William Wallace was born in a little town called Elerslie, in Scotland, around January 1272. “He was the second of three sons to Sir Malcolm Wallace” (Waters).
His mother taught him his basic education, until he was six to seven years of age (Chung).
At this time and age, the second male son of a family was obligated, by tradition, to obtain education by a clergy member of a monastery, and eventually become a clergy member himself. It is unknown, by historians, how William averted this tradition (Ewart).
During this time the English king, Edward Plantagenet I, also called Edward de Longshanks (McHale), was taking over Scotland.
The king of England issued all the people of Scotland to pay homage to him. Sir Malcolm Wallace was entirely against this. He made this widely known. He eventually became titled as an outlaw by King Edward, and was on the run from the English along with his oldest son Malcolm. Sir Reginald de Crauford, William’s grandfather, administered the homage to be paid to Edward I and noticed that his son-in-law’s name did not appear on the list that he compiled (Chung).
He sent his daughter and grandsons to Cambuskenneth Abbey in Dunipace to live with Sir Malcolm’s younger brother who was a cleric there. This is where William received the remainder of his education.
“His uncle instilled in him moral maxims compactly framed in Latin, and referred frequently to the great classic authors” (McHale).
The Term Paper on Robert The Bruce William Edward Wallace
... Ragman's Roll, acknowledging Edward as their king. Edward had taken over rule of Scotland, at the time William Wallace, along with ... his father in 1291 that William became heavily involved in the Scottish rebellion. William's father, Sir Malcolm Wallace, Laird of Ellerslie, was ... crown passed to his son Edward II of England. Following the death of William Wallace, King Edward might have hoped that ...
At the monastery he learned the passion and love of liberty he so frequently displayed as an adult. By the time William completed his education his father died. Sir Malcolm was murdered by an English knight, named Fenwick. The news of William’s father’s death spread quickly. A few months after, William was branded an outlaw, because he killed a man taunting him of his father’s death.
This started whole slew of killings and Wallace’s rebellion against the English. Williams Wallace first appears in history early in 1297. This was a few months after Edward de Longshanks had stationed English soldiers in Scotland, and deposed of the King of Scots, John Balliol. William is roughly the age of twenty five when this happened. Only with a handful of troops, Wallace attacked Lanark and killed William Heselrigg, the sheriff. After Heselrigg’s death he leads an effective operation against the English strongholds and gets a hold of their attention (Ewart/Waters).
William led a very seclusive life. He did not really have time to settle down and build a family, but he did have a wife, her name was Marrion Braidfoot. He married her secretly in 1297. The English eventually found out about this and had her killed. There are many rumors in the Scotland, that they were not secretly married, but there is no proof of this. “Serious historical study of Wallace is hard to find” (King).
Wallace was enraged with Marrion’s death.
The English had now killed his father, older brother, and now his wife. They also persecuted his mother until her death. All now that was left of the Wallace family was William and John. These brothers became very close. John also became one of the top leader’s in William’s army of outlaws. During early September in 1297 was William Wallace’s most famous and overcoming battle.
The battle of Stirling Bridge was won by the stupidity of the English rather than the cunningness of the Scottish army, as many people today are lead to believe (Davis).
This particular battle was fought on marshy lands, and that fact right there gave the Scottish an advantage. The English and Scottish were both on opposite sides of River Forth. The knights of the English decided to make the first move. They had to cross Stirling Bridge which was not all that big or sturdy at the time. Wallace’s army of outlaws rigged the bridge with explosives and waited until the half English army was on the bridge, and they blew the bridge up.
The Essay on Sir William Wallace Scotland English Army
... of Sir William Wallace and to claim Scotland as his own. (web) The nobles of Scotland started to become more involved in English customs and ... aimed upon them. Soon after, behind the Scottish ranks, appeared to be a fresh army advancing. They were only the servants, drivers, ...
Then, the Scots went to the other side of the river and killed the rest of them. This victory gave the people of Scotland hope. In early1298, William Wallace was knighted for his victory at Stirling Bridge, by Robert the sixteenth Earl of Bruce, “the leading contender for the Scottish crown” (Gibson).
He was also was awarded the title Guardian of Scotland, so William Wallace now became known as Sir William Wallace the Guardian of Scotland. Months after William was knighted, he was faced, once again, against the English at Falkirk. “The English army had 2,500 heavy cavalry and 1,200 foot soldiers, far outnumbering the Scottish forces” (Davis).
