Conquest of Scotland: King Edward I and William Wallace - Coursework Example

Conquest of Scotland Introduction Scotland witnessed a series of conflicts with England during the late thirteenth century as the latter tried to occupy and conquer Scotland. The English invasion of Scotland began in 1296 and ended after the treaty of Edinburgh-Northampton was signed in 1328. The end of the conflict would witness Scotland retain its independence. The crisis began when King Alexander III of Scotland died in 1286 while leaving his three year old granddaughter as his successor. A marriage was agreed between his granddaughter, Margaret and the son of Edward I, King of England which resulted in a treaty which joined Scotland and England. The death of Margaret would witness a power struggle between the Scottish nobility. Some Scottish nobles feared that a civil conflict would ruin Scotland, they appealed to King Edward I to intervene and avoid civil conflict. Edward I mobilized his military forces and threatened the Scottish nobles to accept him as Lord Paramount of Scotland. The Scottish did not have an army and were powerless to resist or defy Edward I. Balliol, a Scottish noble was chosen as the King of Scots. He paid homage to Edward I but the King of England wanted to treat Scotland as a vassal state. As Balliol defied the demands of Edward I, he was summoned to England and to provide Scottish forces for the invasion of France. John Balliol met with his nobles who called for resistance against Edward I. John also signed a pact with France in which he informed the French of the intentions of the English. The pact called for the use of Scottish troops to invade England when their forces should attack France. Edward I became aware of the secret alliance and began to strengthen the defenses of England in its border with Scotland. The mobilization of English troops led to John Balliol summoning Scottish people to gather arms and prepare for the invasion. This was ignored by several Scottish nobles who had their estates and lands seized by Balliol. King Edward I King Edward I was a famous ruler of England because of his conquest of Wales. He was also renowned in England for his attempt to conquer Scotland. He acceded to the throne of England in 1274. He achieved fame as a military ruler during the Crusades and the conquest of Wales. Llywelyn, who was the Prince of Wales, had failed to pay homage to Edward. In response an army was raised which invaded Wales. Llywelyn was forced to pay homage to Edward and his territory was reduced. Another rebellion occurred in 1282 during which the English were initially not prepared to handle. Edward responded to the rebellion with brute force as the rebellion was ruthlessly put down. Wales was eventually integrated with the Kingdom of England. Scotland was another area where Edward I had placed his eyes on. The marriage of Margaret with his son was considered to create a union between Scotland and England. However the untimely death of Margaret led to several claimants to the throne of Scotland. The Scottish nobility invited Edward I to intervene and prevent civil war. However Edward insisted on being recognized as the Lord Paramount of Scotland. Edward was recognized as the overlord of Scotland after weeks of negotiations with the Scottish nobility with a provision that this would be temporary. He immediately began to decide who would be the best ruler of Scotland. He ruled in favor of John Balliol in 1292. Edward however had no intentions of dropping his claims as the overlord of Scotland. This was bitterly resented by the Scottish King and nobles. As Edward began to demand that the Scottish provide military assistance in the invasion of France, Balliol decided to defy and resist the demands. A treaty was signed with France which called for a joint invasion of England. The Scottish invasion of England was repelled as Edward sent a massive English army to devastate Scotland1. The English won important victories as the Dunbar and Edinburgh2. Balliol was stripped of his crown and imprisoned in London. Opposition to King Edward I immediately sprung up in the form of several resistance leaders. Resistance and discontent The English occupation of Scotland generated widespread resentment and disorder. Two significant patriots emerged which included Andrew de Moray and William Wallace. Andrew de Moray was the son of a Scottish nobleman who was captured by the English during the Battle of Dunbar in 1296. He escaped from his prison at Chester Castle in 1296. He returned to his Northern lands in Scotland where he created an army of guerillas who resisted the English occupation. He openly defied the English at Avoch which resulted in hundreds of supporters joining his camp. Moray created a band of patriots who used hit and run tactics to attack and devastate English castles from Banff to Inverness. The province of Moray was in revolt against King Edward I. One of Moray’s arch foes was the arrogant Sir Reginald Cheyne whose lands and goods were attacked. His castle at Duffus was burned and destroyed by Andrew Moray’s forces. Cheyne was taken prisoner which led to thousands of people joining Moray. English held castles across Moray and Northern Scotland all fell before the might of Andrew Moray’s forces3. Edward immediately responded to these events by raising an army of Scottish nobles to pacify the province of Moray. The Comyn brothers were authorized by Edward I to respond to the rebellion and crush it. However the engagement was not decisive as historical records appear vague about the confrontation between both forces. Andrew Morey would eventually combine his forces with William Wallace4. The combined forces of Morey and Wallace would inflict a crushing defeat on the English at the Battle of Stirling Bridge. William Wallace William Wallace remains one of the most famous Scottish patriots who heroically and valiantly resisted the English occupation. Wallace became famous after the assassination of the English sheriff of Lanark. Wallace achieved fame as he collected a band of followers who began to launch devastating hit and run attacks against the English. One of his famous exploits was when he lured the English from Ardrossan Castle into the town. Wallace successfully killed off the men one by one and captured the castle. Another one of his famous exploits was when the entire garrison at Ayr was killed by Wallace and his men. Selkirk Forest remained the area of safety for Wallace and his band of patriots. The Battle of Stirling Bridge is the most famous event of William Wallace5. Wallace combined his forces with that of Andrew Moray. The Earl of Surrey was leading an army of three thousand cavalry and ten thousand infantry. As they moved across the bridge across a river, many of the solders were trapped which prevented them from crossing together. The Scots killed half of the English soldiers as they tried