became jealous over themselves,
lest they should become mixed up in any way with
the idolatrous rites of the natives ; and thus dwelt
in comparative retirement amongst them, and gave
themselves up to the worship of God and the in-
struction of the people. How completely they
succeeded in the latter portion of their work,
hijtory alone can testify, when it records the fact,
that by the middle of the third century the truths
of the Gospel had found a ready lodgment in the
hearts of a large portion of the natives ; and while
the Romans were desolating the country with
bloodshed and slaughter, the seed of divine truth
STRAY LEAVES.
21
had silently deposited itself and begun to spring
up, bearing fruit abundantly with its life power,
and moulding, transforming influence everywhere
witnessed. Nor were the effects of Christianity
thus seen confined to Caledonia, but also found
their way into the neighbouring islands, and there
produced, if possible, even greater results. One
of the Culdees, Patrick by name, a native of Kil-
patrick, a place near the mouth of the Clyde, seems
to have been a man of remarkable gifts, .and filled
with all the piety and graces of the early apostles
and martyrs. He had spent six years of his life
in slavery in Ireland, and when he returned back
to his native land, and became a convert to Chris-
tianity, he was filled with an ardent desire of
preaching the Gospel there. In France he appears
to have fitted himself for the great work before
him, and landing in Ireland in the year 432, about
the time the Romans were quitting the British
Isles, he commenced and perfected a work among
the natives, which, for magnitude and efficiency,
has scarcely a parallel in any other country, if we
except that of the great Apostle of the Gentiles
himself. That this great missionary for Ireland
was animated with much of his spirit there cannot
be any doubt, for after landing there the greatest
possible changes took place. The people of every
rank from the Prince to the peasant, flocked to
hear him from every part of the island, and
received the truth into honest hearts. Ere long he
was preaching to the Druids in their great Temple
22
STRAY LEAVES.
at Tara, then the capital of Ireland, and even here
the Gospel triumphed over error in a remarkable
degree. The Druids renounced the bloody rites
and superstitions, in connection with their creed,
which had so long exercised such baleful sway over
them and their adherents, and submitted without
remorse to become the faithful followers of the
meek and humble Nazarene. The success of this
extraordinary man must have been very remark-
able, for according to Nennius, 365 churches were
founded by him alone, and bishops ordained and
set over them. The bishops, however, here were
nothing else than simple overseers or pastors, and
entirely different from those that now bear that
name. The good Archbishop Usher, no mean
authority in the matter, in his truthful and ingen-
uous way is willing to admit this, and that the
early Apostolic Church was so constituted. Nor
did the Christian efforts of the apostle for Ireland
ever lose their influence and become evanescent.
These efforts were felt for centuries afterwards in
the island, which became one of the most peaceful,
contented and enlightened portions of the earth.
Its colleges and schools soon became famous every-
where, and students flocked to them from every
part of Europe. Its missionaries were likewise
scattered throughout the nations, for teaching them
the truths that had been so blessed to their own
country, and Ireland received the well-merited
appellation of the " Island of Saints." The light
that was carried from the rugged shores of Scotland,
STRAY LEAVES.
23
and produced such marvellous eflfects in this sister
island, was soon reflected back to the place from
whence at the first it had emanated, and was
doubly felt in the power it savingly produced.
Through the practical knowledge of St. Patrick
the truth had assumed a more tangible form, in
Ireland, than it had yet done in Scotland, and in
became the object of some of his successors to
build up and organize the Christian Church there
on the same model, and to establish educational
institutions in connection with it. Accordingly we
find Columba crossed from Ireland in the year 563
with a few of his faithful followers, and at lona,
one of the Western Isles, established a missionary
college for training up a native ministry, which
was long blessed in this work not only to Scotland
but to the other nations of Europe. In this hal-
lowed spot, small but retired, around whose shores
the booming billows of the Atlantic had dashed
themselves from time immemorial, was placed for
many ages the ark of the covenant, and the mercy
seat. And from them Jehovah spoke in tones of
compassion to the tribes of the mainland that were
near, as well as to the nations afar off. Happy
Island ! though always small and now comparatively
desolate, thou hast left behind thee a noble record !
and the dust of more sleeping saints and martyrs,
composed of kings, lords and peasants, doubtless lies
mingled together within thy narrow precincts,
than in any other portion of the globe of the same
size. Multitudes of anxious travellers may well
24
STRAY LEAVES.
I P
hasten anxiously to thy shores from the East
and from the West, for if there is a spot of earth
that appeals more hallowed than another in the
eye of Omniscience it must be here. After Columba
and his followers had succeeded in establishing
themselves firmly in lona, and formed a number
of institutions of the like character as their own
throughout Scotland, they directed their efforts to
the southern portions of the island. The Ven-
erable Bede informs us that Oswald, the King of
Northumberland, was educated at lona, and when
established on the throne he sent for some of its
missionaries to convert his subjects to Christianity
and establish a college on the model of lona.
They succeeded in doing so at Landesfarne, an
island off the coast, and their labors were greatly
blessed among the Anglo-Saxons here and also in
regions farther south. The inhabitants of the
British Isles were thus likely at an early period
in their history to become identified and brought
together by the elevating and humanizing in-
fluences of the Christian faith, but for several
unforeseen and untoward occurrences. The Danish
pirates began to swarm around the coasts, and sail
up the rivers, and commit terrible depredations
everywhere. Being particularly opposed to Chris-
tianity, and believers in the cruel heathen worship
of the Scandinavians, they burnt down the mis-
sionary colleges of the Culdees, rifled their churches,
and scattered the followers of the pure Christian
faith everywhere, and put them to death. Then
STRAY LEAVES.
25
followed, with the complete conquest of the Anglo-
Saxons in England, mixed up with that of the
Danes, a more formal type of Christianity, when
these races settled down and adopted its truths,
and the Culdees, as their fathers before them, were
driven into the mountain festnesses of Wales,
where their pure and simple religion flourished
for ages afterwards.
an
CHAPTER II.
A tribe of native Irish arrived in Caledonia about the end
of the third century. At first settled in Argyle, but
spread gradually over the country, and settled per-
manently in it. Carried on war for ages with the
natives, but were ultimately united with them. One of
their kings crowned King of the United Nation, 843.
The name of Scotland given to it after this, which it has
ever retained. The Kingdom always independent. At-
tempts made by English writers and others to prove its
dependence on the English Crown failed. Strange that
this question should have been ever raised. Romans
unable to subjugate the country. The Saxon hep-
tarchy constantly changing, and the kings, engaged
among themselves in war, unable to contend with
a foreign foe. When the Kingdom of England
united, prevented by the constant invasion of the
Danes from attempting to subdue Scotland. Instead
of adding this kingdom to their own, had to deliver
up the half of their own to this fierce enemy. The
Saxon monarchs always on the best terms with their
Scotch neighbors. Scotland a place of refuge for them
and their nobles when driven out of the country
by the Normans. William the Conqueror sent an ex-
pedition into Scotland to compel Malcolm Canmore to
deliver up the malcontents. Failed in its object, though
Malcolm compelled to swear fealty to William for the
counties he held in England. This did not com])romi8e
the independency of the rest of the Kingdom, as William
and his successors had to do the same in regard to their
STRAY LEAVES.
m
French possessions. Made a reason by the Plantagenet
monarchs for claiming superiority over Scotland. The
capture of William the Lion, another reason for so
doing. Eeleased from his obligations by Richard on his
leaving for the Holy Land. The arguments on the
subject, contained in the Pope's bull to Edward, un-
answerable.
About the close of the third century a tribe of
natives from the shores of Ireland passed over in
a number of small ships, fitted up for the purpose,
and landed in Caledonia. They never returned
back, but were destined at all times afterwards to
play an important part in the history of the coun-
try into which they had come. At first they con-
fined their settlement to the southern portion of
Argyle, but as they were followed from time to
time by still larger numbers of their countrymen,
they began to think of enlarging their possessions,
and pushing forward their conquests in all direc-
tions. Accordingly, they scattered themselves
over extensive mountainous districts of the coun-
try. They contended fiercely with the native
Caledonians, for the possession of them ; and as
they gradually gained in strength from large
accessions to their numbers from Ireland, they
were able to hold them, and form a separate com-
munity of their own. Remembering, like emigrants
in our own time, with affection the country of their
fathers, they impressed the names of the localities
they had left behind them on their newly acquired
possessions, and many of them retain them at the
present day. Bloody wars for centuries were
28
STRAY LEAVES.
carried on between them and the Picts, the native
inhabitants of the country, who considered them
as intruders who ought without ceremony to be
driven out of it, as had been done to those who
were of much greater importance, and who had
made the same attempt before them. But although
the war was thus being kept up with various
success, and large numbers on either side were
slain, both parties began at last to perceive the
folly of protracting the struggle, in which such
fearful sufferings were endured, and no permanent
benefit secured. With mutual consent they drop-
ped the contest, and from being the fiercest enemies
they became the most confiding friends. This
happ3^ state of feeling was the result to some
extent of the numerous inter-marriages that took
place amongst those belonging to the different
nationalities, but principally to the mild and
humanizing influences of Christianity, which began
to be a power felt by all. This tended more than
anything else to soothe, and tone down the excited
feelings betwixt the parties, and arrest the shedding
of blood to which they had long become accustom-
ed. The Irish who invaded Caledonia, from the
first, were called Scots, although for what reason
it is now difficult to decide, as antiquarians are not
agreed on the subject ; and the original inhabitants
of the country were called Picts towards the close
of the Roman occupation of the island, because it
is supposed they painted themselves in order that
they might appear more dreadful to their enemies.
STRAY LEAVES.
29
At the union of the two nations, which had long
existed separately with kings to reign over them,
the name of Picts was dropped, and Kenneth Mc-
Alpine, the last of the Scottish kings, in virtue of
his being the nearest heir to the Pictish throne,
ascended it, while he held possession of his own at
the same time, and gave to the wliole country the
appellation of Scotland. This event took place in
the year of our Lord 843, shortly after the bloody
wars had terminated over the Heptarchy in the
southern part of the island, and when the petty
Principalities there, were happily blended into one
kingdom, from that time called England. This
name the country still retains, being taken from
that of the most powerful of the three tribes that
came over from Germany at the commencement of
the Saxon invasion, (the Angli,) and after it has
made for itself the most glorious history which
any nation is able to boast of either in ancient or
modern times. The Scotland in the days of Ken-
neth McAlpine was considerably more extensive
than it is at the present day. It comprehended
the counties of Northumberland, Cumberland and
Westmoreland in the north of England. After
the union it became a kingdom of no small im-
portance, and continued to exercise throughout
the different nations of Europe great power and
varied influence, both in a political and religious
point of view.
The matrimonial alliances formed by its mon-
archs, and the members of their families, from
30
STRAY LEAVES.
f
i i
I I
I t:;,
time to time, with several of the heads of the
leading powers, often changed the whole aspect
of affairs, and acted as a powerful check in restrain-
ing their southern neighbors, and especially their
kings, who for centuries, owing to their constant
interference with the affairs of continental nations,
to gratify their warlike propensities and inordinate
ambition, were considered as the disturbers of the
whole of Europe. One thing, however, we are
sure of, if history has any meaning, and that is
that Scotland from the first was recognized by all,
as a free and independent nation. The question
of its not being so was raised several times, it is
true, by its southern neighbors, and even at so late
a time as when the two nations were to be happily
united into one. And it was not only raised, but
agitated for selfish and political purposes, with all
the heat and rancour that national prejudices and
anim.osities could inspire. But the arguments pro-
duced by southern writers were useless, and failed
to produce any permanent impression on the minds
of the leading politicians of the day. If they had
done so, consequences of the worst character to both
countries would have followed, for a nation, depen-
dent in the time past on another, and its crown
feudatory to it, could not have expected equal
terms in the union to be formed ; and any thing
granted them therefore would have been allowed
by their more powerful southern neighbors as a
favor and not as a right. But happily their con-
tendings in the past saved them from being placed
W^iW^f^'M
STRAY LEAVES.
31
in this humbling and derogatory position, and a
proud and self-reliant people were looked upon in
the same light as the other. The union thus pro-
posed and carried out accordingly, was honorable
to the English nation and beneficial to the Scotch,
and has cemented for ever, in the bonds of the
closest relationships, two nations which, but for
several untoward causes we shall afterwards
describe, would have been united in the same way
long before, and Britannia, as she has ever since
been, " would have been loved at home and
revered abroad."
" Henceforth, she said, in each returning year, one stem the
thistle and the rose shall bear ;
The thistle's lasting grace — thou, O my rose, shalt be : the
warlike thistle's arm a sure defence to thee."
To us, indeed, who live at this late period of the
world's history, it appears strange that the ques-
tion of the independence of Scotland should have
ever been raised at all. But for the selfishness,
injustice and cruel dealings of one of England's
monarchs, it would not have been so, and the
strange way he adopted in carrying out his views,
showed that even lie had his doubts on the subject.
The Romans, as we found before, left that country
unsubdued, and hastened to defend the heart of
their Empire, sorely assailed by the tribes of
northern Europe. And not only so, but the natives
of South Britain, so long accustomed to their
protection, had become weak and helpless, and left
exposed to the attacks of the Picts and Scots, who
32
STRAY LEAVES.
i
I
ii|
%
.;i!''
united together, marched southward, and would
have certainly conquered them, had they not sued
for assistance from another quarter. For in their
extremity they called into the country the Saxons,
who, although they repulsed the northerners, and
were at the first considered as friends, became the
most cruel foes the natives ever had. They settled
down without ceremony, and drove out the inhabit-
ants. But they were not able to do so after they
began to perceive how they had been deceived,
till after they had offered the most heoric resist-
ance ; and before they retired to France, and were
forced to settle in the mountainous districts of
Wales, they took terrible revenge on their faith-
less invaders. Prince Arthur especially. King of
South Wales, distinguished himself in these strug-
gles. Like another Caractacus, who resisted the
Roman power for nine long years, and whose
successor he was, he defended his own and the
territories of the neighboring princes from the
fierce attacks of the Germans, vanquishing their
chiefs in twelve battles, and putting many of them
to the sword. Had this brave man not been be-
trayed and put to death by his own nephew, he
might have acted throughout like another Wallace,
and rid the country of a cruel and perfidious
enemy. But though the Saxons drove back the
Picts and Scots into their native land, they had
neither the strength nor ability to follow them
thither, or threaten in any way to make them
dependent upon them. During the whole time of
STRAY LEAVES.
33
the Heptarchy in England, its kings were at con-
stant war among themselves; the hounds of the
seven States were constantly changing, and it was
impossihle for the arms of any of its kings to be
directed against a foe, excepting a neighboring
prince perhaps, who chanced to invade his petty
domain. No bond of union existed among them,
even in regard to mutual rights, or the protection
of such rights, and it could never have been
imagined that any attempt would have been made
to invade those of a powerful and warlike nation,
who had enjoyed them from the earliest period of
their history. Again, when England was formed
into one kingdom, it soon began to be threatened
by an enemy from abroad, far more formidable than
the Picts or Scots, who not only attempted the
destruction of its liberty, but its very existence
was found to be at stake. The race of fierce war-
riors who did so were originally, like themselves,
from the forests of Germany, but had been worsted,
like many other tribes, by Charlemagne in battle,
and driven out of their country. They moved
northward, settled in Denmark, and became the
monarchs of the ocean for many a day. They were
men of great size, blue eyes, ruddy complexion and
yellow streaming hair ; and as they made war their
profession, thus became terrible to all the nations
around them. Being of the Scandinavian stock,
they were the sincere worshippers of Odin and Thor,
the heathen gods of their forefathers, and hated
those with no common hatred, who had renounced
c
tl'
IV
,1 li
ii"
34
STRAY LEAVES.
their worship, as the Saxons in England had now
done. By the time that Egbert ascended the
throne of that country, they had fitted up a large
fleet of light-bottomed skiffs, landed at Tynmoutli,
and continued their ravages along the coast till
defeated by him at Cornwall. But after this,
though often repulsed, they became the terror and
dreai of the whole country ; for, after making a
sudden descent on a certain part of the coast, they
sailed up the rivers, burnt the towns and villages,
and scattering themselves everywhere, carried
away the inhabitants and their possessions indiscri-
minately. The fovorite amusement of their sol-
diers, was to toss the helpless children on the points
of their spears ; and one of their celebrated chief-
tains, for his dislike to this cruel sport, received
the contemptuous surname of Burnakal, or child-
preserver. They continued their invasions with
unceasing ferocity, till the whole country was
reduced to a state of helplessness and bondage, and
the nobles and people,worn out by incessant harrass-
ments, urged their sovereign to come to terms with
them, which he did by assigning them the half of
the kingdom. Nearly the whole time of the united
Saxon monarchy, the state of things above des-
cribed was continued, and if the petty monarchs
of the Heptarchy were rendered feeble and utterly
helpless in the way of attacking the Scots or of
reducing them under their control, it was more so
when the nation became consolidated ; but had to
contend with such various success against the in-
STRAY LEAVES.
85
scri-
sol-
oints
hief-
jived
;bild-
with
was
, and
rass-
with
lilf of
ited
des-
rchs
|terly
)r of
Ire so
[ad to
le in-
vasions of the fierce and rcmorHeless enemies nbove
referred to, who so frequently visited their shores
with such disastrous consequences. Durinj^ the
whole of this changeful, trying and bloody period
of English history, the Saxons lived on the best of
terms with their northern neighbors; and the
princes and nobles of each country often inter-
married into the families of one another. When
conc^uered by the Normans and driven out of their
native country, Scotland was the place to which
they lied for safety ; and the Court there was the
grand refuge for all who wished to be free, and who
disdained to bow their neck to the yoke of the
oppressor. Soon after the Norman conquest, Edgar
Atheling, the heir to the Saxon throne, and his
sister Margaret fled to Scotland, and received a
warm reception from Malcolm Canmore, the mon-
arch of the country. They both took up their
residence at Dunfermline, where the kings of Scot-
land then resided, and the fair Margaret was soon
united in marriage to the Scottish monarch. She
did much to encourage religion, industry, and every
good work among her northern subjects; and
through her influence Malcolm assumed more than
any of his predecessors the state and appearance
of a real king. Their daughter Matilda was after-
wards married to Henry the First of England, which
fortunately united the rival races, and blended
the blood of the Kings of Scotland and England
together in all time coming. Soon after the mar-
riage of the King of Scotland, a great rising of
36
STRAY LEAVES.
■i
the Saxons took place in the north of Enghmd.
They put to death a large number of their Norman
oppressors at Durham, and laid siege to the city of
York. While there they were joined by Edgar
Atheling, who hastened from Dunfermline to join
the insurrection. But all the attempts of the
Saxons to gain their liberty were in vain, for
although they took York, the fierce and warlike
William, with a large host of Normans, was soon
before the gates of the city, which they carried at
the point of the sword ; and turning with fiendish
cruelty into the country districts, they wasted
them with fire and sword, and left a vast wilder-
ness and heaps of ruins behind them, which were
visible a century afterwards. Enraged that Edgar
Atheling and other Saxon malcontents, should find
a refuge in Scotland, and assist the insurgents,
William sent an expedition into the counties of
Northumberland and Cumberland, then pertaining
to that country, with a view to compel Malcolm
to deliver them up. It failed, however, in accom-
plishing the object contem. plated by the fierce
Norman, although Malcolm and his successors on
the throne had to do homage to the English kings
afterwards for these counties. This was one of
the arguments adduced for the subjection of Scot-
land ; but if we take into account the feudal ideas
that then prevailed all over the countries of
Europe, this homage paid to England for the pos-
sessions held there, in no way interfered with the
independence of the rest of the Kingdom. Many
STRAY LEAVES.
37
of the other sovereigns of Europe, without being
understood to compromise their royal dignity, were
in the same position ; and for ages the kings of
Enghind tliemselves were vassals to the monarchs
of France, for the large possessions they held in
that country, and were bound to perform feudal ser-
vices accordingly. Strange, however, as it may
appear, this was one of the principal grounds ou
which some of the Plantagenet monarchs rested
their right to their superiority over the kingdom
of Scotland afterwards. This right, it is true,
was never assumed to be possessed by the early
Norman kings amid all their cruelties, and unprin-
cipled actings. They were too much busied in
keeping down Saxon insurrections and conspiracies,
and in introducing the laws and manners of the
Normans, among the subjugated inhabitants of the
country, to raise such a foolish question. And
their own dubious title to the English throne, often
required all their skill and ingenuity to maintain
themselves upon it, without in any way being
solicitous to raise new claims to the Crown of Scot-
land, which they had neither the power nor in-
clination to maintain. But beside the causes
adverted to, an unexpected calamity befel one
of the monarchs of that country, at a later date,
which encouraged the English to reduce it, and
to bring it into a state of dependence to their
own. Henry the Second occupied the throne of
England when this calamity occurrred, and al-
though he displayed great ability as a statesman,
fil
38
STRAY LEAVES
and heroic daring as a warrior, he was neverthe-
less proud, ambitious and faithless as most of his
ancestors happened to be before him. David, the
King of Scotland, his uncle, had knighted him at
Carlisle, and fought bravely for his mother while
contending with Stephen for the Crown of England;
but all these acts of kindness were soon forgotten,
when he ascended the throne of that country. He
was inflamed with an intense desire of adding Scot-
land, as he had done Ireland, to his dominions ; and
used the most unjustifiable means for so doing. Find-
ing Malcolm IV., the grandson of David, a very
weak and effeminate prince, he duped him out of the
counties of Northumberland and Cumberland, and
taking him over into France he caused him to ap-
pear as an enemy of the king of that country, who
had been the hereditary ally of Scotland. Malcolm
was succeeded by his brother William, surnamed
the Lion, on account of his wearing the figure of
the lion rampant upon his shield. He was a much
braver man tnan his brother, felt irritated that
Scotland should have been robbed of a part of her
possessions through the weakness of her late
king, and the duplicity of Henry of England, and
resolved, if possible, to regain by force of arms
what had been so ignominiously lost. Collecting
a considerable force he invaded England, but was
surprised while enveloped in a mist near Alnwick,
taken prisoner by English troops and handed over
to Henry. Thinking this a favorable opportunity
of vanquishing Scotland, while its king was in
STRAY LEAVES.
39
captivity, the perfidious English monarch marched
an army into that country and began to waste and
destroy it. But Gilchrist, the Earl of Angus, boldly
marched to meet him, and before he had proceeded
farther than Carlisle, defeated him and dispersed
his army. Foiled in this attempt the King clung
more firmly to his prisoner, and refused to liberate
him, unless under conditions that were both hum-
bling to him and disastrous to Scotland. He ex-
torted a large sum of money for his liberation,
and not only so, but demanded homage for his
whole kingdom. William might have had the
right to agree to the payment of the money, pro-
vided it was paid irom his own private means ;
but to dispose of rights that were sacredly vested
in the Estates of the kingdom was altogether
beyond his control. Besides it is questionable,
whether conditions thus extorted from him while
deprived of his freedom, were even binding on
himself, and certainly they were not binding on
the nation at large. It is a happy circumstance,
however, to know that all difficulties in the matter
were soon removed ; for at the death of Henry, the
Lion-hearted Richard his son, solemnly renounced
the claim of homage, and absolved William from
the hard conditions his ambitious, and ungenerous
father had imposed upon him in the hour of his
severe trial. For to rule England and disturb Scot-
land was not the object of Richard's ambition. He
burned to win glory on the plains of Palestine,
and cause the enemies of Christianity to tremble
i
40
STRAY LEAVES.
there. For this he lost sight of every other
object. For this he wasted the large sums of
money his father had hoarded up ; but in doing
so displayed such daring valor, and achieved such
splendid victories abroad, as will ever make him,
with all his faults, a favorite with every class.
" Against whose fury and unmatched force
The aweless lion could not wage the fight,
Nor keep his princely heart from Richard's hand."
This prince at the same time possessed such an
unbounded, generous nature, and displayed such
accomplisliments in the liner arts as have ren-
dered him dear ; independently of his great skill
in arms and brilliant military achievements, to
all the lovers of poetry and song.
Strange as it might seem, this claim of sov-
ereignty over Scotland, so entirely and solemnly
renounced by the chivalrous and generous Richard,
should have been taken up by one of his successors
a century afterwards, and unjustly adhered to.
For, as might have been expected, the claim put
forth would be doggedly resisted, although ad-
vanced by the mightiest monarch of Europe at
the time. And not only so, but torrents of the
best blood of the country would be shed, rather
than submit to what was believed by the people
to be at the time an unrighteous usurpation. The
hard feelings it impressed on their minds it Avas
difficult afterwards to remove; and feuds and
dissensions were engendered, which required cen-
STB AY LEAVES.
41
turies to compose. That Edward had no right to
any feudal superiority over the kingdom of Scot-
land, must already have appeared evident to every
one who has carefully attended to the statements
we have already adduced. And that he should
have put forth his unjust claims to it, in the midst
of the distracted state of the nation, makes every
one who wishes for justice feel the more harshly
towards him. That the leading potentates of
Europe, at the time must have entertained such
thoughts, there can be little or no doubt, as we
will now be prepared to show in the winding up
of this chapter. For even the Roman Pontiff
himself appeared so struck with the injustice of
the claim, when the real facts of the case were
laid before him, as compelled him to interfere, and
admonish and threaten Edward in regard to his
extraordinary conduct in the matter. As being
the Lord spiritual whom Edward always professed
to acknowledge as his superior, he considered he
had a right to do so ; and the bull he issued and
caused to be delivered to him by the Archbishop
of Canterbury, at great personal risk and incon-
venience, while he found him warring in Scotland,
devastating the cou]itry, and shedding the blood of
its brave inhabitants, shewed how much he disap-
proved of his conduct ; iind was alike honorablo to
his head and heart. " Your Royal Highness," the
bull of Pope Boniface goes on to say, " may have
heard, and we doubt not that but the truth is fast
locked up in your memory, that neither you nor
I
ii !'
42
STRAF LEAVES.
any of your ancestors, kings of England, enjoyed
any feudal superiority over the kingdom of Scot-
land. Your father, Henry, King of England, when
in the wars between him and Simon de Montford
he requested the assistance of Alexander, the
third King of Scotland, did, by his letters-patent,
acknowledge that he received such assistance not
as due to him, but as a special favor. When you
yourself requested the presence of the same mon-
arch at the solemnity of your coronation, you in
like manner, by letters-patent, entreated it as a
matter of favor and not of right. Moreover, when
the King of Scotland did homage to you for his
lands in Tynedale and Penrith, he solemnly de-
clared that his homage was paid not for the king-
dom of Scotland, but for his lands in England ;
that as King of Scotland, he was independent and
owed no fealty, which restricted homage you did
receive. Again, when Alexander the Third died,
leaving as heiress to the crown a granddaughter
in her minority, the wardship of this infant was
not conferred on you, which it would have been
had you been Lord superior, but was given to
certain nobles of the kingdom chosen for that
purpose," By such pungent arguments as the
above the Pope urged the English monarch to
renounce his claims to the superiority of the king-
dom of Scotland, and at the same time to release
from prison all bishops and ecclesiastics he had
incarcerated for resisting such a claim. And in
order to make the arguments still more imposing,
STRAT LEAVES.
43
the Prelate added his own admonitions, assuring
the King, in the presence of his son, the Prince of
Wales, and many of the English nobility who
were engaged at the time at the siege of the castle
of Caerlaverock, " that Jerusalem would not fail
to protect her children, and to cherish like Mount
Zion those who trusted in the Lord."
CHAPTER III.
ti
Necessary to nkctch the life of Edward of England. No
monarch whoso life is so little known or understood
by his own countrymen. His military achievements have
blinded the historians of that country to his injustice and
terrible cruelties. If his real character were known he
would be considered as one of the worst and most un-
principled kings that ever sat on the English throne.
The tirst of his ambitious projects was to subdue Wales.
Provoked an unjust quarrel with the native prince of
that country. Defeated him and his troops in their wild
j'etreats. Llewellyn thus fell fighting bravely for the
liberties of his country. His head cut off, crowned with
ivy by the cruel conqueror, and set up on the tower gate
of London. Wales being subdued, the English monarch
directs his attention to Scotland for the same purpose.
Appointed umpire for the throne amid the numerous
competitors. Previous to his giving his decision re-
quired the competitors to do homage to him as Lord
paramount of that country. Gave his decision on behalf
of Baliol, who was only a puppet king. Rebelled at
last. Defeated and compelled to resign the crown/ which
Edward claimed for himself
Before commencing the life of Wallace it will
be necessary to refer briefly to that of Edward the
1st. of England, as it was through his cruel exactions
and oppressions in Scotland that our patriot was
first forced on the stage of public life as the asser-
ter of the liberties of his oppressed country. It
is necessary to do so, as a truthful life of that mon-
arch yet remains to be written. Many attempts
have been made in this direction, and glowing
STRAY LEAVES.
periods have been written to show the heroic
deeds of the warrior, and the sagacious, politic
bearing of the king, who did more, it is asserted,
than any of those monarchs that went before or
followed after him, in extending and building lip
the English Empire within the limits at least of the
British Isles. But such writers have only given
us the bright side of the picture, and have care-
fully kept back anything that would cast a dark
cloud, over the character of their ideal king in the
eyes of their confiding countrymen. And we ven-
ture to affirm that modern times scarcely afford
such" another example, where the historic nuisehas
been so sadly prostituted to serve a purpose as in
the case referred to. If the real facts of Edward's
reign had been chronicled with a truthful pen, and
nothing, however derogatory to him, kept back,
we venture to say whatever halo of glory and
military greatness hangs round his character as a
great captain, he would have been considered by
all impartial judges as one of the worst and most
unprincipled of England's kings, and the incessant
disturber of the peace of his native island, and
also of Europe at large. The conduct of the his-
torians of ancient Egypt, forms a strange contrast
to that of the English, in dealing with the truths
of history. By tiie laws of that country, a faith-
ful record was kept of passing events by an un-
known hand. The virtues and the vices of the
reigning monarch were carefully chronicled, and
at his demise were read in the hearing of his sue-
46
STRAY LEAVES.
'1 !
cessor, before he was allowed to ascend the throne.
This was with a view of acting as a healthy check
on him in after life, that he might shun the evil,
and imitate the virtuous deeds of his predecessor.
If this had been done in England, the son of
Edward might have been prevented from after-
wards falling into the hands of assassins; and
many other calamities been averted which after-
wards overtook the nation. Edward's father died
while he was absent in the Holy Land on a crusad-
ing expedition, where his exploits were few and
insignificant. On his return to England two
years after his father's death, he was crowned at
Westminster with great pomp and ceremony.
His brother-in-law, Alexander the Third of Scot-
land, was present on the occasion, who, for his
character and previous military exploits, held an
important position in the eyes of the other mon-
archs of Europe. No sooner was Edward seated
on the throne of his fathers, than the first great
aim of his ambition was to conquer Wales. The
attempt had often been made by his predecessors
before, but had always failed ; but the bold and
unprincipled Edward, nothing discouraged, went
to the task with the full assurance that he would
succeed. It mattered not that the Welsh before
this had for centuries enjoyed their independence
against all odds. That the Roman and Saxon
invaders, although they had driven them out of
England, durst not follow them into the inacces-
sible retreats which nature secured for them amid
STRAY LEAVES.
41
their poor, but free, beautiful and mountainous
country. Edward resolved to accomplish what
neither Roman nor Saxon would dare to attempt
before him ; and add Wales to his already widely
extended kingdom in England, Ireland and France.
But how were hostilities to be commenced against
a nation that were at peace with him ? And how
was Llewellyn, the Welsh prince, to be dragged
into the conflict while seeking no cause of quarrel
with him ? Edward solved the difficulties by a
species of fraud and imposition which, excepting
the repetition of the same kind of dishonesty, when
he unjustly interfered in the affairs of the Scotch
nation, and ultimately claimed the crown of
that country for himself, has hardly an equal
in history. He demanded homage of the Welsh
prince, for his possessions that had been handed
down to him free and unfettered for upwards of a
thousand years. He knew he had no right to do
so, and that the Welsh prince would resent the
affront. But this was all he wanted to commence
hostilities, which, when begun, were carried on
with a degree of tenacity, perseverance and un-
mitigated cruelty that was characteristic of the
man, in all his warlike proceedings afterwards.
Preparations having been made on a gigantic scale
for the invasion of the country, troops were drawn
from foreign parts, trained to mountain warfare,
and poured without reserve into Llewellyn's
country. For five long years was this cruel work
persevered in without any interruption ; the
li
48
S*rRAY LEAVES.
country laid waste by fire and sword, and the
poor inhabitants mercilessly put to death, without
regard to age, or rank, or sex. Even those im-
mortal bards, whose lives were always considered
sacred by the most savage conquerors in all time
previous, could not escape his bloody and unspar-
ing hand. They were possessed of an undying
love for their country. They sung of the noble
exploits of their heroic forefathers, and they in-
fused a spirit of liberty and of resistance into the
minds of their countrymen, which all the hordes
that Edward could bring into the field could ill
resist. But without any compunction or ceremony
he barbarously put them to death, although con-
trary to the notions of all civilized nations.
History only affords another cruel example of
the same kind, afforded by Nero, the Roman Em-
peror, who has been held up for this and other
cruelties of a kindred nature, as the greatest mon-
ster recorded in history. The author of the
" Elegy written in a Country Churchyard," and
other well-known poems, refers, although an
Englishman, to this dark episode in the conquest
of Wales in the following feeling and highly
poetic strain :
** Ellin seize thee, ruthless King !
Confusion on thy banners wait !
Though fanned by conquest's crimsoned wing,
They mock the air with idle state.
Nor e'en thy virtues, tyrant, shall avail >
To save thy secret soul from nightly fears,
From Cambria's curse, from Cambria's tears."
Ill
STRAY LEAVES.
Having removed this and every other obstruction
out of the way, Edward followed the Welsh troops
into their mountain fastnesses of Snowdon and
Plynlimmon. They inflicted terrible losses on the
barbarous hordes that dared to venture so far in
pursuit of them, although, when worn out by
famine and incessant harrassments, they were at
last compelled to yield to forces far superior in
numbers and better equipped than their own.
Llewellyn, the brave Welsh prince, impelled by
some ancient prediction that he was to be the
restorer of the line of Britain's ancient sovereigns,
was induced to come down from his mountain
retreats, march into Radnorshire with a large
army, and cross the Wye, for the purpose of
carrying the war into the enemy's country, and
realizing the truth of the prediction. While
unavoidably absent, however, from his army, it
was surprised and defeated, and he himself hasten-
ing to the scene of disaster, and finding that all
was lost, rushed into the midst of the enemy and
fell fighting amid heaps of the slain. The person
of this brave prince was afterwards discovered,
his head cut off from his mangled body, and sent
to London. There it was crowned with ivy, and
fixed upon the gate of the Tower, at Edward's
command, to mark his cruel and relentless spirit,
and the indignity he wished to shew towards
one who had died gloriously as a hero and patriot
in the defence of the liberties of his country.
And yet, with all these facts standing out in his-
>
60
STRAY LEAVES.
tory, but which have too often been slurred over,
English writers have referred with glowing satis-
faction to the conquest of the Welsh, and to the
sagacity, military skill and heroic daring of Edward
in connection with it. But the cruelly unjust
cause of the war, the savage manner it was carried
on, the massacre of the bards and the shameful
treatment their prince received, have been matters
that have seldom been referred to ; but which, if
they had, would have gone far to lessen the estimate
the English have continued to entertain of a ruler,
who, however brave and successful as a warrior,
was unjust, vindictive and cruel in his actings on
most occasions.
No sooner was the conquest of Wales accom-
plished than the political horizon in Scotland
became dark, and the community sank into utter
despair. The good King Alexander had been
suddenly cut off, and had left his grandchild, the
daughter of the King of Norway, an infant, to
succeed him on the throne. With the consent of
her father, Edward proposed a marriage between
her and the Prince of Wales, his son, and the
nuptials were fully agreed upon at a meeting of
the Scottish Estates held at Brigham in the mont'
of July, 1290. But, as if to forewarn the nation
that dark days were in store for it, Margaret, the
Maid of Norway, as she has been called, sickened
and died suddenly at Orkney, before being allow-
ed to take possession of the throne of her fathers.
It would be difficult to find a time in any nation
STRAY LEAVES.
61
when so much happiness and misery depended on
the lite of one individual ; and now that she was
gone, the kingdom became fearfully disturbed, and
the hearts of the good and patriotic began to fail
them for fear. For she was the last descendant of
Alexander, the "Alfred of Scotland," and had sur-
vived her grandfather only four years. And now
that she was gone, no near relation of that monarch
was to be found to succeed her on the throne, and
fierce and powerful competitors would set up
their claims to it, which would only be decided by
an appeal to the sword. Symptoms of this kind
had already begun to manifest themselves, for
Bruce, the Earl of Annandale, with a powerful
train of followers, had advanced to Perth. The
Earls of Mar and A thole had assembled their
clans, and Baliol^ who was in England, was
strongly urged by his friends in Scotland, to ad-
vance to the borders and keep his claims to the
crown, before the people of the country. In a
word, the nation was stirred to its utmost depths,
and all these fierce and discontented spirits, to
whom peace could confer no favor, and confusion
and change might add some considerable gain and
distinction, issued forth from their forts, and moun-
tain holds, allured by the bright prospect of
plunder presented before them, and the large
amount of confusion that must necessarily ensue.
In this trying emergency the eyes of the good
and patriotic were directed towards the King of
England, and he was appointed umpire to settle
52
STRAY LEAVES.
ill '
the succession to the throne of Scotland. Amid
the various competitors that presented themselves,
it was thought that he would act with justice and
honor in the selection he would make, and for
kindnesses he had already received at the hands of
the nation, and of their late monarch, this much
might have been expected of him. He could not
have forgotten that in 1267,when Henry the Third,
his late father, and he were driven to the greatest
extremities by the Earl of Gloucester, and other
Barons, whom their cruel exactions had forced to
take up arms, aided by the citizens of London, who
were wild and furious against them ; and when
the enraged assailants besieged them in the Tower
with a large force, from which it was impossible
to extricate themselves, and when their lives were
in imminent danger ; how in their last extremity
they had applied to Alexander, King of Scotland,
who hastened to their rescue with 30,000 men and
relieved them from their perilous condition.
Besides all this he was a near connection of the
late king and of his daughter, and all things con-
sidered it might have been supposed he would
have acted justly in the matter, and been careful
not to betray thi trust that a confiding people had
generously reposed in him. But gratitude for past
favors was no characteristic of Edward's, and his-
tory afifords no other example of such tortuous,
unprincipled and selfish policy as he manifested
from the outset, when he began to concern himself
with the affairs of Scotland. But the truth is
STRAY LEAVES.
S8
from the first he set his heart on the acquisition
of the country ; and when the factions became
rampant an English historian informs us, he could
not conceal his exultation from his privy council-
lors, but declared to them that the time had
come to reduce Scotland under his sway, as effect-
ually as he had already completed the subjection
of Wales. But yet, although he rejoiced to see
everything tending to anarchy and confusion,
with that prudent caution which formed a prom-
inent feature in his character, he carefully con-
cealed his purposes, and waited for the time when,
wiUi the nation's consent, he could interfere with-
out suspicion in the political affairs of the country.
At the same time he neglected no opportunity of
evincing the most sincere friendship for all con-
cerned, and expressed confidence that the troubles
might soon terminate; while he was carefully
devising means to augment them, and undermine
and destroy the liberties of the countrj^ At this
time many of the nobles of Scotland were of
Norman extraction, and held large possessions in
Scotland and England, and over several of these
Edward exercised great influence. Baliol in
particular, one of the competitors for the Scotch
crown, liad been won over to his interest, although
then this was not known to others, and had the
meanness of being willing to accept the crown at
his hand, although as his vassal, which he was too
willing to endeavor to grant him. All things
being now ready for the English king to carry
54
STRAY LEAVES.
I! ■\^
'I I.
out his purposes, in virtue of the power delegated
to him as umpire in the succession to the throne,
he commanded the barons of the northern count-
ies of England to meet him with their whole
force at Norham, on the 3rd of June, 1291, whie
the nobility, clergy, and barons of Scotland were
enjoined to assemble at the same place a month
earlier, for the purpose of deliberating on the
succession to the throne, and terminating the
commotion that prevailed in the country. The
real purport of the meeting^ however, was to
inveigle the nation, and force the nobles amid their
divided interests to acknowledge him as Lord
Paramount of Scotland, and ultimately to secure
the crown for himself. When the assembly had
convened, Edward addressed it through his High
Justiciar. He professed to deplore the difficulties
the nation was in, and to regard them with love
and affection notwithstanding of the same. He
stated that he had called them tctgether to do
justice to the competitors for the crown, which
work had been assigned him by the consent of the
nation. That he had undertaken a long journey
as Superior and Lord Paramount of the kingdom
of Scotland, and in such capacity he wished to
administer speedy and ample justice to all. My
master, therefore, adds the Hi<2;h Justiciar in a
tone of authority and self-importance, requires of
each and all of you, the prelates, nobles and barons
of Scotland, to acknowledge him as your true and
undoubted Lord Superior, from whom you hold
STRAY LEAVES.
55
your lands, and whose decision as such you are
bound to obey. The whole assembly stood as if
petrified when listening to such statements, and
gazed upon one another with astonishment for
some time without giving any reply. At last one
of their number, bolder than the others, dared to
break silence, stood up and declared that this was
the first time that they had ever heard that the
King of England possessed the right of superiority
over Scotland; and without violating the oaths
taken after the death of their late king, they could
not come to any resolution regarding it without
having time to deliberate, and consult the people.
Irritated by this bold reply, the irrascible king
stood up and swore by holy Edward, whose crown
he wore, that he would vindicate his just rights
to the crown of Scotland or perish in the attempt.
Still the Scots requested delay, but with all their
earnestness for it, Edward finding that he had
them completely under his control, only granted
them three weeks for the consideration of this
important matter. In that short period he knew
that amid the divided state of the country and
the intrigues of the competitors for the crown,
no force of any consequence could be collected to
thwart his unjust purposes; and that everything
would turn out as he had anticipated. In this he
was not disappointed, as the meeting that was to
take place three weeks after will show. The 2nd
of June dawned brightly on ancient Norham's
" castled steep," and a scene was to be witnessed
^'-
I
V
.! '
STRAY LEAVES.
around its massive walls that was to give it a
degree of importance in all time coming. The
castle stood on a steep bank of the Tweed, about
six miles up from Berwick. In all the border wars
it occupied an important position, and was often
in the hfAuds of the Scotch, as well as those of the
English. Its extensive ruins still show it to have
been a place of great magnificence and of strength,
and, although the fierce combatants that contended
for its possession have long since been forgotten ;
in its sombre ruins it still graces Tweed's fair
river, deep and broad, as its silvery waters hasten
on to the sea, and looks forth on some of the
most romantic scenery that the eye can gaze upon.
Nine combatants for the Scottish crown had has-
tened to cross the borders with a vast number of
their respective vassals and nobles and barons,
who had arrayed themselves in their interests.
They wished to be in time at Norham to await
the decision of a false umpire for the succession
to the Scottish crown ; although his previous utter-
ances had assured them that the successful candi-
date would have to forswear for ever the inde-
pendence of his country. Edward had taken up his
residence here some time before the day appointed
for the decision, and the elite of England had
crowded within the walls of the massive build-
ings. On the day appointed, the prelates, nobles
and barons of Scotland assembled in Holywell
Haugh, a level plain opposite the castle, and await-
ed with breathless anxiety to hear the name of the
STRAY LEAVES.
57
successful candidate for the crown heralded forth ;
but in this they were disappointed. The king
brought them together only for the purpose of rivet-
ing the chains for ever on them and the nation,
and wlienhe had accomplished this, all other things
were of minor importance in his eyes. The bi«hop
of Bath and Wells was appointed to open the con-
ference, and in doing so informed the competitors
that the first step to be taken was to acknowledge
Edward, his master, as Lord Paramount of Scotland,
and in virtue of this right, when formally recog-
nized by the competitors, would he proceed to
determine the succession to the throne. Then
turning to Bruce, the Lord of Annandale, aud
Baliol, and enquiring whether they would be
content to receive judgment in this capacity as
competitors for the crown and to abide by the
decision, they unhesitatingly replied that they
were content to await justice at his hands as Lord
Superior of Scotland, and forthwith affixed their
seals to an instrument which recorded their
solemn surrender of the liberty of their country.
The rest of the competitors for the crown imitated
their example, and for an empty bauble deliber-
ately committed a crime that for many a year to
come brought ruin and desolation on the country,
and reflected disgrace upon their descendants in
all time coming. Edward having gained his point
was in no way anxious to fulfil his previous prom-
ise, but affecting much difficulty and gravity in
the matter, which
long
I
{
If
r
58
STRAY LEAVES.
r-
his own mind, broke off the conference after
receiving the homage of Bruce, Baliol and the
other competitors, and sending copies of the oaths
of fealty and of the proceedings regarding the
right of his superiority to the various monasteries
throughout Scotland. Meanwhile, to blind the
eyes of Bruce and the other competitors (except-
ing Baliol, who knew what the result would be)
he appointed commissioners from both countries
to assist him in the decision. He travelled through
Scotland demanding of freemen of all ranks and
conditions to take the oaths of fealty to himself,
and if not in name, at least in deed, virtually
installed himself as the real sovereign of the
country. Putting off the claims of the respective
candidates from time to time he at last held a
meeting of his Parliament at Berwick in the
autumn of the same year, and in the presence of a
large number of nobles and prelates from both
countries declared John Baliol to be the lawful
monarch of Scotland ; because he declared it had
been established by the laws of England and of
Scotland that the more remote in degree in the
first line, which he happened to be from Alexan-
der the Third, had ever been held to exclude the
nearer in the second degree, which Bruce was.
He then, with a large amount of parade, demanded
the regent of Scotland to hand over the castles and
fortresses into the hands of their sovereign, broke
the great seal of the country in four pieces and
deposited the fragments in the English treasury ;
STRAY LEAVES.
59
and when he had once more sworn fealty to hi,s
Lord Paramount, the puppet kiuj^ repaired to Scone
with his partisans to go through the mock cere-
mony of a coronation. But he was soon convinced
that he was less a king than a vassal of his Eng-
lish master, and that Edward was resolved to
stretch the prerogative that had heen foolishly
assigned to him to the utmost extent. Summons
after summons was issued by Edward for Baliol
to appear before him in London on the most
frivolous pretence. They were supposed to be
intended to irritate the silly monarch and goad him
on to resistance. But whether they were so or
not, Baliol found his kingly power only a nullity ;
and goaded on to rebellion he shook off the yoke
of his imperious master and procured the Pope's
absolution from the oath of fealty he had so rashly
taken. Edward, hearing of this, advanced to
Berwick with a powerful army and fleet, and
attacked this rich and wealthy place, at that time
the rival of London, and took it, carrying away a
large amount of booty ; while men, women and
children were promiscuously put to death, and for
days the streets ran red with blood. It has never
since raised its head among the commercial cities
of the country. Edward next resolved upon
making himself master of the castle of Dunbar, at
that time one of the most important strongholds
in Scotland. The Earl of Surrey was despatched
for this purpose, the Scotch army was defeated
in the neighborhood, the castle taken, and, as the
60
STRAY LEAVES.
I
country was now at the mercy of the victor. Baliol
was compelled to resign his crown and carried a
prisoner to London, where he remained for three
years in confinement in the Tower till he was re-
leased at the intercession of the King of France
and sent over to that country, where he died of a
broken heart, neglected and forgotten. Every-
thing had now turned out according to Edward's
wishes in Scotland, and with the feelings of a
vandal he proceeded to destroy everything that
established the ancient independence of that
country. He carried oflf the chair of state in which
the kings of Scotland were seated on the day of
their coronation. He plundered the monasteries
of the documents that went to establish the anti-
quity and independence of the nation. He carried
along with him the crown and sceptre, and after
receiving the homage of the clergy and nobles and
appointing a governor and other English officials
in his name, with a new seal with the arms of
England upon it, he returned in triumph to Eng-
land, no doubt thinking his work was now finally
accomplished. But with all the deep-laid policy,
injustice and cruelty of this crafty monarch, he
soon found he was sadly mistaken in all his calcu-
lations in regard to the conquest of Scotland. It is
true for years afterwards he brought the nation to
the brink of ruin, and his own people to the brink
of bankruptcy in maintaining a bloody war at an
enormous expense, in which oceans of blood were
shed, but no real benefit was derived. He trans-
STRAY LEAVES.
formed two friendly nations that had previously
lived on terms of friendship and good-will into
the most bitter enemies. By his unjust and insane
pretensions to the Scottish crown he turned whole
counties north and south of the Tweed, the most
fertile in the island, into deserts, and their inhabits
ants into robbers and cut- throats. But happily
for the good of both nations his object was never
attained, for when a dark funereal pall hung over
the nation, and the nobles hid themselves for fear
and dread. Providence raised up one who was des-
tined to dissipate the gloom, and to assure his
countrymen that liberty, however dearly bought,
was preferable to everything else.
I
■ '
i
!
CHAPTER IV.
♦
Wallace's blrth-placo and parentage. Of Norman extraction.
His projL^enitors po8wibly came to Scotland about the
time of Henry the First of England, and appear as
witnesses in the signing of lloyai cliarterw to two
Abbeys, which afterwards became famous. A large
tract of land conceded to his ancestors by the Steward
of Scotland in the Kyle. All of them animated with
strong patriotic feelings. His father and brother both
slain by the English. And Wallace forced to flee from
his paternal home. Cast upon the care of his mother
and uncle, both of whom taithfuUy performed their
duties. Eemoved to the Seminary at Dundee, and there
])roperly instructed. The Seminaries attached to the
churches up to the requirements of the times. The oj)po-
site opinion often entertained. While hero a strong
attachment sprung up between Wallace and a young
Benedictine Monk, which continued throughout life. An
association likewise formed among the youths of the
Seminary to maintain patriotic feelings and chasten the
insolence of the EngUsh soldiers. Through insults oilcred,
Wallace so provoked as to slay the governor's son ; the
act excited great commotion and caused him to flee
from the town. Outlawed, and a great price put upon
his head ; closely pursued by his enemies, and compelled
for many weeks to conceal himself in the thickets of
the forest. At last miwle known to his friends his place
of concealment and communicated with them. At the
entreaty of his mother moved far away to a place of
secui'ity.
William Wallace was born at EUerslie, near
Paisley, in the County of Renfrew, Scotland, on
LIFE OF STR WTLIJAM WALLACE.
63
the 5th day of August, 1270. He wastlio necond
son of Sir Malcolm Wallace of Ellerslie, and his
mother was daughter of Sir Reginald Craw lord,
sherifT of Ayr. Although not descended of one
of the greatest and richest families of the country
his progenitors were nevertheless respectahle and
honorable. They were said to have come origin-
ally from Normandy, in France, whose inhabitants,
for their heroic deeds, were long celebrated over
the whole of Europe. At first they settled in
England, some time after the Norman conquest of
it, and for aught we know, the blood of some
famous knight, who led a forlorn hope on the
ensanguined field of Hastings, tingled in their
veins. But although the same knight might have
assisted to sweep away the Saxon Monarchy after
it had endured for upwards of six hundred years,
with the brave Harold, the last of its sovereigns,
at its head, who fell, sword in hand, toward the
close of a smiling but eventful October day ; one
of his descendants, the subject of our memoir,
lived to prove the most terrible enemy Edward,
the hammer of Scotland, and great successor of
William the Conqueror, ever had. It was long
after the Norman conquest of England, before
any of the name of Wallace turns up in Scotland.
The first of them appears towards the close of
the reign of Beuclerc, who was married to
Matilda, the daughter of the King of Scotland.
The relations at this time were close and confid-
ing between the two kingdoms. Great numbers
64
rfFK OF HIH WJIJIAM WALrAr/H.
f !
of KiigliHli N<)nniu» kniglilH Hoiifjjlit for inililnry
(liHtiiuMion iiiultM' tlio hivniMMM of t)i(' Kiii^; ot'
SootliHul, jumI jis Ji rowanl lur IIumi* H(»rvi<M>M, Imi^;o
tracts oT land wiTo asHi^iuMl to iminv <>1' llwiii
nordi i>r llu» TwiH'd. In tluH way, in all liko-
liluxnl, tho lirHt of tlu» WallavoH mado IIhmt
Hppraranci'. For ont* of (liiMn tnrns u|) an wKni'HH-
ing to a oharliM' to Iho AbNoyol' Mclroso, granted
by iho King, in I TJS, and strangle to nay, thirty
years altorwards hisson. Kichard Walla(V,a|>|>(M\rH
in tho same connection, when the Lord High
Steward of ScotlantI granted a charter of the
sanu kind to tlie Ahh(»N'ot' Paisley ; which marks
ont the I'aniily oi Walhuu* at. this early period as
men of high trust ami religions hearing. The
same ]iowerl*ul haron gaye the Wallace tjimily a
lariiv lirant ot* land in the district ol' Kyle, of
which KiUerslie formed a ])art, so that at the time
of the hirth of onr hero. Sir Malcolm Wallace, his
father, was one of the most powerful of the lesser
barons to be t\)und in the western part of Scot-
land. But although descended of a Norman
Englisli stock, he \yas a true Scotchman and
patriot in all his feelings. He beheld with distress
the woetul condition to which his country had
ft'
lK>en reduced, through the ^yrongs and the cruel-
ties intiicted on it by Edward, the usurper of the
Scottish crown. And if tradition be correct he
inspired his eldest son with the same feelings,
for, rather than sAvear fealty to Edward, he died
fighting manfully by his father's side for the liber-
S
■4
■A
IJFH O/r S!lf WTLfJA^I WAf,f,Af'K.
0ft
ti<'H of Ihm comitry. 'PIi'ih ni('lnu(^lioly cirriim-
Htnn<'(» (ook pliico while WiHiniii WcIIiun' wn,H ji
mere cliild, wliicli llircvv him (Mitin»lv on the euro
of hin tiiolhcr, ii, woimiiior Hiri}j!;iihir hrMiiily, ^fcnt,
rcHohilioii 1111(1 iinlcnt piety inixcd up with lu^roif!
€ourMg«Hiinl torvont pill riot iHin. She proved that
plic WMH worthy of Hiich n, hou, niid thoii<rh nhf*
IInmmI ill 11 luMii^htcd ii^e, her mind roH(Mihov(? all
itH de^nidin^ tendrncicH, and m1i«' lnr<i:<dy imhiicd
hor Hon with II love tor (Jod'H Word, which Ik? lonnd
iirtcrwardH a Htroiif^ tower and rock of defence in
the iiiosi trviiif:;circiiniHtMiM'eH, and imj>reHHed upon
ITiM mind iin ardent desin? lor ever Hpeakin^ tho
trill h, and iirlin^i; on lioneHi convictiofiH in what-
<»ver circiniiHlanceM h(^ nii^dil. hc^ |)la(!ed. A\, the
HMiiie time hIk^ ever wi.shed him to cln^riHh nri
nrdeni love lor the memorieM of Ihe Ixdoved oik^h
wlio had heen ho nitlil(!HHly nliiin, and who had
freely devoted their liven to the nervicc of their
<;oiuitry. So much, indeed, were thcHe fcolin^H
on«i;ravcn from th(^ lirnt on an otlu^rwiHo ardent arid
sennitive heart. Unit at the time thc^y were only
be}i;iiiiiiiijLi; to iiianifeHt thiuiiHelveH in ordinary
youths of the Hiime iii^e, and at this trying period
of their country's hintory, they Inid hocome
stronii; as death in the hoHom of our hero. lie
brooded liiceHHantly over the de<^radation of his
€omitry, and also over liis friends who had been
so ruthlessly slain, and as soon as reason dawned
upon his infant mind, he vowed by everything
sacred to wipe off the foul stain and to avenge their
E
6d
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
death. After the death of his father, Walhice
appears to have become an object of suspicion to
the English, and to have been driven from liis
paternal home and everything he there esteemed
dear, to avoid their suspicions; and after spending
vsome years in secrecy in diiferent parts of the
country with his motlier, he was phiced under the
guardianship of his uncle, the abbot of Dumpace,
in Stirlingshire. The scenery of this lovely spot
for beauty and variety has few equals in Scotland,
and the contemplation of it and a rehearsal of
the deeds of valor here achieved in the past would
tend to cherish those longings after the liberation
of his country that had begun to struggle in his
youthful bosom. In front of the Abbey were the
remains of the Roman wall, where the conquerors
of the world had to stop short in the midst of their
victorious career. Near to it were to be seen the
mounds that were still considered by the natives
of the country as the resting i)laces of the mighty
dead, the chiefs, namely, of Caledonia, who fell
fighting while they achieved a glorious victory
over their mighty foes. And as the dark waters
of the Carron dashed by, on w^hose banks freemen
till now had ever trod, they seemed to whisper in
the ears of the youth that Scotland nught yet be
free. Wallace found in his uncle, the pious
abbot, everything he could wish. He proved
towards him a kind friend and faithful counsellor,
and acted in every respect as a beloved parent.
Although retired from the world he was nevertlle-
LIFE OF SIR WILTJAM WALLACE.
07
-ii'
lo»s a geiitlcnican and a scholar, and knew the
education that was necessary for his nephew in
that !ige of heroic daring. Whether he had any
idea at this time of the future greatness of his
youthful relative, history does not inform us, hut
he certainly left no means of improving him in all
those manly sports and exercises with which a
youth in his position in life might he expected to
he conversant. There is no other way of account-
ing for the fact that when Providence called him
out for the defence of his country, he appeared
ready for the great work, and soon gained himself
the love and esteem of his countrymen. His uncle
heing a line scholar, and fond of the ancient classics
himself, infused a great love for them into the
mind of his youthful relative, and as he was at the
same time a devoted patriot, like his relatives on
hoth sides, he often deeply hewailed the degraded
state of his country in his presence, and caused
him to commit to memory those suhlime passages
in the writings of the ancients where liberty is
extolled and tyranny and slavery desecrated.
After leaving Dumpace, Wallace went to reside
at Kilspendie with a powerful relative of his
moth(*.r. This village was situated in the Carse
of Gowrie, a vale which stretches for many miles
along the northern bank of the river Tay, and
which has been fitly denominated the garden of
Scotland, owing to the richness and fertility of its
soil. It ^s cultivated throughout like a garden,
and being separated on the north from Strathmore
e8
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
^ f
k
by a beautiful ridj!;e of undubiting bills, and
bouuilod on tbo soutb by tbo Tiiy, tlio largOHt river
in Scoibind, it ailbrds a, picture of rural repose and
unassuniini^: b)velines8 tbat can bardlvbe found in
any otber portion of tliis fair ear tli. After staying
for some time at tins [)bice Walhice was removed
by bis friends to tlie town of Dundee, to complete
bis studies so well begun witb liis uncle. Even at
tbistime Dundee was a place of considerable trade
and importance, and now in point of population and
manufactures ranks as tbe tbird town in Scotland.
Its barbor is tbe finest on tbe east coast of Scot-
land, and in tbe manufacture of jute and some
otber fabrics it outstrips all otber places. Its in-
babitauts bave always been remarkable for tbeir
patriotism, intelligence, and liberal sentiments;
and in tbe defence of tbe civil aiid religious rigbts
of tboir country bave stood in tbe front ranks.
Perhaps, tbis spirit was early infused into tbeir
minds from tbe fact tluit Scotland's patriot resided
at tbe outset amongst tbem, and bere commenced
bis struggle for tbe liberation of bis country.
