LIFE
OF
SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
CONSTABLE’S MISCELLANY
OF
Original and Selected Publications
IN THE VARIOUS DEPARTMENTS
OF
LITERATURE, SCIENCE, & THE ARTS.
VOL. LIV.
LIFE OF SIR WILLIAM WALLACE, VOL. II.
[Illustration:
G. F. Sargent. W. Archibald Jun^r
Page 18.]
EDINBURGH:
PRINTED FOR CONSTABLE & C^o. EDINBURGH.
AND HURST, CHANCE, & C^o. LONDON.
1830.
LIFE
OF
SIR WILLIAM WALLACE,
OF
ELDERSLIE.
BY JOHN D. CARRICK.
THE BUGLE NE’ER SUNG TO A BRAVER KNIGHT
THAN WILLIAM OF ELDERSLIE.
THOMAS CAMPBELL.
IN TWO VOLUMES.
VOL. II.
EDINBURGH:
PRINTED FOR CONSTABLE AND CO.;
AND HURST, CHANCE, AND CO., LONDON.
1830.
CONTENTS.
Page
CHAP. I.
Wallace appointed Guardian of the Kingdom.--Invades England.
--Inroad of De Clifford on the South of Scotland 9
CHAP. II.
Wallace returns to Scotland.--Envied by the Nobility.--Edward
lands in England.--Wallace meets his Army at Stanmore.--Battle
of Blackironside.--Legality of Wallace’s Regency.--Edward
Invades Scotland.--Treachery of two Scottish Noblemen 22
CHAP. III.
The English Army advance to Linlithgow.--Battle of Falkirk,
from the Accounts given by English and Scottish Writers.--
Miscellaneous Transactions 36
CHAP. IV.
Notices respecting Sir John Graham and Sir John Stewart.--Conduct
of Cumyn.--Wallace resigns the Guardianship.--Edward returns
home.--Triumphant Procession of the Londoners in honour of his
Victory at Falkirk.--Review of the Campaign 61
CHAP. V.
State of Scotland after the Return of Edward.--Opinion of an
English Spy on the Strength of that Fortress.--Various Exploits
of Wallace.--Edward sends Supplies to the Garrison of Stirling.
--List of Articles sent.--Baliol delivered over to the Pope.--
The Scots besiege Stirling Castle.--Edward raises an Army for
its Relief.--The English Barons Refuse to accompany him.--
Surrender of Stirling Castle.--Conduct of Cumyn 74
CHAP. VI.
Edward again invades Scotland.--Siege of Carlaverock.--
Miscellaneous Occurrences during the Siege 85
CHAP. VII.
Winchelsea, Archbishop of Canterbury, reads a Bull from the
Pope, in the English Camp before Carlaverock.--Edward’s
Answer.--Earl Warren advances to Irvine.--Cruelty of the
English at Lesmahago.--Edward agrees to a Truce.--Wallace
visits France.--Captures a French Pirate.--Notices of
Longueville 98
CHAP. VIII.
Edward again Invades Scotland.--Sir Simon Frazer deserts the
English, and joins his Countrymen.--Wallace returns to
Scotland.--Battle of Roslin 112
CHAP. IX.
Second Visit of Wallace to the French Court.--Encounters an
English Pirate.--The English again enter Scotland.--Submission
to the Nobles.--Wallace returns.--Conflicts with the English.--
Edward destroys and carries off the Records of the Monasteries.
--Marches through the Country.--Wallace follows the Invaders 116
CHAP. X.
Edward’s Policy respecting the Settlement of Scotland.--
Endeavours to gain Wallace to his Interest.--Siege of Stirling.
--It Surrenders.--Conduct of Edward towards the Prisoners.--
Haliburton undertakes to betray Wallace 132
CHAP. XI.
State of the Country.--Bruce invited to take the Crown--Conduct
of Cumyn towards Bruce.--Notice of Cumyn.--Tradition respecting
the Clan Cumyn.--Notice of Kerle.--Wallace betrayed by Menteith 144
CHAP. XII.
