on the eve of Bannockburn
the burgesses of Edinburgh
Scots who hae with Wallace bled
Scots wham Bruce has aften led
Welcome to your gory bed
Or to victorie.
| Year | Event | Commentary |
|---|---|---|
| c. 1124 | Robert de Brus, the first Lord of Annandale, is granted the lands of Annandale by David I of Scotland. | The first "Bruce" was one of the Norman noblemen who accompanied David when he became governor of Cumbria; the lands of Annandale were in a key location for the defense of Scotland, for they covered the western approach to Scotland from England, and they were a buffer against the "wild men of Galloway". |
| c. 1220 | Robert Bruce, "the Noble" (to contemporaries) or "the Competitor" (to posterity), is born. | |
| 1238 | The Competitor is designated as Alexander III's heir — that monarch is still childless, and Balliol has yet to be born. | The Scot's during Alexander's reign were constantly having to deal with issues of the succession, for Alexander did not produce a male heir until late in his reign, and the boy was not strong. |
| 1245 | The Competitor succeeds his father as the fifth Lord of Annandale; grandfather of the future king, this Bruce was one of the leading nobles in England and Scotland. | |
| c. 1270 | The Competitor joins Lord Edmund, Henry III's younger son, on a crusade to Tunis and the Holy Land. | Bruce's grandfather made this trip when he was 50 years old — he was a man of incredible vigor and stamina; we can only surmise the impact that these travels had on the elder Bruce, for he came in contact with the dynamic civilizations of the Mediterranean, including the city-states of Italy and the Byzantine Empire. |
| 1272 | Robert Bruce, son of the Competitor and father to the future king, marries Marjorie of Carrick, and thus becomes the Earl of Carrick. | With this marriage the Bruce family comes to represent the mixing of peoples in Scotland: the people of Annandale was primarily Anglo-Norman, whereas the people of Carrick were Gaelic. |
| 1274 | The future king, and sixth Robert Bruce, is born to Robert and Marjorie, probably at Turnberry Castle; Bruce's parentage, and heritage, was a mixture of Gaelic and Gallic (Celtic and Norman). | |
| 1286 | Death of Alexander III; election of the six Guardians. | "When Alexander III died, young Robert Bruce was well on his way to manhood. His birth, and for all we know his character as a boy and a youth, may have given special stimulus tohis tough old grandfather as he prepared to put forward his claim to the throne. The Competitor would hardly have fought so keenly for his spineless, colourless son: but already in the youngest Bruce he must have beheld a more fiery mettle" (Barrow, 1988, p. 26). |
| 1290 | Death of Queen Margaret, "the Maid of Norway"; Bishop Fraser requests Edward I to intervene. | Margaret, still a child, dies in the Orkney Islands on her voyage from Norway to Scotland. |
| 1291 | Edward is accepted as Lord Superior of Scotland | In Edward's eyes, the vassalage of Scotland is complete. |
| 1292 | Court of Claims pronounces judgement in favor of John Balliol; Bruce's father resigns earldom of Carrick to his son, the future king. | |
| 1293 | After resisting Edward's demands that major Scots' cases be tried in English courts, Balliol submits as Edward's liege vassal. | |
| 1295 | Bruce's grandfather, "the Competitor", dies. | |
| 1296 | War between Balliol and Edward; sack of Berwick; Ragman Roll; John earl Warenne becomes Edward's governor of Scotland. | Eventually Edward's poor treatment is too much for even John Balliol, and King John goes to war — Edward's reaction is swift and savage; when Edward sacked Berwick, it was the largest and most prosperous town in Scotland, with a population of about 17,000 — Edward had all of the citizenry killed, men, women, and children, and left the bodies decaying in the streets. |
| 1297 | While Edward is in Flanders, Andrew Murray leads a revolt in Moray, Wallace in Lanark, and Bruce in Carrick; Wallace and Murray defeat Warenne's army at the Battle of Stirling Bridge. | Robert the Bruce
|
| 1298 | Wallace is appointed Guardian; Edward returns and defeats Wallace at the Battle of Falkirk; Wallace resigns Guardianship, Bruce and Comyn are appointed joint Guardians. | |
| 1299 | Scots take Stirling Castle; Lamberton is appointed third Guardian, in the hopes he can mediate between Bruce and Comyn. | |
| 1301 | After the joint Guardianship proves unworkable, John de Soules appointed soul Guardian. | |
