In Freedom's Cause : A Story of Wallace and Bruce

by G. A. Henty

  Chapter IX

  The Battle of Stirling Bridge

  Upon rejoining his force Sir William Wallace called the few knightsand gentlemen who were with him together, and said to them:

  "Methinks, gentlemen, that the woes of this contest should not fallupon one side only. Every one of you here are outlawed, and if youare taken by the English will be executed or thrown in prison forlife, and your lands and all belonging to you forfeited. It is timethat those who fight upon the other side should learn that theytoo run some risk. Besides leading his vassals in the field againstus, Sir John Kerr twice in arms has attacked me, and done his bestto slay me or deliver me over to the English. He fell yesterday bymy hand at Stirling, and I hereby declare forfeit the land whichhe held in the county of Lanark, part of which he wrongfully tookfrom Sir William Forbes, and his own fief adjoining. Other broadlands he owns in Ayrshire, but these I will not now touch; but thelands in Lanark, both his own fief and that of the Forbeses, I,as Warden of Scotland, hereby declare forfeit and confiscated, andbestow them upon my good friend, Sir Archie Forbes. Sir John Grahame,do you proceed tomorrow with five hundred men and take possessionof the hold of the Kerrs. Sir Allan Kerr is still at Stirling, andwill not be there to defend it. Like enough the vassals will makeno resistance, but will gladly accept the change of masters. TheKerrs have the reputation of being hard lords, and their vassalscannot like being forced to fight against the cause of their country.The hired men-at-arms may resist, but you will know how to makeshort work of these. I ask you to go rather than Sir ArchibaldForbes, because I would not that it were said that he took theKerr's hold on his private quarrel. When you have captured it heshall take a hundred picked men as a garrison. The place is strong.

  "Your new possessions, Archie, will, as you know, be held ondoubtful tenure. If we conquer, and Scotland is freed, I doubt inno way that the king, whoever he may be, will confirm my grant.If the English win, your land is lost, be it an acre or a county.And now let me be the first to congratulate you on having won byyour sword and your patriotism the lands of your father, and onhaving repaid upon your family's enemies the measure which theymeted to you. But you will still have to beware of the Kerrs. Theyare a powerful family, being connected by marriage with the Comynsof Badenoch, and other noble houses. Their lands in Ayr are asextensive as those in Lanark, even with your father's lands addedto their own. However, if Scotland win the day the good work thatyou have done should well outweigh all the influence which theymight bring to bear against you.

  "And now, Archie, I can, for a time, release you. Ere long Edward'sarmy will be pouring across the Border, and then I shall need everygood Scotchman's sword. Till then you had best retire to your newestates, and spend the time in preparing your vassals to followyou in the field, and in putting one or other of your castles inthe best state of defence you may. Methinks that the Kerr's holdmay more easily be made to withstand a lengthened siege than GlenCairn, seeing that the latter is commanded by the hill beside it.Kerr's castle, too, is much larger and more strongly fortified. Ineed no thanks," he continued, as Archie was about to express hiswarm gratitude; "it is the Warden of Scotland who rewards yourservices to the country; but Sir William Wallace will not forgethow you have twice stood beside him against overwhelming odds, andhow yesterday, in Stirling, it was your watchful care and thoughtfulprecaution which alone saved his life."

  Archie's friends all congratulated him warmly, and the next morning,with his own band, he started for Glen Cairn. Here the news thathe was once more their lawful chief caused the greatest delight.It was evening when he reached the village, and soon great bonfiresblazed in the street, and as the news spread burned up from manyan outlying farm. Before night all the vassals of the estate camein, and Glen Cairn and the village was a scene of great enthusiasm.

  Much as Archie regretted that he could not establish himself inthe hold of his father, he felt that Wallace's suggestion was theright one. Glen Cairn was a mere shell, and could in no case bemade capable of a prolonged resistance by a powerful force. Whereas,the castle of the Kerrs was very strong. It was a disappointmentto his retainers when they heard that he could not at once returnamong them; but they saw the force of his reasons, and he promisedthat if Scotland was freed and peace restored, he would again makeGlen Cairn habitable, and pass some of his time there.