Trial, Execution, and Character of Wallace 156
CHAP. XIII.
Conclusion 171
APPENDIX.
A. Original Letter from Sir William Wallace and Sir Andrew Murray 191
B. Memoir of Patrick Earl of Dunbar 199
C. Charter of Protection Granted to the Prior and Convent of
Hexceldsham 203
D. On the intention of Edward to curtail the power of his Barons 205
E. The Setons 206
F. Memoir of Fitz-Marmaduke 210
G. Memoir of Brian Fitz-Alan 213
H. Memoir of Aymer de Valence, Earl of Pembroke 216
I. Memoir of Henry de Lacy, Earl of Lincoln 227
K. Memoirs of Richard Siward and Walter de Huntercombe 235
L. Memoir of Sir Simon Fraser 242
M. Extracts from the Wardrobe Accounts 254
N. Trial of Wallace 258
O. On the Martyrdom of Wallace 259
P. On the Personal Appearance of Wallace 269
Q. Reminiscence of Wallace 272
R. Wallace’s Descendants 277
S. On the Treachery of Menteith 280
T. Singular Legend 292
U. Verses on the Death of Wallace 294
LIFE
OF
SIR WILLIAM WALLACE.
CHAPTER I.
WALLACE APPOINTED GUARDIAN OF THE KINGDOM.--INVADES ENGLAND.--INROAD OF
DE CLIFFORD ON THE SOUTH OF SCOTLAND.
Stirling Castle capitulated immediately after the battle, and Sir
Marmaduke Twenge,[1] who had taken shelter in it, was sent prisoner
to Dumbarton. The surrender of the castle of Dundee followed; and,
with the exception of the garrisons remaining in Roxburgh, Berwick,
and Dunbar, Scotland was once more completely cleared of her invaders.
These places, with the exception of the last, were also given up, as
soon as they were summoned by the leaders of the Scottish army; and
about this time, at a meeting held in the Forest-kirk, Selkirkshire,
Wallace was elected, or declared Regent of Scotland, in the name of
King John; the appointment being sanctioned by the presence of the Earl
of Lennox, Sir William Douglas, and a number of the most powerful among
the nobility.
Thus armed with legitimate authority, the newly appointed Guardian
began to exercise it in the manner that he conceived would be most
conducive to the general interest and welfare of the country. He had
often experienced the difficulties which feudal vassalage presented
to his efforts in behalf of the national independence. The numerous
serfs who were retained in bondage by the more powerful barons, could
be either restrained from taking up arms, or withdrawn at the caprice
of their masters, even when their services were of the greatest
importance. A power so dangerous in the hands of a party comparatively
small, had been productive of the most ruinous consequences. To reform
a system pregnant with mischief, and one at the same time so much in
favour with the prejudices of the age, required wisdom and energy, such
as he possessed. Aware of the opposition which an open and declared
attempt to emancipate the _adscripti glebæ_ would create,--he attacked
the system in the only part where it appeared to be vulnerable. Having
divided the country into districts, he caused a muster-roll to be made
out, containing the names of all who were capable of bearing arms
between the age of sixteen and sixty. These he divided and subdivided
in a manner peculiarly his own. Over every four men he appointed a
fifth; over every nine, a tenth; over every nineteen, a twentieth; and
thus continued the gradation of rank till it reached the chiliarch, or
commander of a thousand.[2] In the different parishes, gibbets were
also erected to enforce obedience to these regulations; and whoever
refused to appear for the defence of his country when summoned, was
hung up as an example to others. Those barons who interposed their
authority to prevent their vassals from joining the ranks of the
patriots, were either punished with imprisonment, or confiscation of
property.