| 1302 | Bruce submits to Edward and "comes into his peace"; Bruce marries Elizabeth de Burgh. | Elizabeth de Burgh is the daughter of the Earl of Ulster, one of Edward's staunchest lieutenants; we can only surmise, but it appears that Bruce was vacillating between two positions, one being an independent Scotland, the other being a united kingdom under Edward's rule — Bruce was probably weighing his options primarily in terms of personal ambition. |
| 1303 | Edward invades Scotland; Battle of Roslin. | Isabel, Countes of Buchan
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| 1304 | Fall of Stirling; Scots leaders submit to Edward; Bruce's father dies. | |
| 1305 | Wallace captured and executed; Westminster Parliament draws up the Ordinance for the Governance of Scotland. | |
| 1306 | Bruce murders Comyn at Dumfries; Bruce is crowned at Scone by Isabel of Fife, countess of Buchan; Battles of Methven and Dail Righ — Bruce flees Scotland, probably for Ireland; Bruce's brother (Nigel), wife, sisters, and daughter are captured by the English — Nigel is executed. | This is the low-point of Bruce's career: he faces Edward in England, the Comyn's in Scotland, he loses his first two battles and has no army, his wife, daughters, and sisters are captives, his brother Nigel is executed — his only supporters are the church, his subjects in Annandale and Carrick, and the Lords of the Isles. |
| 1307 | Bruce returns — lands at Turnberry; Ambush at Glen Trool, Battle of Loudoun Hill; Bruce's brothers Alexander and Thomas are captured and executed; death of Edward I. | Bruce, starting with almost nothing, wages one of the most remarkable campaigns in military history; beginning with his victories of 1307, he gradually wins back his kingdom, from the Comyns and the English; his achievement is highlighted by numerous acts of personal bravery, military leadership of the first degree, and a keen sense of kingship. |
| 1308 | Galloway campaign; Battle of Brander. | |
| 1309 | St Andrew's Parliament | |
| 1310 | Bruce fights Edward II in Scotland | |
| 1310 | Bruce raids northern England. | |
| 1312 | Bruce again raids northern England; Scoto-Norwegian Treaty of Inverness. | |
| 1313 | Bruce captures Perth, Dumfries, Isle of Man | |
| 1314 | Douglas takes Roxburgh castle; Randolph takes Edinburgh castle; Battle of Bannockburn; Cambuskenneth Parliament | Bruce slays de Bohun, on the eve of Bannockburn
|
| 1316 | Death of Robert Wishart, Bishop of Glasgow; death of Princess Marjorie; Edward Bruce crowned King of Ireland. | |
| 1317 | Bruce in Ireland, fighting for Edward Bruce. | Edward Bruce, although a brave and daring soldier, was not much of a politician; his ridiculous deal with the commander of Stirling Castle forced Bruce's hand at Bannockburn (although things turned out well), and Edward's involvement in Ireland distracted Bruce from more important matters in Scotland, and the Irish campaign did much harm to Robert's health. |
| 1318 | Scots capture Berwick. | |
| 1319 | Edward Bruce dies, near Dundalk; Douglas and Randolph invade England. | Sir James Douglas, "The Black Douglas", and Thomas Randolph, Earl of Moray, were Bruce's most able lieutenants — the trio of Bruce, Randolph, and Randolph were generally recognized as the most able soldiers in Christendom by the time of Bruce's death. |
| 1320 | Declaration of Arbroath; Scone Parliament | "For as long as but a hundred of us remain alive, never will we on any conditions be brought under English rule. It is not for glory, nor riches, nor honours that we are fighting, but for freedom — for that alone, which no honest man gives up but with life itself." From The Declaration of Arbroath 1320. |
| 1322 | Battles of Boroughbridge and (Old) Byland; Bruce raids north Yorkshire. | Bruce presenting charter to the burgesses of Edinburgh
|
| 1323 | Thirteen-year truce. | |
| 1324 | Papacy recognizes Bruce's title as king of Scotland. | |
| 1326 | Franco-Scottish Treaty of Corbeil; succession to Scottish throne settled on Robert's eldest son, David. | |
| 1327 | Edward II dies, succeeded by Edward III; Scots break truce, raid County Durham; Edward III leads an army into the Borders, but is outwitted by Douglas and Randolph at Stanhope Park; Bruce invades Northumberland. | |
| 1328 | Treaty of Edinburgh ratified at Northampton; death of William Lamberton, Bishop of St Andrews; Prince David marries Joan of the Tower, Edward III's sister. | The Treaty of Edinburgh was Bruce's crowning achievement, for it not only brought peace (for a while anyway), but more importantly (in the long view) brought formal recognition of Scotland as an independent kingdom; Robert Wishart and William Lamberton were essential to Bruce's success as a king #151; the second of his old friends dies this year, making success bittersweet. |