  "In the meantime," he said, "I shall be but eight miles from you,and the estate will be all one. But now I hope that for the nextthree months every man among you will aid me--some by personallabour, some by sending horses and carts--in the work ofstrengthening to the utmost my new castle of Aberfilly, which Iwish to make so strong that it will long resist an attack. ShouldScotland be permanently conquered, which may God forfend, it couldnot, of course, be held; but should we have temporary reverses wemight well hold out until our party again gather head."

  Every man on the estate promised his aid to an extent far beyondthat which Archie, as their feudal superior, had a right to demandfrom them. They had had a hard time under the Kerrs, who had raisedall rents, and greatly increased their feudal services. They weresure of good treatment should the Forbeses make good their positionas their lords, and were ready to make any sacrifices to aid themto do so.

  Next morning a messenger arrived from Sir John Grahame, saying thathe had, during the night, stormed Aberfilly, and that with scarcean exception all the vassals of the Kerrs--when upon his arrivalon the previous day they had learned of his purpose in coming,and of the disposition which Wallace had made of the estate--hadaccepted the change with delight, and had joined him in the assaultupon the castle, which was defended only by thirty men-at-arms.These had all been killed, and Sir John invited Archie to rideover at once and take possession. This he did, and found that thevassals of the estate were all gathered at the castle to welcomehim. He was introduced to them by Sir John Grahame, and theyreceived Archie with shouts of enthusiasm, and all swore obedienceto him as their feudal lord. Archie promised them to be a kindand lenient chief, to abate any unfair burdens which had been laidupon them, and to respect all their rights.

  "But," he said, "just at first I must ask for sacrifices from you.This castle is strong, but it must be made much stronger, and mustbe capable of standing a continued siege in case temporary reversesshould enable the English to endeavour to retake it for theirfriend, Sir Allan Kerr. My vassals at Glen Cairn have promised anaid far beyond that which I can command, and I trust that you alsowill extend your time of feudal service, and promise you a relaxationin future years equivalent to the time you may now give."

  The demand was readily assented to, for the tenants of Aberfillywere no less delighted than those of Glen Cairn to escape from therule of the Kerrs. Archie, accompanied by Sir John Grahame, nowmade an inspection of the walls of his new hold. It stood just wherethe counties of Linlithgow and Edinburgh join that of Lanark. Itwas built on an island on a tributary of the Clyde. The stream wasbut a small one, and the island had been artificially made, so thatthe stream formed a moat on either side of it, the castle occupyinga knoll of ground which rose somewhat abruptly from the surroundingcountry. The moat was but twelve feet wide, and Archie and Sir Johndecided that this should be widened to fifty feet and deepened toten, and that a dam should be built just below the castle to keepback the stream and fill the moat. The walls should everywhere beraised ten feet, several strong additional flanking towers added,and a work built beyond the moat to guard the head of the drawbridge.With such additions Aberfilly would be able to stand a long siegeby any force which might assail it.

  Timber, stones, and rough labour there were in abundance, andWallace had insisted upon Archie's taking from the treasures whichhad been captured from the enemy, a sum of money which would beample to hire skilled masons from Lanark, and to pay for the cement,iron, and other necessaries which would be beyond the resourcesof the estate. These matters in train, Archie rode to Lanark andfetched his proud and rejoicing mother from Sir Robert Gordon'sto Aberfilly. She was accompanied by Sandy Graham
and Elspie: theformer Archie appointed majordomo, and to be in command of thegarrison whenever he should be absent.

  The vassals were as good as their word. For three months the workof digging, quarrying, cutting, and squaring timber and buildingwent on without intermission. There were upon the estates fullythree hundred ablebodied men, and the work progressed rapidly. When,therefore, Archie received a message from Wallace to join him nearStirling, he felt that he could leave Aberfilly without any fearof a successful attack being made upon it in his absence.

  There was need, indeed, for all the Scotch, capable of bearingarms, to gather round Wallace. Under the Earl of Surrey, the hightreasurer Cressingham, and other leaders, an army of 50,000 footand 1000 horse were advancing from Berwick, while 8000 foot and300 horse under Earl Percy advanced from Carlisle. Wallace wasbesieging the castle of Dundee when he heard of their approach,and leaving the people of Dundee to carry on the siege under thecommand of Sir Alexander Scrymgeour, he himself marched to defendthe only bridge by which Edward could cross the Forth, near Stirling.

  Thus far Surrey had experienced no resistance, and at the headof so large and well appointed a force he might well feel sureof success. A large proportion of his army consisted of veteransinured to service in wars at home, in Wales, and with the French,while the mail clad knights and men-at-arms looked with absolutecontempt upon the gathering which was opposed to them. This consistedsolely of popular levies of men who had left their homes and takenup arms for the freedom of their country. They were rudely armed andhastily trained. Of all the feudal nobles of Scotland who should haveled them, but one, Sir Andrew Moray, was present. Their commanderwas still little more than a youth, who, great as was his individualvalour and prowess, had had no experience in the art of war ona large scale; while the English were led by a general whose famewas known throughout Europe.

  The Scots took up their station upon the high ground north of theForth, protected from observation by the precipitous hill immediatelybehind Cambuskenneth Abbey and known as the Abbey Craig. In a bendof the river, opposite the Abbey Craig, stood the bridge by whichthe English army were preparing to cross. Archie stood besideWallace on the top of the craig, looking at the English array.

  "It is a fair sight," he said; "the great camp, with its pavilions,its banners, and pennons, lying there in the valley, with the oldcastle rising on the lofty rock behind them. It is a pity that sucha sight should bode evil to Scotland."

  "Yes," Wallace said; "I would that the camp lay where it is, butthat the pennons and banners were those of Scotland's nobles, andthat the royal lions floated over Surrey's tent. Truly that werea sight which would glad a Scot's heart. When shall we see oughtlike it? However, Archie," he went on in a lighter tone, "methinksthat that will be a rare camp to plunder."

  Archie laughed. "One must kill the lion before one talks of dividinghis skin," he said; "and truly it seems well nigh impossible thatsuch a following as yours, true Scots and brave men though theybe, yet altogether undisciplined and new to war, should be able tobear the brunt of such a battle."

  "You are thinking of Dunbar," Wallace said; "and did we fight insuch a field our chances would be poor; but with that broad riverin front and but a narrow bridge for access, methinks that we canrender an account of them."

  "God grant it be so!" Archie replied; "but I shall be right gladwhen the day is over."

  Three days before the battle the Steward of Scotland, the Earl ofLennox, and others of the Scotch magnates entered Surrey's campand begged that he would not attack until they tried to induce thepeople to lay down their arms. They returned, however, on the thirdday saying that they would not listen to them, but that the nextday they would, themselves, join his army with their men-at-arms.On leaving the camp that evening the Scotch nobles, riding homeward,had a broil with some English soldiers, of whom one was wounded bythe Earl of Lennox. News being brought to Surrey, he resolved towait no longer, but gave orders that the assault should take placeon the following morning. At daybreak of the 11th of September,1297, one of the outposts woke Wallace with the news that the Englishwere crossing the bridge. The troops were at once got under arms,and were eager to rush down to commence the battle, but Wallacerestrained them. Five thousand Welsh foot soldiers crossed thebridge, then there was a pause, and none were seen following them."Were we to charge down now, Sir William," Archie said, "surely wemight destroy that body before aid could come to them."

  "We could do, Archie, as you say," Wallace replied, "but sucha success would be of little worth, nay, would harm rather thanbenefit us, for Surrey, learning that we are not altogether to bedespised, as he now believes, would be more prudent in future andwould keep his army in the flat country, where we could do noughtagainst it. No, to win much one must risk much, and we must waituntil half Surrey's army is across before we venture down againstthem."

  Presently the Welsh were seen to retire again. Their movement hadbeen premature. Surrey was still asleep, and nothing could be doneuntil he awoke; when he did so the army armed leisurely, after whichSurrey bestowed the honour of knighthood upon many young aspirants.The number of the Scots under Wallace is not certainly known; themajority of the estimates place it below twenty thousand, and asthe English historian, who best describes the battle, speaks of itas the defeat of the many by the few, it can certainly be assumedthat it did not exceed this number.

  Only on the ground of his utter contempt for the enemy can theconduct of the Earl of Surrey, in attempting to engage in such aposition, be understood. The bridge was wide enough for but two,or at most three, horsemen to cross abreast, and when those who hadcrossed were attacked assistance could reach them but slowly fromthe rear.

  The English knights and men-at-arms, with the Royal Standard andthe banner of the Earl of Surrey, crossed first. The men-at-armswere followed by the infantry, who, as they passed, formed up onthe tongue of land formed by the winding of the river.

  When half the English army had passed Wallace gave the order toadvance. First Sir Andrew Moray, with two thousand men, descendedthe hills farther to the right, and on seeing these the Englishcavalry charged at once against them. The instant they did soWallace, with his main army, poured down from the craig impetuouslyand swept away the English near the head of the bridge, takingpossession of the end, and by showers of arrows and darts preventingany more from crossing. By this maneuver the whole of the Englishinfantry who had crossed were cut off from their friends and inclosedin the narrow promontory.

  The English men-at-arms had succeeded in overthrowing the Scots,against whom they had charged, and had pursued them some distance;but upon drawing rein and turning to rejoin the army, they foundthe aspect of affairs changed indeed. The troops left at the headof the bridge were overthrown and destroyed. The royal banner andthat of Surrey were down, and the bridge in the possession of theenemy. The men-at-arms charged back and strove in vain to recoverthe head of the bridge. The Scots fought stubbornly; those in frontmade a hedge of pikes, while those behind hurled darts and pouredshowers of arrows into the English ranks. The greater proportionof the men-at-arms were killed. One valiant knight alone, SirMarmaduke de Twenge, with his nephew and a squire, cut their waythrough the Scots, and crossed the bridge. Many were drowned inattempting to swim the river, one only succeeding in so gainingthe opposite side.

  The men-at-arms defeated, Wallace and the chosen band under him,who had been engaged with them, joined those who were attacking theEnglish and Welsh, now cooped up in the promontory. Flushed withthe success already gained the Scots were irresistible, and almostevery man who had crossed was either killed or drowned in attemptingto swim the river. No sooner had he seen that the success in thisquarter was secure than Wallace led a large number of his followersacross the bridge. Here the English, who still outnumbered his army,and who had now all the advantage of position which had previouslybeen on the side of the Scots, might have defended the bridge, orin good order have given him battle on the other side. The sight,however, of the terrible disaster
which had befallen nearly halftheir number before their eyes, without their being able to renderthem the slightest assistance, had completely demoralized them,and as soon as the Scotch were seen to be crossing the bridge theyfled in terror. A hot pursuit was kept up by the fleet footed andlightly armed Scots, and great numbers of fugitives were slain.

  More than 20,000 English perished in the battle or flight, and theremainder crossed the Border a mere herd of broken fugitives.

  The Earl of Surrey, before riding off the field, committed the chargeof the Castle of Stirling to Sir Marmaduke de Twenge, promising himthat he would return to his relief within ten weeks at the utmost.All the tents, wagons, horses, provisions, and stores of the Englishfell into the hands of their enemies, and every Scotch soldierobtained rich booty.

  Cressingham was among the number killed. It was said by oneEnglish historian, and his account has been copied by many others,that Cressingham's body was flayed and his skin divided among theScots; but there appears no good foundation for the story, althoughprobably Cressingham, who had rendered himself peculiarly obnoxiousand hateful to the Scots, was hewn in pieces. But even were itproved that the ill story is a true one, it need excite no surprise,seeing the wholesale slaying, plundering, and burning which hadbeen carried on by the English, and that the Scottish prisonersfalling into their hands were often mutilated and tortured beforebeing executed and quartered. The English historians were fond ofcrying out that the Scotch were a cruel and barbarous people wheneverthey retaliated for the treatment which they suffered; but so farfrom this being the case, it is probable that the Scotch, beforethe first invasion of Edward, were a more enlightened and, fortheir numbers, a more well-to-do people than the English. They hadfor many years enjoyed peace and tranquillity, and under the longand prosperous reign of Alexander had made great advances, whileEngland had been harassed by continuous wars and troubles at homeand abroad. Its warlike barons, when not engaged under its monarchsin wars in Wales, Ireland, and France, occupied themselves in quarrelswith each other, or in struggles against the royal supremacy; andalthough the higher nobles, with their mailclad followers, couldshow an amount of chivalrous pomp unknown in Scotland, yet thecondition of the middle classes and of the agricultural populationwas higher in Scotland than in England.

  Archie, as one of the principal leaders of the victorious army,received a share of the treasure captured in the camp sufficient torepay the money which he had had for the strengthening of the Castleof Aberfilly, and on the day following the battle he receivedpermission from Sir William to return at once, with the 250 retainerswhich he had brought into the field, to complete the rebuilding ofthe castle. In another three months this was completed, and storesof arms and munition of all kinds collected.

  Immediately after the defeat at Stirling Bridge, King Edward summonedthe Scottish nobles to join Brian Fitzallan, whom he appointedgovernor of Scotland, with their whole forces, for the purpose ofputting down the rebellion. Among those addressed as his allies werethe Earls Comyn of Badenoch, Comyn of Buchan, Patrick of Dunbar,Umfraville of Angus, Alexander of Menteith, Malise of Strathearn,Malcolm of Lennox, and William of Sutherland, together with Jamesthe Steward, Nicholas de la Haye, Ingelram de Umfraville, RichardFraser, and Alexander de Lindsay of Crawford. From this enumerationit is clear that Wallace had still many enemies to contend with athome as well as the force of England. Patrick of Dunbar, assistedby Robert Bruce and Bishop Anthony Beck, took the field, but wasdefeated. Wallace captured all the castles of the earl save Dunbaritself, and forced him to fly to England; then the Scotch armypoured across the Border and retaliated upon the northern countiesfor the deeds which the English had been performing in Scotlandfor the last eight years. The country was ravaged to the very wallsof Durham and Carlisle, and only those districts which bought offthe invaders were spared. The title which had been bestowed uponWallace by a comparatively small number was now ratified by thecommonalty of the whole of Scotland; and associated with him wasthe young Sir Andrew Moray of Bothwell, whose father had been theonly Scotch noble who had fought at Stirling, and it is notablethat in some of the documents of the time Wallace gives precedenceto Andrew Moray.

  They proceeded to effect a military organization of the country,dividing it up into districts, each with commanders and lieutenants.Order was established and negotiations entered into for the mutualsafeguard of traders with the Hanse towns.

  The nobles who ventured to oppose the authority of Wallace and hiscolleague were punished in some cases by the confiscation of lands,which were bestowed upon Sir Alexander Scrymgeour and other loyalgentlemen, and these grants were recognized by Bruce when he becameking. In these deeds of grant Wallace and Moray, although acting asgovernors of Scotland, state that they do so in the name of Baliolas king, although a helpless captive in England. For a short timeScotland enjoyed peace, save that Earl Percy responded to the raidsmade by the Scots across the Border, by carrying fire and swordthrough Annandale; and the English writers who complain of theconduct of the Scots, have no word of reprobation for the proclamationissued to the soldiers on crossing the Border, that they were freeto plunder where they chose, nor as to the men and women slain,nor the villages and churches committed to the flames.