Though the active and restless mind of Wallace may now seem to have had
full employment in the various duties of his office,--yet, amidst the
multiplicity of objects of internal policy which occupied his time, the
resuscitation of the foreign trade of the kingdom appears to have had
its proper share of his attention. The advantage which Scotland derived
from her foreign commercial intercourse, as has been already stated,
was too important to be soon forgotten; and the heroic and faithful
conduct of the Flemings at the siege of Berwick, was too recent not to
be dwelt on with grateful remembrance. In order, therefore, to renew
the connection with those useful strangers, accredited persons appear
to have been despatched with letters to the free towns of Hamburg and
Lubeck.[3]
Having provided for the necessary supplies of men, the Guardian
determined on retaliating the injuries Scotland had sustained at
the hands of her late oppressors. Meanwhile a famine,--the natural
consequence of the neglect of agriculture during the unsettled state of
the country, had begun to make its appearance; and was soon followed
by a pestilence,--occasioned, doubtless, by the multitude of putrid
carcasses which remained, partially at least, if not altogether,
exposed after the recent carnage. To alleviate, as far as possible, the
misery consequent on those dreaded calamities, he commanded all the
standing crops to be carefully gathered in, and stored up in barns and
yards under proper regulations, to meet the exigencies of the country
during winter. In order, at the same time, to concentrate the strength
and resources of the country, and establish that unanimity so necessary
for its defence, he summoned all the vassals of the Scottish crown to
meet him at Perth. From this parliament, which was pretty numerously
attended, Patrick, Earl of Dunbar, thought proper to absent himself.
The great power and military experience of this baron, joined to the
circumstance of his occupying a fortress which was considered as the
key of the _eastern_ part of the kingdom, made it an object of some
importance that his allegiance should be unquestionable. An early
partisan of Edward, he had as yet shown no disposition to relinquish
his unnatural connection with the enemy. When the subject of his
absence came, therefore, to be discussed before the Scottish Nobles,
they unanimously resolved on proceeding against him without delay.
Wallace, however, proposed the more gentle expedient of remonstrance,
before having recourse to extremities; and a deputation was accordingly
sent, to request his attendance as a Scottish Peer, in order to take
part in the government of the country, and to aid, with his counsel
and his arms, in the establishment of the national independence.
Possessed of large dominions in England, as well as an extensive
inheritance in Scotland, this Earl felt little inclination to incur
the displeasure of his Lord Paramount in the South, by a too ready
accession to the cause of liberty in the North; and he accordingly
returned a haughty and scornful answer, no way calculated to allay the
prejudice which his former contemptuous behaviour had excited against
him. As soon, therefore, as the various objects which had engaged the
attention of the parliament were disposed of, Wallace proceeded, with
a select body of four hundred men, to reduce the turbulent chieftain.
A little to the east of Dunbar, the Guardian found the Earl awaiting
his approach at the head of nine hundred followers; and a desperate
conflict immediately commenced, which ended in the flight of Patrick,
who escaped to England.[4] The castle of Dunbar was in consequence
surrendered to the victor, who gave it in charge to Sir Christopher
Seton, with a competent garrison for its defence.
1297. Early in October a proclamation was issued for every one capable
of bearing arms to appear on the moor of Roslin. An immense multitude
attended. The most vigorous and the best equipped were then selected;
and having thus embodied an efficient, numerous, and gallant army,
Wallace excited their ardour by a short and animating address, in
which he told them, that, united as they were, with only one glorious
object in view, they had nothing but victory to expect,--their country
had been stript of its wealth by their late oppressors, and it was
now their duty and interest to recover it, and punish the aggressors.
The army[5] then proceeded in high spirits towards the English
frontier,--their leader rightly judging, that, by withdrawing so many
men, a larger quantity of provisions would remain for those left
behind; and by adopting this measure, his soldiers also, while they
escaped from the contagion which had appeared in Scotland, would be
moreover rewarded for their past labours, by the riches they would find
in the more flourishing regions of the South; which, having enjoyed a
long interval of peace, might be conceived to be overflowing with that
description of wealth most desirable in the estimation of the needy
adventurers of the North;--and the latter, no doubt, as they drove home
their lowing and bleating prey from the rich pastures of Durham and the
neighbouring counties, considered that they were merely removing their
own property, of which they had been unjustly deprived by the tyranny
of the English.