| 1329 | Death of Bruce; David II succeeds to the throne. | Thomas Randolph, Earl of Moray, assumed the role of Guardianship during David II's minority. |
| 1330 | Death of Douglas in Spain. | Bruce never had a chance to go on a crusade, so his deathbed wish was for Douglas to take Bruce's heart to the Holy Land — Douglas obliged, but was killed by Saracens in Spain. |
| 1332 | Death of Randolph. | Scots who hae with Wallace bled |
| Constant | Analysis |
|---|---|
| Story | It is tempting to attribute to Robert the Bruce the story of Scotland's independence, as was so eloquently stated in the Declaration of Arbroath. However, we must remember that Bruce had many motivations, and a major one certainly was his ambitions towards the crown of Scotland. Nevertheless, Scotland's story was articulated during Bruce's reign, and the sacrifices made by Wallace, Murray, Douglas, and Randolph were also Bruce's sacrifices, who lost as much as any of them. So, I think it is fair to say that this, the story of independence, as articulated in the Declaration of Arbroath, is Bruce's story. And while it is certainly the case that the Declaration of Arbroath springs from the same soil as the Magna Carta, it is far more eloquent document. Some have even claimed that the echoes of the Declaration of Arbroath can be heard in our own Constitution (see A. Turnbull, "Scotland and America". In Daiches, Jones & Jones [1996] — see the syllabus for a complete reference). |
| Audience | The audience for this story would have consisted certainly of the country's leadership: the greater and lesser nobles, as well as the leaders of the church. However, other groups were emerging in the late medieval period who also would have been responsive to the story of independence. Perhaps the most important of these would have been the burghers of the growing towns. All of these groups — lords, prelates, and burghers — would have consisted mainly of hard-headed realists, and would have seen the benefits of independence primarily in economic and religious terms. The heady idealism of the Declaration of Arbroath would certainly have been appealing, but for them the story of independence was essentially a practical matter. |
| Organization | Bruce assembled an "inner circle" of close who were extremely able, and his success depended greatly on their assistance. Two churchmen were among Bruce's greatest assets, the bishops Robert Wishart of Glasgow and William Lamberton of St Andrews. These two men put the considerable resources of the Scottish Church behind Bruce at his darkest hour, and were a constant source of support. Two warriors were also among Bruce's greatest assets, the knights Sir James Douglas and Earl Thomas Randolph of Moray. Together with Bruce, these men forged a military record that has few peers. |
| Emodiment | Was Bruce the embodiment of his story? Absolutely. A first-class warrior himself, he attracted military men of the highest stature. A pious man himself, he attracted the support of the finest prelates in Scotland. A family man, he endured tragedy after tragedy, and still remained true to his cause and his family. |
| Direct or Indirect? | Robert the Bruce is clearly a direct leader, most noticeably as a military leader, but equally importantly in the other kingly roles as judge, diplomat, and political leader (note the many parliaments during his reign). Treaties with Norway, France, and ultimately, England, are testimony to his diplomatic skills. To the extent that he was responsible for the ideas expressed in Declaration of Arbroath, he could also be called an indirect leader, for this is a document that "rings down the centuries" of Scottish and western history. |
| Expertise | Bruce apparently had it all. He was a fierce and capable warrior in one-on-one combat. He was a superb military commander, who was able to adjust his tactics and strategy to his means. Once he returned to Scotland after his initial defeats, he never lost a battle, even when his brother Edward foolishly forced a confrontation with the English at Stirling. Although his military skills were the foundation for his success, he also must have been skilled in other ways, as is witnessed by the numerous parliaments, charters, and treaties that were achieved during his reign. |
The following texts are excellent introductions to Robert's life and achievements, as well as the broader historical context:
You may also find the following web sites useful resources about Robert the Bruce:
