William Wallace

Guardian of Scotland

Born: c. 1270 · Elderslie (or Ellerslie), Ayrshire/Renfrewshire, Scotland

Died: August 23, 1305 · Smithfield, London (executed)

Education: Traditionally schooled by clergy uncles; little is documented of his early life

Pre-war: Younger son of a Scottish knightly family

"I could not be a traitor to Edward, for I was never his subject."

Biography

A younger son of the minor Scottish gentry, William Wallace erupted into history in 1297, killing the English sheriff of Lanark and rallying a popular rising against Edward I's occupation. With Andrew Moray he destroyed an English army at Stirling Bridge and was knighted and named Guardian of Scotland in the name of the exiled King John Balliol — a commoner leading a nation. His defeat by the longbow at Falkirk in 1298 cost him the Guardianship, and for years he fought on as a raider and travelled to France seeking aid. Betrayed and captured near Glasgow in 1305, he was dragged to London, given a show trial for treason he defiantly rejected, and hanged, drawn, and quartered, his limbs displayed across the kingdom. The brutality backfired: within months Robert the Bruce raised the banner again, and Wallace became the immortal symbol of Scottish freedom.

Did you know?

The account of his life owes much to the 15th-century epic poem by 'Blind Harry,' written nearly two centuries after his death and the basis for much of the modern legend.

Key Battles

Battle of Stirling Bridge

Kingdom of Scotland victory

September 11, 1297 · 6,000 total casualties

The first great Scottish victory proved a foot army of commoners could destroy English cavalry, and made Wallace the leader of the resistance — Guardian of Scotland in the name of the exiled Balliol.

Battle of Falkirk

Kingdom of England victory

July 22, 1298 · 10,000 total casualties

Falkirk was the first great demonstration of the massed longbow, the weapon that would dominate the coming century of Anglo-French and Anglo-Scottish war. Wallace resigned the Guardianship and took to guerrilla resistance and diplomacy abroad.

Life Journey

Timeline

c. 1270

🌅 Birth

Born in Renfrewshire

September 1297

⚔️ Battle

Triumphs at Stirling Bridge; made Guardian

July 1298

⚔️ Battle

Defeated at Falkirk; resigns the Guardianship

August 23, 1305

✝️ Death

Executed for treason at Smithfield, London