Wben be came to Dundee be was placed in tbe
seminary attacbed to tbe catbedral of tbe place ;
but bow long be continued to pursue his studies in
it we bave no means of determining, owing to tbe
confusion of tbe times tbat followed and tbe des-
truction of all its records. It appears, however,
from bis after history tbat be must bave remained
aconsiderable time there, and prosecuted his studies
witb perseverance and success. For wben be ap-
TJFl': OF SIR WIIJJAM WALLACE.
r,9
penrcMl on the public stage of lile, he wti8 in no way
(ieficient in any of tliose natural or ac(iuired
qualities that would fit liini for becoming a great
lejider of the pe()[)le. This and other circumstances
shewed tliat he lijul largely profited by the in-
structions of the learned and pious monks who
directed his studies, and that they cjirefuliy ibl-
lowed up what had been connnunicated to him
previously by his aftectionjite inicle and devoted
mother. We are not one of those that run down
the religion and teachings of the past because they
were conhned entirely to the Catholic Chinx^h, or
believe that she acted throughout on the motto,
that ignorance was the mother of devotion. The
educational institutions throughout the country
attached to numy of the al)beys and cathedrals were
then thoroughly ecpiipped, onducted by the best
educated men of the age,ana up to the re([uirements
of the times. The instructions thev delivered
were largely impregnated with a religious and
moral charjicter id never dissociated fi'om the
intellectual and utilitarian, in order that education
might be left to address itself to the youthful mind
merely in the meaner purposes of life. They con-
sidered the pupil first in his relation to his Creator,
and then in regard to that of his fellow-men ; and,
as might have been expected, love to God, honor
to parents, and devotion to the interests of his
country were inculated upon him as of paramount
importance. How dilferent from the secular edu-
cation now in vogue among many of our leading
!
i
I
70
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
educationists! when the pupil, amid the super-
ficiality, extreme selfishness and money-making
tendencies of the age, is taught mainly how he may
disport himself afterwards so far as the meaner
purposes of life are concerned ; or in other words,
how smart he may become, and how much money
he may make. But it ought ever to be remem-
bered that any education will be feeble and
fragmentary, where religion and moral teaching
are overlooked, and when the minds of the pupil
are rarely directed to things of the highest impor-
tance. That the instructions communicated to the
students in the seminaries in the days of Wallace
were different from the above, there cannot be a
doubt. They were founded on religion and
morality, while the secular and utilitarian portion
of the education required were not ignored.
Above all, a spirit of affection for their country,
and of a pure patriotism amid all the darkness and
confusion of the times that prevailed, was largely
dwelt upon by the instructors, as it burned in-
tensely in their breasts. For not referring again
to the uncle of Wallace, to prove the truth of
our assertion, we find that several dignitaries of
the Church beside him struck wdtli our hero for
libertv when the chances for ob* \ininf!; it were
few and small, and the nobles of the country, as
a body, stood aloof. And at an after date the
patriotism of that venerable man,the pious abbot of
Inchaftray, a high dignitary of the Church, ought
never to be forgotten, but to kindle a glow of
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
VI
affection in the breasts of bis countrymen wbere-
ever tbey may be found. For barefooted and
bareheaded, he walked, crucifix in hand, in front of
the surging, heaving masses, that constituted the
Scotch army that was drawn out on the field of
Bannockburn. He there caused them to kneel down
in the view of proud Edward's threatening host, to
receive the solemn rites of the Church, and to
pledge themselves that they would either conquer
or die on the spot. And by this act of devotion
to his Church, and to the interests of his country,
downtrodden as it was and oppressed, lie largely
contributed to the results that followed on that
memorable, glorious, but bloody day. When at-
tending the Seminary at Dundee, Wallace formed
an acquaintance with John Blair a Benedictine
monk, who was pursuing his studies with himself.
He was a youth about the same age, and resembled
our hero greatly in character and temperament.
The longer they remained together their attach-
ments became.stronger and their patriotism increas-
ed ; and these attachments were only dissevered
when Wallace was ruthlessly slain. Wallace had
previously chosen him as his chaplain, and he faith-
fully adhered to him amid all the vicissitudes of
his eventful career. When dead he deplored his
loss as greater to himself and to his country than
every other they had sustained ; and he appears to
have spent the remainder of his days in writing
the life of his patron in Latin, a work to Avhich
Blind Harry appears to have been largely indebted
72
LIFE OF SIR W ILLFAM WALLACE.
U
for many of the facts he lias recorded in his life
of our hero ; but a work which unfortunately has
been lost for many centuries. While pursuing
their studies, Wallace, Blair, and others of a kin-
dred spirit, used fre(|uently to meet together to
mourn over the degradation of their country, and
divscuss the most probable means of liberating it
from its terrible state of thraldom. In order ta
begin the work, they formed an association for the
purpose of chastising the English whenever oppor-
tunity presented itself This would often occur,
for the English soldiers ransacked every portion
of the town and country, destroying life and
property, and committing many acts of lewd-
ness which had to be borne in patience and
silence, however outrageous they might appear.
When first formed this association might have
been considered even by the most ardent friends
of liberty, as little else than an outburst of
youthful zeal and over-heated fervor, and its
doings of very little moment. But though at the
outset it might have appeared but the cloud like
the man's hand, through which a faint streak of
light was scarcely perceptible ; yet this cloud soon
covered the heavens and ushered in the blaze of a
glorious day. And other collegiate associations
formed among some of the students at a more
recent date at other seminaries have been at~
tended by results perhaps equally remarkable,
though the objects contemplated vv^ere of a differ-
ent character. We need only refer to one of
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
•78
such. It is not a century yet since four young
men attending the university of the northern
capital of Britain, formed themselves into a society
for the purpose of learning to del)ate, to write
essays and to declaim. And this gave inception
to tlie " Edinburgh Review," the parent of all pe-
riodical literature in modern times. It so(m toned
down and liberalized thought in politics and liter-
ature everywhere. It was long considered as the
voice of the most enlightened public opinion in
both hemispheres on all (juestions respecting poli-
tics, science and literature ; and the good that has
resulted from many of its brilliant articles, neither
the present nor the next generation will be able
sufficiently to appreciate. After the association
was formed by Wallace and his fellow-collegians
in Dundee, for defending themselves and the help-
less among their countrymen from the cruelties and
insolence exercised towards them by the English
soldiers who occui)ied the castle, frequent opportuni-
ties occurred for enabling them so to do. For the
wanton outrages of the invaders were so frequent
and of so serious a kind, if they had not been re-
strained, as would render the lives of the helpless
portion of the inhabitants positively miserable,
while they were beyond the reach of any redress
whatever. But although the juvenile exploits of
the members of the association appeared of too
little importance to attract the notice of those
in power, they nevertheless often exercised a
severe check in regard to the actions of the Eng-
u
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
lish, and defended many of their countrymen
from positive loss, wanton assault and danger like-
wise. In their exploits, as the reader might expect,
Wallace was assigned the leadership by his com-
rades, and he never disappointed them in the
execution of the same. He possessed judgment
to devise the most daring undertakings against
his sworn foes, and capacity to carry them out,
oftentimes to the astonishment of all. So tha*
when any work was undertaken they began to feel
assured it would be successfully performed, what-
ever difficulties might occur ; for what prudence
and foresight could devise, dexterity and strength
could accomplish, all of these qualities he wonder-
fully possessed. In this manner — which is gene-
rally the case — what appeared to be in the youth
were seen in the man, and the same qualities his
youthful associates now experienced in him were
afterwards found out by the patriotic everywhere
throughout the country. While a number of the
exploits of Wallace and his youthful friends es-
caped the notice of the public authorities, one
happened to occur of so grave importance as to end
in his having to flee from Dundee, and to be de-
clared an outlaw by the governor of the castle.
Selby, the governor referred to, had but recently
succeeded to that office, and superseded a better
man on account, it is supposed, of his manifesting
too much kindness and leniency towards the op-
pressed inhabitants of the town. The same Selby
was the head of a freebooting family in the north
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
•75
of England, and a man entirely suited to
Edward's tastes. From the first he was bent
on the obtainment of spoil and plunder, and
he cared not what means might be used pro-
vided he could only succeed in doing so. He
had a scapegrace of a son who had rendered
himself peculiarly obnoxious to the inhabitants
of the place. He was fiery, impetuous and sensual,
and imagined he could act in much the same way
as he had been in the custom of doing, w^ien con-
ducting with his father raids across the borders
with a band of cut- throats in his train. Hearing
no doubt of Wallace soon after he arrived in the
town, he resolved to give him all the annoyance
he could in order to provoke a quarrel with him,
and meeting him accordingly one day in the street
he openly and rashly insulted him. But although
he had the power of the governor to back him in
doing so, he mistook his man. Wallace at once
resented the insult, and though surrounded by a
crowd of retainers, he singled him out in the midst
of them, and with his sword levelled him dead on
the street. The companions of young Selby
gathered around the youthful hero, and assured
themselves of his immediate capture. But they
were sorely mistaken in him, for after slaying
several of them he succeeded in making his escape
to the house of a female dependent, where he was
concealed from his pursuers and shielded from their
vengeance till he succeeded in leaving the town
in safety. The governor, as might have been
ie
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
I
expected, was tlirown into a wild paroxysm of
grief and rage at the conduct of Wallace, and the
unexpected death of his son. lie hardly could
have expected such a bold act in the very neigh-
borhood of the castle and within hearing of the
guards, and how Wallace could have escaped to a
place of safety was all but beyond his comprehen-
sion. Meanwhile parties in all directions were
sent in pursuit of the daring fugitive. He was
declared to be an outlaw, and every possible means
were employed to secure his person dead or alive.
A large sum of money was set upon his head, but
he eluded all his pursuers, and laughed to scorn
their vigorous but vain attempts to secure his
person. Providence, however, had more things
in store for him, and his country waited too anx-
iously for a leader, than that he should thus early
fall into the hands of an enemy, who from first to
last thirsted without abatement for his blood. For
many weeks Wallace wandered among the woods
and impenetrable retreats of the country to avoid
the search of an enemy who had been so anxious
to secure his person. And although he had eluded
their grasp, it had cost him a large amount of
sufiering, and self-denial to do so ; and all com-
munication had been cut off from his friends for
many a day. It rejoiced them at last, however,
to find out that he was still alive and lurking in
the neighborhood of Kilspendie, a place where
some really happy days had been spent with his
friends while a youth, but alas ! they were now
gone for ever.
CHAPTER V.
s
Motherly affection a principle strong and aliidinij. Powcr-
fnily manifested itself in the breast of the mother of
Niehol the poet, and likewise in that of Wallace's mother.
Communicated with liim while hid from the Kn^Iish,
and arran«;ed a pilgi-imai>;e to the shrine of 8t. i^Iar-
gai'ct's, Dumfries, then a favorite resort from Scotland
and Knu!;h\nd. After this, Wallace turns np in Clydes-
dale, where his adventurous exploits bei'an to attract
notice. Began to draw around him a chosen band of
youths who were animateil with the same spirit as him-
self Preferred a life of precarious yet unrestrained
liberty to the promise of peace at the hands of those
wlio were oppressing them. Found in Wallace a leader
suited to their inclinations. Resources of mind to
devise and skill to carry out the most hazardous enter-
prize. Nor were his followers, from the tirst, all
gathered from the lowest ranks of life. Some of the
noblest families of the land, from nearly the outset,
identified their interests with his. By this timeAVallace
had grown up to manhood, and possessed every quality
that would entitle him to be considered by his followers
a great leader. His confidence in his Creator gieat
from the outset'. Never forsook him on any occasion.
His courage of the most undaunted and tried character.
Nerved him when exposed to the most terrible odds.
Possessed of an unbounded, generous nature. Gave a
large share of the spoils taken from the enemy to his
adherents, and reserved little for himself. Always
willing to forgive injuries, but treachery and falsehood
he never would forgive. Possessed a genius remarkably
fertile in devising expedients in the way of anticipating
w
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
II ■ I
I' '
(lan;:(cr and warding it off. A kocn oyo also and remark-
ably retentive memory, llin physical ])Owers were
extraordinary, and greater than those allotted to most
of the Hons of men. Description of them by Jolin of
Tordun. His eloquence easy and natural. Predicted
})y Thonms the Ilhynier as the future deliverer of his
country. Already the shrewd soer beheld an uneasy
feeling throughout tlio country and a storm near at
liand, and Wallace the most likely person to i)ilot tlio
vessel of the State through it. Edward had left the
country, as he supposed, completely subdued, but the
work bad not 3'et begun. When tp*ants imagine they
stand securely, then they often fall.
The love of a mother towards her offspring is strong
and abiding. It continues unabated during all the
varied phases of life, and doubtless, in a more
expansive and elevated sphere, the same feeling
will largely develop itself, and afford means of
much enjoyment to its possessor. It is recorded
that when Nicliol the poet was dying in the South,
he communicated with his mother in Scotland, a
widow in the humblest ranks of life, that he was
anxious to see her. He had no pecuniary assist-
ance to send her, and she had no means to take
her to the place where he resided. But the inge-
nuity of a mother placed in such circumstances is
always remarkable, and suited to the occasion.
Being the time of harvest, and the fields clothed
with smiling grain, she resolved to hire herself
out to a farmer in the neighborhood of Perth,
and earn with her sickle a scanty sum, to afford
her supplies by the way. And starting, she trav-
elled for several hundred miles on foot, arrived
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
ta
If
toil-worn and weary, at the dying chamber of her
p,ifted son before the taper of life had expired,
and aflorded him such consolation as a mother
alone could grant. This feeling of maternal
love manifested itself largely in the person
of Wallace's accomplished and pious mother,
and particularly in the trying circumstances in
which he was now placed. At the time he escaped
from his enemies in Dundee, proclaimed to be an
outlaw, and a large sum of money offered for his
apprehension, she was living with a powerful and
wealthy relative in the Carse of Gowrie. But for
a longtime all communication had ceased between
her and her son, owing to the keenness of the
pursuit of his enemies, and because he had to con-
ceal himself for many weeks amidst the thickets
of the forests. After a Avhile, when her serious
apprehensions of his safety were removed, she
opened communications with him, and urged
upon him the necessity of removing as ftir
as possible from the reach of his enemies. He
resolved forthwith to obey her injunctions, and
procuring for themselves the garb of pilgrims,
such as were assumed by many at that time in all
the ranks of life according to the tendencies of
the age, they proceeded to the shrine of St.
Margarets at Dumfries. The saint, whose ashes
were deposited here, was the wife of Malcolm
Canmore, King of Scotland, a lady remarkable for
her piety and good works, as far as we have any
accounts given of her by historians. Being the
I I
i
if
I, 1 ;|
1
1
1
11
HI ^
« ^'
P '
l«
mA
_^ii
80
LIFE OF STR W/LLIArd WALLACE.
lineal descendant of the last of the Saxon mon-
archs, in her marriage she united the Scotch and
Saxon lines together ; and as her daughter married
Henry the First the son of William the Con-
queror, the Normans and the Saxons were also,
through her, happily blended together. Great
respect was shown to this saint of the royal blood
at this period and long afterwards ; and thousands
of pilgrims of all classes, from every part of
Scotland, and many from England, did penance at
her shrine. Wallace and his mother did so like-
wise, and having performed his religious devotions,
next turns up in the West of Scotland, where
many of his great exploits were at the outset of his
public career |^ .^-formed. Thirsting for revenge,
he spurned the offer of several of his friends
to get the act of outlawry passed against him
repealed, and placing his devoted mother under
the protection of her brother, the sheriff of Ayr,
he betook himself once more to the woods. He
soon began to render himself notorious by his ad-
venturous exploits,throughout Ayr and the neigh-
bouring counties, undertaken against the English.
In these he was generally successful, although
accompanied often with hair-breadth escapes, and
took signal vengeance on many of the small
garrisons of the enemy, scattered everywhere over
the country. The longer he continued to exercise
himself in this guerilla warfare, the more expert
he became, and appeared the more formidable to
his enemies. So much so, that even at the present
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
81
to
to
mt
day, the more intelligent portion of the inhabit-
ants of this portion of the country are still a])le
to point with a large degree of pride to many an
upright stone, many a secret cave, many a half
obliterated fort, where the champion of their
liberties inflicted terrible revenge on the foes of
his native country. Nor did he appear to have
remained long single-handed in this arduous work
he'had now ('Cgun. His talents, vigor and long-
ing aspirations after liberty soon gathered around
him a chosen band of youths who were filled with
the same spirit as himself. They were sad to think
that the sun that had now apparently set had con-
tinued to shine so long upon the liberties of their
country ; for his benign rays were traceable from
the days of Galgachus, the great Caledonian chief,
down to those of Alexander the Third, when the
reign of truth, virtue, and justice was maintained
throughout the land. And becoming reckless and
intrepid, owing to the present unsatisfactory con-
dition of their country, they were prepared to
[)refer a life of precarious, yet unrestrained, al-
though savage liberty in the caves and woods of
their native land, to the promise of peace and of
comfort at the hand of those who were its sworn
enemies. Such youths would find in Wallace a
leader exactly adapted to their disposition, for he
possessed large resources of mind to devise, and
power to execute the most hazardous enterprises ;
and concentrating his love of libert}^ and his ani-
mosity against his oppressors into one deep and
(i !
82
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
I i
* !
If
\\ '
continuous principle, he led them forth from their
hiding places, whenever a fit opportunity offered,
and often inflicted terrible chastisement on their
foes when they least expected it. Nor were those
that followed his standard at the outset, all gather-
ed from the lowest orders of society. Many of
them were of high birth, and the blood of the
noblest families of the land flowed in their veins.
For such were Sir Andrew Murray, Sir William
Douglas, and Sir Robert Boyd, and from the first
two noble patriots, the proud and ancient dukes
of Atliole and Hamilton, are fain to trace their
descent ; and from the last, the noble but latterly
unfortunate Earls of Kilmarnock took their rise.
Besides these he could always rely upon the sup-
port and good-will of the common people, who
not only viewed the proceedings of Wallace and
his associates with indulgence, but with the utmost
pride and satisfaction. And brooding over the ills
of their country, and the spirit of revenge pent up
yet rankling in their honest breasts, they only
wanted a trustworthy leader to conduct them
forth, and avenge themselves on those from whom
they had received terrible injuries. When those
feeble efibrts began to be put forth in behalf of
the liberties of Scotland, by some of its greatest
sons, who were afterwards to figure so conspicu-
ously in its history, and work out for themselves
a wreath of imperishable fame, Wallace, their
leader, had fully grown into manhood, and pos-
sessed all those qualities that would entitle him to
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
83
the esteem and respect of his ardent followers. His
moral qualities, without which no man can be con-
sidered truly great, appeared to have been of a
high order, and shone forth conspicuously from
the outset of his chequered and eventful career.
He firmly trusted in God, as a child does in a
parent, and that he would soon come to avenge
the injuries cruelly inflicted on his prostrate and
bleeding country, drying up its wounds and wiping
away its tears. This confidence in his Maker never
forsook him amid all the remarkable vicissitudes
of a short but eventful life, which has been ren-
dered doubly sublime by its constant, determined
and heroic daring. And even at last, when exposed
to greater sufferings than almost ever fell to the
lot of frail humanity to endure, and when left
alone in the struggle without a kind friend to
manifest a look of compassion, or shed a tear, for
the loss that liberty would sustain ; his lofty spirit,
eager to get loose and soar away to regions beyond
the sky, seemed long to be regardless of the in-
sults and cruel torturings of the body, and held
close communion with the Eternal Being in whom
he confided. His courage was also]; of the most
undaunted and tried character, and an entire
absence of all fear constituted one of its strongest
ingredients. It never forsook him, though it often
made him more rash and venturesome in exposing
his life to imminent danger than his followers
could have wished. But still it was the same prin-
ciple that nerved and bore him up, when exposed
84
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
to terrible oddH on the battle field and elsewhere.
And by it the arms of his followers were upheld,
and their hearts cheered and enlarged, while
they rushed into danger, regardless of the result,
wherever their beloved leader was seen in the
van. He was possessed of an unbounded, generous
nature, for often in distributing the goods and
money which his trusty sword had procured for
him, and his followers, in the taking of a fort or
the slaughtering of some of the wealthiest of
their foes, he generally gave them the larger por-
tion of the spoil, and reserved little or nothing
for himself ; and provided only the liberty of his
country could be secured, he was willing with the
meanest of his followers to share in the tlesh of
the wild beasts for his food, and to be clothed
with their furs ; while the shady forest afforded
him a safe retreat, and the damp and dreary
cavern shelter from the blast and dark howling
tempest, and, what was worse than all, from the
savage pursuit of the foul enemies of his country.
Injuries he was ever ready to forgive, although
indicted on him by the hands of his friends, for
the nobility over the country looked upon him as
an upstart, and with jealousy and suspicion
throughout ; and they did so even although they
ranked themselves on the side of those that were
willing to contend for its liberties. But he freely
forgave them for this injustice and other injuries
received at their hands, and the only things he
never would forgive were treachery and false-
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
86
hood ; for through the former vice he hud wit-
nessed the liberties of his country bartered away
for paltry gold, and the latter he had ever been
taught to hate, from the moment he was able to dis-
tinguish between right and wrong. And we can
easily see why it was the case that he should
punish such vices with the most resolute severity.
There was scarcely any other way of acting in the
circumstances in which he and his followers were
placed. For considering the life he led, and the
broken people that surrounded him, the principles
of honor and good faith were the only bonds of
safety that united them together, and in some
cases perhaps these alone coidd be maintained by
the dread of punishment. He possessed a genius
remarkably fertile in devising expedients, in
the way of anticipating danger when far off, and
of warding it away when it appeared near at hand.
And this enabled him often to thwart the most
cunning devices of his enemies, and to inflict ter-
rible vengeance upon them when they least ex-
pected it. His readiness of eye and retentiveness
of memory, were of such a nature as to enable
him to seize at a glance the features of a country,
and its suitableness for the kind of warfare in
which he was engaged. And for long afterwards
he could keep them in reserve, and turn them to
advantage when an opportunity presented itself
of fighting or covering a retreat. As to his phy-
sical powers, even when we make full allowance
for all the exaggerations of his biographers, they
w**
86
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
i
„
must have been extraordinary, and far greater
than those allotted to the strongest men in a war-
like age. He was possessed of an iron frame,
when he grew up to manhood, he approached nearly
to the gigantic, and his personal strength was
greater than many of the sons of men. And in
those days when such things were highly
prized and commanded respect, they must have
gone far to recommend him to the favorable con-
sideration of his followers. But lest it should be
supposed that we are exaggerating any of the
traits of this remarkable man's character, we
shall quote from Fordoun, no mean authority, and
to whom Scotland owes much. For when the ruth-
less hand of Edward had seized all its records
and consumed them in the flames, lest its inde-
pendence should appear to any, he carefully col-
lected all the manuscripts that had escaped the
hands of this cruel vandal, and which happily
were deposited in the monasteries throughout the
country, beyond his control, and compiled them
into a neat and truthful history, from which the
celebrated Buchanan and others freely copied.
Fordoun, when writing of Wallace, refers to him
as follows : " He was of a tall and almost gigantic
stature, broad shouldered and large boned, with
long and muscular arms, yet thin in the flanks,
and unincumbered with much flesh, or fat round
the reins; of an open and cheerful countenance
and gracious address. In his skill and address in
all warlike exercises he was equal to the most
LIFE OF 'SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
8*7
accomplislied knights of his time, and nature seems
to have liberally endowed him with all the quali-
ties which were calculated to conciliate the affec-
tion of his followers, and to ensure him popularity
with the people." Add to the above description
a facile eloquence which he possessed, wliicli went
straight to the hearts of his followers, and carried
conviction with it before rushing into the field of
battle, or engaging in any great enterprise ; and
we need hardly wonder how his influence soon
became so great among his countrymen, or why it
wos that the celebrated Thomas the Rhymer,
when his fame was at its height, appreciated his
talents and hardihood so highly as to predict that
this was the man that Providence had raised up
to restore the ancient kingdom of Scotland to its
former state of independence, and make its glory
shine forth conspicuously. For the national feel-
ing at this time in Scotland, although very much
repressed, indicated uneasiness and a rising spirit
of resistance near at hand, inasmuch as the cruel
Edward before quitting Scotland, had given strict
orders that all who had not taken the oath of
fealty to England should be compelled to do so
under severe penalties ; and this included the lesser
barons, gentry, and burgesses throughout the
country. It miglit have been easily seen what a
terrible storm this would raise all over the king-
dom, for although the greater barons were bribed
and sold, and silenced, the work of subjection was
not half begun j for many of the lesser ones and
88
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
It!
n
ii
1
the middle classes generally, despising them for
their servile and avaricious spirit, refused to take
the oath, and prepared themselves to fight for the
liberties of their country, whenever an opportun-
ity presented itself. Meanwhile Cressingham, the
governor, a proud, self-sufficient, and ignorant
ecclesiastic,and Ormesby, the justiciary, fanned the
flame, for when firmness, gentleness and modera-
tion were necessary to prevent a general revolt,
they excited universal hatred and disgust in the
mind of all right-thinking men by exacting by force
and military rigor the fulfilment of the orders.
The Rhymer must have noticed all these things,
with the greatest care, and the gathering storm
that was near at hand ; and by means of his shrewd
sagacity he must have been able to see in Wallace
the coming man that was to conjure up the spirits
of his forefathers, who had long before this passed
away to the land of forgetfulness, and who died
to conquer. He had little difficulty in coming to
this conclusion, for the uncommon courage and
strength which Wallace, from the outset of his
career, had already displayed, were proofs positive
that he was destined to act no common part in
the struggle ; and, above all, his unconquerable
thirst for enjoying the sweets of liberty and for
avenging the injuries inflicted on his poor and
sorely afflicted country by the English, was a sure
sign that Providence pointed him out as one that
was to accomplish much. And his followers, like-
wise, must have had ample confidence in him
1
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
89
■i
from the first, on account of these things, and also
for the remarkable judgment his plans disi)layed,
in his various attacks made upon the English. By
such he cut off their straggling parties, surprised
their smaller forts, and spread terror and deso-
lation over the country; and even when sur-
rounded by superior numbers, his singular courage
and bravery were a host in themselves, nerved
his followers to acts of heroic daring, with him-
self, so that victory was sure to be their reward
in the end. Such guerilla war and desultory
excursions were useful to Wallace, for it made him
acquainted with the strongest passes throughout
the country, and where, with few forces, a reso-
lute defence could be made against a much supe-
rior force when it was required; while he was
enabled to acquire habits of command over men
of fierce and turbulent spirits, subdue them to his
own mind, and lead them forward to victories.
For it cannot be denied that, inasmuch as he him-
self was declared a traitor, and a large sum of
money set upon his head, he would be mostly fol-
lowed at first by men of broken fortunes, who had
forsaken vassalage to their lords and submission
to the authority of Edward ; and men, therefore,
to whom subsistence and plunder would appear of
as much importance as the liberties of their
country. Besides, the advantages were reciprocal,
for Providence had brought them in contact with
a person whom, from the outset, they must impli-
citly obey. But, when once their wildness of
90
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
I
nature and turbulence of character were toned
down, and he became thoroughly acquainted with
their habits, actions and trustv/orthiness, the
sternness of the chief gradually merged into the
confidence and assurance of the friend. For never
any person possessed greater power than Wallace
in winning the affections and gaining the hearts
of those with whom he came in contact. His
openness of character, his thorough want of self-
ishness, and soothing, winning address, may to a
certain extent account for all this; but his great
knowledge of human nature, and how to adapt
himself to the habits and circumstances of all with
whom it was his lot to come in contact, is a more
satisfactory solution of the whole case. In this
way his followers soon became identified with
their leader, were prepared to risk everything for
him, and to follow, for better or for worse, where-
soever he might lead. He held out to them a
glorious future, even the freedom of their country
from degradation and servitude ; but he assured
them it could only be secured by labor and toil
and blood, and it might be even by death itself.
But the end would be worth contemplating, justi-
fying the means, and great would be the results.
They shared in believing in such things them-
selves, for their fortunes, for better and for worse,
were cast with his. In this way they suffered
privations cheerfully, for they were often in
weariness, in watching, in hunger, in thirst, in
cold and in nakedness. But while they suffered
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
91
t
1
^?
these tilings joyfully, and accustomed themselves
to rapid marches and to guard against surprise,
they gradually acquired more confidence in
their leader, from the successes that generally
accompanied their arms; regarded with con-
tempt the nation by whom the servile nobles
had allowed themselves to be overcome, and
looked forward to the time when, through their
earnest contendings, the land of their birth
would again be free. The consequences of
these advantages over their enemies were soon
seen not only among the few followers who
had dared to flock to Wallace's standard at
first, and gather courage and confidence from
them, but many more did so from difterent
parts of the country, encouraged by the same
means; for the cruelty and continued harass-
ments of the English had driven them to
desperation, and they began to prefer death to a
life of bondage and the meanest subjection. The
wish for revenge on an enemy who were ever in-
sulting and anxious to degrade them became a
strong and irrepressible passion that burned in
their breasts; and, however perilous the revolt,
they had counted the cost, and wished to execute
the desire of their hearts, in following to the
field one who had already deserved well of his
country. It Avas in this way the ranks of Wallace
were filled up, so that he was gradually at the
head of a considerable body of followers, who, as
circumstances allowed, either acted in concert or
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LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
divided themselves into separate parties, and in-
flicted severe chastisement upon their enemies.
One of these parties about this time was led by
Wallace to Scone, who by a rapid march surprised
the justiciary Ormesby, who was at this time
holding Court there. The cruel functionary
escaped with difficulty, but his followers were
seized and put to death, and a rich booty taken,
and divided among the patriot followers. The
same success attended the arms of Douglas, who
with another division had broken in upon the
West of Scotland, nearly about the same time-
Some castles of considerable strength were be-
sieged and taken, and new life and energy infused
into the hearts of them who had now in earnest
espoused the cause of liberty, and who were
determined at all hazards to contend manfully for
it. In short the same great truth was at this
time verified in Scotland, which has before and
since been made manifest in the history of liberty
over the world. And it is this : When the tyrant
who oppresses a country imagines himself secure,
and succeeds in stamping out, as he supposes, the
last vestige of its liberty, then the hour of de-
liverance draws near. The nobles of that country
may be seduced, and bribed and forced into com-
pliance with his unholy wishes ; the clergy may
be silenced, or shut up in prison, or forced to
comply with his requests, however contrary to
their desires ; the lesser barons, by threatening
confiscations anl the dread of utter ruin, may be
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
93
concussed into temporary alliance : but it matters
not, for every unholy tree thus planted shall be
rooted up ; and the desire for enjoying and
perpetuating liberty in the great body of a people
who once were free is immortal in its character,
and boundless in its nature. It will exist and
bear fruit luxuriously when all tyrants shall have
gone to the wall, and can never be destroyed
but by the extermination of the inhabitants of a
country themselves. Edward of England felt it
thus to be so in regard to the people of Scotland,
for although the majority of the nobles were
either imprisoned in England, or taken away with
himself to assist in a war against France ;
although the principal towns in Scotland Avere
also quiet, for there the conqueror kept a strict
watch, and the great castles and fortresses were
so likewise for they were strictly guarded by
English soldiers ; yet he found to his cost, that
Scotland had yet to be subdued, for from every
distant glen, every sequestered forest, every
remote valley,^ a spirit of resistance, " still as the
breeze, but dreadful as the storm," began to dis-
play its power, and the destruction of that system
of despotism that had been carefully established
over the country was sure soon to take place.
CHAPTER VI.
A gcnoral rising over the country near at hand. The hope
of the people centred in "Wallace. His attention
diverted from the distraction of his country, owing to
an attachment formed for the heiress of Lamington.
The governor of Lanark had intended her for his son,
and burdened her property to hurry on the match. She
was beautiful, wise and courteous, and captivated the
heart of Wallace. "Was privately married to her by
Blair, his chajilain. The marriage concealed on account
of the feelings of the governor. Wallace did not re-
main long in private. Attacked and slew FeuAvick at
the head of a convoy from England to Ayr Castle.
Fenwick had previously slain his father in a skirmish.
Thereafter news communicated to Wallace that Gar-
gunnock Castle, lately erected in a mountainous district
near Stirling to overawe the natives of the country,
was in a de.enceless state. Wallace hastened thither,
attacked the castle during the darkness of night and
put the garrison to the sword. He turns up soon after
at Cathcart, near Glasgow. Attacks a party of English
who had insulted his uncle, the sherift' of Ayr, and puts
several of them to the sword. To avoid the search of
Beck, bishop of Glas -v, passed over the Clyde and
arrived in the beautifu. country of the Earl of Lennox.
Anxious Wallace should remain with him in all time
coming. The sphere too limited for him. Turns up
next at Perth. Erects rustic fortifications in Methven
woods. Attacks a detachment of troops on its way to
llinklavin Castle, and slays General Butler, the officer in
command. A second detachment sent from the same
place also defeated and General Lorayue slain. The
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE
05
I
governor of the castle with young Eutlcr and a thou-
sand men resolved to take AVallaee and Ids followers
dead or alive. Hard fighting and many killed, in-
cluding young Butler and the governor. AVallace
escapes.
The storm began to gather, the clouds became
more dark and ominous, and a general rising over
the whole country was near at hand. Still the
exactions and cruelty of the English were un-
abated, and drove the people into a state of wild
despair. Their only hope was centred in Wallace,
who had already by his fortitude and military
daring deserved well of his countrymen and
augured a prosperous future, while the fear and
dread of him had spread everywhere among the
English. But while it was so, his attention was
diverted for some time from the general distrac-
tion of his country owing to an incident in his
life, which is common to most men, and which in
the present case, although it cast a thickening
gloom over all his future history, helped to make
him devote himself the more unreservedly to the
cause of his country ; although a different result
might have been expected at the beginning.
Wallace at this time formed a strong attachment
to a young lady who was brought up in the
neighborhood of Lanark, and whose connections
had suffered terribly at the hands of the English
for their firm adherence to the cause of liberty.
Sir Hugh de Bradfute, the lady's father, was
connected with some of the best flimilies in the
'
96
LIFJH OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
land, and longed to see the day when it should
once more be restored to its former state of inde-
pendence. He was killed, it was supposed, in a
skirmish with the English in trying to accomplish
this object, and his brave son, his heir and suc-
cessor, having imbibed from youth the patriotic
principles cherished by his father, suffered the
same fate. In too openly manifesting these
praiseworthy feelings he incurred the resentment
of Haselrig^ the governor of Lanark Castle, who
thirsted to be avenged upon him for doing so. And
by means of the merest pretext, he attacked him
in his castle at Lamington by an overwhelming
force, and without any compunction put him and
many of his friends to the sword. The cruel
treatment and desolation that overtook this
ancient family by means of the English was
sorely felt by many, but by none more so than by
the brave Wallace. As young De Bradfute left no
brother nor surviving male heir who would be
entitled to inherit the estates, the house and
lands of Lamington fell to an only sister, who
was the last surviving branch of this once
rich and happy family. Haselrig, the gover-
nor, from the first, on account of her riches, had
his eye fixed on the heiress of Lamington, as a
bride for his son, or as some have asserted, for
himself. From day to day he was urging the
suit, and she was as eagerly putting it off, plead-
ing for delay till the grief for the loss of her
brother and slaughtered relations would be some-
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE,
97
what abated. Meanwhile he had compelled her
to reside in the town of Lanark, as he said for
greater safety, but in order that she might be
completely subjected to his cruel control. For
this compulsory protection the avaricious tyrant
exacted large sums of money of the helpless
orphan, and burdened her property with the pay-
ment of it in order that he might hurry on the
match and reap the rich spoils in connection with
it. And the longer it was delayed the heavier
the exactions became ; so that the fair proprie-
tress became an object not of jealousy, but of deep
sympathy and commiseration, with all who were
really acquainted with the true circumstances of
the case. Wallace first became acquainted with
this interesting young lady while she was de-
voutly performing her religious duties, at the
Church of Lanark, and was struck with the
beauty of her appearance, the grace of her
demeanour and woefully forlorn and unenviable
position. She was at this time in the bloom ot
youth, possessed of a noble and generous nature
and uncommon beauty. Her person was tall and
remarkably well proportioned, her face fair, and
beautiful, beaming with intelligence, and full
of benignity. She was wise, courteous, sweet
and abounding in gentleness, according to the
accounts given of her by an ancient biographer,
and well fitted to captivate the heart of Wallace.
But still an air of dreamy sadness unmistakeably
depicted on her countenance, on account of the
08
LIFE OF SfR WILLIAM WALLACE.
,
blood that had been shed in her father's house,
and the cruel state of bondage in which at present
she happened to be placed ; although this made
her doubly dear to the heart of one whose gene-
rous affections flowed forth in sympathy for
her in her afflictions, and who was permitted
to avenge such afterwards a hundred fold.
Good, faithful, yet unhappy Marion ! thou didst
appear, amid the darkest hour of thy country's
history, and thy gentle spirit took its flight to a
happier clime, before the funereal pall that had
covered it began to be removed ! Yet even now,
when the actions of the oppressor and the op-
pressed are all forgotten, and the brave inhabit-
ants of the north and south are happily blended
into one, thy aff'ection for thy father's house and
for him likewise for whom thou voluntarily died
to save him from a cruel death will never be for-
gotten ! Wallace from the first moment he saw
Marion was charmed and captivated with her, and
fully resolved to make her his wife. They were
about the same age, and sympathy of taste, vir-
tues, and mutual desires made them entirely one.
"Wallace soon pledged that faith in marriage to
Marion which he often owned in a more private
manner, and they were united together in holy
wedlock by John Blair, his faithful chaplain and
companion. Wallace spent some time after this
in the endearing embraces of his wife, and the
English were spared from harassment and annoy-
ance. And he might have continued to do so, pro-
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
99
cured through his many friends the recall of the
outlawry that had been passed against him, and
spent the remainder of his days amid the quietude
of rural retreat, and the society of his affectionate
Marion. But Providence would have it ordered
otherwise, for he was soon called out once more
for the defence of the liberties of his country ; so
that the tender ties that were formed betwixt him
and his wife were soon torn asunder. After his
marriage, tidings were conveyed to Wallace that
one Fenwick, an English officer of mark, who
some time before this had headed a military party
in which his revered father, Sir Malcolm Wallace,
had been slain, was conducting a strong convoy
from England for the supply of the garrison at
Ayr. He had long desired to come in contact
with one who had deprived him of so worthy a
parent, and make him dearly pay for an act of
cruelty which, from his earliest days, he had
vowed to avenge whenever he was in circum-
stances to do so. For it had tinged from infancy
his otherwise happy and cheerful temper with
melancholy tendencies, and deprived him from
the outset of his career of a large amount of en-
joyment which, but for that, would have fallen to
his lot. Having ascertained the route the enemy
was likely to choose in its northward course,
Wallace hastily picked out fifty of ^ms most trusty
associates on whom in any trying emergency he
could safely rely. He disposed of them amid the
neighboring forest near to the road the English
/*r
100
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
I I
must necessarily take, and there they remained
concealed during the night, patiently awaiting
the approach of the enemy till the following day.
The sun had scarcely appeared over the top of
Tintock, casting his golden rays across the valleys
and forests that richly intervened, when two of
the spies that had been on the lookout during the
night, approached the hiding place of the party
with rapid motion and announced that the glitter-
ing spears of the southerners were full in sight.
Priest Blair committed them and their cause to
God. Wallace yearned to be avenged on his
deadliest foe; and having made his dispositions
with ease and speed, waited their approach with
full assurance of victory, however great their
number. It is said when Fenwick saw the hand-
ful of Scots stationed on the road before him, he
was filled with satisfaction, convinced that it would
be impossible for them to resist so superior a force
under his immediate control ; and he doubtless
looked with assurance to the happy period when
he would be able to present them as prisoners be-
fore the governor of the castle at Ayr, with the
robber of Clydesdale, as Wallace was facetiously
called by the English, at their head, to grace his
triumph into this ancient town, and castle. But
the hopes of man are often delusive, and their
vision of the future an airy and idle dream. Fen-
wick felt this indeed to be the case, for he was
never again permitted to greet the governor of
the castle ; and many of his followers, as confident
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE,
101
as himself, left their blood to dye the heath dur-
ing this the last of their days. Wallace, like a
wise and undaunted leader, did not allow his
small body of followers to wait till they were at-
tacked, but ordered them to make a rapid move-
ment and charge the advance of the convoy with
their long spears with the greatest ardor. They
did so with success, carrying confusion not only
throughout the front but into the very centre of
the squadron, and filling the hearts of their
enemies with terror and dismay. It mattered not
how superior the force might be that was
everywhere opposed to them, or how terrible
the charges made to break the little band that
had resolved to conquer or die while united to-
gether. They were repulsed as often as they were
made, and by bitter experience the English chief
was taught that all his efforts in this direction
were vainly put forth. At last Wallace fixed his
eagle eye upon the leader, and longed to measure
swords with one whom of all others, he had de-
sired most for many years to meet, and to avenge
the blood of a loving father he had slain. With
the fury of the lion he cleared a way with
his gleaming sword to the spot where the hated
Fenwick had taken up his position, and who
appeared anxious to avoid a personal encounter
with one whom the justice of his cause had roused
into the fury of a tempest. But it was vain to
do so, for he reached him at last, and with one
dreadful blow struck him from the saddle of his
102
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
splendid charger to the ground, and thus finished
a work which he had long wished to accomplish.
But although their leader was slain, the English
continued to fight with unabated fury, and under
the guidance of one Bowmond, second in com-
mand, resolved with him to retrieve if possible
the advantages they had already lost. They
maintained their ground with inflexible resolu-
tion. They repeated their charges with heroic
bravery. And it was not till the brave Bowmond,
covered with wounds, fell beneath the sword of
the youthful Laird of E-iccarton, that they began
to lose courage, and fled from the field in the
wildest disorder, leaving a hundred of their
followers dead behind them, to attest the fierce-
ness of this bloody fray. Besides two hundred
draught horses, a numerous train of waggons with
provisions of every description, and a consider-
able sum of money and other valuables fell into
the hands of Wallace and his followers. Part of
the spoil they appropriated among the sorely
distressed inhabitants of the districts, and part
they carried to their inaccessible retreat amid the
extensive forests of Lanarkshire, to be used when
circumstances required it. This bloody skirmish is
supposed to have taken place at Beg, in the parish
of Galston, and in the statistical account of the
" Among
parish, the following notice is recorded
other antiquities there may be mentioned a place
called Beg, where the brave Wallace lay in a
species of rude fortifications, with only fifty of
LIFE OF SIR WLLIAM WALLACE.
103
his friends, yet obtained a complete victory over
an English officer of the name of Fenwick, who
had two hundred men under him." The result
of this contest had a powerfully de])ressing ellect
on the mind of Percey, the governor of Ayr
Castle, for he had long waited for the convoy
which he fondly hoi)ed would relieve the garrison
which, owing to the exhausted state of the
country, was already reduced to the point of star-
vation. And as party after party of the straggling
remains of the English force at Ayr arrived,
without any one to lead them, and recounted their
sad disaster with exaggerated accounts of the
great number of the Scots who attacked them,
and the incredible strength of their leader, the
heart of the bold Northumbrian chief quailed at
the fearful recital, for it placed him in the most
trying circumstances. Wallace and his followers
being filled with enthusiasm at their recent re-
markable success, and being at the same time
plentifully supplied with provisions of every kind,
began to plan new excursions into more remote
parts of the country and on a more extensive scale,
in order if possible to execute more terrible ven-
geance on their southern adversaries than they
hitherto had been able to inflict. Some of their
secret friends from a distance had been able to
hold communication with them, and informed
them that the fortification at Gargunnock, in
the neighborhood of Stirling, now held by the
English, was carelessly guarded although plen-
I
104
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
tifully supplied with every kind of provisions.
It was but recently erected in the midst of a
mountainous and highly picturesque part of the
country, for the purpose of overawing the patriotic
mountaineers who began to be troublesome, and
assisting to ward off a sudden attack if made
from this quarter on the castle of Stirling, which
was always looked upon as one of the strong-
holds of the North. The workmen had not
finished their fort when the above intelligence
was communicated to Wallace and his associates
amid their inaccessible retreats in Lanarkshire,
and how the drawbridge of the Peel was often
left down at night to save the English the
trouble in the morning of admitting the mechan-
ics into the interior of the buildings. They pro-
ceeded at once to the forest in the neighborhood,
and despatched spies to ascertain the probability
of their success in the undertaking, who were to
inform them when a favorable opportunity of at-
tack might occur by lighting a fire on a hill that
peered up to a great height beside the castle. The
sun had scarcely gone down behind the lofty Ben
Lomond, and Ben Ledi that skirted the distant pros-
pect in the rear of the fort, bathing in tints of
mellowed light Stirling Castle and its turrets and
all the surrounding district, noted above all other
parts of the country for the grotesque wildness
and variety of its scenery, when the beacon fire
was ignited from the top of the hill, shedding a
glare of light on all the objects that surrounded
«*)**t
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
105
it, and sending a column of curled smoke far up
into the heavens. The signal was at once under-
stood. Wallace and his men advanced iramediatelv
towards the fort, and were approaching near it
about the middle of the night when sleep was
pressing heavily on its defenders within, and who
were sadly ignorant of the awful doom that so
soon awaited them. Unfortunately for them the
drawbridge was down, and no obstruction left in
its place ; but the door was firmly secured within,
which was likely to offer a sufficient amount of
resistance till the garrison would be fully prepared
for its defence. Wallace, however, aware of the
value of time, hastened with a heavy piece of
timber, and rushing against it, threw it open ;
while the wall on every side of it, shaken by the
concussion, tumbled to the ground. The porter,
although he was soon on the spot, was felled to
the ground. The captain quickly followed after,
but suffered the same fate ; and the whole garri-
son, with the exception of the women and child-
ren, were put the sword. These received from
Wallace a passport, to proceed in safety to the
nearest castle in possession of the English, and
after he hud distributed a large quantity of pro-
visions and all the money obtained in the garri-
son among his faithful followers, he burned it
down, demolished its fortifications, and assured
his followers, amid its smoking ruins, that he
would thus evermore proceed in the work of des-
truction till every southerner was thus swept
away from every portion of his beloved land.
(T
r
106
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
I
■■■
Scarcely had the affair so disastrous to the Eng-
lish been settled up at Gargunnock, than we find
Wallace at Carthcart near Glasgow. Here with
two others of his associates, he puts to death a
party of five Englishmen who had insulted his
uncle, the sheriff of Ayr, on his way to Glasgow
to attend an extraordinary council called by Beck,
the Bishop of Durham, consisting of the shcrifis
and governors tliroughout the country, for the
purpose of devising means for raising taxes to
defray the enormous expenses of keeping such a
large military force in the country to hold the
people in a state of complete subjection. From
this they passed over the Clyde to avoid the ven-
geance of Beck, who had thrown aside the cassock
to assume the sword. They soon reached the
shores of Loch Lomond, the queen of Scotch
lakes, and were within the country of the Earl
of Lennox, who received them joyfully ; for with
his large and devoted clan, he had been able to
maintain his independence in spite of all the
attempts of the English, and chastise them often
sorely when they dared to enter within the pre-
cincts of his extensive possessions. He had ex-
cellent opportunities afforded him for enabling
him to do so ; for the wild and rugged fastnesses
of the country, together with the warlike spirit of
the people, were sufficient barriers in the way of
the hostile attacks of his enemies, however well
concerted they might happen to be. The earl en-
treated Wallace to remain with him in all time
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WAI.LACF.
107
coming, and assist him in upholding that heroic
spirit of freedom that burned so ardently in his
breast and the breasts of his devoted clansmen ;
but, however deeply he sympathised with them
in this respect, it was impossible for him to con-
fine his efforts within so narrow limits, and after
encouraging all parties to persevere in a work to
which he and his followers had devoted their
lives, he leaves this part of the country and pro-
ceeds towards the North. The district of St.
Johnston, now called Perth, to which Wallace
directs his steps, had been known to him from
youth upwards. Here he had spent some of the
happiest of his early days with the powerful re-
lations of his mother, and had become acquainted
with every place in it that was likely to afford
shelter and protection to himself and followers
when they might be pursued by the English, or
when sallying forth suddenly they might cut off
their straggling parties, when they happened to
scatter themselves over the country, and sorely
harass the poor natives. We are not informed if
he was invited by his friends or by some of the
common people, who bore with reluctance the
exactions of their oppressors in order that they
might avenge themselves on them when an oppor-
tunity offered. On their arrival, Wallace and his
adherents took up their abode amid the dark
recesses of Methven Wood in the neighljorhood of
Perth, and prepared themselves for future action.
By appearing soon after before the mayor of the
108
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
city in the disguise of a common mechanic, in
search of work, he learned everything he required
to know respecting the nature and the strength
of the garrison, and likewise that a reinforcement
of a hundred men was to leave early on the
morrow for the purpose of strengthening the force
in the castle of Kinclavin, in the neighborhood.
He at once proceeded to Methven Wood and ac-
quainted his followers of the movement, who eager-
ly wished if possible to intercept it and cut off the
whole of the convoy. Early on a dark and hazy
morning, Sir James Butler, an old and intrepid war-
rior, who had rendered himself obnoxious by
many acts of cruelty and oppression exercised
towards the inhabitants of the town and country,
sallied forth from the garrison at Perth at the
head of a hundred soldiers, and was proceeding
slowly along the way when a shout was raised
from behind a rock that projected itself across a
portion of the road, and his whole force was as-
sailed and thrown into confusion. This attack
was headed by Wallace with fifty of his trustiest
followers, who resolved to conquer or die, as on
former occasions of a similar nature. The brave
Butler fought with determined and heroic bravery,
endeavored to rally his troops after the panic
had subsided, but to no purpose. A fresh charge
was made with more force than the former attack,
which carried off a large number of the English,
and threw the remainder into complete confusion ;
and when their aged general fell dead at the feet
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
109
of Wallace, who found himself no match for one
who w%as the most renowned swordsman of his
time, a general panic seiz.ed the whole troop, who
were thrown into the wildest disorder and their
rout hecame general. From the battlements of
Kinclavin Castle, the conflict had been anxiously
witnessed by those within it, and the draw-bridge
thrown down to admit the remainder of the force
who had already lost its leader and many others,
and which fled thither with the wildest confusion
in order to find protection from a victorious enemy.
But it was in vain, for the conquerors and the
conquered alike came rushing pell-mell across the
bridge and at the same time, amid the wildest
disorder, entered into the castle. But the cries of
the vanquished were soon hushed in the stillness
of death, for they and every soldier in the castle,
who amid the wild confusion could render no as-
sistance to their friends, were immediately put
to the sword. By midnight all the booty and
provisions were removed from the castle and
carefully deposited for future use in the neigh-
boring forest in pits that were carefully prepared
for them ; and long before day the lurid glare of
the flames ascending from the building consigned
to destruction told a truthful tale to the friends
and foes of the English, and assured everyone on
both sides that the terrible avenger of the wrongs
his bleeding country had sufiered was now on the
spot. The tidings of this sad disaster reached the
city of Perth on the following day, and as they
n"
III
I
no
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
ran down its streets and found their way into the
castle, they filled the heart of the governor and all
within it with feelings of the deepest sorrow and
regret. Nor was this all. The slaughter of their
brother soldiers so unexpectedly cut oft', ani-
mated all alike with a strong desire to avenge
their deaths. And the governor at once came
to the resolution of arming the whole gar-
rison and sending them forth with the view
of bringing before him, either dead or alive, the
haughty Wallace, with all his followers, who
had dared to inflict such a cruel blow on those
who had so often made his countrymen quail
before them. This resolution was carried out
without any delay. Sir John Butler, the son
of the brave officer that had been slain, was
appointed to the command, in order that he might
forthwith avenge his father's death ; while he was
assisted in the undertaking by the governor him.
self, and Sir William Lorayne, an officer of great
bravery and experience, and who, at the same time,
was much beloved by the soldiers of the garrison.
The number of these, at the period referred to,
amounted to upwards of a thousand, and were to
be disposed of in the following manner, with a
view to attack and cut off* Wallace and his handful
of followers. First, Sir William Lorayne was to
advance into Methven Wood, with three hundred
of the finest of the troops, and compel the enemy
to engage in fight ; and secondly, Sir John Butler,
with the governor, was to remain in the outskirts
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
Ill
5011.
to,
to
1 a
fill
to
red
my
er,
rts
of the forest, to prevent the escape of the fugi-
tives and cut them off when they might be
expected to be driven from their place of retreat.
The plan was admirably well advised, but the
execution of it was attended with sad disasters
and fearful difficulties ; for Wallace had made care-
ful provision for such attack, and by artful man-
agement of his few but trusty followers, kept the
English in ignorance of the smallness of their
numbers, while he had formed a few rustic
fortifications in the form of squares, and that
easily communicated with each other in tlie midst
of the fcrest, that afforded them a large amount
of annoyance. The advances towards these forti-
fications were intersected with large trunks of
trees, in order to prevent the approach of too
numerous a body of the enemy, and when the
Scots found it necessary to retire into them, they
could only be pursued by straggling numbers, that
could be easily cut off. The defences were not
fully completed when the English made their
appearance, and Wallace showed himself at a dis-
tant part of the forest with a small number of his
men, with the view of drawing' them away, and
allowing Stephen of Ireland to complete the
works. This heroic man, although he belonged
to another country, was one of Wallace's most
trusty adherents. lie was to him as a brother —
always in the thickest of the fight, and entrusted
with posts of honor and danger. He rejoiced with
his captain in prosperity, and he wept with him
I
T (
112
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
in adversity. But the truth is, his poor country
had many sore evils to complain of, and which
were inflicted upon it at this time hy the English.
And by assisting to torment and crush this cruel
enemy in the land of his adoption, he would
doubtless consider he was indirectly conferring a
favor on his native country, which was doubly
dear to his heart. The stratagem of Wallace had
the desired effect in drawing off the attention of
the English from the unfinished fortifications, and
fixing it upon his own little party which, for some
time, were destined to bear the whole force of the
vigorous attack made by the enemy. Wallace, on
the approach of the English, let fly an arrow,
which brought down one of their more advanced
guard, and his example was eagerly followed by
his adherents, who, by shifting their ground and
keeping up a desultory tight, sorely vexed the
enemy and put many of them to death. No less
than fifteen of such had been slain by Wallace's
own hand, and many more by his followers. When
the afternoon had arrived, their arrows were
exhausted, and they had come to a part* of the
forest from which it was found impossible to
retreat, owing to a high cliff that stood in the
way. Here Lorayne advanced with three hun-
dred men, confident of success, for when he saw
the smallness of the party opposed to him, he felt
persuaded he would be able to surround them
without much difiiculty, and make them prisoners.
But he was soon convinced of the folly of such
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
113
hasty calculations, for, with determined valor, the
Scots repulsed, with Wallace at their head, every
attack that was made upon them, and at the time
the English were putting forth their strongest
efforts to surround them, Wallace burst from the
head of his followers with all the power of
a conqueror into the midst of the English
forces, carrying with him destruction and death
and scattering them in every direction. Ascend-
ing a rising ground he put his bugle-horn
to his mouth and made the forest ring with a
bold and animating war-note, which was a signal
for motion and action for Stephen of Ireland and
all the party who had been engaged in finishing
the fortifications. They rushed to the help of
their friends against the mighty, and falling on
their rear with freshness and bravery threw them
into the greatest confusion and disorder. The
English, taken by surprise at so unexpected an
attack, fled in every direction towards the skirts
of the forest, and were pursued by their enemies,
who made terrible carnage among them. The
slaughter would have continued, and to all appear-
ances they would have been cut off" to a man had
they not met Sir John Butler with five hundred
men, who assailed the Scots in their turn with
such vigor and impetuosity as compelled them to
retreat to their rustic fortifications and prepare for
a determined defence. The English followed
them closely and at great loss were able to carry
the first. But they were astonished to find the
H
f
\r
%
I
if .1
114
LIFE OF SIR WFLfJAM WALLACE.
Scots had only retreated to a second fortifica-
tion where they were preparing to stand a siege ;
while Wallace in the meantime, with a few of his
most resolute men forming a sortie, burst forth on
the English with all his wonted strength and reso-
lution, and after putting a large number of them to
death with his own hand, fell upon their leader
Lorayne, sword in hand, and with one stroke of
the same clove him through his helmet down to
the chin, and left him a ghastly corpse in the midst
of the forest. The soldiers of Lorayne were
utterly foiled in this their second attack, and fled
in terror lest they should come in contact with
one whose ponderous weapons carried destruction
on every side. At last they were prevailed upon
to make another attempt to cut off the little band
of heroes, and were led on for this purpose by
Butler, a person who longed to avenge the death
of his father and of the brave Lorayne. But
again their hopes were frustrated. Butler was
wounded by the sword of Wallace, and but for an
intervening branch of a tree would have been cut
in pieces. It was vain for them to contend any
longer. They, therefore, gathered up the body
of their wounded chief and tied along with him
to the borders of the forest to communicate to the
governor the tidings of their repeated disastrous
defeats. There a council of war was forthwith
held, and it was unanimously resolved once more
to attack the Scots in their intrenchnients and
carry them if possible, sword in hand j but in the
.moA
LIFE OF SfR WILLFAM WALLACE.
115
t
meantime Wallace and his followers had retired
trom them in another direction and taken up
their residence in Cargyle Woods, where they
would be free for some time from the pursuit of
their enemies, and have better facilities aflbrded
them for a vigorous defence, provided they were
assailed by such an overwhelming force as they
were recently called upon to contend against.
After these bcvere and bloody skirmishes in which
the English suffered so heavily, they felt neither
able nor inclined to follow Wallace and his ad-
herents who had escaped their grasp ; and weary
and despondent they therefore returned to Perth,
leaving their leader and one hundred and twenty
of the bravest of their followers dead in the woods.
Here they again recovered from the fatigues
and sufferings they had been called upon so re-
cently to endure, and burning with a desire to
wipe out their recent defeats and losses, they were
again in a few days in pursuit of the enemy. An-
other terrible battle was fought in Cargyle Wood,
in which the English once more had the worst of
it, for while the Scots lost none of their men they
lost upwards of a hundred ; and had Wallace's
little band been supplemented as well as it had
been in the West on former occasions they would
have been able to cut off the English garrison to
a man. But it was not so, and however great the
slaughter of the enemy, the small Scotch force,
losing now and again a few of its men, became
gradually reduced to greater straits than ever j and
116
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
I
as their enemies became cognizant of the sraallness
of their numbers and the fearful exigencies they
happened to be in, they pressed upon them
with the greatest tenacity of purpose, sending a
sleuth-hound before them to trace out their track.
It was the object of the little band, which were
now reduced to a mere handful, to make for Gask
Castle, which was concealed in the midst of the
woods ; and while they were nearly overtaken,
Faydon, one of their iumiber, became so exhausted
as to be unable to proceed any further on the
journey. This, humanly speaking, saved the whole
of the rest, for as Wallace despatched him with
his own hand, lest he should fall into the power
of the English, when the sleuth-hound came up in
its pursuit, its attention was diverted from the
others by means of the blood of him who had
been slain. And strange to say as the governor
approached near, and stooped down to examine
the body by the light of the moon, two of
Wallace's followers, Kerle, and Stephen of Ire-
land, availing themselves of the darkness of the
night, approached near, stabbed him to the heart,
and bursting into the midst of the woods, were
nowhere to be found, until they next turned up
near the banks of Loch Earne, many miles distant,
where they remained for some time in the most
perfect security. The greatest commotion was
raised among the English, en account of the death
of the governor, which afforded a breathing time
to Wallace and his followers, and a chance of
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
117
escaping their pursuers. They reached the castle
of Cask, but they were close on their track, for
while they resolved to send forty of their num-
ber to accompany the body of the governor to
Perth, Butler resolved to follow the fugitives
closely with five hundred men, and secure the
enemy of his country either dead or alive. Strange
to say, early next morning while Butler was view-
ing his posts, on the border of the woods, he
accidentally met Wallace, and drawing his sword
rode back to tell his men where he was to be
found. But alas ! it was too late for him to do so,
for already had our hero advanced from under the
shade that partly concealed him, and met his
antagonist ; and with one terrible blow cleft his
body asunder, in the saddle, which came rolling
to the ground, and thus the first and last of the
Butlers in this connection perished by the hand
of him whom they had sworn to destroy. Wallace
is already mounted on the back of the charger of
the enemy ho had but recently dispatched, and
although the alarm is given, and the English
gather around him from all quarters, he once
more gave them the slip, for giving the reins to
his fiery steed, he was soon far away out of sight,
and his pursuers left behind to deplore the death
of their brave general and likewise the escape of
one who yet lived to inflict more severe chastise-
ment on their countrymen than he had yet been
permitted to do. They followed him, but in vain,
for his knowledge of the country gave him a
I I
118
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
decided advantage over them, and after putting
forty of them to death, the one after the other,
who dared to come near his person in the pursuit,
he avoided once more the toils of his foes; Laughed
at their vain attempts to secure his person, and
was soon far away from the scene of danger.
I I
ing
ler,
Liit,
bed
and
CHAPTER VII
After leaving the North Wallace fled to Dunipace, Stirling-
shire. Was kindly received by a widow in Torwood,
and by his uncle. Supplied with money and horses by
his uncle, and proceeded with a few followers to Duri-
daff Castle, the seat of Sir John Graham. Kindly re-
ceived, and the son and heir swore fealty to Wallace.
This proved the greatest accession yet made to the
cause of freedom. After this Wallace and his followers
made for Clydesdale. Eesolved to pay a few visits to
his wife in private, as his marriage had always been a
secret. Thought he would do so with safety just now
as a rumor had spread among the Enj^lish that he had
been killed by his followers. Meanwhile had several se-
vere conflicts with the English. Cuts off a party of them
with an English knight at their liead near Lochmaben. A
body of three hundred cavalry, headed by one Gray stock,
lately come from England, sent after the Scots, and aftei-
a terrible fight Gray«tock and most of the cavalry were
slain. Sir John De Graham and Kirkpatrick,of Closeburn,
contributed largely to the victory. Lockmaben fortress
taken by the Scots, and Kirkpatrick assigned the gover-
nor. Intended as a place of safety for them in time of
danger, and a safe resort for Wallace's wife, whom he
wished to remove from Lanark. Paid a visit to this place;
for the purpose, a id recognized. A terrible fight ensued
on the street, and Wallace saved through the intervention
of his wife. Brought before the governor and urged to
reveal the place of his concealment. JRefused to do so,
and killed by the hand of the governor. The whole town
horrified by the act. Wallace made acquainted with it,
■■I
120
LFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
m fi'
! <i
I I i!
! I !!■
II
I' I
returns at night witli a number of his trusty followers
and slays the governor with his own hand. The inhabit-
ants of the town rise en masse and drive the English
from the place.
After Wallace left the North, where he had in-
flicted such terrible chastisement on the English,
but where he had met with but little assistance
from any excepting his trusty followers who were
now scattered everywhere or slain, he made for
Dunipace, Stirlingshire. It was here he had re-
ceived the elements of a proper education from his
uncle, and where he had spent some of the hap-
piest of his youthful days, amidst its beautiful rural
retreats. In the same place likewise his kind and
affable manners had previously gained him many
friends, and especially amongst his uncle's servants
and dependents. To one of such in particular,
he had become a great favorite, namely, a female
servant, who had charge of his uncle's house, and
who from the first appeared to have entertained
the highest notions of him. For although she
held a humble situation, like many of her country-
women in after ages, her soul was filled with
genuine patriotic fire, and, perhaps, even then,
while all was darkness around her, she could trace
some rays of hope for her enslaved country in
the person of a boy who was possessed of so many
noble qualities. After Wallace left Dunipace, she
became married, was deprived by death of her
husband, and lived a lonely widow in Torwood.
Still she brooded with miser care over the woes
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
121
in
of her country, and longed to see the day when
it would be relieved from them. Such being the
case she eagerly watched the movements of her
favorite Wallace, afforded him shelter and protec-
tion when his life was endangered by his enemies,
under the roof of her humble cottage, or in the
trunk of a giant oak, that spread its magnificent
branches in the neighborhood of it. As soon
as Wallace was fairly beyond the range of his
fierce pursurers in Cargyle Woods, he directed
his steps to the well-known habitation of his long-
tried friend ; which he reached in safety weary
and forlorn towards midnight. His fiimiliar
signal at the window immediately raised the in-
mates, when he was welcomed with joy into their
lonely cot, and any simple fare they had was
cheerfully put before him. But he was so altered
in appearance that the family could scarcely know
him, and his haggard looks, tattered garments,
and armor stained with blood, told of the awful
amount of perils and hardships he had undergone.
After partaking freely of the refreshments he so
much needed, he at once enlisted in his service
the three sons of the widow, who resided with her
in the lonely forest, and who were all ardent pa-
triots. One of them was forthwith despatched to
acquaint his uncle of his arrival, and how sadly
forlorn and destitute he was. Another was sent
towards the scene of his late conflicts, to try to
find out if any of his late companions yet lived,
and if so to endeavor to bring them along with
122
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
him. And the third retired with him to the lonely
oak near the cottage, in which he concealed him-
self, and while its branches waved majestically
over his head, and the wind sighed through the
interminable forest, he watched faithfully over
him while he slept soundly till the morning and
forgot all the toils, and labors, and scenes of blood
he had recently passed through. Next day Wallace
was delighted to find that the widow's second
son had arrived with Kerle and Stephen of Ireland,
and his uncle also came to give him his blessing,
and to supply him with money and other means ;
although lie pointed out to him the great dangers
with which he was beset, and the little pros-
pect there was of success. Having been plenti-
fully supplied with money and horses for him-
self and companions, while the widow allowed
two of her sons to accompany him, whom she
freely devoted to the service of her country,
Wallace again set out for Clydesdale, where he ex-
po v;ted more assistance and cordial sympathy than
he had met with in Perth and its neighborhood.
By the advice of his uncle he paid a visit to Dun-
daflf Castle on his way to the West, where he and
his companions were received with the greatest
kindness. Its proprietor, the gallant Sir John De
Graham, owned large estates in Strathblane and
along the banks of the Carron ; and could trace
his genealogy back through a thousand sires,
to that brave man who dared to contend
with the conquerors of the world in the days
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
123
bend
of yore. He threw down the Roman wall,
although built at great expense across the
island, and manned by the best soldiers Rome
could produce ; for, urging his hardy Caledonians
through the gaps he had made, he carried destruc-
tion and death along with him to such a fearful
extent, as that it bears the name of Graham's
Dyke at the present day. Sir John, the present
proprietor, was himself a fit representative of so
illustrious a house ; for he had acted a heroic part
at the battle of Largs, in assisting the good Alex-
ander the Third to annihilate the Danes, in a ter-
rible engagement which was fought there, and
who, up till that time, had proved a sore grievance
to his countrymen. His son and successor, although
yet a youth, had likewise distinguished himself
already on the field of battle, and had broken a
lance successfully with the bold Percy of North-
umberland, in a border feud, and received the
honor of knighthood at Berwick. The brave head
of the clan at once consecrated his son to the ser-
vice of his country, and caused him to swear
fealty to Wallace, as his leader and chief. And
no greater accession was ever made to its freedom
than this. The gallant Graham was always fore-
most in the hour of danger. He was trusted as a
brother by Wallace, and dearly beloved by all the
patriots. He fell at the battle of Falkirk, but not
till he had performed, as on many former occa-
sions, a host of deeds of heroic valor. His name
is fondly cherished in the district where he fell,
124
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
and will doubtless continue to be so; for while
bravery is considered a virtue, and liberty a boon,
the name of Sir John De Graham will ever be
remembered. After spending three days delight-
fully with the Graham family at DundafF Castle,
where the wild and rugged beauty of the scenery
without, and the free and noble spirit of the
inmates of the castle within, tended to infuse new
energy and vigor into the minds of the patriots, Wal-
lace and his followers left the spot with reluctance,
and made their way to Clydesdale, to find out the
state of feeling there on behalf of the liberation
of their country. The younger Graham did not
just now accompany them, but the understanding
was that as soon as arrangements were made for
successful co-operation, he would do so, and take
the field with all his father's retainers in order to
strike a decisive blow. When Wallace proceeded
to the West, he took up his residence in the
neighborhood of Lanark, in order that he might
pay a few visits to his wife, before it would be
known that he had again arrived in this part of
the country. He did so in disguise and in secrecy
likewise as he had done on former occasions, for
his marriage at the first with Marion Bradfute
had been performed in private, and had never
been made known to the English. For had it
been so, owing to the circumstances in which this
young lady was placed, it would have proved
disastrous to both. These visits to Lanark could
also at this time be performed with a greater
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
125
■»
r
amount of safety, as a rumor had been exten-
sively circulated throughout the country that
Wallace had been slain by his followers ; which
was probably owing to the fact, that the head of
Faydon, which cost the governor of Perth his
life, had been found in the manner we have des-
cribed in the last chapter, and which at the first
was supposed to be the head of Wallace. But
while he rejoiced that this rumor had taken the
enemy off the track, his sword never rusted in its
scabbard. It was ever cutting off straggling
parties of the English, and causing great uneasi-
ness everywhere. Still the enemy continued
haughty and insolent, insulting the Scotch when-
ever an opportunity offered ; for, wishing them-
selves to believe that their sworn enemy was
dead, or far removed from them, they imagined
they would be allowed to do so with the greatest
impunity. But they were sadly mistaken, as one
or two of the following encounters will amply
testify. Wallace and some of his adheionts hap-
pened to be at an inn at Lochmaben, and while
getting some refreshments, a party of English
arrived at the same place. Not satisfied with
cracking their jokes at the expense of their
Northern strangers, they proceeded to the stable
and inflicted several severe wounds on their
horses. Although fearfully irritated, the Scots
were unable to offer any resistance, as their
party was small and ill protected, and the Eng-
lish were numerous and fully equipped. They
r
I I'i
126
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
therefore, quitted the inn as soon • as possible,
and fled to the neighboring woods, but were
pursued by their enemies, headed by Sir Hugh
Moreland, who was able to trace them from the
blood that issued from their horses that had been
so abused by them at that place. Probably like-
wise they began to suspect that Wallace was among
their number, and that with the greatest ease they
would be able to cut him off, with all his
adherents. In this, however, they were sadly dis-
appointed, for when they approached near the
woods they found the party had been joined by
several of their friends, who had been concealing
themselves from the enemy. They were still
much inferior to the English, but they vowed
vengeance on them, from the insults they had re-
cently received at their hands. A bloody conflict
took place. The English suffered a humiliating
defeat. Sir Hugh Moreland and many of his fol-
lowers lay dead in the woods, and the whole
party paid severely for the insults they dared to
offer to the strangers at the inn. The remainder
of the English force fled with all possible speed to
the castle of Lochmaben, apprised the garrison of
the death of their leader and many of his soldiers,
and also that "Wallace had led on the attack. The
garrison was alarmed at the dismal tidings, and
the governor of the castle lost no time in des-
patching a force of three hundred horsemen to
overtake and chastise the freebooter and his fol-
lowers, as Wallace was designated, for this
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
127
)1-
lis
daring act, and bring him before him to answer
for his conduct. Graystock was appointed the
commander of this large body of horse, and was
strictly enjoined to beware of ambuscades, and to
be careful and watchful against the devices of a
foe who was brave and subtle to an extreme de-
gree. But he had lately arrived from England,
was wrapt up in his self-importance, and looked
upon the adversary with whom he had to contend
with the utmost contempt. But he had mistaken
his man. He pressed blindly forward to his own
ruin, and allowed as fine a body of cavalry as
could at that time be found in Christendom, to be
cut to pieces by a mere handful of men. Wal-
lace and his companions having seized the horses
of their enemies, were moving slowly forward in
the direction of Clydesdale, when the formidable
force of the English made its appearance. He
ordered his men to move on deliberately, as if
nothing had taken place, while he himself re-
mained in the rear to prevent the enemy sudden-
ly falling upon them and cutting them off. At
last Graystock ordered an attack with the view
to surround the little band of heroes, and cut
them off; but while he did so Sir John Graham
fortunately appeared at the head of thirty horse-
men, and Sir Roger Kirkpatrick of Closeburn,
with twenty men all thoroughly equipped. The
last named rough but brave warrior and genuine
patriot had now fully made up his mind to join
the cause of freedom, and he never afterwards
128
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE,
'
;-i
flinched in fighting for it when called upon so to
do. And his son and successor (Mak' Sicker)
faithfully adhered to Bruce in his darkest hours
when struggling for the throne of Scotland. In-
deed the whole of this noble house for ages after
this were noted for their generous impulses and
patriotic tendencies; and their female descendant,
the ex-Empress of France, the beautiful Eugenie,
is no unworthy representative of the Kirkpat-
ricks. So soon as these worthies made their ap-
pearance, Wallace felt confident that the victory
was his own, and charging at once through the
midst of the enemy bore down everything before
him. His friends followed with speed, and com-
pleted the confusion that had begun to take
place, by entirely routing the left wing of the
English and chasing them off the field. But the
right Aving under Graystock, remained as yet
entire, and Sir John Graham was. ordered to
charge with his body of horsemen, who were yet
comparatively fresh. He speedily arranged his
little squadron, and executed the command given
with alacrity and success. The attack of the gal-
lant Grahams was too impetuous to be long resist-
ed, and when with his own hand, Sir John, their
leader, levelled the vaunting Graystock in the
dust, the conflict was no longer doubtful ; the
English fled in the wildest confusion and took
shelter in the woods near by. Wallace felt
proud of the whole proceedings, gathered his own
men and those of Graham and Kirkpatrick to-
h
v
tj
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
129
gether, and complimented all highly on the valor
and tact they had so ably displayed. And rest-
ing for a little and refreshing themselves, he ad-
vised them to march and make an immediate at-
tack
Lochmaben Castle, which he ki
to
on Liocnmanen i^astie, wnicn ne Knew
be completely defenceless. The advice was forth-
with acted upon, a guide procured for the journey,
and they found the castle as he expected. They
took possession of it without any difficulty, put
its inmates to the sword, and committed it in
charge to Sir Roger Kirkpatrick and a small num-
ber of men, while Wallace himself proceeded
with the rest of his trusty followers to his old re-
treat in the forest of Clydesdale. This was the
first fortress in which lie resolved to place a
garrison, and he had good reasons for doing so, for
it had recently been well provisioned from Eng-
land, was one of the strongest holds in the south
of Scotland, and well fitted for a retreat in case of
danger, for many who now hearing of his success in
this part of the country had flocked to his stand-
ard. Above all he had now resolved to free his
wife from the state of confinement in which she
happened so long to be in, owing to the cruel op-
pression of Haselrig, the governor, and to place
her here where he would have easy access to her
person, and where her life would be free from
danger. He, therefore, now withdrew to Clydes-
dale with his trusty followers, and waited for an
opportunity of carrying his wishes into effect. It
was not long after when he resolved to visit
130
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
his wife in the town of Lanark ; and he did so
under disguise, and in the habit of a peasant, in
order to escape the notice of his enemies, who at
this time filled the town and neighborhood. He
was soon unfortunately recognized, however, by the
English soldiers, and a bloody conflict ensued, for
as he happened to be followed by none of his as-
sociates at the time, they imagined it would be
the easiest thing possible to surround him and
take him alive. But it was foolishness to suppose
that such could be the case, or that the matchless
in strength, or the use of the sword, could be so
easily brought within their reach, or made their
prey. The more they tried to surround him the
more furious he became, dealt forth his blows with
terrible effect and irresistible power, so that at
every armed impulse the foremost of his assail-
ants was found rolling in the dust. And while
the strokes he dealt forth were unerring and the
thrusts deadly, smiting to the earth every oppon-
ent that appeared in his way, the hero himself
was calm and self-possessed. No quailing, no
tremor, no confusion was manifested by him while
beset by a host of foes. And when he retired
back, considering it was foolishness to contend
with his enemies that were all the time thicken-
ing around him, it was only for a little, to stand
at bay and deal forth his deadly blows on those
that had the hardihood to approach first near his
person. Matters for some time continued in this
way, and the whole town became filled with
I
r
LIFE OF Sill WILLIAM WALLACE.
131
r
is
tumult; and at the instigation of young Haselrig,
a son of the governor, who happened at the time
to be from home, a fresh party was forthwith dis-
patched from the garrison to lend their assistance
in securing witli certainty the person of WaUace.
They were most anxious to do so, but dreaded to
approach near him, or encounter the terrible
eflect of that sword that had already proved
the destruction of so many of their companions.
Tlieir policy was now therefore to surround him,
which they would soon have been able to do had
not help from an unexpected quarter appeared at
hand, for a hundred swords were levelled at him.
But when they expected to have thrust them into
his breast, and have laid his body cold in the dust,
the hand of his gentle wife was stretched out in his
behalf, and saved him from a cruel and instant
death. She flung open the door of her residence
on the opposite side of the street, where the foes
of her husband were hemming him in, and beck-
oned him to approach the same. He did so with-
out hesitancy, knowing who had opened the door,
and no sooner had he entered it than she shut it
in the face of his enemies. In this way his life
was once more saved from imminent danger, for
he escaped into the woods from behind the house,
and was soon beyond the reach of his pursuers.
Haselrig the elder, on his return to town, was in-
formed of the whole proceedings by his son, who
gave him a sadly distorted and exaggerated ac-
count of them ; and how Wallace was permitted to
132
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
1
escape when surrounded by the soldiers, and when
his capture was sure, by means oi' Marion Brad-
fute. The fury of the petty tyrant at this recital
knew no bounds, for the partiality of the heiress of
Lamington towards Wallace before this had been
suspected, but now was patent to all. For she
had stretched forth her hand and knowingly and
daringly assisted in his escape, when it would have
been impossible for him to do it by any other
means, and when his apprehension would have
afforded joy and satisfaction to the whole garri-
son at Lanark. And this heroic act and the strong
affection shown towards a man who had been de-
clared by Ilaselrig and others of the English an
outlaw, and on whose head a large price had been
set, filled the heart of this dark-souled man with
feelings of the deepest revenge towards this pa-
triotic woman. Alas, for the helpless and noble
maiden ! for she is forthwith dragged into the
presence of one who is likely to show her little
mercy, whoever might interfere in her behalf. He
first wished her to reveal the hiding place of
Wallace by holding out to her the brightest prom-
ises in the shape of a noble knight for her hus-
band, riches to any amount, with honor and pre-
ferment at the court of his Royal master the King
of England. All these she rejected however with
scorn and disdain ; for her inflexible resolution and
her pure and virtuous soul could never be affected
by such tinselled rewards, while her beloved father
and brother had fallen victims to him, and Wallace
i
s
i
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
133
r
V,
forced to flee for his life to the caves and forests
of his native land. He next threatened her with
sure and instant death, but she laughed his threats
to scorn, and with a queenlike heroism, stretching
herself to the full height of her noble person, re-
fused to acknowledge even that she had done
wrong. Nay, on the contrary, she gloried in the
deed she had done, and throwing her arms abroad
and confronting the wretch, she looked up to
heaven and imploring assistance from above, she
dared him to strike the fatal blow. For a little
he was astonished at the fortitude, that one so
tender and lovely at this striking moment was
able to display. But his astonishment soon gave
way to a paroxysm of rage and disappointment ;
and plunging his sword into the defenceless breast
of the noble girl, who deserved a better fate, he
laid her dead at his feet. All Lanark was terror-
struck at this act of wanton cruelty, and nnu-murs
not a few arose even from the midst of the Enurlish
garrison ; and although one of the bystanders, as-
tonished and horrified, threw himself upon the
bleeding body to save the vital spark, it was now
too late. The gentle spirit of Marion Bradfute
had already taken its flight to purer regions, and
cried for vengeance on the head of him who was
soon destined to pay dearly for the \^dcked act he
had recently done, and to appear before the tri-
bunal of the Judge from whom it would be im-
possible to hide his cruelties. Meanwhile, her
tragic death had not only excited feelings of horror
r
134
LlFm OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
but of revenge also in the breasts of all the na-
tives of the town, and they only wanted a chance
to avenge themselves freely on all who had been
accessory to it, which soon occurred. Wallace, ac-
cording to Wynton, the historian, had the sad
misfortune to witness from a hiding place at a
distance the melancholy death of his beloved wife ;
and what rendered it doubly more heart-rend-
ing to him at the time was the fact that he was
alone and unable to offer the slightest resistance-
He was worn out and helpless, owing to the recent
terrible struggle he had on the streets of Lanark
for his life ; but the time was soon approaching
when he would be prepared to mete out vengeance
a thousandfold on its author for the perpetration
of such an uncalled for and diabolical act. Wal-
lace had scarcely time to give utterance to the
agony and horror that tumultuated in his bosom
when he repaired in search of Sir John Graham
and his gallant followers, to whom he communi-
cated the dismal tidings. When they heard them,
a shriek of horror burst forth, and lamentation
and weeping were universally shared in by all the
party. For the unaccountable cruelty inflicted
on one so young for the love she bore her country
and the defender of its liberties, who might well
have deserved a better fate, could not help bring-
ing upon her cruel murderer the avenging justice
of him who could not be an indifferent spectator
of such a terrible crime. The night, it is said,
after the bloody tragedy was enacted, sixty reso-
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
136
I
I
lute followers arranged themselves under the
banner of their chief, and desired to be led forth-
with to Lanark to execute summary vengeance on
one who no longer deserved to live, considering
what he had done. Wallace consented thus to
lead them, and the rays, it is said, of the silvery
moon were cast around their path, as they hastened
forward to the work of destruction. At the dead
hour of night they approached the town in silence,
when the garrison and all around were hushed in
tranquility and repose. They appeared to have
eluded every spy and watchman that might have
been supposed to have intercepted their march,
and reached near the dwelling of the governor
without let or hindrance. Even the queen of
night will grant them her generous aid, and the
Powers from on high bend down from above to
avenge the blood of one that called for judgment
from the starry mansions. Haselrig's residence
was constructed of wood, as most others were
at this period in Scotland, although no such
thing as a wooden house could now be found from
John 0' Groat's to Land's End. It was on the upper
part of the dwelling where he resided which com-
municated with the street by an outside stair con-
structed for the purpose. In the event of an attack
this would render access to the governor's habi-
tation more difficult; nevertheless in the present
case this seemed to be of little consequence. For
Wallace rushed up the stair, followed by his men,
slew the guards that stood in the way, and with a
1
136
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
shout of death rushed into the room where the
governor slept. With his iron grasp he awoke
Haselrig, and gasping for breath the affrighted
man who had so recently imbrued his hands in
innocent blood, asked who he was and whence he
came ? " I am William Wallace," says he, " whose
life you were so anxiously seeking yesterday, and
now I come unsought, and thou shall answer for
my poor maiden's death !" What a sight for the
guilty Haselrig ! It was the husband of the noble
Marion come in all the power of avenging justice
to execute the wrath of the Judge of all on the
head of one so vile, and who was now to
be devoted to destruction ! And well did he
do his work ; for although Haselrig uttered
a wild scream of despair and pleaded for mercy,
it was all to no purpose. He dragged his naked
victim from the bed, ran his sword through his
body, and tossed him headlong from the top of the
stair into the street, a victim of blasted ambition
and of unwonted cruelty. Although the alarm
spread rapidly throughout the garrison, and a
number of the soldiers in it hastened to the resi-
dence of the governor to render him the assistance
he might require, it was now too late to do so.
His bleeding body lay motionless on the street,
and his spirit returned to the rightful Avenger of
every wrong ; shewing us that even in this life,
injured Justice will often assert its prerogative,
and confirm the truth of Divine Writ also, *' that
bloody and deceitful men shall not live out half
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
137
their days." The feelings of the inhabitants of
Lanark and the surrounding districts were so
outraged by the murder of the helpless and inno-
cent Marion, that they resolved to submit no
longer, whatever might be the consequences, to
the cruelty and oppression of the English. They
therefore resolved, with Wallace and his little
party, to clear the town of such usurpers as dared
to trt^raple in the dust the sacred rights even of
women. The English made a bold stand to main-
tain their position, as the garrison was well
supplied with provisions at the time, and every
military weapon that was necessary for its defence.
But they soon found out their utter inability to
do so, for they had not only to fight against
Wallace and his handful of followers, who might
be overpowered and slaughtered, but against the
people. In their breasts there burnt too strong
a regard for injured worth, too great a love for
their country's liberties, now the mock of tyrants,
to be easily put down. The coniiict with such
could not be very long nor doubtful, for having
laid hold of every lethal weapon that came in
their way, they plied the same with such living
force and energy that the whole of the garrison
yielded to their overpowering numbers and were
put to death. The blood of the heiress of Lam-
ington, innocently shed,' was now avenged, and
the people of Lanark has nobly assisted in doing so.
They risked everything dear to them in vindi-
cating her innocence and asserting the liberties of
nr-
138
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
n ,1
M
their country ; and having vowed to do so, what-
ever consequences might follow, they could not
now go back. They became completely identified
with the cause of freedom, and nothing left for
them but to fight for it, whatever it might cost.
Houses, lands, relations, lives, and everything
else were to them but like dust in the balance,
while they were trodden under foot by their
oppressors, and the blood of the noblest of their
countrywomen shed wantonly, for extending a
protecting hand to help and to shield the sorely
oppressed. Crowds of them therefore flocked to
the standard of freedom and offered their lives
freely in the service of their country ; and all that
they wished is that Wallace and his gallant friends
would take the field openly and lead them forth
to victory or death, against an enemy who had
forfeited every claim of mercy at their hand.
The nobles might crouch before the enslavers of
their country and purchase their liberty as a sacri-
fice of everything dear. They might live a life of
ignoble security at Edward's court, and along with
the majority of the clergy acknowledge his
right to govern Scotland. But not so with the
natives of Lanark, and the peasants of the
surrounding country generally. They have
espoused the cause of freedom whatever it may
cost them, and they will fight for it to the bitter
end. Thousands around them, higher and mightier
than they, may be slaves, but as for themselves
they will live and die true Scottish freemen,
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
139
whatever loss it may be to them so to do. It was
thust hat the slaying of the rich,sweet, and patriotic
Marion Bradfute decided the actions of thousands
that might otherwise haye remained neutral
in the cause of freedom ; and with trumpet tongue
summoned to its 'standard the virtuous, the
valorous, the good and the true. Nay more, this
monstrous enormity put a stop to all wavering and
halting between two opinions, ' and proved the
true line of separation between the faithful and
the false, between the patriot and the traitor,
between the free and the enslaved in soul.
And acting as a mighty lever it helped to raise
up the masses of Scotia's sons sunk in the slough
of slavery and despondency, made them pant
and breathe for liberty as they would have
done had they been deprived of the sweet gales
that gently passed across the valleys of their na*
tive land or these beloved heaven-kissing moun-
tains around whose white summits the elements
had warred for ever, encouraging them so to fight
till their country would be for ever free. Refer-
ring to Roman history, there is a striking inci-
dent in connection with the funeral rites perform-
ed to Pompey the Great that bears a close an-
alogy to those of Marion Bradfuteis. When this
celebrated general,after the battle of Pharsalia, put
his foot on the shores of Egypt, he was barbarously
slain, and his body left naked on the strand to glut
the curiosity of the crowds who flocked around it.
But a faithful freedman of his kept near the
140
LIFE OF SIR WILL I AM WALLACE.
i!
I i
bleeding body till the crowds were dispersed,
washed it in the sea, and seeing the wrecks of a
fishing boat, procured materials for burning it and
preserving its ashes, an act of honor conferred on
all free-born Romans. While doing so an old
Roman soldier approached near the spot, and
knowing what was going on wished, whatever
danger might accrue, to share in the honor of the
same action, " for I wish," says he, "to touch the
body of the bravest general Rome ever produced."
In the same manner an old and faithful domestic
female servant of Marion Bradfute ventured into
the midst of the greatest danger and at midnight
into the garrison at Lanark. By means of bribes
and bold adventures she and other faithful
adherents rescued the body of her beloved mis-
tress from the hands of her murderers, and carry-
ing it from the town, passing along through the
forests they threaded their devious, but secure
path, through brake andbrushwood and every other
obstacle that beset their way, and before day
broke in the dappled East they had brought it
near, all pale but lovely, to Bothwell Castle.
Here a bier was provided, and in the presence of
Wallace it is said, and a number of mourners, the
priests of St. Leonard's formed a funeral procession
and consigned to the dark tomb, amid silent
greetings and sobbing emotions of not a few, the
body of the virtuous, untarnished and sigh-souled
woman, who was one of the bravest Scotland
ever produced, while her sainted spirit before
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
141
this liJid entered into those abodes where the
" wicked cease from trouble and the weary are at
rest." The tragic fate of the gentle, yet heroic
Marion produced an impression on the mind of
Wallace which all the events of his chequered
life could never after efface. It broke up all the
domestic ties that had hitherto bound him to
this world. It left him nothing worth caring for
but his country and its liberation. And vowing
to it alone in the room of another who was so
dear to him, and of whom he had been so cruelly
and unceremoniously deprived by the act of a
tyrant, which for its unwonted severity has
scarcely a parallel in history, he took up the
sword with more firm resolve and determination
of purpose than he had ever yet done, and swore
never to sheath it again till tyranny was hurled
from the throne, or he was consigned to the man-
sions appointed for all living. Of the latter pri-
vilege he was deprived, although he had a bap-
tism of blood to be baptised with, of which few of
the sons of men ever partake, for a grave was re-
fused his honored dust, which is generally con-
ceded to the worst of mankind. But still the vow
was sacredly performed, and his country at the
present day reaps the benefit of it.
CHAPTER VIII.
The warlike operations of "Wallace and his followers be^an
to assume more formidable proportions. Large num-
bers of people flocked to his standard, and ho was also
at the head of a considerable army. The first engage-
ment betwixt them and the English was at the east end
of the town of Biggar. Wallace commanded the foot,
and Sir Walter Newbigging and son the cavalry. The
English forces amounted to sixty thousand, but the
exact number of the Scotch not known. Great bravery
displayed by both sides, but the English were at last
vanquished and much slaughter took place. After this
Wallace and his followers resolved to ke :p the field in-
dependent of any opposing force. Great opposition
experienced by Edward in the conquest of Wales from
the priests, and the same spirit of patriotism burnt in
the brea'^ts of the Scottish clergy. Edward resolved to
displace them and apj^oint Englishmen in their place.
These were hated by the Soots. Anthony Beck ap-
pointed to the Bishopric of Glasgow, in the room of
Wishart displaced, who w as at the time a professed pa-
triot. Wallace marched with some of the best of his
troops to Glasgow. A bloody conflict ensued, when
Beck had to flee to England and assure his country-
men that there would be no peace in Scotland till
Wallace was secured dead or alive. An iniquitous
transaction at this time took place at the town of Ayr.
A number of the Scottish nobility invited by the
. English governor there to a friendly conference,
were cruelly slain, and their dead bodies thrown out
on the streets. Wallace's uncle included among the
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
143
t
number. After this the English soldiers feasted sump
tuously and drank freely. They anticipated no imme-
diate danger from the Scot's. The news of the bloody
tragedy spread rapidly, and "Wallace and Douglas and
a number of patriots were soon on the spot. Tl)ey
approached the barns of Ayr before the English knew
of their approach. Securing all approaches to the
building they set it on fire and consumed it with the gar-
rison within. A terrible retribution was thus inflicted
on the enemy for their cruelty. Traditions of these
awful transactions still linger in the neighborhood.
After the tragic occurrence recorded in the last
chapter of our narrative, the warlike operations
of Wallace began to assume more formidable
proportions. Hitherto they had been chiefly of a
desultory character, and at the most intended
only to harass the enemy, and cut off straggling
parties of them, when a favorable opportunity
presented itself. But now it was otherwise.
For large numbers of the inhabitants of the
country flocked to the standard of the patriot,
identified themselves with the cause of liberty,
and eagerly desired to be led forth against the
enslavers of their country. Already had the op-
pression and death of Marion Bradfute borne
good fruit. It had intensified the strong feelings
of hatred the people had always borne to the
English, and convinced them that while they
held possession of the country there was nothing
in it worth living for. Wallace and his faithful
followers took advantage of this excited state of
public opinion, and resolved to hide no longer amid
144
LIFE OF SIR WILLTAM WALLACE.
the caves and forests of their native land, but [)rc-
sent themselves openly before the country, and
rid it, if possible, of an enemy who had carried
misery and desolation with them wherever they
went. He, therefore, no longer appeared at the
head of a miserable handful of followers, who re-
solved Avhatever might be ihe consequences to
adhere to his desperate fortunes ; but an army
of considerable dimensions was soon congregated
together, which at once acknowledged him as its
head, and which, by the quickness of its move-
ments and effectiveness of its operations, startled
and confounded their opponents on every side.
The first regular engagement betwixt these
forces and the English took place near the east
end of the town of Biggar, shortly after summary
justice had been meted out to the cruel governor
of Lanark. Wallace commanded the Scotch
army in person, and showed himself possessed
of all the qualities of a great captain, as
he was before this of a guerilla chief. With
a few of his 'ul followers he led on the
foot, while alter Newbigging and son a
youth of ( fifteen years of age, commanded
the cavalry. The English forces, it is said, con-
sisted of sixty thousand men, and were under the
direction of Lord Whichhenour, one of Edward's
most trusty and experienced generals. Of the
number of the Scotch army we have no correct
account. The conflict raged long with fury and
doubtful success, while feats of heroic bravery
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
145
were peribriiied by all. And little wonder that
such should be the case, for the stakes were great
on both sides! The one contended for liberty
and all its endearments, the other for life and all
its enjoyments. Victory at last declared in favor
of the Scotch, which was consideral)ly owing to
several charges of the cavalry, led on by the able
Sir Walter Newbigging, powerfully assisted by
his youthful but gallant son. The bravery dis-
played l)y this youth in his first engagement ex-
cited the wonder of all, and gained for him the
honor of Knighthood which was conferred on
him after the battle. The accounts of this en-
gagement, which appears to have been bloody and
fatal to both sides, are meagre and contradictory ;
although it took place there can be no doubt,
as it is noticed in the statistical account of the
Parish of Biggar in the following way : *' At the
west end of the town is a tumulus, which appears
never to have been opened ; and there are ves-
tiges of three camps, each of a roundish figure, at
diiferent places in the neighborhood. There is a
tradition of a battle having been fought at the
east end of the town, between the Scots under
Sir William Wallace, and the English, who were
said to be sixty thousand strong, wherein a great
slaughter was made on both sides, but especially
among the latter." This fierce engagement in
which the Scots were so successful, animated them
with new hope, and Wallace had every reason
to congratulate himself on the courage and dis-
146
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
\
cipline his troops had displayed, and to expect
even greater things of them in the future. He,
therefore, resolved to keep the field, whatever
forces the English might bring against him ; and
while the main body of his army was sufficient to
engage the attention o** the enemy, smaller por-
tions of it were employed throughout the country
in surprising distant garrisons, and putting to the
sword many before they had the slightest intima-
tion of their sudden approach. One of the prin-
cipal obstacles in the way of the suljjection of
Wales by the cruel Edward, wrs the strong op-
position he met with from its patriotic bards and
priests. In the minds of these were nurtured
throughout all ages the strongest aspirations after
liberty, which they infused into the hearts oi"
their countrymen. No bribes, no threats could
extinguish such feelings. They remained from
the days of the Roman conquest downward as
firmly engraven in their hearts, as the mountains
of their native land, which everywhere surround-
ed them, and whose pure fresh breezes were but
proper emblems of what to them was dearer than
any -earthly blessing. But the conquest of thin
country was of far more importance in the eyes
of this cruel invader than the lives of all its na-
tives, with the priests included. And finding that
such was impossible while they continued to live
and exercise their spiritual functions, he adopted
the savage resolution of putting them all to a cruel
death. In his attempts to crush the liberties of
'i
1
i
M
i
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
U7
of
Scotland the wary tyrant anticipated the same
difficulties from the ecclesiastics, and albeit the
Pope, his spiritual father, prevented him from
exercising towards them the same amount of
cruelty, he nevertheless resolved to rid the coun-
try of them from the time of his first invasion of
it. Accordingly he ordered that all the parishes
as soon as they fell vacant should be filled up
with English incumbents. The result was that a
host of hirelings rushed across the borders, took
possession of all the best livings, and reduced the
native clergy to poverty, or drove them into exile.
And not only so, but while pretending to exercise
their spiritual functions, they betrayed the most
sacred and valuable interests of the poor and op-
pressed natives ; and it cannot be wondered why
an English priest or soldier Avas considered by
them with an equal degree of reproach. During
the brief reign of Baliol, an edict was passed
banishing these hated foreign ecclesiastics from
the country. And the first thing Wallace en-
deavored to do when his power began to be felt,
was to carry out the spirit of the edict to its
utmost extent against those whose office ought to
have been to proclaim liberty to the enslaved
natives, instead of fastening upon them the fetters
more firmly which a tyrant had endeavored to
forge. In the carrying out of this object, it luip-
pened at the time that Anthony Beck, the warlike
bishop of Durham, had been appointed to the
bishopric of Glasgow in the room of Wishart, the
♦■
i
11
148
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
':■:
11 1 I
friend of "Wallace ; and if so, he must be made to
pay for such an act of cruel injustice, and be dis-
lodged from the ecclesiastical palace that rightfully
belonged to his fellow-patriot. Wallace selected
three hundred of the best of his cavalry, divided
them into two bodies, and forthwith proceeded
rapidly to Glasgow. When near the spot he urged
upon his followers the necessity of caution and
prudence, for the bishop and many of his ecclesias-
tical retainers from Northumberland, who had
doffed the cassock, could well handle the sword.
The division under the command of Wallace's
uncle attacked the rear of the bishop's force,
while Wallace advanced straight forward and at-
tacked the front. The forces met on the high
street, not fiir from the castle, and a terrible con-
flict began ; for the warlike prelate was followed
by a retinue of knights and esquires, only inferior
to that of Edward, his royal master. Tlie narrow-
ness of the street however, prevented them from
operating successfully against their sworn North-
ern foes, while every stroke of the sword of Wal-
lace and his followers thinned their ranks, filled
the streets with their dead bodies, and caused their
blood to flow in torrents from the castle in all
directions. Although the Scots contended gal-
lantly with Wallace at their head, the overwhelm-
ing numbers of the English would have gradually
overcome them, but for a slight circumstance that
took place, and which at once decided the fate of
the day. A terrible stroke from the sword of
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 149
Wallace made the bearer of the bishop's banner
roll ill the dust. It was a melancholy occurrence
for the English, for the banner had been conse-
crated and the person's life who bore it along
triumphantly, considered beyond the reach of
danger. This, however, dispelled the charm,
damped the ardor of the superstitious vassals of
the warlike bishop, and caused them to fall back
in confusion and terror. Meanwhile the division
of tlie Scotch cavalry that had wheeled round to
the rear, made their appearance. They witnessed
the state of disorder in which the English forces
already began to be in, and rushing upon them
with the wildest impetuosity completed the vie-
high tory already within reach of the Scots. A large
number of the enemy was put to the sword, and
the lanes leading from the high street were choked
up with the bodies of the dying and of the dead.
Glasgow never before nor after witnessed such a
bloody conflict along its streets ; and the inhabit-
ants of the place never forgot to their dying day
how completely Wallace and his followers, as with
a magic spell, swept everything before them.
With difficulty Beck succeeded in escaping with
three hundred cavalry, and reached the borders
gal- ';■ in safety. He exaggerated to a fearful degree
the woeful situation in which his countrymen
were left behind, and assured all that there was
no security for any one of them in Scotland till
Wallace, dead or alive, was put into the hands of
the English. While these transactions were going
11 'rr
150
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
M
on, one of those iniquitous deeds, so common to the
reign of the cold-blooded Edward, was perpetrated
at Ayr, which, for baseness and atrocity, has no
equal in the history of any civilized nation. Under
friendly intentions, Sir Ronald Crawford, uncle of
Wallace, Sir Bryce Blair, Sir Neil Montgomery,
with many others of the Scottish nobility and
barons of lesser note, were invited to meet Percy,
the governor of the place. It was alleged that a
council was to be held betwixt these noblemen
and the English officers, over which the governor
in person was to preside ; and when the matters
brought up before it were disposed of, a splendid
banquet was to take place in honor of the Scottish
nobility, who were to be present. The meeting
was held in a large wooden building, erected by
Edward as a residence for the governor, called
the Barns, with several passages that conducted
into the interior of the same. This meeting
might well acquire the name of the Black Parlia-
ment in after ages in Scotland. It sent a thrill
of horror over the length and breadth of the land ;
for the real intentions of the English were only
found out when it was too late. Each Scottish
nobleman, as he entered the building unarmed and
without suspicion, was seized by the English
soldiers, who were planted beforehand at the
several entrances of the building, and hurried to
execution. On a broad joist, or rafter, which
supported the roof of the building, he was hung
up without any trial, although under the solemn
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
151
protection of a truce. Not one of the Scots who
attended the meeting was allowed to escape, and
a large number of the heads of the best families
in the west of Scotland was thus cruelly cut off.
Nor was this all, but the lifeless bodies of those
that were executed were thrown into a vault be-
neath, and afterwards tossed into the middle of
the street, to be hewn and cut in pieces so as to
strike terror to their countrymen on all sides.
This was done during the night, and had not mnny
of the people of Ayr crowded round the massacred
bodies, and demanded that they should be given
up in order that they might be decently interred,
not one of them would have been recognized by
the morning. Of the bodies thus recovered were
those of Sir Ronald CraAvford and Lord Ruthven,
who was passing the time as a guest with the
sheriff of Ayr, when the bloody transaction took
place. When this piece of wanton slaughter and
cruel perfidy was accomplished, the next step
adopted by their southern oppressors was equally
cool and heartless. Some of the parties betrayed
and butchered, were amongst the most wealthy in
several parts of the country. They owned vast
estates, and numerous hosts of retainers followed
them into the field. The whole of the day that
succeeded their murder was taken up in partition-
ing out their sequestered estates, and dividing their
followers among the more needy of the governor's
friends ; while a large share of the booty was re-
served for this worthy himself. This occupied
fr
152
LTFE OF i^IIi WILLIAM WALLACE.
the second day, and when all things were satisfac-
torily disposed of, a grand feast was proclaimed to
be held in the building where perfidy and crime
had so recently run their course. It did take
place on a most magnificent scale. A long, deep
carousal followed, and the richest wines of France
passed freely among the guests. But the perpe-
trators of the bloody deeds above referred to
failed to see that such acts of sensuality were
only tending to throw them off their guard, and
invoking on their heads a tremendous retribution,
which must soon overtake them. In the burden
of ancient Nineveh, which the inspired Seer utter-
ed, its inhabitants are charged as being " drunken
as drunkards ;" and her grave was thus to be
made, " because she was vile." The great city
thus fell at a stroke, and was entombed in her
own ruins. The perpetrators of the cruel deeds
in the Barns of Ayr hastened to imitate the vile
heathen in the same sensual indulgences, and as
might have been expected came to the same end.
They caroused during the whole day of the feast
and towards night they became drunken as
drunkards. " They slept their sleep outright,"
unconscious of the least danger that was nigh at
hand, and were entirely off their guard. But an
enemy was approaching the place that would not
be trilled with, and who would execute summary
vengeance on the ruffians who deserved no mercy
at their hand. The tidings of the massacre at the
Barns, soon spread like wild fire throughout the
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
153
as
at
whole country, and gathered weight and horror
as they sped along. They quickly reached
Wallace and Sir William Douglas, who happened
to be in the neighborhood of Ellerslie at the time,
and illled their souls with feelings bordering on
madness for revenge. For it came to the know-
ledge of Wallace, that the body of his revered
uncle was not only treated with every sort of
indignity, and cast out in a state of nudity into
the street, but even his mansion in the town,
and liis many paternal acres in the country, had
already been handed over by Percy the governor
to an English minion of his own. Wallace and
Douglas were astir early on the morning of
the feast, and directed their march to the west
without a moment's delay. They were accom-
panied by three hundred of the most faithful
of their followers, who burned to be revenged
on an enemy who, by their recent acts of
horrid cruelty, had excluded themselves from
the pale of mercy. Besides these, there were
many of the retainers of the slaughtered noble-
men who fell in with the party by the way, and
who openly thirsted for an opportunity of ridding
the country of men on whom no punishment suf-
ficient to the extent of their crimes could possibly
be inflicterl. It was night before they reached
the neighl)orhood of Ayr, and they were glad to
learn that the English, in the midst of their fan-
cied security, were entirely off their guard. They
watched not, and apprehended no danger • for they
a
154
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
were overpowered with strong drink, and had
already kiid themselves down to sleep soundly,
imagining that no number of the Scots could at
present be in the neighborhood. But they forgot
to remember that their diabolical proceedings had
awoke a spirit of retaliation in all directions, and
the avengers of justice could not be put off.
Favored by the darkness of the night, and the
state of the enemy, Wallace and his friends had
approached the spot where the Scottish nobility
had been inveigled, and cruelly put to death ; but
a more terrible scene, if possible, was soon to be
enacted there. The numerous entrances to the
building were secured from the outside, without
alarming the inmates, who had betaken them-
selves to rest, little dreaming of the terrible fate
that awaited them. In addition to this, large
quantities of pitch and dry wood were heaped up
around the building, and so soon as his men were
drawn around it, Wallace commanded fire to be
applied to the same. To destroy all the inmates at
once, in the theatre of their unmitigated cruelty,
and to make a wholesale execution instead of
engaging in a conflict of man to man, appeared to
be but meting out even-handed justice to all con-
cerned. They were not honorable soldiers. Wal-
lace and his followers were seeking to destroy.
They were murderers and assassins, who had lost
all sense of honor and of sacred truth. And to
allow them a chance of fighting openly in the
field, with his small body of faithful men, who
H
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
155
followed him to be avenged on such inhuman
beings, would only be to dishonor his brave sol-
diers, and afford the basest of criminals a chance
of escaping from the punishment they so justly
merited. The time had now come for striking a
decisive blow. The cry of the innocently slain
had already entered into the ears of the God of
justice, who was no idle spectator of the bloody
drama so lately witnessed. And WaUace and his
followers were to be the instruments used for
executing condign punishment on the men who
were destined in a Ijody to be offered up as a
human hecatomb to the souls of their dear departed
friends and relations, which must have already
been crying for vengeance before the Throne on
High on their inhuman betrayers and murderers
(m the earth. The building in which the besotted
English soldiers had lately perpetrated their
fearful crimes, in which they afterwards feasted
and revelled, and in which they now slept securely,
mimindful of any danger from without, was com-
posed of wood, thatched with straw and shingles,
laid over a roof of inflammable spars and wattled
branches. It was but a few seconds when the
whole fabric was in a flame, which never could
afterwards be extinguished, for the roof of it was
designedly set on fire at the same time as the
lower part of the building. First, a smoke there-
fore, then a blaze simultaneously arose from every
part of the building. It communicated with the
innermost passages and recesses of the same.
■ i
li
156
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
1«l
!h
awakening the affrighted revellers who, for the
first time began to learn that they were hope-
lessly enveloped in its fiery embraces, and had no
means presented them of saving themselves. Ven-
geance now cried aloud for sacrifice, Tlie blood
of the treacherously murdered, as with a
tongue of fire, pleaded for punishment on their
enemies, and not one of them would be allowed
to escape. Beams, rafters, roofing and flooring
are now in one continuous blaze, and as the
flames lick round the helpless inmates, a sight
of horror was presented that cannot be described.
Some were praying to God for i:)ardon, others
were entreating for mercy. But by far the
greatest number, with curses and imprecations
on their lips, threw themselves into the midst
of the fatal conflagration, and rushed into
eternity. Crackling and roaring the careering
sheeted flames cast a lurid glare across the sky for
several hours ; but the work of destruction was
accomplished. In the morning the bloody Barns
of Ayr had no existence saving a charred heap of
ruins, and not one of the five hundred of the
cruel inmates, who feasted so sumptuously and
drank so freely the day before, remained to tell
their story. Many it is true, finding their situ-
ation to be so perilous, endeavored to break
through all barriers, and accomplish their escape.
But in this they were sadly disappointed. For
every avenue from the building was guarded by
armed men, who prevented the possibility of any
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 157
fleeing from it ; so that all who escaped the llames
I'rom within fell into the hands of their enemies
without. Never were treachery and cruelty
more wantonly carried out, and at the same time
more summarily punished. And the severity of
the retribution can only be palliated by the
nature of the case, and the peculiar circumstances
in which Wallace and his followers happened at
this time to l)e placed. The sun had begun to
streak the east by the time those bloody sacrifices
were finished, and the pale light of the morning
enabled the Scottish soldiers to retire from a
scene that was only calculated to strike horror
into every heart in which the smallest amount of
mercy or compassion yet remained. Neither
Wallace or Douglas could have found much satis-
faction in the terrible destruction of life and pro-
perty, in which they had lately been engaged.
The generous natures of both the chiefs were far
removed in a general way from wanton or inten-
tional cruelty. But the love of their country, now
down-trodden and oppressed, and their friends
and relations now wantonly betrayed, put to
death, and afterwards ignominiously exposed on
the public streets, hermetically sealed up every
feeling of tenderness and compassion in their
bosoms towards their southern enemies; and
forced upon them the adoption of these extreme
modes of retaliation wdiich in no ordinary circum-
stances could by any means be justified. Some
historians have thought proper to be sceptical in
u
:
158
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
regard to this part of Scotch history, and have
labored to deny the truth of every occurrence
first and hist connected with the shiughter and
burning of the Barns of Ayr. But it is to be
borne in mind, that events of more recent date
in connection with the annals of this country,
and also of other countries, have likewise been
called in question, although well authenticated ;
and it by no means follows on that account that
such are to be discredited. One thing is cer-
tain, that after the most careful and painstaking
research, by some of the most eminent antiquarians
in Scotland, they have no hesitation in giving
credence generally to the whole account as
stated above. Referring to it^ the laborious
Doctor Jamieson says : " The history of the
destruction of these buildings and of the imme-
diate reason of it is supported by the universal
tradition of the country to this day ; and local
tradition is often entitled to more respect than is
given to it by the fastidiousness of the learned.
Whatever allowances it may be necessary to make
for subsequent exaggeration it is not easily con-
oeivable, that an event should be connected with
a particular spot during a succession of ages with-
out some foundation." And the statements of this
able and impartial writer, are fully corroborated
by a national work, called the Complaint of Scot-
land, which was published many years before any
life of Wallace appeared before the public. Speak-
ing of this event, the author refers to it in the
I
I
LIFE OF SfR WILLIAM WALLACE.
159
following way : " Any of you that consents to
his false concjuest of your country, meaning of
course the king of England, ye shall be recom-
pensed as your forefathers were, at the Black
Parliament at the IJarns of Ayr, when king
Edward made ii convocation of all the nobles of
Scotland at the town of Ayr, under color of
faith and concord, who com peered at his instance
whom when made hung cruelly and dishonestly
to the nundjer of sixteen score of the most
noble of the country, two and two over a balk."
Ir
CHAPTER IX.
The efforts of Edward liithcrto directed to tlie snl)juii;ation of
the Southci'n and Eastern parts of the kin<i;<loin. West-
ern liiglilands and ishuids remained unmolested owing
to the fact that it was cut up by large arms of the sea,
and rendered inaccessible by terrible mountain barriers.
No roads here for centuries afterwards, nor an inn where
the traA'eller might repose. The Celts ha])])}' williin
their own territories, and enjoyed life amid the wild
l)eauties of natm-e. Emigrate in large numbers to
foreign countries, but still love their native highlands.
Strange that ^iacaulay, descended from the Celts, should
tiy to dis])arage them so much. The tirst to embrace
Christianity in the ]iritish Isles, and have been largely
identitied for centuries with many of the leading events
in Christendom and elsewhere. A large tract of land
granted in Argyle toJMcFaydon by Jvhvard. Pj'oceeded
from Ireland to take possession of it. Committed ci-iiel
depi'ctlations. Ari-ested in his course by Duncan of
Lome, a brother of the chief of the Campbell clan.
Sorely harassed them. Ketired towards Loch Awe to
join his brother Sir Neil Campbell. The tirst authentic
account of the Cam])bcll family. Destined afterwards
l(» pertbrm a conspicuous part in the history of their
country. Sir Neil drew McFaydon into the heart of
the country and cut otf liis force. Sent notice to Wal-
lace of the stale of affairs, liesolved to proceed to his
assistance. Joined in the ex])edition by Sii* John ({I'aham
and his clansmen. And also k^ir llichurd Lund in, -leadod
by five hundred fighting men. Duncan of Lone ap-
pointed their guide. Came up with McFnydon's force
■I
|i i
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
161
c Hca,
•ricrs.
^vhere
vithin
e wild
ci's to
ilands.
should
tiri^ely
events
land
eded
cruel
an of
elan,
we to
lentic
wards
their
111 of
Wal-
to his
ahain
leaded
10 ap-
foree
I
at the Brandir Pass. Had reached it ljef<jre McFaydon
•was aware ol' their ajiproach. The Irish troops loiigLt
with heroic eoui'a;(e butat f!;rcatdisadvanta<^e, and many
of tlicni hurled into the chasm below. When known
that Wallace was leading the Scots a terrible panic en-
dued, and n)ostof tliem j)iit to death. McFaydon esi-aped
and concealed himself in a cave, but was aftei'wards
discovered and beheaded. His head tixed on a rock,
which still bears his name. After the battle "Wallace
convened a meeting of the AV^estern chiefs, inflamed
their minds with hatred towards the English, and left
the highlands receiving the blessings of thousands.
The efforts of Edward had liitlicrto been directed
to tlie subjugation of the southern and eastern
parts of the Kingdom of Seothuid, and through-
out these his cruel and aggressive policy had
been didy felt. Altbough absent most of the time
at the outset of his operations, and engaged in an
indefensible war with the King of France, he
nevertheless managed to select men of tlie proper
stamp for carrying out his truculent and insane
projects of ambition in the northern p;irt of the
island ; and of such we had a sample in the last
chapter. Ireland had already bowed her head
and yielded up the sceptre to one of his over-
reaching Plantagenet predecessors, on which ac-
count, sitting in sackcloth and ashes, she has often
had reason since to shed mauy a ])itter tear.
Wales too, after a blooflv struggle, in which al-
though heroically resisting, she was at last over-
mastered by a superior force sent against her by
the cruel and politic Edward, and had at last fallen
1 1'
162
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
under Lis iron sway. And nothing now remained
f*or liim to add to his dominions within tlie eom-
pass of the four British seas but Scothmd ; and
for the aecomplishment of this, no amount of men
or money, or truth, or honor, or an^^thing else
was considered too much. In the carrying out
of this, his darling scheme, he had other objects
to serve besides his love of conquest. For a large
number of the ruined and needy nobility both
from Ireland and Wales had already joined his
standard, whom he wished to employ with their
retainers, as far as possible from home, as mercen-
ary troops. These he despatched in thousands
towards the North, where he expected an easy
conquest owing to the divided state of the nobility
and distracted condition of the country ; while
the fortifications in Wales and Ireland were en-
lara;ed and their numbers increased and lilled
with English soldiers, in order to keep the natives
quiet and sn1)missive under him. It accords ^-'th
history, that while Edward was at Stirlii.g in
129G, he was joined by tlie Earl of Ulster with
thirty thousand infantry and four hundred cavalry
from Ireland. Many of these nuirched witli hiu)
in his bloody procession to the North, where little
leniency- or compassion was shown to the poor
natives, who lied from them as they would have
done from the famished wolves, as they rushed
for prey fi'om the gorges of their native mountains.
When Edward retired South he left a larne num-
ber of these foreigners to oppress and overcome
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
103
iviilrv
II liini
little
poor
have
Usliod
iiviiis.
liium-
l-coine
m
them when they proved refractory, or refused to
suhiuit their neck to his iron yoke. But the in-
teresting and extensive portion of Scotland known
as the Western high hinds, and islands thereto
attached, had up to this time remained unmolest-
ed, and the cruel invader, or any of his relentless
hordes, had not dared to touch them. This was
largely owing to the fact that it was so cut up
and intersected hy arms of the sea, and rendered
nearly inaccessi])le by terrible mountain barriers,
so as to prevent any large number of armed men
from marchiuix throuirh it in a rcLrular wav, or
from operating successfully together in any part of
it. For not till many centuries afterwards were
any passable roads to be found cut through the
rocks, or threading their way amid the glens and
gorges of the lofty mountains here. Scarcely a
plank was thrown aci'oss the streams that went
bubbling and dashing along in their impetuous
courses to the sea or neighboring lake; and the
traveller that happened to come into the country
when night approached, had to cast himself upon
the hospitiility of the inmates of the nearest hovel
that came in the way ; for an inn was a luxury not
then known. And yet the native Cel were
happy within their own limited territories, and
enjoyed life perhaps as much as any other people
amid the wild beauties of nature. They were
charmed with the dark blue waters of their lakes,
the l)old outlines and rich tints of their mountains,
and the boiling torrents that often roared and
164
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
i I
danhed down their precipitous sides. And while
they beheld the clouds and tempests lowering on
their tops, they were delighted with the same,
and willing to live and die amid the poverty and
grapdeur of their n.ative country in preference to
any other. And this feeling is far from yet being
extinguished in the breast of the noble Highlander,
for, " although fate should drag him south the
line, or o'er the wide Atlantic sea," and his courage
should cause him to achieve great exploits, his
intense attachment to his native soil continues the
same. While at a distance from it he dreams
during the night of many of the abrupt preci-
pices near his native home, the lofty mountains
seen from afar w^here his youthful footsteps trod,
and the gloomy passes stretching with their
solemn grandeur away through to some distant
glens. And awaking in the morning he is sorry
to lind that all were but airy phantoms, and he
sighs amid the tame and domestic beauties of other
climes, till he is allowed to return and gaze with
renewed interest on the crags, glens, woods and
waters of his native land. Then the wild and
rusu'^d reo;ions that surround Benvoirlick and
Benledi acipiire new beauties in his eyes, where
Each purple tint, each flinty spire is bathed in
floods of liquid fire." Then the leap and roar of
Foyers, as it rushes on to empty itself into the
loch that glitters at its feet, are possessed of more
vsublimity and grandeur than all other waterfalls in
his eyes on the surface of the globe ; while Loch-
ia
m
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
1G5
while
ng on
same,
;y and
;nce to
being
ander,
\i the
3urage
its, his
les the
Ireams
preci-
mtains
3 trod,
. their
distant
s sorry
md he
f other
e with
s and
d and
t and
where
led in
oar of
to the
f more
falls in
J Loch-
nagar peers up like a giant monster from amid
the apparently puny Grampians that surround it,
and Bencruachan over the willowy islets of Loch-
awe, with its snowy top uuike " Caledonia stern
and wild," dearer to him than ever, and here he
wishes to rest his bones, amid the sepulchres of
his fathers, when his heart ceases to beat, and his
weary footsteps have terminated forever. And
why should Macaulay, with all his powers of rhe-
toric and masterly eloquence, try to touch off the
{Scottish Celt to such disadvantage as he does in
his history ! For the blood of the same race
coursed in his veins, and his knowledge of their
character, as he himself admits, was gathered
largely from a cockney of the name of Burt, who
describes the mountains in Inverness-shire, " as
monstrous excrescences, masses of dirty brown and
purple affecting the eye." But the truth is Mac-
aulay is after all but a beautiful word painter, who
wrote for eftect, and not for the truth. For any
unprejudiced Englishman, taking up Burt's Letters
from Scotland, and reading them carefully, must
at once see that they are only a miserable carica-
ture of the country and its inhabitants • and feel
astonished that one who wishes to write for pos-
terity, should have labored so hard from such data
to expose to contempt and ridicule a race, who
were the first in the British Isles to embrace the
simple truths of Christianity, and disseminate
them everywhere abroad ; and whose many other
acts have tended so much to add glory, honor and
[II
1G6
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
i
«
riches to the British Empire. No author, however
great his talents, can thus succeed in writing
down a people whose history is so largely identi-
fied with many of the leading events that have
occurred in Christendom, for many centuries gone
by. And a people too, be it remembered, who
had deeds of valor to recount, and native princes
to rule over them, attended by guards and by
armor-bearers ; and who had also waged wars, pro-
claimed peace and dispensed justice in their own
way before the Saxon ever planted a foot on the
shores of Albion, or the proud Norman had usher-
ed forth from the icy forests of the north to make
his more southern neighbors quail and tremble
before him. In order to exercise control over
this race, who had long lived unmolested from any
foreign foe, Edward resolved to plant a colony in
the midst of the Western Highlands. It was to
make room for some of those mercenaries, to whom
we have referred above, and was headed by an
Irish chief of the name of McFaydon, a creature
of his own. To this person he granted a tract of
land in the county of Argyle, and he proceeded
from the North of Ireland with a large number
of his followers, to take possession of the same.