to pass the bridge. Wallace’s forces led a charge which caused some of the English soldiers to retreat. This led to the collapse of the bridge as many English soldiers were drowned. The Battle of Stirling Bridge was a huge victory for the Scottish resistance forces6. Wallace was knighted along with his companions John Graham and William Crawford. The six months after Stirling Bridge led to several raids that devastated Northern England. Wallace’s purpose was to intimidate Edward. Capture and execution The Battle of Falkirk was a defeat for William Wallace as the English began an invasion of Scotland. However they failed to capture Wallace7. The Scots used a scorched earth policy which devastated the morale of the English army. However Falkirk was not a decisive battle as Dunbar was. Despite the damage in the fame of William Wallace, Scotland was not completely conquered. Edward’s army was weakened by hunger and disease. It could not fight a sustained campaign in Scotland. A large part of the army was dismissed as many soldiers became deserters. Wallace evaded capture from the English until 1305 when he was handed over to English soldiers by a Scottish knight loyal to the English monarchy. He was tried for treason and executed. Consequences and results of Wallace rebellion The death of William Wallace did not end the struggle for Scottish independence. Wallace became an inspiration for the Scottish people to continue the struggle for independence. Even in death, Wallace remained a symbol of defiance against the English occupation. Wallace resigned from his role as the leader of the independence struggle after Falkirk. He remained a renowned figure who went to France to seek assistance for the struggle. His legacy was that he renewed the spirit of independence and sovereignty for his people. He became a famous figure of the independence movement despite having no popular base. His inspiration helped the Scottish people to achieve independence from the more powerful English in the South. After Wallace Edward’s forces could not achieve any decisive victory after Falkirk. A truce was signed with the Scots and his army returned to England. In 1301, Edward I launched his new campaign to conquer Scotland. This attack was launched in a two prong offensive with one launched by his son, and another under his own command. There were no decisive battles which led to the signing of a nine month truce between the two kingdoms. Robert the Bruce submitted to Edward I even though he was with the patriots. Many reasons have been stated about why Robert of Bruce wanted to turn over to King Edward I. There were concerns that they would lose their lands and castles if the rebellion failed. The Scottish patriots also suffered a loss when King Philip IV of France stopped supporting the rebellion. An army was sent by King Edward as the nine month truce began to end. An army led by Sir John Segrave was however ambushed by the Scots. The victory turned out to be an illusion. A peace treaty signed between the French king and English king also ended the French support for the Scottish independence movement. Edward launched the final invasion of Scotland. This was launched in May 1303, as two divisions advanced from the east and west. Most of the country was put under submission. A peace treaty was signed between both sides. Robert Bruce remained loyal to Edward from the outside but was secretly harboring his own ambitions8. Scotland was absorbed into England in 1305. Robert Bruce, King of Scotland Robert Bruce succeeded William Wallace along with John Comyn. Bruce became the King of Scotland after a pact was signed with William Lamberton. The capture and execution of Wallace in 1305 seemed to have ended the resistance against the English as Scotland had been pacified. However in 1306, Bruce killed John Comyn during a struggle between the two. Comyn had secretly informed King Edward of Bruce’s plan to become the king of Scotland. Bruce now recognized that he had no option but to fight or be killed. He was crowned the King of Scots. His early efforts to create a kingdom were unsuccessful until the death of King Edward I. At the Battle of Methven and Strathfillan he was defeated and surprised. The death of King Edward I was a decisive factor in turning the tide against the English. Bruce and his followers began a guerilla war in southwest Scotland. They won victories at the Battle of Glen Trool and Loudoun Hill9. They also captured Inverlochy, Urguhart and burned other English held castles on the way. The Battle of Inverurie in 1308 was a decisive defeat for the British10. The English garrison was also wiped out at Aberdeen. The final battle was the Battle of Pass of Brander and Dunstaffnage Castle. Bruce was recognized as the King of Scotland. The year 1310-1312 saw the final expulsion of the English from Scotland. Bruce’s strategy for eight years had been to avoid the English on their grounds. Bruce had finally achieved the liberation of Scotland at the battle of Bannockburn in 1314. Conclusion The conquest of Scotland by England was a disastrous policy for the people of England and Scotland. The Scottish people lost their independence for some time. They saw their lands devastated and titles seized by the English. They had to pay heavy taxes to the English. Scotland was reduced to the level of a vassal state by King Edward I. The Scottish nobility was also bitterly divided and feuding with each other to mount any serious opposition to the English. Even though initially King Edward I had managed to defeat and dethrone King John Balliol, the occupation of Scotland was not a peaceful manner for the English. Charismatic and brilliant leaders like William Wallace and Andrew Morey used hit and run tactics to immobilize the English army. They also devastated the lands, castles and properties of the English. Many English soldiers and officials were killed by the guerilla tactics of Morey and Wallace. Morey and Wallace would combine their forces to defeat the English at the Battle of Stirling Bridge. Edward I defeated the forces of Wallace in the Battle of Falkirk. Wallace resigned as the leader of the Scottish resistance, but was captured and executed by the English. King Edward I launched a renewed assault on Scotland which eventually led again to a temporary occupation. However after the death of King Edward I, Bruce the King of Scotland continued a heroic struggle for eight years. Scotland would eventually achieve independence after years of struggle against the powerful English. Works Cited: "King Edward I: England’s Warrior King ." historymedren. historymedren. 19 Jul 2008 . "Andrew Murray." Undiscovered Scotland: The Ultimate Online Guide. Undiscovered Scotland: The Ultimate Online Guide. 19 Jul 2008 . "William Wallace." BBC History. BBC History. 19 Jul 2008 . Campbell, Roy . "Sir William Wallace." William Wallace (c1270 - 1305). 19 Jul 2008 . . Read More