The Scottish Army decided to use spears in order to put up with the cavalry. This however did not work. The English divided their cavalry in four units and used their longbow men to overcome the Scottish. This was a major loss to Wallace’s army. William barely escaped with his life. With this devastating loss and he resigned his position as Guardian of Scotland.
“The English could not, however, conquer Scotland” (Davis) William Wallace was so humiliated by his defeat he ran away from Scotland. For seven years, he tried to get rid of the English through politics. He tried to convince the French king to side with Scotland and declare war with the English, but he failed in this attempt. He was very close, but the French king had his own rebellion to worry about. After his attempts to get support, he operated as a guerilla fighter from the Scottish forests. He had to keep in hiding because all of England was after him. After Wallace was gone, and France did not to go to war with England, it was easy for Edward de Longshanks to take over Scotland.
As one of their terms of peace, the Scottish people had to hand over William to England. On August 3, 1305, William was tricked into attending a meeting at Robert Rae’s house. He was captured by Scots and handed over to the English just like they agreed. Wallace was taken to London and tried for treason. The trial was held on August 22, 1305. His defense was that he could not have committed treason because he never swore allegiance to King Edward. He was convicted despite that fact. He was hanged, cut down while still alive, disemboweled, his heart was flung into the fire and then he was beheaded and cut into four pieces, on the same day of his trial. His last words were his family’s motto, pro libertate which means for freedom.
The Essay on William Wallace Scotland English Web
William Wallace was born in January of the year 1272. He was the second of three sons. Wallace was born in the town of Ellerslie, which was in Scotland. His Father Sir Malcolm Wallace held the title of knight but had no political power. Wallace's Father was involved in a rebellion called Turnberry Band when William was 14 years old and was sent to live with his uncle Argil e. His Uncle taught ...
A quarter of Wallace was sent to Newcastle, Berwick, Perth and Dundee, as a public exhibition and a warning to the people that you should not rebel again England or the king (Chung/Davis).
After the death of Wallace, Edward thought Scotland was now his, but he forgot about Robert the Bruce. Robert fought his way through many battles and towards victory, and eventually became King of Scotland. “In the year 1314, the patriots of Scotland, starving and outnumbered, charged the fields of Bannockburn. They fought like warrior poets. They fought like Scotsmen, and won their freedom” (Gibson).
William Wallace led a very hard life, but in the end he changed a nation.
He instilled patriotism back into the hearts of the Scottish people. He taught them that there is so much more to life than being pushed around by an English king. Even though he did not get to experience that freedom he fought so hard for, he is still, to this day, considered to be responsible for the freedom of Scotland Outline Thesis statement: In order to appreciate the true value of freedom one must understand the hardships and trials people faced in order to obtain that freedom. I. Basic Information on William Wallace A. Introduction B. Birth II.
Edward Plantagenet I’s actions A. Sir Malcolm’s action B. Consequences III. Sir Malcolm’s death A. Result of Sir Malcolm’s death B. Beginning of Wallace’s rebellion against England IV.
Death of William Helselrigg V. William’s seclusive life VI. Marrion Braidfoot VII. Deaths and consequences Wallace’s loved ones faced A. William and John B. John becomes leader VIII. Battle of Stirling Bridge A.
Circumstances and conditions B. English army C. Wallace’s army D. Wallace’s knighthood and newfound title IX. Battle at Falkirk A. Settings B. Outcome X. William’s attempt at politics XI.
William’s capture A. Trial B. Death XII. Scotland’s freedom A. Robert the Bruce B. 1314 Works Cited Chung, Kyn Wai.
The Essay on William Wallace Scotlands Braveheart
in January of 1272 and died Aug. 23 1305. William Wallace led his people in battles to defeat the English. He was the second of three son's. Was born and raised in a town called Elerslie. His Father Malcolm Wallace owned a certain amount of land under his title(a knight) and lived a relatively peaceful life.Wallace stood at 6 foot 7 inches. Which was a giant in the 13th Century. He had incredible ...
“From Outlaw to Guardian of Scotland”. 14 Nov. 2004 Davis, Rel. The Truth about Braveheart. 11 Nov. 2004 Ewart, Matt. Matt Ewart’s Wallace essay.
09 Nov, 2003 Fish, Steve. Scottish Clan Names. 09 Nov. 2004 Gibson, Mel. Braveheart. Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation, 1995. King, Elspeth. The true story of Braveheart.
09 Nov. 2004 McHale, Martin. “The Flower of Scotland”. 09 Nov. 2004 Waters, Paul. The Great Man Himself c.1300.
09 Nov. 2004.