When he landed on the Scottish shore he was
joined by a number of English and renegade
Scots, so that his motlej^ army, such as it was,
amounted to not less than fifteen thousand men.
They lost no time in conmiencing hostile oper-
ations, and so soon as they acquired a footing in
M
w
1
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
167
a
the country, they showed no mercy to the iiiitives.
Landing in Lome, they proceeded gradually into
the interior of the country, and ravaged it vvith
fire and sword. They slew all the males who re-
fused to join them, abused and ravished the Avomen,
and committed the most revolting atrocities
wherever they went. If they had not been for-
tunately checked in the midst of their wild career
by the Ijravery of the natives, the desolating work
of Edward and his emissaries in the south and
eastern parts of the country, would have never
compared with theirs. But they had not pro-
ceeded far in their work of destruction till they
were arrested in it, and suffered the ci'uel fate
their conduct richly merited. The invasion of
their beloved country was soon heralded abroad
among the children of the Gael, and to resist the
same was the unfaltering resolution of all con-
cerned. Death Avas prefej'aljle to a life of degra-
dation and subjection. The liery cross of McCal-
lum-More was, therefore, soon seen floating in
the breeze, and hurrying on from mountain to
glen with, renewed speed. Wherever it was seen
it kindled the same spirit of enthusiasm among
the chiUlren of the Clan, and those of them that
were far off hastened with good-will to be present
at the general rendezvous. It was a sight worthy
of notice, to witness the dwellers throughout such
an extensive district of country, bounding over
the Avilds and strongholds of nature's own fram-
ing, bent upon the repulsion of the daring foe,
168
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
and rusliiiig to the banner of their heroic chief
who had unfurled it already. Duncan of Lome,
a brother of the Chief of the Clan, was the first to
encounter the enemy. He had only a handful oi'
men to assist in opposing them, but his undaunted
bravery and that of his foUowers, together with
his intimate accpiaintance with the country, en-
al)led him for a consideral)le time to harass them
sorelj^ attacking their foraging parties and cut-
ting off their supplies. At last he was compelled
to yield to a vastly superior force, and this brave
man with his handful of followers, retreated
fighting toAvards Loch Awe, where he received
the assistance and protection of his brother, Sir
Niel Campbell, the head of the Clan. As far as I
can glean from history, this is the first authentic
reference to a family which has ever afterwards
figured so conspicuously in the annals of their
country. At first the Camploells were inferior in
number and in power to the McDonalds, who pos-
sessed more than kingly authority in the Wes-
tern Isles and over the mountninous countries oi'
Argyle and Inverness-shire. But what the Camp-
bells wanted at first in power, they possessed in
wonderful acuteness and dexterity of address, so
that by the use of means sometimes false, some-
times fair, but always plausible; and above all
by their untiring ambition, they succeeded in
gradually diminishing the power of their neigh-
bours, the McDonalds, and establishing their own
in its place. In the course of ages, they were
I .
lii
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
109
able to bring into the field five thousand men,
while they compelled a number of the most
ancient chiefs of the Western Highlands to pay
them tribute. And perhaps the power thus as-
sumed was more safely vested in their hands than
in that of any other of their highland rivals. For
in all the struggles that have taken place in
Scotland, in behalf of civil and religious liberty,
we generally find the Campbells on the right side ;
while larger numbers of the name than that of
perhaps any other in Britain, have distinguished
themselves in the camp, cabinet, and also in the
republic of letters. Sir Niel Campbell did not at-
tempt, with his small number of clansmen, to
meet McFaydon openly in the field, but drew him
and his men into the midst of the fastnesses of the
country, and there to cut them off", and thus pre-
vent their retreat. This is what he resolved to
do as soon as McFaydon entered the country,
and he succeeded after great toil and difiicul-
ties in the accomplishment of his object. The
Irish Chief, trusting to his armed soldiers,
imagined he would weary Sir Niel and his clans-
men out by incessantly following them up to their
different places of retreat, and cutting them ofl*.
But in this he was mistalven, for his want of pro-
per knowledge of the country ultimately brought
himself and the whole of his armed force to utter
ruin. Sir Niel owned a keep in one of the most
sequestered parts of the country, and thither he
retreated with three hundred of his clansmen. It
170
LIFE OF SIR WirJJAM WALLACE.
%
I
stood in a lonely sitnjition at the end of a deep
ravine, and though not particularly large, was
ani[)ly sudicient to aeeoniniodate all his followers at
that present time. Jf not by art, it was strongly
fortified by nature, and even Edward himself, if
he had been on the s])ot, with all his power and
warlike sagacity, would have found it a dillicult
task to assail it, and far more so to take it. On
the rear of it ran the river Awe, which, with
deep and rapid current, receiving its waters from
a Loch of the same name, dashed along impetu-
ously, being shut in by rocky barriers which
lined its bank for several hundred feet in height,
and rendered it extremely dillicult in its approach
in this direction. In the front of it lay the cele-
brated Brandir Pass, than which there is no one
more difficult in its nature to traverse in this or
any other part of the country. After roundiug
the head of the Pass, tbe traveller has to wend
his weary way down a dangerous and dillicult
defile of such a nature as renders it impossible for
him to proceed without creeping cautiously along.
A single step Avould cost him his life, and hurl
him into the deep and yawning gulf that boils and
eddies several hundred feet below. Even when
he uses this precaution, great danger accompanies
the undertaking from the fact that large quanti-
ties of loose stones with which the face of the rocks
are covered are easily set in motion, and might
be found to overwhelm and dash in pieces any
one, however cautiously he might try to proceed
■t
"^>.
LIFE OF SIR WILLfAil WALLACE.
171
m
jiloiig. Sir Nicl, {iftor imicli cure Jiiid circumspec-
tion, succeeded in reacliin^' in sai'ety this high-
land retreat, Ironi whii^h it would be no easy
task to dispossess either him or his I'aithrul Ibl-
lowers. And not only so, but he was now able to
watch in security the tardy and perilous prcjgress
of McFaydon and his troops, already suflering
sorely from want of provisions and worn out by
incessant marches, although still faintly pursuing
his wary enemy. The trusty Highlanders that
lay in wait for the approach of the Irish army
knew the fatal spots where it would be most
advantageous to strike the blow% and as they
creoped along singly without being able to cover
their advance, they afforded a proper nnirk for the
missiles that came pouring in upon them from all
qnarters. Many whyq thus sorely galled and dis-
couraged ; many were wounded ; and many
more were struck dead. And while they rolled
dow^n to the bottom of the deep and eddying
abyss below, they tilled the hearts of those that
were to follow after wdth much fear and
discouragement. While McFaydon was advan-
cing in the rear and Sir Niel was march-
ing for the Pass, he knew how completely
he would soon be shut out from the outside
world. He, therefore, sent some of his most
trusty followers to Wallace to acquaint him of the
situation, and to crave his inunediate help. The
ear of Wallace was ever open to the cry of any
of his afflicted and down-trodden countrymen ;
-w^
III
112
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLAChl.
and was likely to listen to the request for help
from an unexpected quarter of the country, with
the attention and regard which it merited. Sir
Niel Campbell was an old confederate and friend of
his own, and it would have been contrary to all his
former actings to leave him to contend single-hand-
ed against such an overwhelming force. Besides,
this was anew point of attack upon which Edward
had decided, and to allow him to take possession
of the Western highlands, and to plant his colon-
ies there would have added largely to his inlluence
in Scotland, and retarded the cause of independ-
ence, it might be for many years to come. He
resolved, therefore, at once to succor in person his
sorely tried highland friend, and rid the country
of an enemy who, so soon as he was able to secure
a firm footing in it, was likely to induce hosts of
liis countrymen to follow his example and settle
in it. Wallace was joined in the expedition by
Sir John Graham and a number of his faithful
clansmen, who were well acquainted with the
nature of the highlands, and how to conduct war
with a prospect of success in the same. And to
make the conqilement more complete. Sir Richard
Lundin headed five hundred fighting men of his
own, thus bringing up the whole force to the
number of not less than two thousand, composed
of the very flower of the Scottish army. With
high hopes and determined resolution, they left
the Lennox, where Wallace had been for some
time stirring up a warlike spirit among the na-
iy0
■>;
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
173
lives and inducinp^ them to attach theiuHelvcs to
tlie fortunes of the patriots. They accepted as
their guides the l)rave Duncan of Lome and his
faitliful servant Micliael, than whom there were
none hetter acquainted with the rufxged and in-
tricate paths of tlie hi^hhvnds, through which the
patriot army was now destined to tread their way.
For even many of the natives themselves were
unacquainted with several of them, and it was
only the deer stalker and those taught to foUow
up the game amid its most dangerous caves and
retreats, in which exciting work Michael excelled,
that were safe guides in such unfrequented phices.
After being led through gorges, forests, and by-
paths which would have appeared perilous and
|)erplexing to a single stranger, and much more
so to a large armed force, they ascended a high
mountain, which was accomplislied with the ut-
most toil and trou] lie, for the path here was hardly
discerna])le, and tlie weary foot-soldiers began to
Hag, became dispirited and fell into disorder. Such
trying marches are often more dillicult to be borne
by armed troops than a sharp encounter with the
enemy. As their leader was, however, at their
head, and had been sulmiitting to every privation
which the meanest soldier had endured, he called
a halt and wcs able to address them with all the
authority of one who had never saved himself
from undergoing dangers and privations. At the
same time while he was prepared to exercise his
power as a general in restoring order, he blended
1'74
jJFE OF SIR WILJJAM WALLACE.
I I'! .
i'
tlie smiie power Avitli tlie kind feelings of a friend,
for he addressed tliem in tluit faeile elo(|iiGnce
wliiclt in more trying emergencies bad always
carried conviction along with it to the hearts of
his ardent followers : " Good men," said he, ^' this
will never do. If we come up with the enemy
in such broken array, we may receive serioii s dam-
age ourselves, but can do them little burt in re-
turn. It is necessnry we sliould 1)e up with them
as soon as possible, for if they hear of our approach
the}' may choose a plain wlierc tlieirnuml)ers will
give them advantage. To t)revent this 1 will go
forward with those thfit are aljle, and leave the
rest to folloAv." In this short Ijut well timed ad-
dress, in which the bravery of the soldier, the
sound judgment of the general, and the kind and
sympathizing words of the friend were all alike
cons})icuous, he infused new ardor into the l)reasts
of all his followers of every rank; and after halt-
ino' for some time and recruitinu' their stren^tb,
the jxencral feelinii' of all was how to march for-
ward, show themselves worthy of such a leader,
and fight or die in the defence of the lijjerties of
their country. The descent from the mountain
having been achieved; the forces landed in Glen
Dochart, a lonely spot, sleeping in the mid^^t of
its unconscious beauty, surrounded on every side
by iiiountain barriers which guarded it like so
many laithful sentinels on every hand. They
noAV l)egan to feel they were ai^proaching near the
scene where a conllict was inevitable, for here a
■ 1
LIFE OF SIR WIIJJAM WALLACF.
ITS
scout uK't tlioin from Sir Nit'lCamphell iiifonnino;
tbeiii of the i'act that the WMry cliiol' had already
retired with liis three hundred uien iuto tlie strou^-
mountain tort, described above, and tluit McFa)-
don with all his Ibrce was hard in pursuit of him.
Wallace having received the inlormation necessary
with repj'ard to the eneiuy, and the disposition of
the force under his command, lost no time in fol-
lowin_;z' him up in order that he nuglit assail him
before he had received any notice of bis approach,
and cut him ofl' if j)ossible before he could choose
a plain for his battle ground, wluu'e his superior
force Avould have given him a better advantage
over his ()])ponents. The ground becoming iui-
passilde for cavalry, it was decided to letive them
behind and proceed on foot in a (luietaud ex])edi-
tious way, and by wo doing they would sur[)rise
the lariic force a^'ainst whom they had to contend
and cut them olf unexpectedly in a part of the
Brandir Pass, which they had already entered, and
where a large amount of men was rather an evil
than au advantage. The plau was executed with
great ability, for as McFaydon's spy had been
killed, he had no iiccount of the near approach of
AYallace and his followers, aud conse([iiently the
Irish chief with his forces w'ere talvcn by surprise,
and in a situation where llight was impossible.
But McFaydon was no coward, and besides being
a man of cruel and savage disposition, he was said
to have been possessed of herculean strength, and
could nuinage the broadsw^ord better than most
17G
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
»«'
?•
men of his age. He stood undismayed, therefore,
in the midst of his unfortunate and trying con-
dition, and rushed to defend himself and his fol-
lowers, who were thus unexpectedly attacked
from the rear. They made terrible havoc amongst
their assailants at first, and caused them to bend
before their fury, as the tempest moves the mighty
forests. Several times the Scots advanced to the
attack and as often were thrown back, for the Irish
troops, knowing the perilous character of their
situation, and in presence of their chief, fought
with the heroic courage and determination which
has always been characteristic of the nation. The
Scots returned to the contest with renewed fury,
and for a long time it was doubtful on Avhich of
the sides victory would declare itself, for accord-
ing to Blind Harry, the minstrel, " the fiercest
found eneucli of fighting on that memorable day."
At last Wallace, armed with a mace of steel, ad-
vanced at the head of his veterans, and made a
furious charge, which McFaydon, with all his
strength and skill at the sword, although sup-
ported, and that powerfully, by the bravest of his
followers, was unable to resisi, and which decided
the fate of the day. A terrible panic, as well
as slaughter, iu)W commenced, for it became
known among the Irish troops that Wallace was
leading on the Scots, and they now gave way and
fied, to be cut to pieces by their pursuers. Multi-
tudes of them w^ere thrown over the rocks into
the gulf below. Others of them cast themselves
>i!
I
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
177
re fore,
I con-
is Ibl-
tiicked
uongst
) bend
niglity
to the
le Irish
f their
fought
I which
.n. The
d fury,
hich of
accord-
liercest
iiy.
eel, tid-
niade a
all his
^ii sup-
it of his
decided
as well
became
ace was
A'ay and
Multi-
ks into
niselves
s
into the waters voluntarily to avoid a more cruel
and violent death ; and the stones and arrows
thrown by the Scots amongst those of them that
still remained, made dreadful havoc everywhere.
The renegade Scots threw down their arms, plead-
ed for mercy, and had their lives spared them
because of their birth ; but were never allowed to
light or even to appear among their countrymen.
And as for the cruel invaders no mercy was shown
them, for they were pursued with the utmost per-
severance and put to death. McFaydon after he
found all was lost, eftected his escape with a few
of his faithful followers and took refuge in a cave,
in the neighborhood. But the place of his retreat
was found out, and Duncan of Lome, drao-ji-ino:
him out of it, cut off his head, and fixing it on a
spear brought the bloody trophy to Wallace. At
the order of Sir Niel Campbell, it was fixed on
the top of a rock near the cave where he had
taken shelter, and this rock is called the pinnacle
of McFaydon till the present day. Thus ended
an invasion that proved disastrous to the parties
that undertook it, and to the interests of Edward
in all time coming throughout the Western high-
lands ; for however much he might feel the de-
feat his creatures had sustained, and their utter
annihilation — for no part of the Irish force ever
again reached their own land — Edward never
afterwards ventured to raise a hostile standard on
those western shores.
178
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
I:
%
" For northern freedom, cried my sons, combine j
Dread not your foe, the land of hills is mine.
The hill-born heroes freedom's flag unfurled,
And checked his progress in the north-west world.
No fear the Gael's dauntless soul could tame ;
Not fraud but prowess gained him deathless fame."
The complete and timely deliverance effected
by Wallace and his heroic followers of the whole
country of the Campbells, and that of the neigh-
boring clans, secured for him ever afterwards the
gratitude, attachment and co-operation of these
warlike tribeiB. After the battle of Brandir Pass,
Wallace convened a meeting of the Western chiefs
in the priory of Ardchattan, (the ruins of which
are still pointed out to the traveller), and by his
powerful eloquence, inflamed their minds with
new hatred towards the tyrants who had so re-
cently endeavored to oppress them. At the same
time he informed them of the gratifying fact that
many of the most powerful barons in the southern
district of the country, weary of the yoke of the
oppressor, had thrown it off and openly joined the
patriot standard. Such being the case, although
the conflict might be severe there was little rea-
son to doubt at no distant day the whole force of
the English would be annihilated as the Irish had
been, or driven across the borders into their own
country. With such cheering words and with
the recent victory before their eyes, he stirred up
the warlike spirit of the native Gael. And hav-
ing divided the spoils collected from amongst the
vanquished after the battle, which were said to
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
179
have been great, among them and his followers,
reserving little for himself, he left the highlands
and freely received the blessings of thousands
that were ready to perish when he first appeared
in their midst.
i
■-'IT
' i
CHAPTER X.
Hitherto the contcndini^s of the Scottish patriots overlooked
by (he lOngiish. Wiilhice himself considered as the
leader of banditti, rather than a general. The terrible
work at Ayr, and the extinction of the J\lcFaydon
force, waked them up to the serious state of atfuirs.
Edward, altliough in Flanders, became uneasy. Dead
or alive, was bound to secure AVallace. An important
accession to the Scottish patriots in the person of Robert
Bruce, grandson to the competitor for the Scottisli
crown. The family owned large estates in the west of
Scotland. Edward ordered the Earl of Surrey to call forth
the whole force of the north of England, and crush out
the insurrection. AVhen asseml)led the English force
amounted to forty thousand foot and three thousand
cavalry. Passing through Annandale, invested Loch-
M;d)en Castle, one of the most imposing and strongest
fortitications in the south of Scotland. The })i'incipal
residence of the Bruces. Before the English forces were
fully encamped, attacked during the night by a body
of Scots headed by Wallace, and thrown into con-
fusion. Saved by burning down the wooden build-
ings they were in, and marching on to Irvine. The
Scotch army encamped about twelve miles from the
same place. The English resolved to march forward
and attack them. Great dissensions prevailed in the
Scottish camp. Three parties ontended for the mastery.
Sir Richard Lundin rode over to the English with all his
vassals. The rest of the nobility followed his example,
headed by Wishart, Bishop of Glasgow. The with-
li
1
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
181
looked
as the
errible
<'aydon
art'uirb.
Dead
portant
Robert
:5C'ottiHh
west of
■all forth
usli out
\\ force
housand
(I Loch-
iroiigest
riucipal
.'cs were
a body
ito con-
n build-
He. The
'rom the
forward
d in the
mastery,
ilh all his
example,
he with-
drawal of Sir William Douglas from the Scottish pa-
triots grieved the heart of Wallace. A treaty drawn up
and signed by the nobility, stipulating for the preserva-
tion of their lives and properties, presented to Wallace,
but indigiumtl}' rejected. Left the Scotch camp in dis-
gust, and only followed by one baron, Sir Andrew Mur-
ray, of Bothwell. Proceeding in the way of Glasgow,
de8tro3'ed the residence and carried away the horses of
Bishop Wishart. Afterwards advanced towards the
north, and went to Aberdeen. Took Forfar, Kin-
cardine and Dunottor Castles. Arrived in time to save
Aberdeen from destruction, as the city had been set on
fire by the English garrison. Embarked in vessels that
wore lying in the harbor. Destroyed by a terrible
storm that ensued. Driven on the shore and mostly
drowned, and put to death by the Scottish army.
Hitherto the contendings of the Scottish pa-
triots had been sadly ovedooked by the English,
and were mainly considered as the selfish and
disjointed efforts of a number of discontented
spirits, who would prove restless under any form
of government, and more bent on the acquisition
of plunder than of liberty. Wallace they also
viewed in this light, and more as a leader of ban-
ditti than as an able and sagacious general. After
the terrible work at Ayr, however, and the total
extinction of the McFaydon force in Argyleshire,
they began to wake up to the seriousness of the
state of affairs, and to prepare for it. This was
largely owing to the feelings expressed by Ed-
ward himself in the matter, who, although absent
and engrossed with a war of great magnitude in
Flanders, was made acquainted through his agents
4
iif '
• F
H
182
LIFU OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
with the situation in Scotland. He assured his
generals there that he would not only maintain
his supremacy over that country, but rather make
it a hunting field than allow it to be wrested
from his grasp. Above all the other inhabitants,
Wallace began to engross the largest share of his
attention. Dead or alive he was bound to secure
him at any cost, while he was often heard to say in
the presence of his bosom friends, that he would
be willing to part with a large share of his newly
acquired possessions if the man he dreaded so
much was under his control. Meanwhile the
Scottish insurrection spread rapidly, and particu-
larly in the west of Scotland ; and while it was
daily gaining strength, Wallace received an im-
portant accession to his standard in the person of
Robert Bruce. This was the grandson of the
competitor for the Scottish crown, and because he
failed in obtaining it, both he and his family were
ever afterwards alienated from Edward. They
tried to keep up an outward show of friendship
towards the English monarch, and the father of
the young Bruce was at this time with him in
Flanders; yet the vacillating conduct of the son
for a considerable time before showed that he was
ill at ease, and only wanted an opportunity to de-
clare against Edward, and that too with the
secret concurrence of his father. Before this the
English wardens had become suspicious of his
attachment to the cause of their royal master,
and had summoned him to Carlisle, and caused him
(IB HI
^ ^
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
183
to swear fidelity to him on the consecrated host,
and the sword of Thomas a Becket. But not^
withstanding, Bruce continued to talk as former-
ly to his father's tenants of the oppression of the
English, and how easy it would be for the Pope
to absolve him from the oath of allegiance that
had been extorted from him. And cherishing
such feelings, he soon afterwards collected his
vassals and proceeded openly to the camp of Wal-
lace. The news of Bruce's revolt spread like
lightning over the country, and soon reached the
ears of Edward in Flanders. And well it might,
for there was no family at that time in Scotland
possessed of his influence, or whose defection
was more likely to shake the power of the English
in it. The estates extended over an immense
extent of country in the west, stretching from
the Frith of Clyde to the gleaming waters of the
Solway ; and the number of men they could
bring into the field at any time was nearly equal
to that of any sovereign of the country. Edward
resolved to put down the rebels with all con-
venient speed, ordered the Earl of Surrey to call
forth the whole force of the country to the nortli
of the Trent, and with one united effort crush out
the last vestige of insurrection that was ever likely
to manifest itself in Scotland. In order to do so
more eff'ectually, he released from prison many of
the most powerful of the Scotch noblemen, who
were confined in England since the battle of Dun-
bar, and sent them home in order that they might
! !
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184
Z//'£' OF SIR WILL/AM WALLACE.
prevent their vassals from joining tlie insurgents.
Tlie Earl of Surrey, who happened at the time to
be residing in the North of England, in a delicate
state of health, appointed Lord Henry Percy to
take his place, and to be associated with Robert De
Clifford in the command. The English forces
that were thus sent forward amounted to forty
thousand foot and three hundred cavalry, which
were thought sufficient for the time to quell the
insurrection. They proceeded northward with
all convenient speed, and passing through Annan-
dale encamped in the neighborhood of Loch-
Maben Castle. This was one of the strongest
fortifications in the South of Scotland, and was the
principal residence of the great family of Bruce.
It stood upon a promontory that jutted out into a
lake of the same name, and presented an impos-
ing object to the view; for as it raised its vast
towers running close up from the margin of the
waters —whether seen in winter, w^hen the moun-
tains stood up sternly or bare beside it, or in sum-
mer when the heath that covers them is in
bloom, and all nature is aglow — ^it was always fi.t-
ted to strike the eye of the beholder with wonder
and delight. Before the English army had time
to settle down after a toilsome march, and com-
pose themselves for the night, they were sudden-
ly and fiercely attacked by the Scots, who had
been previously watching their movements, and
hanging upon their outskirts. The time when
the assault was made was also favorable to the
i
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
185
3nts>
le to
icate
-y to
t De
brce*
forty
rhich
[\ the
with
imaii-
Loch-
no-est
as the
Bruce,
into a
Lmpos-
& vast
of the
moun-
n sum-
is in
ays fit-
kvonder
bd time
d com-
iudden-
ho had
its, and
when
to the
undertaking ; for the night happened to be in-
tensely dark, and the camp was but yet in a state
of confusion, as the army had only arrived on the
previous day. The darkness prevented the Eng-
lish at first from knowing the quarters from
which they were assailed, or the number of their
assailants ; and as might have been expected, con-
fusion of the most fearful character everywhere
prevailed. They rushed to the contest in the midst
of bewilderment ; but when prepared to fight they
were unable to find their leaders, and in their blind
ignorance turned their arms against each other.
Multitudes of them in this way were slaughtered,
or became an easy prey to their assailants with-
out the camp ; and at the first nothing appeared
for them but utter annihilation. At last, by order
of Percy, fire was set to the wooden sheds, that
composed the buildings where they had laid down
their weary limbs to rest. In an instant they
were in a blaze, and as the flames darted forth
and upwards towards the heavens, they shed a
flood of light around them in every quarter, and
enabled them to form their ranks and to estimate
without further trouble the extent of their danger,
and the number and power of the enemy that had
attacked them. Finding that force small — for it
was only ma,de up of the soldiers of Wallace who
had been well accustomed to such night attacks —
they were able to repulse them, and in the morn-
ing the English army left the place, and in full
force advanced northward, prepared at any moment
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LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
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to meet and encounter the force who, on the pre-
vious night, had so unceremoniously assailed and
put so many of them to the sword. When they
arrived at Ayr they were informed that the whole
of the Scottish army was about twelve miles dis-
tant, encamped in a well chosen position, and not
much inferior in numbers to that which was to be
brought against it. Percy was determined not to
be surprised a second time, and forthwith proceed-
ed against them in order of battle ; and had a
spirit of unity and patriotism prevailed in the
Scottish camp, a terrible conflict must of necessity
have ensued. But it unfortunately happened, as
had often previously been the case, that rancour
and jealousy burnt in the breasts of many of the
chiefs towards each other, which proved disastrous
for the time being to the liberties of Scotland. No
less than three factions on this occasion strove for
the mastery, which turned the Scottish camp into
a wild scene of confusion, and enfeebled every
effort to be put forth against the English. The
party of Bruce in the camp was large and influen-
tial, and even at this early period was asserting
the right of their chief to the crown, while the
faction of Comyn and Buchan, who had lately
been liberated by Edward, and who headed their
clans at this time, was deadly opposed to it, while
Wallace and his patriotic followers adhered to
Baliol as their lawful sovereign, and were pre-
pared to contend, as they had ever done -before,
for the liberties of their country. Such diversity
i n
i H
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
187
of opinion in any circumstances would have led
to evil consequences, but on the eve of a great
battle was positively suicidal to the interests
the parties professed to have espoused. Sir
Richard Lundin, who had fought hitherto nobly
in Argyleshire and elsewhere by the side of "Wal-
lace, became disgusted with the whole proceedings,
and believing the factions cruelly and hopelessly
divided against themselves in the Scottish camp,
rode openly over to the enemy with all his vas-
sals. This opened a door to the rest of the selfish
and pusillanimous nobility, who were vastly more
concerned about the preservation of their lives
and estates than the liberties of their country ;
and accordingly Wishart, bishop of Glasgow, and
the others of them were eager to follow his
example. The revolt of Sir William Douglas
grieved the heart of Wallace more than all the
rest, for he had up till this time proved a tried
friend and an able soldier. All thoughts of fight-
ing were now given up, and a treaty was at once
drawn out and signed by Wishart, and all the
barons who had been engaged in the insurrection.
They expressed great contrition for having risen
in arms against their Lord Edward and against
his peace in Scotland and Galloway; and they
stipulated that their lives and estates should be
preserved. A copy of this treaty, written in Nor-
man French, was presented to Wallace for signa-
ture, but the heroic man thrust it from him with
disdain. It grieved him to think that the name
188
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
of his brave compatriot Douglas was adhibited
to this base document, and he principally blamed
Wishart, the bishop of Glasgow, for this unaccount-
able conduct ; for at the time the bishop had ac-
quired great ascendency over the mind of his
friend. Sir William Douglas was the first of the
aristocracy of any consequence who espoused the
cause of liberty, when it was considered rash and
absurd to do so. He had been taken prisoner by
Edward at the seige of Berwick, and restored to
liberty on swearing fealty to him ; but not con-
sidering the oath obligatory, owing to the fact that
it was extorted from him, he had soon after joined
the Scotch force with all his vassals. He never
up till the present time had faltered in his ad-
hesion to the cause he had voluntarily espoused,
and it had been his proudest ambition to follow
into the field and imitate the courage of a chief
he dearly loved. He was calm and deliberate in
counsel, candid and explicit in statement when it
required to be made ; a hero during the heat of
action, and a trusty friend when over ; and to be
separated from such a one when he mostly needed
his aid and co-operation, was a calamity which
Wallace was hardly able to bear. But the cir-
cumstances, how <jr unfavorable, caused him more
than ever to forget the possibility of all danger
in the pursuit of the path of duty, and ignoring
every feeling of disappointment he resolved to
fight on to the bitter end. He was encouraged
to do so from the fact that although the greater
'14
I
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
189
barons were prepared to sell their country's liber-
ties for the preservation of their Jives and pro-
perties, yet many of their vassals were as deter-
mined as ever to contend for them, and the lesser
barons likewise. Watching a fit opportunity there-
fore, he broke in with fury upon the English camp,
at the head of his followers, before the articles of
agreement were finally ratified, and put five hun-
dred of the enemy to the sword ; and collecting
all his followers thereafter together, he entered
his solemn protest against the cowardly conduct
of the nobles, and refusing to accept of any ces-
sation of hostilities, he left the camp of the Scots,
filled with shame and indignation at the whole
of the proceedings, and marched quickly towards
the north. And when he did so he was followed
only by one baron. Sir Andrew Murray of Both-
well, who " amid all the faithless remained faith-
ful " to his chief, and the interests of his oppressed
country. It is pleasing to witness such a sample
of real patriotism amid such wide-spread defection
as was now displayed by the nobility of Scotland ;
and the love and tender sympathies of Wallace
must have been greatly drawn forth towards one
who had risked his all at this trying emergency
of his country's history. For Bothwell Castle,
his paternal residence, as a superb structure, had
few to equal it at the time in Scotland. It occu-
pied a space in length stretching to two hundred
and thirty-four feet, while it extended ninety-
nine feet in breadth over the walls. Near the
190
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
\\\ I
I
castle the Clyde swept along majestically, shut in
with lofty banks on either side, and richly adorn-
ed with trees of the largest dimensions ; while
the landscape generally on all hands was unrival-
led for beauty. Besides this, large tracts of land
of the richest description were owned by its noble
occupant lying along the valley of the Clyde, and
many more far off throughout the country. Vassals
in thousands were proud to follow him into the
fieldjfrom all of which circumstances it can be easily
seen how great the sacrifices were which he had
made in behalf of the liberties of his country. Be-
fore leaving the North Wallace resolved to punish
Wishart, the bishop of Glasgow, for decoying Sir
William Douglas, and for the prominent part he
had taken in the revolt of the Scottish nobles.
He had reinstated him in his diocese after Beck
was expelled from it, and yet he and Comyn of
Badendoch, had been mainly instrumental in de-
stroying all union among a large portion of the
Scottish nobles, and alienating from Wallace some
of his best friends. He and his adherents thereupon
proceeded to Glasgow, and as a mark of contempt
for the bishop, broke into his house, demolished
it, carried off his furniture and horses, and after-
wards proceeded towards the North. In this
part of the country, notwithstanding the capi-
tulation at Irvine, the spirit of resistance
towards the English became general everywhere.
In the large and influential county of Aberdeen
in particular, it became serious, and called forth
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
191
the interference of Edward himself. He accord-
ingly sent peremptory orders to th.e Sheriffs of
that shire to punish with severity the rebels for
the murders and robberies which they were
everywhere committing among his subjects, and
to spare no means, however great might be the
cost, to prevent such uprisings in the future. The
sheriffs carried out to the letter the injunctions
of their sovereign lord the King, placed a strong
guard upon Urquhart Castle, against which an
intended attack had been threatened, and inflict-
ed summary punishment on not a few of the na-
tives connected with the uprisings who happened
to fall into their power. Meanwhile Wallace and his
followers were at hand giving strength and encour-
agement to the movement, and filling the hearts
of the English soldiers shut up in dreary forts
far away from the sympathies or co-operation of
their countrymen, with terror and dismay. Won-
derful success appears to have crowned his efforts
between the signing of the treaty at Irvine by
the nobles and the famous battle of Stirling. For
in that short period he had enlisted the hearts of
the whole people of Scotland with the exception
of the nobility, and had a large army under his
control. That such was the case there can be no
doubt whatever, for Knighton, an English his-
torian, asserts, " that the whole followers of the
nobility had attached themselves to him, and that
although the persons of their lords were with the
King of England, their hearts were with Wallace,
192
LIFE OP SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
who found his army reinforced by so immense
a multitude of the Scotch, that the community
of the land obeyed him as their leader and their
prince." With his forces Wallace seems to have
chosen the same route as Edward had previously
done when he proceeded north with the Earl of
Ulster and others, and filled the hearts of the
inhabitants everywhere with terror and dismay.
Falling into the beautiful valley of Strathmore,
which stretches all the way from the neighborhood
of Perth to nearly the extremity of Kincardinshire,
where there were some of the strongest fortifica-
tions in Scotland, that had to be invested and
taken before Aberdeen could be reaxihed in
safety, there appeared before them much heavy
work in this locality. But a general panic
prevailed among the English garrisons at the
time throughout this part of the country, in re-
gard to Wallace, and the vast number of troops
that flocked to his standard ; and therefore a num«
ber of strongholds that might have stood out for
many months in ordinary circumstances, and even
defied his valorous soldiers to take them at all,
easily fell into their hands in the course of a few
weeks. Among them we may mention the Castle
of Forfar that stood at some distance from the
town in the midst of a small loch. It was a
square and substantial fabric, strongly fortified.
The castle of Kincardine a magnificent structure
of great strength, shut in towards the north by a
spur of the Grampian chain, while a huge forest
LIFE OF SIR WJLLIJM WALLACE.
193
intercepted here and there by large bogs extended
in its front towards the " How of the Mearns,'*
then mostly a swamp, but now one of the best
cultivated portions of Scotland. It was here John
Baliol, Edward's puppet king, resigned the crown
of Scotland; and it was here that Edward himself
rested a night and a day on his procession towards
Aberdeen in A. D. 1296. The castle of Dunotter,
stronger than either of the two above mentioned
places, lay also in their way, and became more
identified afterwards with the history of Scot-
land. Its strong, massive walls were built close
to the shores of the German Ocean, and its exten-
sive ruins even yet invite the traveller. Itwas here
also that many of Scotland's ecclesiastical nobles
suffered cruel hardships and death long after the
time of Wallace, for the same principles for which
he was now contending ; and while visiting them
the " Wizard of the North " became acquainted
with that remarkable person that forms the prin-
cipal character in one of the greatest of his
novels. The summer had ended before Wallace
and his victorious troops had been able to reduce
the fortress already mentioned, and proceed in the
direction of Aberdeen. And the autumn had
already set in, and scattered its golden hues in all
directions overv alley, forest and mountain ; for
in Scotland as well as in this our Western hemis-
phere this is by far the n ^t agreeable season
of the year. After finishing their work the
troops gradually proceeded in their northern
N
fU
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
march, and as they ascended the ridge of the
Grampian chain that had to be crossed in
their way to Aberdeen, had a commanding view
of the country they had left behind, and also
of that stretching out before them. In the
rear of the army was to be seen the largest por-
tion of Strathmore, then, as now, considered one
of the richest parts of the kingdom. Away to
the left rose up some of the highest peaks of the
Grampians, covered at all seasons of the year with
perpetual snow, and adding variety. to the pros-
pect ; while the valley of the Dee lay sleeping at
their feet, with its clear glistening waters and its
banks covered with rich fields waving with lux-
uriant grain ; and whether seen amid the rays of
the autumnal sun, or the beams of the harvest
moon, were sufficient to fill them with joy and
satisfaction. There is a tradition that before
Wallace and his troops were able to ford the Dee,
the English garrison in the castle had issued from
it and set the city on fire. It was done so in
several quarters, and but for the herculean exer-
tions of the inhabitants, and the timely aid of the
soldiers, it would have become a smouldering pile
of ruins, as the houses at the time were all built
of wood, and liable to be consumed. It is still
further affirmed that when the garrison set fire
to the town they betook themselves to their ships,
that were lying in the harbor, intending with the
bishop and sheriff to move to some other part of
the country ; but before they were able to set sail
a storm suddenly arose, which in a short time in-
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
196
creased to a hurricane, and when night approach-
ed the waves dashed over the decks of the ships
and drove the vessels from their moorings, so that
when morning appeared all the melancholy accom-
paniments of a total wreck were everywhere visi-
ble. What remained of the English force from
drowning was driven on the shore by the fury of
the storm, put to death, and the castle easily taken.
Whether tradition in a number of particulars is
correct, it is difficult at this distant period of time to
say, but it would appear from every source of infor-
mation to which we have had access that Wallace
and his forces took possession of the castle with-
out much difficulty ; for only a short time elapsed
when we find him in Dundee. While there, how-
ever, he was prevented from accomplishing the
object he had in view, namely, the taking of the
castle, for he had no sooner commenced the siege
than he was advised of the approach of a large
English force towards Stirling. If time permitted
he was resolved to prevent them from crossing the
Forth there ; and leaving Dundee with a large
army he committed the charge of the siege of the
castle to one of their own townsmen, and enjoin-
ed the inhabitants, at the peril of their lives, to
continue the work vigorously until their effi^rts
were covered with success. After beating the
enemy he promised to return again, and faithfully
reward the citizens for carrying out successfully
their praiseworthy undertaking, while he vowed
vengeance on them if they proved refractory in
the matter.
(
CHAPTER XI.
Wallace reached the Forth with his army before the Eng-
lish arrived. Secured the high ground above Cambus-
kenneth. Close by stood the abbey of the same name.
Ground selected highly advantageous to the Scottish
army. Amounted to forty thousand foot and a hundred
■ and eighty horse. Great dissensions appeared in the
English army. De Warrenne, the governor of Scot-
land, superseded by another commander. Caused him
to neglect details which were necessary to ensure suc-
cess. Cressingham, the treasurer, sent back Lord
Henry Percy, who had arrived with a large force to
assist Surrey, his uncle, as being too expensive.
The steward of Scotland and Earl of Lennox, who joined
the English army on this occasion, sought a chance to
betray them. Strange that Sui-rey should have put any
confidence in such men. Helped to lead to the disas-
ters that were to follow. Early in the morning of the
eleventh of September, 1297, Cressingham defiled with
his division over the bridge to attack the Scots on the
northern side. Not followed by others. Surrey, the
commander, still in bed. Crowded back again. When
Surrey awoke he found his army drawn up, and eager
to pass over. Created several knights forthwith.
Waited for the arrival of the steward of Scotland and
Earl of Lennox. Arrived late in the mommg. Still
unwilling to engage. Sent two friars to work upon
Wallace's religious feelings, and bring him to terms.
Unable to do so. Sir Biohard Lundin strongly dis-
suaded the English firom passing the bridge. But at
some distance below. His advice ridiculed by Cres-
LIFB OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
IW
Bingham, and Surrey gave the order to engage. Cres-
singham led on the van, and the rest of the English
army followed. The Scots remained quiet, and showed
no disposition to engage. Sir Marmaduke Twenge re-
solved to attack them in their intrenchments with a
large body of cavalry. Wallace gave the orders to ad-
vance. Commanded Kirkpatrick and Murray to secure
the right and left of the bridge. He advanced in the
centre. A terrible conflict ensued. Nearly twenty
thousand of the English slain. Surrey fled, and arrived
in safety at Berwick. The most of his forces slain.
Gressingham included among the number, and many
others of note. On the side of the Scots, Sir Andrew
Murray and others fell. Deeply regretted by Wallace
and all who knew him.
Wallace inarched with great haste from Dundee,
and had the satisfaction to know that he had ar-
rived near the northern bank of the Forth, before
the English had reached Torwood, in the
neighborhood of Stirling. Employing his time
to good advantage, before the enemy arrived, he
secured the high ground on the river Forth above
Cambuskenneth, and drew up his army in battle
array. Close by stood the celebrated abbey of
the same name, in a flourishing state at the time,
to witness the bloody conflict that was about to take
place. Within its sacred precincts were deposited
the ashes of several of the mighty dead, includ-
ing some of the kings and queens of Scotland.
And even at this day its lofty tower rears its
iiead, amid the fragments of a broken wall and
gateway, and seems to wait patiently for the
coming of one that will compose, without shed-
198
LIFE OF 8IF WILLIAM WALLACE.
I I
iP T
I
i ^j^^
ding of blood, the terrible feuds among men, that
have
" Cut off (many) even in the blossom of their sin,
Unhousel'd, unanointed, unannoal'd ;
No reckoning made, but sent to their account
With all their imperfections on their heads ;"
and proclaim an everlasting peace among the
sons and daughters of the same race, who ought
always to have been agreed among themselves.
The ground selected by Wallace was highly ad-
vantageous to the Scottish army, for by means of
its unevenness he was enabled to conceal a large
body of his forces from the English, and thus in-
duce them to fight under very unfavorable cir-
cumstances. Besides, he had taken the precau-
tion to have large herds of cattle collected from
all parts of the country, and placed in safety
in the rear of the army; so that in case of
defeat they would be amply supplied with pro-
visions. In this way the Scotch troops, which
amounted to forty thousand foot and a hundred
and eighty horse, occupied ground which appeared
in every light advantageous to them ; and com-
pelled the English either to retreat or to fight
under conditions which rendered victory certain
to the other side. Moreover, there were other
causes favorable, for the Scots were united under
a chief in whose judgment and valor they had
perfect confidence. Besides they were filled
with a vehement impulse of ridding their country
-iti
LIFE OF SIR WILILAM WALLACE.
199
\-^:
led
try
of a foe that had long filled it with bloodshed and
crime, and which they were now resolved to do,
however terrible the conflict might appear, and
follow their beloved leader for better or for worse,
to death or to victory. On the other hand, in the
English army the greatest dissensions seemed at
the time to have prevailed ; for De Warrenne,
Earl of Surrey, the governor of Scotland, had
been suspended in the command by Brian
Fitzallen, and notwithstanding he still retained
the command of the forces, his mind seemed to
have brooded so much over his apparent disgrace,
as to have caused him to neglect the details that
were necessary to ensure success in a campaign, in
which he had to contend with a wise and great
general. In this state of affairs Cressingham, the
treasurer, a proud, greedy, and incapable ecclesi-
astic, was assuming additional power and impor-
tance from the downfall of De Warrenne. As proof
of this when Lord Henry Percy arrived from
Carlisle at Stirling, with a large reinforcement of
eight thousand foot and three thousand horse,
Cressingham gave orders for disbanding and send-
ing them back, as he deemed the force already
in the field sufficient for the emergency. This
was done from ill-judged economy, and contrary
to the wish of the commander, who desired the
presence and assistance of his brave nephew, who
had hastened on so far with such a large party to
ensure his countrymen of success ; as he knew
from experience the policy and daring of such a
200
LIFJE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
leader as Wallace, and how difficult it would be
to crush the insurrection headed by him. More-
over there were other things that foreboded
disaster to the English, besides the jealousy and
enmity that existed between Surrey and the proud
and unprincipled Cressingham. For the steward
of Scotland and Earl of Lennox, who had deserted
the cause of the patriots at Irvine, and joined the
English army on this occasion, while strongly
advising Surrey to delay the engagement, till they
had opened up communications with Wallace, and
brought him over to the interests of Edward,
were waiting a fit opportunity of deserting and
betraying it. And this is one of the reasons in
connection with what took place before the engage-
ment, that we cannot account for in any reason-
able way — why a general of Surrey's long
experience and known ability, who had the fate of
a great army depending upon his knowledge and
care,should have manifested so much remissness be-
forehand, and allowed men whose previous history
might have been a sufficient guarantee against all
their professions of attachment to the English
interests, to prove its ultimate ruin. For by
means of such negligence, he allowed Wallace to
tamper with parties, in whom few of any fore-
sight would have put any confidence, and to become
acquainted with the numbers and arrangements
of a splendid army, who, if properly generaled,
were fit for any emergency. But it was in thia
way that Wallace was permitted, at hia own
LIFE OS SIR WILUAM WALLACE.
201
leisure, to prepare measures that would be sure to
be attended with success, and entail discomfiture
and dreadful disaster on the invaders. After a
conference with him, the steward and treasurer of
Scotland returned to the English camp, and in-
formed Surrey, with an air of seriousness and
duplicity, worthy of the men, " That the arch-
rebel and blood-thirsty upstart would listen to no
terms, but rush forward headlong to his own des-
truction ; but that they would bring up their
vassals to his aid, and thus put a stop to this boot-
less war." They promised to return in the morn-
ing with sixty horse, and on leaving they met a
number of the English soldiers returning from
foraging to their encampment. An altercation took
place, and Lennox stabbed one of them, who was
carried dead thither, amid no little commotion,
and a cry was raised that they had been betrayed
by the Scots. There was doubtless too much truth
in the statement, and Surrey must have found that
he had been deceived. But he calmed their
excited feelings by the assurance that, on failing
to return in the morning with their retainers,
they would have ample revenge on the traitors
for breach of promise and other actions. Mean-
while the English camp became quiet and still, as
night had began to cast its sable gloom over all
things around, and the poor soldiers, with their
general at their head, laid themselves down to
rest, for the purpose of refreshing their weary
bodies, and composing their minds in order to act
202
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
their part like men, amid the stirring and bloody
scenes that must necessarily be transacted on the
following day. It was rather strange that Surrey
could have done so, considering the responsible
position he held, and that he should have slept on
soundly till the morning was considerably ad-
vanced. One would have rather supposed that,
amid the stillness of the night on to the dawning
of the day, his mind wonld have been ill at ease,
and many an anxious thought would have crowded
in upon it, as his faithful followers lay around
him, buried in slumber, with dangers surrounding
them on every side. The morning of the eleventh
of September, 1297, dawned, and the sun rose
brightly from behind the mountains that towered
up in the neighborhood, and scattered his golden
rays in large profusion over the valleys and ham-
lets that lay sleeping in peaceful composure at their
bases, as if to contrast intensly with the terrible
conflict that was quickly to follow. As soon as he
was up, Cressingham was all in motion, and
ordered the division under his command to defile
over the bridge, and attack the Scots. Five
thousand foot soldiers obeyed the call, and did so
as fast as circumstances permitted, while a large
number of Welsh troops soon followed after. But
after a while they turned back when they began
to find that they were not followed by the rest of
the army, and away they went, crowding and
cramming to the place from whence they came.
The Soots might have pushed down upon them
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
203
and cut them to pieces, while separated from their
fellows on the other side of the river. But the
number was too small to be regarded as worthy
of notice, and Wallace, waiting for a more favor-
able opportunity of an atl-ack when a much larger
multitude of the English forces had passed over,
retained the position he had chosen from the
first. Surrey had only awoke when the whole of
these transactions had transpired, and found the
army drawn up and eager to pass over the bridge.
For the purpose of animating the minds of the
troops, as was then the custom before any great
engagement, a number of knights were forthwith
created, many of whom were not permitted to
survive their honors after this eventful day. For
although their helmets of steel glittered from afar,
and their shining spears and darts sparkled bright
in the morning sun, many of those that were ap-
pointed to move on in front were soon cut in
pieces, and those that followed after in the rear
were destined to the same fate. Surrey waited
impatiently for the arrival of the steward of Scot-
land and the Earl of Lennox, whom he imagined
would be sure to fulfil their promise. They did
arrive late in the morning with sixty horse ; but
as he was aware of the strong position of the
Scottish army, and of the danger of crossing the
river, he still hesitated to do so, and as a dernier
resort sent two friars with cross in hand to endea-
vor, if possible, to work upon Wallace's. religious
feelings and bring him to terms. They performed
204
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
11
■ 't
*
t
the task imposed upon them with great adroitness
and ability, but were unsuccessful in their at-
tempts, for they received a very brief and senten-
tious answer, couched in the following terms.
" Return to your leaders," said the intrepid pa-
triot, " and tell them we are not here to negotiate,
but to perform, not to talk, but to fight, for were
your masters to come and attack us we are ready
to meet them beard to beard, and at the point of
our swords, for thus it is we are determined to
give freedom to our country, and inflict vengeance
upon her oppressors. We are neither the slaves
nor subjects of England, and will throw our chal-
lenge in the teeth of Cressingham." These taunt-
ing words irritated to an extreme degree many of
the English officers, who became impatient to
draw their swords and be led on to put a stop to
such insolent daring on the part of the leader of
the Scottish rebels. Especially Cressingham, who
considered he was insulted by the reply, was most
anxious for the attack; for his pride and vain
glory were awfully brought down by the same,
and though a coward at heart, his courage swelled
out into large dimensions, now that he was sur-
rounded by a host of some of the best soldiers in
Europe. Still Surrey and some of the more ex-
perienced officers, hesitated to cross the bridge,
and above all Sir Richard Lundin, an old, experi-
enced warrior, and former friend of Wallace, who
had joined the English at Irvine, and who was
particularly well acquainted with the different
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
205
localities of the country which they were now
in, implored delay." If, " says Lundin,*' you once
attempt to pass the bridge, you are throwing away
your lives. The men can only cross two by twow
Our enemies command our flank, and will be
instantly upon us. I know a ford, not far from
hence, where you may pass sixty at a time. Give
me but five hundred horse, and a small body of
foot, I shall turn the enemy's flank, whilst you,
lord Earl, and the rest of the army, may pass over
in safety." This was the sage counsel of one who
had proved himself a tried veteran before, and
who was far better acquainted with the country
than anyone who was there present. If it had
been adopted, the cause of freedom in Scotland,
might have suffered severely from it ; but it fortu-
nately happened to be rejected. This was princi-
pally owing to the greedy, incompetent and
imperious Cressingham, who only insulted Lundin,
for the advice tendered, and caused Surrey, the
old general, who had now become convinced of the
critical situation of affairs, to submit his better
judgment to the rashness of an ignorant and
overreaching ecclesiastic. " You, Sir Richard Lun-
din," says he, " have been too briefly an adherent
of ours, and have given no sufficient proof of stable
allegiance to us, to enable us to put any reliance
on your fidelity and judgment." " And as for
you, my Lord Surrey," says he, with all the assur-
ance of which he was possessed, " if you do not
let us pass on and do our knightly duty, you will
206
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
only be protracting the war uselessly, and spend-
ing the king's money." Stung by such cutting
remarks, Surrey gave the command contrary to
his own wishes, and when the morning was 'con-
siderably advanced, the army began to defile over
the bridge, and the bloody fray seriously to
commence. Cressingham's ardently expressed
desires were now fully gratified, having led on
the van of the brave English army. He was
covered in armour of the most costly description,
with sable plume flaunting in the sun, vainly
thinking the Scots had only to be assailed in order
to ensure their entire defeat ; and joined in the
command by Sir Marmaduke Twenge, an English
knight of great courage and experience, both of
which were severel}' tested before the close of
the engagement. Slowly the English forces
moved along the narrow wooden bridge, where,
according to an English historian, there was
scarce room for two horsemen to ride abreast, and
if they had defiled across it, without the slightest
check from the rising of the sun till eleven o'clock,
the rear division would still havo remained on
the other side. Still, as quickly as possible they
crossed over. Many thousands of them had already
done so, and others were advancing eagerly be-
hind them. No opposition was yet experienced
from the Scots, while the advancing squadrons
were beginning to assume movements of a very
formidable aspect on the northern bank of the
river ; and Cressingham by this time had doubt-
n
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
207
less imagined that the superior strength and
discipline of the English had awed them into
submission, and filled them with dread. For in
no other way could he account for the singular
fact, that their forces remained immovable on
the high ground which had been at the first
selected, without apparently manifesting any im-
patience to change their position, or to allow an
immense army to pass on unmolested, and fall
upon them without any apparent attempt to
arrest their progress. Fully one half of the
English troops had proceeded across the bridge;
but the Scots still remained in the same position
and waited still further for more of the enemy to
follow in order to divide and also to destroy them.
Sir Marmaduke Twenge, however, by his wild
impatience, seconded no doubt by the advice of
Cressingham, changed the whole current of affairs,
and hastened to maturity faster than Wallace had
anticipated at the first, the scheme which he had
wisely concocted for the destruction of the whole
English force. That plan was to allow the majority
of the enemy to pass over the bridge, and before
they had time to form under their respective
leaders, attack, throw into confusion, and cut them
in pieces. But Sir Marmaduke Twenge, anxious
to assail the Scots in their strong position, gave
orders for a cavalry charge, and was the first him-
self to show the example. Spurring his horse up
the . hill, he disturbed the stationary body of
armed men that was waiting its time to advance ;
208
LIFE OP SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
for he was instantly followed by a strong party of
English knights, heavily mailed, distinguished by
their triangular shields, who bore the royal stan-
dard of England, that floated triumphantly in the
breeze. And the shout was raised, " for God and
St. George I" let us ascend the rising ground, let
us encounter the rebels, and by this first bold
movement scatter and discomfit them ! " The thing
was easier said than done, for although the
cavalry gallantly followed their brave leader,
armed in complete steel, and anxious to distinguish
themselves in the sight of both armies, they were
unfit for the service for which they were deputed ;
for the enormous weight of their weapons and
trappings soon began to prove an encumbrance
to them rather than an advantage, and wrought
their ruin. The eagle eye of Wallace watching
from the height the movements that were sup-
posed on the other side to precipitate the destruc-
tion of his whole force, at once perceived the fatal
blunder the enemy had committed, and lost no
time to take advantage of it. He assured his
countrymen that the victory was already theirs;
that the enemy by their first rash action had at
once delivered themselves into their hands ; that
the strife, though fierce and bloody, would be but
brief, and Scotland would soon be free, and every-
one engaged in it would earn for himself immortal
renown. So saying, he at once ordered Kirkpatrick
and the brave Murray to make a short detour, the
one to the right, and the other to the left of tho
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
209
Jirs;
at
bhat
but
bridge, and rushing forward to the foot, take
possession of it, and thus prevent all communica-
tion with the part of the army on the opposite
side of the river. The command was no soor .r
given, than it was executed with celerity and
success, by the two heroic chiefs, and their follow-
ers, for they appeared in their glory in the midst
of the fiercest strife. T'le forces at their disposal
not only took possession of the bridge, but cut off
all communication between the van and rear of
the English army, and rendered retreat impossible.
The moment Wallace beheld this, who still held
the eminence with the centre of his army, which
contained a large body of troops that had up till
this time been concealed from the view of the
English, he gave orders for them to advance,
which was quickly done. Down they rushed like
an avalanche from the rising ground, where they
had so long been pent up, and fell upon the
troubled masses led on by Cressingham and
Twenge, before they had time to form themselves
under their different leaders, and threw them into
inextricable confusion. Foremost in the midst of
tb.e descending ranks as usual was Wallace to be
found, charging more furiously than he had ever
done before, fighting as if the whole conflict
depended on his own arm, and strewing the
ground with many of the flower of England's
cavalry. His followers followed up the repeated
blows, fighting like heroes, remembering the many
wrongs they had got to revenge, and opened up
210
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
V
wide lanes among the ranks of the enemy. Still
the EngliHh were no cowards, and although
they liad })een outgeneraled, and thrown into the
wildest confusion, the infantry defended them-
selves with heroic hravery amid the thick array
of swords and spears that were directed against
them ; while the cavalry fought with all the force
and valor for which in all ages they had heen
famous. They managed their fiery steeds with
easy horsemanship. They darted into the midst
of the enemy. They courted death as if it had
been their natural element, and committed ter-
rible slaughter on all sides. The scene for some
time was animating but full of horror, as it must
necessarily be on such a bloody and trying occa-
sion. For on the one side was the crash of armor,
the cry of rage and triumph, exciting to deeds of
terrible revenge ; while on the other side was the
deadly swell of battle, and England's arrows fell
like rain in their flight, to make defeat that was
inevitable bearable, and to show that valor is not
always accompanied with success. The conflict
became so terribly exciting, that many of the
Murray and Kirkpatrick force, stationed to defend
the bridge, deserted their post to share in it, and
left for some time a passage free for reinforce-
ments from the other side. But this was merely
to increase the tumult and confusion that every-
where began to prevail ; for although the stai^dard
bearers of the king and Earl of Surrey with a
fresh part of the army were able to pass over,
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
211
they only arrived in time to meet instantaneous
death, and along with their brave companions
were cut to pieces. For the day was too far gone
now to be retriev<;d by any assistance that could
be brought from the other side, and the stream of
human beings that came crowding along the
narrow structure, and jamming it up, only shared
the sa ! fate of those that had passed on before them
to destruction.
" In the loHt battle borno down by the flying,
Whoro mingles war'H rattle with groaim of the dying."
From the confusion that ensued at the beginning
the English never managed to extricate them-
selves, and any addition to their force only con-
tinued to increase it. Multitudes of their infantry,
as well as their heavy cavalry, were slain, while
others of them plunged into the river with the
hope of joining their comrades safe on the other
side, became encumbered with their heavy armor,
and sunk in the midst of the waters to rise no
more. During these terrible disasters a scene
occurred, which for spirit and chivalry was well
worthy of its actor, and tendered to solace the
English general while witnessing the total defeat
of his army. The brave and impetuous Sir Marma-
duke Twenge found that the Scots had seized the
bridge, and that all intercourse was cut off from
the other side. Now what was to be done in the
circumstances ? for a fellow warrior in arms had
advised that they should both throw themselves
into the river and swim their horses to the oppo-
212
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
I A
\\ \
site bank. But the brave knight of Yorkshire
treated the proposal with disdain, for the thing
was unworthy of him. And therefore, putting
spurs to his charger, he drove him into the midst
of the enemy, hewed a passage through the
thickest of them, and rejoined his friends with
his nephew and armor-bearer on the other side,
to the astonishment and delight of all. But
deprived of the privilege of having so brave a
leader, the English forces on the north side of the
river were left to the wild horrors of despair and
the cruel mercies of the enemy ; and with the
exception of a few that escaped drowning by
plunging into the stream and swimming over to
the other side, the whole of the twenty thousand
were cut to pieces by them. Surrey, joined by
Sir Marmaduke Twenge, ordered him to occupy
Stirling Castle, while he himself fled from the
field with the greatest trepidation, and left the
relicts of his discomfited army to the charge of
this brave man. His principal object appeared to
have been to consult his own safety, and therefore
he reached Berwick alone Tvithout drawing
bridle. "A wonderful ride," says an English
historian, " for the old earl, and performed with
such good-will that the horse which he used when
stabled in the convent would not taste his corn."