In this expedition, Wallace divided the command of the army with Sir
Andrew Murray of Bothwell, the promising son of the brave Sir Andrew,
who fell in the late engagement. This honour he may have thought due to
the patriotic conduct of the father, in adhering to the fortunes of his
country, amidst the general defection of the Scottish barons. And--as
it might tend to give the _lie_ to those reports which began to be
circulated of an intention to aggrandize himself at the expense of the
aristocracy,--the appointment was evidently a measure of judicious and
honourable policy.
On the approach of the Scottish army, the inhabitants of Northumberland
deserted their dwellings, and fled to Newcastle, carrying with them
their wives and children, their cattle and household stuff. The
Guardian, however, for a short time delayed his advance; and having
received notice that several of the burgesses of Aberdeen, and others
in that quarter, had disobeyed his summons to appear at Roslin, he
hurried back to the North, where, on apprehending the parties, those
whose excuses were inadmissible, he ordered for immediate execution.
Hastily rejoining his forces, he crossed the Border, and succeeded in
surprising the English, who, thinking the storm had blown over, were
returned to their homes.
The Scots now commenced their destructive reprisals, by wasting with
fire and sword the counties of Cumberland and Northumberland. In this
work of devastation they were assisted by Robert de Ros of Werk, a
great northern baron, who, as we have already observed, had deserted
the standard of Edward in 1295. It is presumed that the same influence
which formerly seduced him from his loyalty, still existed; and it is
a pity that the name of the lady who made so patriotic a use of her
charms, has not been preserved by the historians of her country.
The former inroads of the Scots were trifling, compared with the
wide-spreading desolation which now marked their career. The havoc they
made, and the spoils they collected, are feelingly dwelt on by the
English writers of the day. Langtoft thus expresses himself:--
“To werre than ros thei eft, tille God thei mad a vowe,
That no thing suld be left, that myght to Inglond prowe,
Mercy suld none haue, tille alle thei suld do wo,
Kirke suld no man saue, bot brenne ther in & slo.
In Northumberland ther first thei bigan,
& alle that com tille hande, they slouh and ouer ran
To Flandres tille Edward tithinges men him sent,
That Scottis com in hard, the North is nere alle brent,
& more salle zit be lorn, bot if we haf socoure.
Nouht standes tham biforn, toun, castelle ne toure.”
Vol. ii. p. 298, 299.
Hemingford says, “At this time the praise of God was not heard in any
church or monastery through the whole country, from Newcastle-upon-Tyne
to the gates of Carlisle; for the monks and canons regular, and other
priests who were ministers of the Lord, fled with the whole people from
the face of the enemy; nor was there any to oppose them, except now and
then a few English who belonged to the Castle of Alnwick, who ventured
from their strongholds, and slew some stragglers. But these were but
slight successes; and the Scots roved over the country[6] from the
Feast of St Luke to St Martin’s day, inflicting on it all the miseries
of rapine and bloodshed.”[7]
The Guardian having summoned in all his plundering parties, and
concentrated his army, directed his march towards Carlisle. The sack
of this city would have been most desirable to the invaders, not only
on account of its riches, but also as in some measure enabling them to
avenge the injuries inflicted upon Berwick. The place, however, was
strongly fortified; and the Scots not being provided with a battering
train, they had to content themselves with sending a summons; which,
being disregarded by the garrison, they passed on, and laid waste
Cumberland and Allerdale, from Inglewood Forest to Derwentwater and
Cockermouth. Winter now advanced:--the frost set in with uncommon
severity,--and the Scots, who had created a desert around them, began
also to dread the miseries of famine, as well as the inclemency of the
season. Their encampments could now be traced by the frozen bodies of
those who had perished during the night from the intensity of the cold.
Under these circumstances, Wallace gave orders for their return to
Scotland.