Nor were the discomfiture and dreadful slaughter
of the invaders confined to those that had crossed
the river, for Wallace and his men followed up
the victory gained on the other side, passed over
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
213
[fore
ing
[lish
dth
Ihen
>»
iter
bed
up
rer
in pursuit of the enemy, and the carnage was great.
Helpless and in terror the poor fugitives, to pre-
serve their lives, threw from them their arms and
standards, and fled in all directions over the
country. But believing that the day of retribu-
tion had come round, the Scottish forces pursued
them with dogged perseverance, and put them
promiscuously to the sword. For of that noble
army that had crossed the Scottish border, com-
bining within itself much of the pride and chivalry
of England, and which laid waste at a trying
season of the year some of the fairest portions of
the land, few returned to their native country to
record their misfortune. Their bodies were swal-
lowed up by the waters of the Forth, or their
bones were left to bleach amid the forests and
morasses of an inhospitable country ; and thus in
the vicissitudes of war we can see the hand of Pro-
vidence strikingly displayed in inflicting terrible'
punishment on those who were not very remark-
able in shewing mercy at any time to their
northern neighbors when in distress. In this
fatal and important battle, that roused the spirit
of Scotland, and sunk the hearts of the English,
a large amount of plunder fell into the hands of
the Scots ; for smarting under their cruel and
unjustifiable treatment by their neighbors for a
long time before, it was not to be wondered at,
but they would eagerly lay hold of it. Still there
are circumstances connected with the same, that
reflect the greatest dishonor on the parties that
214
LIFK OF SfR WILLIAM WALLACE.
hupponed tosbaro the largest in it; for the Hteward
of Scotland and Earl of Lennox, who, although
allioH of the king of England, wer« all the while
intriguing with Wallace, stood at a diHtance
during the time of the battle, and never Htruck a
blow ; but 80 soon as the Knglish army was
defeated, the traitors threw olf the mask, and
leading a party of their fellows, began to kill and
plunder their flying unfortunate confederates.
Such conduct would have iKJcn dastardly on the
part of any one, but especially would it sink those
nobles in the estimation of the brave Wallace,
and all right-thinking men. The loss of the
English at tlie battle was immense, besides tliose
that afterwards perished in the flight. Among
them the detestable Cressingham was included.,
He fell at the beginning of the contest, nor did
his fate excite nuich sympathy among his country-
men. " For he," say^ an English chronicler, '* who
had oppressed and wounded many with the sword
of his tongue, now fell a victim to the sword of
the wicked." Few of the Scots were slain com-
pared with English, but the brave Sir Andrew
Murray was included among the number. He
maintained his post, assigned him by Wallace,
with his faithful clansmen to the last, and fell
fighting in the midst of heaps of the slain. " With
dying hand above his head, he shook the fragment
of his blade, and shouted victory !" He was
among the first of the noble friends and coadjutors
of Wallace who loved and struggled nobly on,
LltE OF SIR WIJJJAM WALLACE
215
amid all diHcoiiragementH, to a.ssist and uphold the
liberties of his country when the cloudrt were dark
and nearly all had forsaken the jjjood eauso. But
alas! when the dream had vrjilshed and the sha-
dows of the ])ast had lied away, the noble spirit,
who had toiled so hard, and bled and sull'ered to
secure liberty to others, did not live to share in its
blessings himself. " lie labored and others entered
into his labors." It is true the valor and noble
exjdoits of this patriotic man have been consider-
ably forgotten, and cast into the shade, by the
more brilliant efforts put forth by his great leader
and friend. But when we take into account the
unselfishness of Murray, the trials he endured,
the battles he fought, and the great sacrifices he
willingly made for the good of others, we are
fain to persuade ourselves into the belief that as
the history of his country is better known, and
liberty valued as it ought to be, the name of Sir
Andrew Murray will become more sacred in the
memory of every right-thinking Scotchman :
'• Typo of a rnco wlio hIiuU tlio invaclor scorn,
As rocks resist (ho billows roiiD'i iho shore, •
• ^fyp^' of a I'jice who shall to time .mborn,
Their country leave uncoiupiorod as of yore I"
CHAPTER XII.
Important results followed the battle of Stirling. Taught
Edward to respect Scotland, and the contendings of
Wallace. The success of the people headed by Wallace
was wonderful after the desertion of the nobles at
Irvine. After the battle of Stirling, Wallace hastened
back to Dundee, where the English fortress surrendered.
And all the other strongholds throughout the country
with the exception of the Castle of Dunbar. Wallace
attacked it skilfully and drove its defender across the
borders. Thereafter he resolved to invade the North of
England. Was associated in the command by Sir Andrew
Murray, whose father had been slain at the battle of
Stirling. The English fled at the approach of the
Scottish army, and took shelter in the town of New-
castle. The Scottish army moved back into their own
country. And when the English returned they again
crossed the borders and committed fearful devastations.
Attacked the town of Carlisle, but retired from the
siege. Devastated the country as far as Derwentwater
and Cockermouth. Thereafter entered the county of
Durham. Sacred to St. Cuthbert. Wallace hesitated
to invade this part of the country. Eetired from it,
after his troops were assailed by a terrible storm. Re-
turned to Scotland after much booty had been obtained
from the English. The cruelties perpetrated on the
English dm'ing this invasion largely owing to the
Galloweigians.
The decided character of the battle of Stirling
bridge, and defeat of the English forces, had
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
217
important results at the time, and ever afterwards.
It taught Edward to regard the people in the North
no more as a set of ignorant peasants, whose up-
rising could be easily suppressed by the first
appearance of an English force among them ; but
as a brave people who despised to be conquered,
and to whom liberty was reckoned dear. The
same people he was also aware were led on by one
who could estimate their feelings and daring,
and who infused into their breasts the deadliest
hatred of himself and of all others who endea-
vored to enslave them. So that the English
monarch, with the shrewdest of his coadjutors,
must now have come to the conclusion, that after
oceans of blood had been shed, and millions of
money had been wasted, the subjugation of Scot-
land was a thing that had yet to be achieved. It
mattered not that the nobles of the country with
few exceptions had bartered away their own
liberties, and had also endeavored to make free
with those of others. It mattered not that they
had toiled sore, owing to their own selfish prin-
ciples, to extinguish every spark of patriotic
feeling that revealed itself in any direction. Their
attempts were happily neutralized, and a new
life infused into the heart of a downtrodden and
oppressed people that could not be extinguished.
This could hardly have been expected in the early
part of the year 1297, when Scotland lay prostrate
and bleeding at Edward's feet ; and when after
the siege of Berwick, and the disastrous battle of
r
218
LIFE OF SIR }MLUAM WALLACE.
Dunbar, he hastened to the continent to achieve
other victories, convinced that that country was
now his own. But the calculations of tyrants
have often misled them, when dealing with the
civil or religious rights of a people. And God
has helped those in contending for such who have
helped themselves. One thing is certain, that the
freedom procured for the Scottish nation at this
time was little expected, and may yet excite
wonder and gratitude in the hearts of all who are
impressed with the importance of it; especially
when they consider the might and power that
were brought to bear against them to deprive them
of it. But it was Providence that " raised up a
little one to become a thousand in their midst."
" And the worm Jacob was made to thresh the
mountains of Israel." There is no other way of
accounting for the fact, how it was possible in so
short a period of time to breathe a new existence
into a people so torpid and enslaved as the Scotch
then were, and cause them to hold up their heads
with some degree of pride everywhere. Still,
Providence works by means, and in the raising up
of Wallace at the time, who exhibited in his
person such an example of heroism and self-abne-
gation as the world had seldom witnessed, — ^' for
the bugle ne'er sung to a braver knight than
William of Elderslie." — it shewed the wisdom of
the selection thus made in the extraordinary
results that followed. For the people were ani-
mated by his noble and daring example to throw
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
219
off the yoke so galling to them and their children,
and their bosoms were made to beat responsive to
every call of honor made by one in whom they
placed implicit confidence, and who led the way
in every path of danger. Thus they were enabled
to trample in the dust the banners of the oppressor
that had been carried in triumph over the country,
and crushed by their virtuous wrath the efforts
made to destroy their lives and liberties. Few
men could have borne up like Wallace, after the
crushing defection of the nobles and their retainers
at Irvine ; or have had the courage to attempt to
raise new forces when the great majority of the
army previously collected had proved traitors to
the cause so dear to his heart. But he did so,
and also succeeded in his efforts ; for by his unsel-
fishness, perseverance, and patriotic valor a large
number soon took the field, animated with the
spirit of their leader, and went forward " con-
quering and to conquer." To shew that such was
the case, we have only to look back to what they
acccomplished during the summer, after the Scot-
tish nobility had disgracefully surrendered them-
selves to Edward's generals. And when we find
fortress after fortress falling into their hands,
and the English, panic-stricken and affrighted,
fleeing from the northern counties at their
approach, we meet with a new army animated
with the same spirit as their leader, and whose
efforts were felt in the regenerating influences
throughout the country. Seldom do we find in
IJ ji
220
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
QXiy part of history a people so downtrodden and
oppressed as the Scotch then were acquiring,
in so short a period, such recuperative powers ; and
when we search for the true cause of this, we
find it in the vast schemes of Walhice wisely
concocted and successfully carried out for the
liberation of his enslaved countrymen. He had
no sooner followed up his brilliant victory at
Stirling, in disposing of the prisoners taken, and
distributing the booty freely among his soldiers,
than he fulfilled his pledge to the people of Dundee,
and hastened back to terminate the siege of the
Castle there. It had been vigorously kept up
during his absence, and fell when he appeared the
second time before it. For the news of the battle
so disastrous to their countrymen had already
reached the English garrison here, and filled them
with dismay. A panic seems to have seized them
on the occasion ; as without striking another blow
they delivered up the Castle and fled to their ships
in the harbor, leaving behind them a large amount
of arms and provisions, which afforded much
booty to the Scots. Perhaps Wallace little
imagined when he had to flee from this place,
when a youth attending the Seminary, that he
would be called upon to act such an important
part in the history of his country ; but it would
rejoice his heart to think that the day dreams
of his youth were realised, in discomfiting
and driving out of it those who had sorely
oppressed it. The other strongholds throughout
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
221
the land fell into the hands of the Scots without
much opposition, and followed the example of the
garrison at Dundee, so that in a short period not
one remained in the possession of the English, with
the exception of that of Dunbar. The fortresses
of Edinburgh and Roxburgh were dismantled,
and Wallace appointed Henry de Halyburton as
Governor of the Castle of Berwick. Dunbar Castle,
however, bravely stood out, for the Earl had
become a parti zan of Edward at an early period
of the history of the struggle for independence
throughout his native country, and firmly main-
tained his adherence to his interest, till compelled
to relinquish them at the point of the sword.
Corspatrick, the Earl, was a baron of great power
and military experience, and occupied a fortress of
amazing strength, which was considered as the
key of the Eastern part of the kingdom. And in
addition to this, he owned extensive estates on
each side of the borders, which were protected by
a chain of seven fortalices, called by the familiar
name of the " earl's seven war steeds." Although
summoned to surrender his castle, he returned an
ironical and haughty reply to the summons. But
he soon had reason to repent bitterly of his con-
duct, for Wallace proceeded with four hundred of
his chosen troops against him, attacked him with
amazing skill and valor, and he drove him from
one stronghold to another, till he was at last com-
pelled to deliver the last and the strongest of them
into the hands of his enemy. Glad to escape with
222
LIFE OP SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
I
his life, he fled across the borders, where he lived
as a pensioner on the bounty of the English
sovereign. It was thus that the last of the iron
chains that Edward had forged for Scotland was
broken, and that by the efforts of a single man,
not only assisted but actually opposed by the
whole combined force of the nobles of the country,
and the people as their forefathers had ever been
before them, were once more free.
" Type of a race who did the invader scorn :
As rocks resist the billows round the shores ;
Typo of a race who shall to time unborn.
Its country leave uncompicrcd as of yore."
By the time that these important transactions
had transpired, it was far advanced in the
autumn ; and the blightening ravages of the
war had already begun to be sorely felt through-
out every part of the country. The English
had desolated it to a fearful extent before the
battle of Stirling, burning down houses, des-
troying the crops in the fields, and putting to
death thousands of the peasants. The consequence
was, that dreadful dearth and famine began to be
sorely felt everywhere, and the poor and helpless
could procure little else for the sustenance of their
bodies than the wild herbs and roots which they
gathered from the fields now lying without culture,
while many of the strong arms that had cultivated
them lay still and motionless in the grave. Many
of the destitute were cut off by mere want, others
suffered untold privations j and had not means been
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
223
devised by the sagacity of Wallace, for bringing
help to the sorely distressed people, it is impos-
sible to say how much greater the sufferings would
have been among them. He resolved to invade
England not only for the purpose of supporting
his army during the winter, but to send help to
many of the poor famishing inhabitants who were
left behind. He accordingly issued a proclamation
for every one capable of bearing arms, to meet him
on Roslin Moor, not far from Edinburgh. An
immense host was congregated here, and from
among them, the most vigorous and best suited
for the work before them, were selected. Before
marching into England he thought proper to
address them in one of those ready and spirit
stirring speeches, for which he was remarkable,
and which would have done no discredit to any
general, when he wished to excite his soldiers to
some great and arduous undertaking. " He re-
minded them of the murders and robberies that
had been so long committed with impunity by the
English throughout the country. How their
oppressors had stripped it of everything that
had conduced to the comfort and happiness of its
inhabitants. But now that they had overcome
them, and driven them out of the country, it was
but their duty to make them pay back, in their
own way, some of the plunder they had taken
away without any remorse. If they would only
continue united in their efforts, victory and a
glorious prize would fall to the share of all.
224
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
\i
Wealth and provisions would become their own,
but labor and incessant toil were necessary to the
attainment of both. Great things could only be
obtained by great labor, and victory, if accorded
to any, never fell to the share of the slug-
gard." He thus excited their patriotic feelings,
their avarice, and revenge ; and they hastened
with their chief to cross the borders, and reap
a rich harvest in a country whose inhabitants
had shared largely b afore in the spoils of other
nations. After being fully prepared for the ex-
pedition, the Scottish array marched southward
in high spirits, under the leadership of Wallace
and the young Sir Andrew Murray. He was a
worthy son of a noble sire, and possessed many
of his father's excellent qualities, who had " fallen
in the high places of the laild," fighting for the
liberties of his country. It is said, before the
battle of Stirling, he entertained a strong pre-
sentiment of his approaching death, and com-
mitted his youthful son to the charge of Wallace.
He sacredly performed his duty towards him ;
loved and treated him as his own son. As soon
as the Scotch army entered into Northumberland,
the inhabitants fled before them in all directions,
filled with terror and dismay. They began to
fear that the day of vengeance for past offences
had arrived, and expecting no mercy in an iron
age from those to whom none had been previously
shown, they collected their wives and children
together, and took refuge in the town of New-
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
22»
castle. Their flocks and herds were also driven
along with them, and waggons laden with house-
hold furniture and provisions crowded along the
roads in every direction. The Scottish array be-
gan to feel the little chance that would be pie-
sented of collecting booty in a country that had
become stripped of everything, and feigning a
retreat in order to deceive the people and induce
them to return to their homes, they moved back
into Scotland. The snare laid was successful, for
the Northumbrians hastened home to the habita-
tions they had left amid grief and sorrow ; but
only to suffer death and the loss of all earthly
things. For they were assailed by a force which
they could neither oppose nor resist, and which
carried destruction with it in every direction.
The Scottish army burst into their midst, and
although finding a peaceful and smiling country,
with a prosperous people, they left it a desert
without inhabitants. Following the example
that had been set them by the English at Ber-
wick, they spared neither age, rank, nor sex,
while the smoke of thousands of dwellings con-
sumed by the flames ascended to heaven, and
pleaded for vengeance on the terrible abettors of
war. This is part of the conduct of Wallace and
his followers, which we can never justify however
great the provocation they had received. In all
coming ages it would have added an additional
laurel to his brow, if he had prevented such
wanton destruction of property, and prevented
226
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
I
at least childhood, and female weakness, from
falling a prey to a blood-thirsty soldiery. Still,
we must make large allowance for the cruel times
in which he lived, when pity was seldom mani-
fested towards those that happened to be in
distress, and mercy became restrained in the
bosom of the most generous and compassionate ;
for had it been manifested in too large a measure
even towards the helpless, it would have been
construed into weakness, and want of power to
oppress. Hemington, an English historian of the
time,gives us a terrible description of this cruel raid
into England. " The Scots took up their quar-
ters," he informs us, " in the forest of Rotheberey
nor was there any one to make them afraid, whilst
the praise of God and the services of religion were
not heard in any church or monastery throughout
the country from Newcastle to Carlisle. All the
monks, canons regular, and ministers of religion,
along with the whole body of the people, had fled
from the face of the Scots, who were permitted
to pass their whole time in one continued scene
of slaughter, burning and rapine, from the feast of
St. Luke to St. Martin's Day, nor was any found
to oppose them except soldiers of the garrison of
Berwick, and other castles hard by, who ventured
from their walls and cut off a few stragglers in the
It was about the thirty-first of October,
rear.
>>
when Wallace led his troops into England and
began to commit the awful depredations we have
described above. He continued in his work of
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
227
ed
ied
tne
of
Ind
of
•ed
ihe
ler,
Ind
tve
of
destruction for several weeks, and so terrible
were the effects of the same that they were felt
for years afterwards. Articles of great value
were everywhere collected. Horses and oxen
which they captured, and sheep also, were driven
together from the different localities and passed
to the north of the Tweed ; and when distribu-
ted over the country, together with the large
amount of provisions that were seized and trans-
mitted at the same time, the people were supplied
with the necessaries of life, famine was arrested,
and a large army provided for in an enemy's
country. During the stay of the Scottish army
in England it was changed several times in its ap-
pearance, for as soon as one clan had collected a
sufficient quantity of booty they were allowed to
return home, and their places were forthwith
supplied by others who were equally needy as
their predecessors. The spoil was thus divided
equally over the country, and the wants of all
were supplied. The soldiers, that had been
allowed in pursuit of plunder to spread themselves
over a large portion of the eastern district of
Northumberland, were now summoned in, formed
into an army, and proceeded westward towards
the city of Carlisle. It was then, as it had ever
been before, a place of great strength, with a large
garrison and castle, plenty of provisions, and a
number of brave inhabitants ready to defend it.
In aforetime it belonged to the kings of Scot-
land, and constituted the capital of a large and
j
7T
25S
liFK orsfff mrjj.i^WAKKArE.
iiuportani ]>orli<Mi ol' oonntrv ; luul fVom (lie
dnvM t>f tho Hot\\ivnn. lunl (ornuMl (ho kov iVomllm
north of Kni>li\H(l to tho soiithrrn i\\u\ wpsti'rn
parts ot' Sootl'uul. Whon the Si'ottiHJi iiriny
ap)>n>uoho(1 near tho city, tbov (1os]>(itcluHl apriopt
as tlioironvoy and donnnuloii an instunt purronder
of tlio \)\[wx\ " My ni!\stor. stiys lusviz: — ^Wil-
\\i\n\ iho (\>nq\UM'or. bids yon. if yon ro^nrd yonr
own livos !\nd nro nnxions {o sparo tluMHlnsion of
M<Hvi. iiivo \in voitr oitv inul (N\stl(\ which if von
do voiir livi^s Mnd n\cn\h(M'sMntl wovhllv uoods Hhull
bo snfc fron\ hnnn ; hnt if not h(^ will tnUo vonr
city hv storn\. and \ittcrlv destroy h<>th von and
it/' To this l>o]d rc(picst an ccpjjilly hohl n^ply
was returned hy tlic hrnvo citizens. ** Hetnrn
whence von came, sav thev. (\,m\ tell vonr ninstcr
that if he is eager to pos!<e!*s onr city, he wonld
better t\>ine as a conrageoiis conqueror, nnd storm
the wallsand make hiiUvself unisttM'of the citv antl
c^\stle with all their einUents." This was not a
mere en\pty detiance that ws\s made, unaccom-
panied by deeds; (ov instantly the walls were
manned bv a larsre muster oC some of the finest
tivops in l\ngl!vnd, with a formidable array of
several o( the best constructed engines that the
times oimld aflord. which were prepared to throw
missiles to a gi*eat dist;incc npon any force who
might have the haixlihood to appiH^ach near the
walls. Wallace's army was totally improvided
with any battering engines, or weajHrns of attack,
and even if the seige had been successful it would
l.lfK Dir SIH WILLIAM WALLACPl.
as0
Imvc (i(»tninp(l them ioo long in a coimfry Aiir-
rouiulod l»y oiHMiiioH, Mild at n vury unf ivoriihU^ tiirio
of (lio vojir. Ih^ iM'linMl ilMMclon^ from (JniljHlo,
and lol't the iKMiiitil'id riiy willioiit an attvinpt
to hrciH^li the wmIIh, iinprcBHcd with th(^ highr'Ht
reRpeet lor Mie attiludt; nnHnined l»y tin? inlm!.»i-
tants of the i)la(}e, who cniwded aJI of th<«rn,
father and Hon, hiiHhand nnd hrother to the
rnnipartP. IA)r they were renolved to Hpend the
hiHt dro|) of their hlood in its defence, rather than
allow itH gates to he Ihnig open, nnd its wmIIh U)
bo Mealed by crnel I'oeH who Inid everywlnjro
left behind them nnmlHtnkabh; traees of crnelty
and bloodshed. Leaving (Jjirlinle they ])}iHMed
throngh Ingli^wood IA)reHt, rnvnging th(» whole
eonntrv throngh whi<'h they pnHned. They eoni-
milted the name erneltieH they had done in Nor-
thuinl»erhind ; and a whole generation puHHed
away before (Jnmberland recovered from tlie wild
deedH of a, licentiouH Holdiisry, jxnjM^trnted in a
dintrict of eonntry, whiM'e natiU'eabonndH in every
Ibrm of grandeur and lovelineHH, and where Home
of the linent peasantry of Europe were to be
found.
'* Yon naked waHte Hiirvoy,
Whoro lato whh hoard tlio flnfo'H molliflnoim lay ;
Wlioro late tho rony hoHomnd Iioupb,
111 looHo array daiiccid li/i^hily o'or the floworH ;
Whore hite tho Hhoplionl told \m tender tale,
Tho voiee of cheerful labor tilled the dale ; *
How Hadly silent all !"
230
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
The devastations of the Scottish army extended
through Cumberland as far as Derwentwater and
Cockermouth, and everywhere a vast amount of
life and property was destroyed. Whatever was
movable was carried into Scotland, and became
a welcome gift to many of the famishing inhabi-
tants of the country who had been stripped of
everything by the English. Passing from Cum-
berland, they entered into Durham, a district of
the country hitherto considered sacred, as being
associated with Saint Cuthbert. This remarkable
man was the sixth bishop of Durham, and died
in a hermitage, in " Fame Islands," in the year
of Our Lord six hundred and eighty-six. He
surpassed all that went before him for the holi-
ness of the life which he spent, and the success
that attended his ministerial labors. After his
death his body was deposited at Landisferne, an
island off the coast of Northumberland, where it
rested in its quiet abode till the year seven hun-
dred and sixty-three. Then the monastery was
destroyed by the Danes, and the relics of the Saint
were carried by his pious brethren into Scotland.
Afterwards they were removed to Durham, where
they are now supposed to rest somewhere within
the precincts of the massive cathedral, which, as a
specimen of Norman architecture, has no equal
in England. Great victories were foolishly as-
cribed to the saint ; for Simeon of Durham
informs us, that he appeared to Alfred the Great
when lurking in the fens near Glastonbury,
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
231
■•>.^'
and promised him victory over his heathen
enemy.
" 'Twas he to vindicate his reign,
Edged Alfred's faulchion on the Dane,
And turned the conqueror back again."
And when David the First of Scotland marched
into England at the head of an army, and was
defeated at the bloody battle of Northallerton,
when wishing to maintain the rights of the
Empress Maud against the encroachments of
Stephen, the English marched against the in-
vaders under the banner of St. Cuthbert.
" Who may his miracles declare !
Even Scotland's dauntless king and heir ;
Although with him they led, .>
• ■' ; Gallowegians, wild as ocean's gale.
And Loudon knights all sheathed in mail,
And the bold men of Teviotdale,
Before his standard fled."
Wallace stopped short when he entered within
the territory reckoned sacred to the saint, and
ordered a speedy retreat. Like others he was
largely tinctured with the superstitions of the age,
and began to fear that through the interference
of St. Cuthbert, some disastrous consequences
might follow the invasion of his territory. Strange
enough, the elements of nature seemed to have
confirmed his fears at the time, for both he and
his troops were assailed by one of those terrible
storms, which, although attributed to the influence
of St. Cuthbert, are but too common in this part
of the country at the time of the year Wallace
232
MFE OF StR Wn,LlAy[ W.iCDiOB.
invaded it. The sky suddenly became overcast,
and the wind rose into the fury of a hurricane.
Descending with sudden gusts, it howled fright-
fully through the forests, levelled the most
majestic trees in its sweep, and destroyed many
of the dwellings throughout the country, and
much valuable property also. After this the
winter set in with unusual severity, and many of
the soldiers were frozen to death in their encamp-
ments during the night. They began to get worn
out by such exposure and sufferings, and to be-
think them of their native land. They therefore
returned back to Scotland, after inflicting terrible
sufferings on the natives, and which they did not
fail to remember ever afterwards.
Wallace could not but have been satisfied when
allowed to march home at the head of his army,
as there were many things that had transpired in
England, to which he could hardly give his
approval. He had always from the first notwith-
standing the bloody scenes through which he had
been forced to pass, entertained the highest respect
for religion and the ministers of the church ; and it
grieved him to think that they were often treated
by his ruthless soldiers without his knowledge,
with that cruelty and contempt which occasioned
him much sorrow and many misgivings. For the
wealth of the clergy at the time, and above all the
splendor of the churches and monasteries — which
contained within their sacred precincts the richest
gifts of kings, and of the pious and devout for
II
\\
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
233
ages throughout the land — excited their cupidity,
and made them plunder them with the same
indifference as they would have done the private
dwellings of the rich or the noble. As an
instance of this we may refer to an incident which
took place at Hexham, which occasioned Wallace
and his brave co-partner Sir Andrew Murray, a
considerable amount of grief. The Scottish army
in its onward progress had plundered the chapel
and monastery of this place. And after it had
left and was not again expected to return, two
monks crept from their hiding places, came back
to their former residences and began to repair the
ravages made and to cleanse the chapel from the
blood with which it had been desecrated — being
shed before the altar and scattered everywhere.
Before they had finished their pious task, their
ears were once more astonished with the noise of
the tramp of the cruel soldiers who were once
more back upon them most unexpectedly, and who
presenting their long spears to their breasts,
demanded them to shew them their hidden
treasures, and in case of refusal threatened to
take their lives. " Alas !" cried the poor monks,
" you know best where those treasures are, for you
robhed us of all on your first visit!" While this
altercation was going on, Wallace at once entered
into the chapel, when the officiating priest had
already been seized by the brutal soldiers who
were preparing forthwith to despatch him. He
rescued him from their hands, ordered them to
2M
LfFK OF SfR WffJJAM WALLACE,
I
S ■
form a circle round the altnr and say masH, and
afterwards when lie retired iVoni l)ev()nd the
sacred precincts of the chapel, he put some of the
more viident and sacriligious of the soUliers to
death, whiU> at the same time lie ordered the
timid n\o!\ks to renuiin beside him. " For," says
he, "soldiers are an evil race" and I dare not
restrain them/* At the same tinu> he gave to
the monks a letter signed by himself, protecting
their lives and property in the future, and
threatened death to any one who should deprive
them of either. It is said that a large amount
of the inhumanity and sacrilegious spirit displayed
in the Scottish army at the time was traceable to
a great number of Gallowegians that was in it,
and whose fierceness and cruelty had always been
proverbial. They had been a matter of much
grit-f and sorrow to the good pious king David the
First >\ hen he invaded England a century and. a
half before, and their rapacity and insubordination
continued to exercise the mind of Wallace during
the whole time of his invasion of England, and
make him wish they were sent back to the wild
retreats of their native country, where robbery
and plunder w^cre their fiivorite pastimes.
If
CHAPTER XIII.
Wallnoo rolnniod rrom lln^laiid, ntnl ^Indly iwoivod Iwk.
Hnvcd Ills country from fiiminn. 1 1 in prniHOH on tho
lipH (d' nil, oxcopt llio nobU^H. (iroaf. oppoHition Htill to
moot with. Moans roqiiired to enaldo iiitn io do ho.
Proclaimed rcgont at Fon»Ht-kirl{. HovornI of fhe
nobility pi'OHinit, Imt. aH a body oppoHod it. It iriHidtod
tlicir f(Midnl prido wlion Wallace was (dcvatod to that
bi/i;li poHition. Tbo appoinlmont afl'onbtd rrnudi satis-
laetion to tJio people. Appli(*d liiniHelf at the oiitBot to
tho redroHH of ^I'ievanceH. liiHtalbvi in oiHcoH of trust
many of those who had fought with him. l(e-organi/,o(J
tho army. System now and complete. The nobloB
opposeil this also, and several of tho bnrgh(M'8 in tho
larger cities. Tho attention of tho governor next
directed to tho internal state of tho country. Tho
trallic of Scotland with foreign nations largo before
Edward invaded it. Nearly annihilated after tho dos"
truction of Herwick. Tho object of tho governor to
bring baxdc tho commerce to its former channel. Adf)pted
and carried out froo trade principles. Opened up com-
municiitionH with the Flemings and tho liaiiso towns of
(Jermany. Wetitovor to Flanders liimself and addressed
a letter to tho froo towns of Hamburg and LuboC'
Ijatoly discovered in tho library of Hamburg. Its
genuineness not disputed. Goods of all kinds began to
bo imported into the seaport towns of Scotland ; and
tho country to recovei* from tho otl'octs of war. Tho
praises of the i-egent high in Franco and Germany, and
over all Europe. Had his regency been long continued
tho Scottish nation would havo boon great. Otherwise
ordered by Providence.
2nn
LIFE OF SIR WlLhlAM WALLACK.
The rotiirn of Walliioo fVom Ku^;lund with Iuh
viotoriouH army wjih hailod with (ho f!;rea,(cHt
HutiHraction bv all parties in tlio oonnminity, with
the cxooption of tho nobility. And vvidl itn)i}!;ht
be so, for he had lirHt saved the kinp;d()ni from
oppression and slavery ; and then preserved the
lives of its inhabitants from famine and death
during one of the severest winters of whieh we
have any aeconnt. Still, like another Cineinnatua,
our hero returned from the desolating work that
had artbrded riches to nuiny of his eountrymen,
poor as he had ever been himself, but rich in
fame, and rejoicing in the salvation of his country.
Well might his praises be soumletl throughout the
hind, and his popuhirity become greater than
that of any one that luid gone before him ! For
although those that possessed wealth and power
had remained indiiferent to the real interests of
their country, and had allowed the greatest
enemy it ever had to place upon it a yoke which
none of its inhabitants had ever borne before,
he, though much inferior to them in riches and in-
fluence, had " like a noble warrior broken the
yoke of the burden and staff of the oppressor of
his country," and had thus taken in hand and
finished with honor to himself and glory to others
a work which would have handed down his name
in all ages as a great deliverer. It mattered not
that such great actions might stir up wTath and
heart burnings among the craven nobles who had
long lost sight of everything but their own in-
LIFE OF SIR wrUJAM WAhLACK.
237
teroHtM — juid tluit liis prniHOH, wliirli woro licnilded
every wln^ro nbroad, nm^ like ho many Hlini^ing
rc]>n)iiclieH jip;niuHt tlieniHelveH, wliowcire novvliere
to bo loiiiid when duty called tlnMri loudly to
defend the snored rightn that, luid been tramphid
in the duHt. These prjiises will continue to he
reitenited hereafter by every lover of liberty;
and the battles he fought, the victories he achieved
and the triumphs he won will remain starjding
memorinls of the seUislineHs, su{)ineness, and slug-
gish indifVerenco of the nobility of the country,
who stood aloof when called upon to defend its
freedom, when it was in danger of })eing lost to
them and to others in all succeeding generations
" YoH, in thai /^(iru^rons (lauHo forovor Hiron/L?.
Tlio pal riot's virtuo and tlio pool's song
Htill, as tho lido oCa^oH roll away,
Shall cJiarni tho world unconHciouH of decay I"
But although Wallace's success had hitherto
been most remarkable in vanquishing the English
— cowering those who wished to oppose him, and
in sharing the honors derivable from his victories
gained ; yet he had a host of opposition to meet
and to defeat from all quarters, and means re-
quired to be devised to enable him to do so
successfully. For the strength of the barons
remained unbroken, who envied and hated him,
each of whom could bring a large number of
vassals into the field for the sake of resisting him ;
and who would rather side with the English than
allow an upstart, as they called him, to remain in
238
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
\
the high position that fortune seemed to have
assigned to him. Edward's wrath too would soon
be felt against one who had in so short a time
wrested one kingdom from him, and had sorely
wasted and destroyed a large portion of another,
while he was engaged at a distance from it.
Taking a view of the situation therefore, it
appeared both to Wallace and his real friends,
that he required additional strength and authority
to cope with these formidable foes successfully in
future ; and accordingly on his return from Eng-
land an assembly was held at the Forest-kirk in
Selkirkshire, where he was proclaimed governor
of Scotland, in the presence of the Earl of Lennox,
Sir William Douglas, and many others of the
principal nobility. These nobles gave their sanc-
tion to this appointment, because they could not
resist it at the time owing to Wallace's popularity ;
for the choice afibrded unbounded satisfaction to
the nation at large, to whom he had already be-
come the idol, owing to his suavity of manners,
and wonderful military exploits everywhere dis-
played. But although this was so, and Wallace
conductc ' "-nself in his elevated station with all
the ^■' and prudence with which it was
posg jr him to do ; yei, the appointment in
the end proved disastrous to the national cause.
The Scottish nobles throughout the whole history
of the country, with very few exceptions, had
been remarkable for their meanness, poverty and
pride. They continued on to the time of Wallace,
11
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
239
and long after, to fill all the important offices of
the state, however ill qualified for the work, and
imagined it was presumption in any one to pre-
tend to do so, who happened to be of inferior
rank to themselves. The simple knight of EUerslie
had no pretension to a high rank. He was the
representative of the common and middling classes,
and during the time he lived both were despised
and looked down upon by the nobility, by whom
trade and commerce were contemned. For if it
had only been bruited throughout the Highlands,
that a son of any great chief was destined to
spend his days in a counting house — as now often
happens to be the case — it would have been
sufficient for ever to degrade the whole clan in
the eyes of all their brethren. At the same time
it would have been reckoned far more becoming
employment for him to be engaged in plundering
the lands of his neighbors, and carrying away
their property, than in tilling the ground that
lawfully belonged to him or some of his con-
nections. " I protest," said Rob Roy, the outlaw,
to his cousin Bailie Nichol Jarvie in the Glasgow
Tolbooth, " that I had some respect for this cal-
lant, viz., Mr. Frank Osbalderstone, even before
I shewed what was in him ; but I honor him for
his contempt of weavers and spinners, and sic like
mechanical persons and their pursuits." The
nobles thus entertained the idea that they pos-
sessed an exclusive right to administer the affairs
of the state, while they utterly disregarded the
240 ]
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
!;!
'I '
IJ
interest of those whom they considered beneath
them. It insulted to a great extent their feudal
pride, and hurt the feelings in which they had been
educated, when Wallace, whom they considered
so much below them, was elevated to be governor
of Scotland. Besides all this, they could not be
forgetful of the fact that they had no hand in
bringing about the happy change, that had taken
place in regard to ihe affairs of the country. Wal-
lace was cognizant of this in his heart, and must
have despised them for the selfish and pusillani-
mous part they had all along continued to act in
respect to these. And now that he possessed power
over them, and authority to enforce obedience to
the laws that might be enacted for the good of all,
they must have been filler", with fear and hatred
which for some time they endeavored to conceal,
but which by and by manifested themselves in
an unmistakable way, and proved the destruction
of the State. As soon as Wallace was installed
in the important office of governor of Scotland,
which could not be conferred on any person more
deserving, and which filled the hearts of the com-
mon people with joy and gladness everywhere,
he began to exercise his authority with much wis-
dom and discretion. His great administrative
abilities soon appeared equal to those he had often
displayed in the field of battle ; and had he been
permitted to carry out the schemes he devised for
the defence of his country, the extension of its
commerce, and the development of its trade,
!1 i
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
241
he would have ranked equal in skill and
political sagacity to any of our great reformers in
the present age. At the outset of his work he
applied himself to the redress of many grievances,
the repression of disorders, and the rectification of
many abuses that existed in the kingdom. He made
an extensive tour throughout the country, where he
saw those abuses and heard with his own ears the
complaints uttered by those who had been ill-used
and oppressed ; and to the best of his ability he
removed them, and rewarded the meritorious
when they had been overlooked. Especially did
they who had fought valiantly under his banner,
or those of the other leaders in assisting to secure
the independence of Scotland, deserve a large share
of his attention. To them, the country owed a
debt which it could never sufficiently pay ; and
he coKceived it to be the duty of its rulers to pro-
vide for the wants of the needy and destitute
among them, and assign posts of honor ancl re-
sponsibility to others who were capable of hold-
ing them, and which had been rendered numerous
lately by the flight of the English, leaving the cas-
tles and strongholds throughout the land without
any to defend them. In accordance with hia feel-
ings in this matter, he appointed Alexander de
Scrymgeour to the office of constable of the castle
of Dundee, a brave baron and one who had faith-
fully maintained the credit of his country in dark
times, and in many a hard fight. He bore the royal
banner of Scotland at the time the charter was
■m
242
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
gruntod in 1 21^S,wln»^]i wjih nn lioiior that fow would
have bocMi oonsidorod worthy oriiolding citlior be-
fore or alitor him. Other sitiiations t)rreHj)oiiHihility
were ansigned to many otliers of hiw more desi^'v-
iiig adherentH, who had braved the battle strife
w^ith himself, and secured for themMelves, and
their country, the priviU»gea of freedom and inde-
pendence. By tliene and other wise arrange-
ments lie inaugurated, and enforced mcawures
which, while they secured the liberty of his
country, and advanced the interests of his friiMids,
punishcvl, deprCwSsed and weakened his enemies
the nobles, who looked upon him with jealousy
and hatred, and waited t'or an opportunity to be-
tray and ruin him. Some of the tirst things that
engaged the attention of the governor were the
defence of his country against any future inva-
sion, the organization of an army, and a system
of discipline introduced into it, which for bold-
ness and utility, had it been fully adopted, would
have ])l;\ccd Scotlaiul at the head of all the nations
of V'urope, for the completeness of its military
eq\iipment. One of the greatest diihculties he
had to contend against from the outset, was the
power of feudal vassalage which existed in all
parts of the country. The numerous vassals who
were entirely under the control of the barons
could be prevented from taking up arms if they
so ordered it, however pressing the emergency
might appear, and any time they did so they could
be withdrawn from the service of their country.
i«it
M
LTFE OF SIR WILILAM WALLACE,
243
m
oiia
if* thoir capricious mjiHterH thought fit that such
ou<^ht to he the case. And the coiiHeciuciice was
that the military power of the kingdom was con-
centrated in tlie hands of a few, wlio often used it
for suhverting, instead of iiphohling its rights,
and thus the most fatal elfects foHowed. And
still it was a subject most dillicidt to deal with,
and greatly in favor of the prejudices of the age ;
for according to the feudal system that had taken
root all over Europe, and deeply in Scotland, a
large number of serfs was thought to be needful
to uphold the pomp and pride of a lordly aristo-
cracy, and it recjuired wisdom and ability of no
ordinary kind to disturb its workings in any pos-
sible way. The governor knew that to attack a
system openly so deeply seated and in such an
aristocratic age and country, would have proved
ruinous to himself, and the bcmt interests of
the country. lie therefore attacked it in an
indirect way, and in the part where it appeared
most vulnerable ; which showed that he was
possessed of an amount of shrewdness and admin-
istrative ability, which few but himself possessed.
He divided the whole country into military dis-
tricts, and caused returns to be given in of all
who were capable of bearing arms, from the age of
sixteen, to sixty. These divisi(ms comprehended
the counties, the boroughs, the cities, the baronies,
and the villages ; so that in the muster roll that
was made up no male within the country, could
escape having his name upon it. When the list
'
244
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
was finished it was subjected to a peculiar process,
which manifests the care and ability that had
been bestowed upon it, and shewed the system
inaugurated to be entirely new. Over every four
men he appointed a fifth, over every nine a tenth,
over every nineteen a twentieth ; and thus he
continued the scale of gradation, till he reached to
a thousand. If this military organization had been
heartily adopted by the country, and all classes of
the community had vied with one another in
carrying out its spirit, Scotland would have been
saved much sooner than she was from the aggres-
sions of her enemies, and oceans of blood would
have been prevented from being shed. But the
nobles, as might have been expected opposed it,
and several of the leading councillors of the time
in more than one of the royal burghs ; and not-
withstanding some of the peers were imprisoned
to compel them to submission, and more than one
of the leading burghers of Edinburgh and Aber-
deen were put to death for their obstinacy in the
matter, the method was never carried out in its
entirety owing to the causes above specified.
Pity that it had not been so ! And that his country
had not had the full benefit of the military devis-
ings of a man, whose great mental and bodily
exertions had been put ibrth in its service ! But
the efibrts of Wallace were not entirely devoted
to arrangements for the military defence of the
land, but, like a wise administrator, he directed
much of his attention to the cultivation of the
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
245
the
its
arts of peace, and to the development of the
resources of the kingdom. Previous to the inva-
sion of Scotland by Edward, the trade of that
country was large with foreign nations, and
Berwick, one of its sea port towns, vied with
London in its riches, and extensive commercial
relations. But it was smitten to the dust, and lay
bleeding at the feet of the usurper, after a brave
defence, which for courage and daring, has few
equals in history. At the time it was attacked
the Flemings had established a rich trade in the
town, and the " Red Hall " owned by them there,
was stored with every description of valuable
goods. The charter granted them, laid them
under engagements to assist in defending the
place against the English. And they nobly
fulfilled their pledge, and perished to a man,
fighting sword in hand, amid their silks, scarlets,
and other rich bales of goods, that were wholly
consumed in the flames. After this the traffic
betwixt Scotland and all foreign parts was virtu-
ally cut off, when Edward laid his iron hoof on
the country, and transferred the whole commerce
to England. It was the great object of Wallace
to bring back the former trade to its native
channel, and make Scotland abound, as it did in
the days of the good Alexander, in wealth, peace
and commercial prosperity. In order to do so he
adopted and carried out those principles of free
trade which have been endorsed in Britain in
more recent times, but which he understood per-
I
246
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
If
fectly centuries before ; and if his valuable life
had been spared, and his government measures
carried out, Scotland would have become one of
the most prosperous nations of Europe, and its
people peaceful and free. But unfortunately the
haughty nobles of the land, would not allow it to
be said that such a one should rule over them ;
and he was cut off, before the sagacious measure s
which he introduced had time to become matured.
Mindful of the heroic and faithful conduct of the
Flemings, who had fought so nobly at the siege of
Berwick, and of the great benefit the export and
import trade with their nation, and the other
Hanse towns of Germany had conferred on his
country, he was determined to open it up anew,
and in such a wise and liberal scale, as would
ensure its success. To give eftect to his free trade
policy, after the battle of Stirling, he went over to
Flanders himself for the purpose of opening up
more free intercourse with the rich and enter-
prising people there ; and at the same time he
addressed a letter to the free towns of Hamburg,
and Lubec, which develops the largeness of his
commercial views, and his deep yearnings after
the prosperity of his country, and which would
cast no discredit on the greatest political economist
of the present age. A copy of it has recently been
discovered by the late eminent Doctor Lupenburg,
archivist of the city of Hamburg, and was pub-
lished in a learned work on the Hanse towns some
time ago. Its genuineness has been admitted by
ii!
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
247
Mr. Tytler, the historian of Scotland, and other
high authorities capable of judging of its merits.
The epistle in the original reads thus : " Thanks
be to God, the kingdom of Scotland has been
recovered during the war from the power of the
English ; and we request you therefore to inform
your merchants that they shall now have free
and safe access to every port within the realm for
themselves and their commodities." Taking ad-
vantage of the encouragement therein given, a
large quantity of foreign goods soon began to
crowd info the seaport towns of Scotland, con-
sisting of fine linen, and silks, broadcloths, carpets
and tapestry, olive oil, confections, drugs, armor
and cutlery ; while a large amount of goods,
consisting of wool, hides, furs, and Scottish pearls,
which were then in great demand on the conti-
nent, in a short time commenced to find their way
besides many other commodities, into the foreign
markets. If such a state of things had continued
long, the country would have soon forgotten the
late effects of the desolating war that had destroyed
such a large amount of life and treasures ; and the
people who had suftered so much would have
begun to feel that they were free, happy and con-
tented.
" Merrily every bosom boundeth, merrily, Oh I
When the song of freedom soundeth, merrily, Oh I
There the warrior's arm sheds more splendor,
There the maiden's charms shine more tender,
Every joy the land surroundoth, merrily, oh ! merrily, oh !"
1
248
LIFH OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
By such measures, adopted with such ability by
the .Scottish Regent, as might have been expected,
Lis power and popuhirity began to increase at
home and abroad as a statesman — as it had done
before as a warrior. France and Germany were
high in his praises, and considered liim as one of
the greatest statCHUien that had appeared for "\any
years in any country in Europe. At home the
couunon people and lesser barons repaired in great
numbers to his standard also, and firmly supported
the measures he introduced for the advancement
of the commercial interests of the kingdom, as the
best that could be devised in the peculiar circum-
stances in which it happened to be placed. But
still, as on former occasions, the more powerful
barons stood aloof; and although they were com-
pelled to jneld a tacit submission to his authority,
they hated him with a perfect hatred, and only
waited an opportunity, when they could with
safety and profit espouse the cause of the destroyer
of the liberties of their country. With that
stupid feudal pride that produced soon afterwards
such bitter results, they could never brook the
idea that a man of the people —a simple gentle-
man — should occupy a more elevated position than
any of themselves. And they would prefer to
submit to the grinding oppression of a foreigner
because he was a sovereign, rather than yield to
the wise and equitable rule of one of their own
country, because he sprang from the people. They
were by this time convinced of Wallace's merits,
Vs
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
249
Is
and that lie was capable of defending his nation
from the repeated attacks of its southern foes, who
were ever on the alert, and watching for its
destruction. But their wretched pride and jealousy
prevented them from acting under him, because
of the meanness of hisbirtli. And thus they lost
a glorious chance of saving Scotland from impend-
ing ruin, and defending its rights under the leader-
ship of one whom nature had endowed with every
quality of mind and body that fitted him for this
important work. Already had he raised it from
the crushing blow by which Edward, after the
battle of Dunbar, had levelled it in the dust, and
starting off for England, had left it bleeding and
a prey to his greedy dependents, who occupied
every town, garrison and castle throughout it ;
while, with a cruelty worthy of their master,
they had ruined and wasted the country, beaten,
wounded and killed the inhabitants. But the
nobles of the land looked on with indifference, and
most of them had sworn allegiance to England's
unprincipled king, while Wallace, as a brave
patriot, had appeared with a head and heart fitted
to be the leader of a great and generous people,
who confessed with shame and sorrow to one
another the woeful state of degradation in which
they were in, and vowed to avenge the terrible
wrongs they had to endure. And they knew and
obej^ed him in this great death struggle for liberty.
Trampled the red standard of England in the
dust as he led them on to victory. Struck off the
r
1
li
li '
i. i
■
i
:■ ,lll
250
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
fetters of their fierce and bloody foes, and made
their country, although poor and small, free as it
had ever been before. Again, when this was
achieved, Wallace turned his attention to the in-
ternal well-being of his native land, encouraged
trade, and fostered commerce ; but with all the
qualifications he possessed for doing so, and prov-
ing himself an able and enlightened ruler — as he
appeared a great general in the field of battle — he
only excited to a much larger extent the jealousy
and hatred of the nobility among whom he lived,
who sold him whenever an opportunity presented
itself to the oppressor of their country for paltry
gold. No kingdom in Christenflom during its
struggles, both for civil and religious liberty,
during its whole history, ever presented a more
deplorable spectacle, so far as the majority of its
nobles was concerned than Scotland. For they
were so divided among themselves, and bent on
serving their own interests, as to leave the contest
mostly in the hands of the people. And even
*^Bruce of Bannockburn," with all the halo of glory
that surrounds his name as a hero and a patriot,
long acted a hesitating part in the struggle. And
it was only when he found himself in sure footing,
and his path to the throne of Scotland tolerably
clear and smooth, through the keen and often
repeated bloody struggle of the unselfish Wallace
and his co-patriots, whose thirsty swords were
often bathed in the blood of the enemies of their
country, and who in many a hard contested fight,
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
261
where the odds were terribly against them, beat
them small, and scattered them like chaff before
the wind, that he ventured to raise the standard
of rebellion against Edward, whom he had often
acknowledged as his sovereign lord. In this respect
the Scottish nobility, presented a strange contrast
to the English ; for at Runimede and elsewhere,
they resisted the arbitrary and despotic will of
their sovereigns, and extorted from them at the
point of the sword, those large concessions which
ended in the establishment of true English liberty.
And even at this time, when Edward was over-
running Scotland, his nobles refused to march
with him and his vassals into that country, until
the liberties of every freeman was secured. For
they objected to grant the king aid or tallage
without the consent of all, even when the Great
Charter, and the Charter of the Forests were signed
by him. But in Scotland it never happened to
be that the nobles were at one on any great
question affecting the well-being of their country.
They were always selfish and divided : *' each one
cared for his own things and not for the things of
others." And as they were so they were never of
much service in any great crisis affecting the in-
terests of their country ; and the selfish, politic
English king took advantage of their divisions
at the time to carry out measures which, but for
an all-wise and overruling Providence, would have
tended to destroy the last spark of liberty that
burned in that country. But happily it was
252
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
>i»i
not permitted to be so, and although through the
selfishness and pride of a few, the wise IdgisUitive
measures of its governor were paralyzed, and the
soil of Scotland drenched once more with the
blood of its noblest sons ; yet when this tragedy
was over the torch of liberty was lighted up anew,
and shone as it had ever done amid the mountains
and valleys of this rugged country in all its native
brightness. And considering all the toil, and
tears, and blood, and treasures that had been
expended on the part of it; it could hardly be
found to be otherwise, or that the wise disposer of
all events would ever allow a people to be de-
prived of what had been ever dear to them as life
itself, and handed down from father to son as a
gift that was of all others the most to be valued
and the last to be parted with.
" Yet, no — not quenched — a treasure worth
' So much to mortals rarely dies ;
Again her living light looked forth,
And shone a beacon in all eyes.
This was so ordered in Scotland, and we look
back with pride to the men who asserted the
rights of their country when all was darkness
around ; and we pity the nation th.-.t had the mis-
fortune like it of being under the selfish domina-
tion of a body of men to whom the sacred rights
of the majority of a nation have always appeared
of little moment, in comparison with their own
aggrandizement. It is only astonishing, all things
considered, that Wallace after bis being elected
i I
LIFE OF STR WILLIAM WALLACE.
253
;s
governor, could have been able to exercise any
control over a large body of such solfiwh men who
exercised such great power throughout the country.
For they owned the most of the property in it,
and held complete sway over a large number of
vassals, who lived on their estates, and who fol-
lowed their standard into the battle field. But
he did so, and in spite of all their pride and
opposition to him, he compelled them in many
instances to submit to his authority, and own his
appointment to the Regency as an honor conferred
on him by the consent of the people, solely on
account of his possessing the proper qualifications
for that important office. This often appears
during the short time he held the office, in the
way he despised their jealousy, and adopted the
important measures we have referred to above,
which he considered necessary for the defence,
protection and the commercial- interests of the
country ; while at the same time he was not for-
getful of those who had contended with him for
the enjoyment of that liberty that must be ever
■ pleasing to the feelings of all. In such ways as
we have therefore described, his power and influ-
ence began daily to be more felt, and had he only
had time to mature his plans already inaugurated,
and carry them out to their ultimate ends, all the
baneful influence of the aristocracy, or the power
of English gold and arras would have never been
able to crush him, nor subdue the people under
him. Within a short time after he was appointed
264
LIFE OF SIR WJLLIAM WALLACE.
f 1
I
■'■! !
if
guardian, says Fordun, " he compelled, by the rigor
of his character, and the integrity of his govern-
ment, the whole nobility of Scotland to submit to
his authority, whether with or without inclina-
tion. And if any one of them was so hardy as
to refuse obedience he knew well how to restrain
and overawe him, committing his person to prison
until he shewed himself entirely subservient to
his commands. By these means all were reduced
to a state of tranquility amongst themselves, and
having effected this he adopted himself to the
expulsion of the enemy from the castles and for-
tresses which they still held." In the life of
Julius Caesar, the great Roman general, it is stated
by his biographer that after he had subdued Gaul,
Germany and South Britain, and also conquered
Pompey the Great, his rival in the battle of Phar-
salia, that decided the fate of the civilized world,
the active mind of this man was still bent on the
achievement of something great in the future ;
and therefore, though thin and pale in complexion. •
old looking before his time, and subject to epileptic
fits, he resolved to devote the rest of his life to
the advancement of the prosperity of his country.
He therefore adorned the city of Rome with
magnificent buildings ; re-built Carthage and
Corinth ; undertook to level several mountains in
Italy ; dry up the Pontine marshes and pondered
mighty projects beyond the limits of the longest
life for the benefit of his country; but the
jealousy of a few individuals put an end to them
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
255
all. And so it was with our patriot hero. For
although his sphere of life was more contracted
than the great Roman, and the time of his regency
very short ; yet the energy he displayed, the
wisdom he manifested, and the schemes he set on
foot for the benefit of his country, shew that in
talent, patriotism and political sagacity he has had
few equals in the cabinet, as he had few that could
successfully contend with him in the field. And dur-
ing the short time he was allowed to hold office, he
achieved more good for his country than perhaps
any that ever went before or after him. He was
scarcely regent of Scotland for a single year, and
yet how many events are crowded into that short
but important period of the history of that land f
Events, some of them joyful, and others full of
sorrow and gloom ! And what an earnest worker
all the while he was ! not for his own good, but
for that of others, not that he might get riches and
honors and renown, but that his country might
prosper, and its Southern foes might be crushed
and driven out of it ! For tliis he accepted office,
for this he ardently labored while in it ; and when
he could do so no longer successfully, he resigned
the same back to those who had conferred it, and
retired into private life still animated with the
same spirit, and resolved to live on, a freeman ag
he had ever done before. No adversity could
crush him, no gold could buy him; while all was
darkness around others it was light with him.
The star of hopo »fas ever before him, and the
love and liberty of his country consumed him.
-m
CHAPTER XIV.
The rebellion in Scothuul irealed for a while with indiffer-
ence. The buttle ofSlirlinfjj convinced the icin^ of the
real ntjite of ailairn. Urged npon the Eetcentof Kni^land
in his abnence to call a parliament. When asHcnibled,
thedillicuKies of coUectlnu^an army increased. ]5arons
refu^*etl to bring together their vaHsuln except the Great
Chartern were ratified. King at last consented to do so.
Addresseci letters from Flanders to the nobles to meet
the Ilegent at York, iti January. Congregated in largo
numbers. Leading nobility present. Jlesolved to meet
at Newcastle soon after. Many of them obeyed his
call. A splendid army collected also for marching into
Scotland. When at Eoxburg, Surrey received notice
from the king to suspend o])erations. Soon resolved to
be at the hejul of the army himself. Landed afterwards
at Santlwich. Joyfully received. Called a meeting of
parliament at York, to sanction the raising of a second
army in place of the one disbanded. Succeeded in
the attempt. Summoned Wallace and the Scotch nobility
to meet him at York. Jle did not do so. Proceeded soon
after into England with a considerable fore nd oU'ered
to light Edward. Itefused to accept the challenge, and
retreated South. Scots returned home and annihilated
De Vallanco's division, l^klward once more collected an
ai*my and entered Scotland.
The king of England while in Flanders, treated
the accounts from Scotland of the success of
Wallace for so^e time with indifference, and
imagined the country so completely subdued as
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
257
inotico
vcd to
wards
mti; of
;ot'ond
ed in
)bility
I Hoon
flcrcd
c, and
liilatod
itcd an
leated
iss of
and
id as
to render any attempt at insurrection of little
inoinent. When the newH, however, reached him
of the battle of Stirling, so disastrous to his
forces, and the terrible destruction of life and
property occasioned through the raid lately made
into the northern counties of the kingdom, he
began to wake up to the real state of aft'airs. He
was still engaged in a war with France, from
which he had derived little benefit, and could
not possibly leave Flanders, the seat of it, for
some time to come. But the rapid progress of the
rebellion in Scotland frightened him not a little,
and made him urge the Regent of England, in his
absence into immediate action. A parliament was
therefore immediately called to meet in !^jondon,
on the 10th day of October, for devising means to
crush the insurrection. When it assembled how-
ever, it only tended at the first to increase the
difficulties of the Regent, and of the absent
monarch, and was likely to end in open hostilities
betwixt the barons and their sovereign. Aware
of the critical position he was in, owing to his
being engaged in a doubtful war in Flanders, and
to the success of Wallace, the nobles were pre-
pared to overawe the proceedings of parliament,
and stop all future supplies, until their own
grievances were fully redressed. Accordingly the
Earls of Norfolk and of Hereford, n eared in the
streets of London with thousands of retainers,
accused the king of breach of promise, and
demanded that the '* Great Charter" and also
258
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
that of the Forests should be ratified and signed
by him, before any action should be taken in the
war with Scotland. This the king had promised
to do, as his grandfather and father had done be-
fore hira, but put it off from time to time. Further,
the barons insisted that no taxes should be raised
for supporting the war in the North, which had
already become unpopular, as it was unprofitable,
without the consent of the parliament. When
news reached the king in Flanders of the attitude
assumed by the nobles at this critical time, he
was startled, and filled with indignation. He
brooded in silence for three days over the spirit
of insubordination they had dared to assume, and
in ordinary cases would have hastened to crush
it. But although all powerful in most cases,
he was forced at the present time to wink at their
rebellious tendencies, pocketed the affront, and
appeared on good terms with them. Accordingly
he confirmed the Charters that were forwarded to
him ; directed letters to many of the barons,
breathing a spirit of kindness and affection ; and
conjured them by the honor they wished to put
upon him, and the love they bore to their country,
to meet at York on the fourteenth day of January,
and from thence proceed into Scotland at the com-
mand of the Regent, and endeavor to extinguish
the last spark of rebsllion there. The king
wished it so to be, but was sadly mistaken in all
his calculations ; for the star of liberty that was
for some time dark and obscured in blood, soon
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
259
tigly
dto
ons,
and
put
htry,
uiry,
Icom-
juisli
Iking
In all
was
I soon
blazed up more brightly than before, and shed its
hallowed light on the land where it had ever been
considered a crime for the foot of a tyrant to
tread.
"Yes ! thy oppressor pitied land ! shall see,
That man hath yet a soul, and dare be free !
Prone to the dust /oppression shall be hurled,
Her name, her nature withered fj-om the world."
Edward likewise forwarded letters to Scotland
to many of the nobilit}^, assuring them if they
valued his favor, and the estates they held of him
of any moment, to attend at York also on the day
specified, and swell t e ranks of those that were
determined to put down the spirit of rebellion
that had become so rampant in the northern part
of his dominion. The Scottish nobles mustered
poorly however, as they were overawed by the
dread of the governor, whose influence they were
unable to control. But the English nobility made
up for the deficiency, and assembled in large num-
bers on the occasion. Seldom had the chivalry of
England been displayed on a more magnificent
scale, or the barons prepared to fight with more
spirit and determination in behalf of their king.
Both the Earl Marshal and the Great Constable of
England, were present with a large body of their
retainers, and in high spirits from the concessions
recently granted to them and others by the king.
The great Earl of Surrey was also there, who held
the office of king's lieutenant in Scotland, not-
withstanding his recent defeat and ignominious
260
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
i i
flight from Stirling. And many others of renown
presented themselves, all animated with one
spirit, and who burnt to be avenged on their foes
for the terrible losses recently inflicted on their
fellow subjects in the northern parts of the king-
dom, and for the victory which Wallace had
lately gained. In order to give the Scottish
barons another chance of manifesting their spirit
of loyalty towards their sovereign, and obedience
to his orders, Surrey the king's lieutenant, order-
ed another muster at Newcastle-upon-Tyne, eight
days after the assembly at York. Here there was
a most magnificent turn-out, and scarcely any-
thing of the kind, whether viewed in regard to
numbers or equipment, was ever before witnessed
in England. The nobles, who attended in great
force, vied with one another in the large number
of their vassals, the splendor of their armor, and
the rich caparisons of their horses; and the
knights and esquires, as far as they were able,
imitated them in this respect. When the muster
roll was made up it was found to amount to two
thousand heavy cavalry, armed cap a pie, along
with two thousand light horse, and one hundred
thousand infantry. How formidable the force!
And yet for what object was it collected ? Was
it to contend for liberty to the enslaved ? To suc-
cor the destitute ?. And to make Avrong right ? No !
but it was to carry fire and sword into a neigh-
bor's country, which was guilty of no crime but
that it had shaken off the yoke of a tyrant, and
LIFE OF Sill WILLIAM WALLACE.
261
sworn to be free ! The whole of this vast force
was put into marching order with Surrey
at its head, and without any further cere-
mony crossed the borders, and prepared for the
work of destruction. It had not proceeded
further than Roxburgh however, when it was
ordered to return back to Enghmd. For Surrey
had received a communication from the king,
informing him that he had concluded a truce with
the French monarch. That both had agreed to
Jfefer all matters of dispute to their spiritual
father the Pope ; and inasmuch as he intended to
sail for England with all possible haste, and as-
sume the command of the army, it would be bet-
ter to suspend operations, until his arrival on the
the spot. On receiving this communication, Sur-
rey disbanded the greater portion of the immense
force, that had been collected together at great
expense and trouble to the nation, without strik-
ing a blow, and waited the further orders of his
sovereign. In this we see the wisdom of Ed-
ward's policy ; for as the prestige of Surrey as a
general in Scotland was already gone, and as he
had won a sovereignty for himself there under
the pressure of motives foreign to the real inter-
ests of the state, he wished to command the army
in person. For he could not conceal from himself
the fact, that he was still considered in the Nortli
as a usurper. That many of his English subjects
sympathized little with him in his attempt to
subdue the natives, and at heart reprobated his
262
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
cruel conduct towards them. And knowing from
such, and other considerations, that a defeat might
prove disastrous to liim there he thought the safest
course for him to adopt, was to assume command
of the forces destined for vScothmd himself. Big,
therefore, as usual witli schemes of conquest, and
burning with i< venge towards a people that had
even dared, in spite of all liis threats and cruel-
ties, to resist his ambitious projects, he hastily
patched up a truce with his royal brother the
French monarch, and set sail from P'landers with-
out any further delay. The ileet made for Sand-
wich on the Kentish coast, but was sorely beset
and obstructed by adverse winds, which cast a
damper over the impetuous spirit of the indefati-
gable man, who had spent the best of his days in
camp, or on the bloody fields of battle, and who
hastened to be avenged on his Scottish foes. He
was joyfully received at Sandwich, for it was sel-
dom the inhabitants of this place, or those of the
other towns of England, had been allowed to feast
their eyes on a sovereign who had been abroad so
much, and engaged in so many ambitious projects.
When Edward reached Sandwich, he found that
the vast army collected by Surrey had been scat-
tered, and had melted away amid the mountains
of Wales, and the hamlets and rural retreats of
old England. But the king was on the spot, an-
other force was required, and it was not long
wanting. " The spirits of the vasty deep were
conjured up, and they obeyed his call ;" for an
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
263
army tM|iial in number, and c(iuipmcnt to any that
ever trod the Hoil of England, wan soon gathered
together. To accomplish this desirable object he
sunnnoned the whole disposal force of the king-
dom, to meet him at York on the feast of Penti-
cost, while he directed writs to the earls, barons,
two knights of every shire, and the representa-
tives of boroughs, to attend his parliament to
be held at the same place, to give an air of
sanction to his proceedings. He also summoned
the barons of Scotland to be present, and in case of
refusal they were to be considered rebels. If Aber-
cromby is to believed, a letter was also addressed to
Wallace by tlie king, urging upon him likewise the
necessity of putting in an appearance on the occa-
sion. To this summons the Scottish barons paid lit-
tle attention, as they were overawed by the power
of the Scottish Regent; and those of them that
fought with him in Flanders deserted his cause,
and united their interests with those of the king of
France. As for Wallace, his answer was such as
might have been expected from one who never ac-
knowledged Edwiird's authority. He stated that
what he had done, he was prepared to do again, in
order to check the baseness of a monarch who had
striven to destroy the liberties of a people, who
had never injured him, and who wished to live at
peace with their neighbors. As to his raid into
the northern counties of England, he wished (he
said) to indemnify his countrymen for the many and
cruel losses they had sustained, at the hands of his
2^4
IIFK OF aiK WIlllAM WMI^AVK.
sul>j(M*<H; und. JiH li(^ iiil(Mul<Ml HOOP to Ih» in V>\\\i-
\\\\\i\ \\\x\\'\\\ in |>iM'H)n. iMMvonlil ^iNeliininn nnnwiM'
l\o\v Imv ho wonlil ho |M(^HMrotl to Huhniil !<» hin
authority. Tlio notivi* and horoio p,oviMnnr (tf
S<^»th\n«l (li«l not ntoan to h^mkI iMnply thi'oiitfl to
tln^ Isnulisli nionnn^h, l»nt lolh>wotl MilwMrd's ntop-
HOnutM' with m11 pONsihh^ h|h^>(1. n( Iho licnd nf a
oonsidoral^lo jomy. into Mnjiland. Ih* cmhio np
with tin* lonM^s of liis o]>non(M«t>s on (h(» twontioth
of March. \vhi«'h \\\\ onrMn\|)*Ml nom* Stnnni(tr(\ iti
tluM\>unty ot' Wostnioroland. Allhonpji th<' Isng-
lisli toroos woro tar sujuM-ior [y> liis in nnnd»or. and
oon\niandod l>v tho kinu' in iHMN'^on. ho was hy no
moans atVaid to nnnM thoni ; tor his arniy was
n\a(U* n|> of liis \ ottMan t'ollowors, who jjad soat-
torod and ihH'oatoi^ tln^r ononiios on nianv nn
invasion ]>ot\)ro. 'I'hc troops avhani'od till within
a tow hundred yards oT oao.h othor, and I'ully
o\]HVti\i an ongagoniont. 'V\w v>oots woro in hii»li
S]urits anti oai>vr for tho oi>ntliot. whilo Wallaoo
hinisoltM(H>kod forward with sonio d(\u;roo of |)rido
t<> moot laoo to faoo. and t<> nioasuro swords with
tho king i>{ Kuiihnui. whos<^ fanio as a warrior
had oxtcndod thriMiiihout Vluropo. and Asia also.
Edward, howovor. was too wilv to ho takon
unawaros, or to tiiiht whoro tho issues in any way
wouhl ]>rino douhttul. And aft or hoholding with
admiration tho a]>po;\ranoo and splonditl disoiplino
o^ t])0 Soi^ttish troops, ho rotroatod southward
with his whole army, witliout striking a hlow.
This shewed the liiiht in whieh the character of
t.lFK OF Sfff W It^ltAM WMJ.ACIi}.
2(^h
tlio Kog'Mil nC S(M»lIinr«l wiih virvvcjl by ofn' who
wn» HO wril cnpnliN' ol" jii(lj«iiig of it. Ami IIkto
wiiM. prohnld V, nn inim nlivo, \\i limm» ni- nlii(»n(l,
wliniii lln' Kiifilisli inoimrcli drriidcd sn mmkIi, or
ln'IniM' wlmin Im» wniild Imvc rcl r('nl<'(l, nlllioii^h
[\\ \\\v Ik'ikI nl' II, inrm'ulnlth' nrmy, himI in liis o\vr»
connlrv, WliiN' hldwiird wmh iilVnid In iimU ji
Imlllo willi tlu' ScntH, cniiHidcrin^ nil llic rirciiin-
HtinuTH of (iio cMHc, tlu« |{«'^<Mil cohIiI liiifdiy VCfl-
tiirc lo |nirHiio IIm' llcciiifr H(|ii(uh'oiiM of tlin Kng-
linli. Il(» riMiHMiilicMM'd lir wiih \\\v nwiiy i?i iiri
cmmmiiv'h coimlrv. ^JMint it whh noHHihlc nn ntiilmH-
ondo iniulit Ih» Itiid (nr liimHcH' mid liin lirnvc* troops
))V IIm' Wjirlil^c Uinj;-, wlio wns over on tlx" n,l<'rt/
tor lli(» d<'Mtni('lioM ol' liis Ioch ; (ind, rent ruining
iiis InllowiM'M IVoin tin' pnrsiiif, lie congrMtnliitod
tln'in on llic drciid llicv nniHl liiivo occiiHioiKMl to
tlioso who liiid voliintiiriiy Ih'd nl their nppcnr-
anco. At tho Hiinic tinio hr returned tJninkH to
iho Ciod oF hiitth's, who had Hingnhirly int«'rpoHefl
in their hchiilf. I>iit tlit^ H<:n.t ol' tlio wnr waH once
more t(» h(» IranHlerrcd to Scothind, wIhto the
Rei2;ent and liis troops wojild Hoon hav<i a, (it oppor-
tunity, once more of disliimnlshiiiir themHclve.M.
/-i'
m-
Aymer de Val lance, I lie Hon of the Karl of \\
broke, was a lit descendant of a long racto of nohle
ancestors wlio, in the wai's in Ireland, and on many
otluM" memorahle occasions, had distinguished
themselves. Though still a, youth, he had risen
rapidly in the royal favor in the wars in Flanders,
on account of his valor; and, what was more
266
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
remarkable for a young man of eighteen years of
age, had disphiyed, at the same time, much judg-
ment and discretion, and on this account com-
pletely gained the conlidence and affection of his
royal master. No one was more trusted in the
cabinet or in the field. And when a truce was
agreed upon between the belligerents in Flanders,
De Vall^mce was deputed to the French capital, as
the English commissioner, to sign the articles
agreed upon. When this was done the king
ordered his favorite to sail for Scotland, without
any further delay, with the force that had been
under his command, and co-operate with himself
in the invasion of that country. De Vallance lost
no time in landing in the north with a large force,
and began to lay waste the county of Fife with
fire and sword. This part of the country, even at
this early period, was rich, populous and well cul-
tivated; and from the fact that the Earl of Fife,
who owned large properties in it, had joined the
patriots, was considered fit to be devoted to ravage
and plunder. Before the English, however, had
commenced their work of destruction, Wallace
and his followers hurried back from England, and
threw themselves in the way of the invaders.
They came up to them while they lay concealed
in Blackironside woods, which then consti-
tuted an extensive forest, reaching from the
Forth far away into the interior of the coun-
try. It was midsummer when they did so?
and all nature was aglow. The trees were
^age
had
llace
land
lers.
lied
isti-
the
)un-
SOj
tere
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
267
fresh and green, afTording a cooling shade to the
weary traveller, while the birds sang sweetly
above his head among the branches. But how
different the appearance of things when the two
contending forces came into deadly collision !
Thi dense forest now far and near resounded with
the clash of sword and spear, and the beauties of
nature were sadly marred. The by-paths and
hidden tracks amid the lofty trees were soon
covered with dead bodies, and dyed with purple
ffore. The birds themselves forsook their lonelv
abodes, and the beasts of prey affrighted hastened
away, and left a work to be performed by man,
that was far more in unison witn their own cruel
natures than with his !
" Over the forests, sunk in blood,
Are the waves of ruin hurled;
Like the waters of the flood
Rolling round a buried world."
De Val lance, the youthful warrior, was by no
means taken aback when attacked, but made his
dispositions with care and judgment. And having
done so, he charged at the head of a body of
troops, which in valor and equipment was equal
to any in Europe at the time. But the operations
of the English archers were rendered ineffective
by the density of the forest, while the Scottish
spearmen, who had often contended with success
in similar circumstances, made terrible havoc
among their foes, though driven back several
times during the day.
»
Sit * I
268
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
" For tho fight did lant fj-om brealc of day,
Till setting of the 8un."
And the forces on both sides panted from heat
and thirsted for water, the heat being unusu-
ally great, and the water scarce. The Scottish
spearmen returned to the conflict with redoubled
fury and made the forest groan with the work
of destruction. DeVallance and liis brave troops,
though fluslied with recent victorifs on the
continent, were now more than matched by
the prowess and determined resolution of the
Scotch Regent and his followers, " for the battle
went sore against the young man," and the
wood devoured more than the sword," as it did in
an ancient and unnatural conflict, betwixt an
affectionate father and disobedient son. By the
evening of this bea'^tiful day in June, the Eng-
lish were entirely defeated, and when the rays of
the setting sun struggled through the thickets of
the forest, fifteen hundred of them lay dead,
scattered in all directions. No gentle hand to
touch their bleeding bodies! No pitying eye to
shed a tear over them ! But their bones were
left to bleach amid the dismal swamps and
forests of the North, and their bodies became
the prey of wild beasts, to satisfy a m(marcli,
whose desires for conquest were boundless as
the ocean and insatiable as the grave. Few
of the brave men that constituted Do Vallance's
force ever returned back to their own native
land, to feast their eyes on its beautiful green
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
269
fields and smiling pastures ; but their slaughtered
bodies, lying far away in an enemy's country for
many a long day, raised a silent protest against
the ambition of a tyrant, and the accursed work
of war in which he was ever more engaged.
" Man's iiiliumanity to man
Makes countless thousands mourn."
Unmindful of this defeat of his brave general,
Edward assembled a meeting of his parliament at
York, in order to give something like an air of
authority for the prosecution of the murderous
work, in which, although advanced in years, he
was once more determined to engage. Although
the Scotch nobles found enough of excuses to
absent themselves from it, the meeting was
nevertheless largely attended. Fulsome flattery
was largely heaped upon the king by his subser-
vient nobles, liis praises loudly sounded forth from
every mouth, and vengeance once more was vowed
against the Scotch and their refractory Regent.
Business was quickly despatched and festivities of
the most gay and costly character assumed its
place ; and well they miglit, for the English court
now held here was the richest in Europe. Edward
had forgotten by this time his first wife Eleanora,
whose piety and devotion to his person saved his
life in Palestine, when she sucked the poison with
her own mouth from the wound inflicted on his
own person by a fanatical Mahometan. And for
state purposes he had taken to himself as a second
wife Marga et, the sister of the French king
270
LtFK or Sin )VILUAM WALLACE.
I
''■ >
♦ H
" Pluli}) t]»o Fair." And "that she raijjjht forget
her own country and father's liouse," everything
was done to satisfy the tastes of tliis b(Muitifiil and
aoeoniplislied woman. CJaiety and pU^isure of
every description were aUowed to run their riot.
Balls, tournaments and niascpUM'ades were of
daily t)ecurrenee, and in which the king heartily
joined. For the time l)eing he forgot that the
da\ s of youthful pleasure were gone by, and the
season of old age was not far oHl But still all was
a mere outward show, to gratify the tastes of his
gav antl youthful spouse. For the demon of war
still lurked in his bosom, and revenge on the
Scots for driving his myrmidons out of their
country, was all the while u]>])ermost in his
thoughts. The parlianuMit at York soon broke
up, and dancing and revelry with all their lively
concomitants were forthwith forgotten for the
tented lield and all the bitter realities of war.
Edward resolved to loose no time, and commanded
his army to rendezvous at Roxburgh on the twenty-
fourth of June, in order that he might alTord the
Scotch nobles the last opportunity of joining his
standard, and shewing their loyalty to him as
their sovereign lord. He himself, like another
pious saint, performed a pilgrimage to the shrine
of St. John of Beverly, then in high repute over
all the North of England, and as the favor of the
Saint was procured, he doubtless assured himself
that his expedition into Scotland would be crowned
with success. For with all bis cruelty and per-
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALIACH.
m
the
fuly, (lie mind of Edward wa.s largely ombucd with
religions leeliiigs, in which, alas ! ignorance and
superstition lield a prominent place. Th(i stan-
dard of the same Saint, had been carried before
the army into Scotland in the foi-mer war, con-
ducted by himself and which he considered
Buccessl'ul, when cruelty and bloodshed w(3re
everywhere the order of the day ; and to encourage
biH troo|)s and excite his own religious feelings, he
resolved to a(lo])t the same course on this occasion
also. 'JM»e ])ilgrimage terminated and the blessing
of the Saint invoked, Edward was prepared once
more lor the executiim of his ambitious ))rojects.
And having committed the sacred standard of St.
John ol' IJeverly to the charge of Anthony Beck,
"the lighting IJishopof Durham," he became con-
fident that success would attend his labors.
Anthony l)efore this had been engaged in many
a tough and hard fight across the borders, and had
been ignominiously driven from the bishopric of
Glasgow with all his dependents. But he was
once more resolved to assume the sword under
the shadow^ of the holy cross, both the protection
of his own Saint, and amply avenge himself on
Wallace and the rest of his Northern foes. Strange
things have been done in the name of religion in
the ])ast, as well as at the present day ! When he
marched into Scotland, Edward had great reason to
feel proud of his position, for he headed an army
which, in the number of its men and the splendor
of its equipment, had few to equal it before this
I !■
1 !r
272
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
anywhere. It was composed of seven thousand
horse, three of which were called " equi cooperti,"
because they were completely clothed in iron
coverings. The other four thousand were lighter
cavalry, hut a more splendid body of men and
horses were hardly to be found. At the first, the
infantry consisted of eighty thousand foot, chiefly
Welsh and Irish, but this body, powerful as it
was, was soon strengthened by a large reinforce-
ment from Gascony in France. And now the
whole of this formidable force was ushered into
the midst of a country, whose only crime consisted
in this, that its inhabitants had disputed a tyrant's
right to deprive them of their freedom, and to
assume a crown to which he was unable to
shew the slightest title.
" By the lifflitning'H dciidly flash,
Would its foes hud been consumed !
Or, amidst the oartliquuke's crash
Suddenly, alive, cutomb'd !"
CHAPTER XV.
Edward met with difficulties when he marched into Scot-
hmd. No))lo8 refused to proceed beyond lioxburgh till
the Great Charter and others were ratified. The king
promised to do so if victorious. Proceeded North to
Kirkliston, and found the countiy deserted. Encamped
here, and waited for his fleet from the South laden with
provisions for the army. Kept back a whole month by
contrary winds. Famine and mutiny appeai-ed in the
camp. Welsh soldiers while drunk and disorderly
broivC into the English portion of it. Put to death a
number of priests. The tumult quelled by Edward.
The movements of the Scotch forces unknown to him.
Wallace resolved not to tight but to harass the enemy.
Edward on r.cccunt of the scarcity of provisions
ordered a retreat. Informed by the earls of Dunbar
and Angus of the whereabouts of the Scotch army.
Eesolved to proceed with his whole force and ort'er
them battle. On the night previous encampd on a
lonely moor near Linlithgow. The king slept on the
ground, and was accident ly wounded by his horse.
Said mass early next morning with the bishop of Dur-
ham. The country everj'where covered with a thick
fog, retarding operations. Proceeded to tho scene of
conflict early in the morning. When the fog had dis-
appeared, beheld the Scots preparing for the conflict.
Betrayed and unable to retreat. The nobles divided
among themselves, and jealous of Wallace. He put no
confldence in his cavalry. Commanded by the earl of
Badenoch, and composed mostly of the nobility. His
infantry few when comj)iired A\ith the English. But
equal to any of the same number for lieroic daring.
Encouraged such for llio conflict.
S
(i
274
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
Although Edward had taken the field at the
head of a splendid army, difficulties came across
his path which he little expected. He had
not ratified in person, -in his own dominions,
the "Great Charter," or the "Charter of the
Forests ;" and as the nobles had no faith in his
promises, which he had often broken before when
it suited his selfish purposes, they refused to
advance a step from Roxburgh, till he had done
so. The monarch was filled with wrath when such
an announcement was made, but he had the policy
to dissemble his resentment; and, bringing for-
ward the Bishop of Durham as a go-between, he
solemnly swore on the soul of his royal master,
if he should happen to return victorious their
requests would be fully granted. The difficulty
being removed by this wary policy, the splendid
English army was once more in motion. Proceed-
ing slowly through Berwickshire and the Lothians
it advanced as far as Kirkliston, a small town
between Edinburgh and Linlithgow. Here it
encamped, and waited the arrival of a large fleet
in the Frith of Forth laden with provisions, lest
it should be reduced to terrible straits on account
of the want of such, as often happeijed to be the
case before, when invasions of Scotland by the
English took place. Hitherto the army met with
no opposition from the Scots ; for it was the policy
of the Regent to conceal himself and faithful
adherents, from the invading foes, to watch a
chance when a strolling party of then was sepa-
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
275
a
rated from the main body, and to cut them to pieces.
And this Fabian system of warfare would have
been completely successful, but for the jealousy
and treachery of some of the Scottish nobles, as
we shall afterwards find. In regard to the coun-
try through which the army passed, although pre-
viously regarded as the most fertile part of Scot-
land, — and everything in the beautiful month of
June ought to have been fair and delightful. — all
was now bare and desolate. The houses of the
inha])itants were empt}^ The green crops cut
down and carried away. The iarm steadings heaps
of blackened ruins ; and the straw and provender
of the former year that had becTi preserved had
been collected together and committed to the
flames. No cattle were seen browsing in the
fields; no slicop traversing the beautiful greeu
mountains that often >skirted their path, as they
proceeded on their way to finish the work of
destruction they had begun. The inhabitants
drove them before them as they fled at the ap-
proach of the eiiemy in terror, and left the towns,
villages and rural districts empty and ruined, —
a sad proof of the effects produced by unrestrained
ambition, and of the accursed influences of war.
"Let there be li^lit! Huid God, and there was light!
Let ihcj'e he blood, nay men ! and there's a sea I
The fiat of this spoiled child of the night,
(For day never saw his merit) could decree
More evil in an hour than thirty bright
Summers could renovate, though they should be
Lovely as those that ripened Eden's fruit,
For war cuts up not only branch but root."
f
t:
ill'
276
LIFE Ot SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
While Edward had prt\ssed forward through a
desert country at the head of so formidahle an
army, with the w^arlike Bishop of Durliam in
front of it, hearing the standiird of St. John
of ]5everly, and resolving amid his superstitious
selfishness to crush the enemy, and secure a
victory ; Wallace was endeavoring to gather
together the scattered forces of his country,
and to infuse into them the same indomital)le
spirit which had ever actuated hiuiself on all
tr3ing occasions. He was well aware he had a
formidahle host to meet, and many of his friends
whose love for their country appeared to be great
at one time, w^ere now cold. But the devoted
feelings of the people were unchanged, and those,
added to the fertile resources of his own daring
mind, together with his thorough knowledge of
the coimtry, and the species of warfare that would
prove in the end the most destructive to the
English army, and weary Edward out, gave him
hope. He therefore entered upon his w^ork once
more for the defence of his country with all the
sagacity, heroism and patriotism also, with which
he was richly endowed. But with all such feel-
ings the force he was able to gather together only
amounted to about thirty thousand men, and the
Scottish nobles on this occasion presented but a
very sorry appearance with their vassals. Be-
sides Kirkpatrick, Graham and some more of his
faithful co-patriots. Sir John Steward of Bonkj^ll,
brother of the steward of Scotland, with a
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
277
thoiisiiiid splendid arcliorH, joined the Scottish
army. Miicduft', grand uncle to the Earl of Fife,
and John Comyn of Badenoch, also put in an
appearance ; but with regard to the last mentioned
nobleman it would have been far better if he had
stayed at home, or joined the English at once.
The wolf of Badenoch (as he was called by nick-
name) resembled in several ways that savage
animal. Sly, cunning and ferocious, he was false
and a mischief maker to boot; and willing that
the interests of his native country, and jill other
interests besides, should rather be sacrificed, than
that John Comyn, who could trace his connection
with royal blood, should be displaced, or the forces
of Scotland on the trying day, that was looming
in the distance, should be led by another. Aware
that such a feeble force, and so inferior in cavalry,
could ill contend with Edward's army so numerous
and so splendidly equipped— for being a practical
warrior many alterations had been introduced
during his wars in Palestine and his expeditions
to France, and many important inventions had
been adopted, which must have given him great
advantage over his enemies — Wallace resolved
strictly to adhere to his original plan of not
fighting a general battle. But while such was
to be his policy, he was the last man not to
fight when a fit opportunity presented itself.
He resolved to retire slowly before the oppos-
ing superior force, cut off their supplies, attack
their foraging parties, or when a chance presented
J
278
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
It
1
itself fall upon the main body during the dark-
ness of the night, or at some other favorable time,
and compel them to retreat. These were the
weapons by which a wise and brave Roman saved
his country from impending ruin, when invaded
by the greatest general of antiquity ; and Scot-
land would have likewise been preserved on this
occasion from dangers equally great, by the
means that were wisely adopted, but for the
jealousy and false dealings of many of the unpa-
triotic nobles. Edward had waited anxiously for
his fleet, on which so much of the success of his
expedition depended, for a whole month. But still
it was kept back by contrary winds, and his heart
began to be filled with dread and disappointment.
For no supplies could be procured from the neigh-
boring country for his army, and he felt persuaded
he would be forced to retreat back to England
with his whole force. In the meantime three
vessels of the fleet arrived, but the provisions
they carried were not sufficient to supply the
wants of the officers alone ; while at the same
time they brought the disagreeable tidings that
the remainder had not yet passed Berwick, and
had already experienced a terrible gale that had
divided and driven several of them far out into
the deep. A famine now began to threaten the
vast host that lay encamped around tlieir monarch
near the precincts of the poor hamlet, that had
been stricken to the dust before its arrival, and
every living thing destroyed and carried off" for
m
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
279
many miles in every direction. In connection
with this, a fearful mutiny began to manifest
itself in the English camp. It broke out among
the Welsh troops, who had already suflered fear-
fully for want of food, and who as yet were ill
reconciled to the English yoke. In order to soothe
down the excited feelings of these brave Celts,
the English monarch sent them a large present of
wine from his own tent ; and while partaking too
freely of the same, they became wild and furious,
broke into the English quarter of the camp during
the silence of the night, and in a paroxysm of
wrath put eighteen of the priests to the sword.
This was to retaliate for the ill treatment they
had received, but especially to revenge the death
of their own bards who before this had been so
barbarously murdered. The camp became a scene
of the wildest confusion. Many of the Welsh
were slain, and the rest of them threatened in a
body to desert the English and join the Scots.
Edward alone remained cool and collected in the
midst of the tumult that existed everywhere, and
restored peace, while all was commotion around
him : '* Let them do so! (said this intrepid man)
let them join the Scots, but the day will soon
come when I will chastise both !" But while the
king outwardly displayed such composure, for
the purpose of animating his troops and prevent-
ing further disorders, his mind was all the time
racked with care regarding the future. He found
hipiself at the head of a great army, and without
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280
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
supplies in the midst of an enemy's country. To
advance any further into it was sure destruction, in
such destitute circumstances. Mutiny, famine,
disease and death in the camp all stared him in
the face ! And even the element> of nature,in keep-
ing back his fleet and scattering it amid the billows
of the angry ocean, seemed to be contending sorely
against him ! But while the iron will of the
bold Plantagenet was sadly tried, and though he
was compelled to order a retreat against all his
cherished wishes, he was quickly delivered out of
all his difficulties by an occurrence that will reflect
everlasting disgrace on the parties connected with
it. Early in the morning of the day when the
retreat was to commence, two rascals, — although
they wore coronets on their heads, — sneaked into
the English camp and sought an audience with
the Bishop of Durham ; for, as they were connected
with the Scottish army they were afraid to en-
counter the king himself. These were the Earls
of Dunbar and Angus, who informed the bishop,
and all parties concerned, that Wallace and the
Scottish army lay in the " Forest of Falkirk," and
intended to make an attack on the English camp
that very night. The tidings brought joy to
" Antht)ny," who immediately conveyed them to
his sovereign, and who, on receipt of them, was
unable to restrain his feelings. " Thanks be to
God," exclaimed Longshanhs. " Thanks be to
God," he repeated, " who hath hitherto extricated
me from every danger. They shall not need to fol-
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
281
low me. I s> all forthwith go and meet them !" And
he was as good as his word ; for, buckling on his
armor and mounting his superb charger, he rode
from post to post and hurried on the preparations.
And, strange to say, although the news of the
position of the Scotch army was received in the
morning, by three o'clock in the afternoon
Edward's huge world of men and of horses was
in full motion, and on its way to Falkirk. To-
wards nightfall the army reached a lonely moor
in the neighborhood of the town of Linlithgow,
where they rested ; and, according to an English
historian who was an eye-witness of the scene,
" each soldier had to sleep upon the ground, and
use none other pillow than his shield. Each horse-
man had his horse bridled, and armed beside him,
and the horses themselves tasted nothing but cold
iron, champing their steel bits for want of better
fodder." By and by the hum of the living mass
died away amid the stillness of the night, and
nothing was heard amid the camp that was lately
so full of noise and tumult, but the tramp of the
pacing sentinels as they went their rounds. And
the proud Edward himself shared no better than
the meanest of his soldiers ; for he slept on the
ground clad in armor, while a page held the reins
of his favorite and gorgeously caparisoned war-
horse that stood beside him. But he was well a<5-
customed to such exposure, and reposed himself as
soundly as he would have dene in any of his
royal residences, with his stern features relaxed
282
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM VJIIJCE.
and illumined by the sweet rays of the summer
moon. And there did he rest on that lone heath,
with all his angry passions, cruel resolves, and past
terrible memories hushed into silence and buried
in oblivion ; and he would have done so till morn-
ing had not an incident occurred which disturbed
his rest, and caused no little commotion through-
out the camp. On acc^ount of the carelessness of
the page the bridle of the king's horse had been
dropped, and in changing his position he had
severely struck the king on the side. He awak-
ened in the midst of the greatest perturbation, and
his guards were soon on foot and around his person^^
crying out that the enemy was in their midst,
and that their sovereign had been stabbed. The
camp was soon in the wildest uproar, and all stood
to arms and were prepared to fight. But the
alarm was false, and the weary soldiers once more
threw themselves upon the cold ground and were
soon again hushed to repose, forgetful of the past.
As soon as morning broke, Edward, although
smarting from the effect of his wound, insisted on
mounting his charger, and gave orders to the army
to march. They did so with the best spirits under
their respected chiefs, and by the time ^he sun
had begun to streak the eastern horizon »ith his
approaching light, they hastened to defile through
the town of Linlithgow. It was deserted. For,
at the approach of the invading foe, the inhabi-
tants with all the effects they could carry along
with them, had betaken themselves beyond the
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
283
s
reach of their enemies ; and the confused hum of
the living mass of men and of horses, the noise
of drums and the braying of clarions must have
produced a strange effect in the midst of its lonely
streets, — now stripped of its residents. As the
army passed along through the town, says a gra-
phic writer, " it seemed to lengthen into an inter-
minable array, issuing as it came to view, as if
from some interminable source on the verge of the
horizon ; every now and then the glittering array
disappearing in undulating movements again to
shine forth." It was a long time before the cavalry
and infantry were able to reach the western end of
the town, and when they did so a thick fog hung
over the plains and rising eminences in all direc-
tions, concealing everything from their view.
This often happens in Scotland at this season of
the year during the early part of the morning, and,
on the present occasion, was a great obstruction
to Edward's plans; and at the same time increas-
ing his anxiety lest he should be suddenly attacked
by the Scots, who were so thoroughly acquainted
with the country and the immediate neighbor-
hood. In order that his mind might be stayed up
amid the exciting scenes that were near at hand,
he once more resolved to devote himself to several
acts of devotion, as he had previously done at the
commencement of the campaign. And if the
cruel and relentless mind of this man wished to
be so employed, previous to the commencement
of a great battle, and desired to crave the Ibrgive-
284
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
ness of heaven on past misdeeds, bloody memo-
ries must have crowded in upon it. The fate of
the Welsh bards, wantonly murdered amid the
bleak mountains of Wales, must have started up
before his unclouded fancy while lying prostrate
before the sacred altar ! And the blood of the
children and helpless women that flowed like
water down the streets of Berwick, to be carried
away by the ceaseless tide, and buried out of sight
amid the waves of the mighty ocean, must have
sorely confronted him ! Being the feast of St.
Magdalen, the king sent for the Bishop of Dur-
ham, and requested mass to be said. The bishop,
as on former occasions, extolled the king's piety
and thoughtfulness ; assured him that, on the
battle-field, there would be little time for such
religious duties, as every one would be otherwise
employed. Before Edward and the priest how-
ever, had finished their religious task, the fog
began to disappear from the surrounding valleys,
and creeped up towards the heights of the emi-
nences that were near, and the mountains that
stood out in bold relief that were afar off. The
rays of a bright morning's sun were joyfully wel-
comed by the whole English army. For they
scattered the gloom of a night that had been
accompanied with unpleasant remembrances, and
flung themselves across the whole country, chasing
away the last traces of an enemy, that was likely
to prove both dangerous and troublesome to them.
Such a sight enlivened the heart of the king,
a.
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
285
although it soon drew it away from heaven
and all devout contemplations. For the feast of
the Saint, " who washed Christ's feet with her
tears and bathed them with her hair," in token
of gratitude and humility, was soon forgotten, and
left little impression on the proud and ungrateful
heart of one who was incapable of making any
thankful return even to hisMaker,whohad lavishly
bestowed upon him many of the richest bounties
of his providence. When the fog had disappeared,
in looking up to a rising ground at some distance
in the front, the English observed it lined with
lances, and the whole Scotch army apparently
ready to receive them. Not a moment was to be
lost, and Edward resolved to attack and drive
them from the field before the heat of the day
had set in. But when the English columns
marched up the hill nothing was to be seen, for it
only happened to be the advanced guard of the
Scotch army, who immediately retired on the
approach of the enemy, and fell back upon the
main body who were seen in the distance making
arrangements as best they could for the bloody
conflict so near at hand. Wallace, as we stated
already, had no intention at the first of fighting
openly in the field with so small an army as he
had at his command, and so ill provided with
cavalry. But now that the enemy through
treachery had become acquainted with his situa-
tion, and he found it impossible to retreat on so
short a notice, he resolved to do so, however great
286
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
the odds against him, or however little the chance
of success. In the circumstances it was impos-
sible for him to do anything else ; for the English
were too near, and too well provided with cavalry
for him to get beyond their reach. There would
be more glory therefore for his little army to face
the enemy boldly on the battle field, than to
endeavor to attempt an unsatisfactory retreat,
that must become disastrous from the fact that
the English were made acquainted with their
numbers and position, and would follow them in
their retrograde movements, and hang upon them
with deadly effect. The main strength of the
force of this intrepid leader lay in his infantry,
trained under his eye to deeds of self-denial and
heroic bravery, and which at this time was equal
to that of any army in the world. It was his
great object therefore to avail himself of the
nature of the ground, so as to enable them to
receive and resist successfully the attacks of the
English cavalry, and if possible throw them back ;
for he knew how difficult it would be for his
troops, who were but lightly armed, and fought
chiefly with long spears, daggers, and battle-axes,
to meet such a force as was preparing to dash
itself against them with deadly effect. On his
cavalry Wallace put no confidence, as they were
mostly composed of the nobles of the land and
their adherents, who were at best but half hearted
in the cause of liberty, and many of whom hated
him at heart.
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
281
And besides all this " coining events were
casting their shadows before them," which augured
ill already for the Scots. It was not sufficient for
the Scottish nobles to betray the interests of their
country, to reveal the hiding place of the army
with which they were connected, to prevent a
safe retreat, and to bring sure and sudden destruc-
tion on it; but the envy and jealousy of the
same body towards Wallace were brought out
anew and hastened on the destruction of all parties
concerned. Comyn the Lord of Badenoch, de-
manded the leadership of the Scottish army on
account of his near connection with the crown of
Scotland ; and on this account, because it was
refused him, was more inclined to fight the battles
of England than be placed under the control of
one whom he despised on account of his inferior
rank. In order to show how little Wallace was
entitled to such honor, Comyn compared him to
the owl in the fable " which after having borrowed
a feather from every bird, became, like the pea-
cock, vain of his plumage, and wished to lord it
over the other birds ;" " for, continued he, if every
nobleman in the land were to claim his part of
the vassals who followed Wallace's banners, his
own retainers would be few and small." Sir John
Steward of Bonky 11 claimed the leadership on the
ground of his close relationship to the Earl of
Bute ; for he not only headed his own tenantry,
but the men of Bute who were numerous in the
absence of his brother the lord high steward of
288
LIFE Of SIR WILLIAM WALLAUK.
Scotland. Every feoling and action among the
Hcottinh nobles only indicated disunion andstiife,
and to Wallace and others deeply interested in
the ensiling conflict forhoded terribleconseqiiences.
But while he found it impossible to reconcile the
nobles on the one hand, or to retreat on the other,
with any degree of safety, as the enemy was
close at hand; he arranged the lines of his trusty
followers, few but firm, and without any further
delay, drew them up in order of battle. As far
as he was able he wished to encourage them, how-
ever sad the feelings were that agitated his own
bosom, in order that they might prove themselves
invincible, whatever the craven nobles might do ;
for to welcome death rather than the chains of a
tyrant would make their lives ever dear in the
memories of their countrymen, and enable them
" to live above them in eternity."
CHAPTER XVI.
Tho Eti^liwli army, on tlio twonty-fourlli of July, drew up
in battle nvvny in tlirco divirtionH near tho town of
Falkirk. EUward coininaiKlod tlio roHorvoH. Scottiwh
army drew upon tlio o|)poHilo rining ^I'ound. Aniouiilod
to alioui thirty thoUHund. Not, ono-third of that of tho
Eii/jjlinh. Divided inio four cirtlos. Tho Hanjo an tho
SaxoiiH at tho hattlo of Stamford nrid/i;('. IntiuMnodialo
npaeo occupiod by tlio archorH. Oommandod by Sir
John Steward. Tho Karl of Ha<lono('h commanded tho
cavalry. Tho ScottiHh troopH ably addroHHod by VValhu^o
boforo the battle. From the place where l*]dward pitched
Ills camp, he had a H})Iendid view of the Hurroiinding
country. Wished bin army to rest and take refresh-
ment before engaging. Opposed !)y his generals. T'no
Marshal of England and Marl of Hereford led on tho
first division. Jiisho[) JJeck, the second. En/^lish
horsemen (hiHlied themselves against tho Scottish spcir-
men. Several times i*e])ulsod. Comyn, with all tho
Scottish cavalry, retired trom the field without striking
a blow. Contemned, even by tho Knglisli, for so doing.
English horsemen charged the Scottish archers. Unablo
to defend thomsolvos. Killed to a man, with their brave
leader. English archers and slingers galled tho Scottish
circles. Broke them up. Cavalry rushing in slew many
of thom. Wallace retreated. Turned upon tho cavalry
in tho retreat, and put many of thom to tho sword.
Returned after night to tho field of battle. Deeply
bewailed many of his former^ associates now slain.
Especially Sir John Do Graham. Buried during the
night, and a deadly attack made upon the English army
290
LIFE OF STR WILLIAM WALLACE.
Early on the morning of the twenty-fourth of
July, when the fog that had enveloped the whole
of the surrounding country had been chased away
by the gladsome rays of the morning sun, Edward
advanced at the head of his forces to the rising
eminence, that had been previously occupied by
the more advanced guard of the Scottish army.
There he pitched his royal tent, and began to pre-
pare for immediate action. Mass, prayers, the
feast day of the holy Saint, all were forgotten,
and fell revenge boiled up in his unforgiving
breast. The English army was drawn up in three
divisions, and each of them considerably out-
numbered the whole of the Scottish army. The
proud De Lacy,Earl of Lincoln,and De Bohun, Earl
of Hereford, commanded the first division. The
banner of the former was of yellow silk, and that
of the latter deep blue, and of the same materials,
richly adorned with heraldic devices. The " fight-
ing Bishop of Durham," Anthony Beck, proudly
assumed the command of the second division, and
was more gorgeously appareled than any other
of Edward's lords on that portentous day ; for he
had fchirty-nine banners of rich and varied devices
that floated in the breeze above the wood of spears,
marking out the same number of leaders of dis-
tinction that clustered around his standard, and
shewed that he had spared no expense to make
his division the observed of all, on that memorable
day. The King commanded the third, and besides
the royal standard, there waved, as a matter of
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
291
and
Itber
>r he
ices
jears,
dis-
and
lake
-able
[sides
ler of
course, the banner of St. John of Beverly, for,
nolens volens, the ghost of the pious Saint must
give his sanction to the work of slaughter, from
which his righteous soul, had he been alive, would
have at once recoiled. Besides those, there was
the standard of St. George, the patriot saint of
England, and at some distance from it waved the
banners of St. Edmund, the pious prince of East
Anglia, murdered by the Danes, and of Edward
the Confessor, that poor monkish king, whose
whole time liad been engrossed with the visions
of superstition, to the neglect of his wife and
kingdom, and everything else. The Scottish
army, amounting to nearly thirty thousand In-
fantry, was drawn up on the side of a small hill
opposite the English ; and between them there
ran a small brook, and an extensive morass also
intervened. It was commanded by Wallace in
person, and divided into four circles or schiltrons.
This was the disposition the brave Harold, the
last of England's Saxon monarchs, used so success-
fully at the battle of Stamford Bridge, when his
troops dashed furiously upon the Norwegian horse-
men and glittering spearmen ; and although the
royal banner of their country floated over them,
they cleft their circle like a wedge, and left their
king and the greater proportion of his followers
dead on the field. Between the circles the inter-
mediate space was occupied by the Scottish archers,
chiefly from the forests of Ettrick and Selkirk,
and commanded by Sir John Stewart of Bonkyll,
I
If
If H
!:i.
in'
.41 '
292
IIFR OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
the brother oi the high stev/ard of Scothiud.
Although Steward wan opi-osed to Walhice, and
contended aU)ng with Coniyn Tor the leadership
or the Scottish army, he was altogether a dillerent
person from his opponent. IJrave and patriotic,
lie was deadly opposed to Edward, and deeply
interested in the liberty of his country, and pre-
pared to contend unto the death lor the main-
tenance of the same. After the dispositions were
made of the infantry, the cavalry under the
connnand of the lord of Jiadenoch — a thousand
strong, and mostly composed of the aristocracy of
Scotland — took up their ])osition in the rear of all,
and at the foot of the hill. When these arrange-
ments were made, Wallace, as he was wont,
addressed his army in one of those stirring
apeeclies ttiat found its way to the heart of every
faithful adherent of the cause in which he was so
ardently engaged. " lie reminded his soldiers of
the great deeds they had often accomplished,
and how when but few and poorly equipped, they
had slaughtered and put to tlight great hosts of
their enemies. And although comparatively small
ill number at this time, when contrasted with the
English that swarmed like grasslioppers on the
other side of the valley, yet the God of Battles
whom he trusted was on their side, could vanquish
by few as well as by many. lie reminded them
still further of the honor of their country, which
had been so often betrayed by a base nobility
and trampled under the feet of a tyrant who had
LIFK OF Sm WILLIAM WALLACE.
293
them
rliich
pility
had
used every means to dojjjrnde and erase it from the
rank of nations — altliouji^li its brave inhabitants
in earlier days had hurled back the k'giouH of
Rome, the eonquerors of the worhl, and lie trusted
they tbemsidves would ac(|uire like honor in
driving back the troops of the cruel Plantagenet,
who so perse veringly wished to enslave and
degrade them. The liberty of their country he
assured them hung at this monuuit doubtfully in
the balance. They alone stood to maintain it in
whole, whether in life or in death, and now that
they had strongly drawn the sword for freedom,
** freenum they would stand, or freemen they would
fall ;" and then, although with the terrible realities
of a bloody contlict before him, and principally
for the purpose of throwing new life and energy
into his brave soldiers, he assumed atone of mirth
and pleasantry, as he was wont to do, and told
them," he had brought them to the ring, and it
was for them now to dance," While Edward
remained in his royal tent scanning the spot
where the Scottish army had taken its position,
and the dispositions they had made, ho hesitated
for some time to begin the attack ; and in the
meantime all clouds and vapors had disappeared
from the valh^y of the Carrou, and the whole of
the surrounding country, and the sun shojsie forth
in all the brightness of a mid-summer nun'uing.
No finer prospect in Palestine, or anywhere else
ever presented itself to the eye of the English
monarch, than now appeared to him from the spot
in
urKOf'Ufn rrn.r.tAM rtAKtAVK.
thirty milos i\\\\\ \\|>\vin«ls of a tMunUn oon(nlnin|j^
PtMUOor {\\o Inohost iwounhnns. tho rirltoMt vullovp,
rt\i<i ono of ihiMu wntoroii In I ho linoHt rivoi* in
iSiH>th\ihl. uow \\\\ Mvi'\v\wy\ oul n( hin loot. Uonlo-
mond j\iul Uonloili, Iwool' llu^ highoHt iuo\inli\inB
of tho t^vinn|>itu\ chuin, h(ul thrown olV Ihoir
thioK i\\\\\ wmIovv ooviMinji', jnul novo booii phnlling
in tho lnn*lv!\\>o iVoni ivlnv. Tho wators of I ho
silvorv Kv>rth \hn\vvil in <ho v^tvoiuninyr hoivniM of
tho snn. !\ntl hnstonotl on in Ihoir itn|MMnonB
t\mi'80 to tho owan. h^n ing Stirling will» itH glit-
toving towors anil ourling nnu>Uo \\\v M\'Hn\, Tho
th»vor-*M\!\nu^Uoti givon fiohls an\l vmIIovh \V(M*o
,*vov\ \vho\xMo ho soon noj\rat hsnuljnnl TarolV; all.
«U hosiuwkinu n\noh ot' tho hoantv ot* nutnriM\nil
l\lonty Ihnving tVvMU tho hanvl \>r thothul of l*oaoo.
But aUi« !
*' Whilo ovovvthiwg was j)U><v<ing\ *
And only niau NV!i!» vilo ;"
und whilo all nrttniv was sinilos. s|H>ko of ronoo
and displayoil n^arvoUons hoanty whioh n»>thing
but a Divino hand oonhl ^^l\o^^ forth, a Inrgo
|x>rtion of tho ooui\trv was siH>n to ho nuirroil hy
tho hand of ono n\an. wluvso rapacity anil oruolty
woTH'' lv>undloss. and wlu>so wvtMigx^ w^a.s doop aa
boll it.'solt^ And on this a^xxMint his thiH>nging
legions, who v>nght to have Ikhmi industriiuisly
employed in their own land in cultivating tho
soil, and gathering in the ci\>ps, were scattered
over the country like the locusts of Egypt, marring
fJfi'K Ofi Sin Wni.lAM WAI.IuWPl.
2(IA
flHMViMkp (if (1(mI, hihI (li'MlrMvinjf ||h» |mmmm» nud
iiuliiHlrv oT n, poduli*, wIkmii IIi««v lui^lii lorlino to
tlcnMi. niid oNliMininntc, ImiI. iicvrr jmuhiium*, lor
Ur«» lo IImmii wIhmi rdiMjuiMiMl pooifkmI oiififf'ly
\vnrllil«'HH.
" HIimII virlncy oxiill. or in doMfli li»> Inid low,
AVidi liiH Ittich f(i IIh' I1i>|(I, titid IiIm ('(>(>I Io Mm* C'Mv
Ami loMvIll^ ill Iwilllc lli» l)|nl lilt liiM Mflllio,
liiMik |iinn(||y l(» Ikmivimi I'rnin llit> (IomIIi IkwI (h \'\\uu\"
Ah it was Hlill cnrly in llio iiiornln^, nrul nil llin
(liH|KiMilit>nR onri'liilly fiuuIp, Kdwiinl IImhikIiI it
would lio bnttlM' to piicli llioir IcmIm, nod nilow
lln'incn jnid Iioihch tiino lor roHl tirid lol'iPMlniKMit,
holorn lu'^iimiu^i; llio Imlllr. I'lil IIi'ih |»ro|>osn.l
wuR o|)|)oh(mI by liiHolliccrM, who icckoncd itiiiiRnro
Io go to rest in hiicIi tIopc |)roximity to a wntcliriil
nuMiiy. " 'IMmmi wlinl would yon ndv'iH^i?" nskcd
Edwnrd juixioiiMly. " An iinnicdinh' advnnro,"
Muid llioy. *' Tlic Hold mid llio victory hIimII \m
onrH." " In (JodV nnino tlion let it ho ho," rcpliod
tho king, imd hiiving Hiiid thin, tlio |n'ond and
arrogant. tjniKiKhanhH Hprang into tho Huddlcfd'hiH
HnpiMh Arnhian chargor, nnd moved on to tho
eonllict. \\y thJM tinu^ tho innrHlinl of Knghind
Jlnd l*]Mrl of llorcford, who coniniandod the fir.Ht
divJHion, led their Holdic^rH directly agaiiiHt the
enemy; hut wiu'i^ ignornnt of an extensive! moH.s
that Htretehed in front of IIk; ScottiHli army, and
by reju'liing it were obHtrnctfMl in their [)rogreHH,
and eomixdled to make a circuit further to the
Wo»t. Moauwhilu liock, the binhop ol" Durham,
296
LIFE OF i7/e WILLIAM WALLACE.
I
%k
who seemed to have been better acquainted with
the nature of the ground, inclined more towards
the East, and came thundering on at the head of
his brigade. Beck, though as brave as a bishop
could be expected to be, had so much experience
of Wallace already, and had seen so many disas-
ters, the result of precipitancy, requested them to
hold back till the reserve under the King had
moved forward to succor them. In this proposal,
however, he was overruled by a bold baron who
fought under him, Ralph Basset of Drayton, who
boldly told him that " he had better stick to his
mass, and not to teach the nobles of England what
they ought to do in the face of an enemy." Beck,
being check-mated, concealed his resentment, and
allowed the forces to take their own way, " for,"
says he, " we are all soldiers here to-day, and each
is expected to do his duty." So saying, they were
immediately engaged with the first column of the
Scots, whilst the division of the English which
had extricated itself from the morass, commenced
its attack upon the flank of the enemy. Thou-
sands of horsemen at full gallop forthwith dashed
themselves against the impenetrable circles, but
the wood of spears quietly received them. The
ground trembled at the fearful onset, and the
dreadful shout and shriek that arose when the
antagonists met, and the English cavalry rushed
with impetuosity against the long lances that
were extended to receive them, were heard from a
great distance, amid the mild calm of a beautiful
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
297
a
summer morning. At the first clash of spears, the
traitorous Comyn, with his whole body of horse,
amounting to a thousand strong, turned bridle and
rode off the field. He did so without a blow
"given or taken," to use the forcible language of
an English historitin, who happened to be on the
field of battle ; and the baseness of his desertion
seemed to have excited the indignation of the
Engl'sh themselves, who branded him, and all
who followed him as false cowards, to fly at the
first sight of an English force. But the desertion
of Comyn and all his followers was not a thing
that much surprised Wallace, who was well
acquainted with the pride, selfishness and cow-
ardice of the m9,n, who had always been prepared
to sacrifice the good of his country and every-
thing else for his own private purposes. He
therefore looked away from all assistance in this
direction, and encouraged his porcupine circles by
reminding them that the honor and liberty of
their country depended alone upon themselves.
And they knew their duty and performed it right
nobly on that bloody day ; for they stood up as
strong as a castle walled with stone, with their
spears, point over point, so thick and so close
together that it was fearful to behold, and the
array seemed so impenetrable, that it was com-
monly said, " no living man could pierce through
them, though you mustered the bravest in Eng-
land from Berwick to Kent." While the battle
raged and the carnage became frightful, seven
298
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
thousand English horsemen charged the archers
from " Ettrick Forest," only consisting at first ot
a thousand footmen, and who occupied the spaces
betwixt the schiltrons. They were men of noble
stature, and of beautiful symmetry, and designated
by the historians of both countries as the flower
of the Scottish army. But the cavalry that were
to protect them had fled, and it was impossible
that so few, with their armor so light, and their
situation so exposed, could repel thousands of
horsemen, composed of the finest troops of Chris-
tendom. But, like Leonidas, and his three hundred
Spartans at Thermopylae, each archer fought as if
he were a divinity, and each one courted death
as if it were a boon. The mailed horsemen, and
steel-clad knights rushed upon them with all the
fury of a tempest, but it mattered nothing to
them ; for they had made up their mind never to
flee, and defended their bodies with such deter-
mined heroism with their short daggers, as to
extort the wonder and admiration of their very
enemies. The brave foresters lost their leader
near the commencement of the engagement, but
still they resolved to fight it out, or die on the
ensanguined field. They nobly carried out their
purpose, and perished to a man at their post, with
the brave Sir John Steward their commander, and
twenty knights besides, without one ever shewing
the least inclination to turn his back ; and when
Edward, and his officers rode over the battle field
at the close of the contest, they were all struck
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
299
to
id
in
Id
with the tallness and beau^\ of the brave men of
Ettrick, who, in their lives and in their death,
had redeemed their country from the sad disgrace
that had been put upon it, by the cowardice the
nobles had in this, as on former occasions, so
meanly dislayed.
" But strew their ashes to the wind,
"Whose sword or voice have saved mankind —
And are they dead whose glorious name
-,. Lifts them on high ? i i
To live in hearts we leave behind, . r
Is not to die."
The Scottish circles still remained unbroken,
but all external aid had now disappeared, and the
whole force of the English troops were now
directed against them. Edward himself had
moved forward at the head of the reserves, with
the royal standard, and also the standard of his
father floating before him. It was a glorious
emblem of war, never displayed but during a fight ;
formed of red satin bearing a dragon embroidered
in gold streaming on the right of the others,
and indicated destruction to the enemy, and safety
to the weary and wounded among the conquerors.
In the reserve, were the English archers, each of
whom was said to have carried a dozen of IScots in
his girdle ; and such as had frightened Lewellyn
and his brave Welsh followers amid the moun-
tainous retreats of Snowdon into submission, and
filled the glittering phalanxes of Saracens in the
Holy Land with terror and dismay. These
[
Itll
r^^
300
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
columns of archers advanced close to the enemy,
and discharged their shafts in perfect security ; for
the cowardly cavalry that should have scattered
them had already skulked away, and the noble
archers of Ettrick that would have met them on
equal footing, lay bleeding on the field. Their
attack was again and again repeated, and still with
more deadly effect, for the English arrows thick
and fast fell among the circles, doing great execu-
tion in every direction. In addition to this a
large number of slingers were likewise brought
into the field, who showered (by their war-wolfs)
large bodies of stones upon them, covering the
whole ground, and killing great multitudes of
those who ^ere prevented from moving an inch,
from the place assigned them. Against such wea-
pons of attack the Scots had no defence, for their
light armor was ill fitted to resist the strength
of the English bowmen, who, standing at such
a distance as to be beyond the reach of their
spears, sent their cloth-yard arrows with all their
might into the hearts of thousands of their foes,
killing them dead on the spot — without any resist-
ance offered. It was now that the treachery of
Comyn, and the nobles who had fled off the field
with the cavalry, began to be felt, and filled the
heart of the Scottish leader, with anguish and
indignation. Five hundred light cavalry, a few
years afterwards at Bannockburn, broke and
routed a more numerous body of English archers ;
and if so, what a grand opportunity presented
W
t'Bll:
LIFE OF FJR WILLIAM WALLACE.
301
itself for a thousand heavy armed cavalry at Fal-
kirk to perform a like feat, and immortalize them-
selves in the annals of their country ! But, unfor-
tunately, such was not to be ! and therefore the
fatal phalanxes of English bowmen dared, after
every successive charge, to approach nearer and
nearer the doomed ones, and quickly reached the
living walls ! Soon the first, or outer, rank was
struck down and slain by this continued and gall-
ing attack. The second moved forward with the
utmost devotion to fill their place, but suffered the
same fate, till, at last, the heavy armed horse, pour-
ing through the terrible gaps that were made,threw
all into confusion, and carried terror and indiscri-
minate slaughter along with them wherever they
went. Many of Scotland's noblest heroes were
struck down, while marshalling their troops
against the deadly attacks made upon them at this
trying hour, and who, on this account, remained
long firm as a rock, in spite of all odds. Among them
was McDuff, along with many of his vassals from
Fife, and Sir John De Graham, one of Wallace's
most trusty friends and beloved companions. The
quick and experienced eye of Wallace having seen
his circles broken, and disorder and death carried
into their very centre by means of the English
horse, knew that the battle was lost, and nothing
but a well effected retreat could save the remain-
der of his brave troops from utter destruction.
But he retreated in such a manner as sorely to
diappoint Edward, Bishop Beck and all concerned,
302
LIFE OF SIR WILLfAM WALLACE
and to protect and keep together his bleeding
schiltrons from the repented charges botli of the
archers and cavalry that pressed sore on their rear.
In doing so he performed one of his own peculiar
manoeuvres, with wliich his soldiers were well
acquainted. This was to wheel into line, and with
their levelled lances face the Euglish archers
when in full pursuit. Wlien they did this, the
enemy forthwith recoiled and fell back ; for they
were no match for their northern antagonists in
a hand to hand encounter. They therefore felt
the worse of it, for more of them were killed
while pursuing their enemies, than fell on the
field of battle. No sooner was this movement
executed adroitly, than Wallace again presented
himself at the head of the foremost line in order
that- his orders might be heard and carried out
with the utmost alacrity, as well as to furnish an
example of bravery and skill. He called again
to his men to form themselves into circles to
receive Edward's cavalry, who were already dash-
ing on, as he expected they would do, to break
up and destroy his lines, and carry confusion with
them in every direction. The cavalry charge in
this way was fully anticipated — the impene-
trable schiltrons were reformed, and the gallop-
ing squadrons of horsemen thrown back and
broken by troops that were already beaten off the
field, and as it was supposed all but annihilated.
By such a skilful retreat, in which the prompt
sagacity and military genius of the heroic Wallace
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
303
were asbtrikingly displayed us they had ever heen
on any previous occasion, sometimes throwing his
infantry into circles, and anon into extended lines,
he outwitted the warlike Edward, and slew more
of the English, than when contending with them
on the battle field. When his feeble army had
reached the borders of Callendar woods, Wo Mace
began to think he Avould soon be once more safe in
their shady retreats, and accordingly ordered a
deadly charge on the flower of Edward's cavalry.
The Scots were now the assailants, and not the
assailed. Drove back the horsemen heavily armed
to the teeth, and smote the very front ranks of
immense hosts of the enemy that had been pur-
suing them. They killed many of them, and
among the number was Sir Brian De Jay, a natu-
ral brother of the King, upon whom Wallace turned
when anxious in the pursuit of the Scotch, and
felled him to the ground with his own hand.
The English forces did not dare to enter the wood
in pursuit of them, but speedily retreated to the
encampment in Linlithgow Moor, to rest after the
sore toil and excitement of this eventful and
bloody day, and to reap with disappointment the
fruit of a bootless victory. The English historians
give us the most exaggerated accounts of the
numbers slain among the Scotch army, reckoning
them as high as fifty thousand, while three hun-
dred thousand foot were taken prisoners ! This
shows us how difficult it is to arrive at any correct
conclusion on the subject, when the whole Scotch
804
LIFE OF SfR WTLTJAM WAILACF.
army only amounted to tliirty thoiiHaiid. But
alter making full allowance for all exajrgerationH,
and finding that the EngliHh army were afraid to
pursue them, as they repulsed them in their last
attack he fore entering into tln» woods, it would
bo giving a large amount of killed, if wo wore to
allow that it amounted to tea thousand. Even
this last number is conjectural, as no Scottish his-
torian near the time mentioned the number. The
loss of the English was nnich smaller, although
several of their greatest barons were included in
the number slain. After Wallace's troops were
fairly within the shelter of the primeval forest,
that stretched far away into the distance, he halted
his weary troops, and made arrangements for
giving the English a warm reception, provided
they should have the hardihood to follow them.
But Edward was too experienced a warrior to
endeavor to do so ; for his troops had suffered
too severely already in the pursuit to allow them
to enter after a Hying foe into the intricacies of a
dense forest, where they might turn with deadly
eftect upon them, and sorely diminish their num-
bers. After Wallace found that there was no
danger to be apprehended from this quarter, his
thoughts soon reverted to the bloody field of
battle, and to many foithful associates that were
lying there unconscious of the terrible grief that
lacerated his bosom. And he resolved at whatever
cost to visit it, for deep was his love for such, and
unvarying and changeless his fidelity ; and as the
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACK.
805
tioH that Htronfijthenod and houiul tlicm moro
cIoHcly togothor had often hefore this been ce-
mented witli hh)()d on tlic fiehl of Htrife amid the
roar and earnageof hattle, ho thoiifjjht it wouhl be
(h)ing \\\^ dnty to visit them for the hist time in
their }2;ory beds, and bear liimself towards them as
a brother. The brave Stew.u't was found lying
there, Burrounded by liis bohl archers, who re-
solved to die to a man beside their heroie chief
rather than llee ; as their descendants did at bloody
Flodden, when they formed a rin*^ round their
much loved king, and utterly ])eiish(Ml ! The
powerlul McDutr was likewise lying cold and stiff,
with many of his devoted retainers near his body,
who loved him as a master, and followed him into
the field of battle as a chief, sworn to fight for
and defend him, which they faithfully did ! The
appearance of such patriotic men, ami worthy
chiefs, found dead, sacrificed for the good of their
country, could not help but awake feelings of the
deepest emotion in the breast of Wallace, when he
thought of the cowardly conduct of the rest of the
nobles, who had largely occasioned this sad disas-
ter. But the loss of his brave friend. Sir John
De Graham, was more grievous to him than all
others ! And as he hastened to the battle field
during the dead of night, accompanied by his pious
confessor, Father Blair, the brave Roger Kirkpat-
rick and others, he rode devoutly and silently
over the field of strife, as if unwilling to disturb
the repose of those whom a tyrant's rod could no
u
306
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
longer discompose, without uttering a word to mar
the deep solemnity of the i?cene. He was anxious
above all other things to descry the body of
Graham, and in this he wa^ powerfully assisted in
his search by the silvery rays of the moon, that
shed her feeble light over the ensanguined field.
At last he discovered the body of his beloved
friend, by his brilliant armor with which he lay
covered, and that gleamed iiQ the nightly rays of
the luminary that hung suspended in the heavens
as a lamp over their heady. When he found
it he instantly leaped from his charger — un- ;
covered his head and was " bathed in a flood of
tears." He looked long and piteously on the pale
face, as if expecting to be recognized — but to no
purpose ! He then carefully composed as best he
could the disordered condition of his beloved
fellow soldier — raised up the cold body in his
arms, kissed it a thousand times, exclaiming, " alas !
oh alas! my best brother — my true friend w len 1
was hardest tested." Having again laid down all
that remained of the gallant Graham on the cold
ground, his weeping attendants took up the same —
for there was not a dry eye to witness the sight —
and bore him away, whose good light was fought,
and whose battles were all done. To the church-
yard of Falkirk they silently and devoutly carried -
him, and there " they buried him darkly at the
dead of night, by the struggling light of the
moon." In the same place, the dust still rests of
the hero and accomplished warrior, whose rare and
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
SOT
shining virtues every one who knew him acknow-
ledged ; and an ancient stone erected soon after
the engagement still marks the spot where the
good Graham of " truth and hardiment " found
his long home. ' ^
" Slowly and sadly they laid him down,
From the field of his fame, ^i*esh and gory ;
'■ They carved not a line, they raised not a stone,
But they left him alone in his glory."
Wallace, in the midst of his woeful distress,
"when depositing 'n the grave the remains of his
departed friend, is said to have vowed terrible
revenge on the English, whatever it might cost
him, on account of his death, as well as that of
many others of bis brave followers. He accord-
ingly rejoined the army in the wood, and having
called a number of the leaders that were spared,
together, it was forthwith decided to attack the
English camp at dead of night, when the troops
would be sunk in slumber, after their previous
fatigues ; and when they imagined the Scots would
be far away, seeking safety in flight after the
defeat they had sustained. Onward they pro-
ceeded amid the stillness of the night to Linlith-
gow Moor, rushed suddenly into the camp with
Wallace at their head, and carried confusion and
elaughter along with them to the very neighbor-
hood of the royal tent, where the King was sunk
in the deepest repose. It was Wallace's aim to
reach his person, at whatever hazard, and rid the
world for ever of such a tyrant. But before this was
308
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
done, their drowsy foes began to awake, and finding
the Scots upon them fled with the utmost haste to
their arms, and prepared for self-defence. Before
doing so, however, their mysterious assailants had
fled without losing a man, but leaving a vast
number of the English dead behind, and much
terror in the camp besides. Edward now began
to see what litle advantage he was to reap from
the battle of Falkirk ; and although he commenced
an immediate pursuit of his nimble enemies, he
found they had completely surprised his camp in
spite of all his military abilities, and eluded his
grasp.
', r
CHAPTER XVII.
After the the battle Edward pursued the Scots to Stirling.
Pound it burned down and the Scots escaped. Stayed a
fortnight in the Dominican Convent that had been
spared. Healed of the wound inflicted on him before
the battle. Divided his army into foraging parties.
One party sent into Clackmannanshire, and another pro-
ceeded eastward as far as St. Andrew's. Found the
towns and villages everywhere deserted, and the ancient
city itself a heap of ruins. Found it impossible to ad-
vance further North. Proceeded in the direction of
Perth. Also reduced to ashes. The army nearly cut to
pieces by a stratagem of Wallace. Bridge over the Tay
•cut down, and a division of the army destroyed. Find-
ing few provisions in Perth the army forced to retreat
back to Stirling. Here the prospects of the English
more dark than ever, owing to the destitution of provi-
sions and the discontent of the army. Eesolved to pro-
ceed westward. Anxious to occupy Ajrr Castle, the seat
of Bruce, who had remained neutral for some time.
Edward resolved to punish him for his A'^acillating con-
duct. The castle burnt down, and Bruce fled to Gallo-
way. Edward vainly followed him and desolated the
country. Found it desolate and comj^elled to retreat to
, Carlisle. The nobles dissatisfied, and several of them
left with their vassals. Made them grants of lands in a
country not yet conquered. Proceeded to Durham and
met his young queen. Great festivities. Broken up by
the news of a Scotch insurrection. King marched to
crush it. The Scots nowhere seen. Edward proceeded
southward and was joyfully received in London. Wallace
resigned the regency of Scotland,
310
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
m\
% w
After the nightly attack upon the English camp
the rage of Edward knew no bounds, and he made
all necessary arrangements to pursue the enemy,
with the alacrity and perseverance for which he
was so remarkable. He forthwith led his army
to Stirling, for the purpose of securing the pro-
tection of the formidable castle there, as well as
for obtaining supplies for the troops, who began
to be in great want. But witness his disappoint-
ment, when approaching near Stirling, although
only four days after the battle of Falkirk, he
found the place a heap of ruins ! scarcely a build-
ing was left unconsumed, and the fortress itself
was greatly damaged by the hands of Wallace's
fugitive forces. Not only so, but everything
throughout the neighboring country had been de-
stroyed by the inhabitants themselves, rather
than it should fall into the hands of the English ;
for they chose rather to become houseless and flee
to the rocks and mountains around them for pro-
tection, than submit to the iron-handed rule of
one who had so long been the curse of their be-
loved country. Happily for Edward, when he
arrived in Stirling, he found the Dominican Con-
vent had been spared from the general confla-
gration, and here he took up his residence. It was
a spacious stone building, erected through the
piety of the inhabitants for religious purposes,
and never intended as a receptacle for the man
and his troops, who had embrued his hands in the
blood of thousands of their countrymen. But he
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
311
forcibly took possession of it, driving out its pious
inmates who were humble worshippers of the God
who loves peace, and who threatens to scatter
those that delight in war. It was well for Edward
to get within the hallowed precincts of this build-
ing, for now the wound he received from his horse
on the night previous to the battle of Falkirk
gave him much pain. Here he stayed for a fort-
night in quietude and retirement, and through the
skilful treatment of his physician was by that
time able again to take the field at the head of
his army. In the meantime it had been divided
into different parties, and a large division of it
had been sent across the Firth into Clackmannan
and Fife shires, for the purpose of ravaging the
country, plundering the villages, and punishing
the natives for the large share they had taken in
the battle of Falkirk, along withHheir brave and
unfortunate chief. Another division proceeded
eastward as far as the city of St. Andrew's, whi(jh
even at this early period in the history of Scot-
land was a place of considerable importance. For
centuries afterwards it maintained the pre-emin-
ence in commerce and learning it had early ac-
quired, and in the latter capacity, it still occupies
an enviable position. When the English forces
reached the place, they found it, like Stirling, a
heap of ruins. In this respect its inhabitants, as
well as those of the towns and villages every-
where throughout the country, acting upon the
wise instructions of Wallace, burnt down their
312
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
n.H
houses, removed their goods, cattle and provisions
beyond the reach of the enemy ; and having done
so A^allace and others of them narrowly watched
their movements, broke into their camp when
they least expected it, prevented supplies from
reaching them, and cut them ofi'. In these cir-
cumstances Edward began to see the folly of
advancing northward into a country where
everything was burnt up and wasted ; and where
a watchful enemy was ever near at hand for the
purpose of destroying his foraging parties. He
next proceeded towards the fair city of Perth,
where he expected for some time to rest with his
toil-worn troops, after so many days and nights of
anxiety and of suffering. It might have been
fairly presumed he would be allowed to do so, and
that its strong fortifications would have protected
his army from any sudden attack from without ;
while the rich and beautiful country all
around it, blooming in the freshness of mid-
summer, would have been more than sufficient
to supply his army for many weeks to come with
every kind of provisions. But even here he was
once more disappointed ! for, on approaching near
the city he found it reduced to ashes, the country
wasted, and the inhabitants had all disappeared.
Nor was this all ; but while the English forces
were here, they were not only well nigh con-
sumed by famine, but cut to pieces by a bold strat-
agem of Wallace their unwearied and restless
enemy. Watching, when a large di ision of the
LFFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
313
army had left the city for foraging purposes, and
crossed the wooden bridge over the Tay, lie
adopted the same plan, in which he had so com-
pletely succeeded, in annihilating Surrey's army
at Stirling. He hastened with a number of his
faithful followers that had been concealed in the
neighborhood, watched the movements of the divi-
sion, and, approaching the bridge before they
found themselves in circumstances to return from
the country, he cut it down and destroyed the
most of the force — while their friends could only
look on from the other side, without being able to
afford any assistance. Edward could stay no
longer in Perth, where he was so subject to a night
attack, and where no provisions could be obtained
for his army. And yet to proceed northward was
impossible, for the country in many places was
rendered dreary and desolate by the hands of the
people themselves ; and small parties of them
would ever be on their track, determined at any
moment to fall upon their rear and cut them to
pieces. He, therefore, wisely came to the resolu-
tion of collecting his forces together, however great
his disappointment and that of his army, whose
visions respecting plunder and rich supplies of
provisions had been sadly marred ; and, moving
on through the forests of Crieff and Ardoch, he
proceeded in the direction of Stirling. In doing
so he passed over the battle ground of the ancient
Romans, and of the Caledonians, and his position
was nearly similar to that of the former, upwards
3U
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
I
of a thousand years before this period. Agricola,
with his famous legions, had defeated the bold
inhabitants of the North in a great pitched battle ;
and so had the Englisli monarch, by means of his
celebrated cavalry. But, in either case, the
natives of the country scarcely appeared to feel
that they were beaten, but retired before their
victors only with the view of rushing upon their
rear guard or straggling parties with more deadly
aim ; so that both had the fruits of their victories
wrested from them at the moment they expected
to reap great gain, and were ultimately compelled
to retire from a country, after they considered it
all but completely subdued. Edward, with great
mortification, arrived at Stirling with an army
famished, discontented and greatly diminished in
numbers. Here his prospects, if possible, were
darker than before, for a strong spirit of dissatis-
faction began to evince itself among the troops in
a way that could not be mistaken. And if his
fleet did not arrive in a few days, he would be
compelled to retreat without any further delay
from a country he considered subdued, or allow
his army to become a prey to famine and disease.
Crushed with gloomy thoughts he left Stirling,
after strengthening its garrison and promising to
send it additional supplies, which, alas ! never
reached it. From thence he proceeded to the
neighborhood of Queensferry, vainly expecting
the arrival of his fleet with supplies, but in this
again he was disappointed. He therefore ordered
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
315
a retreat to the West, with all convenient speed,
and passing Glasgow, he proceeded through
Clydesdale to Ayr, to take possession of the strong
castle there, that had been for some time in the
hands of the younger Bruce. This powerful baron
had remained neutral for some time, neither join-
ing the party of the patriots, nor that of Edward ;
but waiting in the midst of his vassals, at a dis-
tance from the scene of strife, to see to wliat side
victory would incline. How different throughout
was his conduct,from that of Wallace at this trying
crisis in his country's history ! Edward was not a
man to tolerate such vacillating conduct, and re-
solved to punish Bruce for his apparent lukewarm-
ness in respect to his interests in English affairs. He
therefore marched into the territory of the Chief,
but Bruce was too sagacious to meet the King
face to face whose suspicions he had often excited ;
and therefore, setting fire to the Castle of Ayr,
he betook himself to the wilds of Galloway, where
he would be amongst his own vassals, and allowed
the King to pursue him thither if he dared. The
chagrin and disappointment of Edward were
great when arriving near the strongest fortifica-
tion in the west of Scotland, he found it reduced
to ashes, and the bare walls only remaining to
receive him. In his wrath he foolishly under-
took to follow the recalcitrant chief, with the
whole body of his army, into the wild region to
which he had retreated, in order to apprehend
and punish him for his defection. But the task
T
316
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
was found to be a hopeless one ; for after fifteen
days were spent in laying waste the country, his
army was reduced to a state of starvation, and
Bruce laughed at his attempts either to surprise or
take him. Moody and disappointed, Longshanks
was once more outwitted, and glad to retrace his
steps to Carlisle to avoid insurrection and the
starvation of his whole array. He had already lost
more of his men by disaster and famine than the
Scots had lost at the battle of Falkirk. Booty he
had acquired little, for although he had ravaged
the different counties through which he had
passed, the inhabitants were ahead of him, and
removed from beyond his reach everything that
was fit to be carried away. Moreover, they became
more resolute than ever in defending their liber-
ties, and ignoring the authority of a man, who
had in every way endeavored to rob them of
their freedom. He might, as on former occasions,
enter their country without any ceremony. He
might sanction the burning of their dwellings,
the ravishing of their women, and the murder
of their innocent children ; but they were as firmly
resolved as ever to oppose him, for he might
annihilate, but could never vanquish them. The
fact that they had just now wasted the country
with their own hands, in order to compel Edward
to retreat even after he had achieved a great vic-
tory over them — that they had fled from their
towns, villages, and rural homes, consuming them
with fire rather than that he should find any
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
317
Bhelter or support in the midst of them — was proof
positive how firm was their resolve, to maintain
and transmit to their descendants what had cost
tliem and their fathers so much.
" For body killing tyrants cannot kill
Tho public Houl — tlio herotlitary will
That downwanl as from siro to son it goes ;
By nhif'ting bosomM, moro intonsoly glows;
Its lioir-loom is tho heart, and Hluughterod men,
' Fight fiercer in thoir orphans o'or again."
By the time Edward had reached Carlisle with
his army, all were disgusted and worn out by
their labor in the north. The vigor that animated
the troops when they first entered Scotland was
now gone, and the bright prospects presented
before them there had all proven delusive. Their
cohesive power was entirely broken up, and some
of the barons with all their vassals returned home.
They excused themselves for doing so from the
fact that their men and horses, from a long term
of service, were entirely worn out; but their
principal reason for so doing was owing to the
extraordinary conduct of Edward himself when
at Lockmaben : for, without consulting any of his
nobles, he had granted the Isle of Arran to a
Scotch renegade of the name of Bisset, and the
rest of the estates of the lord high steward of
Scotland.
This was contrary to a solemn compact he had
formed with the nobles before they had under-
taken the expedition into Scotland ; as they were
318
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
!;
•11
solemnly promiHcd the estates of the northern
barons who had sided with Wallace, in case of the
English proving victorious. Tliey were incensed
beyond measure, therefore, when the King had the
meanness to ignore his former promises, and in
order to show contempt for his person, and despise
his authority, the Earls of Hereford and Norfolk,
besides others of lesser note, withdrew from the
camp and returned to their own homes. The
King was annoyed and perplexed at the awkward
position in which he had placed himself, but at-
tempted to cover over his duplicity and arbitrary
doings, by calling a meeting of Parliament at Car-
lisle, where, with a large amount of apparent
liberality, he rewarded the past services of many
of his barons and chief officers in the war with
estates, which he pretended were forfeited in the
rebellion. This, however, was a mere stroke of
policy on the part of the English sovereign, to
allay discontent, and calm down the angry feelings
that were ever apt to manifest themselves against
the actions of this shameful truce-breaker. At the
moment he made those large promises he knew he
did not possess a foot of land in Scotland ; and
Hemingford, the English historian, has well ob-
served — with a considerable degree of waggery,
however — that the large districts assigned by the
King to his English nobles at the time, " were
grants in hope, not in possession." Besides all
these things there were other complaints that the
barons at this time had to prefer against their
il
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
319
King. Although he had shortly before this
Bolernnly pledged himself, in case of obtaining a
victory over the Scots, to ratify the " Great Char-
ter," as well as the " Charter of the Forests," em-
powering every baron to hunt on his own estates
without let or hindrance, he now hesitated to do
so ; for the truth is if Edward had not been a
successful warrior, as well as an astute politician,
his insincerity, deceit and constant evasions would
have made his name contemptible among English
sovereigns, and brought him, like his son and
others of his successors, to an untimely end. The
meeting of the Parliament held at Carlisle was
closed by the King in person, not with a great
amount of satisfaction ; for the grievous complaints
of the nobles who had suffered such heavy losses
in the late unprofitable war in Scotland, could
hardly be expected to be removed with a few
empty promises. After this meeting Edward pro-
ceeded to Durham, with the remains of his army,
and took up his residence within the walls of the
magnificent palace of Bishop Beck, who had safely
returned from his northern campaign. The
bishopric of Durham was then, as well as for many
centuries afterwards, little else than a petty king-
dom, and its bishops owed a mere nominal sub-
jection to the kings of England. They held court;
they coined money ; they raised troops on their
own charges from the vast revenues derivable
from the church lands attached to their See. And
this was the reason why Beck, at the battle of
!
320
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
Falkirk outstripped all the rest of the nobility, in
the richness of his equipage, and the number of
barons that followed his standard. Never had
the fine old city of Durham, witnessed such a rich
display of royal magnificence, priestly pomp, or
aristocratic profusion, as were now seen within
its venerable walls. Edward had been bat recently
married to his second wife, who met him here on
his return from Scotland, and nothing was spared
to make the meeting grand and imposing. During
the whole period of the other Plantagenets who
had preceded him, the English court had never
been so gay, nor did noblemen iind ladies fair, and
even dignitaries of the church, vie so much with
one another in the exhibition of wealth, beauty and
costly magnificence. In the absence of the King,
who was still smarting from the wound he received
from his horse weeks before, Anthony Beck did
the honors of the court. He continued 'to conduct
Edward's youthful and lovely queen into the ban-
queting hall, whose beauty and fascinating man-
ners gained the hearts of all, and presided at
feasts and entertainments that so quickly suc-
ceeded each other ; that the nobles in the midst of
them began to forget their troubles in Scotland,
and the many broken pledges of the King. But
the revelries, sham-fights, and musical entertain-
ments were soon broken up by the extraordinary
tidings that the Scots were once more in arms !
And the nobles began to see that their titles, to
the estates of their neighbors north of the Tweed,
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
321
were in truth " grants in hope," and likely to be
long deferred, for the war with this stubborn race
was as likely to be interminable, as the ambition
of their monarch appeared to be unbounded. True
to his warlike instincts, Edward soon forgot the
pleasures of the court for the tented field, and was
soon in readiness again to march into a country
where his troops would be sure to meet with a
heroic enemy, and many of them doubtless with
an early grave. A great many of the barons and
their vassals that went through the former cam-
paign had returned home, brooded over the boot-
less victory they had obtained at Falkirk, and the
trouble and privations they had undergone, and
w ere not likely to be readily induced again to take
up arms against an enemy, that appeared so reso-
lute even after defeat. With the troops at his
disposal,Edward soon crossed the borders, and with
all his former ardor and determination, proceeded
towards Tynemouth, and from thence to Colding-
ham. But the enemy was nowhere to be seen,
and only wanted to draw him farther north at
this late season of the year, and cut his troops to
pieces. Edward's army, few in number compared
with what it formerly was, could not be induced
to follow the Scots into the inhospitable regions
of the north, where they had endured so many
privations on former occasions. Neither was
Edward himself disposed to do so in the face of
such insuperable difficulties, however greatly mor-
tified he was, and anxious to punish his daring
322
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
foes. Deeming prudence on this occasion, there-
fore, the better part of valor, he returned home-
ward, boiling with rage and vowing soon to be
avenged on his intractable opponents, lie, there-
fore, issued " writs " for the assembling of an
army at Carlisle, on the eve of the day of the
feast of Pentecost ; and while he gave strict orders
to the clergy of the diocese of York, to be punctual
in the payment of the grant of money ojfered to
assist in the subjugation of their neighbors, lie
sent writs to the barons to meet him at the same
place on the day appointed, with all their feudal
strength, to enable him at an early day to march
into Scotland, and put down once more the foes
that were again causing him so much trouble.
Having made all such arrnngements, he turned
his face southward in the direction of his splendid
capital, terribly mortilied at the turn his affairs
had taken ; but resolved never to desist from his
purpose till the country north of the Tweed " was
not only his in hope but his in reality."
l-.h!
11. i
t^
■ " Still arc the Scots determined to oppose,
And treat intruding Edward's friends as foes,
Till the revengeful king in proud array,
Swears to make Scotland bend beneath his sway."
The Kiug's march to London musthav^e cheered
up his moody spirit, for it resembled a triumphal
procession along the whole road. Multitudes of
his subjects in their gayest attire greeted
him everywhere, and bands of minstrels turn-
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
323
ed out of the various towns
to discourse stirring music, to
along
the
way,
glorify the
man who was returning from the slaughter of
his Northern neighbors ; who were guilty of the
unpardonable crime of opposing a tyrant, who
dared to deprive them of their dearest rights.
On approaching London the citizens greeted their
Sovereign ; forgetting all the disasters connected
with his late Northern campaign. And not only
so, but they decreed him a triumphal procession,
and the dilferent corporations vied with each
other in the richness of the display they made on
the occasion. A Pompey, or a Ca)sar, during the
days of Rome's brightest glory, — when returning
from the conquest of the East or West, — would not
have been ashamed of such a display. London
felt honored in the presence of its Sovereign ; for
although he was now considerably advanced in
life, he had spent little of his time hitherto in
it, notwithstanding it was considered the richest
city in Europe at the time. His restless, warlike,
and ambitious spirit induced him to seek glory
abroad, and from the time he had drawn the
sword, when apparently young, against the Sara-
cens, till now, it had rested little. The Welsh,
French, and now the Scots, were the nations with
whom he sought a quarrel, and to crush the one
after the other appeared to be the great object of
his life ; but he only succeeded in subduing the
first. In regard to Wallace, although he had
been able after the battle of Falkirk to achieve a
324
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
u
If
safe retreat for his army — to burn down the towns
and villages ahead of the English, and prevent
them from pursuing him and reaping any benefit
from the victory — yet the lesson he learned from
the defeat was sad and mortifying. lie knew
that owing to it the nobles of Scotland would
seek out reasons for undervaluing his services —
however great they previously were for the libe-
ration of his country, and that they would charge
him with the cause of the recent disaster, that
was purely owing to themselves, in their want of
unity and patriotism on the occasion. Moreover,
he was now convinced that, with the divided state
of feeling that prevailed in Scotland, it would be
impossible to resist the repeated invasions of
Edward. For while the feudal system was stronger
there at the time than in any part of Europe, and
strictly bound the vassals of the country to follow
their chief to the field of battle, on whatever side
he might range himself, it would be impossible
for him to bring an army into the field of any
strength against the English monarch ; and what
was worse, were he to do so, many of the forces
collected might desert his standard, as had been
done on former occasions, and go over with their
chiefs without striking a blow, to the side of the
enemy. In addition to all this, he began to learn
that a powerful faction had been formed among
the nobility, with Comyn and the steward of
Scotland at its head, animated with the keenest
and deepest feelings of malignity against him-
iJ
1-
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
33
which had resolved to be satisfied with nothing
less than with liis utter ruin. The same party
was to bring him to trial for high treason for
wishing to usurp the chief authority in the king-
dom — for disposing of the property of the sub-
jects without the consent of the ''Estates," — and
with other crimes and misdemeanors. Although
the charges were false, Wallace knew they would
be brought forward and supported hy his bitterest
enemies, from whom there would be no appeal ; for
the common people that loved and revered him
had no power whatever in the matter, and could
afford him no support. He therefore resolved to
resign the office of Governor of Scotland, which
he could no longer hold with advantage to the
country, and return to the status of a simple
knight. He had held it hitherto with the great-
est credit to himself, and honor to his country ;
and during the time had increased its com-
merce and the comforts of .its inhabitants.
He had also raised and organized an army
which believed in him, and was ready to follow
him. Had he chosen, the same army would
have raised him to supreme power in spite Cj| the
nobles, who had hated and often insulted him.
But he loved his country too well to be tempted
even with the bauble of a crown that appeared
before him ; and like the great and good George
Washington, when plarsed afterwards in similar
circumstances, he resolved to return to the rank
of a private individual, possessing as he did the
326
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
i
m
same upright and patriotic spirit, and fighting, if
required, to the last, for the liberties of his country.
Accordingly a meeting of the Estates of the
kingdom was called by the Regent, to be held near
the bridge of Stirling, at which he made up his
mind to resign his office, although the circum-
stance was only known to a few of his most
intimate friends. Several of the leading nobles,
among whom were Bruce and Comyn, assembled
there on the occasion, to watch his proceedings ;
as they were afraid he was about to assume regal
power, backed by the influence of many of the
leading clergy throughout the country, and that
of the whole people. But these apprehensions
were without any foundation, for although the
barons appeared with their vassals armed to the
teeth, the Regent was protected by no military
force on the occasion. The herald having an-
nounced that the conference was about to begin,
Wallace in virtue of his office took precedence of
all others, and addressed the meeting in a most
practical and eloquent strain. He told the barons,
and the multitude assembled, that he had assumed
the jp^gency by the consent of the nation, and
'fai
cerfainly not to gratify any private feeling of
his own, but for the defence and protection of
the liberties of his country ; that he believed at
the time that what he had done was acceptable to
the great majority of the inhabitants of it, who
were sick and tired of the oppressions they had
so long endured ; that it had been his great object,
4-i
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
32t
during the time he was in power, to deliver them
from their oppressors, who had endeavored to
hold influence over them so long, and to drive
them out of the country. He further assured
them if he were confident at the moment he
addressed them, that what he had always endea-
vored to do was acceptable to the great majority
of his countrymen, and that his remaining in
office would combine all parties together for this
object, he would not desert his post at this critical
period of his country's history ; but he was sorry
to find out that such was not the case, and that a
strong feeling against him was manifested by a
large portion of the nobles now, as it had ever
been before, and as the forces of the country
when united were but small, when compared with
those of their enemies, who were preparing for
another attack — when divided, they would appear
weak and helpless for the work. Therefore, in
order to remove all barriers from the way, he
would resign his office into the hands of those
from whom it had been received, and retire into
the ranks of a private subject, as he perceived that
his elevation to power did not contribute to the
well-being of his country. And now that he did
so we may state to the credit of this noble man, that
if he was poor, before he was elevated to the rank
of governor of his country, he was equally poor
after he resigned his office. He appropriated
none of the estates of the nobles to his own use
or that of his adherents, (however treasonable
328
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
II !
[I '
'I; !
h
8' 1
if j
many of their acts.) Neither did he alienate any
of the revenues of the crown, which at this period
of the history of the country were great. But the
only possessions he retained were those of the rank
of a simple knight, and his unflinching resolution
to live and die a free man, as his fathers had done
before him. He might become houseless and a
weary wanderer among the forests and mountains
of his native country. His principal dwelling
might be amidst its moors, savage rocks, hidden
dens and caves. But whatever his privations
might be, his interest in it remained for ever the
same, and his love towards it burnt as intensely
in his bosom, as the internal fires that smoulder
beneath our feet, and which will ultimately con-
sume this fair globe which we inhabit. But
however true all this might be ; the resignation
of the office of regent by Wallace, presaged disas-
ters to his country for a long time to come, and if
the light that was in him became darkness, how
great was the darkness," elsewhere. When the
brave Epaminondas, the Theban general, feel vic-
torious at the head of his troops at the battle of
Mantinea, it is said the sun of prosperity, that had
risen with him and shone brightly during his day
upon his country, went down in darkness. And so
it was for many days with Scotland. The resig-
nation of her regent, gathered dark clouds around
her for a long time, and her fate appeared sealed !
Other regents were appointed, but the contest with
England became more feeble every day, the nobles
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
329
more divided, and the country more exhausted.
At last, bleeding and helpless, it sank broken-
hearted and dispirited, and allowed its sworn
enemy to have everything his own way. But it
was not always so to be ; for the contendings of
Wallace, after he had fallen a victim to a false
friend, and his body had been shamefully outraged
by a cruel foe, encouraged another to strike for
liberty, and the boon was obtained, but not till the
countrysuffered unheard of privations, and drained
of the best blood of thousands of its noblest sons.
" On to the battle, on !
' ■' Rest will be sweet anon ;
The slave may yield, may fly,
We conquer, or we die."
CHAPTER XVIII.
■ ■ ■ t' -■• i '■ ..
Obscurity in the history of Wallaco after the regency was
demittcd. Occupied no command afterwards. Never-
theless gave his advice to the parties in power, who
hated him. Comyn and De Soulis appointed governors.
The former made himself popular by contributing his
' means to assist the poorer of his countrymen. Sent
ambassadors to France to procure assistance according
to previous stipulations. Laid siege to Stirling Castle,
took it, and appointed Sir William 01ij)hant governor
of the same. Edward again invaded Scotland. Ad-
vanced as far as Dumfries, and took Caerlavei-ock
Castle. Eetired into Galloway, and afterwards with-
drew his troops to the South, without accomplishing
much. A truce granted the Scots at the intercession of
the Poi)e and the King of France. During the same
Wallace paid a visit to France. Was welcomed joyfully
at the French Coiu't. When reaching the shores of
France his vessel assailed by the *' Eed Rover." A ter-
rible conflict ensued. Hand to hand fight between
Langueville the pirate and Wallace the patriot. The
struggle long and doubtful. Wallace's superior strength
and endurance enabled him to prevail. Took Langue-
ville into his service. Procured pardon for him from
his Sovereign. Had great offers made to remain in
France. Rejected the same, and returned back to his
own country. Took Langueville along with him, Avho
became a faithful adherent to the cause of liberty.
When Wallace was slain, sided with Bruce in his great
struggle for the crown, and a large tract of land near
Perth assigned him. The family of Charteris descended
from him.
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
331
There is a vast obscurity in the history of Wal-
lace after he demitted the Regency, and returned
to the station of a private knight. For six long
years does this obscurity hang over this remark-
able man. Neitjier is there any authentic record
to shew that during the whole of this dark and
eventful period in the history of his country, he
occupied even a secondary command in the wars
with the English. Still there are strong reasons
for believing that, although he was disgusted with
the selfishness and pride of the nobles, and felt
convinced that their vacillating and divided action
would ultimately prove the ruin of their country,
the fires of patriotism burned as brightly as ever
in his honest breast ; and many of the advantages
obtained over the English after he retired from
office were mainly to be ascribed to his counsel, or
the military system he had adopted on former
occasions. For we are assured, on the authority
of Fordoun, that when he relapsed into the state
of a private baron, his interest was deep as ever
in the well-being of his country ; and overlooking
everything of a personal and selfish nature he never
hesitated to give his experience and advice when
required to do so. These were tendered to the
parties that he and the most patriotic of his fol-
lowers considered as his greatest enemies, whose
meanness and jealousy had compelled him to retire
from an office which, of all others, he was best
fitted to fill. Upon the retirement of Wallace
from the regency, the party of the Scottish nobles
332
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
I
, I
<
who resolved to continue the struggle against the
English, resolved to fill up the oflice. Strange to
say, the choice fell on John Comyn, who had
basely acted the part of a traitor at the battle of
Falkirk, and John De Soulis was elected with him
a joint governor of the kingdom. Some time
after, Robert Bruce, the Earl of Carrick, and the
Bishop of St. Andrews', in order to give strength
and coherence to the whole thing, were also asso-
ciated with them. It has been truly said by an
eminent jurist and historian, that Robert Bruce
and John Comyn, the bitterest enemies of each
other, and both disappointed competitors for the
Scottish crown, when John Baliol gained the
prize, acting as brother guardians in the name of
that person, is a historical enigma of difficult solu-
tion ! Yet, so it was, and their principal bond of
union appears to have been their ardent desire to
destroy the power of Wallace. But the coalition
soon fell to pieces, and Bruce made his peace
shortly after this with the English monarch.
Comyn therefore became, to all intents and pur-
poses, the governor of the kinr ^'>m, and for some
time a gleam of popularity- to have shone
upon him. And this is f .accounted for, from
the fact that the importaii . office now held by this
designing and unprincipled man, whose character
by all historians who have written on the subject
is delineated in the worst colors, opened up to his
ambition the brightest prospects, even including
the crown of Scotland itself. And such being the
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
333
s
Ir
It
g
e
case, he used every means in his power, whether
lawful or not, to gain the affections of the people;
and in resisting the invasions of Edward, adopted
the line of policy that had been pursued by his
great predecessor. Being the richest man in
Scotland, in his day, he gained popularity by
freely contributing his moans to assist the people
in paying the heavy taxes, that were put upon
them to support the government, which they found
themselves unable to do, owing to the cruel inva-
sions of the country, and the desolating influences
connected with the same. And not only did he do
so from his own private resources, but made urgent
appeals to France, the ancient ally of Scotland,
to come to its succor at this trying period in its
history. He besought the help of the generous
French people in troops, and in military supplies,
which they were bound to grant, according to the
treaty that had been made previously with them.
But as the monarch of that country was about to
conclude a treaty with Edward, the interests of
Scotland were sadly overlooked, and the urgent
applications of the Regent were only answered by
evasive promises. Annoyed at the conduct of
France in the matter, he sent ambassadors to that
country to urge the fulfilment of the compact ;
and in case of their not being able to succeed in
* their mission, they were ordered to proceed to
' Rome, and lay their case before the Pope. In
the meantime, active measures were adopted to
repossess the castles, that had recently fallen into
334
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
the hands of the English ; for besides other con-
siderations that induced the Regent so to act, the
continual presence and watchfulness of Wallace,
overawed him into compliance with the strong
wishes of the people in this respect. A numerous
army was raised accordingly, and siege laid to
Stirling castle, that had fallen into the King of
Enghmd's hands, and been repairfl after the
battle of Falkirk. After Edward had retired to
the South he left a garrison here, with a promise
to send them succor as quickly as possible. But
this promise he was unable to fulfil, although he
was well aware of the loss he would sustain pro-
vided this strength fell into the hands of the
enemy. But he had broken the pledges solemnly
made to his nobles beforehand, to ratify the
Charters to which we have several times before
referred. And as might have been expected they
became sullen and untractable; and although
Edward proceeded as far as Berwick, with an
army for the purpose of relieving the beleaguered
garrison at Stirling, the nobles positively refused
to proceed further north with their vassals.
Meantime the garrison was hardly pressed, and
messages were despatched to Edward acquainting
him with the fact that they were greatly in want
of provisions, and could not stand out much longer,
however brave and obstinate their defence might
be. The King was neither able to send them
supplies, nor raise the siege, and as the last resort
advised them to surrender. They did so, and the
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
335
7
castle was put into the hands of Sir William
Oliphant, who was well deserving the trust
reposed in him, as will afterwards appear from
the gallant siege he sustained so successfully
against terrible odds. . -
•■ .; - , " The love of liberty with life is given,
And life itself the inferior gift of heaven."
While engaged in the siege of Stirling, the
Scottish Regent and DeSoulis, his coadjutor, sent
a letter to Edward, acquainting him with the fact
that the King of the French had informed them
of the truce that had been formed with him, to
which they were willing to adhere, provided he
did the same. This truce included in its stipula-
tions the release of Baliol the King of Scotland,
who had been closely confined as a prisoner in the
Tower of London, since the battle of Dunbar, with
several of the nobles of Scotland. To this letter,
however, Edward did not even deign to send an
answer, which so exasperated the Scots, that they
resolved, whatever might be the consequence, to
become master of that celebrated stronghold.
They succeeded in their attempt, but the thing so
terribly exasperated Edward, that he became de-
termined once more to punish the Scots for their
daring conduct. To secure the lost affections of
his nobility he ratified the Charter of the Forests ;
and having done so summoned them, and all who
owed him military service, from Ireland, Wales,
Bretagne and elsewhere, to meet him at Carlisle
on the first day of July. And if we are to believe
336
LIFK OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
the historical bard of Exeter, who accompanied
the expedition, and who ntates, " tliat the good
King with his household set forward against the
Scots, not in coats or surconts, but on costly char-
gers and armed securely," his army must have been
great, splendidly ecpiipped, and perhaps little in-
ferior to the one he commanded at the battle of
Falkirk.
" Still nro tlio Scots dotorniiiiod to oppose
And tro.'U inlrudin^ lOdwai'd'H iVioiulH uh foes;
Till the rcvon^ol'ul kiii^, in proud army,
SwcMjrs to nniko Soothmd bond bonoutli his sway."
Having entered into Scotland, Edwjird pro-
ceeded through the county of Dumfries, and
for some time met with no opposing foe ; for
the Scots, profiting by the previous policy of
Wallace, determined to avoid a general engage-
ment, to watch the movements of the enemy,
liarass them in every possible way, and cut olT
their supplies. Approaching within some distance
of the town of Dumfries, Edward turned his
forces aside to besiege and take the < Castle of
(■aerlaverock, belonging to Sir Herbert Maxwell,
a powerful border chief, who had often inllicted
severe punishment on detached parties of the
English. The castle itself was remarkably strong.
It wa« in the shape of a shield, with three sides
all round and a tower at each angle. It was
always prepared for a defence with men, engines
and provisions ; while its walls were strong and
its ditches wide and deep filled at all times with
i:i
HI
LIFE OF Sin WILLIAM WALLACF.
337
r
le
r
Id
Ih
abiimlanco of Wiitcr. No cjihUo in Scotliuid was
moro ])('autifiilly witiiatod, for " Maxweltown's
bracH were bonny," tbat Hnrronndod it even in the
(layHof Kdward. Towards tlio west it commandod
an extensive prospect ol* tbo Irish sea, which with
its dark bhie, hazy surface terminated the view.
Far to the nortli a rii^li and fertile country stretched
awjiy in the distance, abounding in pc^ice and
])h'nty ; while the hilly slopes and tin; de(;p
defiles of woods and marshes extending towai'ds the
south, added variety and beauty to the pros|)ect,
and called forth glowing (h^scriptions from s(wei-al of
the English historians of tin; time. Kd ward's whole
force was arrested here a.t th(^ outset, by the
heroic defence and determined resobition of tlio
garrison, which was made uj) of only sixty men.
They put multitudes of the J^]nglish to death, and
it was only when they were overwludmed by a
superior force by sea and land, assisted by many
warlike engines, that they were com])elled to suc-
cumb, when their heroic chief and nniny of his
stannch adherents were cruelly put to death.
After Caerlaverock Castle had fallen, Edward
advanced with his whole force into Galloway.
Here the Bishop of CJ alio way vainly endeavored
to mediate a peace, and Comyn and his brother-in-
law, the Earl of IJuchan, repaired to Edward's
carap for the same purpose, but failed in the
attempt. And after upbraiding the King for
detaining Baliol so long a captive, and seques-
trating so many of the estates of the nobles,
w
\m
338
LIFH OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
^
in
they left in disgust, — determined to fight on to
the last. By this time the season of the year
was far advanced, and after the King had spent
months in a campaign, which ended in no
practical result, — so far as the subjugation of the
country was concerned, — he withdrew his troops
once more to the South ; and out of deference to the
Pope and to the king of France granted a truce
to the Scots. The truce extended from Hallowmas
to Whit Sunday, and while Scotland enjoyed a
short period of repose, Wallace thought proper to
pay a visit to France, which had been long the
tried friend and ally of liis beloved country. He set
sail with a few of his trusty friends some time
during the winter or autumn of thirteen iiundred.
His great object doubtless was to represent to
the French monarch the true state of the country,
and to urge upon him the necessity (according
to the provisions of the treaty formed betwixt the
two countries) of sending more material assistance
than he had yet done. The voyage of Wallace
and his companions was pleasant and prosperous,
until they nearly reached the shores of France.
And it was scarcely possible it could be otherwise,
or that the vessel could sink, which carried the
fortunes of one, whose heroic deeds had already
filled the whole of Europe with wonder and aston-
ishment. For if Providence had raised him up
to light successfully against a foe, who was con-
sidered at the time the greatest monarch and
warrior of his age, the same All-wise power must
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
339
the
ady
on-
up
con-
and
nust
call him back to his native hind, to seal with his
blood the truth of those principles he had ever
maintained, and to leave behind him a more glo-
rious legacy to his country than all the victories
he had ever gained. Tiie death of the heroic
Leonidas, the king of ancient Sparta, in the Straits
of Thermopyhc, bore down the springtide of
eastern oppression ; and that of our hero was to be
possessed of power equally great. It was to make
men feel in modernjas well as in ancient times, how
important liberty is, and how that life without it
is worthless and vain.
" By opprcsHion's woes and pains!
By your sons in ncrvile chains!
Wo will drain our doarost veins 1
But they shall, thoy shall bo t'roo ! "
On reaching the coast of France, Wallace's craft
was attacked by a notorious pirate of the name of
Langueville. He was a French nobleman of high
connection, and at one time in great favor with
the King. But having murdered a knight in his
presence in a lit of passion, he was banished from
the kingdom, and his estates forfeited. Galled
to desperation by such treatment, he turned his
back on the gay court and refined society of the
proud Parisian capital to which he had been
accustomed. And as every avenue to royal cle-
mency and honor seemed to be shut against him,
he fitted out a craft of large dimensions, " The
Red Rover," which soon became the terror of the
ocean. Nor was he the only pirate who at this
340
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
early period began to infest the seas, for many
such swarmed everywhere near to the shores of
Asia and Europe, and preyed on the commerce of
the nations of the earth.
" O'er tho glud waters of the darlc blue sea,
Their thoughts as bound Iohb as their souIh were free,
Far as tho breeze could bear, the billow's foam,
Surveyed their emj)ire, and beheld their home !"
The Robin Hoods of Enghand, and the Rob
Roys of Scothind, were not more unsparing in
their exactions by hind, than were these self-con-
stituted monarchs of the boundless deep ; and
whenever a vessel laden with a rich cargo hove in
sight, they were ready to risk their lives in the
struggle to secure it. And when they mastered
or sank the hapless craft, they proceeded to divide
the spoil — when they gamed, caroused and whet-
ted their brands, and manned and repaired their
vessel anew, till another object gladdened their
vision, as it appeared like a speck on the far dis-
tant billows — which generally shared the same
fiite as its predecessors. The Red Rover now for
once met her match in the vessel that wafted
our hero to the shores of France ; for the ships
built in Scotland at this time were famed over
the whole of Europe for swiftness and durability.
It was manned, too, with a number of Wallace's
firm friends and admirers — " men possessed of the
heart of oak and triple brass " — and some of them
amongst the best swordsmen in Europe. When
the sails were unfurled, the decks cleared,and the
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
341
In
vessels approaclied close to one (inotlier, the con-
flict became wild and furious. The wanderers of
the trackless way, judging at first that the crew
on board of the vessel they deemed as their own,
was made up of seafaring men never accustomed '
to battle, wooed the light,-maddened at the dangers
that thickened around them, — and dealt their
blows at all with whom thev came in contact, with
an unsparing hand. But they found they had to
do with heroes, and not with simple-minded
sailors ; for from being the assailed, Wallace's
vessel soon became the assailant, and its crew
dealt forth deadly blows among the wild corsairs.
At last they succeeded in boarding the Red Rover,
and a terrible hand to hand fight ensued betwixt
Wallace the patriot, and Langueville the pirate.
For a long time the contest was doubtful, as in
valor and the expert use of the sword, it would
have been difficult to find two combatants better
matched in Europe. But in bodily strength and
endurance, Wallace was the superior of the two^
and after displaying a large amount of personal
courage and gallantry, Langueville surrendered
himself to his opponent at discretion. Wallace
was struck with the truly heroic conduct of the
man, learned his whole history, and took him
along with him to Scotland, having previously
procured his pardon from the hands of his
sovereign. When Wallace reached the proud
capital of France, he received a hearty welcome
from all parties, including the King, with his gay
342
LtFK OF sm WUJJAM WAtJ^ACR.
i
J
and acooinplisluHl courtiers. Thoy looked with
delightl'ul satislMction (n\ tlio inuii who alone of
nil others had ballled the sehemes of proud
Enf2;lish Kdward, and wiiose deeds of valor had
resounded over th(» wiiok; ol' Kun)pe. One of the
reasons why Wallace paid a visit to France in tlie
present distracted state of the country, was to
meet Haliol, his exiled sovereign, who luul been
liberated IVoni prison at the interest ol* tlu> Po])e
and the Frencli nionarch, on condition that he
would no longer return to Scotland, nor lay claim
to the crown of that country. " For 1 will send
him to the Pope," said Fdward, "as a false seducer
of the people, and a ])erjured man." The king of
France gave the exiled monarch thecftstleofCialliard
for a residence, w'hcre for some time he enjoyed,
like James the Second of FiUgland, the shadow of
rovaltv. But after the treaty of i)eace was con-
«, %' »■ 1.
eluded between France and England, the appen-
dages of royalty were taken from him, and he
died neglected and forgotten in a foreign land^
a sacrilice to blighted and)ition.
" Fame is ai\ ill you may with oaso obtain,
A sad oppressor to be borne with pain."
Wallace's visit to his exiled sovereign was
doubtless to console him in the midst of his mis-
fortunes, and to obtain release from all obliga-
tions to him, as his lawful prince for whom he had
fought vso long. Baliol had virtually signed
away all right to the kingdom of Scotland,
and he saw it was a hopeless task to contend
LIFE OF SIR WIUJAM WALLACK.
343
any loiif^er for liim. He not only roccivod a H|)l('n-
did rocoption at the French (U)urt, l)ut, ])i'ovi(l(»d
he woiihl Htiiy in the country, had olVerH of
Hpeedy advaneenient. But he eoiild not \)v. in-
duced to (h) HO. And after many coiiHultalions
,m\ negotiations respecting the state of his he-
loved country, he exchanged the sweets of heau-
tiful France, fortlie rugged grandeur of Caledonia,
and the gaiety of the most refined court of the
world, for the caves and fastnesses of its rugged
mountains and forests, where a heavy price was
put upon his head. That Langneville accom])anied
him to Scotland there can be no doubt, as the I'act
is proved from a manuscript lately discovered in
the Advocates' Library in Edinburgh, bearing on
the subject, and from nnmy traditions thronghout
the country. On the death of Wallace he attached
himself to the interests of Bruce, and faithfully
adhered to him, amid all his vicissitudes till, he as-
cended the throne of Scotland. King Robert as-
signed him a large tract of land in the parish of
Kin fauns, near Perth, on account of his faithful
services, and a family there for many centuries
claimed to be descended from him. In the sta-
tistical account of this parish we fmd the following
curious statements regarding this remarkable man :
" In the Castle of Kinfauns is kept a large, old
sword, probably made above five hundred years
ago, and to be used by both hands. This terrible
weapon bears the name of Charteris' sword, and
probably belonged to Sir Thomas Charteris, com-
344
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
'!
moiily called Thomas de Langueville, proprietor
of the estate of Kinfauns." About forty years
ago, upon opening the burying vault under the
aisle of the church, there was also found part of
the armor in which this hero was consigned to
his resting place.
" Yet what is all that fires a hero's scorn
Of death: The hope to live in hearts unborn.
Life to the brave is not a fleeting breath,
But worth for tasting fame that follow's death."
Gratitude seems to have been a redeeming qua-
lity, among the worthies who followed the fortunes
of Wallace, irrespective of the country to which
they belonged. It was so in the case of Stephen
of Ireland, who joined himself to him during the
early part of his career, and who possessed all the
generous impulses of a true Hibernian. And the
same traits of character were largely developed in
the noble French knight, whose life was so
checkered, and whose history throughout was so
romantic. He made ample returns to Wallace for
the interest he had shown in him, and by his
bravery and firm attachment to the cause of lib-
erty, made full atonement for the blemishes that
were formerly connected with his character, the
rash actions he had performed, and the in justifi-
able work in which he had been long engaged.
\
CHAPTER XIX.
Wlicii Wallace returned to Scotland its prospects were dark.
The truce luid terminated betwixt the Scots and Eng-
lish. And left to their own resources by the Pope and
the French king. Edward appointed Segrave governor
of Scotland. Sent a large force with him to support
his authority. Attacked and routed near Roslin by an
army under Sir Simon Frazer and Comyn. Three
successive engagements took place, but in all of thom
the English were unsuccessful. According to English
writers Wallace contributed to the success of the Scots.
Last victory obtained by them during the reign of the
present Edward. Resolved to head another expedition
in person into the country. Proceeded by the Ejistern
Marches towards Edinburgh. The Prince of Wales
proceeded by the Western Marches. Great cruelties
committed on all sides. Alaric and the early ravagcrs
of Italy not to be compared to them. Proceeded as
far North as Morayshire, and destroyed everything in
their track. All the nobles gave in their adhesion to
English rule, but the brave knight of Brechin Castle.
Resisted the forces of Edward for twenty days. Not
till slain were the gates of his castle opened to the
enemy. Edward proceeded to Dunfermline, and while
there received the homage of all the Scotch barons.
Collected and destroyed the records of the nation. Care-
fully excluded Wallace from all immunities, and laid
schemes for his destruction. His authority in Scotland
nominal while he remained in the country.
Wallace returned to his native country, but its
prospects were gloomy and sad. The truce be-
Hi' I
346
LIFE OP SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
twixt Edward and his countrymen had expired,
and lie was more determined to prosecute the war
against them than ever. According to the pnmiise
made to the archhishop of Canterhury, Edward
laid the chiims of the Pope, regarding his right
to the kingdom of Scotland, before a parliament
at Lincoln, which indignantly rejected the same,
and a spirited remonstrance was sent to the holy
father to that effect. This remonstrance was
accompanied by a private letter from Edward
himself, in which, in soothing and honied words,
(accompanied doubtless with a large supply of
English gold) he endeavored to quiet and satisfy
the conscience of his spiritual superior. He
succeeded completely in doing so, for Pope
Boniface soon deserted his northern allies, sent a
letter toWishart, the bishop of Glasgow, charging
him as a prime mover and instigator of all the
tumults and dissensions which had arisen between
his dearest son Edward, the English king, meaning
by that, it is to be presumed, their sovereign.
Rome failed the Scots in its support, and they
were equally unfortunate in looking towards
France ; for the sovereign of that country had
recently been defeated in Flanders, which had
hitherto received the assistance of Edward. And
as Philip was anxious to concentrate his efforts to
vanquish the count of Flanders, and Edward
entertained the same desire in regard to Scotland,
they resolved mutually to carry out their own
ambitious projects, and leave their allies to take
LIFE OF SIR WILLI AH WALLACE.
347
care of themselves. But this was not all ; for
Philip, with an amount of duplicity altogether
unworthy of the sovereign of a great and gene-
rous people, had the address to persuade the Scot-
tish ambassadors, consisting of some of the most
powerful, warlike and influential of the nobility,
to remain with him at court, while he mediated
a peace between them and England. At the same
time, however, by this false dealing, he was
consciously playing into the hands of the English
king, and keeping them back, till all his arrange-
ments were made for another fatal and terrible
invasion of their country. Edward, having ap-
pointed Segrave governor of Scotland, summoned
a number of his principal barons, with their
vassals, to proceed thither to support his authority
till such time as he could be a,ble himself to
appear in that country in person, at the head of
an army. For the king asserted in the letters
addressed to his barons, that the enemy was
succeeding in ravaging the country, reducing,
burning, seizing towns and castles, and unless put
down, would soon invade and lay waste England
itself. The earnest entreaties of the king were
listened to, and Segrave, at an early part of the
season, marched for Berwick, towards the northern
capital, with an army of twenty thousand men,
mostly cavalry, and officered by some of the king's
best leaders in his wars in Wales, and in Flanders.
Among these were found two brothers of the
governor, and Robert de Neville, a great baron and
348
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
brave warrior, who assisted the King hirgely in
the conquest of Wales. On approaching near Roslin,
Segrave foolishly allowed his army to be divided,
and to encamp in separate divisions at some dis-
stance from each other, with the communication
broken off. Early in the morning, when slumber-
ing in his tent, a boy rushed into it, and informed
the governor that the enemy was close at hand.
The report proved to be too true, for Comyn, the
governor of Scotland, and Sir Simon Frazer, who
had become disgusted and tired out with the
cruelties and exactions of Edward, and had joined
the patriots some time before, had collected an
army of eight thousand horse, and marching from
Biggar during the night, found out, to their satis-
faction, the careless manner in which the English
were encamped. And so they broke in with fury
on the principal division, headed by Segrave,
routed it entirely, and after putting many of the
principal officers to the sword, took him prisoner,
with thirteen knights and twenty-six esquires.
Before the Scots had time, however, to collect the
booty, and make any arrangements in regard to
their prisoners, the second division made its
appearance. They were compelled to put their
prisoners to death, although very reluctantly, and
again attacked the enemy with heroic courage
and success. It was led on by Sir Ralph, the
cofferer, a rich priest, and paymaster of the forces,
and after a bloody light was forced to yield, and
put to flight with much slaughter. The cofferer
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
349
was taken prisoner by Sir Simon Frazer ; he begged
anxiously for his life, and offered a large sum of
money for it,, but to no purpose, and at the order
of Frazer was cruelly put to death. Many others
beside their leader fell into the hands of the
Scots as prisoners, and suffered the same fate.
This attack was hardly ended, when the third
division, led by Sir Robert Neville, appeared in
the distance. Tlie sight of it filled the minds of
the Scottish leaders with anxiety and dread ; for,
after two bloody engagements, and the fatigue of
a long march, they scarcely thought it would be
possible for their little army to encounter fresh
troops with success. They had all but formed the
resolution of a retreat ; but the sudden and unex-
pected appearance of the enemy made it impos-
sible for them to do it ; and, therefore, although
a bloody conflict ensued, the English were hope-
lessly beaten, their leader killed, and his division
nearly annihilated. The few of the scattered
forces that remained hastened across the borders
to relate the doleful tidings of their defeat ; and
the Scots, after reaping rich booty, returned home,
rejoicing in the good fortune that had attended
their labors on this occasion. In the history of
ancient and modern warfare, there will be scarcely
found a sample equal to the battle of Roslin, in
which celerity of motion, and quickness of action
crowned the victors with a sure reward ; while the
enemy, divided and thrown off their ^;aard, suf-
fered a terribly humiliating and cruel defeat.
850
LIFtS OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
1
Ji
Comyn and Frazer reaped the fruits of this deci-
sive victory over the English, which conferred a
great weight of honour on them, and on Scotland
also, in France, and over the whole of Europe,
" But the race is not always to the swift, nor the
battle to the strong ;" for if we are to credit the
statements of English historians, the victory
obtained over the English forces at Roslin
was neither owing to the ability of Comyn,
or the bravery of Frazer; but to the heroism,
advice, and martial achievements of Wallace,
who although present as a private individual,
wrought a charm upon the minds of the troops,
which carried everything before them. His
appearance brought terror to the minds of the
English, while it nerved his countrymen with
courage and self-possession, causing them to
sweep the enemy on three different occasions
from the field. Still this was the last victory
the Scots obtained during the life of the cruel
Edward ; for by his determined perseverance and
overwhelming military strength, he was resolved,
at whatever sacrifice, to crush them. Already the
country was everywhere lying waste, and the
people poverty-stricken and heart-broken by the
repeated invasions of the enemy. Joy and glad-
ness were nowhere heard ; " and the voice of
the bridegroom and of the bride had been caused
to cease out of the land." The hearts of the
most patriotic began to quail for fear, and all
now felt that the sun of Scottish liberty was about
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
351
li
I
to go down behind a terribly darkening cloud !
But he was again to arise in all his meridian splen-
dor, scattering the fogs of a night of terror and
of darkness, and ushering in a long period of lib-
erty not yet gone by !
"Land of the brave and free, whose fame sublime
Still beams resplendent through the clouds of time.
Birthplace of science, freedom's noblest shrine,
Cradle of art; hail Scotland revered, divine! "
The defeat of the English at the battle of Ros-
lin, and the praises heaped upon the Scots for
their valor and success, which rung out from every
court of Europe, only awakened afresh all the
rancorous feelings of Edward towards them.
Conquered they must be, though the English ex-
chequer should be drained to its last farthing, and
the blood of his noblest subjects should flow like
water ! And he would rather turn the country
to a desert, fit for wild beasts, where the hunter
might freely tread on the soil on which many a
happy family had once lived, and was comfortably
fed, than that a freeman should exist who dared
to dispute his authority in it ! Such being the
feelings of the tyrant, who never in any circum-
stances consulted the interests of any, at the ex-
pense of his own, he resolved to give effect to the
thoughts that tumultuated in his dark and un-
principled breast, and to destroy the land utterly
with fire and sword, whose inhabitants had dared
so long to oppose him. The Pope had given up
his western see to the mercy of the enemy ; and
ll
352
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
in the treaty of Amiens, concluded between the
French and English monarchs, the interests of
this brave people had also been ignored. Separat-
ed and alone, they had now to brave the fury of
a storm, that was about to burst upon them, with
terrible violence, and through the blackening tem-
pest not a streak of light was there anywhere to
be seen. Edward being left to the freedom of his
own will — so far as any foreign sovereign was
concerned — directed all his energies to the final
subjugation of Scotland. He summoned his barons
to meet him with all their vassals at Berwick, on
the feast of St. John the Baptist. He fitted out a
large fleet of seventy vessels at the seaport towns,
to carry provisions for the army, and " week in
and week out, from morn till night," little else
was heard in these towns, but the noise of the
hammer and anvil, that the fleet might be in
readiness, and if possible precede the army with
the vast supplies, that would be required for its
support. To make all things complete, the inous
King performed a. pilgrimage to the shrine of
Thomas a Becket, whose brains his great grand-
father had bespattered on the altar of the cathe-
dral at Canterbury, and afterwards adored him as
a saint, — as his successor now did. He also solicited
the interc ^sion of other saints, to render him suc-
cessful in the work of death and destruction in
which he was soon to be engaged — for like many
other tyrants, the king was a dupe to his own
superstitious notions. When crossing the border.
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 353
Edward divided his army, assigning one division
to the Prince of Wales, who proceeded by the
Western Marches, and by the way of Dumfries ;
while the King himself, at the head of the other
division of his troops, went by the Eastern Marches,
and had reached Edinburgh by the beginning of
June. But in all his journey northward there was
not even the vestige of an enemy to oppose him ;
for a number of the Scottish nobles, in order to
secure their lands and lives from him, which they
considered forfeited by their late rebellion,had has-
tened to Berwick to propitiate his favor. And the
few chiefs, with Comyn and Frazer at their head,
who still maintained the cause of independence,
found it impossible to raise or keep together any
number of forces, and felt assured that the struggle
for freedom was fast drawing to a close. And yet,
with all this spirit of non-resistance shown by the
people, the footsteps of the King and his son were
everywhere marked with bloodshed and cruelty.
For the ravages of Alaric, the barbaric Gothic
king, who burst from the North into Italy with
one hundred thousand of his savage followers,
burnt down the magnificent city of Rome, and
carried fire and sword throughout the whole of the
Peninsula, hastening forward the downfall of the
mistress of the world with her large dependencies,
were never to be compared with those of the
savage Edward on this occasion. The recent de-
feat of his troops at Roslin had so irritated his
cruel nature and inflamed his vile passions, that
354
LIFE OF am WILLIAM WALLACE.
i.
he thirsted for revenge, which was now more than
gratified. And to enjoy it, the entire subjection
of the people was not reckoned enough ; but the
most relentless cruelties were exercised towards
them, without the smallest compunction. The
humility of the pilgrim to Canterbury, and his
prostrations before St. Thomas' shrine, were now
forgotten, and revenge and death were substituted
in the place of his great penances. It is sad to
think that a man like Edward, now advancing in
years, should have acted thus in nearly his last
invasion of Scotland. But such happened to be
the case ; for in recording the history of this in-
vasion, whether we relate the transactions that
transpired, as stated by Scotch or English chroni-
clers, they all amount to the same thing. Quiet
submission on the one hand, and pitiless cruelty
and revenge on the other, are everywhere
brought to view. The iron hoof of the op-
pressor treading slowly along, and meanwhile
crushing out the life's blood of a free people, who'se
only fault appeared to be that liberty was so dear
to them ! If Edward's march to Edinburgh was
marked by nothing — as well as that of his son —
but by the tame submission on the part of the
inhabitants, and the wanton cruelty and devas-
tation of their oppressors, his progress further
North was still more memorable for the same
things. He proceeded leisurely by way of Lin-
lithgow, Clackmannan, Perth, and Aberdeen, and
scarcely anything in the shape of an enemy was
ii
LIFE OP SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
355
anywhere to be seen ; for all who were able had
fled beyond the reach of the oppressor to the
caves and fastnesses of their native mountains.
But neither the aged nor unprotected females who
were forced to stay behind received tiny sym-
pathy from the man, whose ambition had rendered
him callous to every feeling of humanity, and
whose hard heart was shut against every appeal
to the higher feelings of our nature. The young
and innocent were put to the sword, and were
happily removed in this way from beyond the
reach of the oppressor ; while many of the noble
women, in whose bosom there burned a flame of
patriotic feeling, which all his legions could never
extinguish, were only spared to become the prey
of their wanton lust and lasciviousness. Besides
the cruelties inflicted on the unofiending inhabi-
tants, along the whole path where the tyrant
•trod, the country itself suff'ered terribly also from
his scathing hand. Devastation and ruin marked
his footsteps wherever he went. Magnificent
forests of the largest description were burnt down,
And the smoke arising from such fearful confla-
grations was witnessed from afar. Towns and
villages were devoted to pillage. Whole garners
and granaries were robbed of their contents. And
the small tracts of fertile lands which the indus-
try of the natives had carefully cultivated, amid
all the distraction of the times, were too much to
be spared, and therefore remorselessly devoted to
destruction. From the city of Aberdeen, the king
356
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
I
directed his march into the county of Moray, took
possession of Lochendorb Castle, where he stayed
for some time, and received the homage of the
Northern chiefs, who hastened ^o be at peace with
him. Leaving this he proceeded to Kildrummy
Castle in Auchendoir, Aberdeenshire, the strong-
est and most important strength in this remote
part of the country. It played an important part
in the history of Scotland, long before and after
this dark period, and afforded a safe retreat to the
wife and daughter of King Robert Bruce, when
their safety from the English was a matter
of great importance. -Still retracing his steps
southward, he passed through Perth and Stir-
ling, revelling in cruelty, and in the destruc-
tion of life and property ; and by the month of
December had fixed his quarters at Dunfermline,
where his beautiful queen joined him, and where
for some time there was much gaiety and many
festivities, and the future government of the
country, which he foolishly imagined as for ever
conquered was duly established. In the whole
of this northern expedition, marked with such
cruelty and slaughter, it deserves to be ever re-
membered, that only one patriotic baron dared to
dispute the usurped authority of Edward, and
shut the g ates of his castle against him. This
was Sir Thomas Maule, a baron of singular courage
and intrepidity, the owner of Brechin Castle.
The ancestors of this brave knight were, like
Edward himself, of Norman extraction, but had
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 357
long settled in Scotland, and looked upon it as
their own native land. At this early period of
the history of the country, we know not what
amount of property the family owned ; but at
the present time their possessions are great.
Abutting upon the Balmoral estates of Her
Majesty, they reach from the height of the Gram-
pian Mountains, to the shores of the German
Ocean, and run along the seaboard for nearly
fifty miles, comprehending some of the finest
lands in Scotland. The present proprietor (Earl
Dalhousie) is a fit representative of his brave
ancestor ; for his talents as a statesman, and his
popularity as a proprietor have earned for him
the afiection and esteem of all classes of society.
Brechin Castle, that was now assailed by all the
united force of Edward, was strongly fortified by
nature and by art. It stood on a bluff of the
South Esk river that here meandered past grace-
fully in front of it, till, passing through a rich
valley, it emptied its waters in the German ocean
at Montrose. The side of the castle towards the
river was alike inaccessible and impregnable ;
while the others were fortified as were few other
strengths, in this age of chivalry, in any other
part of the country. Edward brought all his
attacking force to bear upon the place, including
a number of warlike engines, which threw stones
of great size and other materials against the walls.
But though he looked grim, and was roused to a
pitch of great fury against the brave baron and
358
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLAGE.
his associates, for a long time no impression was-
made on the fortress. And Maule, confident of the
strength and impregnable nature of the walls of
his noble keep, stood on the ramparts of the same,
and with a towel brushed awaj the dust and rub-
bish raised by the engines, in order to mark the
contempt with which he viewed the efforts of
Edward to reduce it. For twenty long days did
the English army toil and struggle around and
beneath the walls of this splendid fortress, with-
out producing any impression on them by the
terrible instruments of war, or on the mind of its
noble possessor ; and but for an unfortunate occur-
rence, they would have done it always to all human
appearances. It happened that the unfortunate
Maule, however, was at last struck dead on the
wall, by one of those lethal missiles he affected to
despise ; but while life was ebbing fast, and
the brave soldier lay dying on the ground, he pro-
nounced maledictions on the coward who dared to
open the gates of his castle to the sworn enemy
of his country. But unmindful of his last com-
mands, some of the defenders did so, and soon
after his death they were thrown open to Edward,,
and a scene of bloodshed, rapine, and plunder
worthy of him took place.
" Many centuries have been numbered,
Since in death the baron nlumbered,
But the good deed through the ages.
Living in historic pages,
Brighter grows and gleams immortal
TJnconsumed by moth or rust.."^ i
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
359
While Edward reached and stayed at Dunferm-
line he committed several deeds of vandalism, that
were sufficient of themselves, independent of any-
thing else, tocause his memory to be ever execrated
by every right-thinking man. In that ancient town,
there was a splendid Benedictine monastery, built
of stone, where, on account of its ample size, the
Scottish Parliament had been often held. It was
so large in its dimensions, according to an ancient
historian, that three kings, with their united re-
tainers, could easily be accommodated within its
walls. But it was a sufficient crime in the eyes
of the English monarch, that it should be in any
way connected with a Scottish Parliament, and
neither the beautiful proportions of the building,
nor the sacredness of its character could save it
from his ruthless hand ; and, therefore, by his
cruel orders, his soldiers razed it to the ground.
This being accomplished, he set about a still more
extraordinary achievement. Already on a former
occasion he had removed from Scone, the famous
stone on which the Kings of Scotland had been
crowned for centuries, and placed it in West-
minster Abbey, along with the crown and sceptre
of Scotland, which he presented as an offering to
Edward the Confessor, as a memorial of the abso-
lute conquest of the country. But this was not
sufficient for him ; but with a spirit of reckless-
ness unequalled by any prince that went before,
or succeeded him, he commanded the monasteries
throughout the country to be ransacked with all
360
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
\\
possible care, and the ancient records which they
contained to be carried off and committed to the
flames, so that the Scots would have no documents
to produce to falsify his claims to sovereignty
over them. The truth of these statements are
borne out by English historians themselves, for
Nicholson, one of the most learned, intelligent,
and candid of them, in referring to the subject,
thus remarks : " King Edward the First having
claimed the sovereignty of Scotland, made a most
miserable havoc of the histories and laws of that
kingdom, hoping that in a short time nothing
should be found in that country but what carried
an English name and face. To this end he for-
bade, on severe penalties, the keeping of any such
books and records; and proceeded so far as even
to abolish the very name of Claudius Ca3sar in his
famous round temple which he ordered to be call-
ed, as it is to this day, Arthur's Hoff, putting
away the stone which preserved the memory of
that great Emperor, and his conquests." The
legal right of Edward to the crown of Scotland,
even according to his own view of the matter,
must have been very small, when he became such
a notorious robber and destroyer of the public re-
cords of a country that had been preserved for
ages with pious care, in many of the monasteries
throughout the land. And it was doubtless a
knowledge of these records possessed by many of
the learned monks of the day, that filled them
with such patriotic feelings, and such intense
;
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. Wi
hatred to the rule of the English usurper.
Edward, having received the submission of the
regent Comyn, and the other parties who acted
along with him — who now came to the conclusion
that all further efforts to maintain the liberty of
the country were in vain — made a rigorous ex-
clusion of the brave Wallace, in the terms of the
agreement entered into between him and the said
parties, whose lives were preserved, and whose
lands were granted back to them on certain con-
ditions. It is worthy to advert to this agreement,
in order to see the bitter hatred that rankled
in the tyrant's bosom against the man, who would
never stoop nor cringe to procure his favor. It
runs thus: " As for William Wallace, it is coven-
anted that if he thinks proper to surrender him-
self, it must be unconditionally to the will and
mercy of the King." In other words, the English
king demanded a rendering up of a person into
his hands, upon whose head he had set a large price
for years, whom he considered the great disturber
of his peace and authority, and whom he desired
forthwith to be put to death. And well might
he anxiously long to have this ardent patriot with-
in his grasp ; for during his late cruel invasion of
the North, with the exception of the brave knight
of Brechin Castle, Wallace and his few tried fol-
lowers seamed to be the only persons that in any
way opposed his troops. Closely watching the
progress of their southern enemies, amid the
forests and mountainous regions of the North, they
362
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
dashed forward often to charge some detached por-
tion of the troops, and cut them off before any
help could be gained. Edward's best tried soldiers
quailed at his approach and gave way, while his
appearance nerved his adherents with unusual
confidence — and ho was well aware that his con-
quest of Scotland was worth little, while such
an extraordinary man was at large. Hence he
ardently thirsted for his blood, and allowed no
means to be spared to secure his person, and de-
vote him to destruction, with all convenient speed.
But Wallace pre-conceived the approaching storm,
and cared little to avoid it ; for whatever the
consequence might be, he resolved to die as he
had lived — a true patriot.
" Then to hoaven in calm despair,
As ho turned the tearless eye,
By his country's wrongs he swore
With his country's rights to die."
CHAPTER XX.
All the barons submitted to Edward while at Dnnformline,
but Wallace. Large offers made to him to acknowledge
the authority of the English King, which he rejected.
Hebuked his friends for wishing to do so. Edward pro-
ceeded to the South. Made arrangements for the govern-
ment of the kingdom, and for the betrayal of Wallace.
Bribed Mowbray and Haliburton, two Scottish knights,
to track him everywhere. Wallace, with a few of his
followers, retired to the Western coast to embark in a
vessel for France, waiting for him near the shore. Sail-
ed before he reached the shore. Directed his steps
towards Glasgow. Wished to be within the reach of
Dunbarton Castle, and near Sir John Montoith, its
governor. Had been appointed by Wallace, and valued
as one of his true friends. Now bribed by Edward and
in his service. The leading spirit in the bloody con-
federacy against Wallace. Discovered his whereabouts
from a nephew of Monteith's, who waited upon the
fallen hero. Learned that he was lurking at Robroyston,
near Glasgow, While buried in sleep, deprived of his
armor by young Monteith. Killed the assailants who
dared to seize his person. The elder Monteith approach-
ed near, and falsely persuaded Waiiaco to allow himself
to be given up to the English. Promised him a safe re-
treat and proper treatment in the castle. Carried thither
and never permitted to see Monteith any more. A
strong escort appointed of the English to convey him
over the borders. Hastened forward to Carlisle. The
news of his capture spread everywhere, and thousands
of the English of all ranks crowded to catch a glimpse
of his person.
Ill
364
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
Edward remained at Dunfermline till the last of
the Scottish nobles consented to accept of the hard
conditions imposed upon them, till the country
was reduced to ruin, and the people to a state of
absolute subjection. Everything had succeeded
according to the expectations of his cruel nature,
and had not the brave Wallace, in spite of the
high price he had put upon his head, still remain-
ed at large, his satisfaction would have been full.
But while he did so, although shut out from all
amnesty, and marked for destruction, the mind of
the tyrant could be ill at ease ; for even in his re-
duced condition, he hardly knew how soon he and
his faithful followers, who still clung to him, might
assail him or his troops with deadly effect when
they least expected it. For although Edward was
enraged at the thought that such was the case,
cursed him as a traitor, and all who harbored and
supported him, he could not but dread the man,
whose very name stirred his countrymen to deeds
of valor; who had wrought such havoc among
the English in times past, and who alone, with
heroic courage, still remained a freeman, while all
beside were slaves! Surrounded by enemies on
all sides who watched to betray him, Wallace had
withdrawn from the impassable moors and marshes
of the North, Avith some of his most confidential
followers, to the vast and impenetrable forest that
at that time stretclied away from Dunferuiline in
every direction. Here it is said Edward, becoming
acquainted with the fact that he was not far off,
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
365
i
used means to convert this formidable enemy into
a friend. If Fordoun, the most veritable of all
Scotch historians, is to be credited, Edward pre-
sented before him the most tempting offers, and
among others of them, was the crown of Scotland,
provided he w^ould accept it as Baliol had done, in
fee of the crown of England. Whetlier Edward
was sincere in this ofter is extremely doubtful,
considering the intense hatred and fear he enter-
tained towards this, his bitterest enemy. And,
perhaps, it is more reasonable to suppose, that he
wished to cajole and deceive him, as he had pre-
viously done to others when placed in similar cir-
cumstances. For although Wallace, as he might
easily conceive, was not so simple as to be thus
easily caught ; the very fact of the offer having
been made, he imagined would excite anew the
suspicions of the nobles and his countrymen
against him, and hasten on his final ruin. But
whatever the motives were that induced the
tyrant thus to act, they all appeared the same, as
far as Wallace was concerned. Firmly he had es-
poused the cause of freedom at the first, and firmly
he would maintain it to the last ! And although
all men should ignore its sacredness, and bow their
necks to the yoke of the op])ressor, yet would not
he thus basely act ! When, therefore, sorely
pressed by his friends to accept the tempting offer
hold out by the king of England, he thus feel-
ingly remarked : ^'' ! desolate Scotland, too cre-
dulous of fair speeches, and not aware of the
t|
H
366
LIFE OF Sill WILLIAM WALLACE.
calamities tliat are o.ominfi; upon you ! When I
was a boy, the priest, my iniclc, carefully iucul-
catod upou me this proverb, wliieli I learned and
have never rorjj!;otten, I tell you a truth — Liberty
is tho best oi* things; my son, never live under
any slavish bond. Thorcfore, I shortly declare,
that if all others, the natives of Scothind, should
obey the King oC England, or were willing to
part with the liberty that belongs to them, yet
shall not 1." The answer was such as we might
have expected from the nuin, who believed in the
truth of the great Greek poet, that " he who trusts
his freedom to a tyrant, from that moment becomes
a slave." And rather than do so, he was willing
to be driven, as at the beginning of his brilliant
career, to the nu)untains and forests of lii.s native
country, with a few of his faithful friends, and
live on the plunder of his sworn enemies, than
that he should barter away his own, or the liber-
ties of his native land, however high the price
that might be offered.
^m
'* 'Make way for liberty,' he cried,
' Make way for liberty/ aiul died."
Edward, having already secured, as he supposed,
the conquest of Scotland by the reduction of Stir-
ling Cattle — the last that resisted his power — and
every other strength throughout the country,
hastened South to make arrangements for the
government of Scotland. But while doing so he
learned with bitter regret, that Wallace still con-
9lf^«BI
LIFE OF Slli WILLIAM WALLACK,
367
\
tiiuicd liis inox()ral)l(i Too, — that liislat*.^ att('in])t8
to hribo and cajole him over to his intere.sts had
proved worse than uselcsH, — and that all his con-
quentH in tlie North were trnly precarious while
he remained at large, lie had Tailed in his last
attc^inpt to secure him to liis side; but with
that inveterate enmity and unshaken persever-
ance lor which he was ever remarkable, he re-
sol v(m1 to have recourse to other means, and never
to cease, whatever might be the loss ol' lil'e or
of money, till he was hunted down like a wild
beast, and devoted to destruction. Tlie means
ado[)ted lor sodoing were anything but creditable
to the hiijli-fioulcd IHaiitagenet, as he has been cjill-
ed ; and that he should have found instrumenta
among Wallace's own countrymen for carrying
them out, is still more to be deplored ! IJut so it
was, and the king soon found that by means of
money, and territory, and titles, and royal smiles,
he would be able to accomplish the betrayal and
destruction of his most dreaded enemy. Thank
God ! this biuse work was not performed by any
of the common people. They would gladly have
laid down their lives for him on any occasion,
if necessary ; but to sell or betray him they
would have considered an unpardoruible sin !
But the perfidious task was undertaken by some
of those who were considered among the nobles
of the laud, and by the performance of it they
have added another indelible stain to their
character, in addition to all the rest connected
'S
1
368
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
with the struggle for Scottish independence, in
which they acted throughout a cruelly selfish,
shameful, and pusillanimous part! Edward gave
strict orders to his captains and governors in Scot-
land, to be constantly on the alert with the view
of endeavoring to secure the person of Wallace,
whether dead or alive ; while he eagerly sought
out, with that deep cunning and policy that
belonged to him, any of the Scottish nation that
was likely to prove serviceable to him in the
matter. It happened at the time that a Scottish
knight resided at the English court, of the name
of Mowbray, who suddenly rose into great trust
and favor with the king. It was doubtless for a
consideration. For he was afterwards despatched
into Scotland, with all convenient speed, to accom-
plish a work which few would have envied him
in the performance. For this purpose, he was
enjoined to take along with him Ralph Ilaliburton,
who some time before this had been taken a
prisoner at the siege of Stirling Castle, and carried
to England. We regret to find the name of such
a scoundrel associated with the list of the brave
defenders of this celebrated place — the real Ther-
mopylae of Scotland — but so it happened to be.
And he purchased his liberty at a costly price, in
the betrayal of one whose blood he will never be
able to atone for. It happened that this wretched
renegade, had been employed previous to the
defence of Stirling Castle in the service of Wallace,
and had been suffered often to approach near his
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
369
person, araid the mountains and forests of his
native country, when driven by hard necessity to
seek for shelter from his persevering foes. And
now that he had returned back to Scothmd with
a bribe in his hand, and thirsting for the blood of
his former friend and patriotic leader, his know-
ledge of his person and retreats would render
him a proper agent for executing what few of the
English themselves would have wished to under-
take. There is considerable obscurity involved
in the doings of this wretch, with Mowbray his
superior, and the English officers, who were for
some time banded together, in order to secure the
person of this heroic man, whose valuable life was
to be sacrificed ; who, goaded by the prospect of
obtaining great riches, and the favor of a prince
who deigned to stoop to the lowest means in
order to carry out his nefarious designs, appeared
to have watched his movements with the utmost
care and circumspection. Sometimes they beset
him with a strong body of cavalry, from which
it was impossible for any person but himself to
effect an escape. Sometimes they pursued him
into the midst of the forest, where he less dreaded
the attacks and ferocity of the beasts of prey, than
the cruel savages who were on his track. The
moor, the moss, the rugged mountain, the rocky
precipice — each of them in turn became his place
of resort — and often afforded him shelter from
the pitiless storm, and protection from his enemies,
when all other helps seemed to have failed
370
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
1
!
9
him. For soine time Wallace and his faithful
adherents had wandered, forlorn and destitute,
along the shores of Loch Long, and through
the rugged districts of Lome, in the hope of
reaching a French vessel, which was represented
as having been seen for some time hovering
around the coast, with the view of picking
them up, and carrying them to France, be-
yond the reach of their enemies that were bent
on their destruction. Although the vessel, how-
ever, had anchored for some time at a creek in
the immediate neighborhood of where they now
were, she was obliged to depart before they were
able to reach her, lest she should be seized by
some of Edward's crafts, that were everywhere
crowding the shores and harbors of the western
coast of Scotland, lor fear that Wallace might be
allowed to escape. Finding their prospects be-
coming darker, and their means of subsistance
more precarious, they resolved to quit that part
of the country ; and after suffering an amount of
fatigue, cold and hunger, which would have
crushed the spirits of all others, they directed
their steps inland, and arrived in the neighbor-
hood of Glasgow, travelling mostly during the
night, and seeking concealment during the day.
He now imagined he would find himself and his
followers in greater security, for he was near the
place of his birth, and where, during the earlier
part of the history of his successful struggle for
the independence of Scotland, he had performed so-
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
371
many daring exploits. Besides, he was now within
the shadow of the impregnable fortress of Dun-
barton Castle, which he had before this committed
to the charge of Sir John Monteith, as a reward
of his distinguished services in the cause of his
country. When he did so, his best historian says
he stipulated for the erection of a small house
within the fort for himself, (which still bears his
name) on account of the great friendship he bore
to Monteith, and in order to enjoy his society in
which he greatly delighted. But perliaps the
principal reason was, that both he and his friends
might have a safe asylum afforded them, both from
the English and the nobility of Scotland, who
bore both towards them and himself an inextin-
guishable hatred. But whatever were Wallace's
reasons for so doing, it appears from Avhat followed,
that the confidence he put in Monteith was
entirely misplaced. He now held this strong fort
in the interests of the English, and had been
bought over to betray Wallace for a large sum of
money — along with other villains, who for some
time had been on his track. We don't know
exactly what plan they had previously concerted
for thus acting ; but there can be no doubt that
Monteith was the leading spirit in the bloody
(confederacy, and his name and rank as a Scottish
baron of high standing, must have stimulated the
other parties to the perpetration of the deed.
Some have excused him for the betrayal of
Wallace, from a family feud that arose after the
,
372
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
i\
battle of Falkirk, and others from the hatred hin
wife bore him, whose ambition goaded on her
husband to the committal of the terrible deed.
But by whatever mode he was actuated to the
perpetration of the crime, there is no doul)t that
Monteith discovered Wallace's retreat through
the information of a nephew of his own, who
waited upon him at the time, and got most of the
money that was set upon the head of the patriot,
by the King of England. So soon as his treachery
was discovered, and the success that accompanied
it, a burst of indignation broke forth against him
throughout the length and breadth of the land.
Nor was the feeling confined to the common
people, but all ranks unanimously shared in it, —
not even excepting Wallace's enemies themselves.
And even yet, when centuries have gone by, the
name of the betrayer stinks in the nostrils of all
who wish well to the interests of Scotland. He
has been termed by some writers the Judas
Iscariot of that country, and in some respects he
bears no small resemblance to one who has im-
mortalized his name in connexion with a bloody
act, that has no equal in the history of the
world. Every possible contempt has been heaped
upon his memory by contemporary writers, and
even those who lived centuries afterwards.
" Cursed be the day of the nativity of John
Monteith, says one of them, "may his execrable
name be forever blotted from the book of life !"
And well does he merit all the maledictions that
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
373
have been heaped upon him, for he executed the
bloody task assigned him, with a coolness and
effrontry that few would have done. Learning
that Wallace had retired to the woody retreats
near Robroyston, a village that lay between Glas-
gow and Dumbarton, and only accompanied hy his
faithful attendant Kerlie, who never forsook liim
in any emergency, he set about his destruction
with all possible speed. The hero and his com-
panion had betaken themselves to sleep in a barn
near to the village, and the nephew of Monteith,
as he had been previously directed, communicated
the tidings to his uncle, who was watching their
movements with a select body of sixty cavalry in
the neighborhood. Young Monteith had been
appointed sentinel at the door of the barn by
Wallace himself, who had every confidence in
him, and while he was locked in sleep, he
cautiously moved his bugle from his neck, and his
armor that lay beside him. When he had done
so, he quietly opened the door of the building, and
two ruffians armed to the teeth rushed into it, and
hurrying Kerlie from the barn instantly put him
to death. Wallace, roused from his slumber by
the noise, started to his feet, and grasping for
his armor found it had disappeared. He now be-
gan to see he had been betrayed ; but resolving
to sell his life as dearly as he could, and grasping
hold of a large block of wood that had been used
as a seat, he struck both of the assailants dead on
the spot. Beholding the fury to which he had
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374
LIFE OF SIB WILLIAM WALLACE.
been roused, and the difficulty that they mipfht
yet find in securing him alive, Monteith, who had
been watching the whole affair from a distance,
approached near, taking every precaution to in-
vest the barn ; for he was to earn everlasting
infamy in his activity on this occasion, and for the
mean and bloody work in which he was engaged.
"Writers also inform us that a bright moon shone
over the face of nature on that eventful nighty
and the beams of that luminary helped forward
the work of the betrayal that cost Scotland so
many tears afterwards! In presenting himself
before the hero, with an air of falsehood and pre-
tended friendship, " he stated to him that he had
followed the English, who had heard of his place
of concealment, in order that he might use his in-
fluence in his behalf. That they had listened to
him, in case of an immediate surrender to spare
his life : but if such did not take place he would
give no guarantee to that effect. Nay more, were
his person not immediately rendered up into the
hands of those that everywhere surrounded his
lonely hut, they were so bent on the execution of
their purpose to possess it, that they had resolved
to set fire to the building, and he must of neces-
sity perish in the midst of the flames. There was
no possibility of one man, now single-handed and
deprived of his armor, being able to resist the
armed force that everywhere surrounded him, and
it seemed to be the will of Providence, that he
should now relinquish the interest in which he
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
375
had so long hopelessly engaged with numbers
vastly superior to his own. If he would give him-
self up without further resistance, and accompany
him as a prisoner to Dunbartdn, he would under-
take for the safe conveyance thither of his person,
and proper treatment by the way. Nay more, he
should live in his own house in the castle, that
he had prepared for himself in case of such an
emergency as the present, where his person would
be safe, and he alone should be his keeper. The
friendship that had so long existed betwixt them
was of too sacred a character, as not now to bear
fruit when needed, aud he would willingly sacri-
fice his own life in order that his (Wallace's)
might be preserved." By such false pretences
did this cruel and deceitful man now prevail, and
Scotland's champion allowed himself to be de-
livered up into the hands of the English. Bound
hand and foot, he was carried prisoner to Dunbar-
ton Castle, trusting to the faith and word of a
knight, who was formerly his friend and com-
panion in arms, that when he arrived there he
would be treated as he had said. But the cruel
governor of the castle lied to Wallace through-
out, and by so doing brought down upon his head
the indignation of all right-thinking men. Re-
tiring with the price of blood in his hand, into
the hidden recesses of the castle, to spend all his
ill-gotten gain in the company of his cruel and
ambitious wife, he forgot all his former promises
solemnly given to his friend, and former compan-
376
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
ion, now completely in the power of his enemy,
allowed him to be heavily ironed and cast into a
dreary dungeon, and never again saw him in the
flesh.
" Weep on, weep on, your hour is past,
Your dream of pride is o'er.
The fatal chains is round you cast,
And you are man no more."
There he lay without a friend to comfort him,
or the light of the day to cheer him in his lonely
abode, and in the fortress that he had bravely
wrested from the hands of the English, and
handed over to its present false possessor as its
guardian, now reserved by him to secure his person
from insult and a cruel death. The joyful tidings
are communicated to Edward, that his sworn enemy
is at last secured, and remains heavily manacled
in the strong fortress on the banks of the Clyde,
to await his further instructions. The heart of
the cruel man rejoiced greatly at the news thi»
imparted, and preparations on a grand scale were
made for conveying Wallace in safety to Eng-
land, without any further delay. Two of his most
powerful barons, Robert de Clif" "d and Amyer de
Yallance, were appointed by che King with a
strong escort to take charge of the prisoner, and
to bring him with all convenient speed from Dun-
barton to London. So little confidence did he.,
place in the betrayer of the brave man, who was
now in his grasp, that he appeared anxious that
he should be as soon as possible, beyond his con«
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
377
trol, as he knew that such a man was little to be
trusted. No reference appears to be made to the
wretch Monteith afterwards. And the cruel nesr-
lect he experienced, the contempt that was heaped
upon his person by the friends of Wallace, and
even the English — together with the stings of a
cruel conscience — must have been a hell to him.
It is true his person was securely shut up in one
of the strongest fortifications of the country,
kind nature smiled around him amid a land-
scape on which his eye from the castle wall
could catch some of the wildest, most varied, and
beautiful touches of her hand, — but all in vain
to make him happy ! His conscience made a coward
of him after all !
" Whence is that knocking?
How is't with me when every noise appals me ?
What hands are here ? Ha I they pluck out mine eyes
Will all great Neptune's ocean wash their blood
Clean from my hands ? No j this my hand will rather
The multitudinous seas incarnadine,
Making the green one red."
Every precaution was taken lest Wallace should
escape, or be rescued by his friends before he
reached the English border. He was taken from
the dungeon. The irons were continued on him.
He was mounted on a sorry horse, and strictly
guarded by a strong body of English on every
side, who surrounded him, and who were armed to
the teeth, and prepared at any moment for defend-
ing themselves, and retaining their prisoner in
378
LIFE OP SIR WILLIAM WALLACE,
case of a sudden attack. The orders given by
Edward were to hasten on the victim to the place
of his execution at London, and there was no more
kindness shewn towards him after this, than to
the oxen that are hurried forward to the shambles.
While this was to be done, the most unfrequented
roads and by-paths were to be chosen for the
escort, that their journey through the southern
part of Scotland might be undertaken without
many becoming acquainted with the fact, that they
had passed along. The injunctions thus strictly
given were carried out to the letter, and every
thing for this time succeeded according to the
most sanguine wishes of the English monarch.
His victim was within his toils, and his threaten-
ings against him were carried out in a manner
that shocked the bitter feelings of his own Eng-
lish subjects, and outraged the sensibilities of
right-thinking men, throughout the whole of
Europe, where the name of Wallace was known
and frequently adverted to, and where his heroic
exploits had become the admiration and wonder
of every one. However much the secrecy
adopted in regard to the betrayal, capture,
and conveyance of Edward's prisoner to the
South, it was impossible long to conceal such an
important event from the public at large. As
soon as it was known therefore in Scotland, it
made men everywhere stand aghast! And as
this came upon the English suddenly, the news of
it spread like wild-fire over the whole country
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 379
South of the Tweed ; labor of every kind was
suspended ; the people flocked for hundreds of
miles to the points of the road where it was
expected the illustrious hero would pass. And if
they succeeded in obtaining only a glimpse of his
person they were satisfied, and would tell it to
their children's children afterwards, as one of the
great events of their lives. At Carlisle the escort
halted for a night, and the dungeon in which he
was placed in the castle was shewn for ages after,
and bore his name. The next day as he was re-
moved from the castle, and the escort filed away
along the streets, the fair city of Carlisle perhaps
never before or after presented such a strange and
excited appearance. Thousands of people from
every part of the country lined the streets, and
crowded in to obtain the last sight of the man,
whose name for years had carried terror with it
into every part of the north of England. And
although it was so, and it appeared a moving
sight to behold the greatest captain of the age,
and the truest patriot driven along amid all the
ignominy that it was possible to devise ; yet he
bore himself with such patience and magnanimity,
as to excite the wonder and commiseration of every
spectator. But so it was, that though through
the cruelty and meanness of Edward, he was
thus presented heavily manacled, meanly clad,
mounted on the back of an unsaddled horse, with
his feet and limbs tightly tied beneath the belly
of the animal, so as fearfully to strain his body,
380
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
and inflict upon it a large amount of pain, he bore
all with such meekness and silent patience, as
never to utter a groan or raise a complaint ! The
multitudes of people of both sexes beheld this,
and were struck with the bearing of the hero,
forgetful of all his past deeds which had occasioned
them so much loss of life and property. And while
they beheld his spirit,, wonderfully triumphing
over such monstrous cruelty, needlessly inflicted
on him, they involuntarily prostrated themselves
before him, as he passed along, as a token of the
homage he begot ; and wept as they knelt while
they thought of his misfortunes and suff'erings.
The big and generous heart of this great people
was thus drawn out towards one, who had only
acted as they would have done, if placed in similar
circumstances. And if such feelings prevailed
among the English, respecting the cruelties and
mockeries needlessly heaped upon the head of one,
whose only fault was the great love he bore to
his country, we can easily conceive how the heart
of Scotland was stirred up with indignation when
the report of his betrayal by Monteith, and de-
livery to the English by false pretences, began to
be extensively circulated throughout the country.
A universal burst of indignation rose spontane-
ously against this cruel and unpatriotic man,
who had done a deed that would stamp him with
ignominy to the latest ages ; and if there was any
thing to equal it, it was the malignant feeling
that was excited everywhere against the cruel
LIFE OF STR WILLIAM WALLACE.
381
and unmerciful Plantagenet, that was meanwhile
treating with such calculating indignity a noble-
souled, patriotic, but now, alas, a fallen enemy !
" But the dishonor, the stain,
Die as we may, will live on."
But the calculations of tyrants are often false,
and their schemes baffled before carried out. And
such was the case in regard to Edward, on this
occasion ; for all his previous invasions of Scot-
land, the cruel acts he did, and the large amount
of life and property he destroyed never aroused
in the hearts of Scotsmen such a universal feeling
of hatred and implacable, animosity against him,
as his cruel treatment to the brave Wallace now
happened to do. " Henceforth it might be said he
had no friend or coadjutor north of the Tweed, or
instrument to do his dirty work, but Monteith ;
and his bitterest enemies could not have wished
him a worse fate than to be thus associated, so long
as Scotland is heard of by the sons of men."
CIIAPTKR XX r.
Largo crowds of the KiMgliuli |ioo|>lo nMHomhIo (o wItnosH tho
prisoner us he proeeetls southwunl. NuihImm's iticreiiso
ivs he appi*oiiohe(l <he ojipilul. The parly (hut, eon«luele(l
him spent a whoU^ day in passing along the st revets to
the Tower. A hirge pnx'ession troni it aeeonipanying the
prisoner to Westminster Hall. lleadiMl by tho tJrand
Alarshall of Kngland an<l Lonl Mayor of the Uity.
Wallaee tneanlv attired, and mounted on a sorrv horse,
Htrongly tetteixxl, t'olh)wed atYer. Calm and dignilled hh
over, and exoitvHl the eon\passion of the eiti/ens. IMaeed
hel'ore Sir Peter Mallorie, the \nn\\ rhielMustiee of Mng
h»nd. AeetisiMl of many erimes. Wallaee n»ade a nohlo
defenee. The sentenee lianded to the .ludgo by tho
King, and of the nu>st barharous eharaeter. To bo moeked
disen\boweled, hung.ipiartered. A Psalter taken fron\ tho
prisoner during his et>ntinen»ent restored to him at his
request. A gift ofhisniotherand highly prized. Perused
during all his sutVerings. Highly prized by many
others in similar eireumstnnees. The terrible senteneo
roeonied against him now earriinl out. DitVerent j)art8
of his Inxiy sent to various towns in Kngland, and in
Seotland. Intended to striko terror into the minds of
the natives of the latter eountry. Failed in doinir so.
Looktnl upon a.s saeixMi. and the street.s where they were
suspended named after the hero. His devotion and
iinseltishnoss have oonferroii upoui him a ]H}rpetuity of
famo superior to tliat of aiiy of his eountrymen. Ilia
history h;is been identitied with the dilforent localitioa of
his native land. His name hjis become a household word.
Likely to continue so.
LtFK OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACK. 383
If tho numbor of KiigliHli pooplo was largo, that
crovvdod into CarliMio to witiioHH Scotland'H horo,
now fulliMi and niiiu'd tlirouf2;li IiIh betrayal by an
intiinati^ friend, it gradually incnMiHod as tho
tjavah'ado procuuMhMl ab)ng. Tho nowH of liis rapture
gatliorod Htrongth as it niovod Houtli ward, and tho
excitoniont knew no bounds, as it noarod tho
proud IMantagonot ojipital, on tlio bankn of tlic
Thames. Mighty crowds turned out to gaze on
the niiin, who had not only fdh'd Knghmd ibr
many years, but the whole of Europe with liis
"Wonderful exploits ; and eager spectators anxiously
availed themselves of every elevation and projec-
tion, where they could have any chance of behold-
ing his perscm. So entirely did the streets become
blocked up with the dense multitudes of men,
women, and children, who in one living masH
crowilinl along, that the escort, after toiling
along for a whole day through the streets on its
way to the Tower, was compelled at night to stop
short, and lodge their prisoner in the hands of a
private citizen. Perha])S, however, all this was
meant by the cruel, designing Kdward for ellect,
and with the view of exciting the worst passions
of the people, previous to the winding up of tlie
bloody drama that was near at land. For, accord-
ing to Stowe, an English historian, his progress
from the Tower to Westminster Hall was a pro-
cession on a gigantic scale, along the whole way.
From Fenchurch street, where he was lodged, the
procession was headed by John de Segrave, the
884
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
grand marshal of England. After him came the
lord mayor, the sheriffs, and aldermen of^ the city.
And then a whole host of the barons and knights
of England, magnificently attired, and followed
by their retainers,were to be seen pushing forward
in the surging mass to see the end. In the midst
of the cavalcade was Wallace, designed to give
effect to the whole scene ; but whose mean attire,
and cruel treatment would continue to reflect ever-
lasting disgrace in all coming ages on Edward,
who was so mean as to be the occasion of both.
He was mounted on one of the most sorry horses,
that could be procured from any of the poorest
of the citizens of his proud capital. Although at the
most sultry season of the year, he was bareheaded,
and covered in one of the meanest garments that
could be put on ; while crowds of the train bands and
city officers pressed close upon his person, heavily
fettered, for the purpose of preventing his escape,
and as far as they could, endeavored to add every
possible indignity to the same. It has even been
stated that Edward had large portions of the
citizens bribed to insult him as he rode along ;
but however mean the contrivance, it only redou-
bled the monarch's disgrace, and contributed still
more to the renown and admiration of the hero.
Aware that his fate had been determined on long
before his capture, and that nothing awaited him,
but death in its most cruel form, he was prepared
to meet it with that becoming dignity and
unaffected fortitude, which had ever been characte-
rp
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
386
ristic of him. As he gazed on the crowds that
pressed upon him, or looked up to the windows or
balconies which were filled with the ^lite of this
proud city, as he passed along, he maintained the
same dignity of bearing and serenity of counte-
nance, as the great Roman patriot Regulus did,
when placed in similar circumstances, and which
drew murmurs of involuntary pity from all who
beheld him. They witnessed a man, who had
filled the world with his fame for many years past,
now entirely in the hands of his enemies, who
could have afforded to have treated him in a
different way than they happened to do ; but his
heroic bearing, under the terrible load of suffering
that now weighed him down so heavily, awaken-
ed all the sympathies of a brave and generous
people in his behalf — while his tall and majestic
figure uncrushed by the sufferings it was made to
endure, astonished every one who looked upon it.
But " mens conscia recti," had hitherto sustained
him,amid all the meanness of insult to which he was
subjected; and although a baptism of blood awaited
him, unequalled for its terrible nature in the
history of the world, with one solitary exception
perhaps, yet the same noble and possessed bearing
that marked him out when fighting for the liberties
of his country were his, now that he was passing
through such deep waters. Nay, the spirit of the
hero triumphed so mightily amid all the mon-
strous cruelties to which a heartless tyrant unne-
cesstirily subjected him, that his place was far
336
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
more to be envied than his, and all the attempts
made to disgrace him only afforded additional
means for the triumph of his magnanimity, and
the further display of his moral heroism. Insults
were heaped upon him without number, and
attempts were made at ridicule by the parties who
intended them to produce an amazing etlect
against him ; but the noble appearance of Wallace,
together with his calm and unruffled demeanor,
disarmed the whole, and the procession from the
Tower to Westminster Judgment Hall, instead of
degrading, only tended to raise him in the thoughts
of every right-thinking Englishman, when view-
ing the melancholy circumstances of the whole
case. If the day during which Wallace passed
through the streets of London, heavily manacled,
and followed by such an innumerable host, was
one of extraordinary commotion throughout the
whole capital, the excitement was none abated,
when he was presented as a prisoner at West-
minster Hall, to pass through a mock trial, at the
instance of the fierce Edward, who thirsted keenly
for his blood. The scene enacted there was of
wonderfully tragic grandeur, and far surpassed
any of the kind ever witnessed before or after in
that august place, within whose walls many a
strange judgment has been passed, deciding the
fate of many of the best of the sons of men, — at
least so far as their interests in the present world
are concerned. Edward, on this occasion, had most
studiously caused the hall to be pr-^pared in which
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
387
the mock trial was to take place, which was to
hand down his name with everlasting infamy to
coming ages. Everything was done to give an
air of grandeur to the proceedings, so as to elevate
the King, and degrade the prisoner in the eyes
of the multitude of spectators present. The cour-
tiers and guards were numerous and splendidly
attired; and the puppet judge sworn to adminis-
ter even-handed justice, ascended the tribunal,
decked in all the gorgeous judicial trapping of the
day — with the sentence of the death of the illus-
trious prisoner in his pocket, handed him by the
King some time before he was brought to trial.
The meanest apparel it was possible to select had
been previously put upon him, and now a crown
of laurel was placed upon his head, as expressive
of mockery ; while the rabble was bribed to spit
upon him. How like the mockerioiS practised upon
One of far greater importance many centuries
before in another hall, and in another city, where
murderous hate and persecution impotently
wreaked themselves upon a victim, who yet merci-
fully forgave and saves many of them, and myriads
more in all ages from a terrible doom that inevit-
ably awaited them ! When all things were ready,
Wallace was brought forward and placed at the
bar in the manner above described, when the
King's Chief Justice, Sir Peter Mallorie presided,
a name that ought to be placed side by side with
false Monteith ; for, while one was the betrayer
«f Wallace^ the other polluted the fountain of ju0-
388
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
tice, and rendered the whole trial a mockery and
solemn farce to please the King on this memorable
occasion ! " And, moreover, I saw under the sun
in the place of judgment, that wickedness was
there." " William Wallace," said the Chief Jus-
tice, " I impeach thee in the name of Edward,
King of England, Scotland and Ireland, the right-
ful ruler of these realms, as a traitor to his High-
ness; as having burnt the villages and abbeys
belonging to the first two kingdoms ; as having
stormed the castles, and miserably slain and tor-
tured the liege subjects of their master, the King.
Furthermore, thou hast persistingly continued to
bear arms against the King thyself for many
years — enticed many more to do so — shedding the
blood of multitudes, and imperilled his crown.
What say you to these heavy charges against
you?" If the facile eloquence of which the
arraigned was a master had served him on many
a trying emergency before, it eminently did so on
this occasion likewise. His calm composure, his
unruffled manner, and his dignified bearing,
hushed the court into silence at once, and with
the greatest ease he addressed himself to the
charges that were preferred. "I cannot be a
traitor," said he " to Edward, for I owe him no
allegiance ; he is not my sovereign, he never re-
ceived my homage ; and while life is in this
persecuted body he shall never receive it. I bore
myself to him, and to his servants in their at-
tempts to enslave my country, as every freeborn
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
369
Scotchman was bound to do. I encountered them
as usurpers. I chastised them. I slew many of
them with mine own arm. And it is my pride
and my boast now, when arraigned before the tri-
bunal from which I neither ask justice nor mercy,
that I did so ; and it will cheer and comfort me,
when the hour of death is near at hand, and all
the tortures of a tyrant prepared to harass and
discompose my last moments that ought to be
quietly spent in communing with my Maker. To
the other points whereof I am accused, I freely
confess them all. I have stormed castles, and
taken them, when they were the abodes of my
country's foes. I have burned villages of my
native land, when at all likely to afford shelter
and protection to those that were trying to bring
it under a cruel bondage. Abbeys and churches
I have rifled and destroyed, and the goods be-
longing to them that were taken from my country-
men at the first, and bestowed on Edward's
creatures, who swarmed into the country in the
name of ministers of religion, but merely to preach
obedience to a foreign master, I have restored ;
and if in this case I have used harshness or cruelty
towards any of God's servants, I repent me of my
sin ; but it is not of Edward of England I shall
ever ask pardon, but shall implore the mercy of
Heaven's Majesty." Such were the free and manly
utterances of Scotland's patriot noble, when
brought in contact with all the terrors of perverted
justice ; and if Edward and his puppet judge had
390
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
previously determined, by their legal proceedings,
to crush and humble him, and to excite the anti-
pathies of the great heart of the English nation
against him, they signally -failed. For sympathy
and admiration only arose at those utterances
towards him, and was quickened by the manly
defence that he had made in the presence of those
that had the power of life and of death in their
hands. Nevertheless they delayed not the passing
of the atrocious sentence Edward had studiously
concocted days before, and which even yet reflects
shame and disgrace on him, and hi« corrupt judge.
And it is strange it should have been allowed to
be uttered in the hearing of the most wealthy
and refined nobility in Europe at the time, as
the English undoubtedly were! The sentence
ran thus : — ** William Wallace (said the Chief
Justice) for treason thou shalt first be dragged
upon a hurdle to the place of execution. For
robbery and murder thou shalt be there and then
hung a certain time by the neck. Because thou
bast burnt abbeys and religious houses thou shalt be
taken alive from the gibbet, thine intestines torn
out and burnt before thee, thy body quartered, and
the parts thereof disposed of according to the cle-
mency of his Majesty King Edward." The bloody
deeds of a Nero or a Caligula, the atrocious judicial
murder of the monster Robespiere and his asso-
ciates, during the time of the reign of terror in
France, pale before these terrible utterances of an
ermined sycophant, polluting the fountain head of
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE. 391
jusUce ! Moreover, the sentence passed, the chief
justice informed the accused, was to be recorded
in the books of the august council over which he
presided, to witness against him for ever ! To wit-
ness against him for ever ! No ! it was to witness
against himself, and his cruel unfeeling master,
whom he cringingly served ; and being still on
the statute book unaltered — unerased — it reminds
a brave and generous people still of the contend-
ings of their noblest son even unto a death of the
cruellest character, for liberties thus secured for
them ! And the body was to be disposed of accord-
ing to the clemency of the King ! The clemency
of the King ! Ah ! the tender mercies of such a
one were cruel ! The condemned hero indeed
" died as seldom any of the sons of men died " ; and
that the body should have been quartered and sus-
pended so long in some of the cities where he had
performed several of his heroic exploits, was an
insult to the feelings of his countrymen, and to
those of the civilized world at the time, instead of
a mark of clemency ! The flesh of nearly every
one shivered and creeped at listening to a sentence
which equalled any in its atrocity, that all the
fiends united, in the abodes of darkness, could
have ever devised! One man alone in all the
agitated assembly, and to whom it most particu-
larly referred, was but little affected by it — he
heeded it not, neither regarded he its consequences ;
but his contenance, which before this was pale
and haggard from the monstrous treatment he had
392
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
received, had begun to be lighted up with a beam
of ineffable delight and joyous satisfaction — anti-
cipating the short period when the turbid dream
of life would close, and his weary pilgrimage would
terminate for ever. Rising up therefore into his
wonted majestic proportions, and lifting his eyes to
heaven, he gave utterance to the following brief
but expressive prayer : " Thanks be to the Majesty
on High. I am now approaching the close of my
weary journey upon earth — receive me, oh ye
angels of light, at the portals of Paradise, and carry
me into the bosom of the Martyr who died for me
on Calvary." Such devout aspirations, it is said,
disarmed for the time being the stern but unjust
judge, who sat upon the bench, of all his cruel
severity, and melted the whole of the vast
assembly into a copious flood of tears. The
trial of sham and cruel mockery was now finished,
and the sentence passed upon the heroic prisoner
who had been placed at the bar, through treachery
and cruel hate, was now to be carried out in all its
terrible reality. Discrowned and chained, he was
now to be subjected to a mode of suffering which
we will be bold to assert has nothing to equal it,
and which will bear down the name of the insti-
gator of it, notwithstanding his warlike exploits,
to all future ages with everlasting shame and in-
famy. The condemned was ordered to be drag-
ged at the tail of horses from the hall of justice,
where the sentence had been passed against him,
onward through the streets for a certain distance.
LIFE 07 SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
333
Thereafter he was placed on a wretched hurdle,
fitted up for the purpose, and surrounded by a
strong guard of soldiers, he was dragged to the
Elms at Smithfield, where a high gallows was fit-
ted up for him, near to the place where many
afterwards were doomed to suffer like himself, as
martyrs of truth. " Oh ! liberty, what strange
things have been done in thy name !" During
the whole *of this new ordeal through which
the patriot-hero passed, he manifested the
same spirit he had previously done, and excited,
if possible, a deeper interest and admiration
in his person than before. Meek and unshrink-
ing, yet noble and dignified, he maintained
the same self-possession, the same undaunt-
ed behavior, when condemned to die ; and now
that he felt it to be a solemn reality, in the ter-
rible insignia of death that were openly exhibit-
ed before him, he appeared, as he had ever done,
calm and serene, and powerfully exhibited in his
behalf the feelings of all that were about him.
Engrossed with spiritual contemplations and the
realities of the world unseen, the champion of a
nation's rights forgot the scaffold, the gallows, and
the multitudes that gazed upon his person, and
earnestly requested of the Earl of Gloucester, who
was standing near, to let him have the privilege
of a priest, to whom he might confess himself,
before appearing before the Judge of all the
earth, to whom he appealed for mercy and for-
giveness. Strange to say this was forbidden him
394
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
by Edward, who waited on to see the last of his
greatest earthly foe, and to finish up the bloody
drama he had planned with such exquisite cruelty.
But happily for the honor of good old England
in all the days that were to come, there was one
present who was far less subservient to the King
than Judge Mallorie, and openly rebuked him for
entering into a province that did not belong to
him. Overhearing with shame the disgraceful
refusal of the King, to grant the dying hero his
last request, the Archbishop of Canterbury, who
stood near the scaffold, and with tearful eye wit-
nessed the noble victim now to be devoted to de-
struction, felt indignant at it, and resolved to
comply with it, however much it might displease
the King.
" The church (said this noble and pious prelate)
will not suffer any of her penitent children, what-
soever may be their guilt, or to whatsoever
country or kindred they belong, to request the
office of a priest in his last moments, and be re-
fused ; and I myself will officiate, since no other
appears so near." And having thus spoken he
ascended the scaffold, approached the condemned
patriot with the greatest kindness and respect,
and having received his confession forthwith gave
him absolution. Thereafter he quitted the scene
of blood for ever, proceeded to Westminster, and
as one at least of England's sons, entered a solemn
protest against the unheard-of cruelties that were
about to follow, and which yet fix a deep stain on
the principal instigator of them.
LIFE OF STR WILLIAM WALLACE.
395
During the pause that followed the unhallowed
proceedings that went before, the mind of Wallace,
calm and unshaken as it had ever been, seemed to
have forgotten all injuries and insults offered on all
hands, and became largely occupied with obj-ctsof
much higher moment. Accordingly he turned to
Lord Clifford, who stood near by, and earnestly
entreated that a psalter, that was removed from
his person some time before, should be restored to
him. The removal of it had caused him much
uneasiness and grief, as it was bequeathed to him
when young by his pious and devoted mother,
whose great object from the first was to impress
upon the mind of her son the sacred precepts this
interesting portion of Divine Writ inculcated.
And we have no doubt her efforts were crowned
with success, for this sacred treasure he ever
carried along with him, whether concealed amid
the thickets of the forest, or waging a fierce and
bloody strife with the enemies of his country.
It was amongst the first articles of property he
appeared to have owned, and the last he died
possessed of, shewing us the great value he put
upon it, and how sacred its precepts were to him
in this his deep hour of trouble. After the con-
sideration the archbishop had shewn towards him
in regard to confession and absolution, the psalter
was returned to its owner, and as his hands were
chained, he desired a priest who stood near to
hold it up before him, which he kindly consented
to do, while he continued to look upon it with
396
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
the deepest feelings of love and affection. And
even when he was taken down from the gallows,
breathing, and apparently sensible, his eyes con-
tinued immovably fixed on this sacred trust, as
they continued to be long afterwards, when the
terrible work of tearing out and burning his in-
testines before him, was carried out according
to the cruel sentence previously passed upon him.
" Virtue, valor, nought avail'd
With 80 mercilesH a foe ;
When the nerves of heroes fail'd
Cowards then could strike a blow."
How precious the book of psalms has appeared
to all who have studied it carefully, and when
placed in trying circumstances ! " For all good
necessary to be known, or done, or had this celes-
tial fountain yieldeth." Let there be any grief
or disease incident into the soul of man, any
wound, any sickness named, and in this there is a
treasure house, a present comfortable remedy at
all times to be found. Like the paradise of Eden
every tree that is pleasant to the sight and
good for food, and above all the tree of life in the
midst of the garden is to be found. As it was
the manual of Wallace, so the book of psalms ap-
pears to have been the manual of the Son of God
when He tabernacled among men ; for at the con-
clusion of His last supper, He sung a hymn taken
from psalms, as the Jews did on similar occasions.
And he expired with part of the psalter on his
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
397
lips: "Into thy hands I commend ray spirit."
The horrid process of embowelling continued till
at last his heart broke while enduring untold suf-
ferings ; and he expired among the hands of his
tormentors with all the calmness and passive he-
roism that one might expect at *he hands of so
glorious and elevated a character. The powerful
arm of the last of the freemen of an ancient
people " was thus unstrung beneath the knife of
the executioner," that Samson-like had performed
feats of valor that have few if any equals in ancient
or modern times. And that great heartthat felt so
intensely over the wrongs of its country, and
that never shrunk from danger when its inter-
ests or liberties were at stake, now ceased to
groan and beat amid the perplexing flames of mar-
tyrdom. His cruel enemies, not satisfied with
abusing him while living, even refused him a
grave, which the vilest malefactors have generally
found after death. They struck off his head, quar-
tered his body, and placed his head upon London
bridge, according to the clemency of the King.
They sent his right arm to Newcastle, his left to
Berwick, the right leg to Perth, and the left to
Aberdeen. Langtoft, the garrulous English his-
torian, seems quite elevated when recording these
great feats of Edward's policy ; for he says : " they
hewed his body into four quarters, which were
hung up in four towns as warning to all who, like
him, raised their arms against their lord, that the
mangled remains would be gazed upon by the Scots,
398
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
instead of his banners and gonfannons which they
had once so proudly disphiyed." But the historian,
and his sovereign were never more mistaken in
their heartless calculations, which they happened
to make on this occasion, for the blood of Scotland's
bravest son thus wantonly shed became the seed
of Scottish liberty, that was soon tj spring up and
bear abundant fruit. And these limbs and arms
of his thus wantonly displayed, instead of strik-
ing terror into the minds of his countrymen, only
filled their hearts with more pity towards him
whom they tenderly loved while living, and made
them revere and canonize his memory while dead.
They looked at them in their mutilated form, and
considered them more rich and glorious trophies
than the most brilliant banner they had ever car-
ried before their chief, and the sight of them mad-
dened them to desperation, and hurried them on to
execute vengeance on the tyrant whose deeds of
cruelty they would ever execrate. Thousands of
his countrymen hurried to the towns where por-
tions of his body were suspended, and with moist-
ened eyes looked upon the last remains of one
whose memory was sacred ; and the portions of
the streets where they hung became hallowed
also, and still bear his name. And thus it came
about, that this devotion to his country, and un-
selfishness of spirit, that caused him to sacrifice
everything to its freedom, have been repaid a
thousand fold, by conferring upon him a perpetuity
superior to that enjoyed by any other of his coun-
T
1
t
LIFE OF SIR iriLLlAM WALLACE.
399
trymen. The story of his romantic and wonder-
ful history has become identified with the rocks
and mountains of his native Scothmd. It has
been handed down from father to son for centuries,
amid the glens and lonely solitudes of the same ;
BO that the name of Wallace Wight has become a
household word which nothing is likely ever to
displace, and bids fair to be as immortal* as those
rugged and immutable beauties of nature, that re-
main to mark out the feats of his glorious career.
" In many a castle, town and plain,
Mountain and forest, still remain
Fondly cherished spots, which claim
The proud distinction of his name."
THE END.
NOTE.
At page 336 (" Still are the Scots determined to
oppose," &c.,) read :
*' Thrice happy they beneath their northern skies,
Who that worst fear, the fear of death, despise I
Hence they no cares for this frail b jing feel,
But rush undaunted on the pointeo steel.
id to
les,