On their reaching Hexceldsham,[8] the monastery of which had been
plundered during their advance, the following singular scene is said
by Hemmingford to have occurred. Three monks, all who had the courage
to remain, were observed in a small chapel. Thinking that the danger
was over, they had forsaken their concealments, and were endeavouring
to repair the damages of the late visitation, when, in the midst of
their labours, they discovered the Scottish army returning, and fled in
dismay to the oratory. The soldiers, however, with their long spears,
were soon among them; and brandishing their weapons, commanded them, at
their peril, to give up the treasures of the monastery. “Alas!” said
one of the monks, “it is but a short time since you yourselves have
seized our whole property, and you know best where it now is.” At this
juncture Wallace entered, and commanding his soldiers to be silent,
requested one of the monks to perform mass: he obeyed, and the Guardian
and his attendants heard the service with becoming reverence. When
the elevation of the host was about to take place, Wallace retired
for a moment to lay aside his helmet and arms. Instantly the avarice
and ferocity of the soldiers broke out. They pressed upon the priest,
snatched the cup from the high altar, tore away the ornaments and
sacred vestments, and even stole the book which contained the ceremony.
When their leader returned, he found the priest in fear and horror at
the sacrilege. Wallace, indignant at such conduct, gave orders that the
villains should be searched for, and put to death. In the mean time, he
took the monks under his own special protection.
As some atonement for the outrage committed, the Guardian granted to
the monks of Hexceldsham a charter of protection for twelve months,
from the 7th November 1297,[9] by which their lives and property
were held sacred. “The prohibition,” says Lord Hailes, “to slay any
ecclesiastic of the monastery of Hexceldsham, shows that the Scots had
been guilty of uncommon barbarities.” Had his Lordship said that the
conduct of the Scots was merely an humble imitation of the example
which the English had set them in their “Good Friday” _revelries_ at
the sack of Berwick, he would have been nearer the truth. We find
no such restraint put upon the English soldiery, who were allowed
to murder their lay and clerical victims indiscriminately; not even
excepting nuns, whose sex, independent of every other consideration,
ought to have been their protection. If a shadow of humanity can be
discovered in the mode of warfare carried on by the two nations, it
certainly belongs of right to those who published a prohibition of such
enormities. In the invasion by the Scots in 1296, there is no charge
brought against them of killing priests. Langtoft says, vol. ii. p.
273, that in coming to Hexham and Leynertofte, they merely chased out
the chanons, and took away their goods. Their subsequent severity must
therefore have been forced upon them by their enemies.
English writers have lamented, with eloquence and pathos, the cruelties
exercised in this invasion; and from their silence respecting the
atrocities of their own countrymen, have endeavoured to fix the
stain of exclusive barbarity on the arms of Scotland. This is all
natural enough, and quite consistent with that national prejudice by
which the people of every country are more or less imbued; but it is
painfully mortifying, when we find Scotchmen of acknowledged talent
and penetration forgetting what is due to themselves and to their
country; and from a weak fear of being thought illiberal, following
humbly in the train of such authors, and echoing their reflections;
or favouringly assenting to their _ex parte_ statements, in place
of standing forward and showing the world, that their countrymen,
in resorting to such severities, merely exercised a system of fair
retaliation, for the purpose of repressing enormities of the deepest
dye, committed in support of an aggression of the most unparalleled
baseness.
During the time the Scottish army was engaged in ravaging the northern
counties of England, Robert de Clifford, at the head of one hundred
men-at-arms, and twenty thousand foot, left Carlisle, and proceeded to
plunder in Scotland. His success, however, was not great, having killed
three hundred and eight Scots, burned two villages, and taken a few
prisoners, with whom he returned home about Christmas.
Whilst the Guardian was thus successfully prosecuting the cause of his
country’s independence, his efforts, at the same time, were becoming
daily more beneficial to the real liberties of the very people to whom
he was opposed. Elated, first by the conquest of Wales, and afterwards
by that of Scotland, Edward had already begun to stretch forth the
iron road of oppression over the legitimate subjects of his own native
kingdom; and, trusting to the assistance he should receive from the
barons of his newly acquired conquests, who, he might naturally suppose
would not be found reluctant to act as instruments in holding their
late conquerors in subjection, he assumed, towards the nobles of
England, an air of haughty superiority that awakened their jealousy,
and alarmed their fears. But as the investigation of this subject would
interrupt the course of our narrative, we shall reserve it till the end
of the volume.[10]